She is dancing away from you now - Open

[twirlier]

WHO: Misty and YOU
WHERE: Around the grounds
WHEN: October
WARNINGS: PG, will update if needed

---

>>The Fences

It's an easy enough of a way of exploring the magic in Wonderland, much as exploring the woods. Start at one part of the fence with a handful of red ribbons and determination. Every few feet she tied off one of the ribbons. There's nothing to it, though it seems to go on further than she could imagine with the limits she's already found.

And then she finds herself standing at the front of the big house, still holding her ribbons and looking confused.

"Well then."

She does it again. Determined steps. Singular focus. Again back in front of the house.

Again she walks.

Again, back in front of the house.

Running, barely pausing to tie off ribbons and finding herself suddenly running from the house.

Again running, the fence, the house. Over and over and over again until she stumbles, falling to her knees in front of the house with a scream of pure frustration.

>>The Lake

For the most part Misty avoids the lake. It's nothing against the water and the beauty of it, but the frogs. The throaty croaking sounds and sight of their slick, verdant skins brings tears to her eyes that sting as sharply as she might imagine acid would. Some days though she forces herself down there.

Skipping the dock and heading down to the edge of the water. Curling upon on the bank, close enough she can drag her fingers through the water and waiting for them to come closer. Waiting for them to venture near so that she can whisper soft words to them as the tears slide down her cheeks, telling them how good they are, how sweet, and how sorry she is for all she's done. Even if they were frogs in Hell, maybe not real, and yet so many of them dead in that time she was in Hell, murdering them over and over again only to bring them back to kill them all over again.

>>The mouth of the caves, The Woods, The Beach, The Hills

It's a scene repeated often throughout the month by Misty, trying to hold to the conversation she first had with Kol and seeing what might come of it. Tracing the source of magic in Wonderland. Certainly they all have their own, but there is a magic that is unique to this place, something that is either about none of their worlds, or all of them, and she truly wants to know what this place is made of.

Armed with salt and herbs, lake water and swamp mud, Misty sets up space on the land at different points. Seeking out where things feel crisper, sharper, less in the moment and more between time. If her calculations are correct and time does run in Wonderland as it does elsewhere, they are approaching that time of year when more than the seasons change. When Gods are reborn, and Goddesses are heavier with a death soon to come. A time when the worlds are closer to one another than they are at any other time, and perhaps that is true even in Wonderland.

The magic she hopes to enact is opening herself to the world, the magic, and all that inherently Wonderland. That magic that allows the Queens to come and go, that holds the Mirrors at bay, and that which draws them to this place from their own worlds.

It's different. It feels full and heavy on her skin like a warm, drenched blanket. It seems to bubble up from beneath her, and hang in the air like electricity on the storm that hasn't erupted yet. It's beautiful and alien and often she dances about as if with a partner that is unseen, charming and foreign and just at the tips of her fingers but forever out of her grasp to understand.

It's an amazing sensation when she's caught up in it, but one that takes much from her. Often she can be found after curled up near where she had been working to trace the magic of this place. Her cheek to the ground, her eyes closed, and her breathing calm and even. Other times she makes her way to the kitchen for food to help balance her, ground her back to her place and her life, or even slipping to the party boat, curling up there to let the rock of the boat soothe her and remind her of who she is, and wherein her own true power lies.

>>Checkerboard Hills

Trying to trace the magic has become an preoccupation and a distraction. It lets her mind not to worry about the past, about the future and the only thing it holds for her. About if she's asking too much of those she cares about, if she's too caught up in daydreams and fantasies that can never be real.

Maybe she throws herself too much into it, but she has to try. Not just because she told Kol that she would but knowing that truth could reveal the secret of how those that wanted to stay in Wonderland, could, and how they could return those desperate to leave to their homes.

So she keeps trying, though this day there is something that is just too much, and it seems to take more than she has to give. Twirling, dancing alone and yet never truly by herself, spinning faster and faster and then, as if her strings have been cut, she falls, collapsing to the ground in a heap of fringe and velvet and golden hair.

