001. (v1) [audio]

[snowtop]

[The audio clips on to some panicked breathing.]

I-I thought-- I--

Th-this place, it, i-it's su--s-supposed to be a s-sa-- sanctu-- safe p--place! A-And I--

F-First I ff--find a-a guy i-in the--the c-cold room, then I-- there--

Th-there's ink i-in m-- my-- my s--skin!

[Letters are crawling onto his fingers and they won't scrub out.]

Comments

[70ftandcounting]

You--

You too?!

[snowtop]

Y--

[There's a pause of a few seconds. Apologies - Xanth is having a reaction identical to Rapunzel's. Someone else is having this problem? But if someone else is, then that means--]

Is-- is e--everyone ge--getting it!?

[70ftandcounting]

[no dude she totally understands.]

I...I don't think so! I think it's just you and me!

[snowtop]

Well-- wh-- w-why u--us!?

[That makes even less sense!]

icon. she's totally doing it right now

[70ftandcounting]

[FLAIL]

I don't know!!!!

[snowtop]

[FLAIL!!!

Xanth actually spends a minute or two doing that - at least mentally. Physically, he tends more to lock up when panicked, so he sits on his bed stone-still and with his journal in an iron grip.

When he next speaks, his voice is very tight.]

Y-You... you're n... n-not h--hurt, a--are y-you? B-By the, y... you kn--know...

[Because he isn't. Not yet.]

[70ftandcounting]

[Her voice is shaky]

No. No, I'm not hurt or anything, it's not doing anything bad...

[snowtop]

Y--Yeah. N-- Neither is m--mine.

[But it wouldn't wash off. Now his hand is littered with letters that he can't read and words that he doesn't want.]

Ma-- maybe-- i-it'll g-go aw-- away?

[70ftandcounting]

I...I don't know--

I mean. Maybe it will! It just...appeared, so maybe it'll just...go away, too!

Right?

text :3

[thii2ii22tupiid]

ii2 iit doiing anythiing other than ju2t...exii2tiing?

oh man sollux's quirk is gonna kick xanth's ass

[snowtop]

[Xanth sees letters on the page (thankfully they are not in his skin), but he has no idea what they mean. He taps around a bit and manages to make it play back, but that does not help in the least. If anything, he's more confused than ever.

But not panicked. Step up?]

I-- uh--

W-What?

hee. he wants answers so he might switch from [text] soon

[thii2ii22tupiid]

the letter2, are they hurtiing or doiing anythiing two you?
or are they ju2t there?

an excellent plan!

[snowtop]

I-I can't, I don't-- I-- can't r--read th-this...

[Audio] it is!

[thii2ii22tupiid]

*You get a groan, just to make sure his displeasure at having to switch over is known.*

Are they doing anything other than just showing up? Hurting or anything other than being just decorative.

[Audio]

[snowtop]

[Xanth hears that groan and somewhere deep down he regrets being a bother, but it's so thoroughly layered with alarm that it doesn't quite register.]

Well--

N-No, but, i-it, it wasn't th-there be-before, a-and I-- it-- I-I don't know.

Re: [Audio]

[thii2ii22tupiid]

We all have tattoos, they're harmless, but yours is spreading, right? Do you feel anything where the new letters are? Or any different from how you felt yesterday?

[Audio]

[snowtop]

B-But I don't have a-a-- any-- t-tattoos! I-I was l-looking through m--m-my j-journal, and-- and then l-letters c-came off the pa--page a-and on-- onto m-my f-ff-- fingers!

[Audio]

[lightwithin]

[That stutter seems familiar. Two people affected by the same thing in the one day? This is weird.]

Are you okay?

[Audio]

[snowtop]

Uh--

[Is he? He's not actually hurt by the ink. Sure, he's scared, but it hasn't actually injured him.]

I-- maybe? I-- I thhh-think?

[Audio]

[lightwithin]

You don't sound okay. Come on, what's going on?

[She hadn't meant to sound so petulant but, well... He was obviously lying!]

[Audio]

[snowtop]

Well-- I-- I-I don't know. Uh. There-- there were these l--letters, a-and they're s-s--still there, a-actually, but, th-they're not-- doing-- a-anything?

[Audio]

[lightwithin]

Oh, yes, I know. Another girl had them too.

I meant, what happened in the cool room?

[Because that seems far stranger than the tattoos. Why shouldn't there be a man in the cool room?]

[Audio]

[snowtop]

[Oh. That. With all the fuss about the ink, Xanth had almost forgotten, but Kairi brings up an excellent point.]

I...

A--A couple w-weeks ago, there, th-there was... a... a-a guy in there, a-and he'd... been hurt r-really badly. I--I don't-- know how, but I, I got him t--to the d-doctor, and... y--yeah...

[Xanth hopes he's okay.]

[Audio]

[lightwithin]

Was he okay?

[That's the most important part. If he's okay, maybe they can find him and find out what happened.]

[Audio]

[snowtop]

I-- think? Th-the doctor wa-- wasn't there, s-so I-- w-went to go f-find him, but I c--couldn't. When I-I went back, some--someone was a-already there, s-so, I-- I think?