Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Good evening, and welcome.

Across the omniverse, cards had been found in people’s inventories. A stationery postcard, with violet text and a background in shades of lavender, that reads of an estate cordially inviting the reader to the opening celebration of The Violet Banquet.

Specifying a nine-day span during Valentine season, it encourages attendees to arrive in formal purple dancewear, then adds that transportation and refreshments would be on the house. But the last line…

𝓣𝓸 𝓪𝓬𝓬𝓮𝓹𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓲𝓷𝓿𝓲𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷, 𝓼𝓲𝓶𝓹𝓵𝔂 𝓸𝓹𝓮𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓭 𝓾𝓹𝓸𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓪𝓹𝓹𝓸𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓭𝓪𝓽𝓮.

At the time they were first discovered, this instruction was esoteric– anyone would’ve wondered what the instructions could mean by “opening” it on the appointed date to accept– but, looking at one again, the front of the postcard is now the outside of a folded card.
And upon opening, the inside is… a view of a mansion– it must be the Violet Estate.

It’s like looking through a window.

Opening the cards as wide as the holder can, they come to life like the page of a pop-up book. They expand themselves until they match the placement and dimensions of a door.
Passing through, each portal closes behind the addressee, and shrinks back into a normal-sized card to return themselves to the current holder’s inventory.

…

…And so, the guests are finally arriving.

Inside, one after another, a flurry of cards scattered across the grounds in front of a three-story mansion– and on the floor of its candlelit entrance hall– lift themselves and complete their flipsides’ transformations into doorways. Attendees begin to trickle in, overseen by a suited figure– the same suited figure– from both the top of the stairs, and between the dimly-lit verandas.
They seem to be some kind of boss monster, perhaps not too distantly related to the Dreemurr family or their species. Though their tail betrays their agitation, they maintain a polite posture and take a deep breath as soon as enough arrivals gather…

“–Good evening, everyone, thank you all for coming!” As they begin giving a speech, their voice comes from all around. Their visage echoes all around. “You may all call me Ridwan, they or any. All of you have been invited here for a festive nine-night vacation. You will find guest rooms on the upper floors, and a list of the house rules on the backside of your cards. I have been looking for the right opportunity to open my estate to visitors after such a long time– and what better occasion than Valentine’s Day– a time to celebrate connection– togetherness– growing closer! May these next nights commemorate new connections for us all, from all across the multiverses… so, welcome to the Violet Banquet… May the festivities begin!”

Outside, The surrounding chorus of Ridwans outside punctuate the declaration by flourishing their palms skyward– and the Ridwan inside sweeps their palms outward. Right on cue, a pop of fireworks ignites above, raining pink and purple sparks overhead.
As the flash fades out, all but one Ridwan flicker out of existence– and in the same moment, lights inside and outside the mansion all come alive.

The party has begun.

The multiversal vacationers will waste no time exploring their week-long getaway– in the wing to the left, a dance hall and an arcade lounge wrap around the dueling grounds outside– and in the wing to the right, a dining hall and a billiard bar wrap around a gazebo. Between the dance and dining halls, a theatre, and above them, balconies enjoy a clear view of the the gardens fanning out across the front of the estate– and the orchard framing a hedge maze out back. Inside spans an impressive two-story library, with a set of stairs in one corner leading to a private study. Across the skywalk from the study, and a help desk between the upstairs library entrances, an atrium and the upstairs hall to the guest rooms.

And, as stated earlier, the backs of the invitations show a few house rules to follow:

• Please respect the host, the staff, the other guests, and the flowers.
• The estate cannot be stolen from, vandalized, or destroyed.
• Violence is for the ⁠dueling grounds only.
• Only adults may be allowed to drink the alcohol.
• Watch your feet for the robovac; it has a very sharp knife.

Ridwan, meanwhile, wastes no time guiding everyone who happens to arrive after their speech for the grand opening.

Déjà vu

Within the mansion, the walls, pillars and stairs of the entrance lobby are adorned with complicated and detailed carved work. The centerpiece chandelier, a crown of candles, casts an incandescent glow across the room.

…

Black paint appears on the wall of the the main hall, and then out first steps a winged skeleton with echo flowers growing from his face. He is very much being shoved out the portal as he rigidly stands, not attempting to move forward on his own. If anything, he’s trying to fight it.

“Come on, Echo! You’re making this– really– difficult! Ugh!” a second skeleton, with blue ectoplasmic hair– Crystal– complains under the weight of a very uncooperative brother.

With a good final shove, she manages to push both herself and Echo out of the portal. And seeing as Echo manages to balance himself and stand, she turns to the portal. “Thanks, Dad! See you in a couple days, happy Valentine’s!”
There is a distant echo of a “You too, mes trésors! Have fun!” And then the portal slowly disappears from the wall– without a stain, surprisingly.
She turns back to her brother, who is acting more and more like a cardboard cut-out.

“Really?”
“What?” he replies quietly.
“You made me have to push you?” Crystal crosses her arms.
“I did not want to come back here.” Echo frowns, shifting in his feet.
“Come on, that was a whole year ago–” Crystal gestures to around them in the hall.
“Good evening, welcome to the Violet Banquet.” Ridwan is standing politely a few paces away.
“–Things have probably changed! And even, you have me now! –Oh, hi!” Crystal turns around at Ridwan’s greeting.

Echo flinches out of surprise, moving to somewhat hide behind Crystal.

“Oh– I do apologize if I startled you… Is something the matter?”
“Ah, it’s nothing to worry about,” Crystal waves it off. “My brother here was here for the first Banquet, and he didn’t have the best experience. But we’re trying it again together this time, and maybe I can get this guy to stop being so socially isolated.” She reaches behind her to pat Echo’s head.

He accepts the pats, though he still does not look happy.

Ridwan stiffens. “I… beg your pardon?”
“Yeah? Is something wrong?” Crystal asks, a bit confused. Echo averted his eyelights to the floor, understanding where Ridwan’s reaction may come from.
“…I am afraid I do not understand what you mean. This Banquet is the first.” Her smile doesn’t reach her eyes.
“But– Echo? Didn’t you go to a banquet last year?” Crystal turns to Echo, who grabs her arm and squeezes it.
He shakes his head– not that he didn’t, but for her to stop talking.
More confused, she looks back to Ridwan. “Ah, sorry. He must have went somewhere else similar. Memories from a year ago are not great.” She laughs it off. 
“Ah– I– I do suppose that tends to happen– with so many… alternates…” Ridwan brushes at the front of his waistcoat with his paws as they straighten their posture. There is nothing to brush off yet. “I am afraid it would not help much to distinguish myself if my party were to already have an alternate timeline– but– this is the Violet Banquet, and, the occasion is to celebrate the making and strengthening of connections. So. I hope to assure that your stay here will be a pleasant one…”

✫       ✫       ✫

“Whooooo! Party peop– awwww…” 

Quiet. Though it won’t be for much longer. A Sans alternate, NOMAD, strays inside the dimly-lit east wing bar and over to a billiard table. They straighten their arm as their Papyrus– well, their Papyrus’ hand– hops down onto the green. NOMAD chuckles as they perch themself on the edge.

“Jus’ you an’ me, huh~? Heheh, ain’t that just the way.”

They look around as Papyrus scratches and pats the green. He drums his fingers in clear satisfaction. And though silent, his sentiments are the same as NOMAD’s

“Oh yeah. This is noooooice~” Nomad says aloud.

✫       ✫       ✫

One of the card portals opens this time… and out of it stretches the stem of a yellow-petaled flower. He stretches his way into the Banquet, looking around suspiciously, before dispersing some underground or underworldly magic that doesn’t belong to him into nothingness. A leftover from… well, apparently some nonexistent event, but Flowey hadn’t arrived in time to hear about that detail.

“Golly, that feels better! Never realized I was carrying it around,” he chirps, ready to stretch back to the other side of the portal when he spots a boss monster he’d never seen before– but whose traits are mostly somewhat familiar to him, obviously.
Something about them seems strange, and it’s not their species.
“Thanks, uh, what’s your name?” Crystal asks, offering out her hand.

Echo can tell something is off. He hadn’t seen this boss monster before, but they seem to be a new person running the event. He didn’t have much issue before with the event itself, just some of the people there, but this is making him suspicious. And looking at Flowey, it seems he is not alone in that.

“Ridwan– pleased to make your acquaintance,” Ridwan accepts the handshake, glancing between the two of them. “I assume you would be Crystal?”
“Yup! That’s me! And this is my little brother Echo.” She points back to him with her thumb.
Echo begrudgingly waves, just so Crystal will be happy.
“…Hi.”
He really didn’t like that fake smile earlier.
Ridwan, having noticed the tension, tucks both paws behind their back and offers a formal nod instead. “Echo. Please do make yourselves comfortable, both of you. There are guest rooms on the second and third floor if you need more time to settle in,” they gesture with one paw toward the elevators at either far corner of the lobby.

“Howdy!” chirps Flowey, choosing to not introduce himself. He’s stretched through the portal but planted on the other side, which is a nondescript abandoned room. And wearing his cheery smile!
Ridwan glances over at… “Ah– welcome, er…” she scans Flowey’s stem curiously. “Are… are you going to join the party?”
“Well… Maybe the invitation sent to little ol’ me was a mistake,” Flowey chirps innocently. “I’m a flower, y’see?”

Crystal nods to Ridwan, turning to Echo. “Do you want to check out a guest room just in case?” she prods.
He looks, his brow furrowed at Ridwan before looking at Crystal and responding.
“…Later.”
“Okay– oo! Hi?” Now she notices Flowey, along with his very long stem.

“And I can’t just dig under the portal–” Flowey grins at the other skeleton. “Howdy! I’m– uh… considering attending the party.”
“Considering?” Crystal snickers. “Well, I guess that’s one way to do it.”

Two more skeleton monsters enter the main hall– first Kalei, with Syn trailing behind. The two are holding hands so Syn doesn’t get lost coming through the portal. Kalei looks around, impressed by everything.
Syn looks around– they can’t see anything that doesn’t have magic infused or natural in it.

“–Oh, do you need help getting your roots through?" Ridwan walks over, circling around Flowey.
“…Yes,” Flowey admits after a moment, suddenly less cheerful in his reply. “But I’m not inviting you over to… uh… my house–” he lies, hiding concern for the clear power of this monster in front of him. He hasn’t given enough thought to what happens if anyone happens to go through the portal to his world and its Surface… he definitely wouldn’t invite another him through! But this monster is unknown, both for good and bad.
“Oh, no, just a moment–” Ridwan walks over as Kalei leads Syn to the group, their capes billowing behind them. Syn puts their bunny mask on as they walk.
Flowey’s eyes grow wide. What’s wrong with those skeletons’ faces? He isn’t going to provoke them by mentioning it, but, he doesn’t remember seeing someone like that before. And that magic… it creeps him out.
He hurriedly looks back to the boss monster as if that hadn’t happened!
Now that they’re standing beside the portal, Ridwan touches its edge with the tip of one digit… and moves the entire portal down. They continue, kneeling down as they go, until all but the height of Flowey’s bloom is above ground.
Flowey grins, secretly genuinely touched by the hospitality.
“Why, thank you for the invitation!” he hums… slightly ominously, somehow? Before he pops down and burrows to plant himself at the Banquet! He pops up, that wide grin returning– he’s not letting dirt get in his teeth.
“You are welcome,” Ridwan smiles more sincerely in return, lifting their clawtip to allow the portal to close behind Flowey and standing back up.

Flowey has returned to– joined the Banquet.

He looks up at the boss monster.
“So, who’re you, if I may ask?” he says, trying to tone down his usual facade to politeness instead of the feigned– coping– cheeriness he usually has with it.

“Heya! Thanks for the invites! We came through the same one, but yeah.” the kid Kalei smiles up at the host. Syn is looking at them too.

“Hello, you may call me Ridwan. Welcome to the Violet Banquet.” The tip of his silky tail curls and uncurls as he answers them all, relaxing a little.
Flowey notices this tension. Interesting… Do they recognize him as Flowey the Flower? He won’t push, but… he will remember that.
“Nice to meet you, Ridwan!”

The two caped children bow slightly to the host and head off. “Thank you again!” Kalei shouts as they go. Syn turns and waves at them as they do, their mask sitting slightly askew on their face.

Watching this happen, Crystal feels another squeeze on her arm as she turns back to Echo.
He’s somewhat come out from behind Crystal– he still feels tense too, his black feathers reflecting as much. “I didn’t mean I wanted to stay here.” Echo complains quietly to her. “…I want to look around.”
“Oh, okay.” Crystal looks back to the group, but seeing as they all seemed occupied, she decides to take Echo and head to a different area of the mansion.

Flowey waves a leaf at the leaving guests. Well, he’s a guest too, but he isn’t leaving yet.

“…Nice to meet you as well,” Ridwan finally says, when Flowey’s attention turns back to herself. “You would be Flowey, yes?”
“…”
Oh, so the jig is up. Darn. Not that he can jig, necessarily.
“Yes…” After a moment, he recovers that cheerful facade. “Flowey the Flower!” he chirps.
Ridwan nods. “…The invitation.” She stares down expectantly.
On second thought, he could jig. That doesn’t need legs.
“Hmm…” Flowey checks his inventory, and pulls out the invitation. “Here it is!”
She nods, and points at it palm-up. “The invitation told me who you are. Even if they are taken, or passed along. The invitations tell me who has them at present.”
“Huh,” Flowey says, proccessing this explanation of their magic. “Well, that’s convenient,” he quips.
“Quite. There are a lot of names to keep up with.”
“How many?”
“Oh, plenty,” they answer coyly. “If you mingle with the other guests, you could try counting them all.” Ridwan winks.
“W-why would I do that?” he asks, a little taken off-guard by an old, old memory walking firmly forward in his unconsciousness.

…When was the last time he’d counted something for fun? Maybe… maybe it’d be different again this time.

Ridwan shrugs. “Why not?”
“…” A long silence passes. “…Good point.” Something about his smile seems to become softer. “…You work here, right? I’m just curious who sends the invitations.”

Does that person know? Truly know? Who he is? He isn’t the most dangerous person here, but… well, he knows what he’d done.

“That would be me, yes.”
“Oh.” His expression becomes more blank. “…I think mine was sent by accident," he admits blandly.
Like how he’d arrived to the last event in his sleep…
“Not exactly… they cannot be sent out unintentionally,” Ridwan responds.

Flowey is silent, looking very confused by the sum of all the facts he’s gathered. What does this add up to, if Ridwan isn’t lying? Why is he allowed back here?

“…How about you take a look around? The soil outside is probably more comfortable to poke out through than this floor.”
“Yeah. Thanks,” he says, looking up at Ridwan seriously.
“You are welcome.” He smiles warmly, giving another polite bow and lifts a palm toward the veranda. The shortest route outside.
Flowey bows too. “Seeya!”

If this is a trap, at least it’s going to be a nice party.

And with that, Flowey pops down, travelling magically through the wooden floor like water, to pop up in the veranda.

✫       ✫       ✫

“Oh, c’mon. There’s no way that’s a scratch.”

How is NOMAD losing to someone who doesn’t have a body? Well, handily, of course. But that just goes to show off how cool his brother is, doesn’t it? Papyrus taps two fingers against the green, debating that yes, it is a scratch, and they will have to reset. NOMAD rolls their eyes before taking both of their sticks and placing them back on the racks.

“Uh-huh. Whatever, ‘m done. Ya prolly cheatin’ anyway~”

They reach out a hand to their brother, who gives them a low-five and then climbs up their arm. Once he settles, carefully tucked underneath the shoulder guards and wrapped around their upper arm, they head out of the bar. They’ll probably be back later to snag a drink. Or two. Oh, they wonder if the punch is spiked.

“C'mon. Thought I saw one’a them balconies from the veranda. I say we go check it out and reenact some movie moments, huh?”

Papyrus gives them a squeeze, excitedly agreeing, and NOMAD laughs as they head off to the ⁠west balcony.

