-- The vast majority of humans believe Kyubey to be a spirit created from positive emotion.
--- Many believe that if there's a large enough concentration of positive emotion, Kyubey will gain another body.
I'm dying from laughter right now
Kyubey - concentrated good emotions. Dear God, the very concept is preposterous.
Still against that dragon vote. How would we fly? Magic or wings (which would probably need some magic, since we may need large wings, depending on our mass)? Hollow bones like birds or human like bone structure?
Shit, there's a lot going into that wish for little return. I personally think even wishing for cake is better.
... Okay, maybe not.
Edit: Keep in mind that our character is a teenage girl. If she became a dragon permanently, she'd he happy for a while. Now, think about her wants. How would she have her first kiss? If she ever wanted children, how could she have them now? Well, less children and more sex, but even mentioning that is taboo enough for some people. Nevertheless, I'm pretty certain that even teenage girls have a sex drive. That'd be rather hard to handwave away.
Yeah, that'd be a pretty depressing for our character, I think.
Why not abstain from making such a humongous decision for now? I don't think even we would be that rash.
Still against that dragon vote. How would we fly? Magic or wings (which would probably need some magic, since we may need large wings, depending on our mass)? Hollow bones like birds or human like bone structure?
If she became a dragon permanently, she'd he happy for a while. Now, think about her wants. How would she have her first kiss? If she ever wanted children, how could she have them now? Well, less children and more sex, but even mentioning that is taboo enough for some people. Nevertheless, I'm pretty certain that even teenage girls have a sex drive. That'd be rather hard to handwave away.
Again with the whole "Asian Dragons Can Shapeshift" thing. This is not an issue. At all. They can be humans when they want to be. Because they're anti-gravity wizard snakes made out of awesome.
IStill against that dragon vote. How would we fly? Magic or wings (which would probably need some magic, since we may need large wings, depending on our mass)? Hollow bones like birds or human like bone structure?
Our dragon's flight is literally fueled by the hopes and dreams of a young girl. Sure, that makes it cost magic when we fly, but I'm pretty sure it also costs magic to jump to the top of a skyscraper anyways.
Besides, not all dragons fly. Unless you don't consider Ladon and Nidhog dragons, I guess.
Still against that dragon vote. How would we fly? Magic or wings (which would probably need some magic, since we may need large wings, depending on our mass)? Hollow bones like birds or human like bone structure?
Unless I missed it no one is currently voting to turn into a dragon. Some of us are throwing around some ideas but even some of those are in the "I don't want to make a wish, at least for a long time" category. It's just a bit of fun trying to figure out a good wish that might be in use later after we have more potential, though I am personally in the "never make a wish unless there is no other choice" category.
[X] You came this far already; you might as well see it through.
You take several deep breaths, square your shoulders, and march toward the entrance. It would be a waste of time for you to have come all this way only to turn back now. Your dad told you to follow your heart, and so you shall.
Well, most of your heart is actually screaming in terror right about now, but you're trying to ignore that. You'd prefer to listen to the part which wants to learn more about magical girls and what they do.
Kyubey darts out from underneath a nearby bench and hops up onto your shoulders as you head inside, curling up around your neck. Several of the people watching Jeanne instead choose to switch their focus over to you.
-[X] Try to avoid acting like a shrinking violet. People are staring, but they're mostly focused on Jeanne, right...?
You do your utmost to ignore their stares and pretend they're just watching Kyubey. For all you know, they might very well be. Why would they bother to pay any attention to you? Besides the fact that he's riding on your shoulders and Kyubey only does that for magical girls or girls with potential and your mother killed people and ignoring them now!
You've only been inside for an instant before Jeanne notices you and beckons you over. Her awareness of her surroundings is actually rather impressive, especially considering she had been texting right up until that moment.
"Hello there! It's nice to meet you. I'm Jeanne, but you already knew that. Please, sit down." she smiles radiantly and gestures at the chair across from her. You briefly wonder where your legs are supposed to go, considering the small size of the table. It seems like a wonderful recipe for kicking one another if you don't keep very still.
"I'm Jade. Shouldn't we go someplace a little more private to talk about this?" you ask, trying very hard not to appear as terrified as you feel. More and more people are bringing out cameras and phones to record the two of you.
Jeanne waves a hand airily. "If I say something I'm not supposed to, Kyubey will deal with it."
...Does she even realize how creepy that sounds? You reluctantly sit down.
"So, what did you want to know about? Or we can just turn this into a social visit if you'd prefer. It's always nice to meet new people."
Without bothering to ask if you actually drink it, she orders tea for you and some assorted pastries for you both.
-[X] Ask her what fighting witches is like.
