retroductions | reverie inbox.

[The events of the days have been long and worrisome, but in this moment, they go by in a literal whir--

--as Yor yanks him into the bathroom and closes the door with an almost-slam.]

Ah!

[Good god, there's no room in here. He looks at Yor from these close quarters with a raised brows and a startled countenance, but one that fades a bit when she starts speaking.]

Are we to plot in here, Mrs Forger? Have you information that you consider confidential regarding how to solve the problem of... monsters stealing away our teammates?

[ Yor shuffles to sit at the bathtub edge and draw her legs in and making herself as small as possible. she's had practice doing that ever since their first night here, withdrawing into herself when no one else's attention required her to be present. unfortunately, a teammate's monster overtaking them is a "whole focus endeavor." she waves a now healed hand ]

I didn't know where else to go. It's the only place in Phoenix with any privacy now. If anyone asks we can say something like...I'm helping you remove a splinter. Or you ate some of my soup, that would buy us an hour at least.

[ her face falls a little. it's probably unfair for her to pin her hopes on Sholmes figuring it all out, but the extent of her planning was "grab him and he will figure things out, then you do anything he tells you to" ]

I was hoping you already had a plan. I don't know if whatever I learned can help, or if it's just more bad news...

[And Sholmes’ face falls, too, feeling as though he has disappointed her in some way. Frustrated that he doesn’t have an immediate solution to his godawful problem Phoenix now possesses.

His fingers itch for his pipe, but he ignores that for now, leaning back against the door instead.]

My plan is not terribly much of a plan yet, I am sorry to say. I only know that we need to keep looking for a way -- they cannot be gone, just like that, without a trace or a clue to follow.

But how do we reach them? [That is the issue, isn’t it?] …Can you tell me what you learned?

Edited 2022-08-31 16:44 (UTC)

It's probably what you already know, but... when I went to Basilisk I talked to Mr. Wei Wuxian and Mr. Lan Wangji. They said they visited this place before, that it was where the suggestion box, um, Zhewei-xiansheng went when the prison we were in before was damaged. And it seems that we might be here until Zhewei-xiansheng is fully rested.

Maybe if we found a way to help the suggestion box recover faster it will pull us back to the original prison. But I don't know if that means it will help stop things or...we might end up leaving Mr. Inui behind...

[They cannot know. They cannot know, and that is the most frustrating reality of all. What are they to do, risk it? No, they cannot, not with so many of them lost to who-knows-where, now.]

Could we not ask the box itself? There is also the secondary issue of why this happened -- we cannot assume it is just because of this prison, either.

[ for her part, Yor did not seem in favor of pushing a faster recovery if it means that they could be leaving Juzo trapped and abandoned here. but if Sholmes's mind is contingencies and unraveling spheres of cause and effect, hers is triage. she's thinking about the circumstances where they might have to, where Juzo would have insisted they do. ]

I was worried that if we tried it would mean waking them up and you know how tired that makes you if you can't sleep without interruptions

...were you able to talk to it before it, ah, took a nap?

[ she doesn't want to tell him she can't help assuming it was because of this prison because she's been feeling ill at ease since they arrived. but that could be attributed to many other awful causes, and she hopes he can prove her wrong by finding an explanation. ]

[He is stubborn in his way of thinking, always wanting to account for every possibility, but that doesn’t mean Yor’s own input isn’t equally considered.]

Only briefly. It seemed like a very frazzled thing at the time. Did you?

[ slowly shakes her head ]

No, I only heard about it after from Mr. Wei Wuxian. And then I found you and Mr. Hunter and...

Mr. Hunter has been sick since we got here. He threw up almost right away, and I first thought maybe it was allergies or motion sickness, but Mr. Desfourneaux healed him and I gave him a healing card. They work for a little while but he's not getting better.

[ she doesn't know if she's whispering in case Hunter might overhear or if she just really hates admitting it ]

Yes, I have noticed Mr Hunter’s ailing health…

[His voice drops low, too, but mostly out of contemplation.]