Comments

° the fences

[endingpoint]

[ Jane isn't sure what's happening or what's wrong with this woman, but her concern overrides her confusion, going to her and kneeling a few feet away so she's not too close in her personal space. Looking to see a tattooed woman might be alarming, at best. But her voice is soft, a little husky as she frowns. ]

Hey, are you okay? I won't hurt you, I'm just worried.

[twirlier]

[Misty stays where she is, fingers curling into the grass. Her shoulders are hunched, breathing raggedly as she tries to gather her breath. Slowly she raises her head, looking at the other women. She winces, closing her eyes for a moment as she sighs out the breath she has suddenly held.]

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you. I was just... I was testing the fence line, and... I've never dealt with anything like that since... {She makes a face.] Since Hell.

[endingpoint]

[ Jane isn't a hundred percent sure what to say about that, so she just tries to be reassuring. ]

You're okay now. We can sit, I'll sit with you until you catch your breath.

[twirlier]

[Misty offers a tight smile, nodding though.]

Thank you. I appreciate it. I know... No, I don't know. This magic is so different than anything I've known.

[And it's worrying her. She knows all magic can be different but that doesn't explain how, or what.]

[endingpoint]

[ Jane helps her to a bench, then with a little hesitation she reaches out to lightly rub Misty's back. ]

I'm not from a world with magic at all. Everything here is...insane to me. But I've been learning over the years. Are you on the newer side?

[twirlier]

[Smiling at the care, giving her a grateful look as she nods.]

Very new. Only a few months. My world... magic was hidden there, but I've known it all my life.

[She smiles a bit wider then.]

It's easy to see the insanity in it, even when it's part of your life. I just think the magic of this place is part of why those that want to leave are trapped.

the lake

[mollymocked]

[Molly is constantly restless, like a caged tiger, in Wonderland. He doesn't like being in the same place for very long and this has gone on for months- longer than the time he's spent with the Nein, even. And he's alone, which is worse. He doesn't have that comfort and solidarity of a group and lacking clear goals in a place with nowhere to be aimless is essentially as good as a prison. There are people he likes, but they're just as trapped as he is and some of them have things they want to accomplish and do and he lacks any interest in anything but getting out and doesn't have the brains to contribute anything.

He takes a lot of walks is what it amounts to.

The lake is small, but it still make him think of the Ustaloch and how everything started. The sound of croaking frogs doesn't really help. Alas, poor Kylre.

He steps onto the dock a few feet, selects a spot to sit and plops down, cross-legged observing Misty's strange, tearful behavior with the frogs on the shore.] Too many frogs and not enough princes, then? I feel that. [He gives her a wry half-smile from his perch.]

[twirlier]

[Caught up in her misery, Misty is not even truly aware that she isn't alone. Instead she's whispering to the frogs, talking to them about how horrible she is, and she will always be sorry but that maybe that's why they're now in Wonderland. For all of them. To be free, and to be alive.

It's those words she's whispering when she hears another voice. She startles, moving to sit up suddenly. The motion sends the frogs leaping, diving back into the water and away from the movement.

Misty looks up at Molly, mud on her cheek and her eyes red rimmed as is her nose. Despite all of that, she manages to offer a tremulous smile.]

A bit of that, though I think some of us find more than a prince. This though... it's apologies. [She wipes her cheeks with her hands, smearing the mud.] From some things in my world. I've avoided the lake because of the frogs, but that's wrong too.

[mollymocked]

You had a bit of a thing with frogs, then?

[His voice lilts, half in utter confusion, and half in sympathy. He had a thing with frogs once- well toads, maybe. Nergalids. Fiends. A friend who wasn't a friend who broke the rules and had to be taken care of.

It's over and done with and he doesn't want to tell the truth about it, and it's always stupid to ask questions when the answer won't change anything, but what else is he supposed to do? You make conversation and you do a good turn to fix the misery and loneliness of a place, so you're not miserable and lonely too.]