Jeanne is silent for quite a while. You aren't really keeping track of how long; all you've noticed is the sudden absence of her dazzling smile. You try to avoid panicking in the interim. You don't succeed, but you think you mostly manage to keep it from showing.
"Different." she says at last. "They're eldritch abominations that are, quite literally, formed from the stuff of nightmares. At least, that's my personal theory. They and their barriers do follow some some of internal logic, but they're often very strange and don't really obey little things like gravity and space. No two witches are alike, so it's rather difficult to come up with standardized tactics for fighting them. You just have to keep alert and try not to get eaten."
She notices your look of horror and waves a hand dismissively. "Oh, that barely ever happens now. Things were much worse before magic went public, but now new magical girls can just apprentice under someone more experienced until they learn what they're doing. If you do decide to become one of us, here's some essential advice: opt for overkill and stay alert. You can't be sure a witch is dead until after you've seen its seed, and even then, a few of its familiars might be hanging around."
"...Seed? Familiar?" You'd been under the impression that Kyubey was the only magical girl familiar; if witches are going around making their own little minions, that's kinda scary. It would fit with the 'perfect reverse of magical girls', though: Kyubey makes magical girls, while Witches make whatever the evil version of Kyubey is.
"Oh, right. Familiars are like little mini-witches that can grow up into another witch if they kill enough people. As for grief seeds..." she reaches for an embroidered white purse next to the table and produces a tiny black sphere with silver ornamentation. What looks like a needle is going straight through it.
"They're what you get after a witch dies."
DESPAIR/SADNESS/GRIEF
You can easily believe it's the corpse of a witch. Even looking at it brings up memories of your parents dying right in front of you. Jeanne completely misinterprets your anguished expression and hastily continues.
"They're not dangerous or anything, don't worry. Well, not unless you stab yourself with it, but you'd have to do that intentionally. They sort of hover a teensie bit above your hand when held, see? We get them from killing witches and can dump the waste produced from using magic into them. Magical girls don't really 'run out' of power; instead, the source of our abilities 'fills up' with waste."
...That's actually rather weird. It does depend on what kind of waste is produced, but you suspect the first law of thermodynamics might be just a tad displeased with them.
"What do you do with a grief seed after you've used it?" you try to avoid looking directly at the wretched thing. Surprisingly, the aura of despair becomes a lot less noticeable when you aren't focusing your attention on it.
"We give them to Kyubey. He can safely destroy them. Unfortunately, a used grief seed will hatch into a witch if it's left for too long."
You blink. "Only the used ones?"
"Yes. Unused ones can be kept around forever."
It seems a little odd that witches would feed off the waste from magical girls, but you suppose it fits into them being their polar opposites. You breathe a sigh of relief when Jeanne returns the grief seed to her purse. 'Safe' or not, it was doing horrible things to your mood. You don't need any external assistance to feel awful, thank you very much.
-[X] Ask about her experience as a magical girl. Pros and Cons. How does this impact her personal life? Public's Impact on her? (You are very sensitive right now to how people around you see you right now. You don't need more judgement. You need as much information as you can before stepping foot into this gig.)
Her serious demeanor vanishes, her smile returning once more. You have the feeling this is something she's more comfortable with discussing.
"It's been amazing. My life used to be awful, you know? My mom is dead and my dad was a violent drunk. I did pretty good in school, but I feared going home at the end of every day and tried to stay with friends as often as possible. Sadly, I didn't have very many of those and was too scared to tell them why I came over so often. ...Well, anyway, he eventually ended up in prison and I got to become a magical girl. If I had to categorize it into pros and cons..."
"Pros: I get to save lives and help people, and they actually remember and appreciate it. Everybody loves us. My living conditions have vastly improved. I can use magic. My reflexes, aim, durability, and speed are all orders of magnitude better than any ordinary human. I never gain weight, no matter what I eat. I can stop myself from aging, so I'm functionally immortal. Fighting witches is actually pretty fun, at least for me."
"The cons are that I have to deal with the same bu- the same nonsense as every other celebrity. While tabloids are reluctant to directly attack me or other magical girls, they make up for it by doubling down on everyone around us. It's extremely annoying. Even if I do something 'bad', they blame it on the people around me being a 'corrupting influence' instead of letting me speak my own fucking mind."
You barely notice her curse, suddenly reminded of the crowd of people staring at you both. Just when you'd finally managed to (mostly) forget they were there. Even if they can't hear the exact conversation or if Kyubey is wiping their memories or something, they're still taking pictures of you, possibly even recording the non-secret bits. It wouldn't take very much digging at all to find out what your mother had did, or how fond your father was of explosives. Combining the two would give them plenty of fuel for turning everybody against you. And that's without making use of your own flaws; they probably wouldn't be that generous. You wouldn't even be able to go outside without somebody recognizing you and why did you think it was a good idea to come here?
