no running in the halls!

[moonstrualcycle]

[hot off the presses, this one, horrendous new clothes and all. wherever it is in the DR's apartment building that Lea's chosen to roost, that's where Isa's getting yeeted catapulted, quite literally. at least it had the decency to drop her outside the apartment, right? enjoy the distinct sound of someone colliding hard with the wall next to the door and crumpling into a groaning mess on the floor. there's sand on her shoes, and a familiar frisbee came with her, dropped a short distance from where she landed. knock knock, Lea.]

Comments

[cinderlea]

[ Don't look at her. Lea's fashion sense is terrible. She would never call Isa's dumb outfit stupid. She looks unsurprised that Isa's suggesting a nighttime Halloween Town visit, after that. ]

That figures. You get here and the first thing you do after a nap is try to pull me out of my luxurious apartment. That's fine, I get it.

[ The sarcasm is just dripping out of her, and it's obvious by the way she's grinning behind the coffee mug. ]

It's up to you. I don't have a lot to do here, talking your ear off aside...

[moonstrualcycle]

Yes, well, the fact that you have to be dragged out just means it needs to be done more often.

[you're off the hook (for now) re: those things that should probably be talked about. Isa chugs the rest of her coffee, sets the mug neatly on her plate, and starts trying to untangle herself from this very comfortable bed. she's gotta pee and find her shoes and sort out her hair before they can go anywhere. the bathroom's the only thing actually closed off with a door in here, right?]

[cinderlea]

[ That is correct. Lea looks surprised, and mildly concerned about where this may be going, if they're actually going. Aw man, and she'd done such a good job of avoiding showing off her 'costume'. ]

What? You really wanna go?

[moonstrualcycle]

[she makes a big show once she's standing of stretching her arms over her head, fingers laced together, and glances sidelong at Lea.]

Unless you'd rather we keep talking and bouncing off of topics that make you anxious. Now that you mention it, that does sound like a good time.

[cinderlea]

Wh— Excuse you. Who's anxious?

[ To show how not anxious she is, she'll stand up and take her plate and mug off to the sink and away from this inappropriate display. Look how normal she is. She's not anxious at all! ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[pff. what if Isa gets her own dishes and follows Lea to the kitchen, and sets them on the counter by the sink before getting Lea in a solid but brief bear hug from behind? laying down hugs aren't anything like standing up hugs, after all, or sitting hugs. stop being so anxious, friend. it'll be okay.]

You are, you big dork. So am I, if we're being honest, but you didn't hear that from me.

[cinderlea]

[ She will be surprised and briefly shocked, but mostly it turns into delight. She will not get over Isa being huggable and will take full advantage of every opportunity for hugs, just in case some bullshit ever happens again. ]

Nope, I heard it. Every single word. How long until you're ready?

[moonstrualcycle]

Just give me a minute in the bathroom and then we can go.

[she'll go do that, then, and return with tidier hair, although hers never gets as wild from sleeping as Lea's does. she'll also sit on the couch for a second to get her shoes back on.]

[cinderlea]

[ That's all fine as long as she avoids the bedroom, where Lea is getting changed. She was in lounge pants and a comfortable tanktop before, but now she's changing into some black jeans and a t-shirt and probably some kind of loose jacket. It's chilly in Halloween Town, not that it'll matter.

She's also totally forgotten about her hair, please don't let her leave like this. ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[i mean. it's probably nothing she hasn't seen before, at some point. but no, she's not anywhere near the bedroom, and will be parked on the couch still when Lea reappears, picking at a loose thread on the bottom of her own long jacket. she looks up, and snorts.]

Your hair's a wreck.

[cinderlea]

[ Yeah but she's hotter now. No, she's almost certainly seen her naked, but that's besides the point. She looks nonplussed, then reaches up to pull the clip out of her hair and shake it out, combing her fingers through it after. It looks thick and unruly like usual, but at least it's in the vague shape her hair's supposed to be. ]

You haven't picked on my hair in ages.

[moonstrualcycle]

You're not giving me anything new to work with, I have to take what I can get.

[she looks fond as hell, though, and stands up, tucking her hands in her pockets. lead on, Lea.]

[cinderlea]

Wow. I thought I delivered the burns around here.

[ Her hair is manageable, and Isa is making obvious signs that she's ready to go, so Lea confirms her phone is in her pocket and then heads over to the door. As she's opening it, she glances back and motions for Isa to follow. ]

You'll probably find a phone soon too, wherever you decide to stay.

[ "Like in whatever future apartment I pick out for you or mine if you want" ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[it'll absolutely be somewhere in Lea's place when they return, as a sign from the dressing room gods that they should bang, or at least cohabit for a while. she's following, don't worry. smugly:]

Well, I only just got here today, so you probably did until now.

[they're both full of shit tbh.]

[cinderlea]

You know, I missed your sense of humor more when I wasn't the sole target.

