Meanwhile, in the Two Faced Forest....

[thequestgiver]

Characters: Any hero brave enough to walk into the utterly normal looking woods.
Open? Yep
Where: The Two Faced Forest (tm)
When: Whenever you'd like, I've got all day here.
What: Time to get hero-ing, oh heros.


The Two Faced Forest isn't far at all from the walls of the Kingdom's capital, something that vexes many of the locals. You see, there's a witch in those woods, a horrible creature who lures children to her gingerbread home and eats them!

...not that anyone's ever lost a child that way. They've all taught their children to be cunning and crafty, you see, so their children won't be caught and eaten so easily! It's just all the other children that they worry about! Especially now that the Cruel and Terrible Witch has a horrible Dark Mastermind at her disposal; a dark cloaked figure who commands terrible minions of unspeakable horrors! And what's worse, they gossip so loudly whenever a Hero is near so they're sure to overhear, this horrible figure was once a Hero whom the Witch ensnared and corrupted! Surely someone can do something about this terrible situation! A line delivered over and over with such a complete lack of subtlety that many a hero will find themselves being outright stared at with expressions varying from moon stuck smiles (the younger lads and lasses of the town) to expectant annoyance (the older grannies and gumps who want to see some proper hero action before they die already, so get on with it, would ya?)

The Forest (the capital letter is very important, you see) itself... is honestly very unremarkable. There's trees, there's rocks, there's birds, there's squirrels (you can even bless them, if you're of a hero class that's so inclined), and deep in the heart of the woods, there's a cottage that's made entirely of gingerbread, complete with piped icing shutters and decorations. Around this cottage is a gingerbread fence with the piped icing reading: "Private Property. No Solicitors."

... so maybe it's not entirely unremarkable.

Comments

[fusionjack]

Jack gives a bit of a start when he takes notice of Ryo, there. How could he have missed the fancily-dressed mantis? "...hello! He has, has he?" He gives a bit of a wave, uncertain but used to interacting with small, cute, dubiously-dialoguing creatures. But then he turns his gaze back to Hajime, tone curious. "Valence?"

...but aah, maybe that's not important. He gives a careless, dismissive wave of his hand. "Bah, well, whatever... It really is you, isn't it? Not the guy from before, but you, right?" And of course he'll understand, right. Because that's his Hajime over there.

[chalicejoker]

"Big magic wishing power! Very important in Questing Country! Lots of competition! Came very close, but looks like won anyway!" This all makes perfect sense to Ryo, and he seems very pleased with everything.

"Of course it's me." Hajime scowls.

"One and only! Accept no substitutes!" Ryo can't help but cut in there.

"Who else would it be?" Hajime frowns. But he's encountered people who weren't who he thought they should be... "...you didn't run into...me before the, uh...like me from my first life?"

There is absolutely no way to make that sound right, and he now hates this conversation.

[fusionjack]

It's a good thing this all makes perfect sense to Ryo, because it doesn't make much at all to Jack. He's just going to nod and give an absent "uh huh" and make a point to ask Hajime more about it later.

"Actually... yeah, I did. This isn't the first weird place I've ended up and... and it sounds like it's not the first weird place you've ended up." And he picks this moment to look back over his shoulder at Tachibana, expression curious. "...or you, either?"

[triggerhappytraitor]

Tachibana's expression is still very annoyed and cold, reflex glaring back at Jack. "Hajime and I spent time in the same place, before arriving here," he returned, voice clipped.

Garren nodded, before starting to sign rapidly in explanation

...not that Jack could make any sense of it.

[chalicejoker]

"Don't think too hard on the logistics or timeline of it," Hajime says, "I don't really get how that happened either. But we were...in sort of a world between worlds and would then sometimes get spat out into other worlds to do some vague and nebulous task and..." He trails off and winces. "Anyway, I tried to punch one of the beings behind it but he threw a ceiling at me so I'm still pissed I didn't get a rematch to stop things before whatever this is happened."

[fusionjack]

That's... about the level of response that he was expecting to get from Tachibana. Sure, he'd hoped for something better, but short answers and a glare really were more realistic. His curious look does still linger, though, watching as Garren signs. No, he can't make sense of it, but there's obviously something being said. "...what's the little guy saying?" He shouldn't leave someone out of the conversation, should he?

