[What Noah is carving into his pumpkin is unimportant. Don't worry about it. (It appears to be a very delicate natal chart from memory, but again, that's not the point.)
What is the point, you ask? Well, when you walk by, perhaps with your own pumpkin, Noah... very helpfully hurls a fistful of pumpkin guts your way. He's not trying to be mean, more like he's a barely-adult trying to start the Halloween equivalent of a food-fight. It's festive!
What're you gonna do? Let him get away with smearing pumpkin guts into your hair? One should think not! Laughing, Noah reaches into the pile of guts on the pavement next to him and lines up another throw.
Hi. Hello. You will play with him now. :)]
★ The Magician
[Noah still can't get into the cirque tent, which means he's had to move his fortune-telling business elsewhere. He's commandeered a booth from one of the Masks for this purpose, one that's situated in-between a couple of the food stalls. A hastily-painted sign leaning against the front of the stall reads "FORTUNE TELLING :)" in Noah's somewhat-sloppy handwriting, and the whole thing is covered in enough glitter for the sunset light to blind you if you walk by at just the right angle.
Usually, he offers tarot card readings, but his deck is away today. What he's offering today is—]
Stella dice readings! For the low, low price of free, you can know your fate! Probably!
[He's getting really good at sounding like a carnival barker the longer he stays here.
Three dice are sitting on the table before him in blue, purple, and yellow. One dice is marked with the symbols for planetary bodies, another with horoscope signs, and the third simply with numbers. One almost wonders how these simple tools can be used to divine the future. Noah's quite eager to show you, and if you even so much as pause to look at him, he'll shoot you a massive smile and make "come here" motions with his hands.
You cannot escape. He has Seen you. And he'll complain, loudly, if you leave without stopping by.]
★ The Tower cw: drowning & death. yes i am seriously killing noah on month 2 of the game.
[Noah sees those lights flickering under the water, and of course — being who he is — he thinks they're quite suspicious. That something's under there, that he can probably find out what it is and deal with it. After all, it's just a lake. How deep can it be?
Ha.
He rents one of the boats and heads out onto the lake, paddling out some several feet before the swan boat capsizes and sends him under. No problem, he thinks, preparing to swim to the surface — he might've just gotten the worst boat ever, or whatever's under the lake might've decided to spite him in that moment. It's not a big deal.
Until it is. Inky hands grab at his clothing, at his hair, and drag him back under. Noah thrashes and flails, managing to pull himself over the surface again for a split second, gasping for air...
...
He does not resurface.
Water fills his lungs and he grows dizzy, weak, unable to muster the energy to thrash. When his Moonstone rewinds time, you might feel it, a whole 8 seconds of deja-vu, as if you said that same sentence or took that same bite of food already. That 8 seconds isn't enough to save his life after he dies the first time, but he remembers it — drowning once, and then reliving it again a full 8 seconds later.
...
When you next see Noah, it's him exiting the Ferris Wheel the next morning, looking tired and confused. Everything seems to be intact, though, other than the fact his Moonstone didn't work at full capacity. He looks troubled, though, brow knit, like maybe that cheerful mask he always wears might finally be starting to crack.]
( mafuyu knows there's something in the lake. she knows there's something in the water in it'z quite the large world, too- that maybe they're connected and it might be her fault. so she sits by the water, waiting sometimes. in case something happens.
but she isn't fast enough for noah. she can't get to him (can't find him, later) before she realizes...
except he's there the next day. immediately, mafuyu runs for him, gently touching his arm- he's real. )
Noah- ( no honorific, no ebalon- she flounders uselessly for a moment before looking up at him. ) I... I couldn't find you after you went in... are you...
[He'd thought no one saw. That's why no one tried to save him, not that he'd want someone to. He has the Moonstone, after all, and Noah's always been the sacrificing sort. The Moonstone had failed, but he's back now, and he's... not given much thought to it.
Something about an agreement whispered in his ear when he woke.
He definitely died, though. Twice, technically, if he wants to think about it that hard.]
Sorry that you had to see that, [he whispers, and then, cheerfully:] I'm okay! I came back, didn't I?
( he died because she was too slow to save him and he's the one apologizing. somehow, after the start of the month, that is enough to bring tears to her eyes that she can't rid herself of quickly enough. )
No. No... don't be. I'm sorry I couldn't get to you.