✫       ✫       ✫

Shortly after Flowey leaves, the next portal opens and a tall television Darkner with the same outfit as usual– except the red suit is now Minsk-purple– steps out in a quick walking cycle. He gets too caught up in the excitement, so he sings with his right arm and gloved pointing finger stretched up–

“🎵 Mr. Ant Tenna’s Ban-Quet Tiiiiiiiiiimmmmeee! 🎵”

Tenna looks around, notices Ridwan and that they’re shorter than him, and he shrinks down to their eye level.

“Good evening! I’m here for the Violet Banquet!”
“O-oh, yes, welcome! Happy to see you could make it!”

So Darkners can come here in their Dark forms…

…And then, it is as if a door opens from a world with a purple sky to the chandelier-lit interior that towers above his head. A cracked mouth, a jagged smile. And those nearby can feel a pressure as if they're being watched. Gaster’s fingers curl and uncurl before pulling the boa closer around his arms, and he lets out a hissing laugh.

And so… I am here.
“H-hello! You’d be a n-natural at a horror movie.”

…Now, isn’t this novel?
Gaster’s smile cracks further with a smile as they turn to face Tenna. She is towering, and the bottom of her dress seems to have a permanent flow to it. 

Would I now? she asks, her voice seeming to come from within instead of from her mouth. And that would make you, what… the broadcaster? She squints her open eye with interest. Or the target?
He adjusts his necktie.
“A-An impressed broadcaster, madame!”

The laughter… resonates, but she seems satisfied with that. Standing tall, Gaster’s gaze wanders over him to the various other participants here. 

I see, then perhaps you’ll enjoy the show. I’m sure things will be interesting.
She motions to the nearby stairs and doorways. I’m not interrupting you, am I?
“–Not to worry,” Ridwan interjects, “I was just welcoming guests as they arrived. Thank you for coming, by the way.”
“N-now if you excuse me, the theater beckons for my presence!” Tenna does the silly quick walk to the ⁠combination performance stage and theater. “As you were!”

…A rather silly walk indeed. She watches him leave before turning to Ridwan with a subtler, though no less odd smile.

Thank you for hosting.

Hm, but the question is where to go now…

“Of course. Perhaps I could interest you in the gardens, the library, the refreshments?”
Ah… The library would be nice. And where would that be?
“Second floor, just above the veranda.” Ridwan points up.
Excellent. Thank you again. They pull away from her and start toward the elevator. Enjoy your evening.

And that pressure of being watched begins to fade.

✫       ✫       ✫

It looks to be that no one is in the bar at the moment, and so maybe they can sit down and just talk. Maybe get some answers about what happened last time? Echo is not keen on details from the last time he went to one of these events. She takes a seat at the bar, and pats the stool next to her. She’s twenty-one, and therefore legal age, but since there is no one at the bar, she assumes it must be fine for her 18-year-old brother to sit down next to her.
Echo trails after Crystal, hesitantly taking the empty seat to have a place to set his plate. He takes a bite of honeydew, thankful for the quiet. Crystal sets aside her parfait and plate as she leans over the bar to direct her attention fully to her brother.

“Okay, I am a little confused.”
Echo raises his head as Crystal speaks. He turns his skull to listen. Is it about the chaos they went through grabbing snacks in the dining hall? Earlier with Ridwan?
“What’s the deal with your last time here? You said you didn’t want to talk about it, but we’re here now, and things seem to be cropping up about last time.” Crystal’s brows knit with worry.
What really happened that was so bad last time?
Echo’s pupil shrinks to a tiny pinprick, and he can’t speak for a moment. It isn’t extremely bad, he’d like to think, but he knows other people would say otherwise. And… the people who lost their lives definitely would detest him. Not that he got to know who died, but still. His experience wasn’t “great” either. He was simply lucky enough not to get involved with the murder. He scratches at his arms through his sleeves ineffectively.
“…”
Crystal spots Echo’s arm-scratching and catches his hand, stopping him. Does that have something to do with it? His arms?

“Echo, please.”

Caught in the act, pulls his arms away, going back to grab another chunk of honeydew. But he knows he’s making Crystal worry. He doesn’t want to scare her with it, but she… she already knows his… habits.
It’s… okay. It would be better if she heard from him.
He rolls up one of his sleeves, staring down at the mess that makes up his forearm. A tangled infestation of healed scars and echo flowers that litter its surface. They are more than before.

“…I, um. It didn’t happen that day, but, the day before. And… my arms got exposed… around a Dream and a few others.” Echo sugarcoats, not sure who might overhear if people pass by. “…I think I would’ve had an episode then and there if that Dream wasn’t hiding me.”
Crystal looks to Echo with worry. Although she hasn’t experienced that unwanted vulnerability in front of people she didn’t know, she understands that Echo feels deeply shameful about his scars, and the effect his coping skills have on others. And she knows what it feels like to feel the need to keep secrets. She puts and hand on his shoulder.

“…Are you doing okay now?”

Echo pulls his sleeve back up, he folds his arm under the other protectively.
“…Yeah. I’m okay now. I know it was an accident, but I was being pestered with uncomfortable questions about Prism… I dunno. It was just a lot.”
Crystal rubs his shoulder briefly before letting go.
“…What about the whole thing with Ridwan? About the last Banquet you went to?” She is trying not to assume, but she got an odd feeling when she mentioned last time, and Echo’s reaction to them. Something else happened, she was sure.

Echo takes another bite of honeydew from his plate, waiting to finish chewing before speaking.

“I… I’m not entirely sure. But with the other things I heard had happened, they’re trying to cover up the last Banquet they threw. Which is… reasonable, I guess, but it’s unnerving that they are avoiding it completely instead of addressing it to try and make it better instead. I don’t know how I didn’t see it happen, but… I learned afterward that the last Banquet was a blood bath.”

Wild cards and loose cannons

Back in the main hall comes another portal, and from the portal comes a door, and the door falls on the floor, and out from the door comes, climbing up the stairs from the other side, a skeleton dressed in black, red, gold, and white, with a large pink collar and a gold A pinned on his sternum. A top hat extends his short stature and a cane props up an arm, though the moment he steps up out onto the mansion floor, he throws the cane over his shoulder and it flies an impressive distance through the air.

“I return! Finally! How short and yet so long a time it has been. Yet, I come bearing tragedy on my shoulders, so allow all to hear my soliloquy as I tell you of my plight today! For such long time, I pursued my love, the most wonderful and creative Ink, protector of the universe– but not all that great at it if we are to be honest– but still, my heart longed! To be included in his story, and so I wooed him and won his nonexistent heart, and as such believed, believed very wrongly, that we would live together happily ever after until the end of times! But alas, it would not be a proper story if this dream had not gone terribly awry, for Ink broke up with me, broke my heart, took a hammer to it and obliterated it into a thousand tiny little pieces that I had to pick up and piece back together myself, by my lonesome. And so, I came today, wonderfully, to find myself a new love, and make jealous all those who decided I was simply not fabulous enough for them to cherish. My new lover and I will create a romance so beautiful that this entire party will weep at the sight. And that, my dear, dear sirs, is the story I bring to you today. For I, the fabulous Ace, magician and illusionist extraordinaire, will now bless this party with my charming and irresistible ways!”

Ridwan’s eyebrows raise in amusement. Ace sure knows how to put on a show.

“What an entrance, magician.” An onlooker claps for the newcomer, some of the confetti having caught on her dress.

Shortly after, another one of the portal doors opens not too far away, and by no means any more attention-grabbing than the other ordinary entrances.

Speak of the devil, a very Ink-shaped face peers through, scanning the area curiously and stepping through with an air of caution. It is, in fact, an Ink, no telling which, aside from his average appearance with nothing different to their outfit. Safe to assume one of the usual ones with nothing too out-of-the-ordinary going on. He puts his hands on his hips and nods to himself while searching with his eyes, glancing back at the invite portal door open directly to his Doodlesphere. As he whirls back around, scarves swaying with him, he breaks out into a grin as he spots Ace. He hurries over and stops a few paces short, leaving a good space between them.

“Oh, you’re here! I might be late. Sorry– yeah, I’m late, what are we talking about, what’d I miss? It’s always something with you, huh? I wasn’t sure if you would be here actually, though I swear I remember something about it…” Ink squints, fighting off the urge to check his scarf for notes. This is a fancy event, time to act a little civilized, which is a sentiment that likely won’t last long considering he isn’t even dressed for it. Ink bounces on his toes to distract from his habit, pursing his mouth thoughtfully. “Sooooo… what are you doing here?”

Ace throws out a hand in front of Ink’s face– Ink leans away from his hand in time with it being thrown out, raising a brow– Ace’s other cast over his eyes so he does not have to look at Ink.

“Do not speak to me, dear Ink, for I have already told everyone here of your sins! Do not pretend you do not know my intentions of coming to such an event! I seek to replace you, for betraying me! You may try to win me back, but I am terribly afraid you already made your choices, let me go, so now, I seek what the lesser of us might call a ‘rebound.’”

Ink tilts his body at the waist to the side to stare at Ace with a questioning expression, not moving his legs.

“Wh… What are you talking about? Am I missing something here?” He mumbles something incoherent to himself, rubbing at his chin. “I’m pretty sure I’d remember betraying you, is this about the– well, no, I thought we were good now? You and me, we’re buddies? Yeah. I’m one-hundred percent sure I would remember if I did something to betray someone like you, considering you wouldn’t let me live it down.”
“Even now he mocks me! Pretends we never had anything!” Ace takes out a red handkerchief from his sleeve and wipes away the exactly zero tears he has on his modestly smiling face. He clutches it to his chest and leaned over himself, knees bent at awkward angles. “I will not let you live it down either! We had something wonderful! I hear there’s a term for it called Q-P-R. But now, you’ve broken up with me! And I cannot let such betrayal go unpunished! Be wary! Prepare yourself! Only terrible things can happen to you from here on out! Lest you win me back somehow, someway, however that may be.”

Ace glances aside, batting his… eyelashes? Where did he get those? Maybe he had them the entire time.
Ink, being very used to these antics, just stands up straight and shrugs very confusedly.

“What's a– hold on, wait. Broke up?” As predicted, he is already snatching up his scarf, studying a little section, reading aloud in small mutters. “QP… R… queerplatonic…” He first looks up at Ace with his eyes, then lifts his head to match. His mouth slants with grit teeth as he tries to figure out the easiest way to put his thoughts to words. “Eh…… I’m pretty sure we never did anything like that? I know we’re on good terms and friends, or, I thought we were? Cus I did not break up with you. So I have no idea what you’re talking about. Did you try to get with me or something and I just not pick up on it?”
“No, dear Ink, stop playing games with me! How could you forget such an important period of your life. Look! I even made a scrapbook–”

Anike, the onlooker who originally tried to greet Ace before Ink’s arrival, decides that whatever is going on between those two is too much, and leaves for one of the balconies while they’re occupied by each other.

✫       ✫       ✫

Outside, one skeletal attendee with a pale yellow crescent printed across his face and a pale yellow star adorning the tips of either of his tails locks onto a human exploring the gardens that flank the veranda. Guests have already been coming across other alternates they recognize, but… are they all the same versions one another would know?

“You. hello, you! What was it that Starlight called you again? Sister, was it? But I’m sure that’s not your real name! Who might you be?”

“Sister” practically jumps at suddenly being addressed. She blinks, puzzled… Gosh, she hates talking to people.

“Umm, I’m sorry? You’re probably confusing me with someone else.”
“No, no! I can’t be! You know Nova, yes? Small doll, very young and child-like? Abandoned?”

Another guest– the son of a Cross and a Virux– curiously pops his head in the garden, hearing chatter.
“Oh! Here’s the garden! Hmm, lots of beings here as well.”
A pink spider tilts its head while analyzing the other beings.
“Hm, yes, lots here.”
He turns his attention to his spiderly companion.
“Do you think any of them would wanna play with me?”
It replies with an unsure squeak.
“Yeahhhh, I wanna play in the flowers anyway! And I’m sure you’d like to play as well!”

Sister narrows her eyes and tilts her head– is this guy being serious? Sigh, Crazy people be everywhere. “Im sorry, but I do not know, anyone with that name. You’re probably confusing me with someone else.” Wait a moment, did he say doll?
Stardust forms the general shape of Nova with a cloud, hoping that that would help. He must have misremembered their name again.

The younger guest skips over to a small bed of violets and plops down in them, releasing a relieving sigh, not caring if he’s ruining them. He simply wants to enjoy the pretty purple fields and sky. His spider is close by, excitedly running through the flowers and shrubs, eventually settling down in a bush not too far from Crux.

“Wait– do you mean Dolly?”
“Oh, is that what their name used to be? Gosh, they never said. You know them?” Despite his kind smile, malice is visible in its eyes.
“Umm…” she looks to the side. “Well, you could say that.” Okay, now she’s freaking out– never said? Obviously it isn’t gonna said anything. Why does this guy care about Dolly? He sure isn’t from her world.
“Oh, goody! Just wonderful! I have just a few small questions about them if you don’t mind. Don’t worry, I’m completely harmless.”

Upon looking at the violets for an extended amount of time, Crux feels an impulse to pluck the petals off of the flowers. He glitches a bit and plays with the petals, contemplating.

“Umm, well… guess… I could answer that?” Normally, she wouldn’t, but this fella seems to already know some things.
“I can see others’ dreams, and my Starlight has many! So, about one of themmmm……” He describes in graphic detail one of Nova’s many nightmares about Tournamenttale. “…What was that about?”

“You know what? I do want these petals!”
With a seemingly innocent smile but devious intent, not caring if anyone would see him destroy the flowers, he readjusts himself to begin plucking a pile of violet petals around itself, giggling quietly.

“…Huh.” She blinks. “Who even are you? Why are you making up such things?”

The spider is in the bush observing the others in the garden, hoping no one can see it, while Crux meticulously picks petals off of each flower, making a pile around him.

Stardust tilts his head in genuine confusion. “Lies? Why in the heavens above would I lie? No one told me to. I’m sure my Starlight would have said something if she wanted the nightmares to stay private. Are you unable to answer me? You show up quite often in her mind, I thought you’d have known more.”

A Dreamtale variant steps through the portal they’d created, dusting themself off as they do, making sure everything is in place. Taking a deep breath, they look around and adjust their grip on their cane. They look down next to them, seeing Crux pick the petals off.

Upon sensing another being arriving, the spider scitters over to Crux, jumping on his right shoulder.
“Oh, good evening– what are you up to?”
Crux jolts while glitching aggressively for a brief moment at the sudden appearance another being, and so near him at that. He wasn’t expecting anyone to bother his petal-picking.
“Oh—!”
He quickly looks up at the new alternate– Spite– meeting their eyes peering down at him, smiling.

“Why wouldn’t I thought you’re lying? That child is dead, there’s no way you would be even able to talk to her. Other than you being… insane, that is. And you quite seem like it.”
Should he laugh? That was a funny joke.
“Nooo…? Did you ever see the body? how would she have even died? From that trap that gave her that nasty scar? That you or some other hunter set?”
She goes pale– trap… the traps, how did he know that– it wasn’t possible– it can’t be possible–
“She's dead!” She yells, taking a step down. “I’d seen her body-plants growing on her–” she slightly raises her hands, shaking. “I buried her!” More like, was going to before it disappeared.  “Why would you even know?! Stop messing with me!”

