thecrossinglogs | Even Death won't stop the party

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Even Death won't stop the party

WHO: OTA - Mingle
WHAT: Kel is throwing a small party. A 'memories' party.
WHERE: Generic Shelter #1231412.
WHEN: Shortly after learning what their tool is going to be.
WARNINGS None for now, possibly dark topics may be tagged in the comments.

"Welcome to this pretty-average-to-mediocre party! I'm glad you could make it!"

He sent the text out earlier, inviting everyone in their group to... celebrate. And share memories. And 'live a little'. The entire text had been a lot of rambling about him trying his best and how important it was to celeberate who they were and who they currently are, trying to learn about each other despite the circumstances. Fow now? He's just welcoming people to the shelter he used for himself- he built makeshift tents with sticks and whatever he could find and prepared games.

"Any occasion to mingle is precious, isn't it? Come on, let's spend time together! Oh, and make yourself comfortable as you can!"

There are pillows, a few chairs, and Kel did his best to offer sources of shades all over the place. Bright, pink party cups have been generously filled with <i>water</i> and the few games he could think of have been prepared. He moves around explaining them, even if they're really basic- perhaps, if he's super lucky, someone coming from a very different world never heard of them.

It is worth mentioning everyone who shows up will get a flower between their hair, either given to them by Mari or Kel, and one to 'leave somewhere nice on the oasis'.

Piñata Time! - There isn't a LOT sitting around, but he did manage to put together a couple of colorful Piñata with pages he stripped from comics, water and a lot of patience as he kept folding things so they could barely stay together in some round shapes. Inside those? More paper strips to pretend it's confetty, the lack of candies or better items doesn't really make them stand out but they're there and he found a stick for people to use. Hopefully they'll not fall down before being used.

Spin the bottle! - Finding an empty bottle of a drink he used to love? Depressing. The possible uses he could find for it, though? Eh... better than nothing. Kel will explain both 'normal' (and gross, according to him) and 'Kel style' rules for Spin the Bottle. In one kisses are involved, in the other he suggests a small group to gather, to have someone ask a question, spin the bottle and whoever it's pointed at? They'll have to answer, as long as they feel like doing it.

'To get to know each other better'.

'Pen and paper' - Sticks have been found, Sand has been flattened as well as possible and everything is ready to go. Kel can and will explain the rules for games like Tic Tac Toe, the Hanged man, the 'you draw something and the other person has to guess' game. Overall, if it can be done with some pen and paper, he'll try to help with it-

As a social person who spent a crapton of time with friends playing stupid games? Kel will even know more obscure games like Nim or Lasso.

'Music Corner' - A part a bit distant from the rest, still with pillows and all, where Kel put water cups and tried to isolate as he could with a few horrible looking anime blankets he found around. It's a space where people are invited to share about their culture in more than a one-on-one settings and since music is so deep into people's lives, at least in his opinion? He did his best to carve a spot where people could share that too.

'Flower crowns laboratory' After tossing flowers all around the oasis, Kel and Mari did agree on working together on another little step. Circles of paper have been prepared already, even if they're far from perfect, and a lot of flowers have been placed on a blanket on the floor.

Anyone who may want to try doing so will get assisted in building a little flower crown, with Kel and Mari giving them even more flowers to put around the oasis. 'Gotta make home look a bit nicer, right?'

There are areas where to relax and chat too, sadly this is far from what Kel would consider a party but he does hope that people at least sit in the memories sharing area and talk to each other.

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[Well, this was a ton of introspection Hanako hadn’t been expecting to indulge in right now.]

Huh… I guess… [His head tilts in thought.] She’s always getting into trouble, always poking her nose into dangerous things, and she’s terribly naive…

[Were those compliments?] But still… I can’t just leave her be~

[There were other things too - the way she unexpectedly surprised him with her behavior, how she kept coming back to the bathroom even when he messed up… but those were private things.]

She sought you out to have her wish granted, right? That means she believed in you - both in your powers, and in your kindness.

[Unless his role obligates him to fulfill wishes, the latter very much factors in!]

It's no wonder that you want to protect someone who has so much faith in you.

[Well, his wish granting powers were kind of obligatory - if she wanted something and gave it to him, then he was obliged to grant her wish however he could. But… there’s something in Hanako’s blush that speaks otherwise.]

Or she just really wanted a boyfriend~

[He can’t help the teasing quip. It was better to focus on that than the heat threatening to burn through his cheeks.]

