do you believe in magic in a shared bath's heart?

[dadsandals]

The bath at the mansion really is extensive -- probably more extensive than a lot of them have seen, considering there are literally multiple pools of varying temperatures, probably statues and indoor plants or something for atmosphere, steam rooms, complimentary bath things (everything in the manor is kind of complimentary but shshhh) and whatnot.

On this particularly fine and nondescript day, though -- there's a bit of a commotion whenever you wander in butt-naked for your soak or whatever you like to do in here (you can hang from the ceiling like a bat or something we ain't the judge of you); there's two enterprising wizards flitting about poking at things.

The thing with 🪄 Cid Kagenou 🪄 is that he is Very Into Baths, and Very Into Magic, and thus the Bath Magic is one of the few areas where even his li'l old self can shine. Or not shine, given that they've all been here for 2.5 days (extremely rough estimate) and the miracle is nobody has blown up the mansion trying magic yet. But there is definitely magic happening! Since there's already steam and everything.

And then there's 👓 Yamato 👓. Yamato is Here and enabling himself by watching Cid experiment with various things in the area. Initially he probably would've tried to stop him, but seeing what Cid's been doing has made him want to try some magic experimentation of his own. Pairing a teenager who kind of knows what he's doing with a man who has no idea what's going on makes it even more of a miracle that the mansion has not been blown up yet.

But if you look even closer, you'll spot various small differences:

🛁 all of the water has bubbles in it; the hot bath in fact looks like it has small duck-shaped bubbles just sort of trundling along, occasionally a duck pops and releases a puff of scented air (scents may vary at your discretion)

🛁 the cold water bath keeps turning different colors, maybe they should stop experimenting with it before somebody ends up blue for the week

🛁 some of the statues and potted plants have been slightly altered; nothing too outrageous, but at least one or two statues have been turned into roomba replicas and there's a potted plant with leaves that look like people in the manor's faces in miniature

🛁 the steam room is letting out an intermittent screaming noise that sounds very human, but there's no one in it

🛁 some of the bath soaps are extremely bright and keep on changing colors, as if they were colored like a disco ball (rave! in the bathhouse!)

............. Enjoy your bath!

(OOC: This is backdated to before the South mission so South Wizards get in on the fun too!)

Comments

[dyingtohealyou]

[Walking in and immediately hearing the screaming steam room? Hello????

He's also not wearing his shades for once, so enjoy the rare view of shiny shiny cyan eyes, the right of which is marked with the crest.]

...Why is there screaming?

[Does he need to be concerned.

Anyway after poking around checking out the magical effects he'll eventually relax into the hot water bath looking honestly relieved. Hard to believe he misses when healing magic came a little too naturally to him, but here we are. That said...]

It smells like someone dumped a bunch of different perfumes in here.

[His nose does not appreciate.]

Steam Room

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

[Kiryu comes outside of the steam room right in that moment, looking pretty baffled! He came running expecting danger, and it was...nothing. What's going on.

Hey, better ask the nearest person here:]

Did you hear something scream?

[He didn't imagine it, right?]

[dyingtohealyou]

[Wait, someone was in there?]

Uh- yeah? I thought it was coming from the steam room.

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

I thought that but there's nothing there. [He passes his hands through his hair, feeling how warm it's now after having been in the steam room] Is this a spirit's doing, then...?

[........]

Damn it, that sounds crazy to say.

[But it's a somewhat valid question given the world, maybe?]

[dyingtohealyou]

Orrrrr it could be the fault of whoever messed with this place. Did you notice some of the plants look like people's faces now?

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

...I hadn't looked at the plants yet.

[Fair enough, if they did that with the plants they probably did this screaming steam room too. Kiryu looks at the two wizards who did nonsense in this bath]

You think it was on purpose?

[The steam room sounds, he means. Could have been magic gone wrong!]

[dyingtohealyou]

Who knows, with the people we have here. Either they thought it was a funny joke, or they have no idea what they're doing with their magic.

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

Probably both. They did it by accident and then thought it was too funny to fix.

[His tone is totally the sort that makes him sound like some curmudgeon old man talking about the youth messing around. Apparently he realized it, because he added:]

It's not that I disapprove. It just is annoying.

[...that's the same as saying you disapprove, Kiryu]

[dyingtohealyou]

...

If it's annoying, doesn't that mean you still disapprove?

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

Don't get stuck in the wording.

[As if saying that will make it stop being contradictory. He's trying to side-step that, and not too well, apparently, hah]

[dyingtohealyou]

It's important to make sure you're communicating clearly, isn't it?

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

I'm the quiet type anyway.

[More like he communicates with his fists! But no, as if that frees him from having to communicate]

[dyingtohealyou]

What, like you've been quietly contemplating your magic or something?

[divineth]

[Urianger has just come walking out of there, relatively calm but still a bit perturbed by the screaming.]

A very good question. [He glances back toward the entrance.] 'Twas not present until today, nor could I find a source for it inside.

[dyingtohealyou]

This whole place has gotten weird. Did someone mess with the baths and everything?

[divineth]

[Yeeeeah. Urianger was thinking the exact same thing.]

Magic practice gone awry, I presume...

[dyingtohealyou]

Gone awry, or a prank?

[divineth]

A...prank? Thou thinkest someone hath used their training to inconvenience us?

[Because Urianger sure didn't consider it.]

[dyingtohealyou]

Why not?

[Doesn't seem so farfetched to him.]

I guess I can see how it'd be more fun than regular study...

[divineth]

Given our circumstances, I was hoping for this to have occurred as the result of better intentions.

[He's not trying to be a killjoy or anything, but guuuuys. Please be a little more serious.]

[dyingtohealyou]

...Have you seen the people here?

[divineth]

Aye...? Am I to be concerned about anyone?

[He hasn't run into the unhinged ones yet, apparently.]

[dyingtohealyou]

Just watch your back and be careful if you make any deals with the others.

[A beat, as something occurs to him.]

Absolutely no promises, though.

[divineth]

[Promises... Yeah, the seriousness is not lost on Urianger.]

Thy advice is sound. Still, I was not expecting to be warned of possible duplicity so early.

[Can he stay out of it for once please.]

[dyingtohealyou]

[No, now go be friends with Khun.]

The selection seems pretty random. It would be more surprising if everyone followed the same set of morals.