Chapter Text
~Pandaemonium~
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Thunder crackled through the quiet of the night, lightning cutting through the darkness in its wake, rain battering itself against anything the windows with its icy touch. Grafting itself through the thick gray clouds was the purple miasma tainted silhouette of the moon. Cast in the shadows of the moonbeams violet illumination staged a crystalline European-styled stronghold, lined with blue pellucid material, glimmering the moon's image onto the contrasting stone floors. The towering Pandaemonium loomed over the land of Makai, bathing the grass with its gentle artificial light as the inhabitants slept soundly in their beds. Nights like these were the serene beauty vampires strove to bask in, Elis was no exception to this, although she was upset at the fact that there was no enjoying it due to the rain. Just earlier before she'd arrived at the castle, the demon had made an unsettling discovery that both appetized and startled her emotions. The storm unfortunately cut the expedition short, causing her to retreat under the cover of a hydrophobic barrier spell she'd crafted herself. And now she was here, skulking through the darkened halls of a building almost completely foreign to her, guided by only the candlelight and faint glimmers of the moon shining through the crystals. It had lead her to a door isolated at the end of the hallway she stood in. She'd tried many before, only to find nothing but a dining room, some sort of study, and various other seemingly randomly decorated rooms. Hoping to find some luck with this final door, she rapped her fingernails against the doorknob, peering inside the room with what little light poured in. A bedroom, mostly barren save for what seemed to be the shimmer of blades lining a section of a wall, a closet and a dresser complete with a teaset, and an occupied bed. It didn't seem like a room fit for a Queen, yet the Goddess of Makai was no stranger to unorthodox. Slowly, she creaked toward the bed, hovering over the figure
underneath the blankets, her sharp red eyes peering down at the silken blonde hair belonging to none other than the sleeping head maid of this estate. She was no God, but she would have to do. Contemplating whether or not she'd end up with six inches of cold steel embedded in her if she tried to stir the girl from her slumber, her hand hovered over the lip of the blanket, slowly peeling it back off of the maid...
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The golden haired maid was dressed in what seemed to be a white night gown with a stitched floral design across it's fabric.
she was almost completely silent in her deep slumber, laying on her side, her breathe would be barely audible, comparable to some very heavy snoring that could be heard in another nearby room.
Her face was soft, her skin was absolutely perfectly clean in every way one would expect from a head maid, infact, she had quite the nice aroma of.... metal and lavender.. whatever that was. her expression was stern, which was enforced by her thick eyebrows, which gave off an imposing impression on their own.
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Frozen in suspense, Elis waited for a response, of which there was none to meet her. Her nerves slowly eased, studying the sleeping maid's movements. Intimidating as she'd appeared, she turned out to be a pretty heavy sleeper. And that familiar sting of iron's sickly scent rendered great familiarity within her senses, reminding her of the reason that brought her here in the first place; hunger and curiosity. As inviting as that neck looked, she knew it'd end poorly. Finding what little courage she was able to muster within herself, she shook the girl's shoulder in an attempt to stir her from her slumber.
"Hellooooo?" she called out sheepishly, hoping the noise would add to her efforts.
Risky as it might have been, it was the only way she'd get answers... that and she was too lazy to find anyone else.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The maids eyes gently opened, she appeared very groggy as she slowly came back to the world of consciousness.
her golden eyes would almost glow in the pitch dark room, despite her eyes being just barely open.
she groaned softly and spoke with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"Louise.... I told you... there's no one in the bathroom... go to bed.."
just like that, the maid would close her eyes once more and use a sloppy hand motion to shoo away the blond haired figure.
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Taken aback, Elis peered at the closed eyes that just barely acknowledged her presence, frustration bottling up inside of her. With a pout sprawled across her face, she gripped the girl's collar, dragging her out of her bed and throwing her on her feet.
"Don't give me that! It's Elis, not Louise!" she shouted, as if expecting her to recognize that name at all. Being a creature that dwelled in the night, she had little to no consideration nor patience for the daylife of Makai and their sleeping schedules. Of course, this wasn't just some random visit... standard protocol was to report any problems to the Pandaemonium after all. A breach like this was most definitely an important enough problem to go harassing its residents for help.
"We've got a problem... get dressed. And bring an umbrella with you, I don't want to waste any more valuable energy just to keep the water away." Crossing her arms, the vampire turned away, entitlement marking its presence everywhere in her posture. She was a maid, she was meant to serve, that's how she saw it... even if the two weren't even on a name-to-name basis.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
Not a moment after the creature lowered her guard, a sharp metallic woosh would cut the air behind her. She did not see it, but the maid was now in a ready position, with her long sword in hand, with an arming sword now occupying her second hand in a low ready position.
as the intruder turned to face the maid, she was met with a sharp blade pointed at her heart, and a sharper glare from the newly awakened Maid, her bright golden eyes cutting the girl into calculated pieces.
she spoke clearly, and in a tone that no lowly demon could ignore. yet she spoke quietly, perhaps not to wake the master of the household...
"how did you get in here, this is no place for lost children to trespass, you must leave right this instant."
The Maid did not discern any threatening intent from the intruder, but she still felt that a stranger in her room was enough cause for a stern reaction.
she stool tall, her posture was absolutely perfect with her chin held up proudly, her well toned arms held the shining swords with perfect balance.
she waited for a response from the intruder, carefully watching every move, with full intent to attack at any foul move
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Feeling the air sharply cut behind her, the wind brushing her hair against her back and feeling a few strands lighter, the vampire nervously turned to face her enraged assailant. Met with nothing but an icy glare, a pointed tip sitting on her chest waiting to slip through her ribcage, and a harsh yet quiet tone that ignored her requests. If this was what trouble she was expecting, she certainly found it.
Fearful for her safety, sweat beaded down her face, yet she was annoyed her pleas for help were met with such violent behavior. "...Well... no one was guarding the front door, so I invited myself in... I didn't want to disturb miss Shinki, so I figured you'd do. I-I'll be leaving soon anyway, just so long as you promise to come with me!"
Finishing her explanation, the girl's hands instinctively rose in surrender as the imposing stature of the maid loomed over her, the hint of killing intent still lingering in the air despite her efforts to try and de-escalate the situation.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The inflamed Maid lowered the gleaming longsword sword, it would vanish into thin air within her grip. the newly freed hand would pinch the top of her own nose arch in clear frustration, as she spoke in what could be described as fury mixed with embarrassment.
"the door was... unguarded.. again.. if it was my own choice I would have gotten rid of that good for nothing girl..."
after letting her grumbles be heard to no one in particular, she would regain her compuserve and disarm herself of her magical arming sword, in order to properly cross her arms against her chest. she had retained herself and was ready to start talking with this intruder. the maid would speak once more, with a refined but suspicious tone.
