ENDGAME

[kentucky_mcgiygas]

[A wall panel in the green room slides out of view, revealing an elevator. Get in it and it will take you down to the hotel (description here), where your fellow contestants - alive and ghostly - await.

You may spend as long as you want here, ordering up as much room service as you like, but when you're read to go home, you'll find that one floor (new to the current hotel occupants) has nothing but doors with your names on them. Exit, and you'll show up exactly where you were when you left.]

((THANK YOU FOR PLAYING EVERYONE. Ghosts, feel free to materialize and talk to people. You may now speak about your prizes.))

Comments

[rowboats]

[ ............. ]

...E-Ene?

[ she doesn't look familiar, but Ib still recognizes her voice ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

-Haha! Look at that, someone recognised me. You're the first one, you know. [Because every other friend except one that knew her when she was Takane is dead BUT DETAILS.]

[rowboats]

[ PROVIDED GHOSTS CAN BE TOUCHED Ib will be going forward in a running-tackle. Or if they can't, well, she's gonna try. ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

[I assume ghosts can't unless they are willing it and Takane was distracted by other things so Ib runs through her.] Ah! Sorry, sorry, give me a second. I think I can do this...

[rowboats]

[ WAITS IMPATIENTLY, GIVE HER A HUG ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

[SHE'S NEW AT THIS OKAY. After a moment of concentration, taps her hand against Ib's shoulder to test it. Okay good. PULL SMALL CHILD INTO HUG]

[rowboats]

[ She's pretty much cried herself out today, so. Ib just clings and clings, as tight as she can.

It wasn't supposed to end up like this. ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

[Shhh shhhhh it's okay Takane will just keep hugging her.] I know this isn't ideal. I know it didn't turn out how either of us wanted. But you're still going home, okay? You got any friends or family to go back to?

[rowboats]

[ She takes a while to respond. ]

...my mother and father. But--but--

[ a hiccup ]

My prize. My prize was to go home with Mary and Garry, all of us safe.

[bluescreenofdeath]

...Ah? Is that right? Well! It sounds like we should have a word with the management about getting Mary home safely, shouldn't we? It wouldn't do for them to stiff one of their big winners like that.

[rowboats]

[ she unburies her face from Ene's shoulder, looking concerned ]

You...you think they could bring her back?

[ She doesn't want to get her hopes up. ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

I think if they don't I'm going to haunt their nightmares until they realise a deal is a deal.

[rowboats]

Okay...

I'm really tired of trusting people, and thinking they're nice, and then they go and do stuff...like Junpei, and Santa, and Miss Lotus, and Miss Kyrie.

But I want to trust you, Ene.

[ Whether that's about arguing with the clown about her wish, or in general, she doesn't make clear. ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

[Oh no baby.] Ib, listen. This is a terrible situation. All those people, they're bad, especially Kyrie. But they're people pushed to their absolute limit, desperate to survive and protect their friends. That changes people, and makes them do even worse things in desperation. But not everyone is like that. There are so many people in the world who wouldn't betray you. They're just a bad lot. You can go home, and get your wish, and live surrounded by so many better people.

[rowboats]

[ Ib listens quietly, taking it all in for a moment before she responds. ]

...Garry did his best to protect me even when he was just as scared as I was. I guess I wanted to think all the adults would be nice like him. But different people do different things when they're scared, huh?

[bluescreenofdeath]

They do. You're a good kid so you want to believe in people, but there are a lot of bad adults out there. There are still good adults that will protect you from them. Didn't a lot of people jump in to stop Kyrie from going near you? I'm sorry you have to deal with these bad people. They shouldn't be allowed to do these things. But soon you won't have to worry about them.

[rowboats]

Yeah. [ She was sort of out of it during all that, but she remembers same people stepping in front of her. ] Back at the start, Miss Natsuhi wanted to send us to the hotel so we wouldn't have to play the game, too.

[ Which Ib opposed but it's the thought that counts. ]

[bluescreenofdeath]

I remember that. Sometimes I thought you two would be safer there as well, lot's of people wanted to protect you both by sending you there... But, you and Mary, you had something important to fight for right?