“Hi! I’m just picking petals off of these violets!”
He gestures to the still-growing pile of scattered petals.
Spite takes a minute to look around at the petals all around and decide, to crouch down to pick up one of the petals and look at it.
“What a fun little activity– will you make a craft with them? Or is it just for amusement?”
“I do not appreciate the vandalism.” Ridwan’s voice is right behind Crux.
“And I don’t appreciate you ruining my fun!” Crux snaps back in a sarcastic tone, quickly turning to where the voice is coming from.
“Oh– hello there.” Spite looks up from behind Crux at Ridwan. “Are these your flowers?”
Crux hums to himself. “For fun!” He reiterates, tossing the petals in the air. They cover him as they flutter back down.
Ridwan frowns sternly. “I have rules against vandalism, especially toward my flowers,” she states firmly. “Please do not invite yourself to any penalties.”
Spite grins in return and nods at Crux, standing again before their joints start hurting. “Ah– I see.” He gives a little bow at him, and at Ridwan. “I will excuse myself– I did just get here. Your vandalism rule is noted.”
Looking around, Spite spots another green-colored skeleton, and decides to gravitate toward Willow. As the two start their own conversation, Crux abruptly stands up, and the petals slowly fall onto the ground. He then grins at Ridwan.
“Okay!” As he begins to go somewhere else, the flowers start glitching in pink, and then they return to their original state, as if no one ever touched them. His spider runs through the petals too, before joining Crux again.
Ridwan narrows their eyes at Crux, then squints at the disturbed violets.

The violets glitch again, this time in purple, as if to refresh.

Two can play at that game.

They will have to keep an eye on that one, it seems…

A reaction. Stardust has the right girl after all. He gets more serious despite still looking friendly, his eyelights sharpening to slits. He loses his front.
“No, I don’t think so. I can’t enter the dreams of the dead, silly!” He summons a pink cloud that quickly shifts to a black and charred color. “Do you want to see her again? I’m sure you’d just love where you left the child. I’m sure you’d just love to find out.”
Sister closes her fist, and clenches her teeth. Girl, calm down, calm down, calm down. She sighs and shakes her head. “I will not, ‘cause I already know. I don’t know what’s your issue with me, but drop it.”
“I only wish to know why! Honest! I want to know why all of the hunters hated her for no reason. Why you would abandon her so often. Why they all wanted her gone. Is why such a dangerous question?”
“Why do care so much of a dead child, that you have never met? That should be the real question.” A pause. “I have my reasons– actions– but it’s none of your business, ‘specially when I was just trying to protect her. Don’t dare claim such things, you weren’t  there, you dont know.”
“I know her very well. But… If you don’t want to be civil about it, I’ll just appear to you tonight in your dreams and force it out. Does that sound better?”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No, no, no, of course not! Just telling you the truth. The truth seems to be so scary to you! You’re so silly.”
“Well, saying appear to you in your dream and forcing it out,” she tilts her head, “does kinda sound like a theat to me.”
“Think of it more as a promise.”
“Same thing.”
“No, threats are usually empty words used in hopes someone will cave. Promises will happen. So, do you want to talk, or have a terrible night’s sleep?”
“What even is there to talk about? There’s nothing to talk about. Again– why do you care so much for Doll?”
”Nova.” Stardust clears his throat, still smiling despite everything. “Because I want to know if you were ever justified in anything. If anyone was. And if telling the truth is so scary, I think the Garden’s eyes were right to call for your Soul to be purged. For the AU as a whole to be purged. Why does it not matter? Why do they matter so little to you.”
Sister narrows her eyes… purged? This man definitely wants to kill her, and her entire AU too apparently… While a lot people there are terrible, she isn’t sure if that is a fair punishment– she just got out of war, for Angel’s sake. She can’t allow this to happen.
“It’s not the truth that I’m scared of– I’m not scared of anything.” She takes a step forward. “Purge my world– are you serious? There’s no reason for that, simply ‘cause of a small child; even if they were treated unfairly by so many there, purging will not solve anything.”
“I get that, trust me, I really do! But if my lords tell me to, I can’t really say no. So much negativity and evil has spawned from your AU, from you and your… friends? Allies? Whatever those hunters are to you. I’m honestly surprised you’re all still kicking! I wouldn’t have been surprised if Nova lashed out violently at anyone. You all do deserve it. And if you aren’t scared, why won’t you tell me what I’ve already asked?”
Sister tries not to mind the comments much. “‘Cause, I dont believe it concerns you. I am not obligated to tell you anything.”
“Hm… how unfortunate.” Stardust gets way too close for comfort, pressing his forehead against Sister’s, just trying to agitate her further. He saw Nova’s outfit in the castle– she’ll be here. And this woman can’t be if Nova is to enjoy herself. And he’ll admit, getting on people’s nerves is fun. “Such an ego, you have! Why can’t you say? Can I at least know about that trap? Isn’t it your job that set those up? Surely that’s public information!”

Okay, that’s it.

“Why don't you see and find out?” she says, taking out a monster trap, and punches him with it. The trap immediately activates– and grabs Stardust’s soul– trying to suck in his magic– while restraining him.

OH SHIT HIS SOUL–

“–SCREEEEEEEEE!!!”

Does it hurt? Absolutely not. Is he shrieking loud enough to break glass anyways? Yes.

Flowey pops up at the right time to hear the screaming. He frowns, looking somewhat annoyed. What’s happening?
Spite, who’d since also been speaking with a Blueberry Sans, winces and covers one of his auditory canals with his free hand at the screeches.
Berry had just smiled and gone to take his hand before both of theirs shot up to cover their own canals too.
“W-what’s–?!”

Stardust is rolling on the floor, and an arthropodic limb shoots out from his back to stab towards “Sister.” Due to his panic, though, he can’t exactly aim that well.

Another Dreamtale alternate, Ichor, appears behind Flowey and looks around. “Uh…” Their tail moves with unease and moves to surround Flowey to make sure he doesn’t get hurt by accident. “I don’t think they’re socializing nicely…”
“They’re not,” Flowey answers.

“Sister” just looks down at Stardust with a glare, looking more annoyed than anything. She takes a step forward and steps one foot on him.
“Stop– yelling.”
“What exactly do you think you are doing,” Ridwan growls.

“GET OFF GET OFF GET OFF!!”

“…” The flower looks over at the ⁠nearby gazebo. “How about we go there?” he says, pointing with a leaf. “I’ll follow you in a minute.”

“Oh, please shut up!” the assailant yells, putting more pressure on her feet.

“I t-thought there wasn't s-supposed to be f-fighting…!” Berry comments as they watch the scene.

Vines appear out of the earth and form around the trap, attempting to snap and smash it while not hurting the monster it attacked.
“You sure? I don’t want you to get hurt–”
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
“Okay…” Ichor decides to keep trusting him and they retire to the ⁠gazebo.
“That idiot,” he mutters about the aggressing human.

Stardust bites the trapper’s ankle.
She winces, and kicks Stardust on the stomach with her other foot.
“Stop!”

The vines writhe harder in trying to disassemble the trap.

“I said,” The ground under the trapper is suddenly as deep as her height. “What. Do you think you are doing.”
Sister yelps at the ground basically dragging her down. She quickly tries to move herself out of it, but is unable to.
Stardust tries to crawl away toward Ridwan. He’s crying a thick red, his slits shaky. A small rift tries to open in the sky, but some force of magic prevents it from doing so.
The lady sighs, and glares at Ridwan.
“He said he wanted to see a trap, so I show it to him. It ain’t even  hurting him.”

The vines try to pry the bars of the cage-looking trap and bend them, also attempting to smash every other little bit.

“Hurting or not,” Ridwan growls sternly, “I clearly said in the rules that violence is restricted outside of the dueling grounds. I will not allow guests to turn my property into a battle royale or somebody’s gravesite. If you are going to have a fight, you will take it there, you will do it fairly, and you will not attack to kill.”

The vines ignore the smacking, tearing at the trap’s metal, trying to break it.

“Well, then. I supposed threatening– oh, I mean promise to ‘purge’ me, and the entirely of my world, is all okay?” she says sarcastically, with a smile she laughs tilting her head. “I apologize for going out of… hand, but I was simply defending myself.”

The flower’s face looks angrier now. He’s just going to keep trying to break the trap anyway; there’s a powerful, ethical boss monster right there to deal with the conflict. Flowey just wants the trap out of commission for good.
He hisses back at the trapped monster, now, though.
Horns begin to grow from Stardust’s head as his stars sharpen to four-pointed stars. The white of his bones begins to shift into blackened flesh. He bites at Flowey, clearly stressed.

Ridwan pinches under the bridge of his glasses. “I did not say anything about threats being acceptable either, I am saying that if your altercation is going to get physical, then take it– to– the dueling grounds. Now, would you please disarm that thing and save the violence for a fair match in the arena.”

The flower hisses in pain, still moving his vines to try to destroy said trap.
He’s so over this situation, he just wants his vines to tear the trap’s metal apart.

The lady’s eyes narrow. Really, is that all there was to say? “Well, that might be a little hard when my hands are underground,” she retorts, her voice still sounding clearly irritated.
A wider hole is punched out of the ground. “Are they?” Ridwan crosses their arms impatiently.

Shard– a Sans variant composed of fragmented reflections– starts up from the reverie they were in staring into space. When they take in the scene before them, they quietly shuffle over to the nearest reflective surface to melt into and leave the area.

The trapper sighs, and lifts her hand off the ground. “Well, can I be brought closer so it can be removed?”

Stardust’s multi-horned, many-winged brother– Merci– dives out of a conveniently-located window and lands loudly on his feet.
“WHAT IN THE NINE RINGS IS GOING ON?!”
Stardust hisses at Sister, his body getting larger. He bites at the trap and tries to scratch at it, making his way towards Merci.

The flower appears to be staring at the situation and hissing with a furious expression. His vines are still trying to break the trap.

“Don’t move, it works like blue magic,” she says to Stardust.
Ridwan stares down warily at the first troublemaker of the event.
“…Disarm it immediately.” The ground reverts, returning her.
“WHAT IN THE HEAVENS DID I MISS.” He picks up his brother and walks towards Celeste. He needs to use his scarf to aid in supporting Stardust due to his new size.

Vines continue to (try to) rip and tear at the trap, but they can’t reach.

“I am, I am,” she rolls her eyes. She reaches her hands to Stardust, and begins to dissemble the trap.

Stardust hisses and tries to bite Sister, but Merci grabs his snout. He says something in an unfamiliar language of high-pitched chirping to Stardust. He holds him tightly so he doesn’t struggle as much, mostly using magic to do so, and he kneels down so Sister can do her work.
Vines attempt to tear apart the trap quicker, stealing parts into an unseen inventory as some come loose.
“Thank you,” she whispers, and shortly enough, the trap lets go of Stardust– and Sister quickly tries to yank off Flowey’s vines, to put it back into her inventory.
Stardust hisses more, his face splitting open unnaturally as buggy mandibles stick out from his face.

He then jumps out of Merci’s grasp and teleports to who-knows-where in a puff of red and grey storm clouds.

The vines grow red thorns and grasp tightly around the trap, attempting to absorb it into someone else’s inventory.
“Let go,” she hisses, pulling back on it.

What the heck happened to my dang brother what the hell–
Merci slowly takes a step back, his eyes on Sister. She’s the one with the trap, so she must have attacked him. But why? What could Stardust have done to warrant such a reaction?
All four of his facial wings cover his face entirely, making his expression unreadable.

Ridwan is staring in the direction Stardust fled. His arms had fallen to his sides, forgetting to hide the way his paws are shaking.

The thorned vines grow heavier, trying to crush the cage like a paper ball in a fist.
The trapper considers activating the trap slightly so that this flower would let– but that’s possibly not the greatest idea… but she isn't planning to let go of the trap either.

Ridwan slowly turns to face the two. They’re breathing heavily.

The flower himself is just in angry concentration at the ground.

Merci shuffles towards Ridwan. He tries speaking calmly as one of his back wings extends around them. The wing doesn’t touch, but it’s supposed to be a reassuring gesture.
“WHAT… UM… HAPPENED…?”

Flowey’s vines are still trying to crush the trap.

“That– is what happened!” Ridwan, struggling to keep their voice even, stiffly points at the trap they’re fighting over.

Murder is wrong.

“Let go–” she tries to pull the vines off, not caring if her hands get hurt with the thorns.

Ridwan is trying to steady their breathing. “I know I may not be the best mediator, but is it so much to ask you all not to put each other down like animals and turn my home into a horror attraction! Now would either of you please just get rid of that thing!”
The thorns disappear from the vines, but they don’t stop trying to crush the trap.
“I am trying to put it away–” the lady struggles to tug it back.

Things appear to be escalating again. He does not like that. He takes a small step back just in case any violence breaks out, but Merci’s scarved arms raise just in case he needs to intervene. It would be wrong to put everything on the host, after all.

“I’m trying to destroy it!” his childlike voice complains.
“It doesnt need to be destroyed, it’s just a regular weapon like any other!”

Normal weapon?

“It does,” Flowey snarls.
“It does not, kid, let go.”
“You can’t even give a good argument. A sword in the wrong hands kills the wrong people! A sword in the right hands still kills people! This one doesn’t even have honor.”
“–Protection, you never know when you need to protect yourself, honor doesn’t matter. Give it.”
“Honor doesn’t matter, huh? Lucky for you, I have some!” The flower’s voice has gotten darker, humming underneath. He puts more effort into destroying the weapon.

The trap begins to tilt, perhaps, at the pressure– the human slightly narrows her eyes.

“Kid, I’m seriously not playing with you. This is no different than any of your attacks.”
“Oh, I thought you said honor doesn’t matter, human!” Flowey tries to wrap the trap in crushing vines. “You let go. I’m not attacking you.”
“It doesn’t matter when you have to fight a life. And I’m not attacking you either, this doesn’t belong you– and don’t be calling me human!” She puts her hand inside the trap.
“Fine! Whoever you are, stop being an idiot and take your hand out of the trap. I’m going. To. Destroy it. So let go!” 
The trapper intends to let her hand stay there so the other won’t break it, but then considers it isn’t worth it to break her hand again– so… reluctantly, she takes her hand out of the trap.
“The name is Celeste.”

Flowey yanks the trap away, his eyes growing bloodshot and… more humanoid? He puts the trap on the ground, and… one of his vines grows a very tiny flamethrower.
With all his other vines and everything and everyone else at a safe distance, Flowey carefully burns the trap into uselessness, starting with what he thinks is the most critical remaining parts.

Celeste blinks.

…Just like that, it’s gone… all her hard work for it– gone in seconds… She sighs… It was, this is fine. She still has a couple more in her inventory, and can always build another if needed, it was fine.

This is fine.

Flowey stares at Celeste with hollowed eyes and a creepy frown, his flamethrower now reabsorbed into his magic.

“You’ll learn better someday, Celeste.”

…Ridwan slowly lets out the breath he’s been holding. He keeps clenching and unclenching his fists.

“…No fighting or violence of any kind is allowed on estate grounds, outside of the ⁠dueling grounds.” He reiterates the rule with a shaky voice.
Celeste sighs, looking away. “I understand that now.”
Flowey looks solemnly back at Ridwan. “…I don't regret it. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone– or anything else.”

Merci’s scarf calms down and rests to his back. Things are at least not escalating…?

“…I should hope it is not too much to ask my guests not to kill each other…” Ridwan turns away from them to look at Merci, face scrunched. The inside of her glasses are covered in dew. “…You must be Merci. If you are able to get a hold of… of Stardust, while on estate grounds… the infirmary is just left of the veranda…”
Stardust’s brother lets out a breath, shaking loose feathers from his wings.
“THANK YOU… THOUGH I’M SURE HE NEEDS THERAPY MORE THAN TREATMENT…”

Flowey stares at the ground, his eyes seeming to stare through it. He feels hollow where his empathy should be, and his eyes remain dry even though he feels the need to cry.

“…If you’ll excuse me, I have the other guests to… to attend to…” Ridwan walks away. The bodily way.
“…” Once Ridwan leaves, Flowey laughs humorlessly at the ground right in front of him.
Merci kneels down next to Flowey with a warm yet anxious smile.
“I… SAW YOU TRYING TO TEAR THE TRAP OFF OF MY BROTHER.” He tries to speak calmly, but it ends up still being a tad bit loud– Flowey startles, a rare sight. “I THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTEMPT TO HELP HIM! DID HE HURT YOU AT ALL? I CAN HEAL YOU.”
Flowey looks up and over at the monster, an angry frown on his face.
“When he recovers, tell him to stop threatening to murder people.”
Merci frowns and looks away.
“I’M… SURE THAT’S NOT THE FULL STORY. HE ISN’T THE TYPE FOR RANDOM THREATS.”

