genessia | Welcome to the Festival of Fireflies

[They will be the number one cute girl pair in this place right now, at least as far as Ibuki's concerned.

But enough of that, there's a haunted house to explore! The entrance is a little cliche with spider webs and drape-covered furniture and Ibuki almost comments on that very fact.

And then the lights flicker and die and only a few faint candles point the way forward.]

Ah, I see, I see. Very clever of them to try to lure us in like that.

[And if it worked at all, she'll blame it on Nagito and the whole party debacle back on the island.]

[ Konoka almost jumped when the lights went out, but managed to keep her cool. ]

Yep. Cliche is a great way to hide clever.

[ It seemed she took what Ibuki was about to say earlier. Just as well since now only candles guided them, and everything else was deathly quiet. Even if she was aware that things weren't real, Konoka couldn't help but keep her eyes on how the portraits and statues seemed to follow them with her eyes.

...but this promptly gives her a sideways thought. She leaned in on Ibuki and whispered. ]

Hey... what if the ghosts in here are perverts?

[Once her eyes adjust to the dimmer lighting, Ibuki relaxes a little more. None of it's real, even if it's effective, and she's determined to enjoy it as the fun distraction it is.

Doesn't hurt that she can hear snippets of what's up ahead, which keeps her intrigued even as Konoka raises an interesting question.

After all. She can think of at least one person who'd be just as much of a pervert as a ghost as he'd been when alive.]

Well they'd better behave themselves. Ibuki's not afraid to do a little Ghostbustin' if she has to!

[Ibuki wouldn't have the first clue how to handle a ghost but why would that stop her?]

Now come on! We got a whole house to explore.

[And that means tugging Konoka along with her towards the most interesting sounds.]

[ Well, Konoka has experience with ghost, though it was just the one and she was friendly. ]

Hey, me too!

[ She gives a wink, but it was not long after that the first haunted house scare makes itself known. A corpse-like person appears right out of a chest, gurgling and growling, and when they don't quite react to that, the 'undead' gives a more fierce ROAR. ]

Eeeek!

[Ibuki can't help but anticipate the first scare; her ears are just that little too sharp and from there it's easy to try to shield Konoka too. But apparently they've accounted for that; the louder roar sees her half-bump half-grab Konoka in surprise]

Kyaa! These zombies are smarter than we thought!

[Especially when she turns to go back the other way and realises there are another two "corpses" waiting quietly behind them.]

An ambush! Ibuki was not prepared for this at all!

[But she's loving every second of it.]

[ Smart zombies, now that's scary.

Though seemingly shaking in fear, Konoka was also just as delighted, having to suppress her giggles as she and Ibuki escaped further into the house. By now it seemed that there was a fog generator somewhere, judging by the mist hanging down at their feet. Konoka looked around at the set up, impressed by its spooky details, from the cobwebs to the decrepit, beat up furniture. ]

Wow, they're doing pretty well so far!

Phew, I'll say. Ibuki's heart is racing a million miles a minute!

[Having to flee the shambling hordes has done wonders to get the adrenaline pumping and that ties in with her initial excitement to make her even more open with her thoughts.

Because she's been so quiet up until now.

Though the fog initially obscures it, Ibuki catches a glint of candlelight that leads her to a mirror, in a corner that means picking through the furniture to get there.]

Oho, but what do we have here?

[She's too intrigued by her potentially warped reflection - this is a haunted house, after all - to notice the fake spiders poised directly above her.]

[ Ibuki may be ignoring the plastic spiders, but Konoka sure wasn't. She could see them creep down a little closer, with the light, or lack thereof, making them seem a little more real. It gave her the creeps in a good way. But Ibuki's words drew Konoka's attention, and she followed what she might be staring at. ]

Oh... wow.

[ Ibuki's reflection was distorted, unnaturally tall. And Konoka could see herself right next to her, almost comically short! Jeez, it was all about reflection huh? ]

Creepy, yet pretty hilarious.

[ Konoka made a few faces to see just how warped it got. ].

Totally! I mean, house of mirrors is pretty creepy anyway. Good job combining the two.

[Ibuki joins in with the faces, throwing "scary" shapes and roaring and seeing how the tall and slightly gaunt Ibuki in the reflection distorts that. She's having so much fun with it that she forgets the rest of where they are.

Until a spider lands on her head and prompts a startled shriek.]

Aaaa! Ibuki is under attack!

[In her flailing, she bumps into part of the covered furniture...which somehow gives off a pained groan. Probably an actor but it's enough to get Ibuki all the more flustered.]

Please don't hurt us, furniture-chan! Ibuki meant no insult!

[ The shriek makes Konoka jump more than the actual spiders do. Konoka actually stumbled backwards in the opposite direction of Ibuki, missing her misfortune with the furniture to see another mirror, though this one seemed off...

Why it was off only seemed to be apparent when she realized that there was a creepy, jester looking thing staring in the mirror instead of her own reflection! ]

Yeeek!

[ Konoka whirled behind her to see why the creature had appeared, but it turned out that it was just a projector, well hidden behind her. The fake creature mocked her with a loud laugh, sounding pretty much like 'WOOOH HA HA HA HAAAAA!'.