"I really don't know what to tell you, I'm not a babysitter. I can't just leave the mansion, especially without Mistresses approval..."
the golden haired girl would begin to dress herself while speaking, going behind a set of curtains to degown and get into her signature head maid uniform. Quickly pushing the curtains to the side and emerging fully dressed (in some sort of record time), with the exception of any footwear. She continued to speak as she grabbed a pair of tanned leather service boots, and began to secure them onto her legs. The maid knew whether or not she would be leaving the mansion, fighting in her nightgown was simply improper and foolish.
"if you must insist on receiving my assistance, then just make it quick, I have things that need to be done after all..."
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Sighing in relief as the maid finally let up, lowering her weapon, Elis' hands fell by her side as her eyes beadily peered up at her new friend with curious eyes. Her nerves spiked again when the maid spoke of her duties and need of permission from their superior, the hopes of accomplishing anything tonight dwindling, at least until the girl ducked beneath cover and returned, fully dressed in no time at all. Nodding her head eagerly after hearing the reluctant acceptance to her forced proposal, Elis quickly scooped Yumeko's hand in hers, locking her in her grip with her long nails acting as a cuff. Her hunger for blood was finally about to be sated... and she couldn't wait for anybody. Picking the maid up in her arms, the wings on her back began to flap as they burst out the front doors, zipping off into the night sky.
~Hokkai~
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Finally the two arrived, landing at Elis' hunting grounds; the abandoned sector of Makai left to wilt and die as wildlife and nature consumed and reclaimed the territory for itself. Senkai was a sparse land, save for the Ruins of Vina and the Fallen Temple of Quietus, the latter of which the small vampire claimed as her home. A house tour wasn't necessary at the moment, however, as she'd expect anyone hailing from Makai to be familiar with even the most obscure of its landmarks and terrain. What did catch both of their eyes, however, was the pool of bright red blood idly sloshing to and fro subtly as it occupied the normally flat patch of grass that was in its place. Releasing the maid from her clutch, she instead opted to hold onto her dress, gently tugging her along in attempt to coax her toward the mysterious puddle.
"I woke up this morni... er... evening... and found this here. And I know for certain it isn't from anything I've killed. I'm very clean." Pridefully, she crossed her arms, taking a few steps closer to the lake as she continued the exposition. "You might be thinking I'm crazy for complaining about free sustenance, and believe me, I'd love to dig in right now... but something about it isn't right. You see what I mean, right?"
Sure, it was an odd coincidence that this pool appeared suddenly, and it was odd how there was a slight warp in its movement, but otherwise; it appeared to be normal... or so it seemed.
"...I swear it wasn't this big when I left, either." Kneeling by the lip of the blood, she bent over its reflective surface, staring into it. "I went to drink from it, and... something came out of it. I think I saw the face of someone else, too, but now that I'm looking at it, maybe it was just my reflection..."
Finally, she scooted back, sitting away from the puddle, looking up at Yumeko.
"I don't know if a blood mage decided to make their home right next to mine, but I'd like for you to have a closer look for me."
Holding out her hand, she waited for the maid to shake, sealing their deal.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
She largely ignored what the vampire said, she still felt none of this really concerned her, and being pulled out to the forgotten area was very annoying. it's abandoned for a reason, her master wanted nothing to do with it.... This whole adventure was getting out of hand already, it was masters meal time soon and she really needed to go. On top of that, this just seemed way to suspect to some sort of trap set by one of her masters rivals. She questioned why coming out here even seemed like a decent idea to go along with now.
the lake of blood indeed was something she had not seen in the area before, but it didn't exactly come off as odd or foreign to their lands. However, it had some sort of feeling surrounding it that made the maid a bit uneasy to be around. but against her own gut feeling, she approached the vampire and the lake, looking down into it's horrid surface, where no light could escape the depths of the deep. she spoke with a glint of regret in her sturdy voice.
"why don't you deal with this on your own... or just ask Mistress on what to do... this really is not my job to fix wierd incidents.."
she faced the vampire, standing close to the edge, she crossed her arms. Giving the girl quite the bothered look.
Elis - Magic Vampiric Devil
Annoyed, Elis stared back with glinted eyes, staring down the maid as she slowly approached her from behind. Kneeling down next to Yumeko, just a few meters behind her, she glanced between the lake and the maid with beady eyes.
"It's not my job to fix weird incidents, either... You're miss Shinki's maid, and I'm certain she would just ask you to go deal with it!" Elis' argument, albeit unconvincing short, still held a point. It's true that since Makai's destruction at the hands of four terrorists from the outside, Shinki had been quite reluctant to start another out-of-makai expedition. She'd most definitely have her most trusted and, by her claim, most powerful creation investigate the land before they even attempted anything. Even though Elis was an isolationist at heart, she was not aloof to the happenings around Makai's lands.
"Alright... if you're not going to do it..."
There was that expression of thinking sprawled out on her face, contemplating yet another risky decision. She most definitely saw that hand pop out from that puddle of blood... Why was the maid being so stubborn about this?! Emotions overflowing from within, angrily, she delivered a swift kick to her back, swiveling on her heel to face the other way in another classic display of her arrogant behavior, arms crossed.
"Hmph! Fine then, go crawl back hom...e..."
It was then that what she'd just done had hit her as the sound of liquid splashing and sloshing quickly started and subsided, consuming the maid's screams of shock. Slowly turning around with regret in her eyes, she looked at the steadily expanding puddle of blood, its surface was now oddly violently thrashing about, splashing more of the blood on the surrounding ground. It seemed wherever on the ground the blood touched, the area grew bigger and bigger, infinitely expanding with every move. And then... it was calm. Elis thought to herself that she had just killed Shinki's personal servant.
...It was too late... Elis was so done for.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
She huffed and turned back towards the lake, listening to the rest of the girls argument as she watched the thick mist blow over the crimson lake. she refused to reply to the girls demands, this really just wasn't something she wanted to deal with... if Mistress asked her to deal with it, then she would do it with haste. But elegant maids do not take orders from children of the night.
but before she could properly speak, a firm blow was directed into the center of her back, making her lose her footing as the ground would crumble beneath her boots.
the blood was thick and warm, as she sunk into it's depths, she could feel her body being completely saturated as she desperately tried to bring herself back to the surface. reaching out for anything that could save her from this horrible fate, she gagged and choked as the water began to bubble and boil around her as she plummeted deeper.
the maid thought about her mistress, she left without anyone knowing about her whereabouts, she left her guard down, and now she's going to die alone, in an ocean of blood.
Lady Shinki...
she stopped moving, it was over, she would die in peace.
although this would not occur, as the gravity around her would shift, she could feel that her entire world had spun upside down as she crossed some sort of threshold.
she was now rising out of the blood, or so it seemed... she began to feel lightheaded as everything began to turn black and she slipped into unconsciousnes.
~Lake of Blood~
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
Bubbles would appear on the surface of the lake, as if something below was being boiled to a crisp. as the bubbles increased in intensity, a body would arise from the blood.
with hair of blond, covered in blood, and a red soaked maid uniform the girl would float atop the crimson waters.
a small current would bring her to the edge of the lake, laying her face side up onto the banks of the blood lake.
she would lay completely still, unmoving and barely breathing.