Yes he is. Bro’s just in denial.

“It sure was, he kept talking about my dead sister, gosh.”
“Tell him.” Flowey mimics the intensity of Toriel’s stare.
“R-RIGHT! I’M SORRY FOR ANY STRESS OR HARM HE’S CAUSED…” Talking about dead sisters? Now that’s something he knows Stardust wouldn’t do. Not without reason, as least. Unless the Angels told him to? But why would they do that?
“Ugh,” the flower groaned, looking away. “Just don’t kill and really don’t murder anyone.” With that, Flowey pops into the earth, tunneling in it to pop up at the gazebo where he said he’d reconvene with that Dream variant.
“Get your brother in line. Please.”
“YES… OF COURSE.” If he’s coming back, that is. His face wings twitch, listening. He can’t hear Stardust, so that’s… good? Maybe it’s for the best if he isn’t back yet. “WELL… I’LL TRY TO FIND HIM.”
He stretches out his wings and flies off elsewhere.

…Celeste sighs, alone… finally.

✫       ✫       ✫

…Ace is still at it with Ink in the lobby.

“I… It’s for the story,” Ink mumbles, now that they have people coming up to them, and speaking especially to them. “If the script calls for it, it has to happen… I don't think I need to be shamed publicly; frankly, I’m getting really mixed signals now, because you act like this all the time.”
“Mixed signals? Mixed signals? Are you not the true owner of mixing signals here? One moment you are in love with me, the next you are breaking up with me, another moment you claim we were never together in the first place! What seems to be mixless about that, for you, or do you profess a hypocritism when faced with the same behaviour?”

Portals are still opening around them, and so, more and more guests are walking in on this scene. In one corner, a small puddle of goop materializes into a skeleton, almost the spitting image of her father with the male-imposed clothing. Lunar looks around, bamboozled with the current situation.

In another, a shimmering swirl forms on a wall as it twists and turns, growing in size just enough for three people. Glitter and bright light leak out from this portal as a skeleton dressed in such gloomy shades steps out first. Their sharp eye-lights wander the main hall, only giving those already there a brief glance over. There is no real interest in those sockets– he simply steps aside for his company to join him. They aren’t planning to stay long in this area, already intending to make their leave elsewhere once the bright transportation has faded out of existence.

“Hurry along… I’d rather meet the others elsewhere… preferably away from foot traffic.”
Gouache simply trails behind Porcelain. Their friend might be dressed for the occasion, but honestly Gouache couldn’t care less about dressing up for anything. Bleh. So crowded. Yeah, it will be better to just hurry off.
Last in line, Starry slithers through with a big smile on their face, their simple clothing a big contrast to Porcelain’s fancy ones. Thankfully, Gouache isn’t fancy either. 
“I can't wait!” it exclaims, the tip of their long tail wagging. The amount of people doesn’t bother them, but his friends are of upmost importance to them.

“I swear, sometimes I question if you’re all there.” Ink knocks on his own skull, sighing. “Look– what can I possibly do to make it up to you, huh? I don’t want this entire– thing, being you upset with me for something I genuinely have no idea about.” He slaps his hand over his forehead, trying to remember what just came up a few minutes ago. “The– the QPR thing. The thing. Look, like, just talk it out with me, okay?”
He is struggling. This is not his strong suit. Fish out of water.

“Um, you r-really shouldn’t t-try to guilt t-trip someone into a r-relationship…” Berry has been watching this… quarrel… since putting distance from the commotion outside. “That’s… n-not really healthy…”

“Alright, Ink, I shall. You see I believe it stands for Queen, Pawn, Rook. You see, I’m the queen, all-powerful. All-seeing. You, are just a measly pawn, infinite potential, but alas, not there yet. We live on opposing sides. We play the game of chess, but I will always win, and the rook is the wall you built between us–”

Glancing over at the slowly fading portal, Porcelain turns away their heels, giving a soft click to their steps.
“Well, let’s get going; this area is already busy as is.” Her tone is flat, words sharp, no need to use a fancy roundabout way to say it. With a wave of their hand, they simply signal for the two to follow. Porcelain makes sure they aren’t much of an impact for this room; it’s best they limit their interactions so as to follow their boss’s rules.

With that, they make their exit, not needing to look back to make sure the others are following. Even if one wanders astray, they’ll find them quite easily.

✫       ✫       ✫

Crystal’s sockets raise in alarm. People got murdered here? Holy stars, no wonder Echo didn't want to come back!
“Well, why didn't you tell me?”
He rubs the back if his neck, his single eye-light averted.
“…You were really excited about it, and after you came back from the Violet Bake, and Cypher and Peace came back from selling their stuff at the Bouquet Bash, I thought it wasn’t too big an issue.”
Crystal’s time at the Violet Bake was… pretty on-par with Echo’s description. A poor Papyrus got hurt and she and some others had to fight off a guy with a damn shovel and some obsession with “meat.” Not to mention those evil talking books. Peace and Cypher were just selling stuff, nothing really happened there. She would’ve liked to know, at least!
She runs a hand down her face.
“Ughhhh, okay. I don’t want to be here if either of us are going to get hurt. So what do you want to do?”
Echo looks contemplatively at the wall past the bar, not particularly at what’s behind the bar. He isn’t interested in that anyway. He wants to try again, in a sense… even if he isn’t happy with how it went last time, and how it’s going now. It would feel like a waste, the both of them getting all dressed up for the event, getting comfortable with dancing for Crystal’s sake. He doesn’t want to ruin that. And maybe, it will be better this time since Crystal is here. He wants to hold out hope for them to have an overall fun time.
“…I want to try, still.”
Uncertain herself, Crystal looks back at the plate she partially abandoned, and the untouched violet parfait. She brings her plate forward and looks to Echo.
“Okay, If you want to, we’ll stay. I’m gonna put faith that the covering-up meant they’re gonna fix that and minimize the carnage this time! That aside, I still got a parfait I have to try.”
Realizing she forgot a spoon, she reaches over the counter of the bar, searching around for something close enough. She manages to pull out a straw, not a spoon, but she can drink a parfait, and attempt to use is as makeshift spoon when she needed it.
Echo goes back to eating his honeydew, as he’s already out of watermelon. A tragedy, though he’ll live. He watches Crystal start to drink the violet-glorified yogurt through the straw, vaguely curious.
“How is it?”
His sister’s eye-lights seem to almost sparkle as she tastes subtle vanilla yogurt, blueberries with lavender and taro, and chia seeds mixed into the texture in a really good way. It isn’t a starfait, but it’s a close second. Definitely because it’s another parfait.
“It’s definitely earned a spot on the leaderboard– not a starfait,” she takes another sip, “…but it’s definitely close.” She stops to analyze its looks, squinting as she holds it close to her face. Although she had most definitely altered the presentation by having some of it before judging its appearance, she still gives it an opinion. “Well, it looks very pretty, even after having some. The floral decorations were definitely a nice touch.”

A Mobtale Sans with a long scar between his orbital plate and nasal bone pushes open the door to the bar room, sighing quietly. Crystal’s skull swivels around to look at the new person, and she offers a friendly wave. His boots clack on the floor as he scrubs at his face, relief washing over him as he (at last) finds the bar. He heads over to it, nodding to the other two in the space. He circles around the back of it to make himself a drink.
“Evenin’, you two– enjoying yourselves?”
Both siblings have plates from the dining hall, Crystal holding a violet parfait with a straw in it. Odd, but not completely out of the ordinary.
“Yeah, the food in the dining hall’s great! Not so much the drama.” She half-jokes.
Echo raises his flower-infested skull, soft murmurs of the flowers echoing to each other passing by idly. He gives a small nod, allowing Crystal to do most of the talking.

The new Sans chuckles, arching a brow curiously at her. He begins to mix a few liquids together idly.
“S’that so? I haven’t visited it yet– but I’ll take your word for it. This place has so many folks here, ain’t surprised tensions would rise.”
He inclines his head amicably.
“The name’s Sigrid by the way.”
“Nice! I’m Crystal, and this is…” She turns to look at Echo, as she usually introduces both of them. Maybe Echo could take the opportunity to introduce himself. “Do you wanna…?”
Well, if she’s gonna put him on the spot like that, he’ll have to. Fiddling with his hands, he speaks up.
“…I’m her brother, Echo.”

Starry-eyed stargazers

Despite the host’s ability to be seemingly in every corner of the estate at the same time, they have not been hosting alone. Among others, accenting her piano-themed dress with a matching shawl, her usual chic cap, its red-and-gold flower and purple ribbons, is Inknote.
At the moment, she is taking a moment out in the atrium to gaze up at the moon through the glazed glass roof. The view is… beautiful, as some would say. She never really gets the chance to see the moon these days, so… the sight of it all really makes her stop in her tracks and just admire the scene. 
She intertwines her hands, putting them near her sternum. Above yellow lines running from her sockets– jagged like scratchmarks– her eye-lights turn into stars… but of course, it doesn’t last long as they instantly glitch back. But her expression is still filled with awe and fondness for the night sky.

And after mistaking Note’s lookalike Inklyn for her, Kopiana– her cowboy friend from another AU– just finished a lovely conversation with her and is skipping through the mansion, passing by most people and not engaging in conversation yet.
He’s still looking for someone.
When it starts to feel like he won’t find her, he decides to take a break– find a nice, more empty area… like the atrium. Maybe he won’t see her after all…

…But then, there she is. In the purple light.

Is he blushing already?
He smiles and walks up to her, leaning against the glass, his bony scorpion tail giving a little swish.

“My, my. Purple looks great on you.”

Note blinks before slowly turning around to see the familiar voice.
“Oh…!” Her entire demeanor instantly softens even more as she glances toward Kopiana. Her smile widens a bit. “You–” she pauses, finally getting a good look at him.
He looks… different. But not in a bad way. In fact… she thinks he looks pretty charming. Ignore the slight flush on her face. Her smile turns a bit nervous as she looks away bashfully.
“–It’s nice to see you here!” Note instantly says… maybe a bit too loud. “Uh… you look… great!”

Her dress is so pretty, just as Kopi expected. He doesn’t even care about the stars and moonlight behind her. All of it pales in comparison.

“Thank you. As do you.”
He’ll try this bowing thing again, tipping his hat to her.
“It’s really good to see you. I was hoping I would bump into you sometime.”

She turns her gaze back to him, giving a small smile and bows as well. “Awh… you were hoping to see me?” she grins a bit, teasing him slightly. “Didn’t know you liked me that much…” Note straightens her posture once more, clasping her hands together as she looks up at him.

“Of course I like you!” Maybe that was a little too excited. That wasn’t what he meant– not like like, just like. Oh gods. Kopiana turns toward the flowers and pulls on his tie a little bit.
“I don’t know what it is, I really like hanging out with you and just talking to you.” He laughs a little and turns back to Note again. “Actually, I was worried about looking like some kind of stalker for trying to find you.”

Inknote pauses again, before her face instantly heats up. She looks away, smiling nervously again. Stars… How is this guy so silly yet so charming at the same time? She can’t help but try and suppress a small snort at his words.
can’t help but try and suppress a small snort at his words. “Ah…” He likes her? “Ha… No, it’s fine… I like hanging out with you too, y’know?” She tilts her head back to him, scratching the back of her neck.
The cowboy sighs and sits down on one of the benches, now much closer to her height.

“With that, what have you been up to so far? Making friends, getting into mischief?”

The bouquetfuls of flowers mounted on the pillars and walls are rather pretty. Are those what violets are? He hasn’t really seen any before. Would make sense then that it’s the Violet Banquet–
Note hums a bit before going over to sit down right next to him.

“Ah… Well, not really. Just been with Berry and Jury for the most part…” They smile a bit, putting their hand on the bench. “…I went in here for a breather.” She turns up to look at the beautiful night sky once more, her eyes twinkling as she continues to gaze up at it in awe. “Beautiful, right?”
“This is a nice spot. Much less people. I was also looking for a break. Glad I found ya.”

Well, now that he’s looking at it, it sure is beautiful. A greater view, even, than when he was looking up at the stars from his sleeping bag in the desert.

“Wow… There’s so many of the little stars. And, what have I heard before? It takes years and years for the light to reach us?”
Inknote nods a bit. “Something about light years…” She gives a small shrug. She loves stars, but in all honesty, she doesn’t know much about them… Maybe she’ll change that. 
“…My stars back–” she pauses before forcing herself to finish that sentence, “–at my old home, were pretty… but they weren’t really… stars, per se. I’m glad to see real ones…” Note glances at him again. “…with someone I care about.”

Real stars… oh yeah. Some of the people around here come from worlds where they lived underground. He had seen some people talking about that. He can’t really imagine that. They live on the surface.

…Wait– was she just talking about him? He smiles a little and leaned back on the bench.

“You’re right. We got real stars at home, but the air feels cleaner here. They’re easier to see. Maybe we can even point out those– uh… shapes, or whatever people see in them."
Note hums and turns back to the sky.
“Constellations?”
“Yeah! Those things.”
Note ponders a bit. “Maybe there would be a few here…” She doesn’t know much, but she does know what constellations are. “…I don’t really remember some of them–” No real stars and all. “Do you know any?”
“Uh… No. I don’t know any.” Kopiana thinks it’s something like clouds, where you just say whatever you see.
“I can always make ‘em up.” A chuckle. Kopiana looks up at the sky for a minute, before pointing up towards a general spot of stars. “Like that. That one kinda looks like a cactus.”
Note looks at the direction he’s pointing and chuckles a bit. “Yeah… yeah! You’re right! It kind of does!” She turns to another set of stars and points towards the direction. “That one looks like a feather… somewhat!”

She grins. Might be childish to some but… she is very much enjoying herself.
Kopi smiles brightly at Note, before looking back where she pointed and turned his head a little to the side. It’s a lot easier to see things much farther away–

“I think I see it! And next to it is like– …a star. Well– yeah, a star– but like the classic looking one. Sheriff’s badge.”

Funny that that’s what he thinks of first.
Note chuckles a bit.

“Oh… I see it!” This is actually pretty fun, not going to lie…
She quickly turns and notice another cluster of stars, not knowing how close they are.
“And that one–” She leans closer to gesture toward it, but pauses as she notices that she is right in front of him. She blinks a bit, her face flushing. “ …looks like a… heart…”

Oh my god. He is dead. Dead and in Heaven.
No– he can’t be in Heaven, his Soul is pulsing too fast. WHAT IS HAPPENING. It feels like he can’t breathe. He isn’t dead but he’s dying.
He glances up at the sky before looking back at Note in front of him, face very yellow.

“Ha… i-it really does. Cute.”

Where had he heard about hearts skipping a beat before, because that’s what this feels like.

“I-I mean! The stars! Constellation. N-Not that you aren’t. You are! Cute! Yes. Y-You are cute.”

Stars– Inknote knows she doesn’t have a Soul, but why is her chest racing???

“Ah… yes! Right! Uhm! I'm… cute! Very!” What is she talking about??? Why can’t she move??? What’s happening??? “Uh… you’re cute, too!” Shut up!!! You’re making a fool of yourself!

She doesn’t know what came over her as she drops the hand that was gesturing at the cluster of stars, and put it on his shoulder. This is just… a friendly pat! Yeah! You’re awesome at this friendliness stuff, Note! Go girl! Slay, queen!
Him? Cute? No, no. Why does that feel bad? Cute isn’t a bad thing. Especially not from Note. She is so kind. yet, it feels a little… girly.
Kopiana gives an awkward smile. Yes. Smile. Pretend you’re not dying. Is he being stupid? He’s pretty sure he’s acting like an absolute fool right now for no good reason.

“Yes! And– thank you. I am… also cute!”

