1863/Jimono Lurking: The Jobi Job

Jimono Lurking: The Jobi Job
Date of Scene:	14 August 2024
Location:	Juuban Ward
Synopsis:	The Azabujuuban Noryo Matsuri is once again under attack by gthe fiend of denim! It's up to Kuiper Belt Cape (The Slasher), Onihime, Cure Suzhen, She-Ra, and Rocket Girl Red to save the day from the dreaded JLAME JUKATA JOBI! Luckily for everyone, the Meanie Dokas hate crimes against fashion almost as much as they hate cheating vending machines, and their X-Paradise is a perfect place to contain this battle against fashion evils.
Cast of Characters:	Usagi Tsukino, Kureha Senkenzan, Taro Yamada, Adora Rainbowfist, Amanda Faust, Madoka Kaname, Yaling Yao

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Usagi Tsukino has posed:
August in Juuban Ward means one thing - well, it means many things, actually, but in this case it means one thing in particular - the Azabujuuban Noryo Matsuri!

Hosted by the Azabujuuban Shopping Arcade T this time of year for 58 years running, this summer festival might have started today, but it will spread out over the next two weekends. Situated along the main path between the Azabujuuban and Roppongi Hills stations, the matsuri path is lined with local shops as well as traditional markets from all over Japan coming together with booths, hawking wares and inviting sales.

All around are the sounds of people, the chime of traditional bells and windchimes, the music of nearby performers, participating in traditional summer comedy shows. Lining the street are stalls selling traditional crafts, stalls selling masks and keychains with anime characters, not to mention plenty of food stalls, with everything from shaved ice to yakitori. Alongside these stalls are stands featuring games for everyone to enjoy!

The Azabujuuban Noryo Matsuri has one other key feature - it always takes place near the end of Obon, giving an opportunity for people both local and foreign to come together in sending on the honored dead and enjoying the peace of summer. That's one reason the majority of people are wearing yukata - and it's also one reason that most people are prepared for the obon-odori dance that will take place surrounding a large stage, erected for performances, and, to facilitate the dance.

While most people will dance beside the stage, local miko and festival organizers will lead the dance atop it! Won't that be fun?

Surely, nothing could possibly go wrong on this warm summer evening.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi's in a pale pink yukata, patterned with hot pink and deep blue sakura flowers, depicted blowing as if in the wind. Her dark blue obi matches it perfectly, and her odango are wrapped in pink ribbons, with silver-white sakura blossom clips.

She'd been with several friends, earlier today, but they've split off into groups to explore more of the festival. Surely, now that they've defeated the evil of the Jukata, there's nothing to worry about!

"Hey, try this!" She's shoving a stick of tanghulu, mixed strawberries and grapes suspended in sugar, at Adora. "I'm glad you made it! I told you this would be a great time!"

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    Obon is an event with a particularly strong meaning for Kureha Senkenzan. Most of its meaning is something she wouldn't make a public show of, though. No, her visit to the ancestral Senkenzan estate in Kyoto took place earlier in the month, and paying respects to her mother happened in private as well. But naturally, her father wants her to be out in public for at least some of it, to put on a show of how the Chikafuji family is a good, upright, traditional family. It means hobnobbing with a lot of her father's business partners and acquaintances, and even one or two cousins.

    In short, it means being a showpiece for Hozan, yet again. But even with her most uptight attendant shadowing her every move, Kureha can't say she's not enjoying the night at least a little. It may surprise others to see how she's doing so, though.

    She's dancing.

    Two years ago, this would have been out of the question. One year ago, she had just 'found her legs' and still didn't have the confidence to put herself out there. But this year, Kureha has joined the Bon Odori, moving in among the crowd with grace, poise, and confidence in a very expensive-looking yukata.

Taro Yamada has posed:
Taro Yamada has no graves to sweep here. He had grown up in Fukuoka, after World War II had rendered his mother's hometown near unihabitable; in the decades since he had run away, he has lost track of what happened to his mother, his cousins, his aunt. Maybe they're still alive, or maybe they moved, or maybe they were lost at sea. there's no way for him to know.

He'd scrubbed himself raw before he came, but he'd still stood frozen at the path to the shrine, staring at the ladle in the washing pool like it would bite him. It was inappropriate to visit a shrine while covered in blood, and his powers were blood; would any amount of soap and water make him clean enough to cross beneath a tori?

- so he left. So he transformed into his wicked, wretched state, the monster that towered a little over six feet over most of the children here - bought an oni mask - was running wild with strings on his fingers and his wooden doll Dory dancing in her white yukata and Noh mask.

He was her opposite in a black yukata embroidered with brilliant red oleander and sunflowers, taking bites of his chocobanana on a stick as children gathered around and screamed excitement at the sight of a dancing doll. (Their memories would put her on strings when the Veil washed over them. It was sufficient, to let her bask in their praise.)

"Usagi-san! You're here too?" he calls out, waving - and to everyone who's got an eye for it, obviously magical in this storm of normies.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Of course not, nothing at /all/ could go wrong on this warm summer evening. After all, Adora Rainbowheart is out in a red-and-orange moon rabbit yukata, having been dragged out by Usagi to get her to focus on something /other/ than schoolwork and also the fact that she was in a new world. Which is weird. But also... there were a lot of interesting things at this little festival. Comedy shows! And various different crafts! And shaved ice! Also Usagi.

The stick of tanghulu is shoved at Adora and she actually leans in to just take a bite, rather than taking the stick itself. "Mm! ...That's tasty!" She pauses. "Thank you for inviting me! I uh. ...My brain was starting to melt from all of the japanese from the japanese classes." One can almost see the swirly-eyed look from Adora after that comment on japanese. Ohgosh. So much schoolwork. Ami is helping a lot but it's so much to catch up on.

"...So what's this big party for?" She asks towards Usagi curiously. "Even Bright Moon's parties weren't usually this big." When Taro approaches, she actually shifts briefly into a somewhat defensive form. ...But then he calls out and waves to Usagi-San and seems... less than... aggressive. At least for the moment. "...Uhm. Hi?"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy is dressed in a white-and-blue yukata with stars on it. It is the first piece of clothing she actually went out properly clothes-shopping and bought for this body, so she's eager for an excuse to wear it again.



    She does feel a bit lost, though, until she can find some familiar faces. She comes out of the crowd approaching two of her friends. "Usagi! T--" she stumbles over her words, and almost over her feet. The Slasher's dolls are visible. Does Usagi *know*? "Um. Hi!" She smiles and waves to both of them, offering hugs and dodging which name to call Taro.

    "Adora, hi! Long time no see! Glad to hear you're doing better now!"

    "So what is this um, dance thing about?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    One tiny little X-Chara pokes her head out from behind a nearby bench. Another joins her, looking at the crowds with a confident smirk. A third takes a peek, scanning the area before the three of them duck back down to conspire.

    "So... do we want to drain them, or do we just want to hang out and eat snacks?" asks Gretchen to her two cohorts.

    Tia twirls her parasol around and says, "Can't we just enjoy ourselves? I want to dance too!"

    Rens stretches her tiny fairy arms and says, "I think we've worked hard enough. Our victory is inevitable, so there's no need to rush."

    Gretchen considers, then nods. "Okay, but if we're just going to play then..." The Witch fairy opens a multicolored dark portal and hurries the other two X-Chara inside. A moment later they all shuffle back out wearing tiny fairy-sized yukatas. "See? This is better."

    Tia twirls around and smiles as she shows off. "Yay! Thanks, Gretchen-chan."

    Rens examines herself for a moment and says, "Yes, this will be sufficiently festive."

    With that, the three little dark fairies fly up and away, above the dancers and the stalls so that they don't get bumped into by people who can't see them.

Yaling Yao has posed:
"This is sooo delicious", Yaling smiles widely, having just taken a bite out of a candied apple. She is wearing a green Yukata decorated with the motif of thunder and lotus flowers, while her obi belt is a dark orange. Her short braided hair is decorated by a white hairpin shaped like a breeze.

"I love the festive occasions. Hey, do you want some, BaiBai?", she asks, bringing it closer to the white snake around her neck. "It is a nice atmosphere", the fairy agrees, biting into the apple. "The fact tradition is still so strong to this day, it is really a joy to see that some things just don't change."

"Yes, yes, try not to lose yourself down memory lane", Yaling grins, affectionately patting BaiBai. "At least, wait until the festivities are over, else you are going to miss all the fun. Hey, look at those wind chimes!", she yells, rushing over to the shop, with the clatter of wood sandals against the stone path. "Don't run, else you are going to...", BaiBai starts warning her before it's too late and Yaling loses her balance and faceplants into the stand.

"I am fine, I am fine", she smiles, massaging her forehead. "1 wind chime, please", she tells the surprised seller, who processes her purchase with a strange look. "Cho-chan is going to love this!" she raises the wind chime proudly.

"Hey, Amy-san, hi! Who are you with?", Yaling asks, looking at Usagi. "I am Yaling Yao, nice to meet you", she waves at the blonde girl.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Adora takes just a single bite of the tanghulu, catching several fruits, and Usagi shrugs and eats the rest of the stick herself. Indirect kisses don't count unless it's her fiancé calling them out as attacks, apparently!

"No worries, I know exactly what that's like! Especially when Ami-chan's in charge of the study session, she can get really... assertive when it's time to study."

The exams! The studying for the exams! Radiant Heart is an elevator school, why did she even have to take high school entrance exams?! But she had, and they had been truly frightful.

"So this is the annual summer festival - the Noryo Matsuri hosted here in Azabujuuban! Today is the last day of Obon - you might have heard it called Bon too - which is a time to - oh, Kuiper-kun!"

This is because there's the Slasher, now dubbed Kuiper Belt Cape, waving, with adorable little Dory dancing around, and then Amy is walking up too, and Usagi gives her yukata an appreciative look -

"Adora-chan, Amy-chan, this is Kuiper Belt Cape, a totally Normal Man. He's got a grandson who goes to our school," she knows the truth, but that story lives forever now, sorry!

Wait.

"Amy-chan, have you been living in Japan for a whole year without knowing about Obon, or the obon-odori?!"

What a perfect time for Yaling to walk in on them.

"Hi! Usagi Tsukino! I was just telling uh, Adora-chan and Amy-chan, about Obon, and the obon-odori - basically, it's a community dance, to welcome the souls of our ancestors, and please them before they leave again. It's the last day of Obon, so they're going on again, and we want to make sure they have a good time, and see that we're well!"

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    The large dance can only go on so long before a break, and as it ends, Kureha makes her way out of the crowd, first locating her minder for the evening, then inclining her head towards the gathering of familiar faces. Shortly thereafter, the two approach Usagi, Kuiper Belt Cape, Adora, Amy, and Yaling. "Good evening, Tsukino-san, Faust-san. It's good to see you both." There's a glance around at the others, and then the girl adds in a tone even more formal than Amy and Usagi usually hear from her, "And I do not believe that we have met previously. I am Senkenzan Kureha, daughter of Chikafuji Hozan. This is my attendant, Yozakura. It is our great pleasure to make your acquaintance."

