It's Okay To Feel Sad

[mooninthewater]

Who: Anyone!
What: Introduction to the new building, and some ~prompts~ in the comments (TBA)
When: After the mini event.
Where: Therapy building
Warnings: the usual Mizuki warnings apply.


[ Here's your all-express tour of the therapy building! In more detail because there's a lot going on. Welcome! Buckle up! Or don't!

the lobby

The lobby consists of a lot of very comfy chairs, cots, and stuffed animals. There's a table in the middle with handheld gaming devices. According to the sign Mizuki placed at the table, these are his and he will take them all away if even one gets broken. Be gentle!

There are six doors throughout the lobby that lead to different rooms.

the physical room

No, it's not a room where you get your physical. Rather, it's a room entirely covered with rock climbing walls, and the floor is entirely made from trampolines. There's no safety equipment, though, so be careful! It's great for getting out physical energy, though, and Mizuki insists that exercise is a great form of therapy. He potentially just asked for it so he could jump on the trampoline...

the sensory deprivation tanks

Surely not wanting to feel anything at all like your floating through the infinite vast of nothingness and becoming one with the universe is exactly what you wanted, right? Being alone with your damning thoughts and nothing else as there's absolutely no light and the body temperature water that leaves you floating feels somehow like nothing and also like... you?

...

There's four tanks in the room. Have fun!

the paint room

An entirely white room from floor to ceiling with a plethora of different colored paints in buckets in the middle of the room. There are paintbrushes as well, but it's highly encouraged to just throw the buckets around or start slapping your paint-covered hands on the walls. Make a paint angel! Go nuts!!! Just don't eat the paint. Or do, I guess?? I'm not your mom.

Upon leaving the room, it resets to the state it was in when you walked in initially.

the library

This room is... exactly what you expect, actually. There's a bunch of books in here. Most are self-help, but there's some artsy books like origami folding and coloring books, along with colored pencils. There's a sign that states "you can bring the books out to the lobby to read, just remember to put them back when you're done."

the rage room

All ye who enter this room will be CURSED to be MAD for all eternity!!!!! …Just kidding. Entering the room reveals a very homey looking room with plates and vases and tables and chairs and counters. It could be a small, one room house in here alone. All the furniture does look pretty cheap, though. There's a sledgehammer on the wall that some force seems to not allow you take it out of the room, but there's a sign above it that says "Get your anger out! Go nuts!"

Upon leaving the room, it resets to the state it was in when you walked in initially.

the office

This room is locked. Mizuki and the Shopkeeper both have a key. On the outside, there is a form on a clipboard you can fill out. You can write your name down, a brief blurb about what you want to talk about, who you wish to talk to, etc. etc. and slip the paper under the door.

Inside the room, it's set up to be very earthy. Greens and blues to invoke both calm and creativity... aaaand maybe also remind one of the sea or forest. There's a lot of potted plants (no flowers, oddly-) and a comfortable couch and separate chair. There's a desk in the corner. ]

Comments

If Mizuki plays games, is queer, and water-themed, is he a gay-mer boy?

[mooninthewater]

[ If you happen to find yourself in the lobby in this new building, there's a high chance you'll also find a jellyfish, buried amidst the stuffed animals in a cot with a video game in his hands. He might be playing Pac-Man, or an otome, who knows, really.

But if you're here to play with him or ask about this new building, you're probably going to have to get his attention first because the boy is engrossed in what he's doing... ]

[simplicitas]

[Elsword walks by at like, noon, to see Mizuki playing games and to go check things out. He thinks, cool Mizuki is busy.

He comes out about two hours later with his hair wet (he did not like the sensory deprivation tank, it reminded him of being inside the El and gave him Emotions He Doesn't Like Nor Wishes To Have) and covered in paint (order of events indicates he might have just crawled out of the water and immediately wandered off to throw paint at walls before coming back out), and Mizuki is still doing that.

Elsword waves one purple hand in front of Mizuki's face. Hiiii.]

[mooninthewater]

[ Oh fuck it's Grimace, he shouldn't have had that shake, this is the end—

Mizuki has been very entranced by what Rin has to say here. "Who is Rin?" The very cute Perro girl in his otome. He's played through her route about a dozen times trying to get all her dialogue options down just to really know her. Also, maybe, just maybe having dialogue options makes Mizuki feel so much better about having choices. Real life isn't like that, but it's better than just being told what to do all the time, right? Baby steps.

But he has to put it down to look up at Elsword. ]

Oh! Elsword!!!! [ He was already in a good mood, but he seems to light up tenfold. If he were also a Perro, his tail would be wagging. He turns the game off to sit up. ] You've been trying out the new building~? Pretty cool, right??

