#kleinstar o1

[2501iv]

These were real books, Ivy noted after a notably long time spent analyzing the Library of Xalphina from within. Shelves and shelves of them — much more than she spotted in the academy's library.

"...I thought paper books were no longer valued. Was I wrong?" she asked another patron, swept away by her curiosity.

— ☾ @kleinstar

[eusarca]

A chillier late summer day was the perfect time to put on an extra layer — a rarely worn black bucket hat included — and get outside. Kyrie couldn't recall clearly when the leaves were going to start changing in this city, so it was time for a good long look at the outside of the forest while it was still an uninterrupted deep green.

As it turned out, it was not only cool, but impressively windy. Despite pulling their hat down firmly several times, a strong gust of wind eventually swept it off their head. Kyrie chased it, but it was obviously a waste of energy almost immediately: a branch well out of reach caught the fabric and held tight.

Lowering their raised arms, Kyrie sighed. At least it hadn't gone further. They had more than one way of dealing with it, too. After pondering which to use, they laid their eyes on the hat one more time. With no wind movement whatsoever, it suddenly plucked itself off the tree and fell into their cupped hands.

Satisfied, they turned to continue their stroll and stopped abruptly. Another individual was nearby, which meant he had the opportunity to see the whole ordeal.

"...Windy today, isn't it?"

★ @kleinstar

[desirend]

@kleinstar

the fairies (pixies?) in the area were both similar to the ones he knew and yet nothing like them at all. similar in stature, perhaps, but these appeared entirely sentient on their own and mischievous to boot. there was no one controlling them, which made their teasing all the more humorous.

not to the one being tormented, of course.

as Mithrun approaches their little village, he stops a few paces away from a man who the pixies were trying to tug at the hair of.

"...What did you do to anger them like that?"

[thiefguild]

@kleinstar

obviously Titus was attracted to something called a "funhouse," even if he had absolutely no idea what it entailed until he got in there. apparently there were several different activities, but he'd decided to go with the flow and follow the crowd, unable--or perhaps unwilling--to make a decision. this typically worked out for him, led him into some interesting scenarios, but...maybe not this time.

the mirror room absolutely sucked.

he'd had the mind to follow someone, but when he'd taken a moment to get his bearings, everyone around him seemed to scatter, making their way through the room full of weird mirrors.

"This place is a nightmare!" between his already messed up depth perception and general sensory issues, he felt...off. "How am I supposed to even check myself out if these mirrors are all messed up?!"

[ngdays]

"AI-generated art exhibit? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

He was standing in Golden, later in the afternoon, transfixed by a bizarre flyer for a small "art" studio somewhere else in the ward. The design of the flyer looked slightly off somehow, but maybe six or seven fingers on a human hand counted as high art these days?

@kleinstar

[unlikely-leader]

@kleinstar || Starters 2/5

Even trapped within a dream, Dwight could not find salvation. A stomach, starved for what felt a millennia, gurgles painfully, leaving him to stumble and weave by the passing crowds only to stop steps before a local bakery. His mouth had started to salivate long before the aroma of fresh baked goods hit him, and yet, he knew checking the tattered remains of his wallet would do him no justice.

That still didn't stop him from looking... Twice... Thrice... Maybe the tiniest little peek once more in the hopes that money would show...

"Damn it, why do i even try-" He sighs, defeated, playing with the lone singular dollar that had survived trial after trial. A once thought good luck token now seen only as a painful reminder of what once was; a life plagued by the miseries of paycheck-to-paycheck living.

Still, he cannot help himself but stare longingly inside. Maybe he could...? Or perhaps even?

Surely the owners wouldn't mind underpaid labor for a measly muffin or two.

[sunliteve]

Hiyori claimed one of the celebratory soda glasses for himself as Eiden went into his past musical experience, but might as well have forgotten he was holding it afterward. The early enthusiasm was engaging, later shining so brightly it was infectious. It was a good look on anyone, and one Hiyori enjoyed interacting with.

"You have quite the range as well! Fufu, you sound so proud of you and your friends' work on that competition that it's a shame I wasn't able to see it. Was that in the past on this island, or where you came here from?" If it was the first, it was possible to watch it even now if there was a recording somewhere. If it was the second, that seemed much less likely — Hiyori had zero luck finding anything related to Eden's performances so far.

"Congratulations, either way! A successful performance you put your all into is like nothing else." Although he'd just missed the earlier clinking (close enough to hear the "Cheers", but not close enough to join), he raised his glass to belatedly encourage Eiden into one more round of it.

" The wifey deserves no less! " Eiden laughs.

" Ah! I knew it!!! You have that voice control and all down so you'd have to be! I'm the one that's honoured to share the stage here! "

It was always cool to watch professional at work, no matter what it was. The way the years of accumulated skills hidden shone hidden in a display that seemed so effortless was beyond beautiful.