Noah catches the tears in her eyes and can't bring himself to look at her anymore, and so he glances elsewhere. Off in the distance, where rides spin and rotate and where he can distantly hear people screaming despite the fact so few people are actually here.
But, because he's currently a catboy, that means his emotions are more transparent than he'd like them to be. Tiger ears flattened against his head, tail lowered and still. There's no getting out of this by slipping on his usual mask, even if he wants to.]
If you tried to save me, you would've died, too. So don't sweat it.
( mafuyu finally glances up at the movement and jolts, eyes wide. ... were those... always...
does dying turn you into a catboy?
no. she's not doing this right now. even she knows there's a time and a place and this is neither. inhaling, mafuyu looks down again and gently reaches out for noah's hand. she runs cold, so it's probably a little startling, but. it seems fitting, after the mirror house. )
... How are you feeling?
( not that she'd understand. but. she has to try, doesn't she? )
[The Moonstone worked but it didn't go back far enough and he died, and there's the sensation of water filling his lungs still when he tries to breathe, and he's so skeeved over the black hands dragging him under that Mafuyu's mere touch makes him jump.
No. No, he's not "fine", but like with everything else, he'll pretend he is. It's easier that way, isn't it?]
[Noah mutters, looking off into the distance with glassy eyes, like half of him isn't really here at the moment.
He thinks back to when he was some stupid kid. Closed-off, scared, couldn't sleep at night, could barely even make friends... if he didn't befriend people, it was easier on his trauma-addled brain at the time.
Part of him feels like it's easier now, too, to just shut down. Shut everything out. He can't hurt people if he doesn't get close to them. Or so the him of three years ago would've said, huh?]
I'm scared of what will happen if I'm not. [He says, quietly, unbidden, before his brain can catch up with his mouth.]
( mafuyu looks up at him. there's... a part of her that understands. she can't stand the idea of not wearing her mask at school or home. that not being okay for others is a crime of some sort. and yet, watching noah fear that sort of thing- to try and hide the hurt, like she'd done so many years ago before there was nothing but hurt-
...
reaching out like this- she feels clumsy and awkward, unable to even comprehend what noah needs, let alone from her. but she can't just sit here either. )
People tell me that... that even the things that hurt are important, and part of healing.
No, no, I was a... I was a pretty violent, temperamental kid. I don't want to fall into that cycle again, you know? I'd rather just ignore the stuff that bothers me. It'll go away.
[...you can tell he's Clamor's son when—
But, really, Noah doesn't want to go back to that extremely torn-up kid who couldn't keep his emotions straight, who couldn't sleep at night and never thought he'd be happy. Nevermind all the PTSD and stuff he still has, the nightmares don't have to exist if he doesn't acknowledge that they do. That's how mental health works :)]
[ Mizuki does notice the guts flying his way. His reaction time is pretty above average, and it would be so, so easy to just step out of the way, or reach his hand up to cup some of it to just toss right back at Noah. Instead, though, he just kind of lets this happen… and the moment the guts plop against his face, he dramatically falls to the ground.
Congrats, Noah, you've murdered a jellyfish. This is now a crime scene. ]
[Noah, for his part, just starts fucking laughing. Unless Mizuki has an instantly-fatal pumpkin allergy, he doubts anything happened to his goldfish-munching friend here, so!
Noah runs over to see Mizuki's "corpse", but he's all for theatrics, and so he dramatically lets out a cry and falls to his knees.]
My friend! Woe is me! I have committed the cardinal sin of manslaughter! Whatever will I do now?
[ The second Noah is on his knees is the moment that Mizuki goes back into motion. The guts are being scooped from his face and spattered quickly onto Noah’s instead. Sorry if any of it got in his mouth?
Except he’s not actually sorry. Welcome to the war zone. ]
[He lets out a loud, enthused laugh at the action and reaches to scoop some of the pumpkin guts out of his hair with one hand, while his free hand — the one that had been aiming earlier, before Mizuki became boneless — tries to smoosh more pumpkin guts into Mizuki's face in kind.