    Both Kureha and Yozakura bow formally - the latter somehow managing to look exceptionally prim and proper while doing so. Her expression is neutral, but there's a faint sense that she's silently judging you. Yes, you. Personally.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"I've been recruited to the Cause of Good by the valiant efforts of Sailor Moon, Lunar Knight, Puella Red and the honorable Daifuku," the former Slasher says loyally, bowing to the girls; credit has to go where it's due!! Nevermind that two of the four people he's mentioned are HERE; he's not giving up anyone's secret identity easily!

he's been watching the dancing with tenative interest, but lets himself be drawn away by Usagi and friends.It's beautiful, but it makes his chest ache.

"Obon is similar to the English Halloween and All Saints, where offerings to the dead are paired with festivities and ghost stories," he tells Amy. And to Adora - he splays his hands, showing nothing but the strings that Dory the doll is (allegedly) attached to and strange vertical scars on his palms - a show of him being unarmed. (not. not that he's really unarmed, since he's made of knives, but it's not like he's planning on showing her that unless there's danger. and what kind of jerk would attack during Obon??)

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen, Tia and Rens notice Usagi and Amy gathered with a few others that they either don't know that well or don't know at all, and they duck behind a stall sign in order to spy on the group. Rens peers at them and frowns thoughtfully. "Is that ophidian magical? It seems magical to me."

    Tia hms. "It must be. Otherwise the crowd would be reacting more, I should think."

    Gretchen squints at the crowd then looks at the other festival-goers. "Well, we're probably fine as long as Usagi-chan's cat doesn't show up. She's a narc."

    So saying, the three X-Chara avoid the magical group for the moment, instead deciding to relieve some stall of their traditional snacks...

    ... and also make sure that an appropriate amount of yen 'mysteriously appears' where it should. They're not petty thieves. It's just hard to do business when you're invisible to non-magicals.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Amy gets a polite smile and little wave from Adora. "...Hi! It's complicated but I don't know you now but yes I think that the Adora you're talking about is doing better now. It's nice to meet you, I'm Adora Rainbowfist." She gives a bit of an awkward half-bow, half-salute towards Amy. Don't ask, she's not good at this socialness thing yet. She's trying though! And her town is friendly, though a little awkward. Re-meeting people is always weird.

"It's a feh-stih-vahl, I've been told." Adora comments towards Amy, overly trying to make festival sound fancy and smart. Out of the corner of her eye, there was something... flying over the festivities? Huh. Well, the magic /is/ pretty well hidden, she supposes. They're probably just out to enjoy the party, too. If she knew anything about the situation, she might be more cautious, but mostly it's just kind of cute to see them flying around.

Yaling Yao also gets one of those awkward bow-salutes. It's just Adora's 'nice to meet you' at this point, honestly. "Hello. I'm Adora, nice to meet you too, Yaling!" ...She's not trying to be rude, she just isn't used to japan yet. "Your partner is very pretty, too." Adora reaches her hand out towards BaiBai in that kind of offered to let her smell her hand kind of way, close enough to let the snake move in, but not too close as to touch her without her permission. She's slightly better with animals than she is with people. Probably thanks to She-Ra.

Indirect kisses don't count between friends, right?! ... But also Adora isn't thinking much about it, it's food, sharing food is just a good way to show friendship, right?! "She's actually been making sure I take good breaks too, otherwise I'd have probably had my brain melt out of my head." Adora says with a soft, if awkward laugh. There is a such thing as over-applying herself apparently. "Oooh... I see... the Noryo Matsuri..." Yeah she has no idea what that is still but it's fine because Kuiper Belt Cape is being introduced. Adora gives another one of those awkward bows towards him. "Hello Kuiper Belt Cape. I'm Adora." Oh gosh so many introductions.

And then Obon is actually explained. "Oooh... so kind of a dance to remember and honor your family. That's neat." Of course, she's an orphan so it immediately makes her feel a slightly odd disconnect since she doesn't know any of her ancestors. Also they might have been terrible people? It's complicated. "So... joining in the dance is a good thing, then. I see!"

Kureha and Yozakura appear! And this time Adora actually gets her bow right-ish. Mostly because she's mimicing them. "Hi! My name is Adora Rainbowfist, it's nice to meet you uhm. Senkenzan, Yozakura." Yeah eventually she'll figure out the -san thing. Probably. ...She'll probably forget it. ...She's terribly informal. Also shrinking slightly under the judging gaze of Yozakura. Ohgodwhatdidshedowrong?!

...Multiple things. She did multiple things wrong.

Kuiper explains his recruitment, and Adora gives a small nod. "Ah, okay! I see! ...Uhm. I only really know one of those people but she seemed pretty good when I met her before." Adora says with a nod. Yes, complimenting the person she's with. No, it's not intentional. When Kuiper explains that Obon is like Halloween and All Saint's, Adora gives a small nod. "Ah! Okay! I see!"

...

She leans in towards Usagi to whisper, "What are Halloween and All Saint's?"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Totally Normal Man. Amy gives Totally Normal Man a curious look, quirking an eyebrow. She can put together who the 'grandson' must be, but how much does Usagi know, and come to think of it she didn't say Taro's grandfather, so wait a minute how did that cover story even happen unless he was wearing a mask before, has he managed to pretend the Slasher is also just magic-aware and also always wearing a mask?

    A mask which, come to think of it, corresponds to Taro's ideal form. Hmm.

    Fortunately, Kuiper Belt Cape explains -- slightly -- and also namedrops Amy's alternate identity so Usagi knows he knows it. At least, that's her interpretation of it...

    And he explains Obon, and she nods, and Usagi calls her out for not knowing about Obon. She looks embarassed. "Actually, several years, but I didn't get out mu--"

    She turns and blinks at Yaling. Another thing to be embarassed about! "I was supposed to bring a date? Uhhhhhh..."

    Fortunately, Usagi provides an explanation of Obon. Amy nods, "So we're performing a Sending for the Fayth. Got it." She smiles a little to indicate she's joking with her reference.

    She looks to Kureha and nods, "Good to see you, too. ...Wait, did you say 'attendant'? Um, are you rich or something?"

    And. It's complicated and Adora doesn't know her but the other Adora is doing better? Amy looks like she's trying to puzzle that out, but at the introduction she smiles. "Amanda Faust, Amy for short." And she starts to bow but almost immediately shifts it towards a curtsey this time, then stands and holds out her hand for a handshake. "Nice to meet you!"

    It's a feh-stih-vahl. "Yes. I'm from this planet." Amy smiles, well-meaningly trying to save Adora the trouble of explaining the feh-stih-vahl. "But not from this culture, and... well, I guess a lot of us around here have something complicated going on."

Yaling Yao has posed:
"Ah, really? I see, I see", the green-haired girl nods at Usagi's explanation after bowing to her when she reciprocates the in. "You got it right, but really, Amy-san, have you really asked nobody? It's a very joyous occasion. You really don't want to make your ancestors sad while they are visiting, you know?" she tells the redhead.

BaiBai looks at Adora's hand before gently pushing against it. She is keeping up the illusion of being a normal pet even if the current subject makes it a bit pointless. That's even more pointless when she feels the subtle magical energy of the Meanie Dokas, raising her head to look at their direction. They don't seem mean-spirited despite being dark fairies, so no need to break the facade on their account. "Hello, Adora-san, Kureha-san", Yaling bows at the two of them.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Joining in on the dancing is a good thing! Though, probably none of us will be as good as Kureha-chan," this, as said girl joins them! Usagi bows politely to both Kureha and her attendant, "You were incredible."

As everyone introduces themselves, Usagi leans to answer that whisper - as best as she can, anyway. "The first one's a holiday where you dress up in costumes and get candy, it's from a different country," Usagi whispers back. "The second one is French! My friend Adrien can tell you about it, I'll introduce you."

All around them is the sounds of the festival, the scents of food on the wind, and there's plenty of joy to be had.

But something sinister lurks. Months ago, a certain item was made, born of a bet and curiosity. It was loathed, that creation, for it was an abomination! But it lived, regardless, and Dark Energy seeped through the air, making it real, making it alive. The Sailor Team have defeated it twice now - including once, just an hour ago come on - but still, it lives.

That being has evolved, strengthened by its fights against the dreaded magical girls! Now, it is no longer Jimono... it is no longer even Jukata!

Now, it is JLAME JUKATA, GRANDSON OF JIMONO.

And silently, it moves through the crowd, it's jlame jobi (jean flame, jean obi)body extending forth and winding about innocent festival-goers, dragging them into the darkness of alleyways! With every bit of energy it drains, every bit of fabric it transforms, it grows, regaining strength.

It's hard to tell what's happening at this point, unless you're the Meanie Dokas, floating above, but throughout the crowd it moves, faces disappearing and launched into the darkness, their muffled cries drowned out by the festival noise!

One struggling civilians, a shopkeeper who was marveling at the sudden appearance of yen just as snacks disappeared, manages to get out a scream of shock as he's dragged into the darkness of a nearby alley.

"No way," Usagi says, looking horrified, "That wasn't a scream, right? There's no way this festival gets attacked twice, right?"

WRONG!

Taro Yamada has posed:
"What do you mean, attacked TWICE?" Kuiper Belt Cape snaps to Usagi, then scoops Dory off the ground and onto his shoulder. A small wooden coffin gets tucked into his obi as he pulls his oni mask down, then lets red blades curl around it from his forehead like horns.

"You all, go get help," or go henshin out of sight, either, both. "I'll keep it busy - whatever it is. Usagi, what is it??"

He can see people disappearing, yanked away by an invisible force - but he's not attacking just yet, since he has to make sure whatever it is doesn't get to this group before they henshin or run. Besides, he's no good in a fight if he gets disappeared!

(And if Jlame Jukata gets close, he'll attack it with a long red blade from his palm!)

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    "Thank you," Kureha replies to Usagi, bowing her head gratefully. Meanwhile, Yozakura regards Amy with the very faintest of arched eyebrows. "Kureha is the daughter of Chikafuji Hozan, head of the Chikafuji Family and owner of the very successful and influential Chikafuji Group." There is a slightly awkward pause, wherein Kureha adds with a faint tinge of confusion, "You have already met one of my other attendants, Chisa." And of course, by 'met', Kureha silently means 'helped to rescue'.

    Both Kureha and Yozakura immediately look towards the sound of a scream. Yozakura looks a touch alarmed. "...if someone is causing issues at this festival, I do believe it is time for us to leave, my lady." Kureha looks up at her and gives a simple, solid nod. "I concur. Yozakura, please have the car prepared. I'm going to check on cousin Natsumi." The attendant blinks. "A-are you certain? Natsumi and her mother can manage-" Kureha cuts across instantly. "How would it reflect on the Chikafuji if we do not look after our own?" There is a faint, hesitant nod before the attendant turns to go. "...A-as you say. Please be swift."

