day one

[guestcontrol]

dreamland day one 41 players remaining. There are no clocks in your dorm room to help you mark the passing of time, but at a certain point, in the early hours of the morning, a cheerful chime tune plays over the loudspeaker. Whether you're awake or asleep, the door to your dorm room is now unlocked. You'll have about a forty five minutes, in which you can get ready or grab some breakfast, before the door that allows you into the park unlocks. By this time, you may or may not have noticed that one of your number is missing. The chimes play again, to announce that the park is open, and the rides and music begin to come back to life as a voice plays over the loudspeaker. "Looks like it's time to get started after all! To all our guests, have a magical morning! Dream big and have fun, but don't forget to look for the body! We'll see you in the afternoon at the Hall of Mirrors when it's time to vote, okay?" You will have until 4 PM to explore the park and talk amongst yourselves. Somewhere in the park, you'll find the body of Malik Ishtar. rulebook character statuses private conversations graveyard Voting will close at 10 PM EST on Sept 24. Though a special comment for discussion will go up shortly before voting, you are encouraged to discuss who to vote for throughout the day. Voting

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c

[cheats]

[ if you have food, Ciel will be there... ]

[ So pretty much as soon as things start smelling good, Ciel will descend like a vulture, though he hovers by the door as if uncertain as to whether he's allowed to come in or not. ]

That smell— That's curry, isn't it?

[ flashbacks to a stupid curry cooking competition... ]

[photonement]

You're right on the money, Ciel!

[Hopes she has that name right - and she's settling for Japanese style, shield without the D. She puts the lid over the pot of rice and turns to face him.]

You have this in Britain too, right? Do you want it without rice then?

[cheats]

Well, in a way.

[ He gives a half-smile, and even though there's a sense that smiles don't come easily for Ciel, it's still a nice smile. ]

It's certainly new. An exotic dish from the East, really. But I have tried it quite a few times. A friend [ ugh ] of mine is the prince of Bengal, and he insists upon eating it every time I come to call.

[photonement]

Awwww, that's nice. That you can even see each other when you live so far apart, too!

[He looks kind of like a lonely rich kid, after all, if one of his main friends is an equally ranked guy without much personal fondness... and she's noticed Ciel doesn't cook for himself. She scoops out a portion that is particularly finely chopped vegetable-wise, since that will sneak them into his growing boy stomach better.]

[cheats]

[ That makes him laugh, though it's more like a scoff as he glances away with a somewhat troubled expression. ]

Yes, well. Soma certainly makes his presence known no matter what.

[ He doesn't do well with loud types... But Mahiru is not only feeding him, but seems to be more soft-spoken (and sane), so he's a little less prickly in her presence already. Ciel walks closer to look at what she's cooking curiously, since truth be told, he didn't exactly venture into the kitchen in his manor, uh. Ever... ]

[photonement]

[Look, it's the ashes of Kaoru's signed confession to being the mastermind! Kanaya takes off her Mahiru costume and chainsaws Ciel through the heart.

No, the pot contains curry and it's basically done melting on the left half. Mahiru fetches a plate and voila. Curry plus rice.]

Here you go. Careful, Ciel, it's still really hot.

[cheats]

[ WOW RUDE KANAYA ]

[ He takes the plate and murmurs a quiet "thank you," like he's not really used to giving thanks for things, but seeing nowhere else to sit (slash because I don't want to end the thread) he'll just sit nearby. He blows off the curry with a curious expression, then once it's cool enough, takes a bite. And even more surprising, Ciel smiles! ]

...This is good.

[photonement]

Thank you! [Mahiru's legs are getting sore so to keep this thread going she will sit down across from Ciel and... chop a vegetable or do something else productive with her hands. ]

I'm glad you like my cooking... because this might not be the last time you have to put up with it, haha. [Her smile hides a thin veneer of fear--with Ishtar dead, her mind keeps running through combinations of the cast, wondering when they're going to lose their morticians or photographers or cooks.]

[cheats]

[ His smile warms a little more at the comment, since he's happy for more food, of course, but this also just tastes a little different from Sebastian's cooking, and hardly in a bad way. Though he imagine what it would be, it's still a nice flavor. However, the smile does fall somewhat, since he can see that fear in her smile, and he understands. ]

Well, then... I would hope it isn't the last time at all.

[ He takes another bite after it's cooled off, the keeps his eye closed as he tries to play it cool... This is Ciel, so he can't just admit nice things, and also, his ineptitude is kind of embarrassing. ]

If you don't mind, I'll join you whenever you make it. My butler usually prepares my meals, so I'm hopeless in the kitchen, I suppose.

[photonement]

Oh brother.

[Mahiru's face falls into a particularly disdainful kind of pity.]

I know where this is going. You can't do your own laundry, either, can you? You rich boys are all so useless! I'm gonna make you fetch all your own dishes and utensils from now on, OK?

[But there's a fondness to her edge, too; she's agreeing to perform these tasks at all, and that forms a connection between them.

She's done chopping this vegetable so she gets up to put it into the pot and then gets another vegetable and sits back down to chop it, too.]

So what do you do by yourself? Are you homeschooled? By a governess? Do you have refined hobbies. [that last bit is in a mock posh accent]

[cheats]

[ This is... not the response he expected?? At all?! Ciel's noble expression drops right away into open confusion as he starts to get a lecture, and it's clear from that alone that he doesn't exactly get lectured like this often. In fact, not since his...

He breaks off of that train of thought before it goes too far, since it's a bit too much for him to dwell on.

