it's halloween, lo-ween, everybody!

[sos_pilot]

Who: Everyone's Invited!
Where: Various decorated carriages!
When: Horseshoe 31.
What: Della is hosting a Halloween party! Come for treats, tricks, and trouble!
Warnings: N/A, will update it needed.

The room is dark…why aren’t the lights on? But as the doors fully open, a voice begins laughing darkly…

… although if you’ve ever heard the voice of Della Duck, you’ll recognize her immediately.

“Boys and girls of every age, wouldn’t you like to see something strange?”

Suddenly there’s a big THUD as someone drops from the ceiling, the lights flash on, and Della herself, dressed as a zombie – ripped apart clothes, fake blood here and there, drawn on scars - wiggles her fingers before laughing joyfully. “Happy Halloween, everybody! Let’s party!”

Tasty Treats

A big buffet table of candy and punch has been laid out! Mini chocolate bars and multi-colored lollipops, gummy worms and candy corn, all sorts of sweet and sour shenanigans, ghost-shaped cookies and mummy-looking muffins! There’s plenty to eat, with absolutely no healthy alternatives.

There are also small wrapped bags of candy with the letters “T.o.T” written on them. If someone tells you, “Trick or Treat!” you have to share your candy! Or keep it to yourself, you monster.

Haunted House

Thanks to Seto Kaiba’s projections, a neighboring carriage has been converted into a Haunted House! While it’s all a trick on the eyes, it gives the illusion that there are several floors of spookiness. Each floor has a different theme –

#1 Serial Seriousness – Every so often, a masked intruder pops out at you, with long claws or chainsaw, ready to give chase! Be careful, or you’ll be the next victim!

#2 Zombie Zaniness – Moans and groans of the undead can’t be unheard. Rotting arms will try to swipe at you through the floorboards!

#3 Ghostly Games – You can see through them, and they can see you too! Each mirror reflects a different dastardly demon!

#4 Deadly Doctors – In this hospital, it’s not the awful health insurance that’ll kill you! Beware the bloody nurses and their extra big needles!\

#5 Fishy Fears - … Wait, what? … Okay, this last floor was clearly designed by Della. It’s like Under the Sea, but with sharks and octopi and kraken - and Della insists this is the worst floor.

Feel free to have your characters braving the house, or trying to scare people within!

Dance Floor

If being haunted isn’t your thing, nothing wrong with getting your groove on! Ask DJ Della what kind of song you’d like to play, and she’s happy to put on the list, from a classic Monster Mash to something more somber and soulful for you slow-dancing-romantic-vampire-types.

Turnip Carving
… Look, they didn’t have pumpkins. Anyway, you’re encouraged to carve scary and silly faces in these veggies! There is a contest, but everyone will be a winner, from “Most Realistic” to “Most Depressing” !

Movie Mania
Kick back and relax – and be horrified – at the otherworldly horror films! Like the horrific monster mime, “That”, the relentless umpire-mask wearing killer, “Monday the 20th”, and the endless array of the undead, “Midmorning Of The Not Wholly Alive”!

Some of you awful people might be thinking of popping up and scaring the theater-goers and this is /winkwinknudgenudge/ totally not approved. /plausible deniability/

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark
In one secluded, quiet, and verrry dark carriage, lit only by candles, here you are encouraged to tell the scariest stories you can think of! What eerie legends will you share from your world, or do you dare to make it up as you go along?

Make your own top-level, and happy haunting!

Also, if your character would like to dress up, costumes are available for this night only!

Comments

[flatteries]

"I.. I don't think so?"

And despite Inigo's uncertain tone, the commentary is helpful. Because he sure feels a lot better just stupidly talking as they move along, rather than stay quiet in these weird surroundings. Everything always feels a bit more rooted when it's absolutely covered in their dumbassery, after all.

"There has to be some way out! Della and Kaiba aren't the kind of people who'd play that sort of prank, right?"

.. Right? Please tell him he's right about this one, Tidus. He doesn't want to be stuck in an illusion, even if it's together with his best friend! (But what if Kaiba really suddenly did have second thoughts about the whole cuddle therapist thing--)

[blitzcheer]

"Della? Della would jump at the chance to play any prank in a heartbeat." Absolutely. He knows what Della is like and supports her wholeheartedly. "Don't know about Kaiba though. Guess if he liked you and you asked him to, so maybe!"

Which is a question he perhaps asks far too seriously by taking it seriously at all, but then, those are his honest thoughts. Does go on after a moment or so,

"But there's no way this is it. They'd talk to us and then tail us in somewhere! Unless..." Unless...!

"Did you see 'em before we came in here?"

[flatteries]

There's a doubtful look on Inigo's face. Della would? But she's so sweet! She always compliments him and hugs him, even when he does thinks that are stupid or bad! Sure, she may tease at times, but playing a prank like this..?