    Kureha gives Usagi and Amy both a very significant look, and then heads off to get lost in the crowd.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
     "It's nice to meet you Amy. I uh... I can explain more later if you'd like, since you did know me before. It's just a lot to get into uh." Adora motions at the festival. "Here." And she'd rather focus on the festival than the ridiculously complicated (to her) situation she's found herself in. Yep. Oh good Amy /does/ know she's from another planet. "...My planet had festivals too. I think. Probably." Adora says with an ever-so-slight pout.

And BaiBai presses against her hand, the snake getting an ever-so-gentle stroke from Adora, who gives a little smile towards the snake. It's so pretty! After a moment she pulls her hand away though, so as not to be too awkward in the moment! Especially once Yaling bows. She shifts her hands back in, somewhat slipping them into her yukata. Phew.

And Adora explains Halloween and All Saint's super briefly. "I see! ... The first one sounds pretty great." Because you dress up in costumes and get food. Adora is a simple person, after all.

And then, rather suddenly, the small alicorn known as swiftwind flies in from nearby, just before Usagi comments about the festival getting attacked twice. "Adora, something is going on!"

Fashionably late, of course.

"Yeah, I heard the scream." Adora says in response. "I know how to handle this!" Adora probably has to be grabbed by someone and yoinked out of sight because she has turned the bracer that she had been wearing into the Sword of Power in her hand. "FOR THE HONOR OF GREYSKULL!" Is she SMILING as she runs towards the source of the scream, initiating the transformation into She-Ra as she goes.

A circle of blue energy appearing at her feet as she rather suddenly basically doubles in size and bulk (But not quite height), and then spreads up, making her golden boots appear, her white jumper-with-skirt thing, her golden bracers with gemstones on them, and finally her crown that is accompanied with an explosion of long, amazing hair.

...Yeah she is not good at this 'hiding her identity' thing. Luckily The Veil means that non-magical people will probably forget that she's magical shortly afterwards.

Meanwhile, nearby, her small Alicorn is suddenly a horse-sized Alicorn who is flying above the festival to attempt to pinpoint the exact location of the enemy. Swiftwind is so helpful, right?

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    The troublesome trio feel the Jukata long before they see it. It's actually Tia who senses it first, suddenly feeling a sense of alarm as if something in the air is giving her cause for concern. "Oh dear me... I sense a fashion crime of terrible magnitude!"

    Rens comments, "... Hm. I'm also starting to feel the vague sense of... terror, is it? Truly, such unwise wardrobe choices must be horrible indeed."

    Gretchen floats a little higher and squints, only for her half-masked eyes to widen as she sees people get yoinked out of the crowd. She tugs on Tia's shoulder and points. "I bet it's over there!"

    The three of them float higher, crossing their arms in judgment at the... whatever it is. A flame yukata? Wait, no...

    Tia gasps, her tiny eyes bearing witness to a monstrosity her young and innocent mind can scarcely comprehend. She shrieks.

    "MY GOD! IT'S MADE OF JEANS!"

    Certain that they've been spotted after that outburst, Gretchen looks around at the seemingly magical group she spotted and shouts down to Usagi. She points in the direction of the Jlame Jukata and yells in her tiny voice. "It's over there, and it's not our fault this time!" After a moment she adds, tiny arms flailing, "No but really, we had nothing to do with this. We were just playing!"

    Rens hms as she looks down at the... -thing-. "At this rate we may need to intervene."

Yaling Yao has posed:
"Date?" Yaling looks puzzled at Amy. "I had assumed you two were friends, not all outings have to romantic", she giggles slightly once she catches onto the misunderstanding. "If you have things to say to Usagi-san, I guess you shouldn't leave your feelings unresolved for so long", she leans in closer to whisper to her, taking Amy's response to mean she is interested in Usagi.'

The romantic-eyed girl doesn't really notice the disappearances the crime against fashion, common sense and all that is sacred is causing, not like she really has any affinity for detecting magical energy out of henshin, and she is likewise not noticing the people disappearing. The same doesn't goes for BaiBai, who is far more accostumed to noticing both of those things. "Hey, Yaling, drop that, trouble is brewing", the snake whispers into her protegee's ear.

"Hmm, where?" she mutters before picking up on the disappearances. "Oh, really?!", she frowns at that point. An ethereal jade pipa appears into her hand, the green-haired girl playing it delicately. The wind picks up, softly blowing around her and bringing with itself the fragrance of the lotus. "Wellness, warmth and wisdom from White Snake's gaze! Historic Legacy! Cure Suzhen!" she yells, her clothes changing instantly. "Who dares disrepect the tradition of Obon?", she yells.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    What is Halloween?! Amy's eyes shine, "It's a holiday where you dress up in costumes, and go door-to-door getting candy if you're a kid, or sometimes to parties if you're older! The mythology is that it's the day that ghosts and monsters come out, and so people dress up as monsters so they won't be attacked, but really it's an opportunity for cosplay and candy, and honestly the resulting attitude of harmless fun has given rise to some stories that treat the monsters as friendly and just have them hanging around in a sort of 'Halloweentown' the rest of the year, which I think is a wonderful idea, because I think a world where all kinds of creatures are accepted and live together and have the accomodations to do so sounds like a wonderful place!"

    Anyway, once words are exchanged and Adora offers to explain, Amy nods to Adora. "I guess I can tell you my story another time too, I don't see it as a secret from allies... but yeah, now is festival time." She smiles.

    Have you really asked nobody? Amy looks awkward and embarassed -- but at the comment about making her ancestors sad her expression grows cold. Yeah she can imagine how grandparents and older generations would react to her. Her voice chilled, she utters: "My bloodline ends with me. If they can't be happy for me, their sadness is their own fault." The former assertion is, perhaps, not as forgone a conclusion as she assumes, but that possibility isn't something she tends to think about.

    Neither are romantic relations with Usagi, leaving her staring in confusion at Yaling's followup question. "Um... what?" Me and... Usagi? A mental image starts to form with herself in Ami's place the way she's seen the two together sometimes, but her superego shoves it aside before she can even start to think about if she feels anything about it or not. Nope! She's taken! Don't even go there!

    Although, the thought does helpfully inform her as to how such a misunderstanding could have happened, and she smiles at the humorous realization. "Ohhhhhh. You're thinking of Ami-with-an-I. Ah-mee. I'm Amy-with-a-y, although in Japanese it's pronounced more like Emi, eh--"

    

    But as she's explaining, there's a scream and she turns and looks around. "The festival got attacked last year? What was it that time?"

    Kuiper Belt Cape says to get help. "'Get help' hell, I'm coming with--" she steps after him, and then freezes. "Oh, right."

    FOR THE HONOR OF GREYSKULL!

    Eh screw it -- a ball of fire engulfs Amy's silhouette and then disperses, leaving her transformed.

    Words drift to her over the crowd. "'It's made of jeans'? The hell are we fighting?" She turns to look in that direction but...

    The 4'11" Amy absolutely cannot see over the crowd. "Okay, I guess being short might be inconvenient sometimes." She looks up at Adora, the nearest Tall Person since Kuiper Belt Cape ran ahead. "Do you see whatever it is?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"It's an abomination that should have never existed," Usagi groans, "And no, not last year, I just saw it burn, again, like an hour ago, so I don't know how the stupid Jukata could be back that fast!"

The. WHAT?!

A scream rings out, a young voice full of horror, corrupted by the sight of evil far more than by the pain of being a rejected dream: an obi, the length of a basketball court, made entirely of screams of stitched together denim and jeans. It's slightly torn at the edge, where a rose managed to stab it earlier, but it's sliding along the ground like an abominable snake. It's patterned with embroidery, pale thread weaving wave motifs along the length, wreathed in jlames that don't actually burn, but do smoke with Dark Energy.

As the Meanie Dokas watch, it's side splits, and a smaller jobi emerges to entrap yet another civilian, who, alerted by the earlier scream, is also able to scream, writhe, and kick free -

At the sight of that poor civilian, a girl about their age, more screams ring out, mostly of horror and disgust, for her ordinary skirt and shirt combo have been transformed... into a yukata.

Made of denim. Varying shades of denim, even, with dark blue obis, pale blue at the collar, and a standard blue for the majority of the body. It's also embroidered, with patterns of waves or flowers...

Above these disgusted and horrified screams comes a deep voice, as the jobi's seam splits to form a mouth.

"FOOLS, COWERING IN TERROR," the abomination cries out, "BEHOLD THE NEW, AND REJOICE IN MY COMING! I AM THE ONE, THE IMMORTAL, JLAME JUKATA JOBI!"

The Meanie Dokas are proclaiming their innocence, and Usagi runs off, even as Adora and Amy transform and join Kuiper Belt Cape.

"Don't worry, Gretchan! I know you and your friends are way too cute to ever have anything to do with that fashion disaster!"

And then she's ducking behind a stall and raising her compact!

"Moon Prism Power, Make Up!"

The one and only Sailor Moon emerges on the scene!

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    Clack.

    "As one who treasures traditional clothing and wears a kimono patterned with flames, I am offended by your appearance."

    Clack.

    "As a descendant of oni, I am incensed at your interruption of festival and merriment."

    Clack.

    "Most of all, as one who possesses ears and comprehends words, I am repulsed by the words 'jlame', 'jukata' and 'jobi.'"

    The clacking of wooden sandals stops, and flames dance along Onihime's right hand, fluttering down to the tips of her claws. "I think I would very much like to shred you apart and burn you to ashes. I do apologize if that sounds exceptionally uncouth." She drops into a slightly hunched stance, right arm back, as if prepating to charge. "Youkai Musume, Onihime. Going forth."

    And then the street under her geta cracks as she pushes off, launching herself into a low, forceful leap that hurls her straight at the Jukata for a flaming claw swipe.

Taro Yamada has posed:
What. Is. That.

It's good to have Amy, this new Adora kid in the Lord of the Rings cosplay, a trio of tiny sprites - the white snake girl from the greenhouse fight?? - at his side, because that is. What is that. WHAT IS THAT.

All thoughts of deciphering Amy and Yaling's rambling is gone as he stares at. That.

("Ma, if I found really good cloth, could you make yourself a second kimono? You could show people how good your sewing is, too... What should it look like? Um, sunflowers are supposed to be pretty..." )

Kuiper Belt Cape points at the Jlame Jukata Jobi in a fury, red claws growing from each finger. "Japan has lots of important cultural traditions that have been eroded since Perry first set foot in our harbor! Although modern Japan thrives on innovation with the West, it's important to understand the how and why of our past traditions instead of stealing them!

