Welcome Participartypants

[balancemod]

Who: All y'all nerds
Where: The Arena
When: The night of the 15th
What: A small gathering to both welcome new members to the Bureau, and to congratulate veteran Reclaimers on their successful magic mitten procurement. Dress is as fancy or as not fancy as you want it. Manners, to the degree of which you are capable, are mandatory.
Content Warning: General content warning for the Reclaimers. Also general content warning for Miss Zarves

Formal, informal, never mind the dress code. NAVIGATION It's been two weeks since the Reclaimers returned, and since the newest Reclaimers arrived. Some of you have adapted better than the Director could have hoped, and some of you have made your best efforts to find a new sense of normalcy — testing Bender the food robot to his limits, forming book clubs, training together, musing over what sort of fashions one even wears to a party. Some of you, perhaps, have spent a little bit too much time in the simulation at the Dojo. It's understandable. Adjusting to the idea that your entire universe has been destroyed takes time, and sometimes, escapes are necessary. And tonight, she's hoping to provide you with a temporary escape with this party. 1. ONCE UPON A TWO WEEKS' WEARY A. TO WASH AWAY THE ACHING BLEARY The Director, using the Moon Base's simulation technology, has turned the Arena into a ballroom to behold. The sprawling hall is decorated in ornate wooden carvings, and a large maple floor meant for dancing is encircled by tables and a large banquet table. In the corner, on a raised platform, stands a baby grand piano, freshly tuned and polished. Anyone is free to have a spin on it, if the mood strikes. At some point during the evening, Johann the Bard, violin in hand, will stand on the platform and provide a performance that could only ever be heard on the Moon Base, among members of the Bureau of Balance — because he did, after all, give this particular song to the Voidfish. If you would like something with a heavier beat, there's a tablet on the wall next to the platform, where you can make music requests of your own, from the Artificer's collection of songs from across the universe. The collection may not be all that extensive, but The Cupid Shuffle is probably in there. Get down and boogie, is what we're saying. B. THEY WERE THROWN A BANQUET CHEERY And what's on the banquet table? Snacks provided by Bender, of course — which means they could have any manner of magical effects. Here are some of the snacks available, including one that the Director was lucky enough to roll for herself. Cupcakes of every flavor imaginable, utterly delicious — so delicious, in fact, that whoever eats one will have flowers grow in their footsteps for the next two hours. The flowers are magic and disappear on their own, so go turn the dance floor into a garden (Courtesy of Lion). Mead that puts you in such a good mood, you'll be unable to resist the urge to sing in whatever measure of talent you have (Courtesy of Lancelot). An energy drink that will literally give you wings for two hours. Enjoy looking absolutely angelic for your friends (Courtesy of Akechi). Nachos that have a curiously JPG quality to them, but no other magical effects (Courtesy of Terezi). The most delicious cheeseburgers you ever did taste (Courtesy of Maya). Finger sandwiches that, when eaten, light up your entire body in an assortment of different colors — the light trails behind your movements, like the way lights look on a low shutter speed. Enjoy the raving (courtesy of The Director). 2. BUT THEN, SHE ROSE FROM THE ICHOR Some of you may have heard a thing or two about Miss Zarves — perhaps the rumors circulating around town, or the strange connection to Garfield and the Bracer Chasers some of you may have bought to decorate your Bracers. Maybe words like "catalyst" and "Ouija Board" have come up once or twice. Because there is a being trapped in a plane of existence right next to yours, largely forgotten, as if she had somehow been reverse Voidfish'd. Forgotten, that is, until the Bracer Chasers — curiously laced with high amounts of aluminadium, a word that might sound familiar to McCree and Faolan. For two years, she's waited, and watched, wanting a chance to be seen again, to speak with the Bureau herself once again, cursed with a maddening loneliness. And the second one of those cute decorations was pressed against a Bracer, Miss Zarves had it — her catalyst. She would know, after all: She was once a leading researcher on using catalysts to travel through dimensions, after all — and the Bracer Chasers were one of her original designs. At the very end of the party, perhaps one or two piano songs away from shutdown, the simulation suddenly shuts down. The lights blink off with a systemwide shudder. After five seconds, the lights flare back to life, and