World Tree MUSH

It looks like there's going to be a concert! It's an offworld idol duo -- Shiroko Kanpeki and Kuroko Kanpeki, two beautiful idol girls claiming to hail from a 'Super Magical Tokyo' somewhere out there on the World Tree. One of Tokyo's concert halls is going to be the scene of this impromptu concert, and the area of the city around it has been covered with fliers depicting the two girls in idol fashion.

Shiroko is depicted on this material as a dark-skinned girl with bouncy, curly, platinum blonde hair; Kuroko is depicted as a pale-skinned girl with straight ebony hair. As one might guess, the bouncy-curled one is shown as smiling big and bright, while the girl with straight hair is depicted as more stately and mature-seeming.

According to the fliers, the concert is FREE to all who have a special pin... which are being given out by several stations around the concert hall. "Get 'em while they're hot!" cry the hawkers. "Once we run out, they're gone for good!"

The pin is a cute little teddy bear, though not a normal one. Its colors seem bisected down the middle, white on one side and black on the other. The white side has a grin like Shiroko's big, broad one; the black side has a more composed, stately smile like Kuroko's. And in the belly of the teddy bear is a round red gem.

A little something for the particularly astute -- they say they're running low on the pins... but every stand seems to have plenty of them. Whenever they do run low, more just seem to appear, without anyone seen bringing more...

    "Hey, look, Usagi, a concert! We should go!"
    And just like that, Usagi Tsukino is being dragged along by her best friend Naru Osaka.
    "Whuh huh? Concert?" Usagi blurts, blinking rapidly as she's pulled along. "I've never heard of these two." The twin-tailed blonde muses, lips pursing thoughtfully as the pair arrive at the concert hall.
    Next thing she knows, Naru is affixing a pin to her blouse.
    "It's so we can get in! Apparently you need one to see the show." Naru points out while Usagi blinks down at the pin now stuck to her shirt.
    "Huhhhhh..."
    Too bad Usagi isn't all that keen on the uptake, she hardly notices the pins getting ~mysteriously~ replenished when needed.

    Lex can't usually stand noise, crowds, or noisy crowds. However, Shard got curious, and she has recklessly decided to go along with it, preferably near the back. Lightshard 18 is of course dematerialized in her prosthetic left arm, which in turn is currently flesh-tone.

    She absentmindedly takes a pin and carefully puts it on, strolling aimlessly towards the concert hall. "I mean, free is free, right?" she says, once again holding up her wrist as if talking into an unseen communicator-wristwatch or whatever.

    "Indeed," says Shard's voice.

    As she reaches the entrance to the concert hall, however, Shard's voice suddenly says in her ear, 'Hang on a second ... I think I just detected the pins getting replenished by magic.'

    Lex pauses, and carefully watches one of the stands. Sure enough, in the space of a couple of minutes, Shard detects it more directly. ex snorts, and strides into the concert hall, the pin on her shirt. "Freaking advertising gimmicks ..."

Anybody with a pin -- that includes Usagi, Naru, and Lex -- are easily let into the concert hall. And it's practically standing room only! They're really packing the people in there. It's a wonder JISHA doesn't get in here and shut this down!

Once everyone's about as seated as this packed house allows, the lights go low. Music starts somewhere, and the girls make their appearance! Shiroko seems to be being lowered down by some kind of elevator, and Kuroko rises from under the stage -- with no door there; she just seems to phase through the stage floor itself.

Naturally there's magic involved in both of these appearances, and if Shard's paying attention, that can easily be picked up. And the pins are magical too, though whatever's in them is dormant for now.

Either way, as the girls make their appearance onstage, the crowd cheers! "Heeeeeey~!" Shiroko chirps happily. "We're happy to--"

"--Welcome you to our first appearance," Kuroko finishes, in her lower and more mature-sounding voice. "We hope you'll all--"

"--Enjoy the show! So sit back--"

"--And let your cares fade away~."

    The pins being magical sails clean over Usagi's head!
    Which probably isn't good in the long run, but for the time being, the blonde and her best friend can simply do their best to just try and stay together in the packed hall.
    "Wow, geeze, there sure are a lot of people. Are you sure this was a good idea, Naru?"
    "Oh c'mon Usagi, it'll be fun, let's just wait until the show starts and see how it goes."
    "Mmmmmm if you say so."
    It's a little too packed even for Uaagi's taste!
    Meanwhile, outside the concert hall, sneaking in through a vent as inconspicuous as can be is a small black cat.
    It's when the light dim and music begins that Naru gives Usagi a good shake to pull her attention to the stage.
    It's... Certainly odd how one just comes up through the floor like that, but it can't be anything bad, right?
    Right?

    Meanwhile, the magical nature of the singers doesn't actually register to Lex and Shard as anything out of the ordinary; magic is commonplace where she's from, and they did advertise themselves as being from a magical Tokyo. For all Lex knows, they're from her Tokyo, and they're exploiting some sort of Atlantean magic. Just like Lex is doing every time she manifests her left arm and leg.