"Denim is used for it's durability, not it's ability to retain or disperse heat in extreme temperatures! It's inappropriate for both a summer yukata and a winter kimono! If you must become a traditionally Japanese garment, then become a hakama or a kamishimo, which owuld both benefit from the sturdiness and stiffness of your fabric!

"And what's all this random nonsense you've got embroidered onto you? There's no kigo, no wabi-sabi, not even a consideration of a consistant color scheme, you hack! A summer garment should have summer flowers! You can't just wander into a festival with all the tacky bullshit of one of Douglas MacArthur's flunkies!

"In the name of Obon, I shall punish you!"

And with that, he snarls and leaps forward - great red blades springing from his palms and up from his arms to slice through the denim of the court-sized balloon like a flurry of razor sharp oleander petals.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen actually seems somewhat relieved that she and her crew will not be blamed for this terrible crime against taste. They have a reputation to uphold, and that rep does not involve being poorly dressed. Then she crosses her arms and looks down in judgment upon the clothes-changing jukata as it spreads its Curse of Denim across the innocents.

    "Dummy!" she shouts at the abomination. "Look how cute are! You stand no chance!"

    Wait... does Gretchen think that power scales with cuteness? Either she has no clue how magic works, or she actually knows it very well.

    Tia brandishes her parasol with a flourish. "We'll put a stop to your terrifying trend!"

    Rens plants her tiny hands on her tiny hips and declares, "Such an abomination will not be suffered in our new paradise!"

    Gretchen blinks, and then turns back to Rens. "Actually... that may not be a bad idea." Raising one arm into the air, she shouts, "WAKE LABYRINTH!"

    The magical landscape wavers and changes as the X-Witch demonstrates her power. Reality itself shifts, replaced by an alternate world where everything looks like it was drawn by crayon on black paper. The civilians are gone, and while there is... a concerning amount of dark energy here, most of it is concentrated within the several tiny biblically accurate Familiars that are now flying around. Gretchen isn't going share her darkness with the enemy this time.

    For what it's worth, despite the gloom and sadness that seems to cover the area, it actually all seems rather peaceful. As long as you ignore the fact that the moon looks like a giant version of Gretchen's weird mask, looking threateningly down at the area below. Also all of the other weird eldritch things floating around, or the fact that seemingly everything has eyes that blink once in a while.

    When Gretchen speaks, it's as if the world itself amplifies her words. "Behold, X-Paradise, your final resting place!"

    After a moment, she clarifies to the magicals. "Not you. Just the monster. We're just killing the monster. It's not actually ready for people to move in yet."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Swiftwind flies over towards Tia at her call out of 'My God! It's made of Jeans!' "Oh hello young lady I see you have located the threat, I, SWIFTWIND commend you!" The alicorn calls out, possibly bringing way too much attention to the faeries, before calling out, "She-Ra! It's over here!"

And then he flies higher again to monitor the situation and see if there was anyone who needed help. Who he would, simmarily, fly down, grab, and fly off to safety.

Swiftwind is nothing if not helpful!

"Over here!" The 8-foot-tall She-Ra calls out as she towers above the crowd, wading through it in that way only a ridiculously tall person can because frankly... people are probably shocked and actively getting out of the way of the giant woman running through the crowd with somewhat-reckless-but-still-careful abandon! Oddly she's managed not to knock anyone over or anything.

Amy had been acknowledged with a, "That sounds fun but also yep, talk more later!" By Adora before she'd run off all willy-nilly into the crowd turning into a giant woman.

And the Jlame Jukata Jobi introduces itself! "AND I AM SHE-RA!" She-Ra replies, running directly towards it with the Sword of Power lifted high. "Haaaaa!" She was told that calling out attack names makes them stronger, so clearly, she has to do so. "SHE-RA SHINING SLASH!" She calls out, as the edge of the blade glows and she swings towards the Jukata, attempting to slice through it, starting at that pre-existing tear point!

...It's not obvious if calling out the name made it stronger.
She's probably not going to stop anyway.

And they are now in the Wake Labyrinth! Thingy! Which is ... probably convenient because all of the civilians are gone! ...Which means they're probably panicking less about the sudden 8 foot tall woman and also the jeans abomination. That's not there either. Once again, the Alicorn swoops over near them, "ONCE AGAIN, SWIFTWIND COMMENDS YOU, YOUNG LADIES!" And then he's off into the sky again.

Yaling Yao has posed:
Yaling doesn't even know who Ami with an I is, let alone the kind of relationship she has with Usagi. And she doesn't really has the time to pay any attention to it now that the Jlame Jobi has shown itself.

"I don't know who you are, but I am Cure Suzhen, an Historic Pretty Cure. I am going to obiject you disrepecting the tradition of Obon, and forcing your crimes against fashion on people is unforgivable!", she exclaims jumping forward against the jobi with a punch at the ready.

"I don't it matters to it, Cure Suzhen. Youmas like this were neither there when tradition was formed, nor have they a shred of culture", BaiBai hisses. "And I have been observing the dark fairies, they have done no harm here", she adds for the rest of the group.

"This is... What is X-Paradise exactly?", Yaling tells the three X-Charas. "It sounds like you are x-ing out people in it. You three need a real image change if you want a paradise."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "The WHAT?" Amy asks, starting to accumulate mental whiplash from jumping from Halloween to ancestors to Usami (Amagi?) to a monster showing up to... the monster is what?

    And then it comes into view. Amy just looks at it like... what? But also frowns at the flames, remembering the paper Witch flames that burned her just fine.

    And it... turned that civilian's yukata into denim. Huh. Denim is something Amy's never really considered, since the only men's jeans she's ever touched were the stiff rough kind, but she does have to admit that like, a denim jacket could look good. Maybe if she wore a long-sleeve shirt under it and the collar didn't touch her neck... eh, sounds like too much trouble.

    And... Taro has actually got something to say about the jukata! Something actually knowledgeable about fabric and fashion! The Jukata has already been destroyed, now they just need to actually defeat it. "I gotta defer to him as the subject matter expert and the Japanese; I will presume I should be as mad as if someone got the blockchain all over Halloween." She frowns. "Yeah I'm mad just thinking about it and I haven't even figured out how yet."

    The red Puella Magi conjures her rocket launcher and...

    Um...

    "...Okay, I think I can burn it, but I'm worried about the flames spreading... eh, I guess I'll just try--!" And she fires exploding shells up at the airborn jobi to see if explosions work. It sounds like fireworks!

    And they're in a labyrinth. A preview of Gretchen's new world! "Hey Gretchen, is this place flammable or do I not have to worry about that?"

    Oh, someone could give out NFTs instead of candy. Yeah, she's even madder at that thought. >:|

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"I AM TRADITION PAIRED WITH MODERNITY," Jlame Jukata Jobi declares, "THERE IS NOTHING TO BE OFFENDED BY, INCENSED BY, OR - AAAAA?!"

The scream, as the flaming claw comes at it, and the Jlame Jukata Jobi (JJJ, to spare me, from now on) writhes in an effort to get away fom Onihime, as she burns and tears, only to get stabbed and slashed at by Kuiper Belt Cape -

And then the Labyrinth spreads, and the enormous jobi is fully revealed in Gretchen's strange land is revealed. It's huge! And it twists it's length to smack Kuiper Belt and Onihime away (or at least, attempt to).

"I AM THE CUTEST," JJJ roars, "I AM THE BEST!"

And it lashes out with thinner, narrow jobi that burst from it's sides, seeking to enwrap them all. The Slasher tears the tiny jobi to ribbons, She-Ra is able to slice another tiny jobi, while Swiftwind avoids one -

Cure Suzhen actually punches right through the jobi that comes after her, and even manages to land a hit directly on JJJ's mouth, provoking another yell.

But Onihime, Puella Red, and the Meanie Dokas are all caught, wrapped in jobi fabric.

...Sailor Moon is caught too, and she shriek with rage. "NOT AGAIN! JAMN YOU, JOBI!"

When the jobi releases them, those who were caught are wearing Jukata! Each patterned in quite nice embroidery, actually - fireworks for Red, bunnies for Sailor Moon, benotafraids for the Meanie Dokas, and a mountain scape for Onihime.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Tia sees Swiftwind and for a moment just gets confused. "U-um. Why thank you!?" She's trying to figure out if this is a friend of Hinoiri's or an entirely separate talking horse, so she looks over to Gretchen with an unspoken question.

    The Witch Chara shrugs and shakes her head. "I don't know him, but he seems alright so I guess we don't have to make fun of him."

    Tia tilts her head, and then shrugs, because the big issue right now is not the tiny friendly horse. It's the jean monster that's ruining their fun!

    Yaling asks what 'X-Paradise' is and Gretchen floats a little closer to her to start explaining. "Well... look. We're X-Chara, right? So it makes sense to call our personal dimension X-Paradise. It's a work in progress but one day it's gonna be really cool and we'll have roller coasters and merry-go-rounds and plushie piles and one day we'll have snacks that don't blink at you."

    Rens takes out a small clipboard and starts tapping it with a pen. "Yes, we still have some bugs to work out, but for the moment it still functions as a damage control method."

    Gretchen hears Amy's question and says, "I mean, it's probably fine? I've already set this place apart to act as a battlefield. It's like a Labyrinth so I'm pretty sure this space will vanish or reset or something the moment I forget about it. If the love beams start flying our way we'll have to go hide, though."

    The Meanie Dokas yell back at J^3, almost in unison, "Nuh-uh! We're the cutest and the best! We're way more cuddly than you!" Sadly, the retaliation against their back talk is swift, as horror strikes. The nice new yukatas that Gretchen made for them with her magic have been twisted, turned, and deformed into the unthinkable.

    Tia looks down at her new clothes, puts her wrist against her forehead, and faints into Rens's arms. "Woe to this jruel, jruel, jorld." The science X-Chara handfans her fancier sister. Gretchen, meanwhile, gets mad and even more grumpy.

    "Listen here, you dummy!" bellows the X-Witch, "We're the Meanie Dokas, and we're bad girls! You shouldn't mess with us, or we'll make fun of how dumb you are!"

    Tia and Rens, in unison, "YEAH!"

    Tia sits up for a moment to add, "We'll make fun of your poor clothing choices!"

    Gretchen and Rens, "YEAH!"

    Rens chimes in, "We'll make fun of your inability to perform differential equations!"

    Gretchen and Tia, "YEAH!"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"You actually seem like you would be kind of okay except you're attacking people so I have to stop you!" Calls out She-Ra in response to the JJJ's roar of being the cutest and best. She doesn't have knowledge of the deep and beloved history of yukata or kimono though. It's fine.

...Also honestly the outfits that it put Red, Sailor Moon, and the little faeries are kind of cute. She-Ra doesn't say as much though, because complimenting your enemies too much is a complicated and dangerous thing to do!

