RP:Disillusioned
Summary: An under the weather Kanna finds the disguised Rumiko standing-seemingly lost- in the forest outside the district whilst bringing treats to the fae children.
Kanna carries a large tote of fresh Cenrili goodies as she makes her way through the autumn forest. The lands are filled with birdsong, the laughter of young fae, and Kanna's sniffles as she tries not to sneeze into the special mask she got at the local healers for her cold. She had gone away for a few days to visit the festivities, but brought an unholy amount of treats for all the dark fae villagers. As Kanna approaches the mushroom-lined walls with the slippery stone staircase, she looks around for a familiar friend. "Rumiko?" Kanna calls out, unsure whether it's okay to use her real name or not when outside of the village.
Rumiko had not heard her name in a few days- or had it been weeks? She couldn't remember the last time she'd ventured outside of the district, and truth be told she didn't really know why she had come out of it now. The nymph stood in the middle of the footpath crosswalk, wide eyes looking from one path to the next as if she were contemplating which direction to take as Kanna made her presence known. There was no hiding the startled jump as the woman spun around, dark hair fanning out around her in an inky halo. "Kanna." It came softly from lips a touch too dry, and a face thinner than the last time the two had met. Even the already lithe body of the druid had lost weight in the time she'd spent in the newest collection of homes within Enchantment. Was she not eating? "What have you got there?" Crimson eyes looked over the goodies brought in from Cenril, and a soft grin curled across her features. Whatever ailed her, she didn't seem to notice.
Kanna blinks a few times, stepping forward to examine the nymph. How strange, she was perfectly fine a few days ago... Then again, so was Kanna. Reaching a mittened hand into the bag of treats, Kanna withdraws a canister of ginger snaps and snickerdoodles. "They came with a free fire-scroll attached, which, seems it's used up now?" Kanna gives her bag a glance, then looks up. "So they should still be warm!" Kanna's brows furrow as she walks up the stairs to drop off the rest of the goods in the Unseelie District. "Are you feeling ill? I can go into town and see if the market is still open..."
Rumiko's head fell to the side, "Ill? No, why do you ask?" Her hands came up before her, rotating back and forth as she looked them over, seeing them just as they had always been, "You do not seem to, however." Nimble fingers move to snatch one of the offered cookies, the warmth of the treat a welcomed sensation in both her hands and mouth. "I am sure they will be well received." The nymph followed Kanna up the stairs, quietly preparing for the onslaught of tiny fae that would no doubt assault them the moment the sugar was sensed. "You take such good care of them." She had meant the children, but the more she thought of it, the more she realized it was all of them. "How are things?"
Kanna slows her pace halfway up the steps, looking back at Rumiko with uncertainty. There was definitely telling that her hair had lost it's luster, even with the cantrip put in place to conceal its true deep red hue, and that the way her clothes hung on her frame was notable. Gods, when she turned that way to grab a cookie, Kanna could even see what looked like her clavicles threatening to jump out of her skin. "Oh, I ah... just thought you may have caught my cold." The bard says cheerfully, making her point with a loud and very unladylike sniff. At the compliment, Kanna does relax slightly, her face softening as she thinks of the shadow gnome children that have come up from Darkiln and have taken to playing pranks on Kanna to see her exaggerated reactions. "Thank you, the queen seemed confused when I asked when the next set of deliveries would come, so I just wanted to bring something in case they were running low." The pair continue their climb, into the mushroom forest where birdsong becomes replaced with the cackling of crows and toads make their melodies in the perpetual shade. Kanna somehow feels unsettled, though. Was it always this dark here?
Rumiko's expression turned thoughtful then, "I do not think I have ever gotten a cold. Though until recently I have not spent nearly as much time outside." She had noticed her energy levels were down, and it wasn't like her to get lost along the trail just outside the district she'd been staying in for a time now. "The queen..." There was an odd inflection in the way Rumi said the title, "does not seem as concerned in the affairs of our people as she presents to the public eye." The bard slowing down left the druid thankful, though she didn't mention it aloud. It gave her a little more time to catch her breath as they conversed, crimson eyes oblivious to the darkness creeping in. "You should try some tea, hot with honey for the cold. And steam some sea water to breath in. Should help you rest better."
Kanna climbs a stair or two once Rumiko has caught up, though her mind has turned to the queen and how strangely confident she has been, and seemingly unconcerned with the populace. Rather, she seems more interested in observing those that come through the forest seeking shelter from the Larket-Cenril war or the civil unrest in Vailkrin. As she wonders what it is she is hoping to find amongst them, Rumiko's breathlessness goes unnoticed. It is only once they have reached the top that Kanna stops completely. This is not the place she has been visiting regularly for the last three months. What the bardess once saw as construction of new homes are actually hollowed out caves within the giant mushroom stalks, propped together with splintering wood that has long since rotted and iron nails that burn the hands of those dark fae that handle them. Yet, why are they not flinching? Why are they all emaciated? Where was the stockpiles of food and prosperity packs that would help the Unseelie District become self-sufficient? Kanna is speechless as she looks around, and slowly turns to see Rumiko again, her eyes filled with terror. She can only thank the gods above that Rumiko can't see her lips pulled into a horrified grimace. Why is she acting as though nothing is wrong? "Rumiko? Has this place always looked like this...?"