the entire Arena is its default white blank slate. And a message, from username @Zarves❤Scarves, slowly blinks across the screen. Hello. I would like to play a game. And then the Arena goes dark. A. HACKER VOICE: I'M IN That little stunt isn't the only one Miss Zarves, who now has a connection to the dimension you're residing in and some of the Bureau tech, is going to pull. For the rest of your stay at the Moon Base, until you're whisked away to the next mission (Or unless you figure out a way to stop her), you may experience some of the following: Wonky simulations: You may have been traveling to the Dojo to recall a certain piece of your home world. And maybe one day, while you're minding your own business, that same simulation may suddenly appear outside the Dojo. Or perhaps you're wandering down a hallway, and you come across a mishmash of other people's simulations, torn apart and stitched back together haphazardly. Bender: As if this guy weren't a big enough mess already. If you happen to ask Bender for one of the items that were available at the party, you may instead be given food that has the opposite effect. Think cupcakes that leave behind wilted plants, mead that makes you cry uncontrollably, or energy drinks that not only do not give you literal wings, but put you straight to sleep. If you happen to have a subscription to Webflix, regardless of what movie you pick to watch, it'll pick a specific movie instead: Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Also, you won't be able to turn it off. 3. AND THEN THINGS JUST KEEP GETTING WORSE The arena's simulation has decided to take a sabbatical, a spectral being from another plane of existence has invaded the Moon Base, and Madame Director is doing her best to keep the room calm and collected. First, the darkness needs to be handled with properly, so with a stomp of her elegant white oak staff down on the floor, a sound echoes above and beyond any panicked shouts, and soon the room is filled with dancing lights that emanate from the four cardinal directions of the arena. "Ladies and gentlemen! Excuse me. Thank you everyone for coming to this enchanted evening here with your fellow Reclaimers, but without proper lighting- Johann, Johann, please, I don't need signature music right now, this isn't a wrestling match for crying out- thank you, Johann. As I was saying- unfortunately, this evening's events will have to be---" Almost right on cue, as if there wasn't a possibly worse time in the world for this to happen, the doors of the arena bust open. Into the room swarms a dragonborn, looking rather beat up and worse for wear. It's impossible to tell if Dragonborn can cry the way humans can cry, but her amphibian-like eyes shine oddly in the colors of the magical lights surrounding the room. The Director's eyes go wide for a moment, this was rather- no, extremely, unsuspected. The Regulator approaches the Director. "We found him! Lucretia, we found him! And h-he. That son of a bitch has Killian!" And lacking in the proper finesse that's demanded of her as a leader, she rubs her forehead. "Carey, come with me to my office and we'll sort this out." She looks around the room, her Reclaimers all gathered and standing, watching this interaction take place. "Please, everyone, return to your apartments for the evening." A. TWO WEEKS UNTIL ROLLOUT The Director hasn't slept a wink throughout the night, dealing with a host of problems facing the Bureau at the moment. She consults with the clerics on how to get rid of this ridiculous joke-entity that Garfield has proliferated long enough. She speaks with Carey about all the details she can offer, attempting to calm her down, despite her unraveled state. Killian means the world to Carey, after all, and the Director, no- Lucretia, was waiting for the wedding invitation for far too long. Sometime around mid-day, the Reclaimers will receive a message on their bracer from her. Reclaimers, we will deploying in approximately two weeks. We've discovered the location of a relic that we haven't heard about in quite some time now. A full briefing will be provided at a later date, but please prepare accordingly. The area you all will be assigned to is known as the Netheril, a vast desert that splits the continent in half between the western and eastern fronts. We've instructed the tailors to offer special clothing designs that are particularly good for protection against sand and heat — at a heavily discounted price. Ensure that you have a weapon, as there's no telling what sort of beasts you can encounter out in such a wasteland. Train intensively over the next few days. We anticipate that it will be quite some time before you are able to return to Base, so please ensure that your BIAS is restocked and ready to go. Two weeks. blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[blodsvorr]