...Nevermind her interactions with Catra.
That's different.

Oh right attacking back. Uh. UUUUUUH. UUUUUUUUUUUUUH. .... Glimmer pops to mind. Naming her attacks after her friends? ... That sounds pretty nice actually.

"GLIMMERING WAVE!"

She-ra swings her sword, attempting to send a wave of rainbow energy towards as much of the main Jobi host as she can manage to, as well as any other incoming jobi reaching towards her.

...The faeries calling out that they're the cutest and the best is adorable. Unfortunately, Adora is in She-Ra form so her reactions are somewhat muted by the magic. Otherwise she'd probably be doing a 'd'awww' in response. She'll do that later. Probably.

"I'm not sure what differential equations have to do with this!" Swiftwind comments, flying around to dodge around the Jobis and the JJJ. ...He's not attacking, just helping She-Ra through emotional support. And the occasional 'She-Ra, watch out behind you!'

Which really is actually pretty helpful.

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    The labyrinth spreads, and Onihime finds herself looking around, then up at the moon, before finally looking over at Gretchen. "I shall not complain. Am I free to use everything within this domain as weaponry if need-"

    A jobi wraps around the fiery oni. "-hwa?!"

    There is flailing, there is struggling - and with her immense strength, it is probably EXTREMELY difficult to keep her restrained. "UNHAND ME- DO NOT TOUCH MY CLOTH- HOW DARE-"

    And then at last, the jobi makes the mistake of withdrawing. Or at least, it certainly tries. But the withdrawing denim dendrite suddenly stops as an immensely powerful hand grasps it. "Oh no. No, no, no. You have started a wrestling match with an oni." Kureha's fire-orange eyes are practically glowing with hostility, and her new jukata is already starting to smolder at the edges as her natural heat ramps up. "You shall not be withdrawing after but a single grapple."

    And then, with strength that could derail a train, the Youkai Musume of Flames plants her feet, pulls on the jobi tendril, grasps with her other arm as well, and then HEAVES. She fully intends to turn this into a massive, tendril-swung over the shoulder slam that should leave a rather nice crater on the other side.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    I AM TRADITION PAIRED WITH MODERNITY. "YEAH." Amy agrees. "That's what people would say if they were giving out NFTs on Halloween! So we are hating you the exact right amount!"

    And then it's grabbed her and she hates it when-- Oh wait, it's not tentacles this time. Does that matter? While she's thinking about it, it changes her outfit and then releases her just as she decides she should still get mad at it.

    And she's left wearing... a fireworks-embroidered jukata?

    More importantly, she looks down at it in surprise and runs her fingers over it. "THIS is denim?!"

    "WHAT the FUCK?!"

    The redhead rants, "My parents only ever got me those crappy jeans! I thought that was--" She turns to Kuiper Belt Cape, while jerking her thumb towards the JJJ. "Is that like, new? Did we not have that kinda denim thirty years ago? Or even twenty years ago? Or did I only get crappy jeans for no reason?!"

    She's a bit distracted from actually attacking. Look, this is like if you found out that brussel sprouts were actually sweet but you only got the bitter kind as a kid. Or that math is actually fun but you were just taught it in the worst way possible to make it SEEM boring. She needs a moment to process.

Taro Yamada has posed:
Kuiper Belt Slasher skitters and bounces off one crayony wall as the barrier and She-ra's attacks hit one after the other; he lands near the three X-Chara's. He dusts himself up, looking up at them; Dory the doll chirps at them and waves.

"She says hi. We love what you've done with the place. The juxtaposition of everything looking like a kid's drawing with all the eyes creates a sense of discomfort, like a child unable to get away from the judging gaze of adults," he says. "I don't really get what you're going for with the monsters yet other than the eye stuff but they do look spooky. If you're bringing in a lot of people to live here, you need to think about how you're keeping them fed and where the bathrooms are. Oh, and garbage disposal, that builds up way faster than you'd expect. You can get away with trash if you're working in an alley, but it'll break the unity of the scene you've created here. You're looking very cute and it's obvious how much work you put into setting all this up."

And with his compliments and advice given, it's back into the fray!

"Do you think you're better than Oda Nobunaga?!" he snarls at Jukata as he stalks back to the fight. "Bringing modernity by force will always result in a backlash ten times greater than the force leveled against it!"

Slash, slash, slash! And he captures the other end of the escaping jobi once Onihime slams it to the ground, pinning its sleeves with his clawed hands - even if it flaps away, it won't be able to escape Sailor Moon and Yaling's attacks!

"You fool....! There is a market for jimonos and jobis, probably in America! Even the most unnatural of beings can find a home in this world! But just think - for every yukata you overwrite, that's six months of embroidery erased in an instant! Some kimonos are decades - no, centuries old, passed down from generation to generation!

"Accept the flames of your Honnoji, Jlame Jukata Jobi! Be reborn as a jimono made with meaning in your Jeiji Restoration!"

Yaling Yao has posed:
"Got it! 1 for me, 0 for the youma. Have you seen that, BaiBai, I actually managed to get it!", Cure Suzhen cheerfully exclaims once her punch sends it back. "Yes, congratulations", the snake pats her overenthusiastic students with the tip of her tail.

"I have just the thing if you don't want people getting incensed, JJJ-Jobi-JJJ", Cure Suzhen tells the youma. "Pretty Cure! Li Shan Drizzle!" Clouds start gathering over the youma as Yaling plays music with her pipa showing up once more, purifying rain falling down. Dampened fabric? That's gonna be a terrible feeling regardless of the purification if it can't protect itself.

"People want traditions to feel connected with the past. You are missing the point if you think you can choose to change them like you please for modernity", the Pretty Cure corrects the youma.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
There's a certain video game in which a certain character can suplex a train. That's about the visual - and the scale of titanic impact - that occurs when Onihime grabs J^3 and wrestles it to the ground with her fists of flaming oni fury!

The ground quakes. The Jobi screams, but it can't get away from her powerful hands, or the heat that roars through, and it's slammed around once, twice, three times, before Kuiper Belt Cape joins into the start slashing.

The Glimmer Wave of energy cuts a third of the length away, leaving the fabric to weakly flail, like a lizard's tail removed.

The slashing hacking blows remove another third, and then starts to shred that third into itty bitty bits, and the Jobi flails like a great snake in the midst of being destroyed, writhing. The jlames spiral, stinging with dark energy, spreading hatred and anger -

From the third being thrashed by Onihime, great eyes of darkness open, glaring at the Meanie Dokas.

"YOU FOOLISH, CUTE, THINGS, SCRAPS OF A HEART SO FULL OF LOVE - YOU WHO REJECT THAT WHICH LOVES YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK TO ME!"

Is it getting philosophical?!

"MY OWN CREATOR LOATHED ME! SHE FAILED TO SEE MY MAJESTY! BUT YOU! I CAN SEE IT! I CAN SEE -"

A purifying rain starts, bringing gentle water down on the jobi, and it writhes, writhes, wriiiiithes -

All three pieces flail and shrink, the voice growing weaker.

"I - CAN - SEE - THE - LOVE - ON - Y - O - U -UUU-"

The eye stays on The Meanie Dokas the entire time.

Eventually, there's just scraps of fabric.

Sailor Moon grumpily wipes at her hands, then drops her henshin. Everyone here actually knows her, so whatever, and as soon as she does, her jukata is gone, replaced by her actually cute yukata.

"Does anyone want to burn those scraps and make sure we really get this thing, this time?"

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    The entire time Onihime is swinging, the denim is smoldering, blackening, burning away. By the time she releases the jobi tendril, her signature flames on black fabric have reasserted themselves, but for a few scraps of ash that she smoothly brushes off. Only once she has fully reclaimed her customary poise, long after the healing rain does away with the youma, does the oni finally turn... to look straight at Kuiper Belt Slasher.

    "'Jeiji Restoration'?"

    Uttering a soft sigh, the oni turns around to face Usagi. "I should be entirely delighted to offer my fire to that purpose." She herself doesn't de-transform; mostly because her flames are still needed, but partly because she'll need to stay in henshin long enough to complete her duplicity towards Yozakura.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen considers Orihime's question, observers her fighting style, and then summarizes her feelings into two words: "You may."

    Rens is about to explain to Swiftwind why differential equations matter, glances down to Usagi and possibly Adora, realizes that this line of reasoning might involve some friendly fire and then backs off with, "You know, actually, it's not that important after all."

    Dory and Kuiper Belt Slasher give feedback and advice on the surroundings and Gretchen takes a moment to consider. "Well, the spooky things are... like... it's complicated. It has to do with potential and godhood and the rejection of such due to seeing higher forms of life as a kind of weird alien thing that can never relate to or be related to by mortals. Some of the imagery is taken from different interpretations of different religions mixed with other imagery from personal experiences and... like it's WAAAY..." and she spreads her arms wide to emphasize just how 'WAAAY' it is, "... too much detail to get into in the middle of a fight."

    "I'll keep the logistics in mind, though. We'll definitely need a snacks zone and a nap zone and private bathrooms and..." She glances at the crowd of her floating little Familiars who are staying far away from this nonsense and observing from a great distance. "... and honestly I just kinda figured that my minions would carry the trash away to recycle it somehow. A world has to have a renewable environment in order to work."

    Tia chimes in, arms crossed, "We'll still expect people to put trash in bins, though! You should be polite to our Familiars even if they aren't really people!"

    As the Jukata yells at her and her sisters, Gretchen frowns a bit more deeply. "What do you know, dummy? What is love worth when they don't understand you? When they don't want to?!"

    The purifying rain causes the ground to sizzle as it hits, causing little puffs of darkness to float up into the air. The ground doesn't erode or vanish, just... gets a bit cleaner and a little bit brighter, as if there's something just below the surface level grime of this reality. The darkness soon moves back in to cover it up.

    The sadness in the area deepens, and Gretchen has half a mind to close down her Labyrinth and kick everyone out, but she relents for one reason and one reason only.

    The job must be finished.

    Tiny little eldritch winged creatures with eyes start swooping down in a way that seems almost chaotic at first and yet, as one watches on, becomes more ceremonious as one after the other tosses a tiny torch onto the scraps. The magic fire looks like crayon, much like everything else, but it burns well enough and adds to what very well might be a growing pyre. Even though these creatures can speak no words that humans would comprehend, there is a somber and respectful air. Even for an enemy. Even for an abomination.

    "I'll keep the Labyrinth up long enough to finish off this thing," says Gretchen. "We're here to honor the dead, so let's put this thing to rest."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    The Jobi just wanted to be cute.

    You know, mood. Amy can't hate it for that. She wishes she could make it something that wouldn't be so hated...

    ...And then it's over.

    Sailor Moon asks to make sure the job is finished this time, and Amy walks towards the scraps, commenting nonchalantly, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I can shoot warcrimes with this thing."

