[INTRO; OPEN]

[bokor]

The tall thin man was standing more or less near one gathering of gravestones in the evening dusk. Most people would be avoiding a place like this, and truthfully so should Facilier have been, if defiance hadn't temporarily overridden his common sense. He reasoned that the place wasn't so frightening even to a man who'd so mightily pissed off the spirits and so deeply overdrawn his finances that they'd dragged him off when he'd made the mistake of blurting that he couldn't pay them.

Maybe this was payment, or punishment, or maybe it was a third thing altogether, but Facilier knew second chance when he saw it and he knew landing on his feet when he had to. He could flourish in the sidewalk cracks like a weed, or he could... spend his time outside the castle assessing it nervously from a graveyard in which he paradoxically just felt more comfortable. That was right. Plenty of room around here to see anyone coming, plenty of space to escape if he felt uneasy, and no bokor had anything to fear from the dead that they didn't owe.

When he'd calmed his racing heart enough to actually pretend to be casual, he decided to make his way closer to the castle proper. Maybe there'd be a newspaper. Creepy Gothic Herald, with a date, which was about all he was interested in. He bothered with nothing like brochures, and this was far from New Orleans, but the same rules applied. Talk to people. Get friendly, pick up whatever unbiased, usable information presented itself and pick up the biased stuff too, but it might be harder to sift through that here.

He'd have to hope folks here were friendly enough to avail himself of their hospitality, a fish completely out of water as he reluctantly left even the shadow of familiarity with the graveyard and went people hunting.

And what that meant was lurking in shadowy halls, shuffling his tarot deck and keeping a look out for people who looked like suckers. Or at the very least like they wouldn't just attack him.

Comments

[bokor]

When lingering in the halls proved less than effective, after a little while, Facilier took to wandering, and prying where he wasn't asked to. Nothing bred confidence like a lack of authority, and it didn't seem like anybody ran this place. As weird as the dusty throneroom and candy bone room were, not a single person challenged his right to wander and pry just as he liked.

So he was bold enough to come right on over and investigate the puppet, having only the barest experience that this entire castle, grounds and all, might be magic and that anything unknown was dangerous. "Well, look at you." He mused, eyes tracing the words of the sponsors without any comprehension. Amazon.co.jp, Crusade? Maybe they were incantations, or... well, they almost sounded like recognizable words, but he was completely without the context of Bunny's era.

No way to find out anything else without the obvious tack of actually taking hold of the puppet's strings and giving an experimental tug. So that was exactly what he did.

[ojisankink]

Most people just give the strings a casual touch. A full-out tug gets Barnaby to not only lift his head, but immediately jump to his feet. There's actually life in his eyes now but that doesn't make his grinning any less creepy and odd.

"Barnaby Brooks Jr., corporate tool and professional puppet at your service. What can I do for you, sir?"

He's already trying his best to use the clues in his surroundings - and any thoughts that Facilier has that might be discerned as orders, due to castle magic letting him read whoever holds the strings - to find some sort of guidance for how he should act. All he can really tell about the stranger is that they're curious and a little threatened, so he makes sure his hands are visible and open so he doesn't look like he's going to attack.

[bokor]

That response was definitely not what Facilier had been expecting, and he dropped the strings - but his shadow thought faster than he did and snatched up the shadow of the strings against the wall, which had the same net effect as if Facilier had maintained his grip. The bokor tried to regain his poise with some difficulty, unnerved by the introduction.

Barnaby Brooks Jr., huh.

That offer of 'assistance' was too tempting, although the suspicion of a catch was ever present. Everything cost something.

"Right now I want a little information, Barnaby." Yes, he was definitely on a first name basis, he'd just decided that himself, thank you. "First off..."

He tempered his instinctive desire to push this new advantage as far as it would go with extreme effort. It was okay to want information. But was it free?

"Anything gonna cost, this service of yours? And--while I'm at it, what do those words mean?" He gestured to Bunny's closest arm.

[ojisankink]

Barnaby doesn't even blink. Lots of people have been shocked by his words and appearance so far. He doesn't mind if he needs time to get used to him like everyone else has had to.

...As long as he isn't left to his own devices again.

He nods eagerly. Information is easy enough to provide, especially since he seems to be asking such simple questions right now.

"Of course it won't. I used to be paid to be like this, but there's no real currency in the castle." Besides, in the years up to becoming a hero, Barnaby was still toyed with and didn't get paid.

He raises the arm Facilier is pointing to. "Oh, these are the logos for my sponsors. They're companies... this one is a card game, and the other is for a shopping service. There's also one on my chest." He'll neglect to show it off, as most have already been bothered by the Ouroboros symbol.

[bokor]

There was something really oddly mournful and strange about the puppet's demeanor, but Facilier folded his arms and let his shadow continue to hold the marionette strings while he thought as quickly as he could about what to do with this advantage.

"No currency?" Facilier repeated, stunned, "How about that. Now I know this place is a magic fairy tale."

He eyed the indicated arm, reasoning that he'd as much granted permission with his curiosity for Barnaby to lift it, and then frowned faintly at the explanation. "Makes sense." Of course there was Sears & Roebuck, so he understood the concept, and it was mildly creepy to him.

"Come with me, Barnaby." He said absently, waving his shadow to pull the cross along as he walked down the hall, "And I hope you don't mind that I'm still trying to figure this thing out, y'see, I'm new here myself and it'd be nice to get some answers, even if it is only from a doll. But you seem almost like a real person." He added, lightly.

