[ Compared to a blood-stained school where he nearly got strangled by a corpse? This is less of an immediate threat, yes. He's been mauled on these adventures enough times that he's still on-guard, but... ]
What on earth?
[ What is happening. To go from eerie emptiness to such a lively atmosphere is a bit of a shock. He walks in a little further in to question some festival-goers. ]
Pardon me, but... [ the fuck? ] What are all these festivities for?
[ Some weird, masked person turns to look at Dimitri. ]
"Huh? The hell you mean 'what are all these for' -- it's the damned Blue Night, kiddo! You too young for this? Homeschooled? They never taught you this shit? Go back and go home if you don't even have an idea, jeez..."
[ Okay, rude. ]
Edited (502 FUCKED UP MY HTML I BLAME 502) 2022-06-14 05:03 (UTC)
[ Help it's because so many people in the Sorcerers' World are fucking huge and built like bricks for no reason so Dimitri looks like a kid compared to them.
But anyway, yes! There are various entertainers around, food stalls, all kinds of things. It really does seem to be an amusement park slash festival in full swing. Everyone has masks though, unlike Dimitri.
The posters advertise and emphasise heavily that the entire event is hosted by the En Family, who have working arrangements with the devils. Partnership will begin soon, and there are heavy reminders to make sure you get it done before the Blue Night ends to renew your partnership contracts. Head on over to the Devil Cabin with your partner of choice.
And of course, there's several warnings stating that you should be careful and respectful of devils at all costs. ]
[ Honestly, he is a child, he deserves this. He's also definitely not used to people being so regularly massive that he's dwarfed over.
But that's not really the intimidating part—he knows so little of what he's meant to do here, and there's no sign of either location that the other two were at, so he'll have to keep moving, and figure it out as he goes along.
Amongst the stalls, he'll look for a mask to help fit in. And maybe see if there's a vendor that won't tell him to go home because it's late :/// ]
[ Dimitri may find a lot of very shitty looking, clearly handmade masks in a couple of stalls. The vendors snicker at him as he passes, though it's not to make fun of him for being small. ]
"What, got your mask robbed or something? Don't wanna be caught like that on Blue Night, kid..."
[ He stops to speak to the vendor as he peruses his shitty masks. And Dimitri's not great at lying, so he just attempts a version of the truth less insane than, 'I'm from another dimension and I'm not certain if you even exist or are just a figment of sadistic imagination from the murder exercise I'm a part of.' ]
I'm afraid I've traveled from some distance away.
[ to put it lightly. ]
So I've never attended Blue Night before. Still finding my bearings, and, ah... [ gestures at masks. cultural garb? nailed it. ]
"Must be real far if you seriously know nothing at all, man. You took a look at the posters? Do you even have a partner? Look, I'm being nice to you, but a lot of folks aren't. If you don't, you better find one quick, or make sure no one finds out. A lot of people are more than happy to find a poor fella on your own and drag you into a contract."
[ At this point in time, somewhere behind him, there's... a strange waft of black smoke. It builds in a specific shape, and then with a bang -- the smoke seems to create a very bizarre door right on the spot, floating a few inches off the ground. It opens, and a masked sorcerer walks out of it, laughing. There's a 'whoa, watch out!', and he ducks... just in time to send a severed foot flying over his head, where it may or may not hit Dimitri, your choice, but it does flop on the ground near him regardless of results.
The man at the stand points and yells at the sorcerers who just exited through the door, and grimaces down at the foot. ]
"Must be coming back from practice. You'd think they'd have better things to do on fuckin' Blue Night."
[ The information on the posters is lacking in context, and this conversation only fills out enough to know that he needs to be careful.
