avalar_logs | A Christmas surprise!

Who: Ryoji and anyone who is dumb enough to be walking around in the middle of the night!
What: Ryoji has just arrived in Avalar. He is wet and cold and also appears to have something glowing under his scarf. Wonder what that's about?
Where: The lake! And wherever we go from there.
When: Exactly midnight, the start of December 25th.
Warnings: Ryoji! Ryoji is a mess in general. And now he'll probably get hypothermia.

[A shout echoes in the cold evening, followed by a splash, as a newcomer suddenly arrives in the forest. There's silence for a few moments after, and it's almost like there was no disturbance at all by the time a boy finally gets his head above water, gasping and scrambling onto the icey shore.

He curls up for a moment, shivering, and his dragonfly flits about nervously as it flashes a bright blue, a beacon for help, but it's not the only thing that's glowing... Underneath the teen's scarf, there's a purplish light, emanating from something. Who knows what it is? He'd have to take off his scarf before anyone could see.

The guidebook, orb, and gems are only stared at in shock for now, before he surveys the area. His lips are blue, and his teeth are chattering so violently that he can't actually speak... but if he spots anyone, he'll at least look at them with wide eyes, silently asking for assistance.]

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Th-The floors...

[He really doesn't want to drip all over the house, especially when it's all warm and cozy, but it appears he doesn't have much of a choice. He cries out in surprise as he's pulled closer to the fire, but he smiles lightly when he feels the heat. Colour is already returning to his cheeks by the time Minato returns with the spare clothes.]

Thanks.

[He's grateful for the privacy, because there's no way for him to hide this now... Stripping off his scarf, the metal collar becomes clearly visible. He taps at it absent-mindedly before hastily changing into the other clothing. As grateful as he is to be here, he isn't sure what it means if he still has his collar. He may still only have a few months left... maybe even less since the fluid won't be changed regularly. And what about his friends back home? They're still suffering while he relaxes here...

He's so lost in thought that doesn't even notice when Minato comes back with the cocoa.]

[He returns with two mugs of rich cocoa - he's learned a trick or two to make it better. He does his own up with cinnamon, marshmallows, and whipped cream, and also brings a few of the numerous plates of cookies into easy reach.] Feeling better? That was quite a welcome.

[He has to admit, he hadn't been expecting anyone to arrive. Not many people do, and no one new has showed up since.... October, it feels like. The lake had been much warmer then. Minato takes a seat next to Ryoji, fully intending to provide more warmth.]

So...explaining, huh. Where should I start?

[He takes the cocoa gratefully in his shaking hands, sipping it carefully.]

B-Better. It wasn't so cold back there...

[He doesn't say back home. He can't say that. He'll give Minato some time to get used to this before springing any shocks like that on him. He does seem to move just slightly away from Minato when he sits down, though, still nervous.]

I guess wherever you think it's best to start. I-I don't even know what to ask...

[At least he's warm enough to speak coherently, though.]

[He's a little confused by the distance Ryoji keeps, but he won't comment. Not yet. There's got to be a reason for that, and...it's Christmas. Ryoji just got here. They can save the serious stuff for later.]

This book is the Guidebook, it's got detailed information...but the story is, these worlds are dying. Something's draining the magic. People from other worlds have been brought in to help restore it. [And honestly, Minato doesn't mind it one bit. Sure, there are bad parts. He's come close to dying twice since he was brought here. But...he's alive. He's made new friends. He's living.]

I've been here..close to seven months now. But apparently time is stopped back home while we're here, we don't need to worry about the Seal or anything. There are some Persona-users from 2012 here, too, so there's proof. [He figures that's an important thing to bring up. No, the seal isn't broken. Home is still safe.]

Dying? So something’s trying to destroy them…

[It sounds very familiar… except the virus back in Animus was wiping out life, not just magic. Still, something must be connecting the two. There has to be some reason why he was brought here from that Tower. Maybe he can think of a way to stop a few worlds from being destroyed before it’s too late.

He doesn’t seem surprised that Minato has been here so long, nor that time is stopped back home.]

I see… so you remember the Seal too. I’m glad. I was worried for a second that you wouldn’t have experienced everything I have.

[Even though Minato still couldn’t have experienced everything… Ryoji was in the Tower for over ten months.]

Edited 2014-01-11 02:02 (UTC)

Yeah. We don't know what, yet, but if October was any indication it's nothing good.

[October was a mess. Minato's glad his injuries all healed fairly easily. At least he was able to determine it's a lot more fun to eat the pumpkin than to be eaten by the pumpkin.

He nods absentmindedly.] Yeah, I'm from the end of everything. I should warn you, though, there are other worlds that are...really similar to ours. There's a girl here named Minako Arisato who shares the same role as me. ...She's from back in July.

What happened in October? Did you get hurt?

[Ryoji immediately looks worried. His own October involved losing his girlfriend and then being eaten alive by shadow children, but he can't help but worry it was worse here.]

A-Ah, Minako? I think I remember her.

[The words slip out before he can stop them. He only knew her in passing, so it seemed so casual to just mention her... but now he's admitted he knows much more than he lets on.]

A lot happened in October. I did, but nothing that didn't heal. [Not mentioning he could have died, that probably wouldn't go over well.

But now his eyes narrow. Ryoji is clearly from his side of things, so...] You know her. How?

That’s not good… Are you sure you’re going to be okay?

[Ah, he caught on to that… He looks down at his hands, muttering quietly.]

I didn’t want to explain right now. I just got here, and I didn’t want to spring something like this on you… [A sigh.] The fact of the matter is that I wasn’t in the Seal before I came here.

I'm sure. Pretty sure Adachi-san would kick my ass if I got seriously hurt.

[He'd almost kicked his ass for passing out like he did in November, after all.

He can see already something happened. Something...horrible, if his guess is right. Ryoji shouldn't be acting this way.]

What happened? Are you alright?

[Ryoji lets out a quiet laugh, but a touch of bitterness shows through.]

I don’t think anyone there could be okay… I was taken from the Seal and brought to this Tower. We were each given a note that said our worlds were destroyed, and that we had been rescued to live there. Our ‘rescuers’ tortured us on a regular basis, forcing us to harm and kill our friends, mutilating our minds and bodies. If we happened to die from this, our souls would be taken and forced into another body… a fake.

[He lifts a hand and pulls his scarf down, exposing the collar with the faintly glowing violet gel inside.]

Do you see this? That’s what my whole body is made out of. I’m really just wires and fluid, and there’s a glamour system in place to make me look like myself… I’m not sure how it’s working here.

[He moves his hand away, rubbing his forehead with a sigh.]

To be honest, the body was the easiest part to handle… there were far worse things that happened, but I won’t get into all of that mess.

A Christmas surprise!

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