asgardeventide | 006 ☾ voice

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006 ☾ voice

[ Obon had already passed by the looks of the seasons, but that doesn't stop some people from celebrating it and doing something remotely related to the summer season. Normals always told their friends ghost stories around this time of the year, so some practice will do her good. It isn't often that this particular deep, spooky voice crops up on the network, but the time she chose was a particularly quiet one in the evening. Those who know her will be able to discern its owner - Yozora. This gloomy tone is the one she usually speaks with, but it sets the mood perfectly. ]

The end of summer, the start of fall. It is during these two seasons that the world pays its respects to the spirits of the afterlife. I wouldn't say that those of this ethereal plane are above us, figuratively speaking. Yet for many generations, haven't humans always been most afraid of what they don't know? Strange occurrences that cannot be explained, - it's almost laughable how these mysteries hold so much power over us.

[ She cackles, and she didn't even need to practice two hours to perfect it. There is nothing but silence that follows. ]

What if I told you they were true? Just because we cannot comprehend these happenings doesn't allow us to simply dismiss them. Although belief is waning, tradition remains strong. There must be a reason behind it all, don't you agree?

Well then, shall we revive that tradition tonight?

I heard this from a local in the Baldr district. It happened long before the disease spread, when the city still had its color...

The protagonist of this story is... let's call her K. She had a friend - we'll call her M. K and M were the best of friends ever since they met by the lake at Gefion Park. Since then, they would do everything together, and they easily got along because they liked the same things. However, there came a time when they also liked the same boy. Fron that point onward, it was clear that their friendship wasn't going to last forever. Now, K was an outgoing girl who had many friends. M, on the other hand, was very timid. K took advantage of this and bullied M without hesitation or remorse. Libel, slander, the looks of disgust on everyone's faces and jeering from the crowd as she walked by... it was enough to drive M to commit suicide. One summer night, she drowned herself in the lake. Her pallid, lifeless face on the surface of the lake would haunt the city for weeks.

K felt guilty for what she did, but as the seasons passed, she slowly forgot about M. But, ever since M's death, a string of unfortunate events began to occur. At first, they were nothing but lost items and gusts of wind, but soon, they progressed into looping labyrinths and cryptic messages that only K would understand.

Exactly a year had passed after M's death. It was a cold summer night just like that day she drowned. That day passed by with no strange occurrences, but when K got in bed just to find her own name on the ceiling written in blood, that did it for her. In the middle of the night, she ran to the lake to sob and beg for forgiveness. But the wind only grew stronger and stronger...

It forced the girl to get on her knees and break her fall with her hands. She happened to look at the lake, and there she saw the face of a friend she thought she'd never see again.

No one saw the girl after that, but they say that if you look into the lake at this hour, she might get you...

[ Another cackle and a strong gust of wind from the window closes Yozora's story. ]

Who wants to go next?

(ooc: People are welcome to post their own stories as well, be it in video, text or voice. Others are free to reply to the stories with their character's reactions and comments. In other words, treat this post like a mingle log!)

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But I said I wasn't displeased... What kind of story am I supposed to tell?

What else but a horror story of your own creation?

Quite.

[all eyes on punz!]

[ SCREW YOU GUYS i had to come up with something good!!! ]

Oh, I know! This one is going to be much shorter than yours? But I don't think it needs to be long if it's good.

[ Rapunzel on the other hand SURPRISING NO ONE takes it as a challenge. ]

[ She chuckles. ] As long as it does involve headless women and cryptic messages. [ Yozora's kind of hoping this will end badly!!! ]

Well... As afternoons in autumn tend to be, it was cool as Theodorus walked down the street with the lunch his sister packed that morning. [ Only with her lisp the name is sort of messed up oops. ] Since it was cool, he had decided to wear a sweater! It... was a nice sweater. [ nod ] Definitely well-made. It was a cat sweater too so someone had obviously put a lot of hard work into making it, aaaand... [ thinking thinking- oh ] And it even had his name stitched on the front! So Theodorus was very proud of his sweater.

Uh. Anyway. Heh. He was on his way to work that morning when his sister Elizabetha ran up to him. She was - you know, out of breath and huffing and puffing a little... You know. She was tired. It was obvious she'd just run a really long way.

However, she was also on an important mission. And when Theo asked what it was she'd come after him for, Elizabetha - which is a plant - held up a cute little box and explained that she'd just forgotten to put the salad he usually liked in his lunch. Um. You guys are Japanese so you probably know what I'm talking about when I say "cute box" I think? The ones for bento. Theodorus loved a good bento.

So he thanked his sister and she smiled and went back to house as soon as she could tell he was going to be all right. Theodorus and Elizabetha were very close. They... were family! So it makes sense I think that they'd want to do nice things and treat one another with respect. Elizabetha never made Theodorus feel bad and she always listened politely when he was talking.

...

Always.

So basically Theo went to work that day in a great mood because of his sister's generosity. When his lunch break came, he browsed around the network as usual and ate with a smile on his face. And when his lunch break was over, he reminded himself to thank Elizabetha when he got home with a hug and a kiss because he knew she wouldn't mind at all or get annoyed at him being suffocating or anything. It would just be - nice. And loving.

[ This is the part where she leans over and turns off her desk lamp. ]

...but. As the day wore on and the temperature fell? Theo noticed a few changes. NOTHING BIG! ...just. Small things. At least at first. His eyes started watering. Then they blurred too. He was making a tart and because he couldn't see he just - ended up touching the stove and burning his hands. Clumsiness can be really dangerous, you know. Then he went out to throw what was left of his lunch in the compost burner - Mother and I used to burn all our trash - but when he went back to work he found that his sweater had shrunk. It was itchier than normal and no matter how many times he pulled it down? The sleeves wouldn't stay at his wrists.

