【 DAY THREE 】

[starrystoryteller]

starsand ... day three

A Whispered Rumor

It is the third day since the Fallen Stars arrived/returned to Starsand City. Still spring, still Reblooming, and finally with a bit more information. After confirming that their missing friend, Yuuto, was likely part of the Spacetime Shrine's dragon statue, the Fallen Stars are beginning to piece together the recent mystery. And, as if right on cue, a clue is posted around town.

COME TO MIRRORYUU

WHERE YOU CAN FIND YOURSELF

The mirror maze attraction at Wonderment Amusement Park, which has both caused trouble and given help in past timelines, has apparently been renovated. It is housed in a colourful pink tent and uses a combination of mirrors and lights to replicate walking through a starry night. During the day, it is a mostly peaceful attraction. But as Fallen Stars may recall from past timelines, it used to change into something more sinister at night. Maybe it's time to plan a visit...

OTHER ATTRACTIONS

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Of course, MirrorYuu isn't the only attraction in the Wonderment Amusement Park. There are rollercoasters, a ferris wheel, and many other rides appealing to all levels of thrill seeking. Food here is strange and experimental, but mostly tastes good (some experiments are best not pursued!) Admission to the park is always free. The unwritten cost is having fun, which gives the spirits who work here some faith to survive off of. The park opens at 8am and closes at midnight exactly, though it is possible to sneak in after hours.

Fallen Stars likely remember that this is the first time that Wonderment Amusement Park has been open during the spring. It was typically a one month affair that happened in July, then vanished on the first day of August. Stranger still, the civilians all talk like the park has been here forever and has never been a temporary event. But surely that's fine! Everyone seems happy about it.

OOC

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This log is a precursor to the actual MirrorYuu event. As such, Flashback Memories have not been remembered yet. Please don't reference them in your threads yet! The MirrorYuu event will be shaped by how characters decide to approach the investigation.

Please focus on threads during the day for this portion of the log. Thank you!

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Questions & Answers ☆

[starrystoryteller]

[dereban]

is said clue posted around written out or typed?

if the former, is the handwriting familiar at all?

[everpromisedthunder]

On the topic of Wonderment -- would it be possible to ask about when the park was established, if it's supposedly such a permanent fixture now? If so, how far back does is its history go?

[fallmushrooms]

Has anything changed about the infrastructure of Wonderment to accord with it never having been temporary in this timeline? Fixtures not built to be collapsed and rebuilt, more buildings and fewer stands/stalls, larger and more intricate rides because they're permanent fixtures, etc.

[dereban]

Following up on an earlier question.

Inaba's going to attempt using her phone to search up on the internet for more information on Wonderment park; would she find any information, if at all?

Alternatively, I know that asking the history of the park establishment doesn't give anything, but do the locals have anything to say in particular about MirrorYuu if inquired about it?

[stavros]

[Kokoro posts to Starnet the second the ad goes up.]

So it wasn't spelled "you" after all... Really, they needn't have gone to that extent to bait us. Salt in the wounds is one thing, but MirrorMe always did a good job of that on its own.

[But, well, she's off to Wonderment anyway. Why wouldn't she be. At least it's free.

You can find Kokoro checking out various rides, taking note of any differences from previous timelines if they exist... and rooting in the bushes and going through the queues and under the vending machines for dropped Starling. Girl can barely feed herself this timeline, leave her be.

Speaking of food, she does manage to scrounge up enough for the food stands, and she'll be pondering them for a while before choosing.]

I wonder if they still have the squid corn dog...

[And, well, she's got to check out MirrorYuu, even if in the past the attraction has been perfectly peaceful during the day.]

Enough has changed this timeline as it is... What caused it? What caused you?

[starrystoryteller]

Squid ink? What’s that taste like?

[Chron happens to be nearby and waves to Kokoro- being sort of polite,- before continuing.]

If the answer is “weird,” then probably. The spirits don’t have a sense of taste, so they just pick ingredients based on vibes.

[dereban]

[ Guess who's running on zero hours of sleep from the last three days sees the so-called 'clue' sitting around town and is immediately heading into the park to investigate?

This girl.

People might notice that she's staggering a little bit, but that's certainly nothing to be concerned over. As long as she doesn't run or go on any of the rides and more importantly, she certainly doesn't look like she's having any fun, either. But she's definitely staying in areas that are quieter - primarily found seated near the food stalls and at the very least trying to get some energy back.

But occasionally, she can be found pacing in front of MirrorYuu, fiddling with the bracelet on her wrist uncomfortably, as if it would help. Spoilers: it does not. ]

[everpromisedthunder]

[It's not just Inaba standing in front of MirrorYuu -- the young principal that's been her housemate for a while eventually settles in front of it herself, staring up at the tent that now houses the attraction before settling on running one hand down her face in an attempt to clear her frustration.

It doesn't do much, but at least it was better than taking her sword out to vent it.]

...now they're just mocking us. [There's a minor spark that jumps out from her fingertips, one she eventually waves off.]

[starrystoryteller]

Ah..? Inaba-san? [Mikale spots Inaba while she’s staggering around the food stalls and tries to gesture for her to slow down.] Are you alright? Did you eat something bad?