[simplicitas]

[Sorry to interrupt your 2D girlfriend he just wanted to say hi—]

Yeah. The trampoline room is good for getting extra energy out. I don't like sitting still. [Not because of ADHD but because of athleticism and Hero Brain.] I wasn't really sure what some of it was for. There's a room full of junk in one of them. Is it storage?

[mooninthewater]

…Junk? [ For the briefest of moments, Mizuki thinks maybe he's talking about the library, and he's about to ask if Elsword can read, and then— ] Oh! The rage room? It's just a room where you smash stuff. It helps get out frustrations or any negative feelings in a destructive way without actually destroying anything important.

Do you not have those in your world?

[simplicitas]

"Rage room"? No, I've never heard of that, but maybe Add would know.

[Add knows a lot of things and Elsword is... hhh about bringing him up right now, actually, so nevermind.]

I have memory issues anyway, so if I encountered one at all, it's long gone now. Usually we'd get out our extra energy by sparring. [Elsword quietly thinks that Raven could use a rage room, actually.]

[mooninthewater]

Oh, the other Operators back home would do that, too. [ Rarely, Mizuki would, but he generally only had a few people he could do so with. ] But if someone shows up here without any combat knowledge, that's going to be a lot harder for them. Or, if they can't find anyone to spar with, or if they just want to be alone… there's a lot of things that it's good for.

There's also something very cathartic about seeing all the damage, too. Like building up a tower of blocks and knocking them over. You can't really do that in a sparring match.

[simplicitas]

[Contemplative hum... that sounds kind of fun. Okay.]

I'll try it later. I'm not really that destructive, but it would help me feel less... uh, stagnant, I guess.

So, this place is just to play around in, then? [what's a therapy]

[mooninthewater]

You can think about it like that if you want, but it's all therapy related.

"Therapy" comes from the Minoan word that means "healing". So, most things here are meant to help with certain things. Most of it should be kind of straightforward? Exercise is always good to clear your head. Art can help you express yourself in way words can't. Clearing your mind of any distractions can help you focus. And I just talked about the rage room… There's even a library with books that'll teach you things to help with all sorts of stuff — Miss Ydalir helped me get some of those books.

[ He's very excited. Boy really loves this stuff, apparently. His eyes are practically sparkling, but maybe that's only because his bioluminescence is so bright right now? ]

And then there's the office, for talk therapy. That's where you'd talk to someone — me, probably — about how you're feeling and get their input on what they think that means from a psychological perspective. It's meant to help with emotional healing and to help with whatever mental health problems one might have~! It's probably my favorite. Psychology's always been so much fun!

[The Office theme plays]

[mooninthewater]

[ Mizuki is still working on making sure the place looks nice, so maybe you're in for the rare time the office door is wide open so Mizuki can move furniture easily. He's currently distracted by a windchime he's brought inside. He could put it in the office to play with and make that pretty sound, but... it's a windchime. It'll be nice to put outside, surely...

.............

Mizuki's not making a decision. He's just playing with it. Is now a good time for a therapy session, or- ]

[succiduous]

[Gnosis, who has been asleep in the sensory deprivation tank for an Abnormal Amount Of Hours, looking frazzled...]

Do you need help redecorating?

[His hair is wet and he looks like... you know when you just wake up and there are bags under your eyes and you kind of mutter? He's that right now. He doesn't sleep.]

[mooninthewater]

Mister Gnosis!!! No, I'm just trying to figure out how to make this room feel more comfortable, I guess. I know there's no breeze or anything in here, but I feel like windchimes are just naturally so calming? Maybe that's just me???

[ Ding ding ding- okay, he'll stop now. ]

Are you exploring? Do you like it~? I'm excited about what we've got so far.

[succiduous]

It's reminiscent of some of the facilities on Rhodes Island, [he states, in a vaguely-approving tone,] with far less of the caterwauling. So, yes, I find it acceptable.

[...]

I did fall asleep in the sensory deprivation tank, so that should tell you all you need to know. [what is sleeping]

[mooninthewater]

Ehe, I take "acceptable" as high praise from you, Mister Gnosis~.

[ His eye bags are looking mighty refreshed- ]

That's good! If that's the case, then I highly encourage using them more often.

[succiduous]

I highly doubt their intended purpose is for sleeping, but thank you. I have a lot to do.

[No you don't!!! Why are you always like this.]

I'll be in the library more often than not. Something to read would alleviate some of my boredom.

[mooninthewater]

Oh, it's not, but you often seem tired, Mister Gnosis. I think it could do you some good to find some rest. Especially if you're bored, that means you're not doing anything better, right?

