Yasashii nihon no joochan yo...

[therealrisette]

Who: Rise Kujikawa and OPEN
What: A possibly familiar little girl, barely old enough for grade school, is wandering around the castle unsupervised. What do?
When: Today!
Where: The castle grounds, lobby, Four Seasons beach, Music Room - any of Rise's favorite places!
Rating: PG-ish?

[Well, it's been a few days now. Rise hoped she'd only be this small for her birthday and the castle would give up on its latest little prank. But after a day or two of going back and forth between sticking close to a convenient friend (new or otherwise) or sulking alone somewhere, it's getting really boring not going out when she wants just because she's not as big as she should be. She's even been a fairy before, and that never stopped her!

... Though, at least she could fly then. Having to run around everywhere makes the castle somehow seem even bigger now, against all logic. And no matter where she goes, everything looks different.

Before she knows it, a quick trip outside of her own room has become a full-blown exploration of the entire castle. From the hallways, to the grounds, to some of her favorite rooms to visit. She's not exactly alone, but not everyone notices such a small child running around.

... Of course, someone probably will sooner or later.]

Comments

[therealrisette]

[Well, that settles it!]

Yep! There's a room that's a beach on Tuesdays! It's even on this floor!

Wanna go?

[She's tempted to just drag Ib along like she usually does, but... as small as she is right now, she's not sure she could.]

[pint_sized_carnivore]

Don't worry, we can do this again later. [Chie got down on the carriage, and waited for Rise. She took a deep breath in and smiled]

Ah, I can smell the cooking meat!

[luxe_can_kill]

Of course. I would be looking forward to that.

[princelyspirit]

Hey!

[Utena puts her arms up to block the water, but alas, there's only so much she can do. But, she's not upset - surprised, but not upset. But, that doesn't mean she's going to let Rise off easy~]

Alright, now you've done it...

[Returning her devilish grin, Utena dunks her hands in the water, and splashes Rise right back]

[eat_me_beat_me]

Wait... you remember where you are and who I am?

[Well that's just weird. Why didn't Mildmay or Giotto know who she was, then? They'd been aged down just the same as Rise was. That doesn't make any sense at all!

Fucking castle.]a

[therealrisette]

[Rise hops down from the carriage and shifts over until she's right next to Chie. Reaching out to take the other girl's hand is practically reflex now.

Curiously, Rise takes a dainty little sniff at the air...]

... That does smell really good!

[Oh man, she's even more hungry now! But she kinda hopes the meals here aren't too rich... she has to be careful about her diet!]

[therealrisette]

[Tiny!Rise is confused...]

Yeah... why wouldn't I?

[She might be under the mistaken impression that memories only get affected during world changes. That's how all the losses she's seen (and experienced) so far have worked...]

[therealrisette]

[With a small shriek, Rise tries to dodge and swim to the side! But nope... she still gets splashed, right in the back of the head. Curtains of wet hair fall over her eyes, but she's still giggling uncontrollably.]

No fair!

[She makes a weak, blind attempt at splashing in Utena's direction with one tiny hand. Instead of doing the smart thing and getting her hair out of her eyes first...]

[heloise]

[ Lucrezia doesn't stop for her, letting go of her hand if Rise does. She has a mission to accomplish after all and she would wait for no one. No one else. ]

As I said. Home is Joshua's mansion. It was Zelman's once, do you know of him?

[pint_sized_carnivore]

[Chie got them a seat at the inn's dining area. It was like stepping into a time machine or being in a Renaissance Festival. Not that any of them would be familiar to how that's like. But Chie seems pretty used to it, idly setting her bag on one table.

The barmaid welcomed them with a smile and to take their order. It was pretty much like a modern restaurant, only they didn't have menus. Chie's order was not surprising, but when the barmaid turned her attention to Rise, Chie was a little stuck. Right, what would Rise order in a place like this?]

Uhm, well they have roasted chicken... Do you want that?

[therealrisette]

[Well, Rise does look a little surprised. But she doesn't let go of Lucrezia's hand, or stop following along. Having company is obviously a higher priority than their destination.]

... No, I don't think so.

[The name doesn't sound familiar. Also...]

There's a mansion?

[She's pretty sure they didn't mention anything about a mansion when they first met!]

[therealrisette]

Um...

