EVENT & TDM 008

[sticksandbonesmods]

LET IT GO

WAKE UP

It’s strange, how as the dawn of a new day finally arrives, coinciding with the howling winds dying out, classic, adorable snowmen seem to have popped up all over the Grove overnight. The fog wall has yet to surround the barren remains of a town that once was, but it’s visible once more in the great distance.

Not that you can see it immediately. Something covers your eyes, and you can feel something heavy and frigid wrapped all around you. As you struggle more and more, the crunch of snow echoes through your ears as you step free- and when you turn back to examine their prison, you’ll realize one of the snowmen was you.

Meanwhile, old residents will get to deal with more and more people popping out of snowmen like daisies, and must remember that this is just their life now. It’s just another day in Aldric’s Grove.

Though, maybe you ought to help them before frostbite sets in.

MIRROR, MIRROR

The quiet couldn’t last forever. You should have known that something would happen, especially with the fog beginning to make itself known again. And this time, it’s something quiet. As you wake up one morning, there is a mirror on your nightstand — it’s silver and round, able to fit comfortably in your hand and wreathed in crystalline snowflakes.

And as you look into it, your reflection twists into something still undeniably you, but… have you a temper problem? Too many lies? A sadistic sense of humor? All of your worst traits are dragged out and reflected on the mirror, and no matter what, it keeps ending up wherever you are — and whoever else looks into the mirror will see this awful, terrible you, too. All of your worst characteristics, all the things you try to hide, unable to be hidden.

Maybe you keep trying to hide it. Maybe you let it stay wherever it keeps turning up, following you like a particularly terrible walking salesman, or maybe you break it. Regardless, nothing seems to happen… for now.

WITH SHARDS OF ICE

“For now”.

Late into the night, everyone wakes up to a sudden, terrible chill. When you open your eyes, you’ll find that you aren’t in your inn room or home, but instead within a giant castle made of ice. It must be a ballroom of some sort, a grand hall glittering in the moonlight — but looking out the window shows that the world beyond the castle is but a frozen wasteland of more blizzards and nothing else. Though you’ve been granted some of your gear — weapons and some supplies, and coats if you’re lucky — you’ll find that the temperature is dropping steadily, while something approaches…

Peek out the door to the main hall and you’ll see what’s coming so noisily. An army’s worth of hallowed ice knights with all sorts of weapons are marching to the door, intent on slaying the intruders. Should they get close, they’ll attack; should they land the killing blow, you’ll instantly freeze into a solid block and shatter.

And if you broke the mirror that haunted you? On top of all of this, you can feel yourself gradually growing colder, physically and emotionally, and your magic, if you have it, takes on an icy flair that you may find difficult to control. Maybe it's your feet that start to turn to ice first — maybe it's your fingertips. But as the night goes on, you’ll steadily freeze solid, and like any fairy tale, only an act of true love could possibly save you. Good luck figuring out what that actually means. True love’s kiss? A genuine compliment? A hug? What could possibly save you from your fate?

Those of you who survive until morning, who don’t become solid statues of ice or die within the castle’s walls, will be lucky enough to witness the sun coming up through narrow windows the size of your forearm. All around you, the castle starts to melt, dripping freezing water onto your head. For as much as you try to run before you, presumably, drown terribly…

…your eyes will close, and you’ll wake up in your bed, drenched.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE FRESH SNOW

The morning after that dreadful night, things… settle, again. Aldric’s Grove is quiet, and clear sunlight glistens across the snowy plaza and radiates off of frosted trees. Even now, the apple tree and blackberry bushes are unfazed by the cold, though the fruit may taste crisper and chillier than usual. Those that died within the castle return to life, feeling colder than normal for the rest of the day, but there seems to be no lasting damage. And, everyone who participated in the castle “game” receives a mysterious gift: A wooden coin with a sigil on it, resembling a clock with backwards hands behind a shield, attached to frosted pinecones, red berries and sprigs of mistletoe. It feels warm and protective.