Rumiko was slow to the top of the stairs, giving Kanna more than enough time to take in all that the district truly was. The bardess's terrified expression was met with confusion as red eyes took them in first, and then turned to look over her home for the past few months. Her search was slow and steady, the nymph taking in each and every detail as she found a nearby stalk to lean against to help stave off the exhaustion she felt. "Well, no of course not." Humor lit the woman's face then, not nearly as bright is it might have once been, "So much has been completed so quickly. They are even putting together an area for the children to play." An arm rose to point deeper into the community, towards what she saw as a half-constructed castle styled clubhouse that was really little more than a boulder, and some have secured wooden stairs leading to the top. "It is coming along nicely, I think."
Kanna steps forward, albeit hesitantly, to see towards where Rumiko is pointing and her heart sinks. The stairs are blackened with mold, and a stain on the boulder indicates that several young ones have walked into something they have yet to see. Kanna takes as deep of a breath as she can manage through her congestion and her mask. Her chest tightens, and Kanna pulls the mask away from her face so she can take a deep breath through her mouth; Rumiko seeing Kanna's snotty face be damned. As glowing spores gently rain down from the towering mushrooms, the edges of her vision blurs. The ground and sky lightens, and the slums begin to transform into a pristine community, even more pristine than what she remembered. No, no no no no, this isn't right. Kanna slams the mask back over her nose and mouth and watches as the illusion fades away. To Rumiko, it must look as though Kanna is having some sort of panic, either due to what she's seeing or due to her illness. Kanna straightens up and shakily sets the bag of treats down on what she once believed to be a beautiful stone table. Hearing the commotion, the dark fae emerge from their holes, their withering bodies contrasting their sparkling eyes and happy demeanor as they greet Kanna like nothing is wrong. Sapphire eyes trail down to the base of the skeleton that the villagers congregate around. There, inside the ribcage of a gargantuan creature, is a silver music box. It sits open, and the figurine in the center spins slowly in place, though no music plays. The gaggle of mischievous children run past the pair, stopping to tease the two women as they do and promise an even better riddle next time, and the bardess does her best to not look at them for too long, lest she burst into tears. Kanna looks at Rumiko and forces her best actress look. "Oh my, I think I really am coming down with something bad. Would you walk me back to town?"
Rumiko was oblivious to Kanna's panic, though that might also be an effect of the spores so well ingrained in the nymph's system. Between the air and whatever they had been eating and drinking, it would likely take much longer for those living within the mushroom grove to expel the haze over their minds. The appearance of the other fae bring a wider smile to the druid's features, though the expression doesn't quite reach her eyes, "Oh you better behave, or I will keep the cookies." The warning prompts the taller of the children to snag the mention box of snacks, and with a fit of soft giggles they rush off with the treats to share amongst themselves. Attention shifts back towards Kanna as she speaks, and dark brows furrow with a touch of concern, "I can, of course." An arm rose, as if Rumiko was steady enough on her own feet to offer the bard assistance should she need it, "Let us get you back to your bed. You need warmth and that tea."
Kanna glances back at the music box with a pained look. With everyone gathered here, would it be wise to take it now? Kanna takes Rumiko's arm, holding it in a way that the nymph would think she was the one keeping Kanna steady. As the two depart from the Unseelie District in silence, and carefully make their way down the slippery lichen-covered stone stairs. As the pair take the pathway to the clearing, past the hillside and over the glen, Kanna suddenly stops walking. She hates herself for what she is about to do. "Rumiko. Thank you for being my friend." Kanna takes her mitten off and takes Rumiko's hand, allowing her bardic magic to flow freely. To her surprise, she meets almost no resistance as she begins the spell, but she presses on. To use her powers of persuasion to compel someone into doing what she wants in this way... "I want you to think of the last place where you felt safe before you stepped foot into Enchantment for the summit. It exists in your mind, and it is a place that still welcomes you. I want you to walk there and find your familiarity amongst your old kind. You will remove your disguise and go to sleep, and when you wake, your entire time in Enchantment will have been a faraway dream." Kanna lifts her hand as the spell attempts to take hold. She is sniffling again. "If I had paid more attention, you wouldn't have become this way. I'm sorry."
Rumiko was set to continue on in silence all the way to where Kanna stayed and was surprised when they paused in the center of a clearing. Slow blinking eyes scanned the area around them, and lip's part to ask a question, though Kanna's words caught her off guard. Another slow blink came, followed by a smile, "You are a wonderful person. It is easy to be friends with you." If the nymph was worried at all about catching germs from the sniffling woman, it didn't show as she clasped the hand back, albeit not as strong as she might once have. There was no resistance to shield the druid from those powers, her defenses sapped away thanks to the power of the mushrooms she'd resided within. Safe. The word was repeated in her mind as images played behind her eyes, flashes of places and people in which made her feel what she was enchanted to find once more. It didn't take as long for her to picture the shrine in Vailkrin's castle; something about the music and the calming embrace calling to her. The moment her destination solidified; her glamour started to flicker back into place. Red eyes shifted to a muddy brown before spring green sprouted outward from the center, and her roots lifted in color to that familiar crimson hue. "Home." It was spoken softly, dreamily as the spores and magic fought for control of her mind. Kanna's magic was stronger. Perhaps too strong, because without further comment, the nymph turned and started through the forest towards the portal to Vailkrin. Whether or not she would try to use magic to get there didn't seem likely, but at least she was heading towards safety.