He awkwardly sets his hand on hers. A friendly hand-holding! Of course! The only kind of hand-holding.
Friendly-hand holding! Yes! Amazing! Great! Friendship buddies!! Yay!!!
Note’s face is still flushed, as she turns her gaze to… literally anywhere else, honestly. But she’s still facing him.

“Great!” she finally speaks. “Uhm… you’re… pretty charming too!” That’s what friends say to each other, right? 

…Well, she is already complimenting him– why not say more? Even if she is incredibly embarrassed by how stupid she is. Maybe he’s right—
She intertwines their hands together, and turns her head down with extreme embarrassment. Her face explodes with color instantly.
The room has to be heating up. He lives in the desert for crying out loud, and he’s sweating here and now of all places. “Charming” sounds better.

“You… are also very pretty… and kind.”

Compliments. Friends give each other compliments all the time! Everything happening is actually totally and completely normal. He’s just too excited by the party and atmosphere, that’s all.
Up this close to her face, he can really see how cute the marks on her face are– and the yellow lines on her face.
She really does look nice.

“I really hope I’m not embarrassing you–”
Note quickly looks back up at him. “N-No! It’s okay! I’m, uh…!”
Quick, think of something before you suddenly act like a fool again–
She slightly squeezes his hand and turned her gaze to the floor again shyly. “–Thank you… I don’t really think I’m… that pretty, honestly…” Note starts to lean in a bit closer, getting a bit more comfortable in this position.
The embarrassment and awkwardness start to fade at her words. God, he knows what that’s like. It took a lot of convincing after his scar that his face wasn’t ruined. Cro had to remind him for a while, and then he just… got used to it.
“I think you're beautiful. Really. You’ve got no reason to think otherwise.”

All the little details are nice. Kopiana has no idea the lines on her face weren’t always there. They’ve been there since he met her, and never once did he think they were strange.
Note’s face softens at that as she gazes into Kopi’s eyesockets. Beautiful? Ha… does he really think that?

“…Look, Kopi…” She still has a slight flush on her face, but it’s slightly faded. She’s flattered, but… she can’t think of herself like that. “I didn’t always look like this, okay?” she lets out with a frown.

She… doesn’t want to go into the details, but she tries her best to explain. “…These scars…” Like something forced her to stop, the skeleton’s equivalent to biting one’s lip, she can’t say anything else.
Kopi shrugs a bit, scratching the back of his neck.

“You don’t gotta tell me about scars. In case you were distracted by devilishly handsome good looks, I got a pretty big one.” He laughs a little and put his arm around her shoulders to give her some comfort. “It doesn’t bother me none. I still stand by my word.”
She blinks a bit, then chuckles herself.
“…I guess I was distracted by your handsome face, huh?” She doesn’t know when she got so comfortable, but she leans against him a bit more, giving a soft sigh. “If I’m beautiful, that makes you handsome too, alright?” She smiles, looking up at him. “Can’t have one without the other…” It’s like the memory of her scars just faded.

She is healing.

If she says it, he’ll have to believe it. Something about it feels so validating to him, to be called handsome. Almost makes him giddy.

“Hmm, I think I can deal with that. You beautiful and me handsome. Has a nice ring to it, if you think about it.” He’s glad to see she’s happy with what he said. He doesn’t want to push her to talk about anything she doesn’t want to. He heard enough from that Charo guy.

Kidnapped… still makes him fucking furious when he reads that.

Note chuckles a bit, leaning against him and turning up to the sparkling night sky.

“Mhm… a pretty great pair, right?” She smiles, continuing to look on. “I don’t think I will ever get tired of saying it, but…” She holds his other hand, still not facing him. “…it’s really beautiful.”

This is… really nice. Can’t say he’d ever done anything like this before. Maybe once when he was just a little kid.

“It is. We could always do this more often. After the party, of course.” He leans his head on top of Note’s, looking up.
“I don’t mean to keep you from the party, if you wanted to go back.”
“I wouldn’t mind… even if it’s not watching the stars… just being with you is fun enough.” Note hums a bit, before thinking about the party. Right. They’re at a banquet. “…I mean, I wouldn’t mind staying here longer… but I think the next little event is going to happen soon.” She chuckles a bit again. Looks like hanging out with Kopiana makes her forget all about… everything that happened. “I’m a staff member, so I–” she pauses. “Oh! I remember everything about the event now!” Looks like just sitting down and talking… could do a lot for her.

The teenagers arrive, with Kalei explaining the rules as Syn nods along.

“Didn’t realize I was hanging with staff,” Kopi responds. “We could always hang out for the next event. If we’re bein’ honest, I didn’t really look at the itinerary.”

On account of it taking a little too much time to sit down and read it all.

Once more people start entering the atrium, he quickly sits up straight and takes his arm off of Note. He really doesn’t want to make her anxious in front of everyone else. Kopi gives an awkward little laugh. Note also sort of leans away from Kopiana as more people walked in. Haha. Yup. Nothing was going on over here! 

“Ha, uh– anyways,” Kopi continues, “What is going on here soon?”
“Aha… well, I mean, I’d be looking forward to that!” Note says as her flace still has a hint of color on it. “But… uh… I completely forgot to tell you that there would be uh… a game. Soon. Do you know the game mafia?”

As the latté-colored enfield waits for attendees to gather for tonight’s group activity, Faelin’s ears perk up at overhearing the concerns of a monster duo and a human duo. She trots over to check on them.

“I can go ask if you wa–” Syn begins.
“There a problem?” Faelin asks.
“Oh, shit, hello miss–” Shield, a Frisk variant from a magical hero AU, makes a sad little sound. 
“So, one of us has a lie detector ability, and another can’t see without magic being infused into the item. What do we do?”
“–Uhh, yeah, that–” Strike– Shield’s Chara– glances up at Faelin with a strained smile, “so, what are the rules for uh… people who can basically read minds?”
Faelin blinks, then frowns. “Uhm… well, a big part of the game is lying but…”
She pauses.

Note blinks, tilting her head at the way her housemate is squinting skeptically after telling them the “friendly friend-stuff” she and Kopiana had been up to.
“…What’s wrong–” She looks a bit nervous. “Uhh. Yeah. Kopi, Berry. Berry, Kopi… Uh. I don’t think you two met before face-to-face…”

Calm down, Note– calm down–

“Ah, I d-don’t think we have, no,” Berry says, “It’s n-nice to m-meet you…!”
“Y-Yea, very nice to meet you.” …Can they tell that they were being awkward before? How do they know? Kopiana’s face turns a little yellow as he scratches his forehead. “I might’ve seen you talking in the Hells. Note also mentioned– I believe it was your house I brought the horses to.”

Strike’s head snaps up at the mention of a very specific word being uttered across the atrium…

“Ah, here you are.” Jury, a vigilante Dream similarly dressed like a cowboy, approaches Note and Berry– though not without giving Kopiana a cordial nod in greeting.

“…How imaginitive are you with making up methods of murder?” Faelin asks.
“Very,” Shield says.
“Very,” Strike nods.
“I can think of ten ways to murder you with a plastic spoon right now.”
“They can! It’s fucking terrifying!”
“Perfect,” Faelin replies, “You can help me narrate.”
Shield gasps.

Yes… yes!

Finally, a use for all those creative threats!

“Jury!! Hello!” Note smiles and waves.

Welp, there’s Jury. Kopiana may not have acknowledged him yet, but he gives them a nod and tip of his hat without saying anything. He already knows how they feel about him.
Is everyone just onto them? He’s normal! Totally just friends who look at the stars together and hold hands. Is that too much to ask?

“How is the party on your end?” Inknote continues. “I was just telling Berry how I was here with Kopiana, stargazing and stuff.”
Jury frowns, averting his gaze briefly as he paces to both of their sides.
“…Weird,” he honestly states.
“H-how so…?”
Jury shakes his head. “…Was bribed with a dog photo to give fashion advice…”
“…W-what?”
“I’m not sure what else to tell you.”
“…Now that’s a story you need to tell me later.” Note says with a small chuckle. She turns to Kopiana, tilting her head. “Would you be joining us?”

A strange Papyrus with a bright starburst in one eyesocket opens the door to the atrium, feeling just as excited as he is nervous.
“HELLO…! THIS, IS THE ATRIUM, YES? WHERE THE GAME OF MAFIA IS TAKING PLACE?” he asks upon seeing the staff members nearby. The star in his eye slows down again.
Just outside the atrium, Tenna takes in a deep breath. Okay! No emotional crises, just a fun game of mafia. Aaaaand– action! The Darkner walks in after that Papyrus, still shrunk down enough so as to not appear too tall.

An animated doll runs in after Papyrus. “Heyy!!”

“Oh, hell yeah!” Strike grins, “So– do I join, or…?”
I mean, probably, right? These two look attached at the metaphorical hip–
“Whichever!” Faelin says.

Hmm… the kids look at each other. On one hand, staying together. On the other hand… “I’ll be just across the room.” Strike says, squeezing Shield in a tight hug, “And only for a little while.”

“Mm. Okay.” The kids let go of each other, nodding. Shield walks back over to Ms. Faelin, ready to begin.
“And what do we do for the blind player that sees magic?” Kalei asks.
“…Can you use that to see where somebody is pointing?” Faelin asks Syn.

Papyrus suddenly notices Alex near his feet. “OH, HELLO ALEX…! ARE YOU ALSO PLAYING MAFIA?”
“Umm– mafia, What’s that!? Don’t know– but umm– ya! Playing always sound fun!” Alex the doll answers. She has no idea what this game is about, or even what mafia means– but she is beaming with excitement, ready to play!
Hesperia– a Dream with branches sprouting from her head like twintails and with volume like pom-poms–  enters next, following Alex. “Alex, don’t run that fast, you may trip again,” she calls out worriedly.
“Papaaaaaa, I’m fine!” Alex whines.

Then the human Aoife wanders into the atrium, looking slightly out of breath. She’d found it! Finally! She’d heard they were playing some kind of game and she’d been very intrigued, but for the entire first day of the Banquet, she’s been wandering around lost! And sure, she could’ve used her magic to lead her the way, but where’s the fun in that?

Unfortunately, that means she almost didn’t make it in time.

“…Alright, it's time!” Faelin claps her talons together. “Is this everybody?”

…That actually is a weird one… Kopiana might take a dog photo too, though–
“Hm? Oh yes. I’d love to if you'd be willing to have me.”
Note scoffs a bit.
“Of course I’d be willing to have you around!”

“…Yes, unless they’re really bright, then no…” Kalei answers when Faelin’s attention is less distracted by the other players arriving. “Or unless they don’t have a Soul, then I can’t see them at all.”
“Yeah. But you can look away and then look back when you need to.”
“That’s true,” Syn concedes.
“Alright, then just do that and nothing will change for you rules-wise!”

The Papyrus alternate glances at Alex, worried– oh, goodness, she looks like a kid, and this game is about murder– but his attention quickly turns to Faelin.

Aoife walks over to the group of strangers, giving everyone a friendly smile and wave. She recognizes a few of them from when she first entered the Banquet in the main hall, but most of them are entirely unfamiliar to her.

Tenna counts the number of fellow mafia players in his head and now looks more excited than he already was.

Shield takes their place next to Faelin. Strike joins the circle. The two of them nod at each other from across the atrium.

They’ve got this…

“Um, if you hand me a paper,” Syn says, “I won’t be able to see it unless it’s written in magic ink.”
“Oh! Could I read it for them if they can’t read it?” Kalei asks.

Faelin allows it.

Mafia with no guns, Berry ponders… They are very curious how this will work!

Aoife can’t help but be excited! She hasn’t played a game like this since school!

“Here!” Frequency, a music-themed Ink, skids into the room.

Jury settles behind Note and Berry. He’ll be sitting this one out– empath senses and all– but he can still spectate.

Alex, Aoife, Berry, Frequency, Herperia, Inknote, Kopiana, Papyrus, Tenna, Strike, Syntosis… Is this everybody?

“I’d like to join,” an Ink variant with a faded lilac stain on their cheek, Concept, chimes in.

The Papyrus with that starburst sits down and relaxes against a soft chair, politely clasping his hands together. He has no idea what mafia’s about, but he’s excited nonetheless. Alex follows after him and sits besides him.

“Still, be careful…” Hesperia warns her. Having just joined, Hesperia wonders what they’ll be doing here.

Tenna sits down next on a soft chair in the circle, memories of good times are flooding back– “But, I’m am, careful papa,” she whispers back –and then someone else, Rip, sits close by to spectate. As much as they love this, if both them and Freq get mafia, it’ll be over for everyone and that’ll be so not fun… so they’re just gonna be his (and Strike’s) hype-man instead!

…And then, at the last possible moment to join, Ichor appears and– still wondering what they’re doing here– sits with the others.

Final roster– Alex, Aoife, Berry, Concept, Frequency, Herperia, Ichor, Inknote, Kopiana, alternate Papyrus, Syntosis (with Kaleidoscope’s help), Rip, Strike

, Tenna… No more entries!

Horse bandits and bandit horses

“Alright, everyone, let’s begin!” Faelin announces, then clears her throat…

“The colors of neon, flashes of light, the clamor of slots. The environment is loud and exciting and oh-so-distracting. But the manufactured chaos of the casino isn’t enough to distract you from the fact that you’re all trapped here. In hindsight, maybe you should have been suspicious at the spontaneous invitation. A week of gambling and luxury at a casino resort, all food and amenities paid, sounded too good to be true. Now, dread sets in as the lot of you stare up at the domed ceiling. It’s been vandalized with spray paint that hasn’t quite dried yet, dripping down as if imitating the bloodshed that the scrawled message promises: ‘Tonight, we paint the place red.’ The electricity cuts, electric doors now useless–”

The lights cutting out makes Berry jump, and they find themself clinging to Note’s arm as Faelin continues to narrate–

“The glass windows and emergency exits were all barred shut during your night of revelry. Now, trapped and aware that the enemy has their sights set on murder, everyone in the building gathers to decide what to do about it. Luckily, or unluckily, depending on your point of view, there’s only a limited number of you. Nobody confesses to being a murderer, of course, but you do know that one of you is a doctor, and another is a skilled detective, though you all decide it’s best they don’t disclose their identities as not to make themselves targets. The detective and doctor will make the rounds, trying to capture the crook and heal anybody who is targeted. The rest of the group will attempt to deduce who the killer might be, holding meetings in the lobby as new developments arise until the menace is brought to justice. With everything settled, you all part ways for now…”

Oh shit, that’s actually some really good set-up… Strike approves. Shield’s going to love describing some of those deaths.

Why is this sort of nerve-wracking, Note wonders– she pats Berry’s skull as a form of comfort. Hopefully both them and Kopi will enjoy this game…

Hesperia tenses, and her foliage dries in an instant. Her tail reachs for Alex to make sure she’s still at her side.

Kalei is hyped. Syn is nervous.

And now, Faelin explains the rules of the game…

• There will be three Murderers, one Doctor, and one Detective
• Detective, Doctor, and Murderers– you will be DM’d promptly about your roles. Keep an eye on DMs! I will be communicating with you privately for each of your turns.
• Murderer will be asked who they want to kill, Doctor who they wish to save (yes, you can save yourself), and Detective who they would like to investigate.
• For everyone, remember to keep your identity a secret during “meetings” (I know it’s tempting, Detective)!
• At the end of each turn, you will all discuss and vote on who to eliminate.

Tenna keeps sitting calmly, gloved hands rested on the thighs– what a lovely narration! Aoife honestly doesn’t care what happens, as long as it’s entertaining! Alex tilts her head, feeling like she didn’t get any of that; she looks over at Hesperia and Papyrus to see if they followed all of that. Papyrus feels tense. He definitely understands, but… this feels nerve-wracking. Why is his Soul racing already? Everyone’s roles haven’t even been decided yet! Kopiana can’t help but give a light chuckle and a smile to his side, even if Note can’t see it. That really set the mood. Ichor just swings their feet a bit hearing everything.