    She stops, and then starts backing up. "Everyone might wanna stand back, actually." She re-summons her launcher and takes aim, and her next shot explodes incendiary material all over the scraps of fabric.

    Then she looks to the meaniedokas. "So um. It's nice to finally see it. But um..."

    She looks around, then shakes her head and shrugs. "Eh, I get it's not ready for prime time. This isn't even a beta, it's a tech demo. He and Dory have some good points."

    She stares off into space, and then looks over at the flames, and then back at the Meanie Dokas. "...Maybe if you could make a world where anyone can be as cute as they want, that'd actually be pretty cool."

    She turns to face the flames. "I know that youma are often not as intelligent as they seem, and it probably couldn't have lived peacefully... but I still feel kinda bad for it."

    Gretchen's words about the aesthetic eventually make it through her brain, and she sighs, and turns and looks up at the X-Chara. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry you've had to deal with that rejection. If we can actually relate to... ascended beings on... what was the word, I know I heard a word for this..." she snaps her fingers a few times. "...'Toposophic levels'? Anyway, if humans can actually relate to ascended beings, I'd love to know this. Otherwise... I understand if this place isn't for me, but for what comes after. It would... I suppose it would be nice for her to not be lonely and friendless."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Honestly as the monster calls out its piece, how its own creator loathed it. She-Ra steps towards the falling remains of the Jukata, beginning to actually gather up the scraps of cloth. "I actually feel kind of bad for it though. It sounds like it's had a pretty bad time. It's not like it wanted to hurt anyone, it just... wanted to spread what it thought was wonderful. Even if it wasn't, well... proper? I guess? I don't know." ... Still, if there was the risk of it reforming.

She won't get in the way of doing what must be done, at the very least, piling up the cloth scraps that she finds.

...And maybe attempting to sneakily pocket one or two scraps.

Oh no, Adora might have doomed us all.

What is love worth when they don't understand you. That's a pretty sad situation to be in, though. Also the ... benotafraids are kind of weirdly cute in their way that they seemed to be respecting the scraps while they burn them? Look Adora might be weird. She does reach to attempt to lightly pet one before walking away with her possibly-pocketed scraps.

Meanwhile, Swiftwind comments, ever-so-helpfully, "Did you try talking to them?"
Yeah, he's probably going to get an earful from Gretchen.

She-Ra, meanwhile, walks over to those who had been gotten by the Jobis. "Are you all okay? I can kind of sort of maybe heal sometimes if you're hurt." It's more of an energy infusion, but still. It's close enough, right?

Taro Yamada has posed:
Kuiper Belt Cape claps his hands together and offers a short prayer to the Jobi. "Poor thing ought to rest in peace rather than in pieces. I'd try and repurpose it into a good outfit, but it's probably too cursed to accept it. We've already had one haunted kimono burn down Tokyo, we don't need another."

Taro. How many people here are going to know a deep cut like the Haunted Kimono Fire of 1657, where a haunted kimono burned down 2/3 of Tokyo?

He looks to Onihime as smoke roils around them. "I was hoping it'd accept judgement if it was phrased in the same words it used. Of course an unwanted thing craves attention; it's probably too much to hope it'd calm down if it got some, but it was worth a shot."

And he looks up to the Dokas as they speak mournfully about Jobi's parting shot. "Gods don't have to be seperate from people. Monsters don't have to be seperate from people, either. If a freak like me can pull it off, then a bunch of cute kids like you could double - no, triple pull it off! Someone will understand you someday, and you'll have fans that will never stop thinking about you!"

And then he asks Amy the thing he has been afeared to ask. "What.... what is an NFT? I don't really know a lot about the breeds of denim, sorry..."

Yaling Yao has posed:
"Your X-Paradise sounds fun. But is it something that people can opt out of? You didn't really make it sound optional, or particularly good for one's wellbeing" She is all for fun, but neverending fun gets boring eventually, and the place is full of dark energy.

"You three, can't you use a solution that is not so risky? I mean, you are hiding something nowhere near as dark. Fun for everyone, and no harm involved", she points to where the rain had temporarily dissipated the layer of darkness. "It doesn't look like you have a medic with you, too. I can do the trick, both magically and non."

She starts demonstrating what she means, her pipa's music this time producing a wave of healing that also spreads and makes plants with beneficial qualities for one's health grow. "This is my Pretty Cure Verdant Harmony", she tells the the Meanie Dokas.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"It's only natural to feel sorry for it," Usagi says, as the Jlame Jukata Jobi's scraps are collected and burn in fire of Oni and BeNotAfraid kinds. "But it's a horrible abomination that wanted to force everyone to wear it, and yukata are way too expensive for it to be set free anywhere near a genuine yukata. You know how long I would be locked out if I came home in a jukata instead of the yukata my mama helped me pick out two years ago?"

Of course it's a couple years old, but it's not like she's grown very much, and it's an extremely well-made garment! Some day she'll pass it down to her own daughter or son or gender-nondefined bouncing baby, and it will not be made of denim when she does!

Still, the tone of things is heavy, and she looks up sadly at Gretchen and Tia and Rens, the trio of Meanie Dokas -

"Sometimes understanding is harder than love, especially if you can't explain yourself. Madoka-chan really has been trying, you know? Maybe if you all sat down together, she could get it. It's not living up to godhood is easy!"

Can't they get along, and talk to each other? Reach out hands?

"Cure Suzhen is right - and her plants smell great, too, so if they can live in your X-Paradise, you'd have a source of really soothing scents, no candles needed."

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    She-Ra's approach draws a measure of curiosity and... well, an entirely different sort of curiosity. She is huge and the Youkai Musume is tiny. There's almost a full meter difference. But she manages to keep a straight face! Mostly. "I am fine, thank you. My oni blood gives me a certain amount of regeneration, I have found."

    As the Meanie Dokas lay flames upon the scraps, Kureha joins as well, sweeping a hand and loosing a small wave of fire as she comes in range. After what the others have pointed out, she is quieter for a moment... but then she speaks in a softer voice. "I know what it is to be unloved. To be a failed creation, abandoned. I cannot condone how it expressed its frustration upon those uninvolved... but I am not unsympathetic to its reasons."

    There is a pause, and then Onihime turns to look at Usagi with a blink. "'Godhood'? I... feel as if I have missed something. But perhaps that is a question for another time."
    

Amanda Faust has posed:
    It just... wanted to spread what it thought was wonderful. "Well dang, now I feel even more for it." comments Amanda, wincing at some thought.

    Does she need healing? "Nah. It didn't actually... injure us."

    Cure Suzhen says the place looks fun! Amy points a thumb at her while looking up at the Meanie Dokas. "You hear that? A normal person said X-Paradise looks fun! I guess you're doing better than I thought!" She smiles.

    Repurpose it into an outfit? "I dunno, maybe you could make it a doll or plushie or something? Or, well, could've." The fire has it now.

    Amy turns to Taro and shakes her head. "Not 'kami' as you understand them. A different kind of--" she almost says kami again, and then frowns as she tries to think of how to say this without using the typical translation for 'god'. "A... an 'intelligence'. An... intelligent entity? Of a different class. ...Yeah I'm coming up with no good mythical examples here." she shrugs.

    What is an NFT. Amy takes a breath. "...Okay. So you know what a ledger is? A blockchain is a really fancy ledger. Basically, it is publicly viewable to the entire world but extremely hard to forge transactions on -- to achieve this, it uses an ever-growing amount of computational power until it becomes unsustainable and people are burning up forests and using up all the clean water to power and cool something that was never designed to have that many transactions to it."

    "An NFT is when you add an entry to the ledger that says 'X person owns Y thing.' Where Y thing is usually an image anyone can right-click and download. Sort of like a certificate of ownership, but people use technical jargon to obscure that they've-- Oh, like that old scam of selling bridges to people. Did that actually happen? So you 'own' it, but that ownership doesn't functionally mean anything. Anyway, obviously, you can then add entries to the ledger transferring that ownership. So it's a really fancy and wasteful way to, well, record an unhackable ledger while destroying the environment and scamming people out of their money." She shrugs. It is old news, and no longer a threat now that people are no longer treating it like the next big thing, so she's not all that invested in ranting about it.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen points her narrow-eyed gaze at Swiftwind. She wants to say so much. What she actually says, in a very firm voice, is, "Yes. Yes I have."

    Kuiper Belt Cape gives feedback that is... probably not as out of touch as one might think, even if he clearly doesn't have certain details. Though, the comment about 'fans who never stop thinking out them' plants a seed in Gretchen's mind that will likely flourish later. "Thanks. I guess sometimes I feel like I wont be understood without a demonstration."

    At the comment regarding NFTs, Rens chimes in, "NFTs are a dark matter indeed. False by nature, and destructive in execution."

    To Cure Suzhen, Gretchen tilts her head. "I suppose, if people had to be here, it wouldn't actually be that fun? It'd be like school. All of your friends are at school, but you hate it because it's mandatory. At the same time, there will be some whom I have to trap in here, for their own good as well as others. Kind of like an asylum for Witches I guess."

    Rens also has something to add to that, "If you invite everyone, then you start having problems like 'the paradox of tolerance'. Some people will have to be barred outside, I suppose."

    Tia shifts uncomfortably for a moment before explaining, "I mean... it's kinda like... how sometimes one of your friends might go on about how they're going to make a version of their favorite video game, 'but better', but they haven't quite worked out yet how it's going to be better? It's a little like that. We know what we want to do. We're still working out the details."

    As for the plants that Suzhen forms, they seem healthy enough, but they're still tainted by this area's gloom. Left alone long enough, they'll start having weird cartoonish eyes much like everything else here. "We know a few medics," says Gretchen, "But you can never have too many of those. When the time comes, maybe we can talk about it then?"

    As for Adora's JERRIBLE JRIMES, which are still not as bad as NFTs, they go unnoticed in the eyes of Gretchen-sama.

    To Usagi, Gretchen shakes her head. "I know. It's not like I don't know that... but I'm mad, you know? We're mad and right now's not the time. Besides, I can't really do things her way anymore. It's in our nature as X-Chara to run away. It was weird and unnatural for me to hang out with her as much as I did."

    To Amy, Gretchen gives a blank stare. "You know, I kinda expected more resistance to the idea, but I'm not against the fact that people are kind of okay with it." As for the description of kami, she says, "Well it's like... kami are like spirits that do things like cause monsoons and other natural disasters or usher the dead or cause crops to prosper. Things like that.. It's not quite the same idea as what the West thinks."

    Gretchen waits a moment for (most of) the scraps to get burned away, and then lets her Labyrinth fade away. Soon they are back in the real world with all of the chaos left behind. She clears her throat and says, "W-well... we might be on opposite sides the next time we meet, but don't think that we despise you for it. Anyways, it's time for us to go."