[composalvation]

[Well. At least Inaba's not the only one looking like a complete wreck?

But where she only looks a bit off when she's on her feet for too long, Kanade... well. She probably looks like Inaba feels, with dark circles under her eyes and skin so pale it's nearing translucent.

It's frustrating, really, not knowing what to do. She feels useless, even though Dimitri had hopes for her being a key to saving Yuuto, and that useless feeling is only fueled by her ongoing guilt at leaving Mafuyu behind when she needed her most. Those two feelings clashed inside of Kanade in the worst way, meaning that even if she wanted to sleep, there was no way she could get more than an hour in before it started feeling like her chest was being clawed open.

But there's something else to focus on. Something that she remembers from previous cycles. So, pushing back her normal feelings about going outside, especially when she's this mired in her own negativity, Kanade decides to take a look at what's going on... and spots a somewhat familiar face.]

... Whatever's building up here... it's going to be terrible, isn't it?

[Her shoulder aches, a wound long since healed. She remembers being shot with an arrow, the last time she was lost in the maze.]

[nightwild]

[Yayoi's just staring at the park, from outside its gates. She's not going in just yet, MirrorYuu or otherwise. She's just staring, with a weird expression.]

... I'm seriously getting sick of this place...

[starrystoryteller]

I wonder… if they have memories of other worlds..? They remembered before… right?

[myturf]

--So what's the deal with this place anyway? Why's it so bad?

[marshmallowpurgatory]

[Pidonus happens to be passing by.]

And this time the name's written in a specific way to taunt us. So. That's nice.

By which I mean nightmarish.

Still. Checking the day state at least once before going in at night seems a good plan.

[fallmushrooms]

[Velda shows up before opening to wait outside the park for rope drop. She'll wave awkwardly at anyone else who showed up early.]

This is what you're supposed to do at regular theme parks, I'm pretty sure. I've never been to one before Wonderment, just the fair sometimes, but I've read the travel guides, that works, right?

[She hits up MirrorYuu first thing in the morning, looking around in awe at the star lights.]

It's definitely kinda aesthetic... That's how people still talk, right? But it's gotta mean something.

[The rest of the day is spent looking at the rides. She'll try out the biggest roller coaster and alternate between cheering and screaming, try to see what she can see from the top of the ferris wheel (and toss down a paper airplane to see where it lands), and hit up the haunted house with its extremely fake ghosts.]

It's fun, but it's kind of a lot, huh?

[But Velda finds herself wanting to investigate some more. It's a matter of dodging the security -- easy enough when you spent years dodging bullies at school -- and slipping into the scenes of a dark ride. Who wants to figure out what the deal is here?]

dark ride

[shellrender]

[ When you're a literal shadow, being able to avoid actual physical humans was practically a cinch.

So Velda may not immediately notice Ushio, as she's in her shadow form, completely flat on the ground. It's only when she's close enough that she calls out in a harsh whisper from the floor: ]

Psst! Whatcha lookin' fer?

[loveedition]

[ Oh, she hates this. It was like she missed it completely her first time there. "MirrorYou"? It was staring her right in the face.

As a result, Ryoko decided to take on the brave and arduous task of going to the amusement park. Something that she clearly has no actual interest in. Don't let anyone tell you differently. For the time being, she'll have to scope things out from different places, like some starry spinner rides, or the ferris wheel, or the carousel. She'll probably have to try the cotton candy-- okay, maybe not. It looks too suspect.

Either way, Ryoko's definitely not here to have fun, and definitely not looking like she's enjoying herself.

...

It's been a rough couple of days, she'll take the excitement where she can get it. ]

[starrystoryteller]

Ryoko…

[Mu spots her between rides and hurries over, looking confused.]

Did you… partake in an attraction?

cotton candy

[stavros]

[Kokoro looks between Ryoko and the cotton candy, herself holding a pink Kool-Aid chicken burger abomination.]

Are you... all right?

UN: mamabear

[starrystoryteller]

Did anyone else notice those signs around the town? The ones about MirrorYuu?

That’s what we call Yuutou at home. And I doubt it’s a coincidence.

Do you all know anything about the park?

un: odenforever

[loveedition]

This is Asakura.

The park used to be a once a year attraction unless we raised enough support to keep it through the rest of the year... and the attraction was "MirrorMe" before too. It absolutely can't be a coincidence.

UN: Inaban

[dereban]

At this point, it's less about whether or not it's a coincidence...

I plan on going to see what it is, even if it winds up being a trap. I won't be taking 'no' or 'don't go' for an answer.

un:velda

[fallmushrooms]

I know it always got targeted, or had Facility conspiracies running in it. Like that Rising Stars talent agency last loop. Oh! And MirrorYuu, before it was MirrorYuu and before it was MirrorYou, was MirrorMe, and every time, it had a distorted spirit running it. The kind the Facility get to. They like targeting spirits that are lonely or abused or forgotten. Then they promise them power and recognition, as long as they do what they say.

un: pidonus

[marshmallowpurgatory]

This is Pidonus. I think others have shared the key points to you already. But yeah, the name's a BLATANT taunt.

Worse, the facility's willing to kill the spirits as a side effect.