They're nice and slimy and cold. :) And full of flavourless seeds that are absolutely awful when they aren't cooked in this essay I w—]
[ Said as if Mizuki weren't used to slimy and cold things! Wait until Noah gets a slapped with tentacles, then we'll see who's laughing.
Well, Mizuki's still laughing even now, to be fair. Just because he's in a weird theme park around people he doesn't know and has zero idea what's going on doesn't mean he's not allowed to have a good time. In fact, Mizuki's happy to kick his legs in a bit of protest and laughter before he's trying plop some of the guts into Noah's hair instead. Seems he managed to get his hands on some more, somehow? Weird, it's almost like he's got really long appendages or something. ]
[Weird! Noah won't question it, but this is also inadvertently giving him more ammo, since he snort-laughs and pulls said guts out of his hair to plap them onto Mizuki's head instead.
[ Uh— whoa. Okay. Maybe getting a bit too friendly there, Noah!! He might have given you a goldfish, but that does not mean you have Shirt Rights. He plops a hand against Noah's face and shoves him away. ]
Th— that's cheating! [ Were there rules to this? Apparently, according to Mizuki. ] I call timeout!
[Noah, overexcited about this in particular, tosses his dice up into the air and catches them in his palm.]
They're sort of like tarot cards, where you ask a question — not a yes or no question, but a question — and then I roll the dice and put together the funny symbols to give you an answer. It's another form of divination that I learnt in college.
[The fact that he even went to college............]
A question, huh... it's difficult to come up with one that isn't a simple yes or no question.
[ If only because a lot of the questions she has in mind tend to lean towards one direction or the other.
Will she be able to write a song that will save Mafuyu? To save others? Will her father ever wake up from his coma and remember her at all? Can she ever be forgiven? Will she forever be cursed? ]
Think of it this way — if you asked something like "will I get the job I applied for", that's a yes or no question, but you can still discern an answer by rephrasing it to something like "how can I ensure I'll get the job I want?" or "how should I seek success in life?"
Stuff like that, [Noah says as he tosses the dice up again and catches them, rinse repeat.] I normally ask things like...
["How can I save Clamor? How can I make sure everyone important to me stays safe? How do I know if I'm really on the right track? Is it okay for me to give up revenge for peace of mind?"]
..."what does the future hold?" Or something really general!
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amuze2022-10-05 07:15 pm
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★ The Magician
★ The Tower
cw: drowning & death. yes i am seriously killing noah on month 2 of the game.
★ wildcard
[it's a card and it's wild, hit me]
★ The Tower
but she isn't fast enough for noah. she can't get to him (can't find him, later) before she realizes...
except he's there the next day. immediately, mafuyu runs for him, gently touching his arm- he's real. )
Noah- ( no honorific, no ebalon- she flounders uselessly for a moment before looking up at him. ) I... I couldn't find you after you went in... are you...
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Oh.
[He'd thought no one saw. That's why no one tried to save him, not that he'd want someone to. He has the Moonstone, after all, and Noah's always been the sacrificing sort. The Moonstone had failed, but he's back now, and he's... not given much thought to it.
Something about an agreement whispered in his ear when he woke.
He definitely died, though. Twice, technically, if he wants to think about it that hard.]
Sorry that you had to see that, [he whispers, and then, cheerfully:] I'm okay! I came back, didn't I?
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No. No... don't be. I'm sorry I couldn't get to you.
( but he's right. he...
he came back. )
... You did. Are you okay...?
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[Well, yeah, but also—
Noah catches the tears in her eyes and can't bring himself to look at her anymore, and so he glances elsewhere. Off in the distance, where rides spin and rotate and where he can distantly hear people screaming despite the fact so few people are actually here.
But, because he's currently a catboy, that means his emotions are more transparent than he'd like them to be. Tiger ears flattened against his head, tail lowered and still. There's no getting out of this by slipping on his usual mask, even if he wants to.]
If you tried to save me, you would've died, too. So don't sweat it.
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does dying turn you into a catboy?
no. she's not doing this right now. even she knows there's a time and a place and this is neither. inhaling, mafuyu looks down again and gently reaches out for noah's hand. she runs cold, so it's probably a little startling, but. it seems fitting, after the mirror house. )
... How are you feeling?
