Owner	Pose
Rory Sakura	This is a slightly run-down neighborhood across from a park that seems to have experienced a recent blessing from Mother Earth for how lush the trees and shrubs near one side have become, though some of the other plants are more straggly and scraggly. Across a street from the park, buildings are two to four stories tall, mostly brownstones or otherwise housing built to hold more people than want to fit in that space. The bottom floor of some hold small shops or businesses, but on one narrow alley, barely wide enough for a Smart Car to navigate, there is a building with a blank wall ... and on the blank wall is a very realistic mural in the //Tromper l'oeil// style, photo-realism but not physically possible. It depicts an opening as though the building itself were at a sharp angle, and painted leaning against a painted wall, is that artist that Adrien Agreste met a few days ago. The picture is uncannily accurate; he seems to be half-asleep, a bottle of wine dangling from one hand, and beyond him is what looks like the beginning of a garden enclosed by the building and its neighbors.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir had been on teh look out for this artist since nightfall. He and Plagg had taken some time to discuss it, and Adrien learned a little more about the kwami. Yes, he really was older than some dirt. No, he didn't know why the silly humans called it that. Yes, Ladybug's kwami was that old too. So, Chat Noir's thousands of years old.. And yes the Miraculous get passed down to new holders every generation or so. Did Adrien forget how he came across his ring? When the mural is spotted, Chat Noir stops and peers down at it. The artist! A few hops and Chat Noir is on the ground in front of ...a painting? Head tilting, curiosity getting the best of him, the unlucky black cat steps closer for a better look.
Rory Sakura	From straight on, or rather, from the entry to the alley way, the image is perfect. From straight on and inside the alley, it looks a bit ... off. Designed to be seen in three dimensions from the most common viewing direction. That is, until the half-drowsing eyes open a bit, revealing a faint orange light. //Well well well. What have we here? Another guest?// The wine bottle drops. Being well made, it doesn't break. It makes no sound, until it rolls forward and ... comes out of the mural and becomes three-dimensional. Then it makes a faint noise of glass on stone rolling. The cork is in place, a wire-cage retainer clamped down to keep it from coming dislodged.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir was almost nose to nose with the figurewhen those ornage eyes opened and the voice rang out. With a gasp, Chat does as any starlted cat would do. He leaps back away from the source of what spooked him. His back slams into the brick wall of the other side of hte alley and he drops unceremoniously to his rump as the bottle rolls out of hte painting and stops against his boot. Chat looks at the bottle, then up at the painting, then the bottle, then the painting. What?
Rory Sakura	And the figure has moved when Chat looks back up. Now in a flagrant italianesque bow, one hand swept back as if to invite the visitor into his small courtyard. //Please, come into my garden. Bring the wine bottle, though. It's a good vintage and I'd hate for one of the neighborhood thugs to waste it.// There's a pause and the mental voice says, //Not to worry. You can leave whenever you want, I promise.//
Adrien Agreste	From the ground, Chat Noir blinks once. A long ten seconds later, he pushes to his feet, collects the bottle, and then steps to the painting... Up to the wall. He could smell the brick. Bringing up a hand, Chat reenacts that scene from the Labrynth when Sarah walks into the walls after talking to the worm. Adrien may have found that movie on Netflix....
Rory Sakura	There are no creepy hands. There's merely a change of perspective, and atmosphere, and there's now a building with a mural of an alley on the wall. To the left, a short set of steps leads up to a door, but further in, a pagoda, a very well grown cherry tree, and a lawn that looks like it might be entirely made of irish moss. It doesn't smell like that, though. It smells like lavendar, very faintly. "You must be Chat Noir," the artist -- Rory Sakura -- says. However, perhaps because Chat Noir has magic of his own, there's a clear sense that the man isn't just a disturbingly taller than usual Japanese artist. He's got faintly purple skin, for one thing, and those odd flippy bits of hair in his bangs are clearly supported by horns as long as a kitchen knife. And he has a tail. "Are you hungry? I was thinking about grilling some fish."
Adrien Agreste	"Yes, I'm...." Green cat eyes widen at the sight of the now purple, horned, tailed artist. His lips remain parted, having been about to say his name when he turned to spot the person he was looking for. Cat got my tongue.
Rory Sakura	That earns a smile but it's kept behind one of the artist's hands because it's rude to laugh at your guests' discomfiture. He leads the confused Chat toward the pagoda, where a small table is set. At the far end of the pagoda, a charcoal brazier has been set up and is filled with white-hot coals. A pair of large fish have been cleaned, deboned, and are resting on a grill-grate over the heat, and making a delicious smell. Near the pagoda, a spring of water appears to be coming from a pile of rocks, and runs into a bamboo tube that slowly fills, then overbalances, tapping against another bamboo tube and dumping its water out into a pool that leads to a fish pond. ka-klunk.
Adrien Agreste	It's like something from a movie... an anime... Chat's mouth hasn't really closed fully since it fell open on his name. Each new detail is taken in, his tail still behind him, his ears on a swivel. Ka-klunk. Ear swivel. "Wow." He finally manages, eyes drawn byt the power of nose and stomach working in tandum to the fish. Chat licks his lips.