You go outside. It’s been some time since anyone’s seen anything from the woods, let alone something that doesn’t want them dead — so imagine one’s surprise when a small family of deer can be seen walking amongst the trees. Birds alight to the branches on rare moments, and it’s surely a sign of something, that life has begun to return to the forest despite the deep snow and deeper chill.

Never mind that one of the deer has an extra set of antlers and another has three eyes. Never mind that the birds sound like people. Never mind that the rabbits have blood on their maws.

It’s just another day in Aldric’s Grove.

SPARK NOTES

CLICK TO EXPAND!

WAKE UP

Good day, new arrivals! You are now a snowman. Hopefully people who have been here a bit longer are willing to give you a blanket or ten.

MIRROR, MIRROR

A mirror appears and starts following you around, reflecting what you think are your worst traits or worst version of yourself is. Other people can look into it and see the awful you, too. You can break it and it'll leave you alone, or you can let it stalk you all month.

WITH SHARDS OF ICE

Welcome to the ice castle! It's cold, but you have your stuff with you, and it's not unlivable. Well, until the frozen army of knights starts marching in with the intent to kill everyone inside, anyway. One lethal hit from them will make you shatter into pieces. For those of you who broke your mirrors, you'll gradually grow colder both physically & emotionally, and eventually start to freeze solid. Don't worry, though, you can be saved through the power of love.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE FRESH SNOW

Dawn rises on the Grove and the dead come back to life. Everyone who participated in the castle game receives a magical charm, though they don't know what it does so far. Animals come back to the Grove as well! ...why do they look like that?

OOC

Happy January! TDMs are game canon as a reminder, and if you'd like to plot with people for this event, head over to OOC plotting. While it is not known to player characters at this time, the charms granted as a reward for the ice castle can undo one future negative effect (i.e. a major death). They are a one-time use item. As for how characters discover this information... idk, we'll see how y'all decide to utilize those. :)

UPDATES

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Comments

[mooninthewater]

I. When you look in the mirror, are you even there? cw: Scopophobia ( Around the Grove, Open )

[ “Hey, Rubie, are you done with the eldritch monstrosities in the mirror?” No.

Mizuki doesn’t actually know what to do with the mirror when he finds it. His first thought is to eat it. His second is that maybe he should stop immediately assuming he should eat something just because it’s new and probably magical. His third thought is to ask his friends about what they intend to do about it. More specifically, Add, but he’ll bother him about it later.

So, while he will eventually break his mirror, Mizuki simply carries it around behind him in one of his tentacles. It’s actually hard to see whatever Mizuki’s reflection is, considering the glass is covered in what looks like barnacles and seaweed and mildew and water damage. The image inside is blurry. There’s a white and blue and black shape inside that moves, though, with a scattering of what looks like cerulean stars along the edges, and trying to help give the form some shape.

Mizuki’s voice comes… from the mirror? From around you? From everywhere? It sounds sourceless. With almost an echo and something enchanting and ethereal about it, as well as… ominous. Foreboding. If the mystery and enchant draw you in, then you’ll swiftly be met with eyes. All the barnacles are eyes, though the figure in the image is still blurry, there’s still eyes.

The voice is still sweet, the voice is still enchanting, yet now it sings of the many deaths it sees you dying. The many things it wants to do to see when you’ll break. The many traumas it wants to know you can endure. How long until you’re broken? How long until you give up? How long until you seek “Us” out?

…

For like a few lines, before Mizuki pulls it away from you with a little frown. ] These things just showed up today. Do you think we’re supposed to do something with them?

II. I don’t wanna know all your secrets, ‘cause I’ll tell ( Around the Grove, Open )

[ And if you haven’t broken your own mirror yet, and he happens across you by it, he’ll do the both of you the favor and flip it over so the glass is facing down, then look up at you with his usual cheery smile. ]

Hi! I wanted to come check up on everyone!! Are you doing okay? Keeping warm? Have you eaten today? [ Mizuki’s mirror, at this point, is broken, but he’s not about to say “Hey, Add said you should break this, so you should do that” to anyone. ] Whatever the case, I hope you’re not bothered by these corrupted reflections. I’m real proud of you, anyway, so the corrupted mirror can go kick rocks.