Nah. We'll just crash into something else.

[He can't know that, but he knows his luck. If it isn't bad, it's worse.]

Come on, kid. Might as well go through. It's just a school.

[petsthedog]

[Shinji highly doubts it's "just a school", but it's not like he has a better idea.]

...Alright.

[He lets Qrow lead the way, following after him quietly. He's curious, of course. Is this where the man used to teach before the Hunger? Or does it mean something else to him entirely? It's not his business, though. Qrow didn't ask him anything when the shoe was on the other foot, after all.]

Wonder if this has anything to do with that Zarves lady on the loose.

[Ghosts hacking tech sounds like a shitty b-movie, but their worlds were destroyed by an apocalypse and they joined the Bureau by drinking jellyfish goo, so. Most things are probably on the table now.]

[blodsvorr]

[It's a beautiful campus, made even more beautiful by the nostalgic tint of Qrow's recollection. The walkway is clear and lined with water and elegant arches. It melds into the quad's trees naturally, as if it is meant to be surrounded by a forest. The lights shine above as if calling you home. And faintly, in the distance, there is the sound of a clock's gears turning.

Qrow walks with his hands in his pockets, a frown on his face, eyes more on the ground than anything else. If it's like the Dojo, the loading zones will run out before they can get too far into the school itself. So, he just has to keep moving forward.]

I didn't think the projection tech existed outside of the Arena and the Dojo. Guess it's a non-issue if it's magic, but...

[It still bugs him. If this was home, this would mean there is tech in places he doesn't know about.]

[petsthedog]

[It's a far prettier place than any Shinji's frequented, used to the grit and grime of the city streets, the back alleys. His gaze lingers a couple times--a little more enchanted by their surroundings than he'd ever admit. The peaceful atmosphere reminds him a little of Naganaki Shrine, and he feels all the more guilty for invading it.]

Yeah...who knows. We don't even have tech half as advanced as the stuff here, back in Japan.

[And the closest thing to magic they have is Personas, so. He's entirely clueless on what might be causing this.]

Pain in the ass, though.

[He's now sure hoping this gets sorted out before the goddamn Dark Hour leaks everywhere.]

[blodsvorr]

No kidding. If this is Miss Zarves, she's got a real annoying sense of humour.

[Qrow opens the front door, and Shinji enters into hallways as beautiful and serene as those outside. The emptiness might be more jarring, though; nothing is weirder than an empty school. Qrow stops, just looking down it, and he sighs.]

Sorry about the walk, kid. The loading zone'll run out eventually, but Beacon was a pretty big school.

[petsthedog]

[It is weird, though Shinji hasn't been to his own school in two years. The sight of the empty halls reminds him of everyone in them who's now dead, just like all the kids at Gekkoukan. He rolls a shoulder uncomfortably at the apology.]

Kinda feel like I oughta be the one apologizing here.

[blodsvorr]

[Qrow waves a hand as he starts walking again.]

Don't worry about it. There's not really that much being shared here. Beacon was a school; now it's gone. You could say the same about anyone's old school.

[Of course, Beacon was lost before the Hunger ever came. Shinji doesn't need to know that. Qrow is only grateful that this is Beacon as it once was, and not the ruins it became.

Things are starting to get fuzzier as they approach a door at the end of the hall. This, Qrow knows, is where the simulation runs out. Beyond that door is the antechamber with the elevator to Ozpin's tower. But despite being visible from the outside, Oz's office can't be reached from here.

Qrow shoves the door open. It's the end of his simulation; does it get the back into the Quad, or are they somewhere else?]

[petsthedog]

I guess.

[Anyone's old school probably isn't the memory they think of most, though. Shinji doesn't say it. He's not exactly one to talk about confronting your emotions or talking about them, after all.

The simulation starts to fade away, and Shinjiro would sigh in relief, but instead of the Quad, they find themselves on a section of street Qrow might recognize from a few weeks ago, sky a sickly green, rather than the pleasantly blue and cloudless of Beacon's courtyard. Shinji groans.]

--Seriously?

[blodsvorr]

[Qrow grimaces. It feels like bad luck, the kind it's easy to very literally walk into.]

On second thought, maybe we should stick around for a tour of the courtyard.

[But when Qrow glances back, Beacon is gone. It's just more of that awful green sky. Under his breath, Qrow curses. He knows that this isn't a good place for Shinji to be. Maybe it's more exasperating in this context, but he still doesn't like that Shinji is here. He has been paying enough attention to Shinji's responses to guess that something terrible happened here. That, very likely, Shinjiro hurt someone here. Badly.

Qrow is not well-equipped to help someone through their guilt.]

[petsthedog]

Seems like we ain't got a choice.

[But more than just the listless depression from before, Shinji looks kind of agitated, now. He hasn't seen any shadows in his simulation before, but he's also never quite moved from that one spot, either. If he has to walk around in it, he might find them -- and that just brings up entirely too many questions of what would happen if someone encountered a simulated Shadow.

If he'd realized these simulations could leak out from that room, he would've never, ever picked it.]

Shit.

[He runs a hand through his hair before he sighs harshly, turning to Qrow. His posture, though it retains its trademark slouch, all but radiates tension.]

Look, this is the Dark Hour. I don't know enough about magic or what's wrong with the Dojo to say what'll happen to someone who gets attacked by a Shadow here, especially if they ain't got a Persona.

[One hand is clenched tight, white-knuckled, around the handle of his Evoker as he says this. Reluctance is etched into his features--the thought of possibly having to summon Castor here of all places quite frankly makes him nauseous--but he knows he might not have a choice.]