Alright, time to catch a fucking murderer. Or be a murderer! That sounds like a fun time.

Shield’s eyes trace the room… there you are.

They don’t stop, continuing to scan as though nothing were amiss. Can’t let anyone get ideas.

Aoife wonders if everyone else had arrived here with someone. Probably not, right? Surely she’s not the only one who showed up by herself? That would certainly give her a disadvantage… not that winning is all that important to her, but still…

Con looks around nervously as he picks and pulls at the strings along the ends of his cape.

Roles have been selected!

Syn moves closer to Kalei.
Alex tugs on Papyrus. “Do you understand the game?” she whispers.
Kalei side-hugs Syn to help them out. Strike also joins this teenager huddle! For reasons! Definitely not because they want to be included… Kalei side-hugs Strike too.

…Strike is not going to say they appreciate this, but if they turn out to be a killer, they’ll probably let Kalei live slightly longer than everyone else.

Tenna’s smile twitches slightly from nervousness, it’s been so long! Syn is looking at their feet. Kalei is now looking at the ceiling.
Papyrus whispers back with a sympathetic look. “Yeah, don’t worry," he says with a subtle nod. “The staff and I can help you if need-be.”
“Ah– okey” she nods, “Tank, tank.”
Hesperia holds Alex close. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine…”
Alex clings and cuddles into Hesperia. “Love Papa.”
“Okay, everybody has their roles, so we’ll be going into the first night! Heads down, everyone!”

Eyes shut. No cheating. Shield will be mad if they do…

Hesperia gives Alex a small hug too. “Love you too, kid…” She sighs and closes her eyes, the leaves in her branches starting to fall. Alex squeaks, lowers her head, closes their eyes, and puts her hands over their eyes.
Aoife bows her head and closes her eyes, twirling a strand of her hair. There is a lot of whispering going on…
Well, Berry supposes it’s starting…

Jury settles back behind Berry, patting their shoulder in assurance. Berry closes their eyes, just trying to stick close to Jury.

Papyrus shuts his eyes and lowers his head, trying to keep a firm, unyielding expression. He’s almost succeeding. Freq ducks his head down. Rip waves in Freq’s direction– not like he can even see them right now, but it’s a silent “you got this.” Ichor closes their eyes as their tail wags slowly. Kalei joins Syn in facing the floor, but also closes his eyes. Con puts his cape over his eyes, but still looks down, just in case. Tenna lowers his head down slightly, puts on a sleep cap and shuts his screen off for the “night.”
Note puts her head down, taking off her glasses and closing her eyes. Well. She can’t see anyway, so.
Kopi crosses his arms first before tipping his head down.

…Let the game begin.

“…Okay, everybody up!”

Shield steps up, solemn. “…You don’t know how it happened– a malfunction. Sabotage. You only know that you aren’t fast enough. One of the slot machines bursts to life– JACKPOT, it screams! A surge of coins bursts forth, relentless in its path. Most jump out of the way, but two unfortunate souls aren’t so lucky, as the coins crush Ichor and Tenna, suffocating them.”

“Mr. Tenna, Mx. Ichor,” Faelin declares, “You’re dead.”
Oh! Berry had been expecting the “victims” to just be laying on the ground!
Aoife lifts her head and examins the small crowd curiously. A slot machine? Aoife supposes that’s technically a possible way for someone to die.
“Oh, what the shit–” Strike looks up. That’s kinda gruesome!
Alex immediately stands up from her chair– or rather, stands on Hesperia’s lap. “I’m up! Very up awake!”
“Careful to not fall.” Hesperia puts her arms on Alex’s sides so she doesn’t.
Papyrus’ eyesockets widen as he “awakes.” He isn’t particularly one to use profanity, but at the same time, holy shit. Not how you’d expect someone to die.
Note blinks. “Oh– oh, uh.” She looks around frantically. Well– someone’s dead now–
Faelin folds her ears back. “Goodness…” Impressive and terrifying! “…Alrighty! Who does everyone think the mafia may be? Oh– and remember to keep your identities a secret!”

Ten-minute discussion starts now…!

Tenna takes the sleep cap off, and upon hearing his fate, he acts frozen– and the screen reads That’s all, folks!

“Well, it’s not either of them!" Strike says, gesturing towards the now-out players.
“Uh.” Note’s going to be so real, she doesn’t know a lot of people here… “…I don’t– uhm.” She doesn’t want to accuse anyone right now.
“Ummm– it’s gotta be then!” Alex points at someone at random… which would be Note.
“I have no ideas,” Syn comments, “There was nothing to go off of.”
“I’m gonna guess! Um… you.” Kalei points at Note too.
“There’s no– oh, they’re invisible to me.”
“Huh????” Note is confused. “Me????”

Current roster: Alex, Aoife, Berry, Concept, Frequency, Hesperia, Inknote, Kaleidoscope/Syntosis, Kopiana, Papyrus and Strike.

“It’s probably whoever was across from them, right?” Strike comments, “Easiest first target–”
“Alex, don’t point like that,” Hesperia warns, “we must… hum… debate, not just guess.”
“If you're actually doing it for real,” Freq clarifies, “You can point at anyone, though.”

Con doesn’t know anyone and truly has no clue on who to chose.
Aoife hums quietly to herself as she ponders who it could be. She doesn’t actually know anyone here, so she’s really just left guessing. “…Well, and this is not an accusation in any way, but we shouldn’t take anyone off the table just because of appearance or, more importantly, age,” she says, gesturing to Alex– although, she ends the gesture with a friendly wave. They are a cute kid, but who knows? Perhaps they are a cute murderer, too!

“–Awwh, but Papa! This is debating!” Alex then smiles and waves at Aofie, “Or her too!”
Hesperia resists the urge to palm her face. “To debate you must… hum… give arguments, kid…”
“Sorry, random guess.” Kalei says. “Also sorry Syn can’t see ya.”
“Is it just random accusations…?” Berry asks.
“Actually, wait, who came in with them–? You’re more likely to murk people you know than strangers.” Strike read that in a book somewhere!

Kopiana taps on his chin for a moment, looking around to survey those left. Who looks suspicious?

Aoife giggles. “Awe! Nevermind, I think we can take the kid off the table.” What a sweetie! She can’t in good conscience accuse a little kid.
“Yes, you! Umm– hat is too pretty! Is suspicious!” Alex doubles down.
“Uh??? Thank you, actually… But I swear– I don’t think I have it in me to kill anyone!!” Inknote tries to defend herself.
“Dang, Note. Maybe you are the killer. Your hat is too pretty.” Kopi laughs before looking over again. “You could be suspicious, too.” He points at Alex. “Throwing accusations around.”
“–Again, there’s not much to go on. We shouldn’t be accusing anyone yet,” Syntosis argues.

Papyrus leans forward, trying to maintain his firm expression again. He still has a job to do… even if he doesn’t want to be terribly accusatory… goodness, what is the right thing to do here? He surveys the others. Who seems suspicious, given his knowledge…?
It’s a shame none of them know each other very well. It just means that everyone is guessing blindly. So Aoife ends up nodding, agreeing with Syntosis, “Yeah, that’s probably smart. Barely anything’s happened yet.”

Ichor has just been looking at the coins. “Shiny…” They mumble and just decide to not move. They’re pretty good with their fate.
Shield is glad Mx. Ichor likes their death. They hum, swishing their skirt happily.

…Time to vote!

“I’m putting my bets on either Alex or the tall bloke with the flowers!” Strike announces, pointing at Alex and Hesperia.
“…Bloke of flowers?” Hesperia is not offended, but the nickname is so silly it has her stunned for a moment. “–Wait, me and Alex?”
“Well, you were with him when he came in, right?” Strike reasons.
“But why would we even do that?”
“Because that’s how the game works, you do murder!” Strike proclaims.
“Um, did I came with who? Wait who is dead??” Alex asks.
“I’m abstaining from voting,” Syntosis states. “We don’t have enough information."
“…You know– yeah… yeah, let’s just go with that…” Note agrees.
“Hey, I know I said to be suspicious of everyone, but don’t we think ganging up on the child so quickly might be a bit… mean?” Aoife asks.
“…You gotta vote,” Faelin states plainly.
“Yes, but I could say the same about you, that’s not a pretty good argument," Hesperia adds.

Papyrus silently tosses his vote in. He is going by pure gut here. Not enough information. And he feels bad accusing Alex.
Berry feels bad voting for their friend, so… sorry, Hesperia.

“Yeah, Papa! Go debating! I came with Paps not with the ghost! So they lying it not me!”
“Can I vote to skip?” Syn asks.
“Might just need to choose someone, broski,” Kalei replies. Syn groans.

Con just votes based on what name he sees first.

“…Alright, votes are in! Gathering around, you all decided that Alex has to go. After some investigation though… They were not the mafia.”
“I have to goo!? Whyyyy!?” Alex whines loudly.

Papyrus looks sad. He kind of liked Alex…

“Wait, shit!” Strike exclaims. No!! The poor baby child–
“Sh… It’s ok, I’ll catch you later; why don’t you go separate some strawberries? We can maybe bake a cake later,” Hesperia gently offers.
“Don’t worry,” Faelin interjects, “You can still sit and watch!”

Aoife frowns that the kid had been voted out too, but smiles at the fact that she was not the mafia. It means the game will continue! It would be such a shame if it were over in a single round. That wouldn’t be fun at all.
Note just sits there. “I’m so sorry–” she doesn’t know why she’s apologizing, but now she feels bad because she thinks she’s the reason they were voted out–

Berry did nothing wrong, frankly.

“Okay, everybody, heads down again!” Faelin announces.

“All’s fair in… something. Whatever the saying is.” Kopiana puts his head back down–

Note tilts her head down again, still feeling bad.
Aoife, on the other hand, grins as she puts her head down and closes her eyes. She’s having fun, even if she doesn’t know anybody else here!

“This is why I wanted to wait another round!” Syn puts their head down. Kalei pats their back as they close their eyes and look down as well. Hesperia sighs and lowers her head next, some more dry leaves falling from her branches.

Papyrus surveys the others briefly before lowering his head as well, shutting his eyesockets again.

Alex pouts and crosses their hands.

Faelin leans in to whisper something to Shield…

Shield rises, surveying the room. “It’s time. Something feels off, and you all huddle together at the center of the room. The lights flicker… And then, darkness. A gunshot goes off– BANG!” The last of Hesperia’s leaves finally fall as she hears the sound-effect, leaving behind bare antlers– “–Then another, from somewhere else in the room– there’s too much shouting, too much panic as people scramble to push each other out of the way, no one can tell where anything is– someone bumps the nearest arcade cabinet. Rows upon rows of digital lights come on, illuminating two bodies. One, slumped against the roulette– the other, holding a gun of their own… Kalei and Con are now dead.”

“You’re both out.” Shield says, “And Mr. Con was mafia.”

“Huh… Wouldn’t have guessed them in a million years, probably.”
“Oh shit–” Strike looks around. Alright, who the fuck is the most surprised…

Oh! Well, that’s an interesting turn of events! And a mildly disappointing one, too. The more people dead, the quicker the game will end; and now that one of the mafia’s dead, it’s more likely to finish even faster. And then what, Aoife would go back to wandering empty halls? Boring…
Oh… well, at least one is out now…? Berry wonders.

Discussion time! Ten was a bit long, so we’ll do a five-minute discussion.

Note blinks a bit in surprise. “Oh!” Wow– that was great– “Good work, kid!” She doesn’t know their name, so…
Hesperia, now looking more wintry than autumnal, looks up to the new victims… Well one mafia’s down, but there are still others…

Con, committing to the bit, plays a lifeless corpse by assuming the pose of a popular meme. And while not moving an inch, Tenna thinks of his in-game spirit cheering the others on to catch the evil-doers!
Kalei drops to the floor and feigns their corpse too.

“Kalei, nooo!” Syn holds Kalei’s “dead” body. “Come back to meee!” Syn tries not to laugh at the theatrics.

Aoife sighs, seemingly upset for a moment before her smile returns and she goes right back to enjoying herself. “Well, one down, I suppose.”

“Alright, so it has to be someone who knew the other two, right?” Strike begins, “Who came in with them-” Wait… if Kalei’s dead… No. No, Syn wouldn’t–

Papyrus looks up, now with a serious expression.
“…IT’S HIM.”
He points to Kopiana. He is, as the kids say, locking in. The accusation is risky, but…

“Huh??” Note turns to face that Papyrus. “Why do you think so???”
“Me? How cruel.” Kopiana dramatically put his hand on his forehead.

Alex just leans into Hesperia with crossed arms, still pouting over being voted out first.

“…He doesn’t seem that surprised, actually.” Strike casts a suspicious look at Kopiana, “What’s your fucking deal, horse-owning-man?”

Hesperia looks at Kopiana, following Papyrus’ pointing finger. She… isn’t exactly sure… but, not like she has a better guess, the auras are too dense to read any of them properly. She holds Alex close– at least the kid is safe. It’s just a game…

…Inknote very slowly turns to Kopiana…

Okay. Yeah. Maybe it is him…

“TELL ME. WHY WOULD SOMEONE SAY SOMETHING LIKE ‘OH, I WOULDN’T HAVE GUESSED THEM IN A MILLION YEARS… ‘PROBABLY.’ NO ONE SAYS IT THAT WAY UNLESS THEY KNOW SOMETHING.” Papyrus crosses his arms, firm on his decision.
“Hmm, I dunno, it seems a bit… random. Although, I don’t have a great memory, so maybe they did do something super suspicious and I forgot,” Aoife debates, gesturing to Kopiana and shrugging.
“…Doesn’t Kopiana have a gun?” Berry asks.

…Jury doesn’t comment.
Syntosis is petting their “dead” friend as the debate continues.

“I always thought those who point fingers first have the most guilt.” Kopi shrugs at Strike and laughs. “You really like horses, don’t you?”
“They’re the world’s worst animal,” they answer passionately. “I love them so much.”
“Kopi…” Note squints her eyes at him. “…You’re getting more suspicious by the minute…”

Why are horses being mentioned? Aoife rode a horse once when she was a kid… she thought it was cute and asked her parents for one. They said no.
Horses scare Berry. Maybe a horse is the killer!
Oh, but Note would love for a horse to be here right now…
Syntosis doesn’t know what a horse is.
Hesperia thinks horses are beautiful… Such powerful animals… Wait, where do horses lie in this?

“No other accusations?” Faelin asks.
“What? The kid looked so innocent,” Kopi counters. “Just didn’t think he’d be a killer.”
“DON’T ACT COY.” Papyrus turns to face the rest of the group. “…IF YOU GUYS DON’T TRUST ME ON THIS, I’M MORE THAN HAPPY TO BE VOTED OUT NEXT ROUND, AND THAT’LL BE THAT.”
“Hey, a wrong guess shouldn’t get you voted out. It’s alright that you suspect me.”

Faelin looks around at the group. “…Well, it looks like we’re all in agreement, right?”

“Sorry, Koko.” Note sighed, putting the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically. “Guess you gotta go…”
“Damn. Even you? Betrayal!”

Alex wishes death and incredible loss on everyone here– except for the horses and Papa, of course!

“…In agreement that horses are cute, or something else? I honestly wasn’t paying attention, sorry,” Aoife confesses.
“ENOUGH WITH THE HORSE TALK, GUYS!” Papyrus exclaims.
“Actually, anyone want to hear about how killable horses are?” Strike counters.

Maybe Kopiana was secretly a horse, Berry thinks!
Faelin puts her talons on her hips, leveling Kopiana with a stare and a smile. “…Well, what do you have to say for yourself? Were you in kahoots with the mafia?”
Papyrus’ hatred for horses has grown.

“All is fair… As you say.” Note giggles.
“Out with you, horse man! Unless it’s that bloke,” Strike points at Jury, “Which it might be. But mostly I think it’s you.”

