Rei - Solo RP & Special Missions

After defeating the Klinklang and healing up a bit, the gaggle of girls enters a new, larger room. This room seems like it was meant for some sort of special event, as there are two staircases leading up to another level of the room, while a third is set into the wall leading off to who knows where. Holly shivers a little as they all enter the room, and even Rei and Zoey can feel the something from the room. The room just feels...wrong somehow. Yet, at the same time, they get the feeling that-for the moment- they are safe. Safe from what, exactly, is unknown. That's when Rei spots another person in the room. They're just sitting there, staring off into space. They don't even appear to have noticed the group enter.

Suddenly, the figure in the center of the room stands up, their form seeming to shift before Rei's eyes. This isn't an illusion, like what Zoey does. This... woman? Girl? Age is hard to tell from here, but she looks to be somewhere between the late-teens and early 20s. It's probably irrelevant either way, as this person seems to be changing their body and their clothing independently of one another. When the changes stop, she appears to be wearing some sort of... short kimono? Maybe? that is colored black and shifts to a teal color on the hem of her sleeves and her skirt. A sash of the same color is wound around her waist, and what appear to be two fans materialize in her hands while a flower adorns itself in her shoulder-length brown hair. She then begins to dance. If she notices Rei & Co watching, she doesn't acknowledge them.

At first, the dance starts out slow, and a soft music seems to emanate from the room. This continues for some time, and then, suddenly, after a sudden twirl, there are two of her! Except the other one's outfit is in a different color. The new dancer is wearing an identical outfit, and looks identical to the first, except the hem colors are purple. After another run-through of the slow dance, the fans vanish and the music suddenly picks up. Now it sounds like nothing that any of the trio have ever heard before; a fast-paced music that just makes one want to move and dance about. Zoey even starts wiggling a little in the hiding place as she begins to succumb to the dance bug. The two mystery girls (or the mystery girl and her clone?) begin to dance again, but it seems just as much a show of acrobatic skill than it seems to be a proper dance like Rei learned so long ago.

After a few more minutes, the music ends. Holly is now sitting next to Rei, clearly concerned. Zoey just looks on in confusion. She wants to help if she can, but it feels like if she tries to say anything, it will only break this fragile silence that has enveloped everyone. Holly hugs Rei tightly. She isn't entirely sure what about that dancing figure caused Rei to break down like this, but she's going to do everything in her power to help Rei piece herself back together. Again.

As Rei rounds the corner, the second "being" is suddenly no longer there. Out of nowhere, millions of strange creatures flood the area, encircling the mysterious person in what could be construed as a 'protective sphere'. The creatures are all shaped like various letters, with only a single eye each.

Holly is practically frozen in fear, and it ends up being Zoey who rushes forward to try and talk Rei down.

"Friend Rei! I don't think they are trying to do either of those things! I'm not sure they even realized we were here until just now."

The swirling sphere of strangely shaped specimens suddenly part like the sea. The silent stranger regards Rei curiously before speaking. Their voice seems to almost echo (very faintly) as they explain quite calmly that they do not know who Rei is. They were merely expressing themselves in what they believed was an empty room. Their intention was not to cause harm to anyone, but if Rei persists in accusing them, then they will not be responsible for what the Hivemind will do. They are very protective of this one for reasons they do not understand.

The unknown person proclaims that Rei and her group walking in right as the event began was merely a coincidence. There was no malicious intent behind it at all.

As Rei tries to rush out of the room, Holly snaps out of her funk and grabs Rei, hugging her close, not letting her run.

"No more running, Rei. You'll never get past this if you keep running from your problems. Nothing that happened with Tiki was your fault. Stop blaming yourself for it."

Holly sighs. "There was nothing you could have done, Rei. Tiki made her choices, just as you did. I won't pretend to fully understand why watching that strange 'person' dance around was so heart-wrenching for you, but if it affected you this much then it means you're still placing blame where it doesn't belong." Holly forcibly exudes calmness through their Curse-Bond to relax Rei. She continues to try to reason with Rei, to show her the irrationality of her current actions, and how all it does is lead to more pain. It's understandable that she's not just going to 'get over it', not this soon, but if she's going to freak out every time she so much as sees something even partly resembling the relationship she shared with Tiki, then the solution is obvious. She and Tiki need to sit down and work this out. They need to get all of it off their chests. Holly will have Clay help her lock them in a room together until they do if that's what it takes.

While Holly is having this talk with Rei, a nervous/curious Zoey hovers just out of earshot, trying desperately not to pry even as she struggles with the urge to run over and hug Rei tightly. Hugs make everything better, right?