" It was fun of course! I haven't done much theater really - I was a bush in the school play haha... I guess you could say I can act my way out of a pinch! "

Eiden snickers. The skill had been a useful one for sure - definitely helped in Crowwood for instance. The part-time jobs and his adventures in Klein sure

" I've got a bit of a patchwork of experience though... Learned to do some mixing and composing electronically and then later friend's teacher taught me some of the more uh... acoustical composing? "

Edmond's teacher had been a strict one but Eiden was glad to have gone through it all. No doubt it'd be one of his most proudest and treasured moments, so he can't help the wide smile sparkling on his face as he continues:

" Actually, my friends took part in an idol competition so that's how that latter came about! I designed their outfits too, they did the lyrics and singing... Everyone worked really hard and of course we won the whole thing! "

[thornroyal]

@kleinstar // starter call!

❁ : yor had wanted a proper weapon for a while now; while she had really wanted her stilettos back, she had accepted that the people in charge here had no intentions of giving them back to her anytime soon. the idea had been to go to looking for a replacement - anything would be better than the sad wooden replicas she had already accidentally broken - but after searching around most of the wards, she had yet to find anything even remotely serviceable.

so now she had ended up in the fantastical ward, the one that made her think of a storybook of fairy tales. the market there was certainly interesting, albeit much more mundane than the rest of the ward, but whether or not it would have what she needed remained to be seen.

'do you have anything... sharper?' the fae man simply stared back at her in silence. she wasn't entirely certain what he was selling, aside from all the implements laid out in front of her appearing to be made of silver and other gleaming materials. 'i was just hoping...'

[fellstcr]

@kleinstar​ / maskerade starter call !

⚔️ //  byleth  turned  her  gaze  from  the  sign  reading  MISTWOOD’S  MERRY  MAZE   to  the  young  man  who  stood  beside  her.  “. . .  participate?”  she  had  echoed  ,  and  her  HESITATION  was  evident.  her  attention  turned  back  to  the  crowd  of  people.  “i'm  not  sure  that  would  be  beneficial.  i  cannot  say  that  i  trust  these  woods.”

[icebride]

★ : in spite of being sixteen herself, miorine feels the gulf between her and this child acutely - is she an adult to be turned to, or just another lost child herself? regardless, she doesn't plan to act like either.

'there aren't any orphanages around here.' that she knows of, anyway - everything is shrouded in mist. there could be a skyscraper or a jungle out there for all she knows.

'you shouldn't be out here alone. come on.' she gestures to him, a flippant one-handed motion. this is about as gentle as miorine gets; she doesn't know where to go either, but there's something in her that softens slightly in the moment. pity or sympathy? who knows. 'who's supposed to be looking after you? i'll have to scold them for letting you run off.'

@icebride

If someone asks he's fine. Truthfully he's a little scared but he refuses to get upset about it. He shouldn't.

They've given him directions on what to do when you get lost. First... you need to find an adult or at least someone older. Here he has one - she looks a little like an anime character but that's... probably not a problem.

She's the only one around anyway. Now next up, introduce yourself, tell where you're coming from--

" ...hey you. "

" ....I'm Eiden from [Orphanage Name]. Do you know how to get there? "

[queenofbubble]

kleinstar​:

“ Eh, it’s not good? “

But it’s totally cool! And cute! Just like the creature itself, grunting away, nose on the ground��� Well, admittedly it’s a bit long but Eiden knows he can remember it. So there’s nothing wrong with it! 

“ Hmph. So fine. It’s a little long… I think it’s cooler like that though but… “

“ What’s wrong with Theo though? Isn’t that a little rude? Against all the Theo’s of the world. “

He then turns at her, eyebrows knitting in pout.

“You got better ideas then? Since you’re being so critical and stuff! “

❥ : joon has already forgotten the other part of the ridiculous name her weird new acquaintance had come up with, having moved on to bigger and better thoughts. like what to name this stupid cute little pig. still, joon frowns - she’s a bit fed up with this goofy guy who is clearly clueless and lacking in good taste at the same time.

patience is a virtue. maybe she’ll get the hang of it yet.

‘hmm... what about.... tiffany... or valentino!’ she’s still not sure if the little animal running around their feet and stopping periodically to excitedly sniff patches of ground is a girl or a boy, not that it particularly matters. the names could work for anyone, really. there’s a lot of thought going into this - names are important!

‘ooh, or maybe louis? see, all my name choices are way cuter than whatever nonsense you said, and they’re way easier to say.’

[2501iv]

Ivy nodded in blank-faced understanding, reasoning processes still running behind her unfocused eyes.

"There are ample resources for the creation of paper books in this "ward". No virus standing in the way of gathering those resources, either..."

Ivy never discovered the true reason why humans decommissioned Architects, but she could still judge them for a lack of foresight on that.