[Suddenly, she's at a loss again. How does one gracefully excuse oneself when sitting in someone's lap?]

... I guess I can let you get back to what you were doing, Kirijo-san!

[She shifts over a little, as if she intends to get down. She must be getting in the way at least a bit... and maybe by the time they practice again, she'll be able to reach the keys easier by herself?]

{ooc: Up to you if you wanna close out this thread soon! Or if you want to continue it a little more with something other than piano practice.}

[eat_me_beat_me]

Two more of my friends were aged down this month and their minds were just as young as the rest of 'em. They didn't remember Paradisa or me at all.

[She shrugs]

The castle does that sometimes.

[luxe_can_kill]

[Knowing Mitsuru, she's not going to force Rise to stay even if she's feeling the need of some company right now, especially the company of a child that reminds her so much of Mariko... But she just smiled and took her hands off the piano keys, to let Rise off of her lap on her way. Watching the little girl scooch her way out is heartwarming and amusing...]

Very well. I'll see you again.

[When Rise leaves, Mitsuru starts to play something slow that could be still heard in the hallways just outside of the music room.]

[therealrisette]

[The lack of a menu is more than a bit off-putting, for a place Rise's never been before. Fortunately Chie seems to notice her looking a bit lost. And her suggestion doesn't sound bad...]

Uh... yeah, that sounds good!

[For a moment, she kind of... avoids making eye contact with the barmaid, looking a bit flustered. Which seems to happen a lot during this stupid loss...]

[pint_sized_carnivore]

[Chie noticed that she's been avoiding eye contact with everyone lately. Is it because of her loss? She thought she might as well ask in case there's anything else...]

Are you okay, Rise-chan?

[therealrisette]

Really?!

[There's a bit of relief mixed in with her surprise. She thought looking like a kid was bad, but somehow actually believing she was a kid again sounds much worse! She'd have been so lonely and terrified and she'd... better stop thinking about this before she gives the castle any ideas.]

... I guess this isn't so bad, then. At least I remember you!

[She smiles, though it still feels a bit strange looking so far up at almost everyone she knows... and doesn't know, for that matter.]

[therealrisette]

Yeah, I'm fine!

[She puts on a brave smile, but it's pretty obvious she's deflecting. She doesn't even try to keep up the act for long.]

I'm just... still not used to this, I guess.

[There's a way that people look and act around kids, and she's noticing it a lot more now than when she actually was one...]

[pint_sized_carnivore]

[Nope, not buying it. You need more acting lessons]

Are you really? I guess I can't blame you...

[She's still about to go on a loss, so she doesn't know how one feels like just yet. But from the tone of her voice, it sounded like she's talking to the regular Rise again]

[therealrisette]

[Her acting is fine, you just know her too well!

Also now that there's no one close by, at least for a bit, she'll be a bit more frank about things.]

It's not so bad with my friends! [Chie implicitly included.] But it's not like I can just tell people I'm really seventeen.

[Technically, she still doesn't even feel like she really is seventeen, since this happened on her birthday...]

[pint_sized_carnivore]

[Chie sighed and looked at Rise. She definitely could feel her frustration and wants to help in some way. But before her mouth could open, the food arrived!]

[heloise]

Some ways from the city.

Are you to follow me there?

[therealrisette]

I... don't know...

[That sounds pretty far to go on a whim... but she still can't bring herself to outright ask for help finding her way around a castle when she knows her way around. And having company is much better than feeling kind of lost in her own home...

Then again... was Lucrezia expecting her to follow the whole way? Was there an implied invitation? She doesn't know her well enough yet to even guess...]

You live there? With Joshua-san?

[So are they, like, really a couple? Not just random people that were given a child back during that week?]

[princelyspirit]

[laughing]

Says the girl who hit me with a sneak attack! That wasn't exactly what I call fair...

[But, that said, it's no fun fighting an uneven fight. Utena stops splashing for a moment, waiting for Rise to situate herself; but, once she gets the hair out her eyes, she better be ready for another wave.]

[therealrisette]

[Rise lets out a frustrated little noise as she pulls her hair out of her eyes. The kind of frustrated little noise that sounds more amused and playful than serious.]

Your splash was bigger!

[She gives one of her dramatic pouts as she finally gets her hair under control, and has to look around a bit to find Utena...]