Rory Sakura	"It'll be a few minutes before the fish is ready. So, what brings you by my humble mural?" Actually, Rory has several murals across town, plus one or two bits of graffiti that let him into places. It's taken him several weeks to set them up. But they allow him to quickly reach an access point into the Yokai realm when he doesn't have the luxury of time to create a new portal. A laquered box on the far side of the table, across-corner from the brazier, is open and there are a few food things visible inside it. Two white spheres, which the oni takes out and places on tiles that have a decorative glaze that's cracked and blistered and looks like it might've gotten overheated. What might have been discarded as trash, though, repurposes as serving plates. A pair of crystal glasses comes out next.
Adrien Agreste	Finally remembering his manners, Chat places the wine bottle on the table and takes a moment ot compose himself. Here he was, all ready for another fan-boy moment like what happened with that Tommy kid and what he gets is... purple horned dude. As long as he's not also a people eater, everythign shoudl be okay! "I..am looking for Rory Sakura," Chat says finally, mind scrambling to find the more Chattier spice of life. "I got wind that he might like to talk to me. I was free right meow, and thought I'd look fur him... I really didn't expect to.. walk into a WALL."
Rory Sakura	"You found me," Rory says. "Hopefully you won't decide that you need to vanquish me or anything. I'm unlikely to yield a magical butterfly that can be purified or anything. Overall, that's rather a disturbing way of becoming a monster anyway." He pours wine, and offers one of the white spheres. It smells like rice. Closer up, it looks like rice. There's a yellow splotch faintly decorating the top of the slightly squashed ball of rice. It smells faintly of peaches.
Adrien Agreste	"You ...look different," Chat Noit points out, voice actually sounding serious for a moment. Stunned, perhaps is a better word. At mentiong of akuma, Chat Noir brings a hand up to rub at the back of his head. His right hand, on which he wears a ring that is the source of his power and magic. "Ah. No. Dont' think I'm going to. Mew don't feel evil or... out ot get my miraculous... are you?" Chat asks then. Because wary kitty is alive kitty. Of course. wary doesn't mean not curious or hungry and when offered the rice ball, the blonde feline-clad one ooohs as his ears perk forward. He takes the offering with dainty claws and NOM!One bite.
Rory Sakura	"Yes, I tend to conceal my true nature among humans so they don't scream, run away, or attack me," Rory observes. He turns over the fish on the grill and the water-clock says KA-KLUNK behind him. The suggestion that he might be out to take a miraculous makes his tail twitch. "So you know... one of the things about being an Oni is that I have an obligation to weaker Yokai, the harmless ones anyway, to protect them from being taken advantage of against their wills, or harmed by humans. We have a truce that is supposed to keep hunters from organizing to destroy the lesser monsters, because then we have to organize to destroy the humans, and it all gets ugly and unhappy and never ends. So, I wouldn't be after one of the Miraculous Kami. They're doing the same job, in essence.
Vorpal	They say there is no rest for the wicked. This is true, unfortunately, and it also has the rather lamentable side-effect of giving no rest for the people who try to make sure the wicked don't practice their ways on others. In this case, the unfortunate person in charge of goodness happens to be Vorpal. "Get... back.. here... you!" The Cheshire Cat is chasing someone... or something... down the street. Something that looks like a... well. A teapot. And a hedgehog. It doesn't need to make sense, folks, this is the way things are. Vorpal is gaining on it when it suddenly makes a very sharp turn and goes SMACK against a very solid wall... Except it doesn't. Where there should be a squashed Teapothog, there is... nothing. Except a nice-looking mural, that is. "Curioser and... curioser..." the cat mutters. He has come to understand many things are not what they seem. He reaches forward and wonders if, perhaps, there is a hidden wall, or a magical panel. With a bold jab of his finger, and a release of Chaos magic, he decides to find out!
Rory Sakura	Chaos Magic and Illusion Magic are like those aunties who live together with that cousin you don't like, and they bicker all the time but they also provide a united front against all outsiders and interlopers. The finger is touching a wall, but the painting is now a painting of a mural ... and it's excessively mundane. Meanwhile a hedgehog-teapot beast runs into the small courtyard from the entrance and freezes in shock. "Nantekotta i ..." it says as a red flash of light comes from the direction it entered. There's a side of the building in the way of a completely clear view, for those in the pagoda, but it's not hard to get a view.
Adrien Agreste	"Oh. Well. That makes sense," says Chat Noir to Rory of secret IDs. He has one. He gets it. He listens to the answer to his worried question, some of the worry fades, nodding. "You won't be after one...? Are you after any of them? All of them? Doing hte same job as-" Cue Sonic the Teapot. Chat looks over, green eyes wide as he peers down at the small... chinaware? His ears flatten then stand up, the confusion apparent. Again.
Vorpal	"Okay... so THAT didn't ..." Vorpal frowns and then looks around. He has materialized in a garden. A garden that has a slightly... well, it looks quite like nothing he has seen before, although a part of him feels slighty nostalgic for no apparent reason. "... Hello?" he calls out. He doesn't move quite yet, so he doesn't improve his line of sight. Caution, they call it. Rare in a cat.