    Then the Meanie Dokas duck back into their Labyrinth, and this time they don't invite anyone with them.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Okay, it looks like everyone is fine for now! "Oh! That's great! She-Ra is mostly just really tough." She's not trying to tower over Onihime, but she kind of is. At least she's not like, crouching down or something to make her feel extra small, right?

And people were generally handling the scraps of jeans that She-Ra hadn't secretly pocketed into her now-Yukata as she reverts back to Adora form. "Yeah. I know it had to be stopped because of that, but I mean. Those jukatas that they put on you guys were actually kind of cute if they /hadn't/ been forced onto you." Adora comments as Swiftwind comes to land on Adora's shoulder, now in tiny Alicorn form.

"Also yes, plants are good. I like plants. I wonder if Perfuma's here somewhere too, speaking of plants..." Adora comments to herself, musing out loud. She was always nice to talk to. "...Those NFT things sound needlessly complicated." She adds towards Amy. ...Yeah the rest is kind of going over her head. Honestly a lot of this conversation is. She's definitely not steaming from the philosophy.
To Gretchen, Swiftwind does respond though. "I see! ... Well, I have no further advice for you! SWIFTWIND, AWAAAAAY!" ... And once the labyrinth is ended he is flying off to go ... wherever Swiftwind goes. Really, Adora barely controls him.

...She probably /can't/ control him.

...Whenever she gets home, she's going to find her pockets mysteriously empty of jukata pieces.
It's Swiftwind's fault.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"You're an oni?" Kuiper Belt's face lights up as he hears what may be some of the best news h's heard this month. "Are you emulating Kiyohime or are you blazing your own path? Were you the one dancing at the festival earlier? You did an amazing job. The jukata didn't ruin your proper yukata, did it? I regenerate too!"

He's not really an oni, but he's spent a lot of time emulating that rather than lean into the whole Western vampire thing. It's a cool aesthetic, ok? And now they're! Real!! So cool!! (And, some part of him thinks she would like the acknowledgement, just as he had craved it for so long.)

And, uh. If he's doing that. For Cure Suzhen: "I don't know a lot about your theme but choosing to be a snake is a cool move for a girl, especially since you're doing the healing snake thing."

And for Adora: "You're very tall and look like a Viking. Which you may not know about? But your sword is cool. It takes time to get your little magic buddy to behave, you just have to be patient. It's like teaching a little kid, use positive reinforcement." Dory dabs in agreement.

And he agrees with Usagi: "If I got my good clothing turned to denim, my Auntie would hang me out in Hakata Bay," he agrees with Usagi. "Also, obviously, pink is very cute on you since you have bunny hair." obviously!

"....I do not understand what the youths are doing these days," he says to Amy about NFTs, looking baffled. "There seem like easier ways to scam people. Also you're very cute and girly and use red in really exciting ways."

Bye, minidokas! He and Dory are waving them off as the labrinth disappears. "So. That's the most exciting Obon I've had in a while."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    NFTs sound needlessly complicated. "The obfuscation is what makes the scam effective, yes. If you tell people that for a million yen you'll write on a piece of paper that they own a .jpeg that's already been copied to countless computers, they'd laugh at you."

    Witches and gods -- or at least god-level power magical girls and witches -- are closer to the human conception of kami, fae, spirits and such than they are to the alien gods Amy read about in science fiction 10-15 years ago, actually. "Wait, what?! Hang on, Gretchen--" Amy has questions to ask--

    You're very cute and girly and use red in really exciting ways.

    Amy uses red right now by blushing, holding half-closed fists under her cheeks. "I..." she squeaks, and turns to glance at Taro and then away. "T-thanks..."

Kureha Senkenzan has posed:
    There is a blink at Kuiper Belt's reaction - and then Onihime's expression softens just faintly. "Not Kiyohime. Mine is the blood of Mount Ooe. My family hails from Kyoto. I am a Youkai Musume, descendant of purified youkai and humans. I should happy to discuss further, but perhaps not while there are those who will worry about my safety in this evening's uproar."

Yaling Yao has posed:
"This is not really anything close to Fuhai's Deadbeats, but it was still trampling on what people draw strength from, so I can't really feel sorry for it", she remarks on the subject of feeling sorry. "At least we are done here, and we did really amazing", she cheers to everyone, letting her transformation fade.

"Hey, Red, don't ignore the risks, please", Yaling looks at the redhead sighing. It's true she did say it sounds fun, but well... "I would love something like what they are describing, but what they are doing with it is far from their description."

They have medics, but they want to talk about it more? "I am totally for helping people be healthier, but I hope you don't forget dark energy runs counter to that. Still if you work out everything, I don't mind helping!", she smiles at the Meanie Dokas, even if she is not sure they can actually fix all the problems here.

"Oh, really? Thank you!", Yaling smiles to the Ripper. "I didn't actually choose to be a snake magical girl and I have never tried to turn into one, but I got my powers from BaiBai, so that comes with her. She is Bai Suzhen, the snake Xian that fell from Heaven", the excited girl prepares to announce her whole story.

"She is really kind too, and has been helping all sorts of people with her medicine, up until she was imprisoned by Fuhai, who had been slandering her. Now she is teaching me lots about her knowledge of plants, and I am learning more every day! I will be as good as her one day, you can count on it!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"...let's just say, some of us Mahou have pretty big shoes to fill," Usagi sighs to Onihime. She's thinking of Madoka, primarily, Madoka who had shared that she has the potential to be a god of all things, and which Gretchen clearly wishes she was going to embrace.

Maybe she's thinking a little of herself, too, herself, and the God-Queen mother from thousands of years and also eight months ago that she's been mourning, who she's finally been able to welcome home and send on, with Obon, who left nothing but her love (and legacy) behind.

"Gretchan, you're right. You've got to do what you've got to do. But remember that when the time comes, Madoka-chan does love you - and she wants to understand you."

She's seen that from how desperately Madoka is searching. But when your fate could be to become - well... to become, then who wouldn't find it hard to understand?

And then they've been kicked out, and Amy is explaining the NFT thing, and Cure Suzhen is the only one really acknowledging the risks, and Usagi rubs the back of her neck.

"Yeah, I mean their paradise will probably go all wrong and eat people or something, but we'll be there to stop it. Definitely... and yeah, she would like to say something about that yukata, but Amy is blushing and -

OH RIGHT. Amy! Taro! LIKING EACH OTHER. Amy must know, right? She probably knows. Kuiper and Amy could be having a cute moment right now -

"Hey, Adora-chan, Onihime-chan, Yaling-chan, let's get some shaved ice! Right now!"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"...A viking? ... Huh. I'll have to look that up at some point. Uhm.... thanks?" Adora replies to Ripper, shifting a bit awkwardly. She's not really like, blushing, more just not used to receiving compliments, and shifting ever-so-slightly. "My little magic budd-- oh. Swiftwind? He's fine, I just kind of let him do his thing most of the time. He's his own horse, after all, and when I really need him he always comes through." Adora says, watching her 'little magic buddy' fly off. There's a bit of fondness in her look as he flies away.

Ahem. "I mean... I can feel sorry while still knowing they need stopped. I uh." She pauses, thoughts briefly going to Catra. It's complicated. "Have some experience." Adora responds to Yaling.

Overall, things seem mostly fine now, so. When the offering of /shaved ice/ is made, Adora says, "I have no idea why anyone would want shaved ice but I'm sure it's good so sure!" Adora is sure it'll be tasty though, after all, Usagi suggested it.

Yaling Yao has posed:
"Right now? Uh, ok", Yaling agrees to Usagi's proposal, even if she isn't sure why she would have such an urgency. Sure, Kuiper is trying to compliment Amy, but that is not really a good thing in this circumstance. Though, she should help out Amy since the redhead has opened up to her, even if accidentally. "Hey, Amy, want to come with us to get shaved ice? Usagi is taking us there."

Taro Yamada has posed:
Usagi doesn't want to invite him? But they're friends! But -

No, no, wait, he has to think this through. Usagi wouldn't simply abandon him, would she? No, there must be a ploy. Something important...

Oh! Just as he had covered for her to transform into Sailor Moon, this must be a chance for him to de-henshin and meet all these people as himself! She's keeping up his disguise! How thoughtful...

"Usagi-san, I can go grab my grandson. It'd probably be good for him to go socialize a bit with people instead of spending all night waiting for the fireworks to begin. I can send him over to hang out with you kids!"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Oh, people are going for shaved ice? And Adora understandably doesn't know what that is. "It's pretty good, um" and then Yaling's calling her to come too and she nods, glancing back at Kuiper Belt Cape, who

    Who needs this opportunity to change into Taro before hanging out, oooh, smart! She nods, "Yeah... oh right, fireworks! Yeah, we can watch them together! Send him our way, he's got my number if he can't find us. Bye Dory! And... it was nice meeting you, Kuiper Belt Cape." She does not actually say 'wink' as she winks but you can kinda almost hear it. She then turns to follow after Yaling, smiling.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"They don't have shaved ice on Etheria?!" Usagi looks horrified at the thought, distracted from matchmaking ambitions. "Oh you've got to have it, it's great! They shave the ice into soft bits, and then you can get it flavored with syrups! Perfect summer treat!"

Perfect for leaving friends to their romantic future -

NOOOOOOOO, TARO -

Well, she definitely can't reject her friend in front of the girl who loves him! That would be mean! It would always be mean, but, like, double mean! So Usagi smiles brightly at Taro, her plans to matchmake for Amy dying a horrible death on the inside, but they will rise, just as the jukata rose - well, maybe not that much.

"Yeah, you should go get him! You and Amy-chan could share some tanghulu maybe, like -" it only now occurs to her, properly, that she took an indirect kiss from Adora, earlier. Should she abort mission? NOPE. "Like how I shared with Adora-chan!"

It's not like she wouldn't kiss Adora. She's tall and buff and nice. If she could cook, she'd be the real life woman version of Kronk-san.

LOOK AT THAT WINK! She's so right about this crush that was totally confessed to her.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"I mean... maybe in Frosta's kingdom but also like, the whole Horde thing and like... basically until like, a year ago I was basically surviving entirely off of Horde Rations and those are, well. Not the same as other food." Also a lot less tasty. When Usagi /explains/ it, Adora gives an 'ooooh'. "Okay! That makes /way/ more sense than just, like, a bunch of ice in a bowl or something."

And they're going to be dragged off for said shaved ice! Among probably other things too, really. There's /so many/ snacks. The talk of the Tangulu gets an agreeing nod from a completely oblivious Adora to the implications. "Yes! That stuff was very tasty, very sweet and fruity and... there was a stick in it? I think? Maybe? It kind of gave it a woody taste." She didn't try to eat the stick. She's not /that/ oblivious to how food is done.

Mostly.

And she's working on the cooking thing!