"Uh.." He's startled out of that thought and into this new one though the moment Tidus asks that question, making Inigo have to consider it for a moment. "I don't think so?"

It's not as if Inigo was brave enough to go around and talk to everyone yet in this outfit.. He more or less headed straight for Tidus, and that lead them to going in here.

"W-Wait, where is this going though? Unless what, Tidus? Unless what?!"

[blitzcheer]

ok favourite train son.

"Hey hey, calm down!" Tidus stops, initially to turn to Inigo, who's apparently panicking out of nowhere?? Bro? Nothing but good intentions to begin with, touching him on the arms to get him settled down. He's spotted what he's sure is the exit not too far off, remembers a display from when they entered.

...

...

The decision happens in seconds, his brow already heavily drawn, and coming in tighter.

"I-isn't it weird how long we've been trying to get out of here? Inigo... do you think they trapped us in here?"

His expression turns visibly more upset, concerned. I-ingio?!

[flatteries]

".. Huh?"

Hook, line and sinker.

Of course Inigo falls for it. Instantly. He doesn't even consider for a moment that Tidus's visibly upset expression may be faked in any way. To Inigo this is just his friend starting to slowly panic over their predicament.

And who would he be if he didn't try to comfort his upset friend?

"N.. No way! Don't worry!" Does Inigo himself truly believe in those words? Not really. He's pretty worried, especially since he hasn't spotted the exit yet. "I'm sure we will be out of here soon! I mean.. we've passed by here before, right? I completely remember this! Uh, this.."

His voice starts to slow down as he realises he can't recognize anything around them right now...

Maybe this wasn't the best attempt at encouraging Tidus, huh.

[blitzcheer]

He won't go very far with this.

"Inigo?!" But he's already started, and he needs to get somewhere before there's the chance Inigo finds his (or their) way out. So he tugs on the other guy's arm, sounds all the more panicked, getting him to face his way, and not in the actual direction of the exit. "Inigo what do we do?! How do we get out?!"

What if he starts pacing around on the spot? Ohhh, look how stressed and worried he is Inigo!!

"We're trapped!"

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo.mp3

[flatteries]

"H-Hey! It's going to be okay!"

Honestly, shouldn't he catch on by this point? It's not like Tidus at all to get so worried about something like this, after all. This is not even the way he usually gets when he's stressed!

But any and all logic is quickly overridden in Inigo's mind by his strong desire to help his friend at a moment like this.

So he looks at Tidus, moving his arms to put his hands on Tidus's shoulders, trying to keep him in place for the moment.

"We're together. It's going to be fine, we can figure this out together!" Look at Inigo here, trying to make this Wholesome somehow. "Nothing bad has ever happened to us before while we're a team, right?"

[blitzcheer]

Aw man, why you got to get wholesome on him like this?

Not that it's enough to make Tidus feel guilty or anything. But look at this, the concern, the care. The stress and worry, sticking as a brow tight with apprehension, melts away at Inigo's offered reassurance. Tidus isn't about to put to waste or betray this effort expended on him.

"Right," he smiles back. Puts his own hands on Inigo's shoulders in turn, all his previous tricks tossed aside. "'Nothing's going to get us down'?"

You know?? Just like their chants?

[flatteries]

Talk about wholesome. Now even Tidus is getting wholesome by referencing their somewhat dumb, but well-intentioned chanting session.

It's weirdly touching to Inigo - maybe because he's had a tiny bit to process it now, just a few days to really let it sink in how sweet it was of Tidus to try and up his selfconfidence a bit like that.

So of course he's going to go right along with it, his facial expression widening into a grin.

"We're no quitters!"

He remembers. He, too, won't betray the effort expended on him.

[blitzcheer]

Oh. Oh Inigo, you're speaking Tidus's language. And look at this smile, this grin. Tidus takes one of Inigo's hands into his, ad you can just see he's getting into loud mode.

Even before he swings up his free fist to loudly exclaim,

"ANYONE WHO TRIES ISN'T WORTH OUR TIME!

No, Tidus doesn't care who hears them in this dark carriage, whether there's anybody nearby to see either. This is about them, their moment! Their courage!!

[flatteries]

Inigo ducks his head, but it's just since he can feel his grin widening involuntarily. Like Tidus's words just spread that much of a warmth throughout his chest, rendering him unable to hold back the laughter that starts to spill across his lips. Happy. Genuine. The kind of laughter that comes straight from your heart, that you can't help.

"You know, maybe we should save this kind of determination for a mission, rather than a dumb haunted house."

Not that it's a protest - Inigo's tone doesn't sound like it. It's maybe instead more an encouragement, or even just a hope. Please, please never let them lose this conviction, no matter what happens. No matter what hardships will still be thrown their way from now on.

