You're My Friend, They're My Friends (IC Intro)

[whimsicalism]

Whatever you were doing before, wherever you were before this moment it doesn't matter. The world seems to grow dark around you: an almost inaudible giggle floats to your year before you lose consciousness completely. Other it belonging to a child there's no defining characteristics of the voice. Maybe you just imagined it? Even if you did, one thing is clear when you wake up.

You're not where you were before. The bedroom you find yourself is plush and well decorated, almost like a fancy hotel or apartment. That might be little comfort considering that it's clear that you don't recognize it. Before you rush off to explore your surroundings there's a message pinned to the door to the hall.

From the desk of the Queen:

Hello, my friends dear.

I can only hope you enjoy your new life here. For those you stirring from sleep, this is my promise that I will keep: I will let you go if that is what you desire but the price for it will be quite dire.

For my rules are quite clear that I don't wish you to leave. Yet I will, if you can take the grief.

If you wish to know my name and the reasons to my game, meet in the audience hall for tea. Tea, yes, a grand tea party for my grand guests! Cake and sweets are what we need to meet. In an hour we both will be there, no peeking before!

Signed,

Instead of a signature, there's a small feline paw print underneath as well as some strange sort of heart crest?

There seems to be others moving outside your room. Perhaps it's time to explore, to see if anyone else knows what's going on. Don't slip on the playing card (an ace of hearts, with the heart shape replaced by the strange crest). That there's a scribbled phrase of 'dormez-vous? dormez-vous?' on the card but surely one of the others slipped it under your door.

This Castle seems like a strange place ot live in... yet for now it's quiet and peaceful, even if the Audience Hall is locked.

Comments

[scratchitti]

[It takes a bit for Neku to get out of bed, but anyone passing by his door, Room 22, when he wakes up might hear a bellowed:]

WHAT THE HELL?!

[But once he actually manages to drag himself up he notices two things: he doesn't have a Player Pin or a countdown. So if this is another Game (and the note seems to hint it might be) it's not being run the same way. Still, best to check. So once he's out in the hall outside the bedrooms he goes to one of the other kids and taps their shoulder.]

Hey, I know this sounds crazy, but let me see your hand.

[Later he can be found outside the audience hall waiting for it to open... staring at the card he found]

...anyone read French?

[xxxx_me]

[Allen awakes in a bed.

...

...?

After a little bit of investigation around his room, Allen stumbles out of Room 18 into the portrait gallery, looking a bit pale and, frankly, confused. This is... not where he expected to end up, but if he woke up in a bed, then...]

Is this... another World? But those rules weren't a puzzle, were they?

[Later, he'll explore more of the Castle, eventually settling in the library as he looks through the shelves. He seems to be looking for something in particular... although his face is in a permanent frown anyway, because none of this is quite adding up to the expected solution, and it's throwing him off.]

audience hall

[nothingposh]

[Don't mind this small, grimy boy popping up from somewhere behind you. You asked for French. You're getting French.]

Don't everyone? [Gavroche, you can literally only read because the Friends of the ABC taught you.] It's part of the Frère Jacques rhyme, innit?

[littlebratziska]

[A small girl with blueish gray hair comes up behind his shoulder and grabs the card out of his hand without bothering to ask, glancing only briefly to see what is written on it before offering it again, clearly bored.]

It's only asking if you're sleeping, twice. Have you really never heard the children's song?

investigation

[whimsicalism]

[Hello, there! Is there anything you want to investigate in particular about your room or the library?]

[undershadow]

Scrooge--!

[ Lena sits straight up in a bed that is way nicer than what she's used to, breathing heavily. The first thing that registers outside panic is the sun on her face. The window outside shows the ruined amphitheater she lives beneath, and the sun is low in the sky, but it's very much not blocked.

And she's alone. She pats down her face and body and stares into the bathroom mirror, looking for something which she simply doesn't find.

She ventures out, gazing askance at everything she can observe, and looking extremely skeptical about all of it. This cool front lasts exactly as long as it takes for someone else to exit their room. ]

... Scrooge? Webby? Yeah, there's no way you're here. [ ... ] AuWHOA--!

[ No matter who they are, there's almost no doubt that your character is a.) like minimum two feet taller than Lena and b.) a species she has never seen before in her life. Her eyes go wide, then narrow, as she tries to read what emotion their featherless faces are giving off. ]

Okay, so I'm guessing you just woke up.

[ And they just keep on coming out of their rooms, each more imposing and more annoyed than the last. Is anyone normal around here?