Lost in a spiral of fear and panic, you almost completely forget about Jeanne. You flinch when she puts one hand over your own.
"Relax. They'll get bored and move on to the next 'scandal' after a few days, don't worry."
Maybe for most people, but somehow, you suspect they'll be focused on you for weeks.
[] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[] Fail. Panic anyway.
--[] You need to get out of here right now. The destination doesn't matter, just so long as it gets you away from all the stares and judgment and silent loathing.
-[] Focus on why you came here: finding out what you need to decide whether or not you want to become a magical girl.
-[] Jeanne said they tend to leave magical girls alone, right...? So if you contract quickly enough, maybe they'll go for an easier target. Focus on that.
--[] Or maybe you'll be the exception to the rule.
-[] Focus on Jeanne's hand instead. It feels nice.
--[] Try very hard to avoid blushing and/or acting like a stammering schoolgirl. You're sixteen, for pity's sake.
--[] Ruthlessly stamp down the part of you commenting on how nice it is.
-[] Focus on the food and tea when it finally arrives.
-[] Pull Kyubey down from your shoulders and hug him. He can survive being squeezed and you really need something cute to cuddle.
-[] Ask for advice on what to wish for.
--[] If she asks, don't tell her about your specific situation.
---[] Especially not who you're related to. You've seen where that knowledge leads. Even if the entire city is going to know soon, you can still delay it as long as possible.
-[] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
-[] Write-in questions
[] Thank Jeanne for her help and leave. You're already panicking and it will only get worse the longer you stay here.
-[] Go back to the orphanage.
-[] Go buy an armful of stuffed animals. You really need something to hug.
-[] Wander around aimlessly for a while.
--[] Buy whatever looks interesting.
[X] Agni
[X] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[X] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
I'll think about the other bits later, but for now, 'Fire' sounds nice.
[X] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[X] Focus on why you came here: finding out what you need to decide whether or not you want to become a magical girl.
-[X] Focus on Jeanne's hand instead. It feels nice.
-[X] Ask for advice on what to wish for.
--[X] If she asks, don't tell her about your specific situation.
---[X] Especially not who you're related to. You've seen where that knowledge leads. Even if the entire city is going to know soon, you can still delay it as long as possible.
-[X] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
-[X] Ask her if she's ever seen a magical girl die and what happened.
[X] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[X] Focus on why you came here: finding out what you need to decide whether or not you want to become a magical girl.
-[X] Focus on the food and tea when it finally arrives.
-[X] Pull Kyubey down from your shoulders and hug him. He can survive being squeezed and you really need something cute to cuddle.
-[X] Ask for advice on what to wish for.
--[X] If she asks, tell her about your situation.
-[X] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
[X] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[X] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
[x] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[x] Think about power to be invisible/unnoticeable.
-[x] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
[1] Summers
[2] Descendres
[3] Keahi
All other last names sounds bad when you say full name. Just try to say the out loud.
[x] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[x] Focus on why you came here: finding out what you need to decide whether or not you want to become a magical girl.
-[x] Focus on Jeanne's hand instead. It feels nice.
--[x] Just take a few deep breaths and try to calm down.
-[x] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
[X] Focus on Jeanne's hand instead. It feels nice.
--[X] Ruthlessly stamp down the part of you commenting on how nice it is.
-[X] Ask for advice on what to wish for.
--[X] If she asks, don't tell her about your specific situation.
---[X] Especially not who you're related to. You've seen where that knowledge leads. Even if the entire city is going to know soon, you can still delay it as long as possible.
-[X] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
Edit: Just so we're clear, I'm against contracting. Nevertheless, information is information is information, and we need that about MGs.
@Bugs I don't think having [x} will count, there
Edit: Oops, wasn't Bugs after all
WRT the update - okay, now I'm REALLY against contracting, if just being NEAR a grief seed affects us that much. It's not like we can just stay away from them as a magical girl, they'd literally be our one real requirement to keep on existing.
[x] Try to ignore the crowd watching your every move.
-[x] Focus on why you came here: finding out what you need to decide whether or not you want to become a magical girl.
-[x] Focus on Jeanne's hand instead. It feels nice.
--[x] Just take a few deep breaths and try to calm down.
-[x] Ask her what kinds of magic the other magical girls in the city have and/or what roles they fill.
In french - a play on words. Both "ashes" and "descends". An inversion of the phoenix myth- appropriate, given the setting. After all, fire rises from ashes, but fuel descends to it.
I'm not sure why this is needed as its exactly what most people seem to be doing.
In unrelated news.
[X] Thank Jeanne for her help and leave. You're already panicking and it will only get worse the longer you stay here.
-[X] Wander around aimlessly for a while.
I was tempted by trauma bunnies, but a maybe random encounter won out.