[blitzcheer]

It buzzes through him after it's said. That giddiness in one's body to be so bold, and he can keep this up! Shame being told to wait in the back of the car while he displays himself as bold as could be. Inigo's laughter an encouragement, a reason to go on. But also, to Inigo's actual remark-

"Why wait? I'm more than a mission! I'll take on anyone who comes at us!"

Hear that, Inigo!? He will! (And that means you too, Reno!)

[flatteries]

He'd worry a bit more about that statement if Tidus hadn't put him into such a sudden good mood, despite their location and circumstances. Because.. well, Inigo thinks Tidus is plenty capable, but his fight with Reno has taught him really well that there are much stronger people around. He remembers being so worried about Roland back there during that fight-- and what if it'd be Tidus in his place? Of course Inigo would be just as worried.

But it's the good mood that prevents him from saying anything dumb that may ruin said mood, like that he doesn't want Tidus to get hurt for his sake.

Instead he laughs and says, "You really are playing my knight again now."

But that's something he enjoys, if that moment in Irivar was anything to go by.

"Are you including all the things jumping out as us in here in that statement?"

[blitzcheer]

"When did I stop?" slips in Tidus's unasked for reply to that: You really are playing my knight again now. Just because he can say it, even more convincingly* with a puff up chest and confidence to match it.

(*no, he still sounds like a joking dork as always.)

But that next part does sound like a challenge--a challenge that has him looking back the way they were leaving from, the opposite direction from the real exit.

"Why? You saying now you wanna keep going?" Tidus brings his face in close to Inigo's, without shoving it in there or giving him no room to move. Just so they're face to face! "I'm game if you are."

[flatteries]

"Huh?"

Inigo didn't quite see it as the challenge that Tidus does - but he does pick up on the fact that the other does see it that way. It's just this typical behaviour from Tidus, seen so often from Inigo by now that he's used to it. The way the other completely perks up like this at the very idea of a challenge.

He himself has to think about it for a moment longer though. Glancing from Tidus's face - close to his now - to the darkness up ahead.

.. could it really hurt to head back there? Maybe they can find some place more interesting than that weird painting gallery..

"Well, as long as my dashing knight will protect me from falling again.."

[blitzcheer]

This close (though it is dark, hard to see even with this close space), Tidus can tell too that Inigo doesn't have the same energy about the idea as he does -- and where's the fun if Inigo isn't up for storming a haunted house as he is? So while Inigo does acquiesce-

"I'll protect you from anything." He lifts his head, turns and points off towards the exit. "--or we can go out and see what else they have going on!"

Whichever they go, Tidus doesn't care. He's sure to have fun regardless.

[flatteries]

He's considering it for another moment. Going back into the haunted house does mean that he won't have to have a whole lot of people see him in this outfit, which is a definite upside..

"Let's go back in." He might still be not quite as spirited as Tidus, but he does seem pretty sure about his decision, nodding as he looks back into the distance. (Is it a distance? It's so hard to tell anything in this weird projection place!) "And if what we find next is just no fun at all, we'll leave and go rob the snacks table instead. How does that sound?"

[blitzcheer]

"Alright then!" A cheery finality to his voice, Tidus accepts the decision, swerving himself back around to the spooky outer mansion awaiting them. Less spooky when you've technically been standing outside it for a while doing nothing and it's at the wrong angle to load fully, but you know.

"One spoooky haunted house. And if it sucks, snacks and fun. That's good enough for me! I wonder if Taiki's somewhere around? We should bring him some back in any case."

He probably wouldn't like all this anyway. Too much noise and fuss for a guy like him.

[flatteries]

"Then let's look for him after!"

Because Inigo has the same idea as Tidus. Even though Taiki is much more quiet - and maybe, in some ways, actually less easily startled than these dumb, dramatic boys? - a haunted house doesn't seem like the sort of thing he'd enjoy at all.

But he'd like snacks. And company he knows well. Even if he isn't at the party, maybe they can just hang out with him with snacks, like their own little impromptu party--

But before that idea can run away with Inigo, he first wants to prove himself. At least one more time!

(Did bringing up Taiki somehow make him more enthusiastic..? Inigo is a simple boy.)

"But first this! And-- I swear to Naga, this time absolutely nothing is going to catch me off guard! I'll show you I'm the toughest guy around! Surprise? Hah, I don't even know her!"

[blitzcheer]

you're not enthusiastic to go thru a haunted house with ur bro but you will to see taiki at the end of it??? dude?? ingio??

"That's what I like to hear!" But Tidus only needs that whiff of determination to have him going to, powering him up further. Facing the dumb holographs with more vigour than ever before! Giving Inigo a nod and then starting for the way forward. Vampires can't catch this!!

"Here we come, illusions! The boys are back in town!"

And now it's time for Tidus to punch absolutely every piece of jumpscare that TRIES to spook him!!! SPOOK THIS FIST, MORE LIKE.