Kurumi
Kurumi clicked her tongue and swung her legs around. Another day of nothing; no chores, no chasing Orange around, no talking with Elly because she was ‘busy’ too, just sitting on the tallest spire of her lake to spot ‘intruders.’
Even though there were no intruders, ever. Besides, who would be there to ‘intrude,’ anyway? They were alone here…
With a sigh and a small jump, Kurumi took to the air and began another trip around her lake.
Much to her surprise, she actually spotted something for once. A mess of gold along the off-gray shores of her lake, sticking out like a sore thumb. A squint provided Kurumi with the vision that the yellow was connected to something red.
A grin spread across her face, “Did Elly come and see me early?”
Without a second to spare, she dove down to greet her friend. But as she grew closer still, she picked up on more non-Elly-like details. For one, the dress was completely different. And for two, the person’s hair was longer than Elly’s. Less curly, too.
Kurumi blinked a couple times. Was this an ‘intruder?’ If so, where did they come from? And why were they on the shores of her lake?
She decided she wanted a better look. Attacking someone who wasn’t doing anything bad seemed wrong, so the least she could do is ask who they were. (Who knows, maybe the Mistress would even get a new maid or guard!)
Without thinking about it more, she dove down and grabbed the person by the shoulders, gently dragging them out of the tranquil ‘waters’ and fully onto the shore. She then landed and crouched down to the ground, lifting the woman's head up gently to get a look at it.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The Maid was in bad shape, besides the fact she was soaked to the bone in blood, she had gotten a considerable amount of blood into her lungs. her breathing was garbled and dangerously shallow, along with the fact her eyes were just merely slivered open.
she would gag and cough weakly, a spurt of foreign blood leaving her mouth, her body desperately trying to save itself.
the maid herself was barely able to perceive her own state, she possibly could make out differences in the light reaching her inoperable eyes. but that was only if she managed to stay conscious long enough, using the little amount of oxygen that would make it to her brain.
Kurumi
“Oh!” Kurumi exclaimed, dropping the stranger’s head a bit too quickly, “You’re awake, kinda!” And quickly followed it by lifting her head again and apologizing.
The woman just kept coughing up blood while Kurumi looked at her. Kurumi stared hard into her barely open eyes for a moment, then began to wipe the woman’s face with her sleeve. Once the non-hardening blood was mostly cleaned off, Kurumi once more realized that she still didn’t know who this was.
“Um, that’s not too good, right?” Kurumi asked with a bit of a furrowed brow, not expecting any sort of response. And of course, didn’t get one. “Lemme help, okay?”
Kurumi gently rested the woman’s head back down, using her hair as a cushion, and stepped around her. She gently put her hands on the woman’s back and began to ferociously pat it, something Elly would do with her if she choked. It usually worked, so why wouldn’t it here?
“When this is done, I should take you back home. Elly can fix you up and you can talk to Mistress…” Kurumi mused as she kept patting, completely unsure if this was actually helpful or not.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The maid would cough sharply, a concerning amount of blood spurting out of her mouth and nose. A sharp and deep breath would bring the much needed oxygen back into her system.
The maid could see something now, although her eyes had been crusted over by the dried blood, which hampered any attempt to get any sort of bearings or acknowledgement of survival. Although the heavy pounding on her back reminded her that she was infact alive, if barely.
She could feel her body begin to wake up again, although everything still felt numb and cold. She would try to bring words to the world, but she felt breathless, her constant coughing would restrict any sort of speech attempt.
so instead she simply allowed her savior to continue bringing her back to life, she wondered what would become of her. She was a fool, she had let her master down in the worst of ways.
she groaned loudly, and slipped back into a unconscious state.
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Coincidentally as the events at the normally calm and still lake were unfolding, Orange was making her rounds around Mugensekai's grasslands. Usually leaving the safety of her garden was a risky move, today was no exception to that. Walking around an ichor-filled reservoir definitely beat out sitting around and watching her orange trees wave about in the wind instead. Twirling her baton around wildly in her hand, she marched on, staring forward until something had caught her eye. The familiar silhouette of Kurumi was clear, nothing was wrong there, but there was something... new. Inching forward, the girl placed her hands behind her back as she slowly snuck up on the two. Pausing in her tracks, the gardener's eyes widened as she realized what was going on. Kurumi had finally lost her mind... The red dress, the yellow hair, the blood... oh god, the blood... Orange couldn't hold back the fright that consumed every nerve of her body, an instinctive scream of shock rung out as the horrible sight registered in her mind.
"Kurumi!?!?! What are you doing to Elly?!" Horrified, Orange dropped to her knees by whom she presumed to be Elly, pushing Kurumi aside as she placed her ear to the foreign girl's chest, listening for any signs of life.
Of course, Orange had no idea what she was actually doing and was just copying what she'd seen the others do to Kurumi. Slowly, she lifted her head, her tearful eyes turning to face Kurumi. Realization had struck her too late. The girl had rose clumsily to her feet, readying her baton at her side. "L-Listen, I'm actually not all that tasty, and... um.... Miss Kazami won't be too hapwUUHH!" Mid-sentence, she had slipped on the blood-soaked grass, her legs coming out from underneath her as she became airborne. As she fell, her desperate struggle to regain balance was moot, stumbling over on top of the battered and bloody girl's back, forcing the coagulated blood loose from her lungs. Looking at the red pooling from her mouth, her face
drooped, thinking she made the problem worse rather than better. Sporadically, she looked between the two, as the woman's coughing fit grew worse and louder.
...Now that she looked at her more... that dress... that hat... that voice... wait a minute, this wasn't Elly at all! Of course, realizing that this wasn't the beloved gatekeeper only rose more questions, like how did Kurumi bring some outsider in here, and why she was clumsily banging on her with her fists in an attempt to tenderize the meat. Slipping off the back of the woman, she inched herself back towards Kurumi, brushing the blood off of her clothes as she got back up on her feet. Wrapping an arm around her friend's shoulder, she took a deep breath in, patting her other shoulder with her free hand.
"I may have jumped to conclusions... I am sorry."
Seeing fit with that, she exhaled deeply, a smile quickly replacing her grim expression as the mood began to brighten up a little... minus the dying person on the ground. Pointing her baton at the maid, she looked to Kurumi for answers.
"What's going on here? Why is she dressed like Elly, why are you beating her to death, and where did she come from?" Intruders were something of a rarity, Orange, albeit skittish, felt a bit of excitement rising in her. She frowned when she realized they were both in the same boat of not knowing anything. Releasing Kurumi from her grasp, she sauntered back over to the near-lifeless body, poking at her.
"...Well, what do we do with her now?"