[twirlier]

[She fell quiet, considering that and how to answer it. Gently she scooped up one of the frogs as if holding them, cradling them as she talks about it, will help.]

I learned I was a witch when I brought a frog back from the dead in class. My life changed then. When I died... [She pauses, taking a deep breath to try and staunch the tears that threaten once more.]

I was forced to murder them time and again. I try and remember that's over, and I'm here now, but sometimes...

[Sometimes she remembers she's going back and coming out here and hiding her fears seems nicer than harassing others with them. Except, she's harassing Molly with them now.]

I'll be fine. Just wanted to tell them I'm sorry.

[mollymocked]

[Molly almost- almost- asked if that was what hell was- being forced to find the one thing that made you who you were and being forced to ruin it over and over again. Hell was real and maybe people went there when they died, and the less he knew the better. No one really knew where the Raven Queen ferried people in the end.

Asking wouldn't benefit her or himself. So he didn't bother. Instead, he went for optimism.] Look at this way. In some small way, you're spiting whoever or whatever was part of that place that made you do that. It didn't change you.

checkerboard hills

[entreats]

[ There's a lot to see here around Wonderland when you go on walks, really. Even seeing people just randomly dancing out here isn't that weird - how could it be after seeing various ridiculous events already, really?

But someone suddenly collapsing while doing so.. Well, that's another story entirely. It's enough to even surprise Ange, despite her constant pokerface making her look like nothing ever fazes her. For a moment she glances around her, as if she's looking to see whether there's someone else to go check on that woman who just fell, but.. it sure doesn't seem like anyone else is out here walking right now.

Which means Ange will have to do it despite her complete lack of social skills. Oh geez. It's not like she can just abandon her like that though, so she quickly jogs over to where Misty collapsed, looking down at her once she arrives. ]

.. Are you alright?

[twirlier]

[Her chest heaves with deep breaths, the sound tinged with a wheezing roughness and the breath stirring the ground before her.

Slowly she raises her head and for a moment, she looks confused as if she isn't sure quite where she is. Frowning, her eyes narrowing as she seems to cast about for something that makes sense. After a moment she slumps just slightly. In relief.]

Oh. Oh. For a moment I thought... It's still Wonderland though, isn't it?

[entreats]

[ Well, at least it doesn't seem like she's dead - that's one good thing. Ange isn't entirely sure how she would've had to deal with someone just dying on the spot in this kind of situation. The relief doesn't show up that much on her face though. Instead she opts to focus on a more practical response. ]

Yeah, this is still Wonderland. Unfortunately.

[ Or she assumes it'd be "unfortunate" for most people, anyway. ]

Did you suddenly feel light-headed or something? You just collapsed.

[twirlier]

[Misty though lights up, sighing with relief as she nods.]

Good. Good. I wasn't ready for going back. Not yet. I haven't had enough time.

[Wincing a bit then, making a face.]

I feel a bit dizzy. I think I let myself be overwhelmed. I was trying... I was trying to tap into Wonderland's magic.

[entreats]

[ Ange frowns a bit, although she mostly maintains her pokerface aside from that. What Misty is saying right now is just a little confusing - does she know some way to go home or something? And not enough time for what?

But of course the last part draws Ange's attention the most. She had thought Misty was just dancing, but.. what? ]

Trying to tap into this place's magic? You can do that?

The beach!!

[mettatonvevo]

Mettaton walks through the sand, heels sinking in as he goes and looks out over the ocean. It's strange how this world feels so small after being here for so long. He's seen so many come and go, just like the crashing of the waves. He's feeling more introspective than usual and its this introspection that stops him from noticing the woman lying down on the sand before he's almost tripping over her, just managing to stop himself from falling.

"Ah!"

He keeps his balance (just barely) and looks down, at first annoyed, then very, very alarmed.

"Darling, are you all right???"

He kneels down to put a hand on her shoulder to try and 'rouse' her.