Certainly the Queen isn't. Eventually, Lena stands in front of her message with her arms crossed, looking up and reading with a thousand yard stare. ]

And she rhymes. Love that for us.

[scratchitti]

[Once he hears the title aloud it tickles something familiar. He HAS heard it, he's pretty sure.]

...Father John, right? So it's... do-may-voo?

[Sorry, his English is decent but that's as far as he goes with non-Japanese languages]

Re: investigation

[xxxx_me]

[He'll investigate the library! Which mostly means methodically checking through every single shelf like a good JRPG protag in case there's a Puzzle to be found.]

[scratchitti]

[He snatches the card back with a scowl]

One: Rude. Two: Even if I did I wouldn't recognize it in writing.

[whimsicalism]

[There are a few things you can find by doing that, Allen! One, which is an obvious sign is that the non fiction section has seen better days. Aside from the biographies and Zoobooks most of the empty wooden shelves are covered in dust.

There's no hidden puzzle here but the dust does seem to be covering some strange discoloration in the shelves.

hands

[undershadow]

[ Wait, how does she even have hands. ]

You first.

[xxxx_me]

[That's weird. Can he brush aside the dust to take a better look at the discoloration?]

[scratchitti]

[Okay so from behind he hadn't realized but now that she's turned to talk to him:]

... you're a duck.

[Yep, you're a genius, Neku]

[nothingposh]

What's Jean got to do with anything? [Jacques is actually the French form of Jacob or James, but this is funnier. Anyway, Gavroche straight up sings:] Frère Jacques, Frère Jacques, dormez-vous? Dormez-vous? Sonnez les matines! Sonnez les matines! Ding, dang, dong. Ding, dang, dong.

[Somewhere, distantly, you can hear actual bells.]

gallery

[scratchitti]

... this crazy chick had paintings done of us?

[Hey Allen, looks like you have company. Company who looks pretty horrified, especially as he reads the profiles]

hands

[immaculacies]

[ a real shame Manaka isn't from one of the Holy Grail Wars where command seals are definitely on the hand, huh

The girl Neku addresses blinks owlishly, but nonetheless, she extends her hand with a delicate sort of motion. ]

What for?

[whimsicalism]

[He sure can! The wood itself is a beautiful golden brown color. That makes the stain itself stand out. It's large and a darker brown than the rest. There's a thin flaking crust of some sort covering it as well.]

[scratchitti]

[Neku startles at the surprise distant bells]

Okay, that was creepy... but yeah, I've heard it. Just can't read it.

[...it doesn't occur to him that this implies he's illiterate or something]

Re: gallery

[xxxx_me]

[nevermind we thread here.

But oh... yes. Those sure are paintings of them all. Allen will, of course, go to examine his own first, staring apprehensively at the quote.]

I didn't say that...

[But he does know it. Hn.]

[imozon]

[Waking up is a surprise for Dark Dream--not because of where she is, but because it happened at all. She was sure she was dying?

Well, she's alive now. Time to find out what's going on. Absentmindedly slipping the playing card into the waistband of her skirt (hm, if she's going to keep existing it might be a good idea to start wearing something with pockets), she exits her room, looking around and calling out:]

Hello? Is anyone here?

[A little later she decides to investigate the libr--

Actually, she's only in the library proper for a minute or two, before she finds her way to the media room. This looks more interesting, and before long she has the TV turned on and she's trying to put a random tape into the VCR. It's not going very well. Possibly because she has it upside down.]

[scratchitti]

Just to see if anyone has... something there. Don't worry about it.

[He peers at her hand, but doesn't try to grab it or anything]

Okay, so it's not just me...

[xxxx_me]

[...

Can he pick away at some of the crust?

He is ten what is being hygienic about this.]

hilarious double tag timing

[scratchitti]

I said the one on mine... Great, another Stalker.

[rowboats]

[ Out of Room 5 comes a tiny girl with ash dusted on her hair and all over her white dress shirt, and smelling of smoke. She stumbles out of her room with wide eyes, looking at anyone nearby with apprehension. ]

...who are you? Did you...wake up in a bed, too?

[ A bit later, Ib is in the Portrait Gallery looking up at the painting of herself. ]

I didn't pose for any paintings. I don't--don't like it.

[ whatever her issue is, it seems deeper than just not "liking" having a painting of herself displayed. Hm. ]

[xxxx_me]

[He tilts his head a little in curiosity, walking over to check out Neku's profile. Inevitably, he's going to see that quote and...

...

Oh.

Shrinking back a little bit.]

S-sorry...