wizardmanor | Floor 4, Room 2

[Typical Malice shenanigans, really.]

Flyin'! Well, sorta, I'm still learnin' how it works.

[Thankfully, he's able to lower the broom back down easily enough to float on it so he's not just yelling down at Yamato.]

You out here to practice as well?

Yeah. ... You're doing better than I am, anyway. I haven't attempted the broom yet.

[ He shrugs nonchalantly. ]

That's why I came out here. Figuring out my focus and the incantation was hard enough.

[ But, you know, when he put more thought into it, he managed it just fine... ]

Huh, really?

[Malice hops off his broom and desummons it easily enough.]

Well, it took me awhile to figure it out as well. I was workin' on it with Ithi an' we figured it out. Have you tried thinkin' 'bout the stuff that's important to you - what makes you you?

What makes me me?

[ Ithi...is that Ithaqua. Oh man. A shiver runs down his spine – anyway. ]

Feels like I've been doing a lot of that lately, but probably not enough. Is that how you summoned yours?

[Aww c'mon, Ithi's not that scary.....]

Yep. I thought a lot 'bout who I am an' why I'm this way, an' the result was this!

[And here's the broom again! It's just a damn scythe. Okay, it's far lighter than an actual weapon, and on closer inspection, the blade portion is not sharp at all, but it looks like an edgy scythe.]

The wing motifs are 'cause people tend to associate vampires with bats. Bein' a vampire is who I am an' it's shaped me. The blade's 'cause I've had to fight - an' I like to fight. I wouldn't still be here if I hadn't learned to take care of myself, an' I'm proud of that.

Focusin' on it like that helped me out, so maybe it'll help you?

[ He watches as the broom appears again, and he listens to Malice's explanation. This is very much a broom that suits him, and he can't help but grin a little at that thought. ]

You have a good understanding of yourself, don't you?

[ It's pretty obvious. ]

... I guess I'm an idol, back at home. I sing, dance, act. I like alcohol.

[ And he stops there. Sad, isn't it. ]

'Course I do. You gotta know who you are at your core!

[Nods sagely... This wisdom is very important.

And then Yamato says that and just. Doesn't continue. Okay.]

Alright, well, let's start with why you're an idol. That's basically where you're performin' for other people, yeah? Liftin' their spirits an' all?

[ ...That...

He goes quiet at that. He answers without much conviction. ]

It's not entirely wrong, yeah.

[ He averts his gaze. Seems like this is kind of a sensitive subject. ]

That's the idea, haha. It's rewarding, I won't deny that much.

[...This is the sort of thing he should leave alone, isn't it? It sounds like it's a difficult subject for some reason, and maybe it isn't his place to pry. Yamato probably wouldn't appreciate it.

On the other hand, this could be why he's had trouble with his broom, if he's having trouble figuring out who he is and why he chose this path. So...]

But it ain't entirely right either, from the sound of it. Why don't you tell me 'bout it?

[ He doesn't appreciate it, no, but it's not personal. He's just not the kind of person who's proud of who he is or the decisions he's made recently.

He's quiet. His expression falls into something incredibly somber. ]

I didn't become an idol to make people happy, or because I was passionate about entertainment. Quite the opposite, actually. I did it for revenge.

[ ...Yeah. ]

I wanted to expose a certain subsection of the industry. That's why I wanted to become famous. Things changed, though, but...

[Malice can't say he understands exactly what Yamato was doing, because frankly, he doesn't. He doesn't know anything about the idol industry. But he does understand revenge. He understands revenge a hell of a lot.]

D'ya mind explainin' it to me? The industry, an' why you wanted to get revenge.

My father is a famous actor, and spearheaded a secret group full of other celebrities that turned into a pool of dishonesty. He's a pretty dishonest guy, even. He couldn't even tell me that I was a hidden lovechild.

[ Why is he saying this? Why is he here, venting his frustrations to a guy he's only just met a few weeks ago – maybe that's it. Maybe that's why he can confide in someone who doesn't know him or his history or anything about his world. ]

I was prepared to expose them all...but things ended up changing, once I got to know the other group members.

[He can follow along well enough, and it's obvious that this is tough on Yamato.]

Did ya get close to 'em?

[Because he could see that being the problem. That all of this was an act on Yamato's part until suddenly it wasn't, when he realized he was friends with them...