[ojisankink]

It's unsurprising if he's found to be mournful. Plenty of people here have thought what was done to Barnaby was sad and cruel, even if he himself can't seem to understand why.

"As far as I know, no one has implemented one." And it's not like they could start one with the cash left in people's wallets.

He keeps his arm raised until Facilier seems to lose interest, and then he follows along obediently, even before the shadow starts pulling the cross along. His own expression remains light.

"I don't mind at all, sir. I'm happy to provide answers."

For a moment, he tilts his head, wondering how to respond. "I used to be human up until a week or so ago. But I was always a puppet of some sort. I just look the part now. I hope that doesn't bother you."

[bokor]

"Mmm, guess if you got people pouring in from the good god knows where, it might be hard to organize." But he was only thinking aloud, and not petitioning Barnaby for any answers to that. He nodded along to the comment about being happy to provide answers, assuming it was true, but he froze in his tracks when Barnaby continued.

I used to be human up until a week or so ago.

Facilier swallowed, not turning to look back until the few seconds required to school his expression back to compliance. His shadow was aghast, holding the strings' shadows at arm's length as if they were now something less desirable than moments prior.

"Bother me?" He repeated, "Oh, I mean, if you're not bothered..." His tone was as flat as his expression had been, but after a few seconds he realized he just might be able to work it to his advantage after all.

"Now, I can't be the first one who's found you like this, and if I were to leave you here, I wouldn't be the last, right? That can't be what you want. Not to rate myself too highly, you understand... but I know there are folks out there worse than me by just a hair." He gave a sort of lopsided grin like he had someone in mind, "So tell me if you think you'd owe me for looking after you a while. Keeping you out of the wrong hands."

sorry, there's a ghost partner in the house and he's piiiiissed

[ojisankink]

"Yes, that's what I would assume." He's only been here a short time, though, so he can't say if anyone has tried to organize anything anyways...

And then Facilier freezes, and Barnaby halts immediately. Even if he's trying not to show his displeasure with this little revelation, Barnaby can tell he's uncomfortable. The tone of his voice, the way his shadow moves... it would all point to discomfort even if Barnaby couldn't read his thoughts. Is he going to be abandoned again?

But then Facilier starts speaking again, and he seems a little more interested in this situation. More than that, he's... understanding Barnaby's position in a way that so many people before him haven't. He doesn't dare hope yet. He knows he's a poor excuse for a toy, and that he has no right to have another owner... but if there's a chance he can still do better...

A vase nearby shatters. Barnaby has learned to ignore that happening by this point.

"It's not at all what I want, sir," he answers, a little desperately. "I'm supposed to find a new master. If you would take that role, I would be in your debt forever."

Forever is what Kotetsu said when Barnaby asked if he'd support him... forever is a very good word. Surely this stranger would like to hear it?

There's a crumbling sound as a crack forms in the wall, as if someone had punched it.

Oh no PERFECT

[bokor]

"I should've guessed you were too clever to be a ..." He cast about for the appropriate word, "Any kind of doll, really." It was far easier and more natural to think about enlisting the spirit possessed voodoo dolls for help - or just for company, if they showed up on fête days. And they were every bit as intelligent lwa as people, but Barnaby's design had suggested something he had less familiarity with.

He was distracted from the conjecture by the exploding vase, and his nerves had been sufficiently steadied by the past few hours that he turned to look at it almost imperiously, as if he couldn't believe the audacity of the universe to try to shake him again so soon after the last time. "Now what in the blazes is wrong with this place??"

His shadow was busy looking between the broken pieces and Barnaby as if trying to connect them, but there was no real evidence of collusion, and the shadow shrugged at a glance from Facilier. No clue.

The Shadowman refocused with a kind of bitey energy on Barnaby, sensing that desperation like gasoline to a fire, Forever... Forever was a wonderful prospect. Master - was not.

"Shame I can't accept that offer, actually. The M word turns my stomach some, you understand. Or maybe you don't, and you'll have to take my word on it. In any case... I do hear you. And I comprehend your - need," He tiptoed around the word with delicate emphasis. He was about to go on, but then the second peculiar thing happened and he turned accusingly to Barnaby. "You got any other secrets you wanna tell me? Or should I just drop you right here in the hall like the last one did?"

[ojisankink]

"It's all right. It's a little hard for that to be noticeable when I'm not moving." And he was probably only as smart as he was because he was ordered to be studious, but that's probably not important to mention. He should focus on his now-dead puppeteer.

He looks over at the vase not with offense, but with something like guilt. He really isn't sure why this keeps happening to him wherever he goes. Maybe he's cursed?

He doesn't have time to think about it, though, before Facilier turns on him, and everything starts to go wrong. He feels his chest get tight. He thought this time for sure he had found the right person. He thought he would finally be told what to do again, and he wouldn't be left overwhelmed by his own emotions and thoughts. He can't let another person leave.

...He knows what happens when he's left alone. The nightmares, the memories, the strange feeling like someone important is just out of reach. He doesn't want to be left to deal with those again.

"...I understand, sir. I can call you whatever you like... I understand it's difficult, but I won't be able to survive if I don't find someone to control me soon..."

And then more things start shattering. Again. Someone is going to get hurt or try to hurt him again, and he's not at all prepared for that prospect. His eyes dart nervously around the hall, hoping that whoever keeps doing this would just reveal themselves already, or at least just leave him alone.

"Please don't leave me here. I-I don't know what's doing that, sir, but I promise it isn't me. All I know is it keeps happening around me."