[twirlier]

Misty is not willing to give up on this, to give up on trying to find the source of the magic. She's hitting walls, as it were, more often than not but giving up the first time that happens will get her no where.

Blinking, she looks up at him. Considering the face above her, thinking about what she last remembers. It hasn't been that long that she knows, but blacking out for a moment has left her confused and lost.

"I..." She blinks before nodding. "Yes. Yes. I'm fine. I'm sure. Just... I think I pushed myself too hard." Which she's done over and over again in trying to try and figure out just where the magic of this place comes from.

[mettatonvevo]

At least she seems semi-coherent. If Mettaton could breathe he'd give a sigh of relief.

"Oh good. Well. Not good about the pushing yourself too hard thing but good about being all right."

He stands up from kneeling beside her and then offers her a hand.

"Do you want some help up? That sand cannot be good for your beautiful hair."

[twirlier]

She smiles at that, both his words and his kindness. Reaching up, she takes his hand and nods.

"It is good, and thank you. I... " She pauses to take a breath, smiling then. "Probably not, and thank you. Though sand and salt scrubs are good for the skin," she says, teasing, feeling a bit more herself as the color comes back to her cheeks.

"You would think I would learn, but I just keep getting more curious about this place."

{It's a kind of magic that you weave so well » The Woods

[itchtokill]

Kol is a wandering soul, he's never been apt to stay in one place for very long. He spent decades wandering about across the globe, keeping away from Mikael, fleeing his siblings when things were less than favorable in the moments he wasn't sleeping in a box and being dragged about.

Even here, in this world where he is essentially caged in a lot of ways, he gets the itch to wander. He may not be able to seek out another country, or traipse the globe like he might have once upon a time, but the mansion and the grounds surrounding it are sprawling enough that he can soothe the restlessness. Despite his time here already, there are so very many places and aspects of Wonderland he's yet to explore.

He knows there's some sort of boundary spell of sorts that prevents people from getting very far into the woods, but it can't hurt to do a little exploring, at least. He just didn't expect to find anyone in his rummaging.

Shortly in the distance, there's a heap on the ground, curled into itself. He frowns a bit as he approaches, eventually making out familiar features. "Misty? You all right, luv?" He knows all too well the effects of too-powerful magic on a witch. She had mentioned living in a swamp and nature being more of a home to her than anything else, so she might be fine, but he hasn't forgotten her promise to him all the same, either. He kneels down next to her, peeking down at her curiously.

[twirlier]

All of her life Misty has tapped into the magic of the land around here. Even before she knew what she was doing, without trying to do so, it's just part of who she is. So drawing on the magic around her and not just from deep within herself.

Handling it and coping with that magic is something else entirely.

It's foreign and different, and pushing herself as she has - now that trying to stay in Wonderland is so much more important than it's been - it's a bit much. More than a bit. It's what's led to her curled up on the ground, just trying to let it bleed off and to feel the power of the Earth beneath her.

Vaguely, as if through a veil, she hears a voice. A familiar one that does much to clear that haze that seems to surround her but is really just from her own mind.

Shifting a bit, she raises her head, looking up at Kol. "I... Mostly?" She made a face, touching her temple. "Bit of a headache, I guess. Got kind of dizzy..." Enough so she lifts her head, looking around. "I'm still in the woods, right?"

[itchtokill]

"You sure?" He asks, resting a hand gently on her shoulder. "Yeah, you're in the woods. Get a bit turned around? Head too far in or something?" He hasn't tested it himself, but he's heard plenty about the boundary limits to the Wonderland forest.

[twirlier]

"Things got really dizzy for a bit and then I wasn't sure where I was. I wasn't even sure I was in Wonderland," she admits. "I just... It's things I've never felt. Ever."

[itchtokill]

"Think it's the boundaries Wonderland sets, or because you were trying to mess with the magic?" Easily could be either, probably. He helps her sit up. "You could probably do with some food, yeah? Must'a really taken it outta ya." Witches pushing boundaries never did them well, truth be told, even if in some ways doing exactly that could be nearly second nature.