So stay behind me, alright?

[blodsvorr]

[It's different from what Akechi described of the Metaverse, but when Shinji mentions Shadows, Qrow understands it as the same basic concept. A space full of enemies, where it's the projection of the human unconscious—the human soul—that has power. His eyes flicker over Shinjiro, registering his attitude and expression.]

Kid, whatever this is, I can at least manage support.

[For the first time in front of Shinjiro, Qrow draws Harbinger in the form that is meant for killing monsters: a full scythe, composed of the segmented parts of the sword and marked by a vicious red edge.]

Besides that, my Aura is a projection of my soul. That's kinda like what a Persona is, right? I might be able to do some damage that way. So we fight together. Got it?

[If this were a training mission, maybe Qrow would let Shinji fight enemies solo. That idea could even be worth looking into in the future; he has done it with kids he's training before. But this isn't a training mission; this is a nightmare that Shinji didn't agree to having to see. Shinji isn't taking anything in here alone.]

[petsthedog]

No!

[It's a sudden outburst, where before his demeanor's always been more or less calm, if withdrawn. When he thinks about it later, he'll probably find it stupid to have reacted this way--Qrow's an adult with experience fighting monsters, is fully armed, and does have some sort of shielding ability. But here and now he's not really thinking logically; this place only brings him back to the image of that dead woman in her crushed house. The house Castor crushed--that he crushed, when he lost control. Qrow said there was a limit to the damage he could absorb, didn't he? Could it stand up to that kind of force?

Harbinger unfolds in its true form, but all Shinjiro sees is the worst case scenario--Qrow lying broken and bloody just like Ken's mother. It freaks him out, even knowing the other man is capable. At least if Qrow stays back, he can run if things go bad.]

I said stay back, dammit!

[blodsvorr]

[Shinjiro isn't seeing him. He is seeing someone else, or many someones, Qrow doesn't know. He is seeing his past. Of course he is, this simulation is making him see it. That's what it has done to them both.

But Qrow stands his ground, scythe set in the ground. He can't let Shinji get trapped in the memory.]

Aragaki. Look at me. You're not going to get me hurt, and this isn't going to be a repeat of what happened here before. We're both going to get out of this okay.

[petsthedog]

[Shinjiro hears him, of course, but it's only so much white noise between his ears. The responsibility he's been feeling ever since waking up at the Bureau's been a weight on his back, threatening to prevent him from standing up each day, and right now he feels all but pinned against the ground, without enough air to even breathe.

Qrow says he won't be hurt, but how does he know? The only way to be sure would be with the pills, and he doesn't have them anymore. Lost in the multiversal transit, maybe. He'd even avoided SEES for two years, kept himself out of the fight because he didn't want to do more harm than good, and all of them had Personas to fight back with. Hell, the fact that they did was the only reason he could even think about letting himself touch his Evoker ever again.]

You don't get it! You--it ain't just about the Shadows. I'm a danger too.

[blodsvorr]

[It isn't the time or the place, but maybe it isn't: here in a simulation, with the medics just a building away, not out there in the field where Shinji could get himself or someone else hurt. So Qrow goes for it, expression set.]

Because you hurt someone, right?

[No. Qrow sees it then, in the response on Shinji's face. He knows that look. His voice softens.]

You killed them.

[petsthedog]

[Goddamn it. He didn't want to explain himself here. He didn't want to explain himself ever, really, and Qrow hadn't pushed him when he said he didn't want to kill anyone and hadn't asked him to summon Castor. He'd been doing okay, dragging himself to combat class and getting through each day even when it was a trial to want to get up in the morning.

Now they're here, in the midst of this mess, and Shinjiro realizes on some level that a simulation can't possibly be as dangerous as the real Dark Hour, but the simulation's outside of the Dojo and either magic or a ghost (???) is possibly involved and he doesn't know how those things intersect. He hasn't been in the habit of carrying a weapon around just walking around the Moon Base and now all he's got to defend himself with is a Persona that isn't simulated.

He can't look at Qrow while he's having this conversation, though. Can't stand that sympathetic expression in his eyes like he's the one who deserves it. Aki and Mitsuru gave him those sad looks too, back then, and he hates it now as much as he hated it then. He stares pointedly at the ground as he takes a shaky breath.]

My Persona's unstable, for some reason. I could lose control, and you ain't got a Persona to fight back with, if I do.

[blodsvorr]

Kid, an unlucky accident isn't going to be what kills me. You can trust me on that.