Or that. But that didn't work out, did it?

[She sees that blush, Hanako! Yashiro may not have won the affection of the schoolmate she had her eyes on, but that doesn't mean that she didn't catch another boy's attention.]

Why don't you make a garland for her? I'm sure it would make her happy.

[He hums again.]

Nope~ She just realized she didn’t like the guy after all!

[Frieda’s suggestion has him perking up.]

A garland… [He pauses, thinking it over, and the silence that follows is maybe telling. He doesn’t know how to do that… The boy does try to cover his embarrassment with a quip.] Such a shame we don’t have vegetables here. Yashiro likes growing those! [Not that Hanako would even know how to string vegetables into a garland.]

[Well, isn't that fortunate?, Frieda thinks, but rather than say anything out loud, she merely smiles. Her expression softens as Hanako mentions Yashiro's hobby. She doesn't know if people in their world are as self-sustaining as in hers, but she assumes as much, and from that angle, it paints Yashiro in a very diligent light.]

That is a pity... but then, they'd be wasted on us, wouldn't they? We don't need to eat anymore.

[And for a garland, most would be too heavy!]

I'm sure you'll find something else to make her happy - really, just having you here with her already seems to lift her spirits.

Isn’t it a sentiment of life to enjoy things? [He asked, humming in thought. The idea that food could be ‘just a waste’…] Even though you’re dead now, you should try and enjoy what you can.

[It was something that Hanako wrestled with. Some things didn’t matter when you were dead - hopes and dreams - they couldn’t be achieved just because one got an extension after death. However… little comforts should still be enjoyed.]

Really? [He blinked almost owlishly. The idea that Yashiro could be happy because he was around… His gaze trailed to the ceiling, trying to hide what swam within.] If… if I had my say, Yashiro wouldn’t be here…

[Frieda hesitates - she wouldn't want to eat, fearing on some level that she'll get used to it again only to find herself without food as the journey continues -, but as Hanako admits his feelings regarding Yashiro's presence in their group, her face falls just a little bit.]

I can well imagine. But with that choice being taken out of your hands, try to comfort yourself with the knowledge that your company makes this journey so much easier on her.

[Hanako didn’t answer right away. His gaze sought out his assistant again where she was in the room, silently looking and then…]

I can at least make sure that she doesn’t get hurt again. That she remains herself. That’s all.

[It didn’t come down to comfort. If Yashiro felt more comfortable with him here, that was fine. But she may very well end up angry or hating him with the lengths he would go to for her to remain herself.

That was fine. Hanako told himself that… even if it wasn’t.]

[Recalling Hanako's conversation with Daniil that appeared in her book during the discussion of the upcoming Crossing, her expression darkens with worry.]

Do you really want to 'cross' without the Ferryman's protection? Have you spoken about this with Yashiro?

[She'd like to admonish him about the danger of the wraiths, mention that they've hurt people bigger and stronger than him - but he already knows, and it didn't seem to deter him.]

[Ah, that. Well, it was bound to come up eventually. Hanako knew the messages they sent weren’t private - and part of that had been the whole point, to broadcast his intent to the rest of their group well beforehand.]

I have - she understands. [And was pretty agreeable, mostly because Hanako knew by this point what to say to convince Yashiro one way or another.] Don’t worry. I have a plan or two.

[One that no one here - Yashiro included - would probably like, but it was a plan regardless.] Like I said… I’m making sure she remains herself. Giving up something precious… I don’t want Yashiro to have to do that.

[It’s a bit hypocritical, considering Hanako himself worked on the same sort of system with his own wishes. ‘Take something precious and, in exchange, I will grant your wish.’

But… the idea of Yashiro having to do that with anyone else left a sour feeling in the pit of his stomach. So he simply smiled.]

Would you want to share your plans with me?

[She's absolutely sure that she isn't the first person questioning his strategy, and from his attitude alone, she's equally sure that she won't be able to deter him from his plan no matter what - but again, she can't simply turn a blind eye to this. Hanako and Yashiro are the youngest and, at least going by appearances, weakest members of the group, and given the injuries Daniil and Yosuke suffered during the first Crossing, they may not be able to protect them either.]

[He levels his gaze on Frieda.]

Are you sure you would like to hear, when it isn’t something you would agree with?