Kurumi
Kurumi felt like a bystander as Orange’s shenanigans just continued to go on and on. Sure, she was a bit annoyed from roughly being pushed over, but everything after was just so silly that she couldn’t not laugh. And Orange just apologized…
“No hard feelings. And er, I don’t know, and I don’t know? I was flying around, saw her in the lake, so I dragged her out.” Kurumi explained while stumbling back to her feet, nearly slipping on her own wings in the process. “And ‘beating her to death?’ I’m just patting her back, like Elly and Mistress do if I start coughing on blood.”
Kurumi continued to stare at the woman, who’d sadly gone unconscious from Orange’s little stunt. Her breathing was ragged, and she appeared to still be leaking blood from the mouth.
“Well… Elly knows how to heal and patch people up really well. I was going to drag her up to Elly and ask for help. You know, if Elly’s still at her station.” Kurumi mumbled the last bit while nervously tapping her fingers together. The trip would take a minute, and Kurumi would just have to hope she wouldn't drop the woman.
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Knowing Kurumi, and even just by looking at her, Orange knew that the vampire was as puny as an ant, despite vampires being known for their strength and agility. Finished with poking for a reaction from the girl, she shook her head, scooping her up in her arms.
"I hope this will come out in the wash..." the girl muttered, placing the unconscious Yumeko over her shoulder, patting her on the back to settle her in. She didn't hear any nasty grinding or crunching noises, so maybe she didn't kill her after all... phew!
"Let's hope we can find miss Elly, then... I'm not so sure miss Kazami would be inclined to help." Sighing, the girl twirled her baton in her hand, before pointing off in some random direction she assumed was toward the mansion.
"Forwaaaaaaaaaaard... march!" She shouted, marching alongside the vampire as the girl clutching to the vices of life swayed to and fro on her shoulder.
"But, uh..." she started, nudging Kurumi with her elbow.
"What are we going to do if we can't find her? I can try making a herbal remedy, but... well... plants are more Kazami's forte, eh? Maybe we could try CPR... mouth to mou...th..." she slowed down, gagging at the thought of having to come into contact with the cold dry blood. Maybe she could put her in the oven or microwave to warm her up before she tried that... Either way, this entire 'saving the stranger' operation was riding on Elly's shoulders. Stifling any other questions that she may have had, Orange stared straight ahead, emotionless. It was better to focus on the task at hand anyway. If this was a human, she must really be strong to survive something like this.
~Mugenkan~
Elly
Standing in front of Mugenkan was a feeling Elly knew quite well. She’d spent about a third of her life doing this, and she didn’t think she’d be stopping anytime soon. Moving until her ‘clock’ went off meant getting punished. So she just kept standing, watching. Even if the Mistress was out, Elly learned that maids liked to tattle in order to get ‘special privileges,’ so she couldn’t even go in for tea yet.
She could only really faintly see Kurumi in the distance. She took into the air, dove down, and then nothing. Since Mugenkan was a little lower than the Lake of Blood, she couldn’t see what Kurumi was doing.
“Pro’lly jus’ found an interestin’ rock…” She mumbled. Rushing over would be pointless. She’d learned that quickly, after Kurumi found a rock that looked like a face, one like a flower, and one like a star.
Nobody ever went out this way while she was guarding. The prospect of being ‘attacked’ by ‘invaders’ while their ‘savior’ was out kept them away from Elly’s post. At least that meant she could bring out a chair in a hidden hole nearby, to use specifically when her legs got tired. Which was right about now.
Now seated, Elly continued to do nothing but stare ahead and wave her scythe around absent-mindedly. She'd already loosened and tightened the rings around the blade so it’d stop wiggling, and she wasn’t about to risk tearing the wicker again. Then she’d have to go inside. And then she’d be seen, told on, and punished.
She looked to the skies in her boredom, watching the constellations above. At least they were entertaining…
… And now she was hearing some sort of loud whistling sound. Odd.
Right as Elly looked down, Kurumi and Orange were rocketing towards her, holding something big and red. Orange was holding the thing, and Kurumi was holding Orange. The whistling was Orange’s high pitched screams getting closer. And unfortunately, Kurumi was very fast.
That was all she processed before they slammed right into her, knocking her out of the chair and right into the wall.
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
And just when the girl thought it couldn't get any worse, Orange had lost all sense of control as Kurumi had forcefully hoisted her up above her head, having taken a problem with how 'slow' she was moving.
"I-If you're this strong, why don't you just carry her yourseeeelf?!!" She tried to reason, but everything was going in one ear and out the other, and the fast-approaching mansion gate made her stomach sink.
"KUUURUUUUUMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!" Orange screamed at the top of her lungs, kicking and wailing to be put down before they made contact with the gatekeeper, and not in the good way. Kurumi must have tripped over a rock or something, because Orange suddenly felt herself relieved of the grip of the vampire as she went hurtling into the air, slamming her stomach on the top of the brick wall next to the fence. Slowly, and with a pained moan, she slipped off backwards, landing next to the fallen gatekeeper.
The world was a spinning blur of colors as the girl slowly rose to her feet, scanning the area. There was Kurumi, there was Elly... where was the stranger? Stumbling about as the ringing in her ears monotonously sounded off, Orange braced herself up against the wall. Patting her clothes down, she took a deep breath, reached over, and slowly began to peel Elly from out of the wall. Holding the collar of her red dress in one hand, she rubbed the back of her neck anxiously with nervous laughter.
"Sorry about the rough landing, miss Elly. Are you alright?" she questioned, letting the girl drop to her feet. Patting the gatekeepers shoulders, she brushed some of the brick debris and dust off of her clothes, trying to make any small amends for what wasn't even her fault. Leaving her side, she leaned over the edge of the wall, peering through the gate bars for any sight of the stranger... If Orange landed where she did, then she couldn't have gone far…
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
She gasped as she hit the top of the wall, whatever little breathe she had in her lungs would shoot out on impact.
she felt wide awake as she fell forwards from the wall, she could see a large building of some sort on her way down. although she didn't think much of it since a large tree branch of some sort would punch her directly into her liver, the pain causing her to grunt loudly and become completely stunned as she fell into a bush.
which normally would cushion ones landing, but instead caused her to painfully twist her arm on a hard set of branches, nearly breaking it.
the hard dirt and sturdy leaves would instantly stop her descent, even causing her to bounce slightly before laying completely face down atop the now half crushed flower bush.
the mess of a maid would lay there for a second, completely motionless as some broken leaves and petals quickly covered her battered blood covered body
she groaned, without lifting her head, she would try to move her arms down, in order to try standing up. Her left arm was completely unresponsive and gave off a deep surge of pain when commanded, while the right arm had a deep burning sensation across the skin. however it was still ready and able to painfully push the girls body off the ground.
the maid would make it about half a foot off the ground when a sudden heavy impact would lay her out completely in the messy remains of the bush, and take whatever breathe she had out of her body.