Rory Sakura	"O-Kyusu, why are you running so quickly through my garden?" Rory is talking in that language that Plagg sometimes speaks. In this garden, for some reason, it's not completely incomprehensible, it's more like a formal version of speech that you almost don't catch but somehow do. "O... Onisama, I was fleeing from a terrible monster cat!!" Rory stands up in a very practiced movement (and it has to be because sitting in these odd little chairs and then standing up gracefully tends to involve collapsing with pins-and-needles legs if you don't practice) ... and steps toward the tree. He sees the intruder, who then says "hello" ... "Come into the garden," he says. "Were you chasing this fellow?"
Adrien Agreste	Sonic can talk. Well, if Mrs. Potts could... Chat listens in, surprised that he can understand the words being spkoen when a familiar voice comes to him and he too gets to his feet. It's not nearly as graceful. "I know that voice," says the black cat as he steps to stand by Rory and... Chat Noir's eyes go wide a bit. "Kitten," he greets lightly, surprise at seeing the purple feline who had asked him to watch a movie with him one night sometime in the nebulous future is standing there in this really odd Monet kind of day.
Vorpal	"Chat!" Vorpal bounds forward and nearly tackles Chat Noir, settling for a quick hug instead, "What on earth are you doing here? I figured I'd ask you to a museum for the second... but I didn't think you were interested enough in paintings to /be/ one..." The cat turns and looks at Rory, eyes narrowing as he thinks. Then he points at him. "You. You look familiar... wait. The alley. Banging those guys with the old man, that was you!"
Rory Sakura	"Banging? Pummeling, you mean. For great justice." The teapot-hedgehog tries to sneak past Rory to get to the bamboo on the other side of the pagoda where it can disappear into the foliage and escape. The Oni's tail wraps around it and lifts it off the ground. "You know each other. Of course you know each other. You. Kitten. Why were you chasing this yokai?"
Adrien Agreste	nearly tackled, Chat oofs lightly as Vorpal gives him a quickl near-tackle hug. "I was talking to... my acquaintance," Chat says, turning to look at Rory. Didn't say your name because secret IDs. The rest f what was said: museum for the second... second what? Chat's not going to think about right meow. "What are you doing here, petite chat? Chasing a... Yokai?" Chat turns to glance at Rory at the name.
Vorpal	"This guy is yours?" Vorpal says, raising an eyebrow, "This little guy basically went on a running rampage through several sidewalk cafes. I followed the trail and, of course, the devil ran here. Is he under your care? Because there are some damages..."
Rory Sakura	Rory shifts his tail around and looks down to the Yokai. "You went running through the human world?" "They was gonna sell me!" the Kyusu yokai says. "After two hunnert years they was gonna sell me at a Amazon." The Oni shakes his head in annoyance. Humans will forget it fairly quickly, they always do, but the running ... it's clearly just awakened too. That means the only one actually damaged is the person who thought they'd be able to sell an antique for a great price. Presumably a great price. "How much were they asking?" "I dunno, five, ten bucks?" "Right. Look, I'll go talk to the people who used to own you in the morning. For now, you go in that house there and sit quietly and I'll get you some tea tonight." Which is to say, brew tea in the yokai. "SO, would you like to join us for a bit of a snack, Mr. Kitten? I'm grilling some sweetfish."
Adrien Agreste	Did Chat oops-name Vorpal? Yes. Seems so. Sorry, Minou! With the teapot settled, Chat waits for Vorpal's answer before going to resume his seat. "We were discussing the kwami?" Becauae Plagg is as worthless at volunterrijg infoemation as Adrien was content to sit and hwar it all day one.
Vorpal	Fortunately for Vorpal, he had already oopsed himself at Rory during that alley-fight. "I'm inside a picture-book. How on earth is this happening? This is your doing, isn't it? I remember you drew flames..." Vorpal takes stock of the offer and nods, "I will take that snicker-snack." He then puts an arm around Chat's shoulders and smirks, "What is a kwami?" Oops.
Rory Sakura	The teapot-hedgehog scurries around, avoiding getting anywhere near Vorpal, to the entrance-now-a-wall and a door slams. Rory moves to the pagoda. "Join me, please." He pulls another tile, this one red, from the laquer box and places another rice-ball on it, and places that in front of Vorpal/Kitten, and then a glass to hold the wine from the bottle. Three glasses is, however, all the bottle holds, unless someone wants the bitter dregs from the bottom. "The rice balls have mango-peach-buddha-finger filling." Whatever it is, it's a sort of smooth puree with a thick custard texture and intense flavor, and it's good that it's nowhere near the amount of filling you might find in an American confection. Just a half-teaspoon ball of flavor-explosion.
Adrien Agreste	Chat already had a rice thing, but as wine is offered, the french-born hero leans dorward ti take a glass... and dislodge Vorpal's arm.in the process. "A magic spirit," replies Chatn bringing the drink to his lips. "I was told by someone we both know that you were at the mewseum researching? " he prompts of Rory.
Vorpal	"I'm not surprised. He does all sorts of doodlin' and stuff. Probably copying a Rembrandt for study or something of the like..." Vorpal pauses. He is still too taken with his surroundings to eat, not noticing much that his arm has been dislodged, which is better than if it had been detached, anyways. "Saaay... if you were to draw me, would there be.. two of me?" A certain mischievous look comes across his face. He could do his patrols in half the time... "Thanks, but I'm not of age to drink yet," Vorpal says, absent-mindedly.