III. It’s hard enough being alone with myself ( Ice Castle, Open )

[ After a while of being inside the castle, Mizuki does find himself colder, in both senses. Though, it’s less of being devoid of emotions and more like something’s just drowning them out, slowly. For a while there, Mizuki even just seems tired. If you’re traveling along with, you’ll probably hear things like “I want to sleep” or “I’m tired” or “Can we stop here for a second?” or something like that. He doesn’t seem unkind. He tries to force smiles. He’s sleepy.

Mizuki’s always been too willful for even the gods, so maybe it’s unsurprising that it’s just trying to pull him under like this. Everything so dull, but hanging on by the thinnest of threads, and all Mizuki has the energy to do is just lean against the nearest thing to try and sleep. That thing may very well be you.

…Then, like a switch being flipped, Mizuki sits back upright, eyes wide like he’s always been wide awake, but with a distinct lack of… well, whatever made Mizuki… Mizuki. Without even a word, he picks up his harpoon-umbrella and starts across the ice. Those creepy, black, inky tentacles of his that tugs at one’s fear response if they’re stared at for too long no longer keep themselves cloaked, either. No reason to, apparently? He uses them to more effectively get around, using the slime that oozes off of them to make his path easier to walk against the ice.

He’s just sort of… going! You could follow!!! Or you could say “naw fuck that noise” because that’s honestly the best response– ]

IV. I don’t know how long I’ll be holding on ( Closed to Add )

[ We Many might have adapted to its own world’s crystallizations and the rocks that try to assimilate with organics, but evolving to prevent this would take more time than We currently have. A shame, they say, within their hivemind, and perhaps, Mizuki’s other one as well.. Waste of a good vessel.
It must survive.
Cannot.

There’s some unrest, general feelings of anger, of something possessive, of something that’s indescribably eldritch in a way it’s almost dizzying to feel. Is it because Mizuki is “asleep” that We’re so clear? But We have never been like this before, and Mizuki takes plenty of naps. So then…?

…Add, or Dynamo, may get the sense something is willing this through. It’s not easy to tell what. Technology mixed with the ancient and all-consuming ocean is going to have some odd variables here and there, but that ‘something’ is doing its best to get a point across. They’ll get one more message before We Many stop altogether.

“Help.” ]

V. I know you tried your hardest, I know that you meant well cw: gore mentions ( Back at the Grove, Open )

[ Mizuki has yet to die to the whims of the very sadistic forest. He’s got a strong sense of self-preservation, even if it might not seem like that sometimes. The need to survive outweighs the need to listen, though he’d be lying if his self-preservation was lower than that of his want for his Obsession™ to live and survive. And isn’t that just what happened?

He’s not dealing with any of this well. The reward feels horrible, despite the fact it’s trying to evoke calm, protective emotions. Mizuki just feels… hungry.

Which is why you’ll conveniently find him at the forest’s edge, dealing with his feelings by ripping apart a new deer friend! Yaaaay! He’s a carnivore and he missed meat, sue him– ]

VI. But you pushed me to the edge and I slipped, and then I fell ( Wildcard )[beatboxes loudly]

II. I don’t wanna know all your secrets, ‘cause I’ll tell

[dissonanz]

( oh- kreide doesn't startle, but he's clearly surprised that mizuki approached. ... he's a sweet thing, isn't he? kreide rests a hand on the back of the mirror idly, and is grateful that it only shows images, rather than playing any sound alongside the cruel visions. )

I have, yes, thank you. ... I can't lie and say it's no bother, but... it's nothing that I haven't seen before. If anything, I think its a reminder, however brutal, that I both must and can be better, though.