Aah, but Hajime has more to add... "A world between worlds... I was scooped up into a little pocket universe for 'lost' people. I'd be surprise that we haven't somehow run into each other before now, but... it's a big multiverse, isn't it?" But he has to laugh at that last bit. "You tried to punch one of the things in charge? Of course you did..." Aaah, good old Hajime. So fighty.

[triggerhappytraitor]

A small huff escaped. "You had your rematch in Questing Country," he reminded Hajime with a faint, wry smile.

Jack gets a fresh scowl, but one that fades swiftly as Garren is mentioned. With a quick, curious glance, Garren gives the short-short version to his Slammer, who nods. "He was explaining the same thing Hajime said, and that he and Ryo came along too, from the worlds that they were in."

He paused. "And his name is Garren," he added, the pog nodding in agreement, outlining the Diamond on his chest with a pleased head tilt that made it clear he was smiling behind his unchanging mask.

[chalicejoker]

"Something one-on-one and face-to-face," Hajime shot back at Tachibana. "None of that hiding behind everything else crap." Final Destination, no items.

Ryo looks interested at that other world where Jack was and, with all the tact of a curious small child, loudly asks, "So did lost mean dead?" It's a valid question!

"Ryo!" Hajime immediately moves to shush the mantis.

[fusionjack]

"Garren?" Now there's a proper noun that he knows. Jack's brow furrows as he looks quickly between Garren and Tachibana, trying to draw some sort of conclusion. "So he's a tiny version of you? Sort of?" If his tone sounds a bit joking, well... oops. He let that slip. Tachibana's mood may be sour, but his really isn't.

"...dead?" Though it might sour if they stay on that topic. Jack pulls a face and shakes his head. "No! No, not... not really? Just that they'd been taken from their own world at least once, before landing there. Not quite sure how I fit into that, but..." He shrugs. He betrays no hint of his own horrible demise.

[triggerhappytraitor]

"...Something like that," Tachibana allowed as Garren nodded, again framing the diamond on his chest before making it bigger and moving it over to his Slammer, giving a double thumbs up before leaning in to nuzzle his helmet affectionately against his head. Despite himself, Tachibana couldn't help but soften at that, reaching out to put a hand on Garren's helmet, a soft, warm smile touching his face.

His eyebrow rose at the other conversation before he gave a small snort. "An Undead that was somehow reincarnated into another world. Even if that bastard hasn't completely taken you over..." He gave Jack a very pointed look.

[chalicejoker]

Hajime's still shushing Ryo at this point. Tact, they've got to have a discussion about tact. Tact and not telling people they're supposed to be dead. As he shushes Ryo, he tries to use that as a distraction to cover his looking at his cards, and...

...the Jack of Diamonds is gone. Had it been there when he'd gotten here? He doesn't know.

Not that he can worry about this for long. "I keep telling you," Hajime insists, "he's my cousin. He's not going to get up to any of that crap." Which is one way to insist that Jack won't be murdering anyone. (See, Ryo? Tact. Even Hajime can manage that, sometimes, just as a stopped clock is right twice a day.)

[fusionjack]

Jack tenses even more when Tachibana tosses out his accusation. "He hasn't taken me over." And he sounds very offended at the allegation. He's just going to turn and take a step closer to Hajime, who he is very grateful is offering support for his assertion. "I remember who he was and what he did, but I am not him." And only has a portion of the Peacock Undead's power, but... now doesn't feel like the time to mention that.

[triggerhappytraitor]

"Before Hajime showed up, you were damned well acting like him," Tachibana countered with a glare. "And if you weren't trying to look like that bastard, why the hell are you wearing sunglasses in a goddamned forest?" he demanded.

[chalicejoker]

"He's a freaking nerd," Hajime says, exasperated. "Doesn't have it in him to do...the sorts of things you're thinking of." There's a pause. "And he's enough of a nerd to think the shades just make him look cool."

"Wears his sunglasses at night," Ryo says solemnly. "Song about that! Very popular! Remember it from Jaunt where I was Noodle!"

[fusionjack]

"Hey!" He protests at Hajime's declaration of him being a nerd with just enough of an uncool rise in pitch to his voice that... yes, actually, he probably is a nerd, beneath the fancy gear and well-styled hair. "The shades are cool, thank you!"

...he's just going to take them off and tuck them into a pocket, now....