Rory Sakura	"I was learning more hieroglyphs. They're a beautiful and eloquent language and excellent for slipping unexpected bits of directed meaning into a work. Especially that Tutankhamun papyrus from the museum. And yes, I was surprised to find the Kami-bearers o-Tentomushi and o-KuroNeko in the painting. They're usually very good at hiding their actual involvement from history." Rory shrugs at Vorpal's teetotalitarianism. He won't insist. More for the others. Even though an inside voice says 'What, when he turns 21 he'll suddenly be safe and responsible?' ... and he realises that it's time to meditate again soon. So instead of replying, he moves the two quite large fish to a plate, using a glass knife to slice them, and to pull out the worst of the bones now the fish is cooked. The fish is served in three bowls, with a large, electric-green pile of freshly grated wasabi in the middle of the table. "Use just a touch of the wasabi if you're not used to it," he says.
Adrien Agreste	"Are they...?" Chat murmurs into his cup loud enough to be heard. If they are supposed to ve hush hush then these current holders arent very good at it. His eyes follow Rory as he serves the fish. "It contained a spell one od the aku-... one of Papillon's victims was trying to recreate."
Vorpal	The cat gets a very sly look on his face. He recognizes the incomplete word- "Aku---ma, those things that only Ladybug can capture?" See? He paid attention! He remembers the cat blushing furiously after clearly letting that slip by accident on the rooftop... And then Vorpal's heart jumps up to his throat. He had said it to TOMMY, not Vorpal. Eyes widening a little, he reaches out, "... I'm gonna have some of that wine after all."
Rory Sakura	"It's a famous //glamourie//, yes. No matter how in the public eye they are, their actual identities are occluded, possibly even from one another," Rory says, without mentioning a single word of the Oni's ability to pierce all sorts of illusions, maya, glamourie and miasma. He would check over the spell that was written in that papyrus except that it's terribly rude to guests to suddenly become distracted, nerd out over a bit of history, and burn the last bit of the fish. Thus, he serves the last bowl (for himself) and with minor regret hands the third wineglass back to Vorpal. Because it's really good wine.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir side glances at Vorpal. Under the mask, a brow quirks. Vorpal.. watches the Ladyblog or he knows Tommy... Because Chat said that to Tommy on a rooftop. The number of times he's aaid somethinf to Ladybug only for Marinette to say them not long later... these thinvs happen when civilians knows supers who know supers. Ubkess everyone here is pkaying the way he plays and says he knows Adrien as an excuse to k ow thinvs Chat woukdnt otherwise be privy to.... Nah! "A glamour you say?" Chat syas, attentiom returning to Rory. "Yeah... even beteeen themn but its good to know that it hides things from the pubkic eye. not to get csreleaa but..." sip of wine is taken.
Vorpal	"Who on earth are you talking about?" Vorpal says, clearly clueless about what Rory and Chat have been discussing, and impervious to picking up any clues due to the fact that he is certain he has given himself away. He can feel Chat's judgy eyes on him. Judgy judgy judgy. He peeks out of the corner of his eye... does he have judgy eyes? It's hard to tell. He keeps looking at his wine, trying not to establish eye contact with Chat...
Rory Sakura	Sadly this isn't enough wine to even begin to get an Oni drunk, but it pairs MARVELOUSLY with the sweetfish. Which still has enough secretive bones that eating it requires some care. Not that he personally cares, of course. "Secret Identities," Rory says. "I am good at making my nature be hidden, though to be honest I haven't been working at it as hard here as in my other home in Japan." The reason they call it 'sweetfish' is that the flesh of this fish is literally sweet, with 'melon and cucumber aromas' which can be enhanced by the service of the fish on thinly sliced strips of (yep) melon and cucumber. Woven into a mat on the plate that it was served on.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir flicks another glance at Vorpal before he sets into the offered snackage. "Why dis you say the miraculous holsers serve the same purrpose? what purrrpose woukd it be?"
Vorpal	"Right, and you said something about ... mushysomething and kuro..." Hey, give Vorpal a break. 'kwami' is easier to remember. He gives Chat another look and says "... so I guess... y'know. Right?" mister vaguey mcvagueytights says, venturing to taste the sweetfish. He totally believes he has just uttered a complete and understandable sentence.
Rory Sakura	OH. The reason Vorpal doesn't drink. This is hilarious. He's got less capacity for strong drink than a small human girl, it seems. Unless that small human girl was a secret dipsomaniac. (Nevermind which small human girl. Rory wasn't feeding her booze, that was her parents, and they're being punished while the kid dries out.) "Tentomushi. It means cochinelle. Ladybug. And Kuroneko is Chat Noir," Rory explains, giving away the fun. How to explain the side purposes of the Miraculous when the devices are legendary even among monsters. "The miraculousses are very unusual magic. They took a compatible spirit-creature and made their power into a transformational magic that can make the wearer of the device into a powerful avatar of ... whatever they're avatars of. If my grandmother were not such a bad singer, I might've learned more about how they really work. But ... they're allies anyway, so trying to find out too much is a bad idea."