Aoife supposes she has no real problem voting out Kopiana, even if she doesn’t really think it was them. In fact, that’s probably why she’s fine with it. Just means more fun if they fail for longer.

“Oh, I’m just watching. I can’t play. Senses and all…” Jury mumbles.
“Well. If you all want to play it that way.” Koko turned to give Note a devilish smirk and points a finger gun at her. “I’ll go out an honest man. I’m mafia!”

Note gasps dramatically.

“Oh, yeah, then it’s definitely him– CALLED THAT SHIT!” Strike shouts.
“I can’t believe you! You lied to me!” Note puts a hand on her chest.
“Not the horse mafia!” Freq exclaims.

Papyrus nods, his arms still crossed, in a subtle but unmistakeable “I told you so” kind of way.

“Woo!” Syn shouts. “Good job, guys!” Kalei adds.

“Bleh!” Kopiana laughs, before laying his back on the ground to play dead.

Aoife frowns. She doesn’t like that. Not one bit.

“It was the fucking horse mafia!” Strike yells, “It’s always the fucking horses! They want revenge for evolution taking away all their toes–”

BERRY KNEW IT. HE WAS A HORSE– MAFIA ALL ALONG!

Aoife really doesn’t want to have to go back to wandering around aimlessly. It feels like the game had only just begun!

“…Berry, are you okay, why do you look like that–” Note turns to them.
Berry is crashing out internally, to be honest. The horse mafia’s real…

Well, another mafia down… Hesperia thinks. Yay.

“Alright, everybody, heads down again! We only have one mafia left!”
“You mean one more evil and intimidating HORSE!” Strike corrects.

Someone protect the lesbians! Berry thinks.

Alex wishes this mafia was better at being killer horses; go, death to the innocent!

Aoife lets out a disappointed sigh but obliges once more, closing her eyes and putting her head down.
Syn looks at Kalei, who has decided that since she’s dead, she will stay on the floor. Then they close their eyes.
Note just closes her eyesockets, giggling. Okay. This is kinda fun…
Hesperia sighs once again and closes her eyesockets. Berry’s sockets close too! Papyrus lowers his head and shut his eyesockets. A bead of sweat rolls down his face. A possibility had occurred to him he hadn’t realized until just now.

Fae leans towards Shield. “…Go ahead–”

Shield stands up. They take out their phone, scrolling through their playlist. “I’m sorry. None of you could have stopped this. The speakers fizzle and spark, hissing static. Rapid-fire channel changes fill the air, until– Music. She’s a killer queen–! Screech. Station change. –run baby run! Run for your life– Switch. –etter run, better run, outrun my– Switch. –dead girl walking! And then it falls. Crack! Note is now dead.”

“Ms. Note, please go join the other dead people. And also the horse.”

“Awh!” She sighs, but just goes on over to the dead pile. “Okay, who ever picked that song has amazing taste!”

Alex claps quietly for Note’s death.

Papyrus raises his head, clearly shocked. First of all, what the hell was that kinda death, and secondly, how is he not dead?!
Aoife giggles softly. She likes a few of those songs. She would have enjoyed hearing them in full, but she recognizes that would have ruined the mood.

NOTE, NO! Berry looks ready to cry, their poor friend…!

“Damn.”

Kalei snorts at Syn swearing.
Jury huffs a fond sigh, giving Note a small salute. She will be missed…

“Sad to see you died,” Kopiana whispers.
“It’s okay, I got to die in probably the most fitting way ever…” She giggles again, nudging him.

“Alright, everyone, guessing time!”

5 Minutes! Current roster: Aoife, Berry, Syntosis, Frequency, Hesperia, Papyrus, Rip, Strike

Hesperia opens their eyesockets again. “Uh…” Well, another dead…
Quite a few people are still alive. That’s good! Aoife thinks.
Papyrus clears his throat and composes himself. “ALRIGHT. I KNOW WHO THE FINAL MAFIA IS,” he said firmly, with narrow eyesockets.
Syn perks up at him. “Oh?”

…Jury pats Berry’s shoulder. “It’s only pretend…”
“Berry, it’s okay I’m still here–”

“Right, so, I don’t think it’s Paps,” Strike says, “It can’t be the blue lady over there because she’s sobbing her eyes out. Freq, I suspect you always.”
Syn snorts at Strike.

Aoife glances over at Berry. What’s with the waterworks? How annoying. She grins.
“Turn that frown upside down, love! I’m sure dying has to be a little fun, too, right?”

Their best friend is dead! :(

Killed by the evil and intimidating horse…

“This was the best death,” Alex whispers.
Hesperia blinks at the child. If Alex wasn’t voted out already, this would be really suspicious for the rest.

Frequency gives a thumbs-up. “As you should… but I’m’s guessing the tree one. Been too quiet.”
“IT’S HER.” Papyrus points straight at Aoife. Time to end this game. “SHE’S BEEN GIGGLING AND SMILING TO HERSELF EVERY SINGLE TIME SOMEONE DIES. SHE ALSO LOOKED QUITE UPSET WHEN I FIGURED OUT THE MAFIA LAST TIME,” he explains. He looks her straight in the eye. “…I KNOW IT'S YOU, AOIFE.”

Jury sighs, pulling Berry in. “Come here…”

“I’m voting for Freq, I think his evil arse is behind all of it.” Strike gives him a withering stare, “Only someone with that face could be a fucking horse…”

“Guys…??? Guys??? I’m right here!!!” Note alleges.
Berry just can’t believe she’s dead, never to be seen again!

Aoife blinks, then turns her head, confused. “I’m pretty sure I’m just enjoying myself, silly. Why, are you not?”

“No, you dead, shhh,” Alex says.
Note just frowns like a wet cat. :(

“I’m gonna vote with the Papyrus,” Syn states.
“AND WHAT, YOU ENJOY THE CIVILIANS DYING? IF YOU WERE A CIVILIAN, I FEEL AS THOUGH YOU WOULD LIKE THAT A LITTLE LESS, WOULDN’T YOU?” he retorts with an accusatory tone.
Hesperia’s unsure how to vote again… maybe side with the Papyrus, their arguments seem reasonable.

Jury frowns, unsure what to do with this, and just pulls Berry to his side.

“…I’m still voting Freq, but that does make sense…” Strike mutters.
Aoife shrugs and grins. She doesn’t care one way or another who dies. She just wants the game to continue on.
“Well, on one hand, if I get voted out and I’m not the mafia, that’s rather boring, now, isn’t it? And, on the other, if I get voted out and I am the mafia, it means the game is over. Seems like a lose-lose to me.”
“No, it’s a lose-win, because you lose and we win the game!” Strike counters.
“It’s okay. If the game ends now, you’ll be alive again.” Kopiana assures.
Wait, why is Hesperia one of the options??

“I don’t wanna be dead anymore!! I wanna hug my best friend!!!” Note is maintaining that wet-cat frown.

“WHAT, ARE YOU NOT HAVING FUN ELSEWHERE IN THE MANSION?” Papyrus tilted his head. “AND, IF YOU GET VOTED OUT AND YOU’RE NOT THE MAFIA, THAT MAKES ME SUSPICIOUS FOR BEING SO ACCUSATORY, DOESN’T IT? DOESN’T SOUND BORING TO ME.”
Aoife giggles again. “Hmm, I suppose that’s true. And besides, all good things must come to an end eventually.”

“Papa, you gotta talk more– silence is suspicious, in game,” Alex whispers to Hesperia.
“Ah, right…” She’d forgotten about that, being too focused on who to vote out.

Jury sighs, holding out an arm for her. “Come here…”

“I’ve mostly been lost elsewhere in the mansion. You all are the first I’ve spoken to since arriving.”
“…Alright, It seem like most of you suspect Aoife.” Faelin sighs, looking over at her. “What do you have to say?”
“So you have no reason not to do a murder!” Strike points, “Evil! Evil horse mafia woman!”

Note sniffles a bit and just goes into the hug.
“Take it easy…” Jury sighs again, holding Note close too.

Alex gives pats to Papa. “What’s a horse?” she asks Strike.

“Hm? Oh, um…” Aoife pauses to think about it for a moment, “All in all, it was an enjoyable experience, I think. I only wish it continued on.” She nods as she finishes, before laughing and casting a small spell to make herself appear dead. The illusion isn’t graphic in any way, but it is… unsettling. It only lasts for a moment, though, and it does not appear for Alex. She doesn’t want to scare the poor child.

“I'm sorrryyyyy…” Note sniffled. “I promise I won’t die again… I think…”

Faelin looks down at her, then blinks. “…But I guess she’d rather die than confess, hehe…! She was the last mafia.”
“Wait, was I supposed to confess? Oops!” Aoife says.

“…You. Don’t know what a horse is–?” Huh. That one ancient Polish dictionary is wrong. “One sec, let me–” Time for Strike to search the words define horse… 

HOW COULD SHE?! Poor, poor Note… :(

“A horse is large plant-eating domesticated mammal with solid hoofs and a flowing mane and tail, used for riding, racing, and to carry and pull loads. And also apparently that lady.”
“I grew up in Outerhorror…” Syn explains.

Faelin shows Shield’s hand in thanks, then waves towards the others. “…And that’ll be it for tonight's game!”

“If you die again, can I steal your hat?" Alex asks Note.
Note leans a bit away, looking at Berry. “I’m fine!!! I’m fine!!! The game is over!!!”

“Thank you for joining us.” Shield curtsies. “We hope you had fun.”

“No m-more dying! Note isn’t allowed to d-die anymore!” Berry shouts.
“…What–”
“Hat!” Alex points. “It’s pretty!”
“…I’m going to veto that,” Jury intervenes.
“Veto mean you agree?”
“…Next time,” Note says.

“I was a shitty doctor,” Syn remarks. Kalei is laughing at Syn.
“THAT’S WHAT INTELLIGENCE AND DECIPHERING EXPRESSIONS GETS YOU…!” Papyrus whispers to himself, leaning against the soft chairs. Ignore the fact that he was the Detective and got lucky. That did not play a factor. Not even a little bit.
Aoife’s bright smile slowly dims. Guess she’s back to wandering around aimlessly. For a party so big, she really hasn’t gotten the chance to speak with anyone much… Welp! So it goes! Maybe she’ll find something interesting elsewhere! No point in being a downer, even for a moment!

“…Am I allowed to get off the ground now?” Con asks anyone.
“…You may, yes!” Faelin answers.

“…I’m holding you to the no-more-death thing,” Jury tells Note.

“Yay! We lost and I sorta don’t understand the killer horse, but yay!” Con says.

“Awwh, when is nice time tho?” Alex asks.

Shield hums. “I’m a little sad I didn’t get to use the eye death. That one was good…” They look forlornly at their notes app. Oh well– maybe for next time they threaten Muffet.

“Sorry for lying to you there for a minute, Note. All for the love of the game.” Kopiana gives a little mischievous shrug and puts a hand on her shoulder.
“Berry… Berry, I’m fine… You can let go now–” Note insists, trying to comfort them.
“N-Note I can’t b-believe you’re dating a h-horse!”
“I’M WHAT????”

“It’s was so bad! I lost and I didn’t got to debate more people to vote out!” Alex complains.

“Dating a horse, they said.” Jury helpfully explains. Berry sniffles, absolutely refusing to let go of them just yet.
“Ew, maybe Note should die real,” Alex grumbles.

Strike sprints over to their other half.
“FRIIIIIIISK!”
“Chara–”
The children crash into each other in a big, brutal hug. Strike lifts Shield off the ground, squeezing them tight.
“Can we not leave each other again?” Strike asks, voice slightly wobbly.
“Mmm. Yes.” Shield answers, “No leaving.”

Syn suddenly shrieks as Kalei picks them up too and starts spinning them around. The both of them start laughing as they do.

The odd Papyrus’ eyes widen.
…Yeah. No. He’s getting the hell outta here now. Off he goes, to… somewhere! Don’t ask where! He hasn’t figured that out yet!

–Dating????

…Kopiana’s Soul feels like it literally left his body for a minute. He isn’t even fully there for a second as his whole face turns yellow. “…Who… Who’s the horse?” He really just has to confirm they’re talking about him.
Jury gives Kopiana a flat stare. Maybe the time for that shovel talk is faster approaching than he first thought…

Hesperia sighs and pats Alex. Her antlers are already budding with new green.
“It’s okay, maybe next time you’ll have better luck… How about we do something to cheer you up? Since there’s strawberries and chocolate, we could bake a cake of strawberries.” She smiles. “Or… maybe another modern recipe… I don’t know a lot…”

“T-the horse m-m-mafia is real and N-Note is dating one…” Berry sniffs, whining. “J-Jurryyyyyy…”
“I– WAIT, DON’T CRY!! NO, I’M NOT!!” Note panics. “I’M SINGLE AND I DON’T KNOW IF I CAN MINGLE!!!”
Hearing his name pulls Jury back out of his thoughts, and he brings them both back into his arms. “It’s just pretend, Berry. A fictional story…”

Aoife stands from her seat and brushes any wrinkles out of her skirt that might have formed. She takes a glance at the crowd around her. She finds all of them to be dull or annoying like everybody else she’d ever met. She wishes she could’ve learned their names.
“Well, I’ll be off! I’m glad I was able to make it in time, it was fun!” She waves to everyone and turns away.

Shield looks over at Kopiana and Note, head tilted. “Are you… not dating?” They blink, “Your frequencies sound like you’re dating.”
“I can’t even hear Souls and I thought you two wanks were dating…” Strike mutters.

“I ate so many strawberries, Papa! That be would be very nice to bake and eat even more!” Alex nods. Hesperia chuckles.
“Then let’s go.” She picks her up and takes her to the ⁠kitchen.

“H-how could you d-do this to m-me?!” Berry demands. “I o-owe Papy 30G now…!”
“I-I’m really not sure I know what this whole horse mafia thing is?” Kopiana stammers. “I’d be happy to let you meet the girls next time, Berry. Note was watching them at your house for a bit–”

Horse mafia… Hm. Is Koko the horse? But they aren’t dating– he is super single.

She turns to them. “I??? We aren’t together–!!” She is extremely flustered.
“. . .” Jury glances between the two of them.

…But they resonate like they are– the same way Uncle Eugene and Mr. Mazuku’s Souls did, and Uncle Towu and Auntie Lyn’s did, and–
“…Oh. They don’t know yet,” Shield states.
“Oh, eww, budding romance–” Strike sticks their tongue out, “Let’s leave before they realize and start snogging…”
“Mmm. Okay.” Shield takes their hand, and leads them out of the room. Time to find their uncles…

Syn gets put down and looks above Note. “I can’t see Ms. Note…”

These Strike and Shield kids are gonna kill him. It’s in his SOUL!?!!? Kopiana can’t breathe again. “I– …What is happening??? I feel like I’d know if we were dating.”
“I w-was gonna buy a new f-figurine with that 30G…” Berry sighs, leaning against Jury. “N-Note whyyyyyy…”

“BYE BYE EVERYONE! HATE YOU FOR VOTING FOR ME!” Alex yells out, as she gets carried out to the kitchen, and waves goodbye.

“Ko, back me up here–” Note says, extremely flustered. “WHAT?? I don’t… I’m terrible at relationships I can’t pull!!!!”

Ichor just listens to the commotion as she organizes the coins which had previously buried her… She’s scaling them in order of luster…

“W-What? I don’t think that– you’re so nice and pretty, you could have anyone you wanted.” WHAT IS HE SAYING. Right in front of her two friends? Kopiana puts his hands over his face and shakes his head. “Don’t listen to me– I-I’m not here right now!”
“For shame, Kopiana. For shame, Note.” Jury shakes his head slowly.
“KOPIANA, YOU’RE NOT HELPING!!” Note hits him on the side, but not enough to hurt. She turns back to her friends. “Guys…!! Believe meeee!!!!” She whines.

Kalei has started laughing at the chaos.

“Their magic is a lot brighter around her,” Syn observes.

