Fool's Journey

"Oh thank all the fucking stupid sages of Atlantis that didn't screw the goddamn pooch-" Freddie grabs her hands, the blood dripping down his arm making his fingers slick where they grasp hers. "Mischa, you need to listen to me. We need to flip your name, right? We can try to flip it, or push it through to the other side of the tower, but it looks like you need that last kick. Can you help me? I can handle the blood, but you need to grab your fate by the horns-"

 

"Flip the name..." She looks at his hands. "Push it through..." She turns to regard the tower, then lets go of Freddie's hands to put hers by her stamped name, both hand prints thoroughly bloodied. "Grab fate and push... through the tower..."

Gnosis(1) + Fate(2) + Mid-Awaking bonus (3)
Roll set 1 - 10 - 10 - 9 - 7 - 4 - 7
Roll set 2 - 8 - 10
Roll set 3 - 9

 

Freddie's bloodied hands close over hers, and he breathes slowly. She feels his pulse echo through hers, and the magic curling around the bloody words, which rush through the tower, crashing into the other side and bursting into a brilliant light before solidifying into red crystals embedded in the wall.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MEANWHILE - - -

 

Kainze had just gotten back from his short lunch break, now wandering the aisles of Chapters with a fluffy dust-cloth to clean the shelving with. It's easy work, even though he can't see the dust, so he just wipes down all the shelving and racks; plus he can feel with his hands anyways. He's familiar enough with the store anyways by now that he doesn't need to take an hour and a half anymore to get it all done... but he does anyways.
Why not. It's not like they're gonna tell him to rush. Plus this way he actually even does a good job instead of slacking off like some other certain assholes he works with.

His twin, Mischa, should be off work by now. She'll be grabbing food before coming into Chapters to sit at Starbucks and drink espresso while she works on her school work and waits for him to finish work.

He's wiping the shelving in front of a window when he notices something out of place, and the strange scent of vanilla and... ... blood?? Fresh blood?? He sets the cloth on the shelf and holds it with both hands, leaning in to follow his nose to the strange smell. "... what?"
It's not coming from the shelf... it's coming from where the window is. He sidesteps a bit to get closer to the window, putting his hands onto it to brace himself while he inspects it.
It's a belated realisation that if there was blood on the window he probably really shouldn't have touched it.
Good thing that's not the case!

He goes back to grab his cloth, because if there is something on the window, he'll have to clean it. And if it's blood, he wants to avoid touching it with his hands.

 

"...huh. That's weird." A young woman's voice chirps from behind Kainze. "...do you have any idea what's going on? I wonder where they're going?"

The woman pauses, perking up. "...do you know her? She looked a lot like you."

 

Something's going on? He turns to face the voice, one hand on the glass and head heavily tilted in curiosity. "What's happening?"

 

"...huh? You didn't notice? A girl and some dude just went absolutely tearing past!" The girl laughs. "I wonder where they had to get to so qui-"

 

The fire alarm starts to blare, and you hear your manager yelling for people to evacuate in an orderly manner.

Kainze, even as you rest your hands the smooth surface before you, you realize there’s something… wrong. The surface doesn’t feel real, or solid, and then feel yourself falling, tumbling forwards, and the woman who had been speaking to you lets out an alarmed little noise – you hear her feet rushing towards you as you land, hard, on what feels like a path made of dirt and cobblestone.

 

Emberlynn freezes, then runs forwards as she recognizes the hedge through the glass, jumping up so one foot lands on the edge of the window ledge, then jumps in, just as she feels the familiar shudder of the world as a doorway to the hedge snaps shut. She gets her balance, looking hurriedly around at the area – it’s unfamiliar, she’s never seen a place like this one – that’s… unsettling.

This shouldn't be anywhere around home, what's going on? Well... more important problems are at hand.

“Oh, oh man. Are you okay!?” she moves to put a hand on Kainze's shoulder.

 

Kainze turns towards the glass, instinctively putting his other hand on it/through it as he starts to fall, arms up and braced for a fall, tucking to roll into his tumble.

Dex(3) + Athletics (-1)
Roll 1 : 10 - 1
Roll 2 : 1

 

He lets out an alarmed noise as he tumbles hard into the cobblestone and dirt, failing to roll the tumble and skinning his elbow and knees, but at least his hands where up to protect his head. He leans up and takes stock of his new surroundings, patting the ground and smelling the strange new scent of the Hedge and listening to the weird noises. He hisses a bit as he gets dirt into his scratched palm, wiping both dirt and blood on his blue work vest.
This isn't Chapters. This isn't even the mall anymore!

He startles slightly when he hears the woman's voice again, taking a moment before he recognises her. Same woman that spoke before they fell. Likes a lot of modern fantasy novels, both written and audio books. He likes that she's into audio books.
"I think I'm okay?? What about the window? Did I break it?" He perks. "We're not in Kansas anymore? Shit I forgot to bring my house... how am I gonna kill the witch!"

 

"One, you're the witch, dude. Two, I'm only interested in the weird esoteric stuff mostly in a theoretical practice and rarely in the non-theoretical and I'll kick you in the junk?" Emberlynn huffs.

"Are you okay? Not too bruised up, right?" A hand touches his, smooth and cold. "Need a hand up? Don't mind the weirdness, this place brings out the freaky-deaky in me, you know? At least I look cool, right?"

She gives a weak, awkward little laugh. "...but. uh. Yeah. Hi again."

 

"I know I'm the witch. That was the joke." He huffs back at her with an eyeroll-headroll combo, then stands up without her help. "What is this freaky-deaky place? It smells weird..." He makes a face. He wipes his hands on his vest again to rid it of blood and dirt, then starts inspecting the smooth cold hand that touched his. "You're cold."

 

"...oh. right, sorry, dude. I'm. A little freaked? Normal people... usually can't open doors to here. But. You did!" Her hand wiggles in his grip, restless as she waves her other arm around.

"Uuuh. Faerie?" Emberlynn squeaks awkwardly. "Uh. Or the edges, anyway. Uhm. Yeah, kind of... comes with being made of precious stones and stuff. At least I get to be warm when people can ser my other face," she complains.

 

"Well you did just point out that I'm not a 'normal person', I'm a witch." He tilts his head. "Faerie? The Hedge?"
When she mentions she's made of stones, he starts really feeling up her hand, inspecting her nails and running fingers up her arm. "What kind of stones? Quartz? You have two faces? How does that even work? What if someone's never seen your face though? Do you turn into a popsicle?"

 

"Uh. Marble and Ivory andstuff? I mean. My hair is literally gold, and... well, my eyes switch out? They were ruby this morning." She fidgets. "Uuuh. No? Then they just don't know what I look like."

She hesitates, fussing with her bag.

 

"Well I know what you look like now. So you have fake eyes? Is that why you'd always come to me about books? Because of the whole being made of stone thing? Can other people even see you?"

 

"No! I can see through them just fine," Emberlynn whines. "...and no... I. People can see me fine. I have a fiance and everything, even if he's weird like me..."

 

"Cool." He turns to face the direction he'd fallen from, swatting at the air. "Ugh... how do we get back?"