Ciel at least looks much more his age now rather than a boy trying to play at being an adult, and his reply comes with some stilted, awkwardness, like he's still amazed she would say anything about it at all. ]

I— Well, no, certainly not. My serving staff takes care of all the household chores. [ Basically just the butler, though. Everyone else is useless... ] I run a business? I'm the head of the family, so it's my duty to run it...

[ Which also implies a bit about the state of Ciel's family if someone as young as he is is the head of it. ]

[photonement]

A whole business? Really? [Less openly shocked than this icon, Mahiru's eyes widen as her mouth hardens. The immediate implication is that Ciel is an orphan without older brothers... and he also presumably has an at least somewhat packed schedule, so any outright bitterness that Ciel is worthless at domestic tasks goes out the window. Her voice is gentler, though she keeps it at a level of innocent curiosity rather than outright kid gloves softness.]

What do you sell? Have you got locations all over the world or just in England? [Maybe Ciel will be proud to talk about this, too, instead of his family. Mahiru knows she's not exactly got the right to be openly proud of her own family.]

[cheats]

[ He nods, still a bit surprised, but by now, it's more at her interest at all. Ciel takes another bite of his food to delay the topic, since honestly, he finds it a bit embarrassing. He much preferred his "real" work as the Queen's Watchdog, and Funtom was merely a cover for his shadier business, but... It was still his business to manage, and one he had done an excellent job at despite his age. When he speaks up again, there's some of the noble distance back in his face, but it's also pretty clear that it's because he's shy about the topic. ]

Yes. The Funtom Company specializes in high quality confectioneries and toys, though we do deal in some other branches as well, such as food. I take business opportunities when I see them.

[ He shrugs ] Most of our locations are in London, but we have some stores in other major cities in Europe... Our products are very well known throughout the world, though.

[photonement]

[Her lips immediately twitch into a smile at "confectionaries" - is he using that fancy schmancy codeword for candy? That's the most adorable thing she's ever heard. To her credit, she doesn't outright laugh; as a Super High School Level Photographer with a friend who's the freaking Super High School Level Gamer, she's got some ability to appreciate people who really put their back into esoteric talents that benefit the world in general.

(It's a good thing that if Mahiru ever gets any idea just how shady Earl Phantomhive really is, that'll have to happen after Kuzuryuu has died.)

She's done with this round of vegetable chopping too and has no more left given how dedicated she is to delegating that task onto certain kitchen disasters who ruined one or two pots of rice between them, so she gets up to dump both of those into the stew and commences stirring, still looking at Ciel.]

I've never heard of it... but I don't know a lot about candy brands. When I have some it's usually what my friends share with me and sometimes they unwrap it in advance.

Hey... if you've really got your finger on the pulse of the industry, do you think the stock that they have in the candy shoppe gives us any information? [That's how it would work in a class trial. Everyone's talent comes in handy eventually]

[cheats]

Well, that's not surprising. [ He says simply in response to her not knowing, and he waves a hand dismissively. ] It's 1888 where I'm from. I've already ascertained that this is hardly the case for most of the people here...

[ He kind of had an idea when he first saw Legion, and probably stared at Legion for a long time because he really just did not understand what he was seeing, but. By now, he's just not thinking about these things much since it's a little bit easier.

To her question, he looks surprised, since he's unsure of why she's asking at first, so he takes another bite to mull it over. But ultimately, Ciel just shrugs. ]

Um... I don't really know much though, no. They're all fairly generic. A bit low-quality, by my standards. [ His standards are high, though. ] Nothing I recognized, at least. Though it was rather bare by the time I got to it. Oz said he and someone else had picked through it already.

[photonement]

[Sure enough, she frowns. 20XX Mahiru Koizumi has decided not to believe any of that time travel, demon, fairy, monster, alien, robot stuff. But she's polite, especially to a little boy who is already stuck in the trappings of the nobility and clearly lacks the requested information either way--and furthermore, the frown turns into a more respectable curled, concentrating mouth, until she stamps her foot at the recollection.]

Honey! Of course! I saw him in there myself the first day we got here! He must have cleaned it out... what a bad boy. He should share more. Plus if he eats it all himself already he's gonna feel really bad later when we're all out.

[cheats]

[ At this point, it dawns on him, and Ciel's face twists into an indignant little frown, since he's a grumpy child. But Honey. You were the one to deprive him of full gluttony. ]

The one with the stuffed rabbit.

[ The way he says that makes it seem like he's grossly offended?? ]

That store was nearly empty by the time I got there!!

[photonement]

Yeah, him. I guess you two will have to talk it out, huh? Be careful. [Good lord. She hopes they don't kill each other. Meanwhile, she hopes this soup is still good... She raises the ladle to her lips and frowns.]

Hey, Ciel. I might need more pepper in this.

[You're good for something, right?]

[cheats]

[ He was about to fly off into buttfurious candy-related rage because Ciel is a big baby, but thankfully, Mahiru provides a distraction. His sour expression softens. ]

...Do you want me to taste it?

[ If there's anything Ciel is good at, it's being a critic, so you have the right person for that. ]

[photonement]

[Mahiru hadn't thought of it that way - she'd purely wanted someone who could move away from the stove to pick up the pepper shaker - but he has a good point.]

Sure, if you really wanna. But I'm gonna need the pepper first. Don't you see it? Over on the table. [Maybe this is an English thing - she remembers it's sometimes a whole vegetable - so she clarifies:] The black stuff.

[cheats]

Oh, well—

[ He looks a bit flustered at misunderstanding, but he grabs the pepper all the same and hands it to her, though he glances away. ]

...I do know what pepper is. [ He says like a petulant five year old... ]