Adrien Agreste	"Allies" muses the black cat, face thoughtful and pensive. Vorpal's incoherency is regarded for a moment before he finally shakes His head. "Sorry, petite violet chaton, i have no idea what you're talking about. " rhen back to rory. "I will keep this in mind n thank you..."
Vorpal	The Cheshire cat frowns. Well... then maybe his secret was safe. What Rory says makes him go 'ohhh', and then avatars are brought about. The Cheshire cat turns to Adrien. "Okay... this is a little creepy. Is that miraculous thing... I mean. I am like this because I was killed by a shard of looking-glass that had the soul of the Cheshire cat trapped. Right through the heart!" he thumps his chest, and grins, "And our spirits merged. Which brought me back to life and looking like this!" he gestures to his body, and tilts his head at the black cat. "So... are you some sort of spirit avatar, too? Of a cat spirit? Because then... we're more alike than we thought!" This thought clearly cheers him up, for some reason.
Rory Sakura	The Oni tilts his head slightly at the Cheshire Cat's odd proclamation of death and chimeral rebirth. How very like a ghost story or two... Perhaps the Wonderland of the storybooks is similar to the Yokai Underworld. Perhaps they meet somewhere. Probably in the Jabberwock's cave. "So you seem to have recreated some of the magic of the Miraculous amulets but in a much more permanent way. Have you met others who have such things, other than the Ladybug, KuroNeko-san?"
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir double blinks at Vorpal before his head tilts lightly. "That sounds... violent. umm.. seems like I am!" Chat replies with broad grin to push away that unsettling feeling of dying and coming back. The grin will hide thw shudder! Turning back to Rory, Chatxs smile is dialed back from 11 a few notches. "Well. It is a Miraculous. And I ... no. I met a victim of Papillon, Volpina, who said she had the Fox Miraculous... But no. Just Ladybug and I."
Vorpal	"Do you have that miraculous on you? Can I see?" Vorpal asks, his curiosity going up to 11. The sweetfish is forgotten. For now. "I promise I'll only look. Maybe I can sense if we're the same type of magic..." he asks, leaning in to wink at Chat.
Rory Sakura	Rory watches. He's figured out where the Miraculous is. He reaches into the lacquer-ware box and takes out a steaming-from-cold gourd and some sake dishes, and uses a disturbingly tiny scoop to scrape out four scoops of glistening, green ice cream onto three sake dishes. Because matcha ice cream is a thing that must be done right now! And if he's busy with that he won't be obvious about staring at Chat Noir. Instead of being obvious, he returns the gourd to the box and draws out a "baby-bel" style waxed-cheese product that says //Camembert// in friendly red and gold letters on a label.
Adrien Agreste	Black ears lay flat against blonde hair. Green eyes widen faintly. It's the territorial sort of posture from the black cat for he pulls his rihht hand to himself slightly before holding his hand up, fingers together, to show the black ring and its glowing green paw print the exact color of his eyes. Behind him, the tip of his black leather belt of a tail shudders with aggitation. Too many proplr have tried for the ring. The one that got closest was that damn cheap intimation cat. Chatjust gives a nod to Vorpaln though it's a bit reserved because protective of ringn and obviously so. And theb therexs ive cream and.. "Camembert..." Chat says softly, chuckling as he collects the wheel of cheese. "This will get eaten later.." by Plagg and not Adrien because Adrien is no longer a cheese fan.
Vorpal	The Cheshire cat leans forward a bit, and then sniffs at the ring. Once. Twice. "This feels different from me. I'm made up of chaos, this is... something else. I wish I had actual schooling in these things. For me it's all.... instinctual." He pauses, winks and leans back, laughing. "So there's a Kwami in that ring. What's it like? Do you get to talk to it, or is it prisoner in there?"
Rory Sakura	"I thought it might," Rory says quietly. "I would be a terrible host not to give your friend a nibble as well." The kami... kWami? Why did they change the word? Well, maybe they didn't. It might be a different language perhaps? Rory gives the Cheshire a cup of tea. Something that might sober him up a little. "It's pretty much the opposite of chaos, really, though it isn't 'Order' as such," he says. "A better term might be 'philosophically positive'."
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir waits, watching as Vorpal very politely ....sniffs.... the ring. And then does nothing further. This helps ease the tension and Adrien smiles lightly. "It's destruction and bad luck," Chat Noir explains. "Yes. Therexs a kwami. When I'm not me... well im still me but... my.. civilian self? He is with me, but there would be no way I would hold him as a prisoner. He's too annoying."
Vorpal	Vorpal laughs, "So he's like a cat, then. You just can't hold a cat. Try as you might." He leans back and accets the tea. He's totally not drunk. Just tipsy. Falling over side of tipsy, but-- "And he eats... cheese? That's more of a mouse thing, isn't it?" he winks at Chat, teasing. Then he gives Rory a complicit grin. "Maybe it's a little black mouse."