The first problem are these 'contracts.' How is he supposed to manage a partnership, when Joonghyuk and Emet-Selch aren't here? There's certainly no one else around he'd ask. All the same, he dips his head in thanks to the shopkeep. ]
I appreciate it, sir. I—
[ And then there's a crackle-pop behind him, and Dimitri, who has trained feverishly as a warrior all his life, who has honed hand-eye coordination beyond his years,
nu 🦁 dimitri.... Roll: [1] Result: 1
accidentally stares into a light bulb and goes blind before a severed foot sails through the air and clocks him. He gets kicked square in the face by a disembodied foot. ]
[ These random-ass NPCs are operating under the assumption that Dimitri is a young sorcerer and therefore have biased statements, it's okay. However, Devil Cabin is definitely something to look out for, maybe? Unless...?
But, well. That just happened. You may blame this particular foot crime on one Hei "Yoo 'Gatekeeping Grief' Joonghyuk" Lastname. The shopkeep stares at Dimitri just like. Scream. And gives him such a 'are you okay dude' look. ]
"Yeah... that'll do it. A flying foot should startle anybody. Yep. Leave it, some janitor will come clean it up sooner or later."
[ SO JUST LEAVE THE FOOT THERE? The toes wiggle btw, it's still alive. The shopkeep just kinda looks at Dimitri and... gives him a free mask... and also a coupon. ]
"You came here to uh, get a mask, right kid? This is kinda sad, you can have this one on the house. Try not to get in trouble, alright?"
[ He clutches his nose as he stares down at the offending foot, which wriggles its toes at him as though in mockery of his plight. Or like, as muscle spasms. It's unpleasant either way.
By the time he looks back towards the shopkeeper and receives his lettuce mask, the light in Dimitri's eyes has dimmed somewhat.
Could it be... that his life is a joke? ]
...Thank you.
[ He gives the shopkeeper his sincere gratitude and goes on, freshly lettuced, to go follow the movements of the crowd some. Maybe he'll see them going towards this illustrious Devil Cabin? Maybe he can spend his coupon on something for some temporary happiness in the cruel hellscape of this world. ]
[ The coupon will give him one free drink or food item or choice. May he successfully drink to forget this very incident.
But sure, he can follow the crowd. He'll see that the main attraction seems to be near the center, which... if he looks up, he'll see a dark wooden cabin, literally just floating in the air. Closer to the ground, sorcerers seem to walk up in pairs -- some perfectly willing, while others seem to be dragging along an unconscious second person. He'll also see devils -- honest to god devils, with horned heads and goat-like feet, wings fluttering to take the pairs one at a time into the cabin.
He'll also feel eyes on him from around the shadows. ]
[ he gets himself a cotton candy and says fuck it to this festival
No, he looks up at the partners being accepted into the devils' company, frowning thinly. The devils here are smaller than the demons that sometimes plague Fódlan, but they inspire the same sort of unease. Is that where they need to end up going? It doesn't seem like a solo trip, and there's still no sign of the other two.
So he prepared to continue his search for Joonghyuk and Emet, when he senses he's being watched. Could it be that the magic lettuce is not enough. He walks away, to see if he can draw out... whatever is following him. Maybe he's just imagining it. ]
[ He is certainly not imagining it. The gaze watching him bores into him no matter the angle, and he hears the fluttering of leather wings in the air. Heavy footsteps, dragging against firm ground. He may be able to get a glance or two at its shadow with all the festive lights, and see that it is a hulking figure, and he can maybe make out goat-like legs and a tail in the silhouette.
Will he attempt to keep fleeing, or turn back to confront? ]
[ I think it'd be very funny if Dimitri tried to stab a devil on sight, but sure. One of these things is trying to approach, beady eyes looking curiously. Kinda animal-esque, the way it tilts its head, one step forward, one step back. It just kind of looks like it's wondering how Dimitri will react, more or less, if it should approach.
But then it waves Dimitri over instead. C'mere you. ]
[ Alas, wrong version of him to jump right to stabbing.
The devil acts almost like a hound that's trying to sniff him out; Dimitri stands his ground in the process, and there is a moment's pause when he's finally beckoned.