The itching got worse too. First on his arms? Then his chest and back. It EVEN spread to his stomach. I'm serious. It did. One of Theo's co-workers brushed up against him and it hurt so badly? That he dropped a bunch of brésiliennes and the head pastry chef sent him home.

On his way, the itching turned into total burning. His eyesight was almost gone by then too. Just - gone. Like that. And! He'd even started to cough! Every time he coughed, his entire throat would ache and ache and ache... It was the most pain Theodorus had ever been in.

But - since his walk home took him through a very grey area of the city there was no one around to help. And his fingers had swollen up so much he couldn't use the bracelet for anything...

Scared yet?

Good! Because it? Is going to get worse.

[ Yeah so much for short. And unlike the other two she has no sense of fabricated dramatic timing and just keeps rambling on. ]

Now. Theodorus was a very rational man most of the time. He wasn't stupid so he knew something was wrong. But Elizabetha was in Sigyn and it just seemed practical to head home instead of going to the hospital. Elizabetha wasn't going to make fun of him or tell his friends that this had happened. No way. Elizabetha would take wonderful care of him.

Remember that it's autumn. So the sun goes down much earlier than if it had been summer like it is here. [ beat ] Kind of? I guess it's... sort of in between here. Anyway! By the time he returned to the house it was dark outside and inside. None of the electricity-powered-type lights were on and no on had lit any candles.

And that was - weird! I mean Elizabetha spent more time exploring the city and socializing than doing her job so... she was usually home by then. Theodorus took off his sweater and dropped his stuff and tried to call out Elizabetha's name... but found that his throat was too swollen to even do it right. Walking around in the dark with burning eyes was no picnic, trust me. And the nearest room was the bathroom at the end of the hall. In the end he just decided to go for that because his arms felt like... like fire by this point. He needed light fast.

So sloooooowly, slowly... Theodorus made his way down the dark corridor. It felt like someone was watching him now. But his breathing had become too raspy to hear over and his lungs were starting to burn like his skin. He was probably getting close to just - making gasping noises.

But he made it and he opened the door with a sigh of relief. It took him a minute to find the light switch, but he did that too because he was determined. Then... he turned to the mirror...

AND HE SAW BLOOD!! HA! Everywhere! Everywhere, blood. Without his sweater? Uh huh. He could see it EVEN through squinty, blurry eyes. Pus was dripping from his arms and his whole torso was just - covered in blisters and... papules and little scar-looking things... Like someone actually did set him on fire.

Theodorus couldn't even SCREAM. Because his throat was cloooosing up at last.

But. Before it did... and before he just - passed out from fear? Theodorus saw Elizabetha standing behind him in the mirror. And just like that he put it aaaall together...

...

...

His sister had put poison ivy in his lunch. Which is terrifying.

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

[where does he even begin with this tale. mental checklist:

- Narrated like an overenthusiastic elementary school teacher ("AND HE SAW BLOOD!! HA!")
- random digressions ("Elizbetha, which is a plant"; "Kind of? I guess it's... sort of in between here. Anyway!")
- rather excruciating enumeration of symptomatic details (note to self: is that really the effect of ingesting poison ivy?) like watching a medical drama
- apparent lack of motive
- moral of the story: don't eat salads you don't know? don't trust your sister???
- "cat sweaters" coming up AGAIN

.... Maybe Yozora would be better at this.

...

Say something, Yozora, he's begging you. Silently.]

Wow was... it that scary? You're - kind of... not saying anything! H...eh...

[ YEAH HER FACE IS ALREADY STARTING TO FALL OOPS please say something with(out) tact, Yozo-chan. ]

[ She could crack a joke about many of the aforementioned faults of this delightful story, but Yozora is just too cruel... ]

Rapunzel is also banned from telling horror stories henceforth.

[Okay! Thank you Yozora!]

Simply too scary, Rapunzel. You have to be careful, it seems.

[ NO WHY NOW SHE THINKS SHE'S ACTUALLY FRIGHTENING!! ]

I-I'm sorry! I mean to be fair? You did ask for it. And you might even think of it as what you deserve for the stories you told...

And! I did warn you. So - I think in the end you're the only ones to blame. I guess that's life...

It's fine. I've learned my lesson. [ The following is directed more at Itsuki. ] Remind me to never let her run free with this sort of thing...

Gladly. After having that example, I don't think anyone would want her to produce another one. [for... reasons.]

It's good to know she found both of our stories terrifying, though.

I'm right here, you kno— What? No! You're putting words in my mouth again.

If that story was what we deserved, surely, we must have done something to upset you, no?

As an expert cryptologist, I should know what is being said in between the lines. Otherwise, I'm not doing my job right.

My thoughts exactly, Mikazuki-san; and you are excellent at your job.

[tormenting people]

Uh, you'll have to forgive me but this is the first day you've mentioned cryptology anything to me. Need I remind you of M-san? Where were your... your between-the-lines reading skills then, hm?

And - Itsuki doesn't know what he's talking about so his comments don't even count. I've canceled you out at least three times in the past hour.

I'm a secret cryptologist. It's a secret I only tell certain people about. And Itsuki makes perfect sense to me, so your claims regarding his invalidity are invalid.

[god, it's nice being a yes-man again.]

Mikazuki-san's cryptological skills are certainly verified by her reading of the secret message in that other story that you found, by the way; I think I can corroborate that.

It's also noticeable that there wasn't actually a further explanation or denial, but just an attack on Mikazuki-san's occupation.

overrated

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1/3

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but i'm a liar so 3/4

lolololol 4/6

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6/7 for real!!!!

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and done.

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