[mooninthewater]

Having physical reminders of things that prove hurtful to us can be a detriment more than a benefit. It's the opposite effect of waking up in the morning and telling yourself affirmations to get you through the day — keeping something to stay around you with the explicit intent of reminding you of miserable things that won't go away will simply be cause decrease in mood, decrease in energy, decrease in confidence, decrease in willingness to do basic functions…

If you truly believe the "must" and "can" be better part of it, than it's generally recommended by most self-help guides to start by putting more positive things into your life, first. [ Mizuki, you sound like a pamphlet, stop— ]

[dissonanz]

( he's being lectured... )

Oh, if I had a choice I wouldn't be keeping it at all. But I'm just trying to make the best of a bad situation- I don't... think anything good will come of breaking it, as others have reported. But that's just a gut feeling, I suppose.

Time will tell, in the end

i

[oleaeuropaea]

[Vash hadn't meant to look in the mirror, actually. Now that he has, though, it's hard to look at anything else. It draws him in, like a siren's song. Almost unwillingly, he finds himself leaning closer. He's never felt the song of a siren before, but some part of him wonders if this is close

And then the mirror is gone, and he's staring only at Mizuki.]

H-huh? [He blinks hard. What was going on?] Oh, right. I got one too. They're... a little weird, huh?

[mooninthewater]

"A little weird…" I think that might be underselling it? [ Mizuki grabs his mirror in his hand and twists it around to look behind it, then into the mirror itself, then just… shakes it. ] I wonder what they're for? I know Elsword and Doctor Add got one too. Both of them seemed kinda upset about them, though.

… Are you alright?

[oleaeuropaea]

I guess it might be different for other people. I don't really understand what's happening in mine.

[He isn't about to take it out of his pocket to show Mizuki, though. The last thing he needs is for someone to divine the truth from the image. It was unnerving enough as a mystery — if it held some grim reality that Vash needed to be wary of, maybe he wanted to ignore it for once. Besides, there are probably more important things to focus on.]

I'm - fine, I guess. I just saw somethin' weird in yours, is all. [He quickly holds up his hands.] B-but it's none of my business, so-!

[mooninthewater]

[ Showing Mizuki Vash's mirror would just gain him the very insightful and meaningful response of "Oh, dope!" so maybe it's for the best he doesn't go pulling it out. Mizuki makes absolutely no attempts at hiding his own, if because it's not like hiding it will stop the singing. Though since Vash's arrival, it is not as loud, at least. ]

Well, they're mirrors! So they just show you, right? Everyone I've talked to about it so far seems real upset about it, though, so maybe it's showing you a time that makes you sad or something? [ A pause. He looks into his own mirror for a while. It sings at him, too, but to him, this is no different than the things he hears in his head. Just, you know, out loud, now. ] I guess, then, I don't understand how mine would fit into it?

[ And he tucks it back again, looking back at Vash. ] Isn't it~? I tried sticking my hand in because I thought it was real water, ehe. But I think they're all a little weird!! I think that's the point??? I'm just not sure what the "point" is?? It's probably some kinda puzzle we gotta solve!

[oleaeuropaea]

I don't... think that's right.

[He can't speak for Mizuki. He definitely can't speak for the other residents. But Vash remembers every detail over the last 150 years in almost painstaking detail. What he doesn't remember is this shell of him.]

Does yours make you sad? I guess not, if you said it doesn't fit in.

[Somehow, the idea of thinking of it as a puzzle is at least a little easier to stomach. Not by much, but it feels less realistic, less foreboding, if it's somehow just a riddle than a portent of the future.]

I guess I'll just keep mine with me until I need it?

V

[simplicitas]

[Elsword was honestly going to go check out the new animals himself (weird animals are not that weird when you're Elrian) but uhhhh]

Mizuki? [He raises a finger and sort of... points at his cheek,] You got something...

