(open) you're looking at me like you don't know who i am

[entreats]

Who: Ange, Ruby, Break, and anyone who knows any of them.
What: Corruption turned Ange into a true Umineko witch who decided the best way to keep the people she loves safe from this town is to drag them into a pocket dimension.
When: For a while in March.
Where: Ange and Ruby's house-turned-small-pocket-dimension.

Content Warnings: Potential violence if anyone acts particularly antagonistic. Potential talk of violence or gore. Other warnings will be added when things pop up.



Perhaps you have seen Ruby's odd network post and decided to check things out. Or maybe you're just wandering around Trench and notice that Ange and Ruby's house suddenly looks.. different.

The house has been completely overgrown by way oversized roses, big thorns growing out of all the stems, completely obscuring the structure that's supposed to be underneath it. If you get close enough to the cluster of roses, you may feel your connection to any of the three people inside suddenly pull you in. (Please note: only people who know either Ange, Ruby or Break will be able to enter the pocket dimension because of this!)

If you give in to the sensation, everything around you might go black, and when the light returns, you seem to find yourself in.. a hedge maze. A rather odd one, though. As you stumble through it, you may suddenly find yourself in random rooms, and then back out of them into the hedge maze once more. The Moss King's wild plants seem to have even invaded corners of this place, so you might want to watch out you avoid having those snap at you. Retracing your steps through the labyrinth feels impossible, like the way is changing up behind you with every step. Some rooms make perfect sense - like a neat and elaborate kitchen, or a library - and others seem to consist of nonsense with stairs leading upside down or to nowhere, or gravity not working in a specific room at all.

Flying throughout the entire maze are golden butterflies. They seem to fly with direction, and if you follow them, you might find them leading you to one of the people you were looking for..

Comments

[eudaimonikos]

Sure. I mean, no good comes of setting yourself up above everybody else. I was miserable when I did that, and I was also a huge asshole.

[entreats]

[ Ange lets out a small little 'huh' sound.

It's hard to tell whether this is something that conflicts with an idea of Michael that Ange already had as her regular self, or if it's just surprising to her because of what she is now in her corrupted form, but she sounds a little surprised all the same. ]

I didn't know you thought about it that way. I don't see it as necessarily being above anyone. [ .. well. There are more than a few people she'd say she's above.

But that has to do more with who those people are, okay. ]

It's about being different. There are some things regular humans couldn't understand by their very nature.

[eudaimonikos]

Well, sure, but everyone's different. There's plenty of stuff I don't really get about human things, even after all this time.

[entreats]

Well.. That just means I'll have to see which humans are capable of understanding that this place is the better alternative to Trench.

[ If, as Michael seems to think, most of them won't understand.

Then maybe all she can hope there's a few they do. ]

And otherwise I'll just stay here with only Ruby and Break. [ An idea that Ange honestly doesn't sound all that concerned about.. ]

[eudaimonikos]

...so what's with the eyes? You look like you're about to Beast out.

[also he's still extremely sure you are mind-controlling your wife or something but we've sort of been through that]

[entreats]

[ ... ]

What's wrong with my eyes?

[ Apparently.. Ange hasn't noticed? Though there doesn't seem to be any of the alarm there ought to be at being asked what's up with her eyes when she speaks up with this in return.

But judging by her tone, she genuinely hasn't noticed that there's anything off with the way she looks right now. Not a shocked tone, but.. a tad curious, perhaps. ]

[eudaimonikos]

[gestures vaguely]

You've got this creepy gold thing going on.

[entreats]

Oh.

[ Pause.

She's probably processing this, though she still seems a little bit too calm.. ]

I suppose that is just part of being a witch..? Now I'm a proper witch, my body probably realised I can't just keep looking like a regular human anymore. It must have tried to change something. [ Which is, you know, clearly a totally normal conclusion. ]

[eudaimonikos]

What do you mean, now that you're a proper witch? And what would that have to do with anything anyway?

[entreats]

Well, you can see it around us, right? [ Ange idly gestures with one hand at their surroundings. ] I couldn't do this sort of thing before. I guess I finally broke through the limit on my powers.

[ Or, you know, she got corrupted.

But of course Ange's corrupted mind isn't going to think of it that way. It's actively refusing to let her realise that so easily. ]

I went beyond being a human. I'm not a human and a witch anymore. I'm just a witch now, just like the witches back home. I cast off my human self.

[eudaimonikos]

...you're super corrupted right now, huh.

[It's not a question!]

[entreats]

[ Thanks, Michael.

At least he's getting to the point, even if it's a point that Ange can't see. Which is pretty obvious too, just judging by the way she raises her eyebrows. Sure, she can't look confused with her eyes since they're all glowy, but the rest of her face says enough. ]

What makes you say that?