"GUHUHHH"
a stray branch she has snapped had given way, and landed onto the upper portion of her back.
she laid motionless and quietly grunted as whatever energy she had form the fall left her body.
she decided that waiting a bit for her inconsiderate saviors to find her would be best at the moment.
this is fine.
Elly
While Orange did pull Elly out of the new hole in the wall and ask if she was okay, she abandoned her before Elly could once again stand or speak properly, much to Elly’s ‘joy.’ Instead, Orange had limped over to the gate to look around for something, leaving Elly gripping on the edge of the new wall indent, and Kurumi laying, dazed, on the ground between them both.
“You were going the wrong way!” Kurumi loudly groaned while flipping onto her back, apparently already recovered enough to speak again. “I tried telling you, but you ignored me! Twice!”
“Well, I asked ‘if you’re so strong, why didn’t you carry her?’”
“You grabbed her and were ignoring me!”
“Girls,” Elly put a hand up, slowly feeling the spinning feeling around her fade slowly, “What’s goin’ on?”
Surely, Yuuka would not be happy about the wall damage thanks to Kurumi and Orange’s roughhousing getting out of hand, again. Best she could do was resolve the argument, and fix the damage before she got back.
“I found a lady who looks like you in my lake, she’s hurt and she needs help!” Kurumi explained quickly, slowly sitting up with her hand on her head. “I was gonna come to you so you could help but um… I couldn’t stop on time?”
Elly pinched her brow and sighed. It was all she could do. “Ya need to learn how to stop when flyin’ quickly, please.”
But that still left the question of the mysterious ‘lady that looks like her.’ It was best to sort that out before Yuuka came back as well; she’d been getting more strict with ‘intruders’ lately, and with Yuuka’s track record…
“Well then, where’s this woman? I’d like to see her an’ speak to her.”
“After you help her.”
Another sigh. “After I help her.”
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Tugging at her collar, she swallowed her guilt, nodding as the sounds of breaking brush and groaning confirmed her placement on the other side of the wall. Pulling back from the locked gate, Kurumi immediately got her caught up in an argument. Bickering between the two, Orange halted once the voice of authority spoke up. She looked between the two, shrugging her shoulders, letting Kurumi handle the explanation. A discontented 'tsk' sounded from her snarled lips as her body leaned against the wall, looking at her fingernails as if she didn't know the both of them. She had a hunch, she was following it... usually her hunches are right... 5% of the time. Now that Kurumi was done thoroughly making her look bad, Orange adjusted herself up against the wall with a 'hmph,' pointing simply to the gate.
"In there." She simply said, letting such a small thing really get to her for no good reason at all aside from the fear of punishment. Luckily, it looked like that probably wasn't going to happen.
"Well, I say 'in there,' but I don't know specifically." Orange said as she nonchalantly opened the gate that was supposed to be locked shut if it wasn't for their stunt earlier. Making her way past the wall, she placed a hand over her eyes to obscure the sunlight, scanning the bushes for any sight of the intruder. Noticing a leg poking out of one of the sharp rose bushes, her eyes lit up. "Ah-ha!" With an eager shout, she wasted no time in rushing over to the bush, dragging the woman out with no concern at all for potentially worsening the injuries she'd sustained. Sprawling her out, Orange put her hands out, as if to say 'ta-daaaaaaa.'
"She's all yours, miss Elly!"
And so, she left it to the guard to tend to... not before giving Kurumi a quick elbow for sending them both hurtling to potential death.
"Quit making me look bad..." she warned, pouting at her. Deep down, she just wanted to get this over with before Yuuka got home and started delivering some real punishment…
Elly
Elly rolled her eyes at the girls. When they began to bicker, trying to find who was lying was near impossible; Kurumi had the better streak but was prone to trying to make herself look good in front of Elly, while Orange lied more but tried to be honest in front of authority. Whether or not Elly was ‘authority’ depended on what day it was.
A single look at the woman made Elly flinch, gag, slap a hand on her face, and nearly topple over again. Her left arm was very clearly broken, bent in a way that made Elly’s skin crawl. Trying to find the difference between the Lake of Blood’s dried blood and the woman’s was difficult, but Elly could still see the parts of her skin where it was cut open and bleeding– definitely due to Orange haphazardly dragging her out of a rose bush. Not to mention, she neglected to move the fallen branch completely off of the woman, as its branches were still wrapped around her right leg.
Elly groaned and got to work, side glancing at the two accompanying her to make sure they weren’t going to mess anything else up. The quicker she got this done, the better.
“Ya’ll did a good job on messin’ this lady up,” Elly called loudly, “I’m gonna need some supplies. ‘Rumi, you go inside an’ find th’ bandage wraps in th’ storage room. If ya can’t find ‘em, go ask a maid.”
She looked up at the two, specifically to Orange, and added, “You. Do whatever ya want, don’ cause a bigger mess.” Then she looked to Kurumi as she was walking off, “That goes to ya too. Someone gets to fix th’ wall too, figure out who it’s gonna be, please.”
Elly looked back down to her ‘patient,’ slowly looking and feeling for possible splinters or thorns stuck in her as she rolled the person over. At a glance, Elly could see the resemblance between them, but could also see where it ended, fast. The woman was very clearly a maid based on her clothes, likely not one from Mugenkan since Elly did not recognize her at all.
Elly tightened her lip a little. So, this was an ‘intruder,’ she supposed. Yuuka was going to have a hayday with her, if she didn’t recover in time for Elly to talk to her. The other maids too, thanks to their previous invaders.
It took her a minute, but she managed to ‘summon’ some herbs near her, plucked them, thanked the plants, then began to crush them up. Once more, the sooner the better. Kurumi would be back with the bandages somewhat soon– she never found things quickly– so she should go ahead and make the ‘medicine’ to slather into them now.
With her previous thoughts in mind, she was a bit on-edge. Their last non-Fantasy visitors weren’t the kindest, especially to Elly. So even if Elly was helping, it was out of curiosity, and to make the younger girls happy. She was a lot less rusty than she was during their invasion, so she wasn’t afraid to defend herself anymore. If push came to shove, she could take it this time, and wasn’t afraid to try. (Mostly.)
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Nodding dutifully, Orange stood around idly, her hands placed firmly behind her back as she watched Elly work her magic. Rocking back on forth on her feet, she tried to seem inconspicuous, but ended up just standing out more with her attempts to quell the sudden boredom that washed over her as soon as she realized she had a responsibility. Fluttering her lips together in frustration, she decided the repairs would have to go to her.. she was horrible at it, maybe just slightly better than Kurumi, but still horrible. Kicking at the ground, she swiveled on her heel, heading for the nearby shed, foraging for whatever supplies she could use to repair a broken wall. The trowel was a no brainer, but where was she going to get bricks and cement???
