336/Melancholy and Magic Secrets

Melancholy and Magic Secrets
Date of Scene:	11 August 2023
Location:	Beach
Synopsis:	Naru meets a melancholic Yellow Pearl Voice and hears her out on what is troubling her. At the same time, she receives a lesson on how the magic of the seven pearls and that of the Panthalassa clan works.
Cast of Characters:	Coco Kiumi, Naru Osaka

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Coco Kiumi has posed:
Despite the fact they scored a pretty good win against the Circus Witch with minimal casualties, Coco isn't in as good a mood as that would entail, the grating music she heard throughout reminding her of the Dark Lovers and how she came up to be in their grasp, and so at the earliest convenience she ran to the sea, the impulse to be as close as possible to her homeland swallowing her up.

The mermaid princess is staring melancholically at the sea, sitting upon a rock as memories of her kidnapping resurface once more, and with them Sara, her best friend that became darkened by grief and gave Coco up to the King of the Deep Seas. Many thoughts show up in Coco's mind, but the main one is how to get Sara away from there and help her heal from the sorrow that is consuming her.

'Sara, do you still think about the happy times we had together?' Coco pleas at the sea, as if the small waves could bring her an answer. She shakes her head, knowing that to be essentially impossible, addressing a sardonic smile to herself. 'It's my fault for being unable to help her when she needed it, what kind of friend am I for failing to do something that essential?'

Naru Osaka has posed:
The beach is quiet down this far away from the hustle and bustle of the boardwalk, few make it down this far, it's not the prettiest chunk of sand. Ideal for a mermaid princess to find a quiet rock to sit and think, and also somewhere for a lone runner to end up as part of her route.

Late afternoon isn't Naru's usual time for a run, generally she sees sunrises rather than sunsets when she's running, but today just didn't work out that way. She is easily recognizable as classmate and sometimes co-combatant, even in running shorts and shoes, a loose t-shirt and with her ear buds in. The pouch around her waist probably holds ID and other such bits and bobs, as well as a small water bottle.

Naru slows a little as she spots someone watching the water, and slows even more as she recognizes the figure. "You alright?" She reaches up to remove an ear bud, such that she can actually hear the reply.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco is shaken out of her reverie when Naru starts addressing her. She looks towards the source of the voice, making a smile appear on her face as she recognises her interlocutor. "Oh, hi, it's fine, it will go away soon", she replies. "How are you doing? I hope you have been safe recently." She goes back to look at the sea, the sunset staining it with its orange glow that is so close to the light of Sara's orange pearl.

"I was thinking about a friend", she confesses, the words flying out of her mouth as if by instinct. "She went through a hard time, and due to my inability to help her, she is now colluding with our enemies instead of fighting them with us." She taps against the rock with her open palm, inviting Naru to sit down. "You don't have to stay though, but if you want to listen, you could make yourself comfy." The other hand shows Naru her E-Pitch microphone.

"I suppose you recognise this: the pearl at the center of its head is where my power comes from. There is supposed to be 7 of us, and all together we are unbeatable, but now the King of the Deep Seas has a great advantage since he has Sara with him, and one of us is in his prison too."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Just come from a fight?" Naru asks as she comes closer, pulling out her other ear bud as well. She perches on the rock at the invitation, listening.

There's a soft mmm and a nod at the expliantion. "That's rough, I'm sorry to hear that." She is thoughtful a moment, looking at the microphone and nodding about the pearl. "It's not uncommon, I don't think. People sometimes have to spend some time doing the wrong things before they properly sort out what the right things are. She might be doubting her choices and watching the water right now, thinking of you."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"She is watching the water for sure", Coco cracks a joke, trying to lighten up the atmosphere. "That's all the King of the Deep Seas' palace is surrounded by. "And I don't think she is doubting her choices, she and Gaito, the King, have found comfort in each other's pain and company."

She sighs before continuing: "Gaito wants revenge for having been sealed in his palace by Aqua Regina." She is still pushing her smile onto her face as she keeps explaining. "Aqua Regina is the goddess of the seas, and the one from whom the 7 pearls originate." Her smile lightens up a little, the cherished memory of the kind mother providing her a bit of comfort.