Konoka made a face that looked like reluctant amusement; she'd been had. ]

[Ibuki's too busy dealing with her own scares to notice what sets Konoka off; by the time she starts to catch her breath and remember where they are, Konoka's already at reluctant amusement.

And that's enough to set Ibuki giggling because look at them both, flailing around at scares they know to be fake.]

At least we can't say it's not living up to expectations.

[But she's making her way to Konoka's side now, thinking it's better they stick together for this one.]

Let's see what else this house has to offer.

You could say that again.

[ Konoka didn't move until Ibuki was right next to her, and from there the both of them trekked further into the haunted house. Konoka actually thought the place would be much smaller, but it seemed that the house seemed to have both its own twists and turns and seem almost maze-like. At least together, they could see that while fake, this haunted house used its space and features very well. ]

I have to say, this was one of the best one's I've seen.

At least we can't say it's not living up to expectations.

[What, Konoka didn't think Ibuki would take that literally? Well, she has done, though she's quick enough to move on from there.]

Ibuki's never seen one this good before either. Ibuki gives this place a gold star, five out of five, must see attraction!

[And they're not even done yet, by the looks of things. So many thrills left to experience, and even when it feels like they're reaching the end, Ibuki can't quite shake the feeling there's something big left to come.

And then the lights cut out completely and Ibuki gives an unholy shriek.]

Ibuki was not prepared for this!

[And forgive her if she's making quite a point of gripping onto Konoka and not letting go. Blackout means bad news for her right now.]

[ Why did she walk right into that? Konoka gives Ibuki a look that was likely blithely ignored.

But more than that, as they walked around creepy settings, Konoka wondered what the big finale was going to entail. She got her answer when what little light was snuffed out, and Ibuki clinged onto her. Honestly, Ibuki freaking out was much scarier, but the darkness wasn't to be underestimated at all! ]

I-Ibuki-han, I wasn't either! I...

[ A low growl interrupted what was likely supposed to be a gentle chastising of Ibuki's clingyness. Konoka's jaw dropped... she was not liking this...! ~~Okay she was, but she wouldn't admit that now~~ ]

Kyaa! Could it be, this world too?

[Even as they're stumbling in the darkness, Ibuki's all but dragging Konoka towards where she thinks the path for the exit is. She is no questions asked freaking out round about now, and for that she ends up running right past whatever the final big scare might have been.

As soon as she spots any hint of light, that's what she's running for and only once they're out in the daylight does she let go, doubling over as she tries to catch her breath. Because intense is an understatement for what that was for her.]

T-this world?!

[ Konoka at least got a glimpse of what the big scare that was supposed to happen--huge red eyes with bright pupils opened to life, and she could feel the disgusting air of its breath... for just a fleeting second. Ibuki, however, had dragged her out before she could even make sense of what went on. Light flooded her vision, and Konoka had to catch her breath alongside the other woman too. ]

Ibuki-han, you all right?

[With daylight around her and no more need to flee, Ibuki can slowly find enough calm within herself to gloss over what just happened. No need to drag down the mood, and so she offers a laugh that's only partly forced.]

Phew! Ibuki's imagination really ran away with her there for a minute. Good job we got into the light when we did!

[Yep, just going to act like that's all it was. No need to cause any more worry.]

Mmmn...

[ Konoka can tell there's something more to it, she can hear a forced laugh in that voice given their experience. But she also felt it might be unwise to try and pursue the source of it... at least not now. ]

Guess that place was scarier than I gave credit for. But we're safe now.

[ She gave Ibuki a reassuring pat on the back. ]

Yeah...someone really knows what they're doing in there.

[Maybe Ibuki wouldn't have been as thrown by it were it not for the last part. But either way, it had been fun in a terrifying way.

Still. This calls for a diversion.]

And I think for surviving, we deserve a treat. What do you say, Konoka-chan?

Oh, that sounds good!

[ A treat would be great for getting rid of that dry throat and the brewing uncomfortable atmosphere! ]

What caught your eye?

They have ice cream. That would be just the thing to cool us down.

[And Ibuki can only speak for herself, but she could use some cooling down now.]

Ooh, that sounds great to me!

[ She was already excited at the prospect, and thus actually took Ibuki's hand to run off to the ice cream stand. Of course, as soon as she gets there, she can't even decide on a flavor. ]

Hmmm...

[Ibuki is a-ok with being dragged along for ice cream. Not that she needs dragging but hey, it's all part of the fun, right?

As is the careful art of ice-cream decision making. Because "all of them" isn't an option this time, however much she might like it to be.

Good thing it's easy to sway Ibuki sometimes. Colour counts for a lot, and so:]

One bubblegum-raspberry combo please!

[ Ibuki's choice in ice cream earns her an amused stare from Konoka. Largely because she didn't expect it, and yet when seen made perfect sense to her. ]

I'll go with cookies and cream.

[ She eventually takes hers and began licking on it. ]

Mmmn! How do you like yours?

[By the time Konoka gets hers, Ibuki's making pretty good headway into her own ice cream. It's a wonder she doesn't have brain freeze yet but she's not about to slow down at all.

Except to answer that question, of course.]

It's sweet, it's sharp, it's an explosion of flavour. A flavour party, even, and right on Ibuki's tongue.

Welcome to the Festival of Fireflies

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