    The main reason this doesn't register is because the crowd is now weighing heavily on her. "I ... kinda ... think this is, uh, this might have been a bad idea, and stuff," she says into her robotic wrist. Slowly, her free hand goes up to remove the teddy-bear pin. "I did say I'm not a crowd person, kind of thing ..."

A free concert? Pop idols really aren't his thing, but Chrollo Lucilfer is nothing if not a curious man. Also he's heard some interesting rumors about the world that, to him, speak of the work of fellow Nen users. And so here he is, investigating these 'magical' singers. 

He's met a music-based nen user. Several, in fact. They're typically manipulators and the head of the spider just relishes those kinds of abilities. Dressed in slacks, a dress shirt, and that leather coat with an upside down cross, he isn't even hiding how weird-yet-handsome he tends to come off as. 

Oh, and there's one of those pins on him, being turned around in his digits. He has most definitely tried to steal a few of those into his coat pockets. Given the rate they're reappearing and the detached nature of the attendants? 

"So that's what this world calls magic, hmm?" Ponders Chrollo quietly, just loudly enough for those nearby him to hear. 

His eyes see to flit from the pin he's examining, to Kuroko in particular given how she quite literally phased into the place. 

A shudder runs through him. He wills himself to be calm. 

Just in case matters are as he suspects.

The girls' first song starts, oddly enough, with mechanical sounds and... animal noises? Dogs barking, crickets chirping, bird calls, elephants roaring... and those mechanical sounds again. Aha, THEN there's music, and the girls begin to dance. It's the same steps, but one's doing them in reverse.

"A life started not for our own sake,
Stabilized by everyone's MAYDAYs
An unexpectedly peaceful JUNGLE;
When taken from a good ANGLE, that is..."

"Courting only for the sake of that
Is exposed as disgraceful
On this clear blue globe there goes another MAYDAY
I'm kindly checking it out..."

And then it starts to happen...! Lex removing her pin might have been wise. The enchantment in the pins comes alive, and the red gems in the teddy bears' bellies start to glow. In short order people start looking tired, slouching in their seats, eyes fluttering as they struggle to stay awake...

    The music starts! It's an odd start but it's a start and leads into a pretty catchy tune.
    The problem is when people begin to tip over from exhaustion.
    Usagi and Naru can't help but yaaaawn as the pins light up and people around them begin to slouch.
    "Hey this is..."
    It dawns on Usagi too late as her eyes begin to droop.
    This is when a streak of black darts along the floor, flitting between people's legs and feet, hopping up to-- pluck the pin from Usagi's shirt.
    "Usagi, it's a youma!" Luna says.
    "WHAT?" Usagi shouts over the music.
    "I said it's a youma! You know what you have to do!"
    "LUNA I CAN'T HEAR YOU."
    SIGH.
    "OW you didn't have to scratch me!" Usagi bleats as the black cat gives her the claws.
    It's a good thing Naru is already passing out or Usagi would have a hell of a time explaining a talking cat.
    "I-I ... I'm gonna go to the bathroom, kay? Bye, Naru see you later!"
    Oh look there she goes.
    To the bathroom, right.

    Lex winces at the noise of the music and the crowd, and she starts inching her way towards the exit. But as that glow begins and people begin to droop, she pauses, frowns, and stares at the pin she already moved a second ago. "... you gotta be kidding me," she says, putting her hand over her ear.

    "It's definitely from Sailor Moon's world," says Shard's voice from her hand. "That, or something from another world with an identical signature."

    Lex sighs theatrically, and bolts from the concert hall.

    A moment later, a mint-green cyberpunk magical girl with a five-foot-long high-tech sword strolls towards the concert hall, brushing aside anyone who might try to stop her. As she enters, she starts doing slow, sarcastic claps. Probably not loud enough to be heard over the crowd, but it should be enough to grab these guys' attention. Otherwise, this will just be awkward.

Of all the possible effects, putting people to sleep? Not /exactly/ what Chrollo was pondering might happen. He feels that tug on his Nen, eyes the pin he has in his hands even as an all-nighter type yawn threatens to spill from his mouth. The ones in his pocket are turned out (luckily /not/ the pocket with his knife in it). 

Quickly gathering a bit of nen around himself defensively...well, it's Chrollo. He has a tiny sharp object, magical though it may be. That he has to get rid of on the quickness. He quickly blends into the crowd, trying to mimick stumbling and looking energy drained. When he thinks no one's paying attention? 

FLICK! The nen-enhanced strength of the thief hucks the pointy end of that beautiful pin aimed straight for the foot of his would-be victim, Kuroko. Maybe a stabbing pain will disrupt this 'ability'!? And would the singers be adept enough to notice? 

Even as he continues to play possum, Chrollo's attention is rapt, trying to take it all in, the man slumping against a seat intentionally. The appearance of one Shinewander once more, though, certainly gets his attention! 

