[GAME 38] SAPPHIRE

[dramatispersonae]

[You find yourself on a circular island of grass. Though night has fallen, the island is surprisingly well-illuminated by a stone lantern at its center. The lantern's light reaches far enough to reveal that the island is surrounded by water -- a pond? The water's glassy, greenish surface is only broken by the stems of huge white lotuses. Each lotus flower seems to glow ever so slightly, providing just a bit more light to the scene. The air is full of the scent of flowers and greenery, and the sound of crickets is almost deafening at first. It doesn't seem a stretch to assume that you're in some sort of garden.

Four ornamental wooden bridges, painted red, stretch over the pond in opposite directions. You can't tell where they lead. For the moment, the entrance to each bridge is blocked by a thickly-woven rope with zigzags of white paper hanging from them.

There is no moon in the sky, and the stars are only dim points of light.]

Comments

[MINGLE-ISH]

[dramatispersonae]

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[bad_in_latin]

Huh. Least it's pretty.

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[doesnothappen]

Not a lot to do, though.

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[doesnothappen]

...I hear crickets.

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[lablueboy]

[waking up. AGAIN!]

...Wow...

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[doesnothappen]

Feel better?

Re: [MINGLE-ISH]

[pit_peach]

So where do we wanna go?

[RULES]

[dramatispersonae]

[A scroll appears next to the lantern, and a moment later the Masked Lady's voice seems to issue forth from everywhere and nowhere at once.]

Are you familiar with hanafuda? Their name means "flower cards." You can play all sorts of games with them. Most of these games involve matching certain cards together in order to gain the most points. I enjoy card games well enough, but they can be a bit… boring on their own, don't you think? So let's find a way to, mm, make things a little more interesting.

There are thirteen islands in this garden. Each island, save the one you are currently standing on, represents a hanafuda suit. When you cross to an island, you will be given a choice of three tasks to perform. If you perform the task of least difficulty, you will be awarded the card with the least value, whereas the most strenuous task will give you the most valuable card. Some of these tasks involve your entire team. Others involve only a single person.

You will five islands -- which islands you choose is entirely up to you -- and you may only carry a maximum of three cards at a time. When you complete your fourth task, you will be asked which card you would like to discard. Certain combinations of cards will give you more points than others, so please choose carefully.

I wonder what tasks you will perform…? Ufufufu…

[The ropes blocking the bridges fall away. When unrolled, the scroll provides a map of the garden. On the reverse side is a summary of the rules:

一。 Move to an island. Obviously, you may only move to islands connected to the one you are currently on.
二。 Choose a task to perform. Once you have performed it, you will be given a card.
三。 You will visit a total of five islands and perform a task on each.
四。 When you have acquired more than three cards, you will be asked to discard one.]

[PLUM]

[dramatispersonae]

[Your footsteps echo on the wooden bridge as you cross it. In the middle of the bridge, there is a stretch where everything is completely dark save for the dim lotus-lights. But this quickly passes.

The island you come to is also grassy, circular, and lit by a stone lantern. However, unlike the starting island, it is dominated by a twisting plum tree in blossom that almost seems to embrace the lantern. Its delicate pinkish-white blossoms carpet the island. As though to drive the theme home, the paper pasted to the face of the lantern has the emblem of a plum blossom on it. Draped over the branches are several lengths of rope, some of which have been tied into nooses. They sway back and forth in the slight breeze. In front of the lantern is a stone step on which three cards have been placed.



Upon seeing the cards, you instantly know the task associated with each.

✿ plum with nightingale: one person must wear a blindfold, have their hands tied behind their back, and tie a rope around their neck, letting another person lead them around with it for the rest of the game (10 points)
✿ red-lettered tanzaku: one person must wear a blindfold and tie a rope around their neck, letting another person lead them around with it for the rest of the game (5 points)
✿ plain plum: one person must tie a rope around their neck, letting another person lead them around with it for the rest of the game (1 point)

Which will you choose?]

Re: [PLUM]

[pit_peach]

...Not it.

Re: [PLUM]

[doesnothappen]

Want to lead me around, then?

Re: [PLUM]

[lablueboy]

O-oh...

Re: [PLUM]

[doesnothappen]

I'll do the bird one, but no walking me into things.