"The records say that 2 to 3 centuries ago, when the warmongering parts of the Panthalassa Clan sought to conquer the seven oceans, Aqua Regina sealed them away at the cost of the vast majority of her strength."

She gives a pause to gather her thoughts, as she is revealing something quite disheartening. "Gaito is a descendant of the Panthalassa and is trying to gather the 7 pearls. With the powers of both the Panthalassa and that of the pearls at his disposal, he would be able to enact his revenge and overthrow Aqua Regina, conquering the world in the meantime."

Naru Osaka has posed:
There's a little laugh from Naru. "Alright, fair.. but you're not in her head. Just because she gives all the outward appearances of being very happy with her choice to be with the King, there might yet be doubts. I cannot imagine you nip off to the palace on the regular to have a chat with her."

A quiet tsk from Naru at the mention of the King's plans. "It's generally either conquering or destroying, I swear that evil is just not at all creative."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco nods at Naru's comment. "That's true, though it's not like I would be able to reach the palace to begin with. It's both concealed, and always moving. The only way for me to get news about him is from here, since he has struck an alliance with the evil people of this city. That, or wait for him to send the Dark Lovers or the Black Beauty Sisters out, which he will probably do soon since he needs my pearl too. The former are his personal servants, the latters mercenaries."

She is starting to get calmer now, talking with somebody about it having given her a sense of sympathy. "No, it's not at all original: it's the same goal of his ancestors, back when there weren't just a handful Panthalassa spread all over the world."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I'm pretty sure it's the goal of most of the evil factions." Naru leans back on her hands on the rock, watching the waves splash. "I'm also pretty sure they all work together, which actually is a little surprising. I don't usually think 'cooperation' when I think evil factions, but here we are."

Naru glances sidelong. "You know that even if the King sends out Dark Lovers, or Black Beauty Sisters, you won't have to defend yourself alone, right?" She is quiet a moment and then wonders. "So have you had magic since you were little? I assume it was something you were born into?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco listens to the sound of the wind mixing with that of the waves, looking down towards the far away water. "I wouldn't be surprised if they are going to backstab each other once they have nothing more to gain from their alliance", she replies in agreement.

Coco turns towards Naru with a smile once she hears her comment. "Yes, that's true, thanks. There are lots of reliable people here that I have fought alongside." When it comes to Naru's question, the mermaid princess hesitates. "Yes, that's just about right: the Yellow Pearl and me are essentially one and the same, we have been tied together since my birth." What she doesn't say is that the yellow pearl is literally where she was born from, its magic responsible for generating a new mermaid princess the Tuesday following the disappearance of the old one.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Generally once the bad guys start fighting each other, that's the sweet spot." Naru agrees pragmatically. "One just has to actually get to that spot."

A soft chuckle and a nod. "Probably a couple unreliable people who mean well, but are still getting themselves together." Naru flashes a smile and then settles to listen. "And the seven pearls? Are they all different colours and have people born to them?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco looks at Naru surprised. "You are really insightful, aren't you? About us being born to the pearls, I mean, though yes, each of us is a different colour. Apart from mine, there are also the pink, blue, indigo, purple, green and orange pearls, and each of them in the event of the owner disappearing, the relevant pearl start generating her successor as soon as its assigned day of the week comes around."

Feeling a itch next to her ear, she uses a hand to move her hair back a bit. "It's Monday for the pink pearl, Tuesday for the yellow pearl, Wednesday for the blue pearl, Thursday for the indigo pearl, Friday for the purple pearl, Saturday for the green pearl and Sunday for the orange pearl."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"It's a knack." Naru confirms with a shrug at the notion of her insightfulness.

Her smile is warm. "So do you have a fondness for Tuesdays? Is it a day of good fortune for you?" She mms softly. "What colour is Sara's pearl?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco smiles back with just as much warmth. "I am sure if I would say it's a day of good fortune, I have never thought of it like that until now, but I do have a fondness for it."

The mermaid princess looks back to the setting sun once Naru asks her question. "She is the princess of the orange pearl", she states bluntly.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"So if we run into someone with an orange microphone, calling herself Orange Pearl, we need to at least check to see if she's still on the wrong team. Got it." Naru nods firmly. "I'm a fan of letting people get themselves back on track."