“W-what is it about c-cowboys that you like so m-much?” Berry demands, glaring at Kopiana. “I-if I have to whack t-this one with a p-pipe, I w-will…!”
Jury sets a firm hand on Berry’s shoulder. “No, no, not yet.”
…Kopiana forgot about that fucking tin can. Charo. He doesn’t know why they make his marrow molten. “If I ever become like that guy, I hope you hit me with a pipe–”
“I w-will.”
“Oh. You’ll be dead before they get to you, fret not,” Jury… assures?
“Please don’t–” Note puts her hands up. “Kopi is cool!!! I swear!” She pauses, turning back to Kopi. “…Why are you encouraging this–”

Well… They have a point…

Kopi really doesn’t feel cool right now. “…I really didn’t like that Charo guy, an’ I only had one conversation with ‘im.”
Jury and Berry are being so calm for thinking they were dating. Which they aren’t! Friend things.
Note hisses a bit. “Yeah… I uh…” She scratches the back of her neck. “Him.” She sighs. “But me and Kopiana aren’t dating!”
“…Then you get to keep your life for now,” Jury yields.

Nothing he can do about that lost dignity, though.

“F-for now…” Berry adds.
“Excuse me–?” Kopiana seems a little surprised at Jury. They would definitely follow through on their word…
Note makes another wet-cat face.
“Guys, please…” :(
…He wants to say “I’d never ask her that,” but… but that isn’t entirely true. He’s definitely thought about it. But that was just… his mind being weird! They’re friends! Just friends!

Kalei has started leading Syn out by holding their hand.

“I-I’m watching you, Horse Boy.”
“Mmhm…”
“Horse Boy–? Sure. I promise I’m not some bad person, really! We’re just hanging out as friends!”
“…Sure,” Jury says.
“Just friends!!!” Note insists too… though, that… feels weird to say. “Just casual friends!!” Sure, Note. Was it casual when you guys held hands and stargazed together??
“. . .” Jury stares between them again.

It sure is getting hot in here again– Jury is still looking at them, but he asks anyway. Kopi really needs to be out of their sights.

“Uh, Note. Do you want to move anywhere else?”
Note takes a deep breath and nods.
“Mhm! Yup! Sorry guys! Me an’ Kopi are going! Somewhere!! See you later!!” She takes his hand, and together, they bolt out of here.
Note… does not want to be that embarrassed again–

…Jury watches the duo sprint off, giving a sigh and shaking his head as he turns to regard Berry.

“…What do you make of them, hm?” he inquires. “…Certainly a duo.”
“…G-give them a week,” they say simply.
“…That may be generous.”
“…The e-end of the party, then?”
“Mm. No. I meant less.”
“Ah…”

Yeah, Berry can see it.

Rough landing

“A-ah… Good evening, welcome to the Violet Banquet– I am the host, Ridwan…” Back in the entrance hall, Ridwan’s voice sounds knotted for reasons not immediately apparent as they welcome another guest.

“–Nous nous aimons, nous nous battons, je te tue, tu meurs. C’est la vie– the host is here! Quickly Ink, stop acting foolish and be on your best behaviour!” Ace pulls out a second chair, as though he had duplicated it beside him, and gestures for Ink to sit down.

Ridwan has been here the whole time.

“Yes, but we’re only noticing you now,” Ace says to nobody.

Why would he do that?

Ink squints and looked at the chair, raising his brow. Ace is mad at him, and now there’s an identical…
This could be a mean prank. They both do love pranks. But then, wait, it could be so he thinks its fake and doesn’t sit down. Or, it’s fake because Ace knows he’d assume it’s fake, and then second-guess and think it’s real and…
Ink huffs and gives up, turning to sit down. As he does so, he questions why he listens to Ace so unquestioningly all the time.

Really, why does he do that?

The chair is, in fact, not real, and Ink promptly falls through it and onto the floor– he lets out a little “oof.” The no-clip causes Ace and his chair to start glitching out as well, like a game engine about to crash as it all goes colliding into the walls around it– and eventually, Ace is launched through a pillar and disappears from sight.
Ink quickly crosses his arms and legs tightly as he lays on the rug, annoyed.

Ridwan pulls their attention away from welcoming another arrival. She walks over to Ink’s side.
“…Well, that was exciting.” Tricksters. Benign or violent, they hit like a storm. “I suppose I could give you a proper welcome now–”
As Ridwan leans over to offer Ink a hand up, the angle allows a teardrop to land on Ink’s elbow.

How long have they been crying in front of guests…

Ink blinks at them, then loosens up his pose and takes the paw.
“Oh, thanks… Don’t worry about him, he’s just like that sometimes. Not sure why today, though.” He looks up at them with his head tilted. “…What’s going on, are you uh, alright? I hope that all didn’t– upset you or anything, I’m real sorry if it impeded your event.”
There he goes, always worrying about the order of things.
“O-oh, excuse me, I–” After pulling Ink to his feet, Ridwan rushes to dry off her eyes. “I didn’t even realize– no, no, it wasn’t about Ace, it… I…”
“You’re fine, I’m–”

Ace falls down from the ceiling, smashing against the floor tiles, and lets out a deflated balloon-like noise.
“I make my wonderous return from the backrooms!” And then he begins coughing violently, thrashing on the floor.
Ink’s attention is diverted.
“–Backrooms? Isn’t that just the Fourth Wall to you?” He jokes, then turns back to Ridwan. “It’s-a-very-nice-place-and-I’m-sure-the-attendees-think-so too-and-your-event-will-be-wonderful-if-I-have-anything-to-say-about-it!” he says very quickly before Ace has a chance to do or say anything else. A bold claim to tell the host, but well-meaning. “Very nice to meet you by the way.”
“I’m having an allergic reaction!” Ace exclaims as he rolls onto his side and attempts to stand, his voice wheezing and cough-ridden.
“E-er… d… do antihistamines… work? On you?” Ridwan is suddenly trying very hard to stay composed, but, with some effort, gathers their thoughts in preparation to summon medication into their paw.
Ink doesn’t seem fazed. He sighs, patting Ridwan’s arm to reassure them.
“Uh, he won’t need that, it’s okay. His allergy isn’t permanently deadly. He dies, but he’ll be fine. Promise!” Ink gives a thumbs-up.

A scarfed doll that looks like Alex quietly walks in from the next portal to open, and looks around while grabbing the bottom of her dress. Tightly.
“Oh, good evening,” Ridwan launches into her greeting almost reflexively. “Welcome to the Violet Banquet. You may call me Ridwan, please enjoy your small vacation here.”

Ace gives a strangled choke, his pupils shaking briefly, before his body goes slack and he lets out one final dying breath.

…Nova just got here, and already she is regretting her choice to come… Instead of saying anything, she just takes a step back, and sinks her head into her scarf.
“I– I do apologize for the scene you walked in on…” Ridwan tries to shield Nova’s view from… whatever is going on with Ace right now. “Are you… sure he will be alright?” Ridwan looks back at Ink, uncertain.

They really hope Ace will be alright…

…They’re not sure how much better that makes it…

Whatever Ridwan’s feeling between here and there and now and before, it all seems to be canceling out.

Ink groans awkwardly.
“Uh… yeah, he’s just, uh…” Don’t insult him, even playfully, he’s already mad at you. “Ace, get up, you’re scaring the normies–”
“And now. I die,” Ace says wistfully. Cue pixelated dust and the monster-death sound effect.

And as such, he vanishes once more.

Dead.

✫       ✫       ✫

In the infirmary left of the front entrance, a rift opens up. As a purple paw yeets Stardust unceremoniously onto a bed, he just ragdolls. He has no more energy after all that. A loud voice speaks from the rift.
“Stay until the event is over. And do not overreact like that again. We will deal with anomalies like that afterwards. And it wasn’t even the right timeline version–”

“Ok… ok.”

The rift closes, and Stardust rolls over onto his face. He feels like an idiot. So stupid… He thought they’d just try to punch him, like any other human would have. Not… trap his Soul. The Angels… Tobias… Chann… are they mad at him? Is Merci mad at him?

You have a job to do. Do it…

…He passes out.

Ridwan is in scrubs. They are at Stardust’s bedside and ready to begin healing him.
The guardian taking the form of a skeleton is dead asleep despite having been here for no less than a few moments. Oddly, the only damage he appears to have sustained was from the throw… though, the toss did do more than expected, likely due to low defense.
His Soul does appear to have deep cracks in it, which may explain how he reacted… but luckily for him, the purple scars suggest signs of healing.
The attending nurse delicately begins a routine check-up to heal what they can.

Something feels… off…

Stardust forces himself out of the garden he was observing back into reality. His eyes blink open, looking around a fuzzy room. He looks up to see that familiar goat-lion-unicorn with all the violets in their mane.
He should apologize, shouldn’t he? Merci would tell him to. But he really isn’t sorry about bullying that human. Well, he did stress this guy out a ton. The Angels seem to really like them. He didn’t mean to drag others into this. Well– he did– but not so violently.

✫       ✫       ✫

Alex’s lookalike whines. She doesn’t want to see more death than she already does.

Ridwan slowly buries his face in his hands…

“Pretty sure this isn’t one of those events…” Ink facepalms as well. “God, jeez, I am so sorry.”
“Everything alright, Mx. Boss Person?” Ridwan’s employee Sugarplum– a rarer addition to the Star Sanses– slides in behind Ridwan. “You look… stressed.”

Oh… more people came here… Scary…

Ridwan takes in and lets out a deep breath before lowering eir paws into a steeple in front of eir muzzle. Ey look over at Plum, at the scene behind emself, then back down at… Nova… for a moment.
“…Sugarplum… would you be a dear and show our newest arrival to… anywhere calmer…”

Ink taps his fingers on his palm nervously, now worrying about being kicked out of an event for going so far off-course. All he really did was interact and be associate with what just happened, but…
He laughs, trying to ease the tension.
“HA, wow. Pretty good one, Ace! Haven’t seen you do that style death before, I don’t think?” He announces to the general area, unsure where Ace could or might be in a room like this. “But anyways, I think you should undie, visibly. For all witnesses to see. Cus otherwise, well, haha, I look insane…!” He grins awkwardly, throwing his hands out at his sides in a lax shrug, talking to no one.

“–You got it!” Plum says, sparing half a glance over at the no-longer-amongst-the-living Ace. “…Do we need to be concerned about that one, or is he gonna get better?”
“I…” Ridwan tries again to gather herself. “Ink stated that he will… revive.”
“Cool! Less work for us, sounds good. Just put caution tape around him so nobody trips, I guess?” He gently bumps them with his hip, flashing his usual smile. “Relax, boss. Let the guests have their eccentricities~! It’s half the fun.”

The doll in a scarf is just standing there… What exactly should she do?

“Er–” Ridwan stops faerself from bringing up in front of this already-intimidated guest what happened earlier in the garden. “…We can reconvene later,” fae tries to subtly nod at the infirmary next-door.

✫       ✫       ✫

“Hey…” Stardust begins, “I’m sorry I was a nuisance. I wasn’t thinking. And I also didn’t expect my Soul to be grabbed like that, heh…”
“Mm…” Ridwan seems to be weighing how to answer that. “…What, exactly… was supposed to happen?”
“I just… recognized them. A friend of mine, I’m… blanking on the child’s name. They had some not-so-pleasant encounters with her. I just wanted to know why. Why things happened. Maybe I could have approached it differently, she was sure my friend was dead, even though I know that’s not true… Tobias, my Angel, says she was from a different timeline, though. Not my Starlight’s human. But she behaved similarly to a different child. I don’t really know what I expected anymore.”

His face barely emotes as he just stares at his clawed hands. He sounds genuine, at least, for what that’s worth.

“…Maybe I should have waited ‘til tomorrow. So things didn’t go down day one.”
“…You went to confront an alternate version of her, is what you’re saying…?”
“It was an accident, they look identical. I thought things would be more controlled than this… Is N… um… a small angsty doll child wearing a blue scarf here yet…? Crowds aren’t fun for them. I… maybe I should stay here for a while more. but I don’t want them to be scared…”

Ridwan pauses, and thinks for a moment… “Just a moment…”
He tilts his head, curiously.

✫       ✫       ✫

Back in the lobby, Ridwan’s expression shifts, as if just realizing something.

“…Stardust is in the infirmary." They scan Nova’s face for her reaction.

She blinks, her eyes widening.

“Stardust?!” she exclaims, taking a step forward and dropping her hands from gripping onto her dress.

Ridwan solemnly points over to the infirmary.

Nova immediately runs to that direction.

“…I suppose that means I can tell you now, rather than later,” the host tells Sugarplum.
“Yeah…?” He raises a brow. “What’s up?”
“…A guest has already been sent to the infirmary after an altercation in the garden.”
“…It’s been barely more than twenty-four hours,” he says flatly. “What do you mean an altercation in the gardens? It’s barely been any time at all!”
“Exactly,” Ridwan sighs woefully. “Not even a day and someone already tried to… use some kind of weapon on a monster… stars, the whole party must have heard those screams…” Ridwan covers her mouth again in discomfort.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Plum assures, putting a hand on their arm. “Deep breaths. Nobody’s running around in a panic, so it’s probably safe to say that we’re, well, safe. At least for the time being.”
“Oh, I suppose, I just… I want this to be a party they’ll want to remember…”
“And they will,” he assures. “You just gotta relax, doll. The guests will have a good time if they see you having a good time. Lead by example and whatnot.”

Ridwan can’t help but relax a little at the sound of that. “I do hope so…” A smile shyly returns. “Thank you, Sugarplum. You are truly a delight.”

He knows.~ ✨

Ridwan smiles a little wider. “For now…” Ridwan grimaces thinking of what to do about Ace, “Just… I do not know… keep the guests from killing each other…”
“Roger that, Mx. Boss Person!”

✫       ✫       ✫

Stardust sits up, remembering something.

“Oh! Chann thought giving you a gift would be a good idea…” He reaches into his eye socket and pulls out a blood-red flower with a purple center. He holds it out to Ridwan with both hands. “This– this flower, a blood moon flower, is native to my realm, the Pastel Garden. It symbolizes balance and peace.”
Ridwan’s expression softens into… is that wonder? “Oh…?”
“Mhm, mhm. Take, take. You have a very nice garden with many cool flowers. I’m sure you can care for one more. This flower is very low-maintenance. It barely needs any sun, and just needs the same water as most other flowers. An– and this climate feels similar to the Gardens.”

Nova bursts into the infirmary, making Stardust let out a startled-but-happy chirp at the sight of her. Upon seeing him, Nova’s breaths hardens, and her eyes get shaky.

“Glimmer!” she cries out, running towards him.
“Starlight! Hai!” He reaches out towards her with his arms extended, either for a hug or just to pat them.

Nova jumps into Stardust’s arms, and just begins to sob.

Ridwan sees they are having their moment now… then carefully backs away, so as not to impose. They give a thankful nod, holding the flower tenderly, turning to leave them be.

…The flower feels like skin. How odd.

✫       ✫       ✫

After changing out of her party outfit, Crystal ends up wandering into the library while in pajamas and her signature blue hoodie thrown on top. She can walk a while in here, right? She just needs to tire herself out a bit before she goes to bed.
Seeing as the few people who were here earlier left to where she came from, she decides to take full reign of the library. She wanders down the isles, looking at all the book spines.
So much information in one place. She can see why people like the library so much– not just aesthetically. Libraries are such forces of knowledge. They teach, entertain, make you think deeply and creatively. Such magic, and not the kind that monsters utilize.
She spins around, taking in the library in full. She followed the isles and bookcases until she discovers a small corner with little colorful bean bag chairs. It’s like a cozy little cubby! She looks around the space, noticing a pile of books, picking one off the top…

…Greek mythology. That’s odd.

She doesn’t know why, but it feels odd to find.
Especially in this cozy little corner.

Was someone else here before her?

…Are they still here?

…

She waits for something to happen…

…

…but nothing does.

So she decides to set it down and continue her little journey until she feels ready to try to sleep.