Rory Sakura	"Kami are sometimes indistinct," Rory says, not actually illuminating things at all. He leans back into his spot under the pagoda and pulls a long-necked stringed instrument from somewhere behind the table, and begins playing it quietly, some sort of atmospheric etherial music thing. It's necessary, though, because it reinforces this little pocket of reality which has been formed from illusion to be a pleasant refuge.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir laughs at Vorpal, relaxed now as he brings the ice cream up to slurp up. "Oh. He is exactly a cat. Lazy, eats all the ti- Hey! Not a mouse!" Chat retorts in a not really uoset sort of huff complete with hands to hips. "Sometimes, but mine really isn't." Chat says to Rory, the grin still warm and relaxed. The music is helping. "Im sure he'd love to be here... buy he cant. Not without dropping this..." Chsat says, motioning to his lithe frame to indicste the suit and the mask and al things Chat Noir. "Im not sure what rhe rules are heren but identities need to be hushhushn so sayeth the Bug."
Vorpal	"I. My good sir. Am not. Lazy." Vorpal says, and lays down on his side, to eat his ice cream. "Do you think bodies like these happen through lazyness? No, they most certainly do. not." The cat smirks, "So you can't reveal your identity to anyone? Even people you trust?" He looks over at Rory. "Kami. Kwami. What's the difference?"
Rory Sakura	"I could make an illusion for you to hide in, but I'd have to know what lies underneath, and I've been taking pains not to find out," Rory says to Chat Noir, continuing to play as the song requires attention, growing complex. It ends just as the water-clock says Ka-KLUNK. Rory waits to address the Cheshire's question at the end of the measure, retuning to begin a different composition. "Kami is a word in Japanese meaning a spirit which partakes of the divine. Kwami is a similar word but from another language, I think. The teaching song didn't include the difference in it -- my grandmother taught me magical lore, if I hadn't made that clear yet."
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir chuckles, eyes rolling as Vorpal l stetches out. "Especially not to them. Papillon is relentless in trying to collect the Miraculous Charms. Id someone I knew was targeted just to take it Im not sure Id forgive myself. And then having to keep them at armxs lwngth all the time?" Chat shakes his head sadly. "This is saf-" chat's words interrupted by Rory's offer. He really does consiser it but finally he shakes his head. "Merci beaucoup... but ...I dont want to put you at risk that way.." of the word kwami, Chst Noir refrains from commenting. he doesnt know.
Vorpal	"What about someone who can take care of himself?" the Cheshire cat says. "Unlike our host, I don't need to know what you look underneath to cast an illusion on you. Your Kwami can come out and our identity can remain safe..." he grins at Rory, "Because cats are /clearly/ the better illusionists, right?" he jokes at Rory, and snaps his fingers. The illusion takes almost instantly. Chat Noir isn't there anymore. In his place, there's ... well. Starfire. Because that is, Vorpa guesses, the furthest possible look from whatever Chat looks like out of the costume. The illusion moves and speaks with Chat Noir, completely obscuring his actual physical form. "It's good to be the cheshire cat," Vorpal says, and munches on the ice cream.
Rory Sakura	There's a bit of migraine starting in his left horn as the illusion creeps into his alternate reality, so Rory begins a light meditation. It won't make the //itch// go away but it can stop the //ouch// that would eventually form. Playing the music helps. Rory promises himself that he'll go to that soup dumpling place in Flushing and devour their entire supply, oh wait, he's got a teapot-hedgehog to deal with. Well. Maybe the soup dumplings can be for breakfast. Better to order them ahead, that way he'll get enough. He closes his eyes when Chat Noir turns into Starfire, a very distracting personage.
Adrien Agreste	Starfire, sitting where Chat Noir had been, starts. Her bright eyes look down at herself...and at the view and she squeaks. Cheeks turn a brighter red-orange than her usual skin tone and she yanks her gaze away from herself endoiments. "Ah! No. no thank you. Plagg can wait to eat the cheese later. You can put me back meow. please?"
Vorpal	"Trust issues. We're going to have to work on those," Vorpal says jokingly and dismisses the illusion. Then he readjusts himself to rest his head on Chat's lap and yawwwns, the effects of the alcohol still with him. "The ice cream is makin' me... sleepy..." Yeah, it was the ice cream, totally. "So... you also do the hero stuff?" he asks Rory, "You need a costume. You could be...." he grins, "El Diablo!"
Rory Sakura	Pling-pling pling pliinng pling-plingpling-pling ... "I have an alter-ego. I'm on file with the NYPD as 'Yokai' because of the previous excursions. And I don't have a single costume, that would be uncreative. This is just one of them." Rory pulls a fan out of his sleeve, unfurls it, and snaps it closed, revealing that he's no longer wearing the slightly blousy full-length poet-shirt and leather pants he'd been wearing before. Instead his upper body is uncovered, and yes, he's the same purple all over, which makes the orange, black, gold and yellow tiger "wrapped" around him stand out all the brighter. The tiger is also ... moving. Like, doing that "Maui" tattoo thing where it moves around and makes comments that you can't hear. Also, Rory's now wearing hakama -- a rather odd kind of pants peculiarly invented by the Japanese to go under kimono, and which seem to have been invented to allow the revelation of side-leg. At least, for someone who is built like the Oni.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir glances down again just to make sure he is back to a he, before sighing in relief. It's enough of a distraction that he doesnt notice Vorpal until his head is on his lap. Chat ehs with a blink, looking down at purple cat on his thighs. Which renders him not able really snark properly.