Yaling Yao has posed:
"I mean, if Kuiper is bringing his grandson with him, he probably has his hands full sharing with him", Yaling counters. "Besides, how about we all share them? It could be cheaper that way. Kuiper and his grandson, me and Adora and you and Amy, right?", she smiles, elbowing Amy slightly.

Taro Yamada has posed:
Oh no. He needs to swap out quickly so people don't assume Usagi's leaving someone out! He's got to ensure they both get an A in social skills, which is good to have and possible to obtain.

"Hold on," he says, taking out his phone. "Sorry, I have to run, someone fell in a pond. Taro-kun will be here in a minute."

KUIPER OUT! ...at least, for the one minute it takes to duck behind a couple booths, henshin, quickly make sure his hair isn't a disaster, and run back in -

The reason why he was henshined is probably immediately obvious to Usagi, if no one else - he's wearing red jinbei, summer clothing mostly worn by old men, which are lightweight and, more importantly, inexpensive.

"Hey!! I hope - I hope I didn't miss much?" he says as he trots in, waving.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "What's tenghulu?" Amy wonders. "And uh, I don't think he was bringing his grandson so much as he's got his own thing to do and he's sending Taro to join us." She nods to Kuiper and waves, smiling. "Seeya!"

    Then while walking she notices she's still wearing the jukata. And is still henshined. "Oh right. I should go too. Uh. I'm not sure what the state of my clothes is from this," she holds her arms out slightly with hands up, "so... I'll be right back." And she hurries off to the bathrooms to change. Soon returning in her original yukata and... awkwardly carrying the folded jukata. Maybe she can tuck it into her sash or something? "Hey Taro! Enjoying the festival?"

Yaling Yao has posed:
Apparently, Kuiper was switching places with his grandson instead, to Yaling's disappointment. Sorry, BaiBai, but you will have to take one for the team. "Hey, there, Taro, right?", she smiles unraveling the fairy snake from her neck.

"Your grandpa was really enthusiastic about my snake earlier, so I think it would be great if you took care of her for a bit and maybe even took some photos to show him the experience. Don't worry, she is really sweet", she says, showing him BaiBai.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Tanghulu is a fruits on a stick, dipping in sugar syrup! The sugar hardens into candy, and then you can enjoy. It doesn't have to be fruit, but, it's usually fruit these days, and yeah, I would totally love to stay with Adora-chan, it's her very first Obon! I have to catch up with Mamochan and the gang later, so I could drag Adora-chan off to meet him, and Taro-kun and Amy-chan - and you? - could all enjoy the festival together, you know," and god help them, her eyebrows wriggle a little.

Oh, Yaling is so sweet to share her snake like this, but what if she manages to win Taro's heart?! In front of Amy-chan's future tanghulu, even?!

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"Huh what? Wait who and me?" Adora says, blinking a bit as she looks towards Yaling. "...I'm very confused and would be fine just continuing to stay with Usagi." Just to make things even more confusing and also she knows Usagi /slightly/ more.

...By like one encounter.
But that's more than one!

She hasn't /really/ contradicted Yaling's plan, so much as just, like, stated intent to stay near Usagi while at the wholly unfamilliar giant party that has something to do with spirits or something and also oh hey Kuiper is gone and now this Taro kid is here and honestly there's a lot going on oh gosh. "Tenghulu is this uhm... sweet...fruit...thing. I think it's candied and on a stick and stuff?" Adora 'helpfully' explains towards Amy.
"...Sure, I'm up to meet more new people later!" Adora says, mostly just kind of. Accepting that she's going to be dragged around by Usagi at this point and that's honestly kind of fine with her for now.

Taro Yamada has posed:
He knows Amy well enough that he thinks he's got the tanghulu covered. "YOu know how in anime, you'll see people eating balls on a stick?" he asks her. "That's usually either dango, which are sweetened dumplings on a stick, or tanghulu, which is candied fruits on a stick."

...though Usagi's mostly beaten him to the punch. Whoops.

"Yes! Yaling-san, right?" He gives her a polite bow. "I also like snakes! She reminds me of - there was this electrical fire at a garden a couple months ago and a girl with a snake helped put it out. It was amazing!" he says, and he delicately offers a finger for Baibai to investigate.

And then he blinks at Usagi. Taking Adora... to see Mamoru....?? "Isn't Mamoru already dating half the blondes in our class? Adora's a lovely girl, don't get me wrong, and there's nothing wrong with love, but there's going to be a shortage at this rate."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    "Ohhhh, like candy apples, got it." Amy smiles. "This is great, you know. I never got to like... go to festivals with people... before. It's really nice to just... be able to do this stuff without... feeling so uncomfortable."

    She blinks at Taro, then at Usagi. "Wait, he is? Wait, just how many blondes are in our class, that's..." she tries to think.

Yaling Yao has posed:
"It's just a thing to avoid things getting costly, there are a lot of us here", she tries to get Adora in on her plan. "Besides, you know, Amy was already chatting with Usagi earlier before this bout of the Juuban flu struck, so it's probably nice to let them finish", Yaling says, trying to let Adora know what she is actually trying to do. "Right, Usagi-san, Amy seemed to enjoy having a talk with you?".

"I won't stay for too long anyway, I have got a present I really really want to give Cho-chan", she adds that to make it clear she is not trying anything there, raising the box with the wind chime. "I bet she will like it lots!"

A nod from Yaling as she continues to present the fairy snake to Taro. BaiBai doesn't particularly react to Taro's finger, instead she just looks at Yaling as if to say 'What are you having me do?' before going back to look at Taro with resignation.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"There's Usagi, of course," and Taro starts counting off on his fingers, "there's that blonde guy who did everyone's homework when Mamoru was in the hospital, and there's the tall hot guy with long hair I met at laser tag. And there might be Ami - not my Amy," he explains, gesturing to His Amy, "but the other Ami, the blue haired girl who's really good at science? I'm not sure how exactly this all fits in. He's not dating Adrien, though, Adrien is dating Naru. Oh, and there's that blonde singer girl, but I don't think she's dating anyone? I've only seen her like twice."

One, two, three, four, five? Five blondes? Maybe more.

He gives Adora an apologetic look. "Sorry about making things so weird. You must have just moved here, right? We should definitely get shaved ice and stuff. Have you had chocobanana? They're a traditional festival food!"

The talking snake is giving him a Look, which, fair. How does he communicate things are chill without making things weird...? Since he is oif course a normal human man.

He bows politely to the snake. As you do.

"Snake-san, I'm going to hold you and have your," uh, "honorable servant take a picture of me with you. Is that ok?"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"I know right? It's nice to actually do these things. Can you believe I didn't even know what a 'party' was until like a year ago?" Adora says in response to Amy, still sticking pretty close to Usagi as the continued attempts to figure out ... various different things around her. She's mostly realized that none of it seems to /actually/ pertain to her and has started to mostly just tune it out for the most part.

Until Taro's comments about dating everyone and also maybe her and what. "I uh. What? No, I am absolutely not dating anyone right now I literally just got here like a week or two ago why are you all acting so weird??? Do I need to go all big sword lady again and see if swordlasers fix whatever is going on???" She asks, clearly not picking up on the subtleties of this entire conversation.

"...No I haven't had chocobanana."

Food is important.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy smiles to Adora, thinks for a moment, and nods. "And I basically never went to parties until a year ago. And now we get to go to parties! And have fun!" She holds out a hand for a fistbump.

    She blinks at Yaling. "Huh? I mean... we can talk. We're talking now, that's what we're doing! We're hanging out. I hang out with people now." She smiles and looks to see if Adora feels similarly about finally getting to do that.

    She also looks to Taro. "Uh. There's also... Aino-san? And Hannah. I'm not sure what class Tomoe-san is in, but I don't think he's dating either of those two. So like which half is he dating, exactly? Wait, he's dating Mizuno-san?"

    She looks back to Adora. "Uh... what? Weird? W-what do you mean? I guess we are weird... Magic and other planets and stuff--"

Taro Yamada has posed:
"Oh, I think she means dating," Taro tells Amy. "I was like her before I moved here and didn't do parties at all and I never thought about dating then. It's still kind of wild how much people date here? I had too many part time jobs to deal with romance."

It's a hard knock life, spending fifty years as a teenager, finding employers unscrupulous enough to hire you when you look fourteen.

"But we can stop! Talking about the dating! We need do all the classic festival foods! And - oh, wait, have either of you played the festival games?" He gives Adora a mischieveous look. "You know, you can win prizes. Wanna see if you can beat me at the games? I'll pay price of admittance."

(which... probably makes up for him knowing most of the tricks, having worked a few festival prize booths of his own back in the day. There is no milk bottle toss he cannot defeat.)

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Adora does, in fact, accept the fistbump, meeting fist with fist. "Yeah!" Pause. "...Wait that's a bad thing isn't it why are we fistbumping???" Adora's confusion is only continuing but also it's fine. Probably. "Oh, uh, not you, you're fine, Amy. Uhm. More just. I don't know. The weirdness of pairing up the shaved ice and stuff when we could probably all just have our own and it'd be fine but they're trying to get specific people to share the ice together and honestly I don't even know anymore." Adora paaaaauses. "Actually I'm just gonna go with Usagi we both seemed fine with getting shaved ice together so!" Adora simply nods, going off to follow Usagi wherever she went. Probably to get the Shaved Ice while the debate on who's sharing with who and also who Mamoru is dating continued.

She does not comment on the hanging out thing, that one's less new to her. ...Sort of. Hanging out in the horde usually involved getting yelled at by Shadow Weaver.

And then Taro explains what she meant to Amy and honestly she didn't really know that but it's fine. She already said her current position on dating. Traditional Festival Foods and games? Taro really knows how to win Adora's friendship.

...Let's be honest it's not hard, you just have to not be a terrible person around her.
...Sometimes even if you are.

"Sure! Traditional food and games sounds good!" Especially if she doesn't have to pay considering she doesn't have /that/ big of an allowance. She thinks. Or does she? Who knows? She certainly doesn't. Completely different money systems, even if it was explained to her pretty thoroughly it mostly went in one ear and out the other since she'd not had to really do much with money in the horde and well. Living in the castle....

...ANYWAY going off to get snacks and play games is fun.

Some how, some way, she's going to end up winning exactly one prize.
A giant cat plush.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Why are we fistbumping? "'Cause now we get to have fun like everyone else!" Oh not you, Amy, you're not weird! "No, it's fine, I'm weird... huh what? Why d'we have to share the saved ice? ...So we can try different flavors more efficiently?"

    It's wild how much people date here? Amy slumps her shoulders. "No uh... I think that's how much normal people did, and we're just... 'weird'..." she says, sadly.

    Carnival games? "Not since last year... But I'm down for it!" She grins and curls her arm to show off her lack-of-much-bicep. "I'll try my best to take you down old man, on my pride as a gamer! You deserve no less!"

    But will a mild talent for videogames really translate to festival games...?