WEEK 2

[whimsicalism]

The first week at the castle passes without any (recent) murders. Mysteries were found, questions asked, bonds formed, and Halloween celebrated. Now as Sunday 'dawns', you might feel your mind a little lighter as your first memories fade. Will this be just a week celebrating the (questionably) best thing about October or will more sinister things be afoot?

Either way, it looks like the Alices will continue their game.

Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday

[Hello, and welcome to week 2! Don't forget to submit your memory losses here and your activity here. If you want to ask or annoy the twins you can do so here. As always, don't forget to turn your threads in for 'fabulous prizes.]

Comments

investigation

[battlestations]

[Time to INFILTRATE THE LIBRARY!! Nigel slips in, attempting to mask his presence and hide behind various things as he peers at the shelves. A lot of the teens hang out here, after all, and he doesn't want to have to fire his raygun at them in the flammable presence of books. (Not bringing a raygun is clearly not an option.) He's looking for the fairy tales. Specifically he's on the lookout for Tommy Thumb but any will do.]

[whimsicalism]

[Well, any library that has a lot of focus on children's literature has many books on fairy tales. This section... seems strangely full, though. Many collections of fairy tales, nursery rhymes, lullabies, and even jump rope or playground rhymes. There's a focus on western fairy tales, though (even if other cultures are present).

As for Tommy Thumb... wow, that's a really, really old book. While other old books have reprints listed, this pamphlet of nursery rhymes from 1815 seems to be a first edition. Which is something amazing, considering it probably would have been destroyed in a few moments by a careless child. That is to say, you've found Tommy Thumb.

Or his songbook, anyway..]

but lmk if you wanna do this elsewhere tho

[prescience]

[Why, she's here too! Hello Number One-san.

His stealthy approach goes mostly undetected, and when he arrives to rifle through the nearby shelves Oriko finds herself a little caught off guard. It isn't the first time she curses the loss of potentially knowing this meeting would happen beforehand.

Oriko seems to have been doing some fairy tale scoping of her own. She already has a few titles stacked up on a table, but it's hard to look specifically for something that is missing.]

Ah, it's nice to see you here. ... Is that a weapon in the library? How frightening.

works for me!

[battlestations]

[he was just thumbing through Tommy Thumb when she calls out, prompting him to spin toward her. He doesn't lift the weapon but with it in front now, she can see that it's constructed out of a bottle and a lantern. Still frightening?]

We can't be too careful in a place like this. I half expected this [lifting the songbook] to open a secret passage, and why wouldn't an enemy hide in a place like that?

1/2

[whimsicalism]

[Hey, there's no secret passage but there is something here, Nigel. Something that flutters to your feet when he lifts it.]

[whimsicalism]

[Huh.

This bookmark has a girl on it that might look familiar. Huh. Weird.]

[battlestations]

[grabbing that then and holding it up for Oriko.]

See, if nothing else, it's something to do with the Alices!




[and while he's showing Oriko the image on the bookmark, is there anything on the back?]

[whimsicalism]

[Nothing of importance. (The mod doesn't think the other side was ever shown, oops.) Maybe like some decorative scroll work but no clues there.]

[battlestations]

[and is there any way for him to have noticed what page it was marking?]

[whimsicalism]

[It appears it was a random page. You've cleared this book.]

[prescience]

[All right, well, the raygun isn't quite so frightening anymore...but it could probably dent someone's skull all the same. Is he a good shot? That'll make all the difference.

She sets down whatever story book she'd just pulled from the shelf and bustles over to take a closer look at the bookmark - there's no denying the similarity between the figure on it and their captors.]

Doing a little light reading, then, Alice-san? What page was it on?

[battlestations]

Not... sure. It just fell out on the floor. But they're all children's songs, like London Bridge and Patty-cake. I don't know why you'd need a bookmark in the first place for that.

[prescience]

Very curious.

I thought perhaps the rhyme itself wasn't important, but something else, perhaps a picture, a page number... And if there were more bookmarks we might follow the path.

Do you think they're the type to devise a puzzle like that?

[Worried that she may just be constantly overcomplicating the situation, Oriko puffs her cheeks out a little bit. It's probably the most expression he's seen her make thus far. She actually looks...young.]

[battlestations]

[he definitely didn't think he'd see her pout like that. Almost makes her look like Rachel.]

It would definitely make the bookmark seem less random. I looked this one up because of something the cat Alice told Nagisa... the fairy tales definitely seem like they've got something to do with her secret name. It would be nice if there were other bookmarks to confirm a pattern.

[prescience]

Why don't we see what we might be able to find?

[She gestures to the tomes she's been vulturing over.]

If the spirit has to have some level of renown, I was hoping I could find a book of stories that's missing from this collection. If my identity was supposed to be a secret, I'd hide any possible answers by omitting them entirely. Maybe the bookmarks point to something similar?

[battlestations]

[it's an idea anyway. This bookmark hasn't given him a different idea to pursue yet.]

I suppose I can look with you while I'm here. What collection do you have there?

[prescience]

Grimm's Fairy Tales.

I understand that they're quite popular, especially for Western audiences. As starting points go, not a bad one?

[battlestations]

Yeah, since it's fairy tales they like the most. Never thought I'd have to research them this much... but I know the most popular ones. Cinderella, Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel...

[is listing them off like this helpful, Oriko?]

another investigation question plz mom

[prescience]

Did you know the Brothers Grimm weren't responsible for the original version of any of those? The closest, I suppose, would be Snow White.

Cinderella has a history spanning centuries, but is she even the most famous?

[Oriko thumbs through the book, looking for each of those tales in turn. Has anyone been leaving any bookmarks in Grimm's fairy tales?]

i'm late but i'm here

[whimsicalism]

[There's no bookmarks here. Yet, something might seem off about another famous writer's works.

Hans Christian Andersen.]

[battlestations]

I didn't know that. Though, I can't say I was ever that interested in fairy tales... I'm more into comic boo-

[He turns away to look while she's going through Grimm and pauses at whatever is going on at the ol' Hans Christian Anderson section. Oh god what has she done to them?]

[whimsicalism]

[There's a scrap of paper in the pages. It reads:

Why couldn't this old man ever write happier stories?! I prefer the endings of some of the movies over the endings he writes.

It's in the Alices handwriting, at least the handwriting on the card you received in the beginning of this whole ordeal.]

[battlestations]

[reading this with a snort.]

At least she didn't write in the margins. It looks like she might just be reading these books for fun... AND she likes happy endings. I suppose I won't be lending her that 'Crime and Punishment' book I found then.

[oh yeah, since there's handwriting, he might as well compare to the scraps again. not expecting much but you never know!!]

[whimsicalism]

[Nothing new here on the scraps, alas.]

[prescience]

[She finishes up with Grimm's, and she'd be disappointed at the lack of any further evidence if their search wasn't just beginning. There are still so many places to look...unfortunately.]

Of course she didn't. She's related to "stories," after all. Anything else would be sacrilege, even for someone she despises.

[Re-shelving the empty volume, Oriko uses her significant height difference to take a look at the scribbled note. A grudge against Hans Christian Andersen...? Had he enemies? Rivals? She'll keep that in mind.]

I'm sorry, what book?