[He asks like this is a certainty and for Hanako, it is. Yashiro wouldn’t even approve, if he told her the entire scope (a fact of which he made sure not to), and Frieda being as kind-hearted as she is would definitely find fault with it.]

[Her expression darkens - but this is good; the case is equally clear to both of them. That means that she, too, can cut through the diplomacy.]

Yes. Otherwise, I'll have no basis to dismantle your plan on.

[She knows that even if she indeed can give him sound arguments as to why his endeavour is too risky, he'll still insist on taking the chance, but they must complete thing song and dance for her to feel like she's done what she could.]

[Oh, good. They could drop with the pleasantries, it seemed. Not that Hanako was wanting to hurt Frieda in any way, but sugar coating things often led to people making misunderstandings.

Still… seemed like she was also determined to tell him no.

Instead of heading straight into his plan, however, Hanako simply smiled as he looked towards Yashiro again. That same fondness in his gaze was at odds when he spoke, his tone strangely detached.]

Yashiro… she can’t help getting into trouble, even when she means well. Even when she tries her best… she’s weak. Humans are so fragile, after all. [Some of this, Frieda already knew. It was worth repeating, though, to make a point.] That being said, she’s quite good at endearing herself to others without meaning to. I’m lucky that there are so many kind-hearted people here too. It means… should I fail, someone else will surely keep her safe.

[There was a vagueness to his explanation, yet the hint was there: these people… they would just as willingly protect his assistant simply because of how Yashiro acted and their own goodwill. That was what Hanako was banking on. The fact that there are so many unknowns they face didn’t matter.]

Edited (typo oops) 2025-04-29 17:04 (UTC)

[Frieda doesn't take joy in arguing with Hanako, but turning a blind eye to the matter is something she could hardly forgive herself if he and Yashiro ended up overwhelmed by wraiths and suffered grave injuries and memory losses or, worse, didn't rejoin the group at the end of the Crossing.

The evident fondness in his gaze and voice as he speaks of Yashiro saddens her. He hasn't accepted it yet, has he? When she responds, her voice has lost the cool tinge it had a moment ago.]

We will look out for her, should anything happen to you. I give you my word that I will. But I feel like you haven't accepted the purpose of this journey. Relinquishing our memories one by one is the very point of our presence here. Denying the toll means to defy our destiny - a destiny that is inevitable.

[Despite saying that, there's hesitation in her. Until recently, she'd convinced herself that a blank wraith state, ready to get a new life written into it, would be the outcome for all of them... but the Ferryman's words to her implied otherwise, didn't they? "You'll still be you, no matter what."]

Edited 2025-04-29 20:10 (UTC)

[He certainly hasn’t accepted anything… and it will probably be some time (and a large struggle) for him to accept it at all.]

Is it inevitable though? Or is that simply something that someone else has convinced you of?

[Instead of addressing his own denial (though the fact that he doesn’t speak to it is telling in its own way), his tone is even. Hanako can’t help it. Simply because someone told him ‘this is how it’s meant to be’ when he had learned otherwise over the past fifty years… he couldn’t accept that kind of outcome for Yashiro.

The boy knew somewhere deep inside that he wasn’t the same as when he had been the first time he died. Things had changed, memories had diluted with time. What sort of person would Yashiro become if they took that from her? Change itself might be inevitable, but he didn’t want anyone to force that one her.]

[She hesitates briefly - thinking of Celehar, of how solemnly and resignedly he's accepted everything, from their passing to the abandonment of their memories, and how she immediately took his words for the truth because they resonated with her -, but in the absence of any conclusive evidence to the contrary, she bounces the question back at Hanako.]

What other outcome do you see? We're asked to give up our memories, one by one, and aren't they what makes us who we are? By going without the Ferryman, you only risk losing more memories at once, without control over which ones you lose - for both yourself and Yashiro.

[Oh, that’s telling - the fact that she doesn’t have any evidence to give him is the same. Hanako doesn’t have concrete proof about this place, not yet, but just accepting what they’ve been told at face value…]

One where we have more than just the two options given to us. It’s always like that - sacrifice one thing for another. There are already things here that have slipped through the gaps, things that our benevolent guide didn’t realize either. [He’d picked up on that from his talk with the Ferryman and the chatter he’d heard around. Something wasn’t entirely right. Sure, Yashiro came from a different point than he had, but… not all was correct with the process of their journey.]