[You're a messy eater Mizuki]

[mooninthewater]

[ It's on Mizuki, really, for not even trying to seek anyone out before just heading out the door. Especially considering the last thing that he would've talked about — the last thing Add would've seen — that probably calls for some kind of well-adjusted conversation having. Mizuki will get to it. If there's anyone who preaches communication the most it's him, but he's just so, so hungry

…

He reaches a bloody hand up to his cheek to wipe away whatever Elsword points to, only making it much worse after he pulls away. ]

…M'sorry. Um— I'm not… exactly polite when I'm eating like this.

[simplicitas]

[Fond sigh... Elsword shuffles his way through the snow and crouches to wipe Mizuki's face off with his gauntlets. They're cold to the touch, it's snowing after all, but the mess comes off easily enough. The metal gets dunked into the snow afterwards.]

It's okay. Does it taste good, at least?

[mooninthewater]

[ It felt good to be able to hunt down his food. To crush something between his tentacles. To get out some of this aggression that he feels after waking up from literally dying. He's frustrated, angry, sad, and all of that just feels too bad to feel, thus... the hunger. Does it taste good? He's not sure he even tasted it as he ripped it apart.

...

He takes one of the legs, and with a bit of twisting and unnaturally strong pulling, it rips off the corpse so Mizuki can offer it to Elsword. ]

Do you want to try...? It's probably better cooked.

[simplicitas]

[Elsword wordlessly takes the leg. This is not super weird to him... like maybe if Ciel were here, he'd have cut it off more cleanly, but handling raw meat and hunting isn't foreign to anyone in his group. Not that anyone besides Add is here, but y'know. The point stands.]

We can roast it over a spit. It's big, so that'll be easier. I kind of wish the kitchen had a coal pit in it.

[Things to upgrade later, perhaps. Elsword doesn't think it's tooooo cold out, though, not for lighting a fire and roasting, so that'll do for now.]

...help me clear an area?

I. When you look in the mirror, are you even there?

[devilishkouhai]

Oh wow, you are beautiful. [ BB suddenly says in a dreamy fashion, with a tone of voice that Mizuki would have never, heard before. It is the sound of a young woman, enticed by what they have seen. In love with that is there. Eyes glimmer and sparkle, the hues of red seem to glow if ever slightly. Yet he could swear there were literal stars in her eyes as she continued to stare at the Mirror. ]

Keep them, obviously? Why would you destroy them?

[mooninthewater]

[ That sure IS a dreamy fashion! Thanks, BB. Mizuki flusters just a bit, if only because when he looks in his mirror, he basically only sees himself. Distorted, watery, and still singing, but it's definitely him. Or, maybe more accurately, "Us", but Mizuki's never really put together a difference there.

He clears his throat. ]

Ah… I didn't even think destroying it was an option. [ Not yet. Just wait until Add tells him to and he does it without question- ] I suppose it is glass, but, um, I more meant like… do you think we're meant to solve some kind of puzzle? Like in video games where you have to position all the mirrors to make the light go the right way?? I guess then they'd just give us normal mirrors, though, huh…?

Oh, like, maybe if we put them all together you get a big image that's, like, a clue or something!!! It feels a little weird that they're just doing nothing. [ Aside from traumatizing other people, apparently. No one tell Mizuki- ]

[devilishkouhai]

[ Mizuki she was fourthwalling a little bit that is why - ]

It seems everyone is trying to destroy theres, that's why. [ Is what she mentions. Idly, ] But no, it's pretty simple. Most people don't like this side of them they see in the mirror, so really what all is going on. Is this place is trying to torment us again - well they failed at least with me, but with everyone else. It seems to be doing a number for them. Ya know?

[ She is actually kind of upset, ] Siiighh, they are really getting my poor Mizukis hopes up for no reason.

II

[bigsadwolf]

[Since his arrival, Legosi has mostly been trying to stay indoors. Unlike most here, who might be struggling to beat back the cold due to just being largely human(ish) people, he's got the advantage of being covered in fur that keeps him warm all the time. That doesn't mean he likes being subjected to it when he doesn't have warmer clothes to be wearing. He's a bipedal animal, not a wild one.