"Look, just because there's some... some overlap between the two of us doesn't mean I'm some kind of emotionally-crippled murder-bird!" Oh geez, he could have put it better than that, he's sure...

[triggerhappytraitor]

Tachibana's retort about the shades were stayed by Jack removing them and his... ridiculous continuing statement. "It means you have his memories, his appearance and likely his powers," he returned. "And you have Hajime to thank for the only reason there isn't yet another copy of the jack of diamonds here right now...." he added with a dark glare.

[chalicejoker]

For once, Hajime is not the one spoiling to throw down for a fight. This is a new and unwelcome situation, and it is very strange. He does not like it. "He's a stockbroker," Hajime insists, still exasperated, like that is the crown jewel of "harmless nerd." "I mean, look, you don't see me thinking he's going to plant bombs everywhere."

Sorry, Jack, your other self was kind of an asshole.

[fusionjack]

"...is that a threat?" He's on the defensive, and he's rapidly growing frustrated with this entire conversation... there's more than a tinge of desire to strike back building in him. These days, he's not sure if he's more murder-bird than stockbroker, though he's not about to admit that aloud. He's just going to clench his fists and not move. He can't prove this guy right.

"...ugh, why did he even do that bomb thing?" And then a thought hits him, and his stomach drops. He turns to quickly look to Hajime. "You... everyone was alright, right?" His other self was an asshole. There's no denying that.

[triggerhappytraitor]

"I don't waste time with threats," Tachibana returned. "But considering all the shit Isaka did, there's very little other than Hajime telling me a million goddamned times that you aren't him that's keeping me from punching your goddamned face in when it looks just like his."

"...and if Sayoko even catches a glimpse of the face that murdered her...."

[chalicejoker]

"Everyone was fine; I threw the bomb out the window as it exploded." Hajime pauses. "And then I refused to say anything as to how I knew it was there or why, so that was kind of awkward." Just a bit.

But there's no real time to worry about that; Tachibana's still looking like he wants to adopt Hajime's normal method of dealing with people he doesn't like. "You really want to get something started in the magical forest in the middle of bullshit magic land? He's not the same guy."

[fusionjack]

"You.. threw it out the window." Jack's eyes go wide. That... does solve the problem, but that is so dangerous. "Geez, Hajime..." He's not scolding so much as just not wanting to believe it but having to believe it... he passes a hand over his face, shaking his head.

"There are plenty of reasons that we can start shit out here that have nothing to do with..." Wait, he mentioned Sayoko in the future tense. The woman he killed. His girlfriend. His hand drops away, slowly and reluctantly. He'd much rather be hiding his face, really. Can he put his sunglasses back on? "...she's here?"

There is so, so much guilt in his expression.

[triggerhappytraitor]

"She is." There was. A lot of emotion hiding behind those two, simple, terse words. Emotion that Tachibana did not want not be showing, but was likely painfully evident. That Jack at least had the humanity to look guilty did a little to mollify what was totally not fear, nope, not at all.

"The beings who ran the last place we were have the ability to pull people back from the afterlife into their world." The words were rather tense with both worry, guilt and far more emotions than could be easily identified. "And she hasn't fully recovered from that or the other bullshit she got caught by before we arrived here, so if you're going to insist on wearing those fucking sunglasses and trench coat, stay the hell away from her, understand?"

[chalicejoker]

"He's not going to go looking for trouble." Because that seems more important than defending his bomb-handling skills right about now. "And he's not the same guy."

Ryo, at this point, is just watching everything like he's watching a particularly intense three-way tennis match.

[fusionjack]

"Hajime..." His cousin is just trying to help, but it isn't helping, he's sure. He just lets that trail off, shaking his head at him before looking back to Tachibana.

"I'll stay away from her." No defensiveness, no protests. Just a firm seriousness, and absolute sincerity. "I'm... I'm sorry. Sorry for what he did." Because maybe it needs saying. He certainly hasn't said as much in so many words. He'd really like to unburden himself of some of the weight of these memories.

[triggerhappytraitor]

"I know that!" Tachibana snapped at Hajime, fists clenched. "But he fucking looks like him!" And with everything Sayoko had gone through...!

Jack's response, however, pulls his attention back, and he presses his lips together, looking to the side, emotions turmolitious in his expression. There's a moment's pause before he nods. "... How much of his memories are you stuck with?" he finally asked, not looking over.