[Misfortune will come to him in another way, he thinks. It will be a death he can't prevent, or a terrible mistake that he makes. It will not be something as guiltless and easy as someone else making a mistake. When his Semblance finally ends his life for good, the fault will all be his own.

The only way out is forward. Qrow needs to get Shinji out. So he pushes him again, as he hadn't in that classroom before.]

Show me your Persona.

[petsthedog]

[An unlucky accident. That should be the kind of language you use for someone who broke another person's phone or ruined a favorite piece of clothing. Something small and inconsequential. He's so tired of hearing the word "accident" and how it wasn't his fault. As if he hadn't been told from the beginning his Potential was weaker than Aki's, but he'd insisted so he could watch his oldest friend's back when he threw himself into danger. Sure, they didn't know it'd mean he'd lose control and Castor would go on a rampage, or that that was even a possibility, but he's never been able to forgive himself. Shouldn't, in his opinion. What right did he have to move on, when Amada never could? When his mother was gone forever?]

No.

[He'd already decided, by the time he came out the other side of that initiation test, that he was going to do this without his Persona unless he was in a position where he had absolutely no other choice.]

Not unless we run into a Shadow.

[blodsvorr]

[It's stubbornness, the kind you can't get through. Qrow knows that kind. And he knows the guilt of a death you cause. To Shinji, an unlucky accident is too small to describe what happened. For Qrow, it is the perfect term for carrying guilt. Every unlucky accident that has ever happened around him has had someone to blame.

Qrow is still looking at him, dead set and unflinching, here under a sickened sky. He has to reach him somehow.]

Then tell me how your Persona works.

[petsthedog]

[Shinjiro sighs. Qrow means well, clearly -- and it's kind of new, actually, for an adult to care this much -- but he doesn't get it.]

You're trying to understand why it happened, right? I can't tell you what I don't know myself. The others already told you the basics, didn't they? That they're manifestations of our souls or whatever? That's all I've got.

[blodsvorr]

So what you're telling me is your soul killed someone.

[He knows it will be a slap in the face. And maybe it's a mistake, but Qrow has never had the spark the others had—Tai's firm kindness, the soft strength of Summer's love, Oz's supportive faith. Qrow cannot be that. He is only himself, blunt and cursed and trying to get through.]

I'm not telling you to get over the guilt. You're going to live with that forever, and I'm not going to lie and say it'll get easier, either. But if you keep going the way you are now, you're only going to end up with more weight on your back.

[petsthedog]

[More weight, huh. If Shinjiro were the laughing type, he might have. He can't imagine carrying more weight than he is right now. It's not just Amada's mom anymore, it's everyone. His entire goddamn world, all of SEES except its leader. Shinji hasn't felt the need to be a hero in years, but now he has no choice. He didn't even get to fucking die properly.]

Like what?

[Live with the guilt, that's really rich, isn't it.]

I could use Castor fine at first. I don't know why it happened. Nobody does. Whatever weight you think I'll be carrying, it can't be more than the weight that'd come from putting people at risk intentionally just to figure that out.

1/2

[blodsvorr]

[Qrow rolls his eyes, and maybe he shouldn't, but he keeps pushing. He needs Shinji to understand.]

Right, because when you go into the field and freak out like you did just now, you're not gonna notice the difference when yet another death gets stacked on your back.

[blodsvorr]

[Fuck. He's fucking this up. He has no idea what he's doing, he's not Tai, he's not Summer, he's making things worse. He always makes things worse. Qrow steps back, running a hand through his hair. He can't do this. It should be Oz in his place.]

I wasn't trying to get you to summon your Persona because you need to know how to use it, Aragaki. I was trying to get you to summon that thing to get you to stop reliving what happened. I've smacked Loki around often enough to know you're not going to be able to pull off killing me with Castor without meaning it.

[petsthedog]

[It doesn't have the effect Qrow was looking for. It pisses him off, actually, and he's struggling enough with the stress of everything here that he doesn't manage to push it down this time, or remind himself that Qrow means well.

He grabs at the older man's collar, suddenly, yanking him down to get in his face. He growls--]

No, because I ain't gonna use my Persona in a goddamn fight! I don't even want to use it here, but I don't know what'll happen to you if I don't!

[He doesn't even quite realize what he just revealed about himself in that little comment. He lets Qrow go, breathing hard, before he pushes away from him, fists clenched at his side.]

If I ever summon him on the field, it'll only be for the kinda emergency where people will die without him. I ain't some little kid whose hand you need to hold cause he's scared. I've thought about it.