So when Mizuki comes bouncing over to him, Legosi is a little...surprised, by how immediately friendly he is to a complete stranger. Even moreso to a wolf who is visibly trying his damnest to seem nonthreatening, from the way he holds himself to the way he keeps his tail tucked close to his legs and his ears neutral. It doesn't do much, given the fact Legosi likely absolutely towers over Mizuki even while sitting.]

Um...no, I. I'm fine, thank you.

[In fact, he seems to be completely ambivalent to his mirror- if not outright ignoring it- which is on the table in front of him. Whether Mizuki turns it over or not, he'll see a very damning image of Legosi within, seemingly clutching onto a small prey animal with murderous intent.

Though still, he never once makes to attack her.]

It doesn't really bother me. It's showing me something I already know.

IVe written a tag

[harmacy]

[He wasted too much time with his own difficulties. By the time he finds Mizuki, it's already progressed too far. Too late.

... well, not exactly, but...

He has... some idea, of how this works. So Elsword would be the ideal candidate. But they got separated again, so that's not an option right now. Moving Mizuki like this would be difficult, if not impossible, and anyone stumbling on them now is as likely as the enemy approaching. Options are limited.

... but it is just him right now. If it doesn't work, no one will know, right?

Add spends an ungodly amount of time pacing and mumbling to himself, but eventually he finds his courage. This is just an experiment! He has to exhaust every plausible option, and he doesn't know for certain whether it's the physical act itself that triggers the reaction or if there's some underlying emotional component needed. It wouldn't be as poetic, but maybe the Forest is getting lazy? He has to at least try. For Mizuki's sake.

He stops, steeling himself. Gently resting his hands on Mizuki's shoulders... he stares for perhaps a little too long, brushing aside the temptation to take samples of this phenomenon. It is interesting, no doubt, but... ah, could he remember anything from being frozen? Is this going to be awkward later?

It's... it's probably fine. These are dire circumstances, Mizuki will understand. And Elsword has no room to complain, so...

So he tries—eyes closed, just a platonic kiss between bros that he definitely isn't going to be thinking about later. Yeah.]

[mooninthewater]

[ It was going to be a peaceful way to go, at the very least. 'Mizuki' had fallen asleep quite a while ago, after all, and he had simply just moved on his Seaborn instincts alone until the magical freeze had finally gotten the best of him. Not that it would've mattered even if he had been awake — the magical effect numbed other people's emotions as well as their body, so surely he wouldn't have felt a thing regardless, right? He'll wake up in the Grove and perhaps hardly know what happened to him.

Except, that doesn't happen. In fact, the ice actually thaws, and there's a moment where he even thought maybe he was just waking up from a bad dream. He doesn't immediately register what's happening, either, since the numbness takes a moment to go away. He can pieces together he's not alone, and that someone is in front of him. Add, actually, if he's to accurately translate the thoughts through their mental link. Was he worried about him? They're… still in this ice castle, aren't they? So it wasn't a dream? Or maybe he's still sleep? He doesn't feel like he's asleep. He feels a bit groggy, actually — everything kinda feels a bit hazy.

But he thinks he understands that he's being kissed? That part seems like the dream part. Add wouldn't do that, after all. Unless this is Elsword and he just missed the whole mind chip operation in the whatever-amount-of-hours he was out? That part seemed less likely, since Add doesn't exactly have the tools to be doing that in the ice castle, but he supposes it's not totally off the table?? Dream seems more likely, though.

…

Then it's totally okay if he keeps his eyes shut for now and just sort of (literally) melts into Add, right? Right. It's fine to carefully shift his head so their lips are pressed perfectly together? Of course. Because this isn't actually happening. Because it's totally gay to kiss your homies, Add— ]

[harmacy]

[... It's working! So it's only the physical act that matters? That's the only conclusion Add's genius mind can come to, so he silently files that fact away. It's somehow a little disappointing, but if it means he can save Mizuki...

Still, his surprise is probably evident when Mizuki starts to respond. The "cure" is working, but he doesn't know what would happen if he pulls away too soon. He hasn't enough done enough testing to be sure, so the only safe option is to keep his hold firm, and... continuing kissing. For clinical purposes.