Peering over at the book he was viewing, she remarked, "This one appears heavy on color illustrations. It would make for a poor audiobook." Her attention was immediately redirected from the depictions when she found that — more importantly — the letters and words didn't match any language in her system. "What language is this?"

He can't really understand any of the text in this one but erotic books did help him learn Klein's writing so why not this one as well -

...was the original thought anyway. Alas here he hadn't been granted magical understand of whichever language this one was so he couldn't really do much but look at the illustrations.

(Which to be fair were kind of gorgeous. )

" Hm?! "

The book had stolen all his focus before he knew it.

" Ah? "

" I wouldn't say that! Audiobooks aren't for anyone either and neither are ebooks so... ? Maybe it's just the whole process of turning pages and all .... but yeah. "

She doesn't seem to be minding the bulgingly muscled bare bodies all tangled up on display huh. Probably. Is she even paying attention...?

[eusarca]

"I'm sure they existed too... at least as a department somewhere. If there was a dedicated store last time I was here, they didn't advertise well enough." As if the store owner just walking around was proper advertisement. Anyway.

"Yes, Ismael and I knew each other before this city. I'm still getting to know that boyfriend of hers. if you have any good words or warnings, I'm all ears."

Turning a bit red, they ran a hand through the hair at the side of their face. He was really too cool-looking for them to be rooting him to the spot in a place like this. "I don't want to keep you much longer today, though! The weather's a little miserable... so next time we run into each other, I'll bother you a little more, okay?"

" Ehh I mean I'm sure the island has some in its' own... I refuse to believe I imported adult toys here!! I mean this stuff existed even in ancient worlds... err, well back where I come from anyway. "

More... fantasy-like worlds were another thing entirely.

" But yeah, admittedly we're doing pretty good! I just opened second location and all... There are cafe's and all. Nothing else from us side that I remember of...."

Hearing Ismael's voice Eiden blinks in surprise.

" Oh! I know her actually! She's Sal's girlfriend isn't she? She's from your world? "

[eusarca]

"Nice to hear it," they said with a nod in response to his pronouns. "And ah, that's new. I don't remember one of those being around last time. I bet you're popular!"

They'd give it some thought, working there. While they had no objections to the products or the work, they weren't passionate about the idea in the moment, and he'd reminded them to actually give that aspect some weight.

"My friend from home, Ismael Onai, is still here. Same with my old home in Cotes. I didn't lose more than time, at least." That was one relief.

"Aside from your fancy store... do you know of anything else fun that popped up in the last year?"

" Oh! Okay, it's he/him for me! "

He then proceeds to fervently wave off the assumption for violence.

" Ah no no. I'd be in trouble! It's an adult toy shop you see... I don't require prior knowledge or anything but it's not exactly everyone's cup of tea. "

There were jobs that didn't really have much to do with the products directly like bookkeeping and such but even then Eiden knew some people wouldn't exactly feel comfortable with it.

" Hmmm.... I did hear that you don't retain memories when you return but once you're here you either might ... or might not. "

Eiden scratches his head. He understood them well. The sudden changes and all... Returning after such a long time must be disorienting to say the least.

" I can imagine. Any familiar faces at least? "

[eusarca]

"Nice to meet you, Eiden. I prefer they/them for me." What a lovely handshake. They felt very socially capable and normal today (hat called down from a tree via spiritual power aside).

"Your workplace is unorthodox?" they asked afterward with a tilt of their head. "Is it violent?"

It probably said something about Kyrie that their first thought went to that. In their defense, people in Spirale seemed like a more fighty lot than the people they used to live around.

"I don't really know what happened to me. I don't think I went home, but I wasn't here, either. Seeing the calendar jump forward over a year... not a great feeling."

" Hehe! I do I do! "

" Oh! One of those... sent-back and then returning things right? I'd offer you a job but the place is a bit err.... a little bit un-orthodox? "

Their captors sure looked like tossing them around. Eiden can't help but wonder if there's any rhyme or reason to it or if it's all just whimsy. It's endless if you start guessing.

" Oh I'm Eiden! Itadori Eiden! "

He takes the offered hand with a smile though.

[eusarca]

"Hey, that's something! Even if it can't get your hat out of a tree." It made them a little less nervous to hear he was something beyond the average human, whatever that might be. And they would gently change the subject, even if it meant not finding that out.

"I'm out to see them at least one more time before the leaves start changing. It's going to be beautiful then, but it's still its own kind of pretty right now." The wind might be making the outing inconvenient, but it couldn't ruin the goal.

" Oh? ...oooooohhhh. "

Well abilities like this were pretty common here after all so makes sence it'd be something like that. And it looks like she's quick to assume that he does too.

" Err... sorry, no. The best I have is that my scrapes and scratches automatically heal. Anything bigger than that it's not fast enough though, not even unlimited. "