[ It's like rock paper scissors. She was doing good, but Isa always beats Lea, or something. Anyway, onwards! Once they're out of the apartment she'll steer Isa toward the left. There's an elevator, and they're going down. After that it's not a far walk to Halloween Town's door at all. ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[there's probably not a lot to talk about on the way, maybe just some basic questions about the dressing room. once they're at the door Isa's suddenly looking a bit apprehensive, though; it's just a subtle crinkling of her brows, but it's there. how does this shit actually work?]

So these just look like the worlds, right? They aren't actually the worlds themselves?

[cinderlea]

As far as I can tell they're exact copies. They're just— empty. Maybe it's one world for every alternate universe out there, and this is just the baseline.

[ She shrugs, reaching for the door handle. ]

You should probably take a look at me before you go in.

[moonstrualcycle]

Okay...

[now she just looks skeptical. you sure are hyping this up, Lea, it'd better be as cool as you're making it sound. also oh no, i just realized. is Lea going to turn into a sexy demon. is that why she didn't elaborate on it.]

[cinderlea]

[ Well, yes. Of course it is. Monstrously sexy. She makes a grand show of looking put out and called upon, but she's not nearly as bothered by it as some people might be. It's not like she's Riku.

As soon as she steps foot into Halloween Town her clothes disappear, her hair gets longer and moves on its own, as if there's a gentle breeze from all directions, or her hair's fire. She looks kind of like this, with dark red skin from head to toe that fade to black in her limbs and the long, flaming tail she's gained. There are horns on her head, but bigger than those, coming from just above her hairline in the front and extending more toward the back of her head, while still being mostly upwards-pointed. The horns are also lit aflame at the ends, coal-black and covered in cracks that burn and glow, like two burning logs that are close to falling into ash.

Lea's eyes are still green, but her pupils are rectangles and her sclera have turned black. Her hands have erupted in claws, but her legs and feet look mostly normal from this angle, just demonic, nymph-like, and the sides of her face seems to be more pointed at her cheekbones. Her ears have changed completely, and now flop to the side as goat ears. Her clothes are also just gone, leaving her naked but also covered in a cracking armor of hardened lava rock. Overall she seems taller and bigger than she was, somehow, and she's also on fire. They're small flames, but they're there. Oops.

The fire isn't doing anything to anything around her, but then, it is a costume. ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[now who's nonplussed? it's Isa. also here i was worried i'd be the super extra one with this part, thank u.

give her a minute to process this, because it's A Lot. hm. yes. arousing and terrifying, this is a new combo of feelings for her but it figures it would be Lea causing them.]

Well. This was fun, I'm glad we did this.

[and she turns away, as if she's going to just leave. she's not, there's a distinct difference between Isa actually leaving and just pretending she's going to to bother Lea. but the apprehension is back now and it's very insistent. this seems intensely tailored to the individual person, and she's concerned about what it's going to dig up for her. spoilers: not anything good.]

[cinderlea]

What? Come on. You've gotta at least tell me if I look hot.

[ Finger guns. Not literally, although she would. She does fake-chase after Isa (turns out she floats instead of walks, like this), stopping directly inside the door and planting her hands on the frames. Her tail flicks like a clock hand, and she's not gonna give her a chance for a retaliatory burn. ]

See? Mine's really out there, compared to Riku's. But I've seen some that are even crazier. You can wait until you've been here more than a couple hours, if you want.

[ She's not even really teasing. It's an out, if Isa wants it. ]

[moonstrualcycle]

[nah, she's fine, it's just intensely weird and strange. now that she's taken a moment to steady herself, Isa turns back around and moves right up to the doorframe so she can look up at Lea's face. she studies it, reassuring herself that it's still Lea in there (because how could it not be), and then puts her hands on Lea's waist to shift her out of the way. there's a half second where her heart jumps into her throat, unconsciously expecting the fire to burn, but it doesn't really show on her face.]

I'm fine, move over so I can come in.

[cinderlea]

[ Whoa. Well, okay. Lea's kind of jumps too, but for a completely different reason and not at all easy to figure out by the way her ears wiggle. Her skin feels warm and almost feverish, but the fire doesn't burn at all, and feels like a warm breeze at best. But she moves back and out of the way, reclining slightly mid-air and reaching back to rub the back of her neck. ]

Up to you. I'll be right here.

[moonstrualcycle]

[dirtbag, where else would you be? B( Isa swallows hard, barely breathing at all, and takes a cautious step over the threshold of the room. she almost lets out a sigh of relief when nothing happens at first, but then something does happen.

an ashen blackness appears on her shoulders, and spreads itself down her arms and torso until it's covered her entire jacket, and then keeps going almost to the ground before solidifying into the familiar Organization coat. in the meantime, her face has done what always does when she goes berserk; her scar has spread out, and her eyes are glowing, wide and panicked. but there's no supernatural glow around her, no fangs, no bristling hair, and no weapon in sight. it's just her, and what becoming a Nobody did to her. she seems to be frozen in terror.]

[cinderlea]

[ Nope, nope, the last time she saw Saïx she got a claymore to the gut- wait. This isn't Saïx though. This is Isa. Lea resists the instinct to escape, freezing where she is — the fire turns into a darker red, but otherwise she looks calm, just on guard. She waits a beat, then hovers closer. ]

Isa? Let's go back.