Epilogue

[lesmodsalouette]

EPILOGUE

Your stopped time has restarted. Whether you were in the grassy field or fighting for your life on the castle grounds, you'll suddenly find yourself in an untouched area of the gardens. Ish is back, and so are the items, and the dead.

You return to Chateau Ambregris with the certain knowledge that come Monday, you will greet a new week, in a home of your own choosing. No longer will the chime of the clocks hunt you down, no longer will the oppressive scent of roses haunt your senses, no longer will you be forced to watch the death of those you've come to love and hate.

Parting is such a bittersweet sorrow, isn't it?

Make merry one last time, in this castle of illusions. Ironically, your memories of this stolen time that never existed are the one thing that will truly remain to you.

END NOTES

🔮 All dead are revived as tsukumogami! Congrats on your immortality(?)
🔮 Any other contracts made with Ish will be honored
🔮 Characters may choose to leave for any world they desire.
🔮 Time has not passed while you were stuck in this loop!
🔮 There will be no cross-dimensional world travel, except for on Samhain (Witches New Year October 31st/November 1st). On these dates, Ish will enable everyone to visit each other's world freely.
🔮 Universal Communication will be possible, courtesy of Manba and Ish. Everyone who wants one will be given a small fox that can communicate with other foxes through voice and video; the foxes can talk and are fairly simple creatures, enjoy them and give them fried tofu once in a while.
🔮 Powers are on for the finale, but Ish will step in and yeet anyone who gets too out of hand back to their homeworld, so play nice! (or relatively nice. )

[OOC: Welcome to your epilogue! The timeloop is ended, the evil has been defeated, and you have some time to catch your breath in the castle before the rest of your life begins! ]

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garden

[safetycheck]

[ There's something overwhelming about seeing G'raha, alive and very much here, walking around and talking to everyone in the way he is. It's so like him to bounce back from something so awful like this. It's...

...

She holds his necklace in her hands and looks at it. Slowly, she approaches. ]

Um...this is yours.

[allrounder]

Lili. There you are.

[ His smile brightens a she reaches out to take the necklace. ]

Thank you. I need this now, so I am glad you sought me out to return it.

[safetycheck]

Yeah.

[ She hands it over with ease, but falls quiet. There's a lot she's feeling right now but not a whole lot of words forming.

Sorry, G'raha. She's gonna just be awkward and quiet for a moment. ]

[allrounder]

[ He takes a moment to put it back on, just so that it's safe and secure on his person. It'll probably be better to keep it somewhere else after this, but... ]

Thank you, Lili. For your efforts.

[ If she thought she could escape a hug, she was wrong. ]

[safetycheck]

[ Aaaaand surprising no one, he's opened the flood gates. This hug is unbelievably tight on her end and she is not going to be letting go so quickly! ]

I...I didn't do anything. You did so much for us. I couldn't even...

[allrounder]

[ She squeezes some of the air out of him, but it's fine. He doesn't mind, especially not right now as he returns the embrace. ]

You fought well, Lili. You did your best to maintain everyone's spirits.

[safetycheck]

[ She is so weak to praise and there's no shortage of validation for her in his words. Still, she feels like it's greedy of her to accept it after everything that's happened. ]

When I saw you -- I wished...I could have done something for you... [ hic ] But here you are, still extending your hand to people after everything. It didn't remove your kindness. ... How are you able to smile now?

[allrounder]

[ It's obvious he didn't expect that question, because he pauses, breath caught on his words. ]

That... is a question you must find within yourself. My answer may not be satisfying to you, or it may not be the sort of answer that would answer what you seek.

[ He doesn't mean to give her a non-answer, though.

Bad habit. ]

The world is better for kindness, wouldn't you agree?

[safetycheck]

Of course it is.

[ ... ]

Angelo called me naive during your trial, you know. That or...a narcissist. I don't really care, he's annoying. It's just -- it made me realize that people like him exist. People who hate others so deeply and see no kindness in the world. It makes me wonder what kind of life those people have lead to view the world and the people in it with so much disgust.

[ Hm. ]

Yona, my friend, the one I tried to protect before I was brought here. She would have at least tried to understand, I think...and perhaps my father would have given him a more empathetic ear that I don't think people like Angelo would've wanted in the first place. But I've come to learn through my time here that I'm not them, and I can stand on my own two feet apart from them, too.

[ She hadn't really thought about this very deeply until now, forgive her rambling. ]

And...you're alive. That definitely counts for something.

[allrounder]

[ Normally he would simply agree with her and praise her for sticking things through and keeping hold of her ideals.

But...

But.

He owes her his own thoughts. It's a shame he's held them back so often. ]

Those who endure hardships throughout their life can often see it through a lens that has become muddied and broken. They have been taught to suspect and blame and expect the worst of others through their own experiences. Sometimes... there is nothing you can do but allow them to feel the way that they do.

[ Briefly, he thinks of Fandaniel, wanting nothing more than for the world to end just because he hates it so much. ]

That is to say... you are right, Lili. You are not them and you are able to stand on your own, head held high. But may I ask you for a favor?

[ He smiles, soft and fond, before continuing without her permission. ]

Reach your hand out to those who have given into despair, even if nothing should come of your efforts. Tales and acts of kindness and cooperation can pull hearts away from the emptiness of a cruel life, and the possibility that you may be able to accomplish that is worth the trial and error you may face. Shining light on the right heart could lead to the twinkling of stars in the night sky after they have long since faded.