[ Like it isn't obvious. ]

[eudaimonikos]

[oh my god. Michael removes his glasses for a moment so he can scrub his hand down his face. He's beginning to wonder if he was really the right person to come in here - sure, he's her friend, but does he have the patience for this? He should've brought backup.

Okay. Whatever. He did what he did, and now he's gotta deal.]

The suddenly throwing away your humanity to become a glowing prison warden for your friends and family?

[entreats]

We went over the prison thing.

[ Apparently in a way that was satisfying for her, huh. Like she feels like she proved that this isn't a prison after all, despite the fact that Michael clearly isn't impressed.

The girl doesn't seem offended by his exasperated reaction from a moment ago though. She's still explaining this very calmly to him, even reaching out for her teacup and taking a sip of her drink. ]

And surely I would have noticed it myself if I was corrupted. It's not a small deal. There is a huge difference between that and an expansion of my power like this.

[eudaimonikos]

We talked about the prison thing.

[We did not come to an agreement on the prison thing!]

There literally isn't. The whole thing about corruption is that people aren't great at noticing when they're getting corrupted. Half the time I grow horns and I still just go about my business like a jackass.

[entreats]

[ .. well, at least Michael doesn't have any horns right now, so Ange can at least conclude he isn't corrupted here.

On the other hand, she truly doesn't feel corrupted. Not at all. Shouldn't she at least feel it the tiniest bit if she were..? It feels like it. ]

How are you so sure this is corruption though? Shouldn't I be attacking you if that was the case? [ She shrugs. ] Right now I'm just doing my usual thing.

[ Yes, Ange.. you... just tell yourself that.. ]

Just at a higher power level than before. If I would have had access to this power earlier, I for sure would've done this earlier too.

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael considers this question calmly for a moment, then drains the rest of his tea in one long sip.]

Fine. Let me get Ruby out of here and see what she thinks.

[entreats]

[ Now it seems like he's taken the effective route.

.. for better or worse, though, since Ange might not be reacting in the best of ways. But Michael does have her full attention, even as her eyes narrow and her shoulders grow more rigid while she looks at him. ]

Why would you take Ruby out of here?

[ It almost sounds more like an accusation rather than a question. ]

[eudaimonikos]

Still not convinced she's in her right mind. I think this place is doing something to her, and I also don't think you really want to do that. Bad for all kinds of relationships, trust me on that.

[Michael leans back in his chair, adopting a deliberately relaxed posture for all that his eyes are still sharp on her. He doesn't want to come off like he's gonna fight her. He really does not want things to go that way.]

If we leave for - say, a couple days? And she's still the same and wants to come back? Fine, no flesh off my bones.

[entreats]

[ Every single inch of Ange's body language makes it very, very obvious that she doesn't like even a single bit of this plan.

At least she's not moving to attack him or anything, but the girl certainly doesn't look pleased. Her fingers move, fretting in a way that's stuck midway between nerves and anger. ]

She's not going to leave.

[ Because Ange doesn't want her to, being one of the implications, but it's not the one she realises and addresses out loud after a moment with a shake of her head. ]

You can ask her. Ruby wouldn't want to leave this place.

[eudaimonikos]

That's what I'm afraid of. That's why I want to hear what she has to say outside this place. If it's really not affecting her at all, then she'll feel the same and she'll come right back - so there's no problem.

[entreats]

But she's not going to leave.

[ Ange speaks those words a little slower - like she's trying to put emphasis on every single one of them. As if she figures Michael won't understand them otherwise.

And there's definitely some simmering anger in them. ]

So you won't get to ask her outside. She will hurt you if you try to take her out of here.

[eudaimonikos]

Well, why would she do that? We're friends, and I'm worried about her. If she really wants to be here, it should be easy enough to walk outside and say so - it'd make me feel a lot better.

[He's in danger, huh]

[entreats]

Because Ruby doesn't want to leave this world. It's ours. [ Ange puts down her cup of tea.

Though she - at least - doesn't get up yet. ]

She wouldn't abandon our world for you. Not even for a minute.

[ Sorry for the (thankfully at least only metaphorical) burn, Michael..

At least Ange sure will feel sorry about this later. ]

We're each other's most important person, so our priority is with each other above anyone else.

[eudaimonikos]

Is your relationship seriously that fragile? That you can't ever spend two seconds away from each other? You sound like one of those men who locks their wife up in the attic like she's a fancy lamp.

[Okay, he did get sort of nettled by that, perhaps!]

Fine. I'll just take that other guy you live with. Guy's trip.