"Ehhh... glue should do it, right?" With a shrug, she took a wheelbarrow full of random supplies and decided she'd figure it out along the way. It'd better look indistinguishable from before... Orange shuddered. Burdens and responsibilities sucked…
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
She could feel more of her skin rip in tear whilst she 'rested', she wanted to regain some more energy so she could possibly get out of this nightmare before one of these morons broke something else. since her unresponsive arm would heal within an hour or more, but any more damage could be costly and effect her chances of survival.
she couldn't understand anything of what these fools were saying, but she knew it was about her, and when she felt herself get turned onto her back she would try her best to open her encrusted eyes, but to no avail.
whoever this stranger was, they seemed to be trying to help with strange things that made the burning sensation go away quickly. But The Maid did not need this pity, she just needed to get away from these unknown figures.
she conjored up whatever strength she had and painfully peeled her eyes open, she still couldn't see anything of value aside from the figure above her.
this will do
target spotted. engage.
she would whip her left arm up to grab the poor weaklings throat, that wil-
"A-"
the maids shattered arm would limply slap against the figures upper arm, making a loud cracking noise as it landed back atop her body.
once again darkness would consume her before being able to register anything that had happened.
Elly
Elly watched the events of Orange picking up and hauling away random nearby supplies in and outside of the mansion, and the woman breaking her arm further while trying to fight happen simultaneously. The best word she could describe the two events was ‘migraine.’
With a sigh, she broke a part of the closely discarded branch off, and laid the limp arm against it. Whenever Kurumi finally returned with those bandages, they’d make a good splint. That was, if Miss rambunctious here wasn’t going to try and slap her again.
Speaking of, she should go back and get her scythe. Just in case.
She stood up shakily, stuffing what she had of the paste so far in her hat, and stumbled back to the outside gates. Kurumi’s stunt managed to severely hurt her leg, which was healing at a decent-enough pace.
(When she got there, she saw Orange’s collection in closer detail. She simply grabbed her scythe out from under the wheelbarrow, and walked away with a repressed smile. She didn’t think Orange saw her; she was staring at the wall as if it were an unfinished puzzle.)
Lucky for her, right as Elly returned to the woman, Kurumi did as well, holding the bandages with a big smile.
Elly returned the gesture. “‘Kay, now go get some water, leave it on the porch. Two buckets. I’m movin’ her up there before we wrap ‘er.”
Kurumi wordlessly scampered off to do that, while Elly struggled to hoist the woman up and move her. Instead of getting far, she was mostly being crushed down by a woman tall enough to rival Yuuka. It was made even worse because of her leg being unstable. “Shoulda had ‘Rumi do this…”
And of course, she fell.
Kurumi
Kurumi cautiously walked back with the bucket, so she wouldn’t spill it on herself. Because getting splashed hurts her, surprisingly…
Slowly going from the back to the front of Mugenkan with two buckets full of water was a hard task for her, because the urge to run was there and she couldn’t just do it. After what felt like an eternity of cautiously balancing pain liquid, she got up to the porch. The woman was up there, and Elly was out of breath.
“So, um, do I have to fix the wall? I’m not good at that…” She softly asked while taking very careful steps up the stairs. Her eyes were glued to the buckets, and she would not look away until they were safely put down and away from her.
Elly got her response out between pants, “Orange’s doin’ it. An’ please get th’ brushes an’ towels, too.”
Kurumi’s sigh of relief wasn’t commented on, thankfully.
All this running around was tiring Kurumi’s legs out. She was used to flying, but her recent mess-up was enough of a pointer to not do that again anytime soon. By the time she came back to the porch, Elly was back to normal, sitting on the steps up to the porch– having her scythe resting nearby– but Kurumi was out of breath. A complete switch from earlier.
Elly looked back at Kurumi with a soft grin, raising her hand to ruffle Kurumi’s hair. “Thank ya. An’ scrub, if ya can.”
“I thought I told you to stop that…” Kurumi whined. Elly just laughed.
So they did that too– clean off the woman. While Elly treated dumping water and scrubbing like a casual game, Kurumi was being extra cautious to not have too much splash on her. Sure, some dribbling on her hand would be fine, but a torrent felt awful.
The job was split up between dumping water on the woman’s face and torso, soaking and scrubbing her limbs one at a time, and then leaving Kurumi to dry and wrap it per Elly’s instruction. Elly kept her in her dress, because something about ‘decency’ and ‘I’ll do it when you aren’t looking.’ And they’d take the maid inside, where Elly would clean the dress and everything under it, then finish healing the woman’s body with her abilities. Kurumi would just go back to Orange while she waited, she guessed. Her role in the explanation for future events wasn’t very clear.
“This green mush will help?” Kurumi had a wad of it prepared in her hand, which she definitely didn’t take a glob out of and lick. It definitely just smelled terrible. And now Elly’s pretty hat would be ruined…
“Yes.” The woman was being jerked around ferociously by Elly’s scrubbing, “It’s good fer people. Heals ‘em as fast as ya heal, keeps ‘em from gettin’ diseases.”
Kurumi shrugged, slathering it on another bandage and slowly wrapping it around the woman’s right arm. Elly knew this stuff really well, so she had to be right.
“Is she from near here?” She asked, tilting her head.
“Never seen her,” Elly had moved on to pouring more water onto the woman, to squeeze blood out of her dress.. Kurumi watched with a shudder. “Red ain’t Mugenkan colors.”
“But you wear red?”
The bucket was set down harshly. “I ain’t a maid.”
“Oh.” Kurumi blinked. “But Mistress is always ordering you around like one?”
Elly just sighed. Kurumi giggled.
“So where do you think she came from?” Kurumi bit off another strip of bandages. Even if it was small talk, she liked it more than silence. “Do you think she’s one of the ‘intruders’ Mistress warned us about?”
“Dunno. Never seen ‘er ‘round.” Elly grabbed her brush and began scrubbing the leg again. As she was doing that, she looked up and stared Kurumi in the eyes. “Tried to slap me. Not sure if it’s ‘cause’a shock, or ‘cause she’s gonna cause issues. Be careful.”
Kurumi gulped and nodded. “Well, I never saw her enter my lake. I was paying close attention, so if she came from somewhere, it had to be over here…”
Elly shrugged a single shoulder. The other one was too busy holding the leg down. “An’ I didn’ see ‘er ‘till ya brought ‘er here.”
“Do you think she can teleport?!” Kurumi asked with stars in her eyes. Elly’s skeptical face made Kurumi’s enthusiasm wilt a little, but Elly just shrugged. “Or– Or is there a portal to another world nearby?!”
“Don’ fall for tall tales, please. We’ll jus’ find out when she wakes up. Hopefully, it’s before Yuuka comes back.”