Naru is thoughtful again. "So.. forgive the odd question. You live underwater then.. like.. on earth? In like an underwater city of normal.. well legged people? Somewhere else? Mer-people?" She offers out suggestions on what life under water could be like.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"You can also distinguish her because turning to the darkness coloured her hair black. As you can see from my case, our hair is supposed to be the same colour as our pearls in the majority of circumstances."

Coco stops here because Naru is treading a path that has her tongue-tied. "Well, I do live underwater", she says tentatively. "I suppose I can say that my normal form is quite a bit different from this."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Wow.. double agents must have a really hard time, if you are colour coded." Naru hunhs softly. "Super awkward to turn up at the Evil Incorporated meeting with orange hair when it's supposed to be black."

Naru pauses and then glances over. "Alright, so something I just said make you super wary and a little uncomfortable. Should I poke at it, or leave it be?" She asks, apparently quite comfortable with actually talking such things out. "Although if you have tenticles in your normal form, I am going to be /so jealous/. They look like a ton of fun."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The comment about the double agent makes her laugh. "I suppose so. Impersonating Pink Pearl Voice would be especially amusing since this generation got born with blonde hair and blue eyes."

Coco stops speaking for about half a minute when Naru addresses her reluctance. "Well, the question you asked is quite complicated", Coco admits, turning her gaze down. "I don't have tentacles, but you could say that there is like an enchantment preventing me from revealing it to humans. Even being touched by the gift of magic isn't an exception. I would literally dissolve into foam if I broke it."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Ahh.." Naru nods slowly as Coco slides the conversation around the restrictions. "That is a shame about the tenticles, but a girl can't have everything, I suppose."

Naru mms softly. "So you can't say anything, but if someone guesses, you don't evaporate, I'm hoping? Cause if guessing is a problem, then I'm going to keep all of my speculations to myself, as I would prefer you not dissolve. That's even more awkward then the hair thing."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"No, others guessing it won't hinder me, luckily. My roommate found out on her own."

Coco raises an eyebrow in confusion at Naru's last sentence. "Why is the pearl dictating my colours awkward? I thought you would have found awkward the fact I am born from a pearl, not my colour expression."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"ah.. no no.. That's my phrasing being confusing. It was a comparison, and a poor one, about two different things that would both be awkward. Hair colour as a double agent.. that would be awkward, but dissolving is even more awkward." Naru tries to explain and then laughs softly. "My bad, that one's on me."

"Mermaid then?" Naru picks one guess and tries it on, she's got about a fifty-fifty shot of it being right. "And who is your roommate?" She pauses and then notes. "You don't need to answer that, if you dont want me to sort out who your mundane identity is. That's up to you."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"I'm sorry, that was my misunderstanding", Coco apologies.

"No, I don't mind it. I can tell you directly. My name is Coco, and since you have guessed it yourself, I am the mermaid princess of South Pacific Ocean. Nice to officially meet you, Naru. As for my roommate, her name is Cho Konishi."

In a mild yellow light, Coco is back to her everyday appearance and the pearl goes back inside the shell necklace. She stops there, not mentioning her roommate's magical identity, since that's her secret to talk about.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru smiles warmly. "Pleasure to meet both halves of you, Coco." She folds her hands to give a tiny bow, as suits the conversation, but her eyes sparkle with delight. "I don't think I know Cho, or not well at least."

"If you need someone to block the door when you have a bath, let me know." Naru grins. "Cause I'm going to guess that you are really fond of water."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"She is a really nice person, I am sure you will enjoy meeting her", Coco smiles widely, her mood bounds and leaps better than when Naru first met her.

"Yep, I love swimming and being in water", she confirms enthusiastically. "If I had to compare it to something you could understand, it's like being able to walk around after having to sit down for hours on end. And thank you for your help, I really appreciate it."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Glad to sit and chat a while>." Naru lifts her ear buds. "You look a little less morose, and I should get back to my run. Thank you for explaining that all to me, Coco. I really appreciate it." Naru pushes herself up off the rock, stretching a little to get the muscles limbered up for the rest of her run, now that she has been sitting for a while. "Take care.. see you back at school."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco smiles, getting up herself. "I am really feeling a lot better, thank you for hearing me out, you have been really helpful. I will go back to my dorm, then. See you at school." With that, Coco waves at the jogger and starts walking back to the dorm.