This is probably not attention he wants, but there's not any avoiding it now. So he approaches carefully, keeping some distance. He can't feign fearful respect, but he does force himself to bow his head in greeting, polite. ]
[ It seems quite satisfied with a polite little bow, actually. Grinning, showing rows of dirty, sharp teeth. ]
NOT ME, NOT REALLY... BUT I KNOW SOMEONE WHO DOES. [ It points towards the Devil Cabin. ] I'M HERE TO TELL YOU TO, AS THEY SAY, GET YOUR ASS OVER THERE.
[ He has to work very hard not to make a face. Dimitri is garbage at both lying and masking his feelings, but he manages to sound neutral. Not reverent, or fearful, but good enough.
He casts a look at the cabin again. ]
...I have a partner. [ he? does not know what this means? but it's safer to have one apparently ] They must be delayed.
[ He still has no idea where the other two are, but it really didn't sound like they were in a cabin full of devils. ] I thought to wait for them, first.
[ This is really valid of Dimitri, it's hard not to make a face when some 8 foot tall... creature... is clearly laughing at you. It is definitely making fun of you, because devils are mean. ]
THE ANGRY ONE, OR THE BIG ONE, DO YOU MEAN? DO YOU INTEND TO WAIT FOR THEM?
[ It knows, apparently. ]
IT WOULD BE A LOT FASTER IF YOU JUST KNOCKED SOME GUY OUT.
[ Not necessarily the solution, but the solution the devil seems to offer. It picks at your lettuce mask. Nice drip. ]
[ Devils are rude and need to learn personal space. He bristles, and the stupid lettuce mask does not hide that very well, brows furrowed and voice stern. ]
I am not here to force anyone into anything.
[ But how does this demon know about the other two? Actually, even before that, how does it know to pick Dimitri out of the crowd? ]
[ He hates looking at its stupid smile and listening to its mockery, but there's a warning in its words, too. So they only have the rest of this Blue Night to escape...
He bites back the urge to fight the devil, looking around instead for the other two in the crowd. ]
I've no patience left to be entertainment for anyone.
[ He's tired of their lives, their suffering being reduced to nothing but a pastime for others. ]
And don't waste your time with provocations. I won't leave the others. [ He's not going to club some poor rando over the head and drag them to the cabin, either. ]
[ He really looks like he's about to stab this devil for using his 'nickname.' It really seems like the sort of person who deserves to be dead, actually?
Unfortunately though, it's not wrong. Dimitri is a stubborn, pig-headed fool. ]
To hell with you and your luck.
[ But at least now he knows where the other two went. He scowls and turns on his heel without sharing any thanks, veneer of politeness lost. Now he's dipping into the crowds to investigate the festival some more... any giants in sight? Angry men carrying meat bags? ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
guestservices) wrote2022-06-12 11:18 pm
no subject
What on earth?
[ What is happening. To go from eerie emptiness to such a lively atmosphere is a bit of a shock. He walks in a little further in to question some festival-goers. ]
Pardon me, but... [ the fuck? ] What are all these festivities for?
no subject
"Huh? The hell you mean 'what are all these for' -- it's the damned Blue Night, kiddo! You too young for this? Homeschooled? They never taught you this shit? Go back and go home if you don't even have an idea, jeez..."
[ Okay, rude. ]
no subject
dimitri in crau2: if i get called a child one more time :)
He takes a deep breath. ]
Yes. All right. Have a nice night.
[ OKAY. HE LOOKS AROUND... can the posters give him some context on what this Blue Night is? Or are there entertainers? ]
no subject
But anyway, yes! There are various entertainers around, food stalls, all kinds of things. It really does seem to be an amusement park slash festival in full swing. Everyone has masks though, unlike Dimitri.