[SAPPHIRE]

[dramatispersonae]

[Clumps of iris plants surround the edges of the island, as well as the base of the lantern. They seem to favor whites and cool blues and purples. Behind the lantern is a rack on which countless ema boards have been tied. They are too faded to read, but as you approach, they clatter as though stirred by an invisible breeze. In front of the lantern is a stone step on which three cards have been placed.



Upon seeing the cards, you instantly know the task associated with each.

✿ iris with bridge: one person must let the others view/experience one of their greatest desires (10 points)
✿ solid red tanzaku: each person must admit to the others one of their greatest desires (5 points)
✿ plain iris: one person must admit to the others one of their greatest desires (1 point)

Which will you choose?]

Re: [SAPPHIRE]

[doesnothappen]

[hopefully Excel has got me here without incident]

What are they this time?

Re: [SAPPHIRE]

[lablueboy]

[...gets a blank ema card and writes "青江さん" onto it before tying it onto the rack.

there's a tall man in a suit--and all you want is his acceptance and to be near him, and sometimes his words are harsh but you know that he means well because he's warm and gentle and you feel safe with him and when he smiles down at you, it's a bit of a shock because he smiles so rarely, and it's terrifying how content and happy you are when you're with him]

[PAMPAS]

[dramatispersonae]

[From somewhere -- you're not sure where -- comes the chirping of a sparrow, oddly incongruous in this nighttime scene. It's as though you've walked into a field. The island is entirely covered in pampas grass, to the point where the stone step in front of the lantern is nearly concealed. Once you brush the grass aside, however, three cards are revealed. A wooden box sits next to the step. Inside the box is… a ball gag? And something else.



Upon seeing the cards, you instantly know the task associated with each.

✿ pampas with full moon: one person must wear a scold's bridle until you are finished with the next island (10 points)
✿ pampas with geese: one person must wear a gag until you are finished with the next island (5 points)
✿ plain pampas: one person from the team must lose the ability to speak until you are finished with the next island (1 point)

Which will you choose?]

Re: [PAMPAS]

[pit_peach]

Y'know, since we can only carry three cards at once anyway...

[PAULOWNIA]

[dramatispersonae]

PAULOWNIA
[The lantern on this island is cradled between the trunks of two paulownia trees. The blossoms, thus underlit, look almost like a halo around it. In front of the lantern is a stone step on which three cards have been placed. And in front of the step is a large kimono chest. It looks old and worn and utterly unremarkable.



Upon seeing the cards, you instantly know the task associated with each.

✿ paulownia with phoenix: one person must climb into the chest (10)
✿ plain paulownia: each person must reach into the chest (5 points)
✿ plain paulownia: one person must reach into the chest (1 point)

Which will you choose?]

Re: [PAULOWNIA]

[lablueboy]

...Can we open it before we decide...

Re: [PAULOWNIA]

[pit_peach]

Climb into the chest? That's it?

Re: [PAULOWNIA]

[doesnothappen]

[...I will just be over here, blindfolded and tied up and unable to talk...]

[WISTERIA]

[dramatispersonae]

[Your footsteps echo on the wooden bridge as you cross it. In the middle of the bridge, there is a stretch where everything is completely dark save for the dim lotus-lights. But this quickly passes.

The island you come to is also grassy, circular, and lit by a stone lantern. However, unlike the starting island, it is dominated by a trellis covered in wisteria. The trellis stretches over the lantern, forming a canopy of leaves and purple blossoms. As though to drive the theme home, the paper pasted to the face of the lantern has the emblem of a wisteria plant on it. In front of the lantern is a stone step on which three cards have been placed. A brush, a cup of ink, and a small knife sit next to them.



Upon seeing the cards, you instantly know the task associated with each.

✿ wisteria and cuckoo: one person must submit to receiving permanent tattoo of their choice (10 points)
✿ solid red tanzaku: one person must let another carve a small design on them (5 points)
✿ plain wisteria: one person must let another draw a small design on them (1 point)

Which will you choose?]

Re: [WISTERIA]

[bad_in_latin]

[somehow I got lost, don't mind me]

.. tattoos, huh?

Re: [WISTERIA]

[doesnothappen]

[somebody please take the scold's bridle off my face]