Vorpal	"You're all tiger-stripey now," Vorpal observes, chuckling. "We are all cat-themed now in one way or another. We'd make a fine superteam." He looks back up at Chat and seems to enjoy his disconcerted expression. He reaches over and taps a finger along his knee, seemingly curious about his suit. "What type of material /is/ this? I swear it was leather but you're not creaking like a fish in a rubber boot all over the place when you move. And it's so glossy shiny. I need something like that for my suit!"
Rory Sakura	"Oni are connected to the north, the Ox Tiger direction. Horns, because Ox, fangs and claws and such, because tiger. It's tradition that we wear a tiger stripe loincloth, but I prefer to have my own back-up available for when I need him," Rory says. "This is Sebastian." The tiger peers out of Rory's chest at the other two people, chuffing slightly (and silently) in greeting. Then the Oni continues playing the musical instrument. Some sort of lute maybe. Plingpling ...
Adrien Agreste	It wss moving, Chat thinks to himself, managing not to say that out loud becuase Adrien. He just nods faintly. A paw is set next to himself so he can recline a bit. "Magic" is all Chat Noir says of his suit because he doesnt know. Green eyes return to Rory and the tiger. "Nice to meet you Sabastian."
Vorpal	"That seems to be the regular explanation for... everything." He yawns and closes his eyes. It's comfortable here. If he weren't somewhat intoxicated, he would realize that he's basically using Chat Noir as a pillow at this point, and he might be embarrassed. Or not. But right now, he doesn't much mind. "So tired... dunno why. Must be the ice cream. You don't have any coffee around here? Not tea, but some good, strong coffee." He yawns.
Rory Sakura	Sebastian winks one eye at Chat Noir. A deliberate wink. Then he settles down into a dramatic pose, so his moving around will stop tickling the Oni. "Coffee? I can arrange for that," Rory says. He stands, putting the lute-thing into a stand behind the table, and quickly, he's entered the strange apartment. There are noises from within. "Just a moment! I have to grind the beans!"
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir smirks faintly at Vorpal, deciding that he's just going to let the kitten be for a bit. After all, the contact is pleasant now that he's not beingbso punny. Maybe thats why Bug shoves him away sonoften. Catfood foe thought. He just leans back on a hand andnsipz his wine in companionabke sikence, fornonce not needing tinpush to be up and moving.
Vorpal	The cheshire cat smiles and closes his eyes. He makes himself comfortable and rests out to pet Chat's hair, which is really an excuse to touch one of the ears, because he is curious- "These move. But they're not part of you. Can you actually /feel/ them if I tugged?" he doesn't tug. Because that's not cool. He looks over to Rory, "I never asked what it is you're doin' here all the way from your home. And you're apparently living in someone else's wall. Do they know about that? Heeeey.... you could sub-let mansions painted in walls. You could totally solve the urban crowing crisis!"
Rory Sakura	Coffee... grinding is kind of noisy, but the smells of fresh-ground come through the open door. Then there's some bubbling and hissing, then a moment later, Rory steps out of the door. He pauses to poke at the wall where the mural leading Out was somehow deactivated, and it synchs onto the alley, still boring. He's carrying a tall french coffee press, with blackish-brown liquid circulating in the glass cylindrical vessel while the mesh-pushdown is jauntily sitting at the top of its arc. There are, apparently, coffee mugs in the laquerware box of many holdings, along with sugar and cream for those who prefer their coffee to be hot ice cream. Then comes the interminable, slow pushing down of the press, not fast or it will spray out and coffee grounds will escape into the upper chamber.
Adrien Agreste	"Um.. yes," Chat replies as Vorpal reaches up for an ear. Said ear flips back to lay against his hair while Chat leans his upper body away. "Paws to self, Kitten," Chat states lightly but firmly. His eyes flit toward Rory and the ears perk up again. He knows what that press is, though he has never used one. Excitement dances in the black cat's eyes, for the thought that real french coffee may be available. And oh man is he off his diet right now! The sugar and cream call his name, and Chat licks his lips.
Vorpal	"That's so weird..." Vorpal mutters, and rolls off, reaching to consume more ice cream. "Fiiine, I'll just eat this. You don't have mango mochi, do you? Mango is th ebest. I love the taste of mango. I'd eat more mangos, 'cept after you're done you sort of have to *comb your teeth*."
Rory Sakura	The thing about living in a world of Pure Imagination, is that the food you create directly is Imaginary. Perfect (starvation) diet food! BUT, like imaginary numbers, if you use an illusion of a thing that creates real food, then ... it creates real food! Two negatives make a postive! Yay! And while Rory might not know what differentiates coffee of France from coffee of Italy or Japan, the Box of Coffee that creates real coffee, doesn't care -- it's using Chat Noir as the fulcrum for creating the stuff. So, the coffee is exactly like it would be if it were made in a small bakery in Paris. Once the press has been pressed, Rory pours the coffee for Chat Noir into the appropriate cup taken from the laquerware box, which is itself another thing that makes things. He reaches in, elbow deep (the box is only perhaps two or three inches tall) and pulls out a small carefully wrapped leaf of some sort, possibly banana, and inside it: a sphere three inches across of mochi-mango ice cream, but it may take a moment or two to thaw, as it's currently just above the freezing point of carbon dioxide. "Here you go. Let it thaw or you'll likely get brain freeze." The Oni takes a demitasse cup of the coffee for himself. Of course the creamer and sugar-lump vault are on the table next to the coffee press. From somewhere, someone is singing "Who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with Dew..." and Rory frowns and looks around for something to throw at the neighbors.