The posters advertise and emphasise heavily that the entire event is hosted by the En Family, who have working arrangements with the devils. Partnership will begin soon, and there are heavy reminders to make sure you get it done before the Blue Night ends to renew your partnership contracts. Head on over to the Devil Cabin with your partner of choice.
And of course, there's several warnings stating that you should be careful and respectful of devils at all costs. ]
no subject
But that's not really the intimidating part—he knows so little of what he's meant to do here, and there's no sign of either location that the other two were at, so he'll have to keep moving, and figure it out as he goes along.
Amongst the stalls, he'll look for a mask to help fit in. And maybe see if there's a vendor that won't tell him to go home because it's late :/// ]
no subject
"What, got your mask robbed or something? Don't wanna be caught like that on Blue Night, kid..."
no subject
I'm afraid I've traveled from some distance away.
[ to put it lightly. ]
So I've never attended Blue Night before. Still finding my bearings, and, ah... [ gestures at masks. cultural garb? nailed it. ]
no subject
[ At this point in time, somewhere behind him, there's... a strange waft of black smoke. It builds in a specific shape, and then with a bang -- the smoke seems to create a very bizarre door right on the spot, floating a few inches off the ground. It opens, and a masked sorcerer walks out of it, laughing. There's a 'whoa, watch out!', and he ducks... just in time to send a severed foot flying over his head, where it may or may not hit Dimitri, your choice, but it does flop on the ground near him regardless of results.
The man at the stand points and yells at the sorcerers who just exited through the door, and grimaces down at the foot. ]
"Must be coming back from practice. You'd think they'd have better things to do on fuckin' Blue Night."
no subject
The first problem are these 'contracts.' How is he supposed to manage a partnership, when Joonghyuk and Emet-Selch aren't here? There's certainly no one else around he'd ask. All the same, he dips his head in thanks to the shopkeep. ]
I appreciate it, sir. I—
[ And then there's a crackle-pop behind him, and Dimitri, who has trained feverishly as a warrior all his life, who has honed hand-eye coordination beyond his years,
nu 🦁 dimitri.... Roll: [1] Result: 1
accidentally stares into a light bulb and goes blind before a severed foot sails through the air and clocks him. He gets kicked square in the face by a disembodied foot. ]
Ahh!!
[ AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH ]
no subject
But, well. That just happened. You may blame this particular foot crime on one Hei "Yoo 'Gatekeeping Grief' Joonghyuk" Lastname. The shopkeep stares at Dimitri just like. Scream. And gives him such a 'are you okay dude' look. ]
"Yeah... that'll do it. A flying foot should startle anybody. Yep. Leave it, some janitor will come clean it up sooner or later."
[ SO JUST LEAVE THE FOOT THERE? The toes wiggle btw, it's still alive. The shopkeep just kinda looks at Dimitri and... gives him a free mask... and also a coupon. ]
"You came here to uh, get a mask, right kid? This is kinda sad, you can have this one on the house. Try not to get in trouble, alright?"
no subject
By the time he looks back towards the shopkeeper and receives his lettuce mask, the light in Dimitri's eyes has dimmed somewhat.
Could it be... that his life is a joke? ]
...Thank you.
[ He gives the shopkeeper his sincere gratitude and goes on, freshly lettuced, to go follow the movements of the crowd some. Maybe he'll see them going towards this illustrious Devil Cabin? Maybe he can spend his coupon on something for some temporary happiness in the cruel hellscape of this world. ]
no subject
But sure, he can follow the crowd. He'll see that the main attraction seems to be near the center, which... if he looks up, he'll see a dark wooden cabin, literally just floating in the air. Closer to the ground, sorcerers seem to walk up in pairs -- some perfectly willing, while others seem to be dragging along an unconscious second person. He'll also see devils -- honest to god devils, with horned heads and goat-like feet, wings fluttering to take the pairs one at a time into the cabin.