( not that she'd understand. but. she has to try, doesn't she? )
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[The Moonstone worked but it didn't go back far enough and he died, and there's the sensation of water filling his lungs still when he tries to breathe, and he's so skeeved over the black hands dragging him under that Mafuyu's mere touch makes him jump.
No. No, he's not "fine", but like with everything else, he'll pretend he is. It's easier that way, isn't it?]
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but he still insists...
mafuyu stares for a moment, and with perhaps the strongest bit of genuine her he's likely seen, she speaks. )
It's okay if you aren't. You don't have to be. You shouldn't force yourself to be.
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[Noah mutters, looking off into the distance with glassy eyes, like half of him isn't really here at the moment.
He thinks back to when he was some stupid kid. Closed-off, scared, couldn't sleep at night, could barely even make friends... if he didn't befriend people, it was easier on his trauma-addled brain at the time.
Part of him feels like it's easier now, too, to just shut down. Shut everything out. He can't hurt people if he doesn't get close to them. Or so the him of three years ago would've said, huh?]
I'm scared of what will happen if I'm not. [He says, quietly, unbidden, before his brain can catch up with his mouth.]
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...
reaching out like this- she feels clumsy and awkward, unable to even comprehend what noah needs, let alone from her. but she can't just sit here either. )
People tell me that... that even the things that hurt are important, and part of healing.
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[...you can tell he's Clamor's son when—
But, really, Noah doesn't want to go back to that extremely torn-up kid who couldn't keep his emotions straight, who couldn't sleep at night and never thought he'd be happy. Nevermind all the PTSD and stuff he still has, the nightmares don't have to exist if he doesn't acknowledge that they do. That's how mental health works :)]
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★ The Hierophant, Reversed
Congrats, Noah, you've murdered a jellyfish. This is now a crime scene. ]
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Noah runs over to see Mizuki's "corpse", but he's all for theatrics, and so he dramatically lets out a cry and falls to his knees.]
My friend! Woe is me! I have committed the cardinal sin of manslaughter! Whatever will I do now?
[Noah Ebalon is a theatre kid.]
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Except he’s not actually sorry. Welcome to the war zone. ]
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They're nice and slimy and cold. :) And full of flavourless seeds that are absolutely awful when they aren't cooked in this essay I w—]
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Well, Mizuki's still laughing even now, to be fair. Just because he's in a weird theme park around people he doesn't know and has zero idea what's going on doesn't mean he's not allowed to have a good time. In fact, Mizuki's happy to kick his legs in a bit of protest and laughter before he's trying plop some of the guts into Noah's hair instead. Seems he managed to get his hands on some more, somehow? Weird, it's almost like he's got really long appendages or something. ]
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Noah is very emotionally mature.]
Hmm...
[Grabs Mizuki's shirt
sticks pumpkin guts under it]
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Th— that's cheating! [ Were there rules to this? Apparently, according to Mizuki. ] I call timeout!
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[Noah wiggles away from Mizuki, keeping his pumpkin-y hands to himself. He also didn't know there were rules.]
...what are the rules, anyhow? If I'm cheating and all that.
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magician
[ Kanade's voice is as soft spoken as it always has been, but there's a slight air of curiosity there. ]
How does it work, exactly?
arrives a week late with starbucks
[Noah, overexcited about this in particular, tosses his dice up into the air and catches them in his palm.]
They're sort of like tarot cards, where you ask a question — not a yes or no question, but a question — and then I roll the dice and put together the funny symbols to give you an answer. It's another form of divination that I learnt in college.
[The fact that he even went to college............]
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[ If only because a lot of the questions she has in mind tend to lean towards one direction or the other.
Will she be able to write a song that will save Mafuyu? To save others? Will her father ever wake up from his coma and remember her at all? Can she ever be forgiven? Will she forever be cursed? ]
Do you have any examples, maybe?
[ That's not her question, by the way. ]
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Stuff like that, [Noah says as he tosses the dice up again and catches them, rinse repeat.] I normally ask things like...
["How can I save Clamor? How can I make sure everyone important to me stays safe? How do I know if I'm really on the right track? Is it okay for me to give up revenge for peace of mind?"]
..."what does the future hold?" Or something really general!
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How--
[...]
How can I help everyone here? That kind of question works, right?