I may be wrong. I won’t pretend to deny that, but… could you ask her to give up her family? Those she cares for? The remainders of home? All for a potential chance to see where else we are going to be deposited at? [His tone is even. Hanako is wanting to genuinely think through this, instead of his otherwise goading nature.] There’s too little about this place that isn’t being given to us. Too many questions they won’t answer. While that’s the nature of an apparition, I can’t just accept their help at face value either. [Hanako hated it, deep down, that the same rules he had adhered to in his own death were being thrown in his face. More for Yashiro’s sake than his own. He didn’t have much more to lose. ~~Aside from her.~~] If, by some chance, Yashiro does change her mind, then I’ll go with. [To make sure she remains safe.]

[His arguments are fair enough, much as his stubbornness and mistrust of the Ferryman don't sit well with her. Why does she dislike it from him more than from the others that have tried 'crossing' on their own, she wonders - and the answer feels clear already.]

No one has the right to ask Yashiro to give up anything she doesn't wish to. But aren't you exerting unduly much influence over her decision? She looks up to you and defers to you, doesn't she? If you can indeed protect her and her memories, I'm sure you'll feel validated in your choice, but if you can't, I see great regret ahead of you.

[That being said--]

If you'll likewise defer to her choice, should she change her mind, then I'll trust you with that. But do heed my warning.

[There's a discomfort in her mind that she's unable to shake, and she can't help but wonder if she isn't being too obedient and accepting of the most strongly suggested path, too ready to look past any small incongruencies and oddities, much like her ancestor was willing to look past so many "minor" injusticies that cropped up in his atonement plan. The ends justify the means. Some collateral damage cannot be avoided. A king is like a gardener, and he must weed his garden so the flowers and fruits of the earth can prosper. Does she really believe that? But in this scenario, where no one gets harmed, what could possibly be so bad about giving up their memories?]

Hmm? [Frieda’s words sunk in, his smile - tinged with something other - returning.] Sure, I think she trusts me. But Yashiro is still herself, you know? I can’t really control what she does.

[It wasn’t like he could possess her since he wasn’t a ghost and they all theoretically didn’t have real bodies (right?), and sure, if it came down to it, Hanako had other methods he could use to get Yashiro’s compliance (the easiest of which was knocking her out), but still… he was extremely limited by comparison.

Frieda didn’t need to know that though!]

Of course! Warning received~ [Much like the others had been, though… Frieda’s seemed to hit him harder. Why was that? Was it because he knew what she said was true? If he couldn’t protect Yashiro, then surely he would regret it but… he couldn’t just not try.

Old habits died hard. Especially when she had been the first one in fifty years to get him to act, in a sense.] I’m glad we had this chat though~ That way all of your worries can be assuaged too!

[That really isn’t true, is it? Frieda would still be concerned, still seemed to meddle, but maybe that would work out in his favor too? The more people that cared for Yashiro, the better.]

[His gentle (yet, somehow, slightly sharp-edged) assurance that Yashiro is making her own choices, followed by an abrupt return to the light-hearted chipperness they all know him by... it takes her aback, and it shows on her face.

However, she relents, her features relaxing as she inclines her head in agreement.]

My worries will be assuaged once your plans succeeds, Hanako. I hope for nothing less.

[She means it. Despite her doubts in Hanako's ability to protect Yashiro, she'd rather have herself proven wrong than finds her fears confirmed.]

[Ah, he feels much more at ease now that he’s surprised her a bit… plus, reading emotions that were quite identifiable was just… nicer than trying to guess.

It seems like she isn’t holding any ill will either, which seems like a miracle, but one he will take.

The only reaction he gives that her words have impacted him is the slight softening of his features, the honest truth that leaks into his reply.]

Me too.

[It’s as much of an admission as he can allow - that there is a possibility that he could fail and… Yashiro would no longer be herself. The thought turns whatever might be left of his stomach with worry, which he quickly swallows. No need. He’d protect her, just like always.

Just like he had promised.]

[That sense of honesty in his words is all the assurance Frieda needs - assurance that he's aware of the risk, that he's not pompously overestimating himself but planning the undertaking in earnest.

Inclining her head, she steps away to rejoin the rest of the party (... because this clearly was a typical party activity just now!).]

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Even Death won't stop the party

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The fact that Frieda might be subtly shipping this has me happy XD

Dead children deserve love!

<3

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Hanako being like “last chance to back out before I make you angry” XD

He knows what he's about!!

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(We can probably wrap with yours? ^^)

🎀