ooc: A bump, since this was kinda swallowed

ooc: While this may blend into the time of Eris's thread, now's a decent time to bump.

ooc: Third time's the charm?

OOC: You're not very lucky with this, are you?

ooc: It seems not. Doesn't help that the site is sleepy around this time.

ooc: Final bump?

*looks around at the tree* Wow...... So pretty....

The little girl twirls around to face Ina. "Isn't it? It's even bigger on the inside! Someone's playing the piano in there right now... maybe whoever lives here finally came out to the big room?"

*smiles at the little girl* Really!? Now I'm exited to check it out!

The little girl smiles back. The black humanoid places a hand on the doorknob and opens the wooden door. Music drifts out from inside. As the trio enter, they notice that the inside is much bigger than the tree appears to be. There are four floors to this circular interior, connected by a spiraling staircase. As the last note is played, the hourglass in a mahogany door nearby finally drains of sand, and it creaks open. Someone descends down the stairs from the second floor. Their flowy clothes and kitsune mask appear to be of traditional Japanese style. The parts of their body that can actually be seen are pure black.

*looks around in awe* Wow..... *notices the person* Hm?

"Huh? Who are you? You look really familiar..." The girl walks up to the kitsune-masked person. They stare at her for a moment, then head towards the newly-opened mahogany door without a sound. They pick up the hourglass and glance back at the group, as if waiting for them.

Huh. Let's follow them, I guess. *walks toward the kitsune-masked person*

The little girl nods, and grabs the black humanoid's hand. Kitsune Mask nods back and dashes into the shadows of the next room. The group has to run just to keep up. Inside is... a festival? Lanterns light up the night sky, and shadowy figures in traditional Japanese clothing chatter among the busy streets. A few booths are selling food, while others are selling various items. One in particular is selling masks. There is also a hooded figure at a table, who is shuffling a deck of cards.

*insert anime sparkly eyes here* Wow! So much Japanese culture!

"So, where should we go, Miss... uh..." The little girl tilts her head. "What's your name?"

*looks at the girl* Oh, my names ina. *gives a cute smile*

"Nice to meet you, Ina! I'm Alice, and this is Deemo!" She points to the black humanoid, who is staring at the strange crowd. "So, where should we go first? There's lots to do here!"

I don't know, everything here is so interesting!

"Hm... well, there's a bunch of strange people around... and food..." Alice twirls around, then plants a foot on the ground to stop herself. "There's masks and other stuff to buy, too!" Deemo points at the hooded figure in the distance. "Oh, right, nearly forgot about the card person."

Hmm..... Food! Let's go get some food!

"Yes~!" Alice grabs Deemo's hand, and the group runs over to a food stall. The shadowy person at the counter sets three bowls of ramen down. "'S free. Th' Dark Kitsune told me y'all were comin'." Their voice is slightly warped and rough. On their forehead is a white "3/4".

OOC: I really wanna fuck shit up here, but Nah.

Dark.... Kitsune? Whatever, free food! Thanks! *she eats up the ramen pretty quickly*

Deemo stares at the ramen bowl. The shadow person shakes their head. "Ah, right, you can't eat. Dark Kitsune has that problem, too." The shadow person picks up the bowl. Their head shifts into a lion-like one, and swallows the ramen with its massive jaws- bowl and all. Alice nearly spills her ramen in shock.

*almost falls over* What the heck!?

The shadow person spits out the empty bowl, then their head returns to normal. They toss the bowl into a pile of dirty dishes and return to making more ramen. Alice quickly finishes the rest of her food, giving the vendor nervous glances.

That was weird..... *is already finished with her food*

"L-let's go elsewhere... Maybe get something other than food... Where to next?" Alice stays by Deemo's side, gripping his hand tightly.

Let's check out those booths selling stuff, I guess.

Alice nods, and starts heading towards the other side of the street. The shadow people at the booths are buying and selling cloth, musical instruments, strange charms, and masks. Alice points at one mask in particular. "Hey, that looks just like the one the masked lady back home wore!"

ooc: bumping now that Bona is alive