Or maybe Malice is just projecting.]

...Yeah. I did.

[ He started caring. The bitter part of him wants to say it was a mistake, but he knows it wasn't. The mistake wasn't caring. The mistake was shutting them out, upsetting them, breaking their faith and putting them in a bad position. ]

They knew something was up, but I never told them...any of this, really. They didn't get it out of me. It didn't go over well, and things weren't looking so great just before I arrived here.

[ He laughs weakly. He could go on about how he's the worst, but he's not going to do that to poor Malice, so he tries to phrase it succintly: ]

Needless to say, I'm not really someone worth associating with.

[That gets a laugh out of him and Malice desummons his broom again. Assuming Yamato will let him, he'll not-so-gently punch him in the arm. Even though he was going for gentle, he still hits pretty hard...]

C'mon, you don't get to decide that for me! I'm the only one who gets to choose who I'm associatin' with, an' you're stuck with me now.

[We're friends, Yams, get used to it.]

I ain't sayin' what you did was right. Sounds like a complicated situation an' you've already acknowledged that you made a mistake. But that's no reason to try to push us all away, is it?

Ow-

[ Ouch?? Buddy... He won't argue against that punch, though, because he definitely deserved that one. For a moment, he stares at Malice in disbelief, though he shouldn't really be surprised, given that Malice is just so aggressively himself.

It means something to him, though, that Malice is even continuing to give him the time of day, and that whatever Yamato's said is no reason to put distance between them. Sounds like he wants the opposite, actually.

What a strange feeling. ]

...Haha...you really are something else.

[ He shakes his head in disbelief, but he's smiling again. ]

That's the most I've told anyone about my situation, you know. Ever.

'Course I am.

[A distinction he will wear with pride, thanks! He's always gonna be a weirdo.]

I'm glad to hear it, despite how rough it sounds. An' I'll keep it to myself, don't worry. I like to think I'm an easy guy to talk to.

Thanks. I appreciate that.

[ Malice can probably already tell that Yamato would rather this be kept between them, so he'll be very happy if it doesn't make the rounds!! ]

That actually does help a little. Despite the current situation...if I could make it up to those guys, I would. Maybe there's something on my broom that'll symbolize that feeling?

Maybe it'll help if you think about who you wanna be. What you're gonna work toward, when you get back. 'Cause I can't imagine you'd just let things lie as they are now, right?

[You're gonna go fight win get back with your ex-wife, right??]

...

[ He's quiet as he mulls over this. He cups his chin in his hand and thinks hard about this, judging by how his expression twists into something incredibly pensive –

and then something appears from under him. He yelps and falls onto what appear to be some rainbow-themed musical bars, accompanied by a few notes here and there.

Wow. ]

...Is this it?

[Malice gasps at that, and then snaps his fingers together repeatedly. This is his version of clapping, thanks to Leo.]

That's great, it worked! And wow, that's so cool - that's musical writing, isn't it? I've seen some of that before!

[Obviously he doesn't really understand what it is beyond that, but wow!! How cute...]

[ Yamato chalks that snapping up to Vampire things or something. He ends up grinning pretty wide, and it's a real grin, too. He's happy about this, it seems. ]

Wow...

[ Look at that! His mood has perked up significantly. He looks back at Malice and gestures towards him – ]

Come on, I'm not flying alone!

[ He can either fly alongside him or get on the music bars, if he wants. The choice is his!! ]

Hah, I could use the practice!

[Malice grins at that and hops on his own broom, ready to go!!]

You might have a bit of trouble flyin' at first, but it gets easier as you go!

[Mostly. He still hasn't fully mastered it yet but it's fine...]

[ He grins as Malice starts flying alongside him, and thankfully, it's relatively smooth sailing?? (12). Yamato looks like he's having the time of his life, experiencing the wind and speed like he is. At one point, he glances over at Malice to see if he's faring just as well as he is... ]

[Malice still hasn't quite worked out how to control the speed all that well, so sometimes he zips ahead and then has to double back - he mostly just likes to go fast. But it's not all that bad over here either, that aside!

After a bit of flying, we'll come across that little town again... looks like it might be time for more knick-knacks?? (no)]

You wanna stop on by, since we're here anyway?

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