He'll also feel eyes on him from around the shadows. ]
no subject
No, he looks up at the partners being accepted into the devils' company, frowning thinly. The devils here are smaller than the demons that sometimes plague Fódlan, but they inspire the same sort of unease. Is that where they need to end up going? It doesn't seem like a solo trip, and there's still no sign of the other two.
So he prepared to continue his search for Joonghyuk and Emet, when he senses he's being watched. Could it be that the magic lettuce is not enough. He walks away, to see if he can draw out... whatever is following him. Maybe he's just imagining it. ]
no subject
Will he attempt to keep fleeing, or turn back to confront? ]
no subject
He pauses in his step, considering, but it's unlikely he can evade a winged creature all night. Confront it is.
Because these people seem to venerate devils so much though, he also can't just stab it on sight, so he'll wait and see what this thing wants. ]
no subject
But then it waves Dimitri over instead. C'mere you. ]
no subject
The devil acts almost like a hound that's trying to sniff him out; Dimitri stands his ground in the process, and there is a moment's pause when he's finally beckoned.
This is probably not attention he wants, but there's not any avoiding it now. So he approaches carefully, keeping some distance. He can't feign fearful respect, but he does force himself to bow his head in greeting, polite. ]
Did you wish to speak to me...?
no subject
NOT ME, NOT REALLY... BUT I KNOW SOMEONE WHO DOES. [ It points towards the Devil Cabin. ] I'M HERE TO TELL YOU TO, AS THEY SAY, GET YOUR ASS OVER THERE.
[ Curious. ]
CAN'T FIND A PARTNER?
no subject
He casts a look at the cabin again. ]
...I have a partner. [ he? does not know what this means? but it's safer to have one apparently ] They must be delayed.
[ He still has no idea where the other two are, but it really didn't sound like they were in a cabin full of devils. ] I thought to wait for them, first.
no subject
THE ANGRY ONE, OR THE BIG ONE, DO YOU MEAN? DO YOU INTEND TO WAIT FOR THEM?
[ It knows, apparently. ]
IT WOULD BE A LOT FASTER IF YOU JUST KNOCKED SOME GUY OUT.
[ Not necessarily the solution, but the solution the devil seems to offer. It picks at your lettuce mask. Nice drip. ]
no subject
I am not here to force anyone into anything.
[ But how does this demon know about the other two? Actually, even before that, how does it know to pick Dimitri out of the crowd? ]
You know of the others?
no subject
'COURSE I DO. WE KNOW MORE THAN YOU STUPID MORTALS! DREAM OR NOT, THAT'S THE TRUTH! YOU'RE GOING TO BE THE CENTERPIECE OF THE BIG EVENT.
TICK TOCK. YOUR TIME'S RUNNING OUT.
DO YOU THINK YOU CAN ESCAPE BEFORE DAWN?
no subject
He bites back the urge to fight the devil, looking around instead for the other two in the crowd. ]
I've no patience left to be entertainment for anyone.
[ He's tired of their lives, their suffering being reduced to nothing but a pastime for others. ]
And don't waste your time with provocations. I won't leave the others. [ He's not going to club some poor rando over the head and drag them to the cabin, either. ]
no subject
[ It glances up, though. ]
...BUT MAYBE YOU WON'T HAVE TO WAIT FOR LONG. ONE OF YOUR FRIENDS IS HERE. MAYBE YOU'LL REGRET YOUR PATIENCE... THAT'S MY ONLY WARNING!
[ Pointing helpfully at the Cabin. ]
FROM THERE... YOU CAN GET TO HOLE, WHERE YOUR THIRD IS. GOOD LUUUUUCK ♡.
no subject
Unfortunately though, it's not wrong. Dimitri is a stubborn, pig-headed fool. ]
To hell with you and your luck.
[ But at least now he knows where the other two went. He scowls and turns on his heel without sharing any thanks, veneer of politeness lost. Now he's dipping into the crowds to investigate the festival some more... any giants in sight? Angry men carrying meat bags? ]
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shhhh i missed
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