Adrien Agreste	Coffee is taken with care and thanks, and Chat shifts up right again now that Vorpal's off his lap. (Seriously! Why does that cat drape himself all over him all the time? Maybe he's just as lonely as I am? He did say he died, afterall... ) Green eyes flick toward purple cat briefly before Chat turns the coffee from the Dupain-Cheng bakery from rich and black to sweet and pale, more cream than coffee. He sips at the cup of memories, a soft half-purr drifting free as he smiles lightly.
Vorpal	Vorpal muses quietly to himself. Maybe he was barking up the wrong tree. "You need to have a brain to get a brain freeze," the cat quips, but he lets the ice cream heat up a little. Well, this was a little disappointing, he thought he saw some interest. But maybe it was filtered through the lens of teenage desperation. What a bummer. His ears droop for half a second, but then they perk up as he forces himself to push thoughts of himsef out of his skull. "So, Rory was it? You are a wonderful artist. Are you an artist slash crimefighter? What else is up your sleeves?"
Rory Sakura	Rory sips from the ridiculously tiny-in-scale demitasse and closes his eyes, silently saying several sutras to separate the streams of dreams. A chilly breeze blows from the north and the singing fades into the distance. When he opens his eyes the orange glow is a bit brighter. "Hmm? I'm not wearing sleeves," Rory says, flexing one arm. (It's true, he took off his shirt in an unnecessarily complicated way not ten minutes ago.) "Though to answer your question -- I'm still a student. I'm studying art locally. But in the meantime, I make a living from creating body art. The crime-fighting is more a side effect of the crime. I don't tolerate people being bullies very easily. I'm too easily provoked, I think. Also, I have giri to the lesser monsters of the city to protect them from persecution."
Adrien Agreste	"I suppose we cats need not worry about brain freeze," Chat quips, that lopsided grin returning to the fore. Clinging kitty is not clingy so Chat is a little more at ease. Plus, coffee. Dupain-Cheng coffee. Chat notices the droopy ears, his own following suit in sympathy before they perk right back up. "Mmhmm.I agree completely," Chat is saying of Vorpal's comment on Rory's artwork. "Body art?" he asks now of Rory.
Vorpal	"Oh, I'm a student, too," Vorpal says as he begins to eat the ice ceam without further comment on its temperature- "I study over at the university, general multimedia stuff and whatnot." That part isn't really that damning. There were easily a hundred or more students in his lecture, and several different classes for the same subject, who was going to try to find him? "I do the hero thing for the same reasons, and to also not think about... things, much."
Rory Sakura	"Like my friend Sebastian," Rory answers Chat Noir. "I create painless, permanent artwork, for a fee, or I can throw magic into it for those who wish it, and that is for a larger fee, and is less permanent." He tilts his head at "things" and says, "Things?" because that's not nosy at all. "I assume you don't mean the whole 'died and merged with a spirit of chaos' but more on the lines of 'my life is complicated and the Book of Face can't even begin to hold it'?"
Adrien Agreste	Vorpal's a student. Rory's a student. Chat looks between the two. "Me too. Business," is the reply. Because there are literally oodles of business students out there. "I like getting away from things too," he offers to Vorpal, voice softer now before he looks to Rory and smirks. "The second one, here."
Vorpal	"A little of column A, a little of column B," Vorpal answers, looking straight ahead at Rory. Perceptive Yokai is Perceptive. The Cheshire cat stands up, all of a sudden. "I've had a marvelous time visiting, but I already got derailed on my patrol and I should get back. I hope you don't mind if I visit? I'd like to see more of this... magical painting. Don't get up on my account," he says both to Rory and Chat, as he scoops up the mochi to carry out with him. Because mango. Seriously. "No need to interrupt your tea." He bows hurriedly and starts to make his way to... He stops. "... how do I get out, again?"
Rory Sakura	"This is mostly a place I hang out to receive visitors," Rory says. "It doesn't extend much past the garden. But the way out is back the way you came in -- I re-activated it when I was getting the coffee. Just don't put chaos at it. Step through it, like a television screen." Because everyone steps through television screens. It's even made it into a movie. A girl, a well, you may have heard of it.
Adrien Agreste	Chat Noir watches Vorpal go, the coffee lowering toward the table. His lips part at the sudden departure. It's so... weird, unsettling. It's something his used to happening to him as Adrien, not at Chat, and the blonde sits stunned, trying to figure out what he said. For a few minutes, at least. Plenty of time for the purple cat to make his escape. "I should go too," Chat says to Rory, the sigh nearly audible. "Thank you fur the coffee and the fish and the wine... and the Camembert," Chat says, collecting that parcel on his way to his feet. Giving a little half-wave, Chat turns, makes his way out of hte painting, and heads home. Plagg and he need to have a talk about 'HOW OLD ARE YOU?! STUPID CAT!'
Rory Sakura	And with unexpected suddenness, the sense of awkward has evaporated the Calm. Rory is left alone in the garden with his painted tiger and a bemused smirk. He starts tidying up. Even half-real gardens shouldn't be left messy after a party.