[succiduous]

It simply means that there's nothing I can make meaningful progress on researching. I've stagnated on the photographs ever since the journal was discovered, though I'm still idly collecting them from people as they occur. It would be ideal to investigate the fog wall, but I have no tools on my person...

[Sigh.]

I plan to ask the Trader for some help with that, and I've informed Felicity that once resources are acquired, I'll make her an Arts unit to try and facilitate her magic better. We don't need her bad luck mucking things up further.

[mooninthewater]

Miss Ydalir. [ He corrects, then nods. ] That sounds good, though. Still, I think getting your rest is very important. It can help you come back to a problem with fresh eyes.

I think maybe the photographs might have something to do with the fact that we lived past lives here, though, and nothing more than that…

[ Just drops this lore like everyone knows it right now— ]

[harmacy]

[Add has just wandered in, not completely sure what this building is about... but he has stopped by the office, holding the clipboard of forms like he might be interested in therapy (he is not) (do not let him escape).

He glances up when he hears Mizuki's windchimes, though. With a dose of professional skepticism,] Is this your office?

[mooninthewater]

[ He will not escape. Mostly because Mizuki is a clingy bitch then anything else. How fitting that the two heroes both have come to scope this place out. To explore and make sure things are in order, no doubt, but he hopes they're happy with it. "What a good idea, Mizuki."

No one's ever said that before, though... ]

Doctor Add!!! [ !!!!!! ] Yes! I mean. Sort of~? I intend to share it with others as needed. The Shopkeeper said he'd be interested, after all. But I figure it'll also be nice for other people interested in doing psychotherapy!

[harmacy]

Psychotherapy...? [repeating it like it'll make more sense that way... unfortunately, actual therapy doesn't exist in Elrios because they keep sending the kids off to war instead of funding the education system. Add frowns, looking down at the clipboard again.]

Like... brain surgery? No, there's no equipment for that here... psycho-therapy... hmm...

[mooninthewater]

No, no. Therapy usually helps with the healing process of certain things, it doesn't usually involve surgery or anything like that. I'm not nearly so smart as to be able to do anything like that or… really anything you can do, Doctor Add~.

But, I do know all sorts of psychology stuff. The human brain is absolutely fascinating to me. How people think, how they feel, why people react certain ways to certain things, what gives a person resilience, a will to live, a want to keep going, having goals, dreams, fears, pain, and how they react to each other. There's really nothing more exciting than that, for me~.

Oh, but, I'm rambling. Would you like to give it a go with me? It would really help me out, I'm still learning, so it'll be nice to have some practice with a friend.

[ He's asking, but there's a tendril that's already shutting the door, so is it really asking… ]

[harmacy]

Ah, I see. [! he gets it now. it's so obvious—] Manipulation of human behavior... so, that's also a topic you're interested in?

[he... sort of(?) gets it.

even if all the rooms still don't make much sense to him... maybe it's just a very experimental kind of science? who knows what kind of fucked up stuff you could do to someone will a room full of stuffed animals.]

Kukuku... I'm afraid I can't let you into my mind, but I'm curious about your methods. What sort of techniques do you use for this "therapy"? Healing process... do you plan to manipulate others into letting go of their troubles? How noble.

[mooninthewater]

Manipulation… I guess maybe… a little bit? It's more a… intense guidance, I think.

…

That just sounds like manipulation, too, though, doesn't it— [ Uh- ] I would say it's a little less forceful, I think. Psychotherapy is usually just done by talking with someone. Asking them questions, having them tell you about things that are bothering them, giving them advice or making them realize things about themselves that will help them make adjustments to their lives to suit themselves for. So I suppose "manipulate others into letting go of their troubles" isn't too far off.

Like, for example, when I met with my therapist back home for the first time, she would generally lead with broad questions like "What are the things or people in your life that are causing problems for you?" or "How would you define the biggest challenge for you right now?" and then go into more specific stuff after.

[harmacy]

So it's done just through talking? Hm...

[... well, it's not that much different from how he's "manipulated" the El Search Party, isn't it? So he can respect it as a valid science. He's never thought about using it like that, though. Maybe it's because his logical mind is already so good at figuring these things out himself, he has a hard time seeing things from a lesser, non-scientific perspective?

He nods along with his own train of thought. Yeah, that's definitely it. He's too smart, so he just solves everything with logic instead...]

So you ask questions... and then what? You phrase them in a way to manipulate their next answer? That seems... hrmm. [He doesn't want to be manipulated, but how else can he see it in action? Truly a dilemma. He frowns, struggling with the temptation to be psychoanalyzed by a jellyfish.] It's difficult to analyze without seeing the brain activity, but I can see how that might work... if you know all the right questions to ask...