It feels awkward and his face is definitely red right now, but... it's not unpleasant. Actually, it's kind of interesting? He doesn't have a ton of experience with osculation, but it feels different from Elsword's technique in some ways. Individual size and shape of the facial structure is likely a factor, as well as Mizuki's biology allowing greater flexibility and movement of various muscles... are there different areas of sensitivity as well? Smell is another factor he hadn't thought about before, but now that they're in such close proximity... the saltwater scent is unmistakable up close, with a hint of something earthy... but different from Elsword's earthiness, which is more like campfire and river water. Something spicy? Add furrows his eyebrows, leaning in unconsciously as he tries to place the exact scent. Hands sliding down Mizuki's arms, Dynamos drawn in around them...

... what about taste? Kissing is mouth-to-mouth contact, so taste should be the primary sense involved if you think about it. What does Mizuki taste like? Does that also change the experience? Before he can think about the implications Add is already shoving his tongue in Mizuki's mouth, there's no going back from this.]

1/3

[mooninthewater]

[ …? ]

2/3

[mooninthewater]

[ ?????¿¿¿¿???¿¿?????????¿?¿ ]

[mooninthewater]

[ Hey now. That's not supposed to happen? This is— Wasn't he just being frozen to death? Wait, yeah, he was in the ice castle, so if this were a dream, wouldn't he not still be here? Like, if this were a dream, he's pretty sure his brain would put him somewhere cozy and warm like Elsword's house, or maybe like, under the ocean waters. "Add couldn't breathe, then" yeah, well, dream logic would say otherwise!

But uh… hey, maybe this isn't a dream. Maybe Add's tongue is actually trying to push into his mouth and that's so much to unpack, actually. There's so many initial thoughts all at once that it feels like maybe he got hit by a train, actually. This, like, can't be real, right? If not a dream, maybe he's dead? If not that, maybe… maybe… this is an impostor? Can the forest make those? No, no, that can't be either, unless the forest had some way of manipulating the mind chip, and creating something that seemed like Dynamo. So- so a hallucination? Wait, no, he's immune to those. Uh…

Fuck.

He shouldn't do that, anyway?? He should know Mizuki's teeth are ridiculously sharp by now, right???? Even through his stupor, Mizuki still makes the effort to try to not hurt Add, opening his mouth to try and keep the teeth away from Add… but, uh, maybe that's just causing more problems of the "AAA???????A?AA???" variety. His heartbeat is so loud it's practically pounding in his head. He hopes Add can't hear it, but he supposes it doesn't matter. After all, he's almost sure the unfettered embarrassment and elation and shock and dizziness are all being shot into the hivemind. He was so cold seconds ago, how is he so hot now?

He wishes he could be coherent enough to ask Add what's happening. And yet. And yet… Add might notice that Mizuki's form gets suddenly a lot harder to hold onto. Specifically, a little more gelatinous, like there's something there but that it's not easy to grab onto.

Congrats, Mizuki has melted. He's on the floor now, sorry, Add. ]

1/2

[harmacy]

[Yeah, he remembers the teeth are sharp about 0.2 seconds after he sticks his tongue in the beartrap... it's, uh, fine as long as he's careful?

Emotions ricocheting through the mind link are a good sign that the treatment is working, though. Dynamo crowds a little closer, taking in the physical data—heightened temperature and heart rate, blood is circulating through the whole body so he should be fine now... he sends the scan results back through to Mizuki, in case he wanted to know exactly how many seconds they've been locked in a kiss.

... it's a shame he couldn't complete his analysis, but he draws back once Mizuki starts "melting" on him. Add has to pause to catch his breath, wiping some of the residue off his lips.

He intends to only send welcome back through the hivemind, but it comes out as welcome back; cinnamon? as he briefly gets distracted by that thought. The smell!! The taste doesn't match exactly, but it does have a bit of that spicy kick. Interesting!]