Before Mr Inui was lost to us, his body underwent more changes — more subtle than how he appears, now. I fear Mr Hunter’s sickly constitution might be a sign of something similar underway.

So you saw the picture Mr. Kim Dokja sent...?

The same thing is happening to Mr. Wei Wuxian. When I last saw him he was smoking, not the way you do with a pipe, but smoke was covering his body... so it was difficult to see if he had any changes. But he's been getting gaps in his memory and he thinks that means his monster will take over soon too...

[ her hands, which she had clasps before, move to the inside of her jacket to look for the papers her gave her, which she finds and holds out to Sholmes. it's a good thing their trust has gotten to the point where she can blithely hand him something bloodied without trying to find an excuse for it! ]

He gave me these for protection. Please take them.

[So it's more than just those within Phoenix; other blocks may suffer the same fate. Sholmes feels dour at the thought, but then blinks at the sudden offering as she hands it to him. Bloodied, indeed.

He reaches out to take the papers, gently, looking them over.]

Protection? What sort? And if they are for protection, I do hope you would keep some for yourself, Mrs Forger.

Supernatural. It's the same as the array on our walls...well, the one back in the old dorm. If something evil attacks you, it should repel it long enough for you to run away.

I'll give the others out to those in Phoenix who are going out exploring to...

[ she shrugs, a little helplessly because she can't even think of a good example of what they could look for to help Juzo and Hunter right now ]

He said his monster was dangerous. So it probably means it's less safe to go out now than it was the first night if we don't know who or how many people are being effected.

[Ah, perhaps he recognized the design(?) for a reason, then. At any rate, he shall have to thank Mr We Wuxian in the future, should he run into him again-

Assuming he is not one of the unfortunate few who are being adversely affected by his monster. (laugh track goes here)]

I see. Then I will keep it close. And I thank you for thinking of me, as well.

[He seems to realize, belatedly, that this concern feels rather lopsided, something that makes him feel a pang of guilt in turn.]

Is there anything I can do for you? You are affected, and likely just as stressed, as I.

Please don’t worry about me, Mr. Sholmes. My possession is as quiet as it's always been, and I'm not injured like Miss Marianne and Mr. Harlock.

[ and she isn't misjudging the question like she usually does. she's obliquely telling him her emotional state isn't a matter of concern right now. as long as she has her physical abilities and reasoning intact, that's what matters. ]

...Mr. Inui's monster told me she warned you before this happened. That's why I wanted to...

[ to see if you solved it yet seems an unnecessary burden, because of course he would be focused on that to the exclusion of everything else. he just as much admitted he's been worried sick. ]

...I wanted to check on you. And give you whatever support I could.

[And yet to see if he solved it yet is a burden he places on himself, one that he feels acutely.]

Perhaps I should have foreseen something like this happening.

[He curses gently, under his breath. Maybe if he had known, if he had not pushed it aside as a mere consequence of their explorations, then they all could have been better prepared-]

...Ah, well. I trust you to do what digging you can, of course. I assure you that is support enough, and well-appreciated.

Do you want me to dig somewhere? Like under the prison?

[ she didn't know if that would work, but it also would make sense if the Warden/Father was secretly an evil bug monster! the evidence just keeps piling up! ]

[He huffs. Despite everything, she still manages to wring some amusement out of him.]

Figuratively go digging, Mrs Forger. Do as a detective would do, looking for clues!

...oh.

[ she purses her lips, because at least digging would be doing something. ]

Do you mean like hearing about 'Father'?

[He has not technically heard about "Father" at this point, and so-]

Hm? Father? Whose father?

The dragon possessing Mr. Inui mentioned 'Father' as someone who might be responsible. But I really don't understand what she meant and I didn't like talking to her so asking her to explain things was difficult.

Apparently her Father isn't a dragon, but a father to all the monsters...and also is a woman? She said the Warden and Father are the same.

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