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Patting down the final brick in place, the wall was complete... at least to her standards. In truth, the elly-shaped imprint in the wall was barely cobbled together by shattered pieces of brick, clay, chewing gum, glue and plant sap. To say it stuck out like a sore thumb from its surroundings was a severe understatement. Orange, however, took pride in her work, placing the trowel over her shoulder as she wiped the sweat away from her forehead. With a final nod of acknowledgement, she gathered what mess of supplies she didn't end up using, and wheeled them off back inside. She hoped no one would notice anything wrong with it, but, well... the blame could be laid on Kurumi. It was her who caused it in the first place. Brushing her hands together to remove any dust that might be stuck on, she sat down on the porch. Without saying a word, she watched the two work their magic at wound care, her head rested in her hands. While it was certainly interesting to have someone new finally appear in her home, if she was going to be this much of a wet blanket, the girl might as well just go home. Even though it would be for the best, Orange's curiosities prevented her from leaving right off the bat just like that. Inching off the porch, she crouched down near the trio, staring at the handiwork.
"...Sooo... need any help...?" she suddenly offered, bridging the awkward silence that was poisoning the air. Might as well look for some way to help out.
Kurumi
They had the maid mostly wrapped and cleaned when Orange wheeled up, already done with her chores somehow. All that was left was making a ‘splint’ for the woman, something Elly decided to do after Kurumi broke the stick they apparently needed. (It wasn’t her fault it was so fragile…)
“Not right now,” Elly grunted as she tugged on the bandages, causing their roll to loudly creak, “We’re almost done, then I get to clean ‘er dress off.”
Kurumi nodded, adding. “Elly said we have to wait because of ‘decency’ and ‘this lady will probably have half a mind to snap your head off if you try and feed her,’ so I don’t have to help for a while.”
After side-glancing to Elly, Kurumi leaned closer to whisper, “The lady is probably mad because Elly is rubbing puke all over her.”
Despite her efforts, Elly did hear it, and sighed. “It’s gonna help, ‘Rumi. Anyway, if yer really itchin’ to help, ya could help me carry ‘er into th’ livin’ room. My leg’s still messed up after th’ crash.” Even if Elly didn’t allude to being annoyed with her, Kurumi shrunk down regardless.
A decently loud snap pulled their attention back to Elly. The bandages on the roll ran out, leaving nothing but a white cylinder and a small strip of bandages in her hands.
“Drat.” Elly muttered a few other things as she stood, all of which Kurumi didn’t want to even repeat in her thoughts. “I’ll go get more. If we have ‘em. Be right back, don’ break her ribs more.”
She watched Elly leave, creaking the door of Mugenkan open and slipping in, then shutting it with a resounding clunk in the air. Kurumi waited another moment, then another, and then whipped back around to Orange.
“Okay, so this lady isn’t from around here, clearly. I didn’t see her and I was looking at your forests and mountains, so the only way she should’ve gotten to my lake is if she came from over here, right? But Elly didn’t see her, either. Did you? You were closer to the ground.” With how much her excitement was swelling, Kurumi didn’t wait for an answer before she continued. “If she’s an intruder, I’m gonna go back and look for where she came from, so I can close it up. Er, kinda close it, so we can send her home. Y’know, before she does something like those two did.”
Kurumi shuddered at the thought of that happening again. The idea of spending yet another few months in recovery and repair wasn’t a pleasant one; and neither was the idea of the trend continuing. That didn’t need to happen again, so that’s why she was going to handle it instead of Mistress. She was still out and who knew when she’d be back; the sooner things are prevented, the better.
That’s what Elly might say, anyway. And Elly didn’t need to try and close up an entrance to their valley, Kurumi already injured her enough…
“So, you in? Wanna go looking for an entrance with me, and throw some boulders in it? But, er, I’m gonna help Elly carry the lady before we go, so she won’t hurt herself more.”
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Squinting in disappointment as her offer to help was turned down, Orange sat down and crossed her legs, nodding nonchalantly. "Ahhhh... puke... I'd be mad too," she replied, turning her eyes toward Elly to see if she heard that, sure enough she did. Her eyes lit up when the conversation continued, eagerly, she hopped up and immediately went to go pick the unconscious maid up, only stopping when the snap sounded out before she could lift her up. Watching as Elly left, the air was silent save for the sigh that sounded as Orange let the maid back down on the grass. As soon as the door had shut, Orange slowly turned to face Kurumi. Staring into her yellow eyes, her jaw lazily hung open as she listened along to the plan. Slowly she shook her head, even though Kurumi didn't wait for a response. The only time she saw the maid was when she was choking on blood back at the lake. Surely, that would be where she came from in the first place.
"Uhhhhhh...... sure...?" She finally responded dully. She wasn't really listening to begin with... Orange's eyes were set on the butterflies that danced behind Kurumi, giving the illusion she was actually paying attention. All she heard was 'carry the lady,' and immediately, she set off again, completely forgetting the fact that Elly was meant to return with more bandages and splint the woman's arm. Instead of putting her over her shoulder, Orange simply held her in both arms, bridal style, and carried her over to the front door. Swapping her arms so she was instead cradling the woman like a baby that was at least two feet taller than her, she opened the door quickly, kicking it open the remaining way. For someone so sickly skinny, she was pretty heavy... Waltzing through the hall, she brought the woman into the freezer room, laying her on the cold steel floor, dusting her hands together once relieved of the weight.
"Pfffhw... there. She'll keep fresh in there." She smiled, swiveling towards Kurumi before marching off past her.
As she got outside, Orange stood proudly on the porch. Licking her finger, she stuck it up above her head, testing for the wind direction. Nodding in confirmation, she again, marched off in a random direction that was completely opposite of the lake. Oh, dear... this ordeal again?
Kurumi
“Wh– Wait! We have to wait on Elly to finish! Orange!” Kurumi yelled, chasing after the girl. Well, not really chasing. More-so slowly following in complete disbelief as Orange mentally slipped back into whatever daydream she frequently dipped into. Yelling was useless, she knew this, but it was all she was willing to do. Trying to fly indoors was a bad idea, and trying to fly indoors in order to take the woman away was an even worse one. At least maybe Elly could hear her and stop Orange, maybe?
Kurumi didn’t think she understood Elly more than when she watched Orange put the woman in the freezer, slam the door closed, and walk away with a prideful strut. She gently opened the door and pulled the woman out, but just left her on the floor. Kurumi liked cold places more than warm ones, and tried to sit in there during a particularly hot day, but quickly learned that freezers were uncomfortable and not-good for people. Especially people who don’t like to play with ice barehanded.
If the woman was too big for Elly and Orange, then she would be for Kurumi too. She knocked enough things over with her wings, and she was too small compared to the woman so wouldn’t be able to see while carrying her and walking, either. That would probably end in worse damage than the wall outside.
Kurumi stopped near the hallway with the storage closet, and heard Elly still rummaging around. She would absolutely notice the missing maid, so Kurumi opted to leave a note instead.
It was a simple note, really. It just said:
‘Orange is a dummy and ignored me again. Maid is in the kitchen. We’re gonna go play now. Good luck!
PS if you need anything, come find us by my lake (probably) : )›
~Kurumi♥’
When she slipped back outside– quietly and gently closing the giant doors behind her– she got to witness Orange wandering off without her. In the wrong direction.
“Ah, Or– Orange! Orange!” She yelled, instantly taking flight and chasing after the girl. “If you’re going to help, you’re going the wrong way!” She chastised, flicking the back of Orange’s head. Of course, that did literally nothing.
After trying to get a redhead’s nonexistent attention for minutes on end– naturally with exactly zero changes in Orange’s direction– Kurumi huffed. “Fine! Get lost again!” And took off for her lake without a second thought.
(Except there was a brief one: a quick mutterance of, “Well, she’s heading for the cliff clusters and that other lake. Maybe something is over there…”)
Elly
Finding another box of bandages was apparently difficult. Elly had torn up half of the storage room by now and the best thing she had was some oddly short fishlines and ‘band-aids.’ And that was apparently all she’d ever find, because the rest of the room looked like the only thing it needed to have a reason to fall was a mean glare.
“I’ll fix it later.” Elly said to nobody, slamming the door to hell’s pocket closed behind her. Instead of the hallway’s door being closed like she left it, it was ajar, with a small note folded up in front of it.
She read the note for exactly five seconds before she sighed with a small smile. This was just like those two. She couldn’t exactly fault them for being childish like this– she wasn’t Yuuka. (Even if Orange could push that line, which she did, very often.)
Elly wandered back out to the main hall, left the supplies sitting on a nearby table, and headed for the kitchen. Sure enough, the maid was laying on the floor. Elly struggled to lift her back up, but managed, and limped her to a couch in the living area. Elly rubbed her head with a huff, going back out of the room to retrieve her hat, scythe, and the stick for the splint. Hopefully Orange didn’t grab that to use as a toy, because Elly wasn’t against the idea of taking the baton surely left behind and using it as a splint instead.
When she stepped outside, she saw the scythe immediately, but then noticed that her hat wasn’t gone. She blinked, going back inside to look for it, then back out to see if it blew off. No, it was nowhere.
Sweat was starting to form on her head and run down her face. Depending on who grabbed it or where it went, she’d either have to fight for it or make a new one. Neither was an option at the moment, which wasn’t something she enjoyed.
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The Maids eyes burst open, her eyes quickly darting around the room she was in, watching for any possible morons. she had no possible idea how she ended up inside this strange room, but of course she could assume that one of her incompetent 'saviors' likely moved her. although that did not answer the question of why she was wet and cold.
she leaned up slowly, using her right arm to bring her body upwards, while bringing her legs up to support her uneasy body. from there, she checked her body, taking note of her current status.
her left arm was perfectly fine up until the wrist, which was completely broken and limp, it hung to the side. however it was starting to heal... while facing the wrong way...
her right arm was covered in bandages, and felt absolutely no pain, besides an deep aching feeling.
her torso was heavily tender, and hurt to touch, she would assume it was heavily bruised. but it would heal within an hour or so, she was thankfully able to heal quicker than the other residents that she knew of.
her legs were bandaged and deeply bruised, they hurt to move, but she could definitely walk or run if prompted
her left wrist was her biggest priority, it had already begun to heal the bone. but it was completely off, and totally unusable. she knew what she had to do.
she would firmly grab the upper side of her left wrist, preparing herself for what was to come. she took a deep breath, then she would yank forward as fast and hard as possible. her vision became blurry and covered in stars, as the room filled with a sticky cracking noise.
The maid gasped and fell backwards, nearly fainting again. but she steered her mind and focused hard, staying within the realm of consciousness.
she slowly came back up, gently cradling her re-broken arm. she did not think this far ahead, a splint would need to be fashioned fast......
Yumeko - Maid of Demons
The maid would pull herself across the floor, towards a chair that was perfect for her needs.
it was beautifully crafted, but unfortunately it must fall victim for the maids sake. She grabbed a piece from the middle and twisted it, it would snap under the tension, thankfully giving her a perfect cut of wood.
she peeled the oddly green bandages off her legs, and begin to realign her damaged arm with the help of the wooden splint.
she wrapped around and around, tightly ensuring the wrap would keep her poor arm in place.
after the job was done, she would lay against a nearby table, resting for a bit would probably be best at the moment.
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
With a roll of her eyes as the bickering started ringing out again, Orange ignored the pleas and cries, calling her name and begging her to halt her plans. It was only when they were outside that it grew worse and worse. Although the gardener had appeared to be completely ignoring her, she was fully aware of Kurumi's actions, and it was starting to get on her nerves. She barely flinched as the vampire weakly flicked the back of her head, except for the frown on her face growing in size.
"Memememe, get lost again, memememe..." she mumbled, moving her head back and forth and puppeting her hand like a mouth, mocking Kurumi's concern.
A sigh of relief rung out when she was finally on her own again. Sure enough, Orange knew for a fact she wasn't going anywhere near the lake. No, she had plans of her own. Blood was kind of gross, after all, anyway. And judging by today's earlier stunt, Kurumi is surely strong enough to handle whatever it is she'd be doing on her own. It was times like these when she realized just how small their world was. It was hard NOT to get bored. Orange was heading the complete opposite direction of the lake entirely, planning to go on one of her impossible hikes. She'd been in enough trouble for the day, and when Yuuka got back, she'd be pretty hard to find. Survivalism would be a piece of cake, especially if it was only for a few days. She'd just wait it out until everyone forgot about this. The newbie wasn't as interesting as she'd thought anyways, and judging by how violent she sounded, perhaps she dodged a bullet abandoning the group. As she made her way to the pathway that lead to the mountain's twin ponds, she'd reached for her hip, freezing.
She'd forgotten her baton... Tempted to turn back and grab it, she instead shrugged, beginning the march up the hill. It'd be there when she got back, surely... The mountains were Orange's true playground. If only the all-consuming void hadn't existed, maybe she could go exploring beyond.
What an empty dream that is.
Kurumi > Lake of Blood
Orange > Mugensekai
Orange - Mandarin Gardener
Naturally, there wasn't much to behold up here on the mountains, Orange had seen a majority of it all already before, she didn't really have any good reason to come up here aside from boredom and disinterest. Below, she could see the calm and still fields, everyone must still be inside. It looked like Kurumi was coming back home, too, although her clothes looked a lot more white than usual... Guess her dress must have gotten soaked in blood. and was being hung to dry. Nonchalantly, Orange continued along with her hike, following the stream of the river between the two ponds connected by its path. She greeted the huge, clearly out of place boulder, as she passed it by without any mind. It was now and then that boredom began to hang her spirits even lower. It wasn't like anyone but Kurumi really considered her company, maybe she'd stop the hike and tag along with her. Taking another glance down toward the lake, she'd realized now, that wasn't Kurumi at all, as it should have been obvious before. Was that an assassin sent to retrieve the maid?! If so, she had to take this slowly, calmly... analyze her opponent... from 300m away on a cliff-face. She'd have to get closer. Carefully, Orange bounced down the mountain from rock to rock, before she'd set foot on the grass.
Orange > Mugenkan