A distraction he can use, perhaps!

The staggering and drooping people can't see Shiroko's mad grin... and the smug smirk just looks perfectly at home on Kuroko's face...

Of course, then that clapping. Shiroko looks up, shocked. "HEY! You're supposed to be getting squeezed like a lemon, like everyone else!" she protests, in childish anger.

And then suddenly Kuroko yelps, holding her foot and hopping a little! "OW! Why you little... who threw that?!" she screeches angrily. It'll take her a moment to pull the pin from her foot.

Shiroko growls. "Okay then! Looks like we're gonna have to yank out your energy the FUN way! C'mon, sis!"

Kuroko sighs. "I'd hoped not to have to bother with this, but... fine," she agrees.

And with that... the girls change!

Shiroko becomes white-skinned -- literally WHITE, like paper, not just pale -- with black armor and a round black helmet with two white horns poking out the sides.

Kuroko becomes black-skinned -- again, literally BLACK, like ink, not just dark -- with white armor and a round white helmet with a single black horn sticking out the front.

Both have mismatched eyes -- yellow and green -- with Kuroko having a yellow right eye and Shiroko having a yellow left eye.

    Boy it sure is a good thing Usagi ran to the bathroom. It's the perfect cover for what she's really going to do in there.
    "Oh god, oh god ohgodohgodohgod."
    And that is... Panic like a hyperventilating teen in a bathroom stall, tugging at her own hair. "It's another youma attack and there are two of them what am I supposed to do I can barely take on one on my own!"
    "Usagi..."
    They're gonna dance circles around me, I won't be able to keep the beat."
    "Usagi!"
    "Then they'll do this- and that- and some of that and some more of this--"
    "USAGI! TRANSFORM INTO SAILOR MOON ALREADY!"
    "W-weh... You didn't have to yell, Luna...

    Moon Prism Power... MAKE UP!"

    One flash of light, one magical girl transformation later, and Sailor Moon is making her way backstage as sneaky as a trainwreck, as she makes her way up into the rafters and...
    The lights all flick upwards.
    "Oh no you don't!" Sailor Moon calls out.
    "How dare you use an idol's charisma for your evil ways? In the name of the moon..."
    HERE IT COMES.
    She strikes a *~pose~*.
    "I'll punish you!" Declared before...
    The rafters give out under her weight with a creak.
    "WAH!"
    Annnnnnnd she lands on her butt on the stage.

    Shinewander Sky chuckles, nodding in greeting to Chrollo. "Honestly, I can't complain about the music, I'll give you that much," she calls over to the singers. "Not that I, like, I mean, I didn't have a chance to try the, the burgers." (Dante, she ain't.)

    She draws the sword from her back, and points it at the duo with one hand. "Who are you guys working for, anyway?" she asks casually. "Or are you just a bunch of independent weirdos draining energy for no particular reason?"

    She pauses as Sailor Moon makes her entrance. And ... comes crashing down. "Oh jeez," she mutters under her breath.

    'We need to help get her some combat training,' says Shard's voice in her ear, inaudible to all.

    Sky shakes her head. "Well, I'm perfectly capable of being backup for Sailor Moon," she says theatrically, holding her sword at the ready. She decides that she needs some sort of catchphrase, too. "Commencing ... purification!"

Chrollo was fascinated by /one/ of the two idols before. As they transform bodily into armored forms despite the energy-sucking pins? 

Now the man is just /hungry/ for what they have. 

The man's possum strategy might just break for a second if one is particularly astute. Sleepy (or just weirdly dull in emotions) eyes widen a fraction at the transformation. Surely it's just a civvie that fell from being drained. Nevermind there's all this juicy energy inside. 

Mind racing about the contradictions, and unable to immediately place a third party responsible? Well it's best to not overthink. Nen has rules. Who knows what Conditions those two girls put on themselves to do this. Heck, maybe the pins are a conjuror's work that didn't bother to stick around. 

Shinewander is at least a vaguely known quantity. As in, he's seen the magical girl and gotten what he considers a surface read on how she does in a fight. She gets the slightest of smirks, but otherwise he's staying down. 

Sailor Moon makes her entrance, complete with a speech, lights, and a dramatic ~POSE~! 

How she managed to get up there, unnoticed, despite the utterly uncriminal lack of stealth is painful to the thief. The way she is just so /dramatic/ and /loud/ about the whole thing puts him into the mind of a much younger (and far less gargantuan) Uvogin. It's almost enough to bring a tear to the hard-hearted man's eye. What's this feeling? 

Nostalgia of a twisted sort. That is until she literally falls as the rafters /break/. 

His possum game is becoming very hard to maintain. The calm aura he's been intentionally emitting is turning a little more purple. Not with bloodlust, no. 

Chrollo's energy, if the two youma get a whiff, is actively starting to taste like embarrassment on Sailor Moon's behalf. 

One hand is in his pocket though, curved knife at the ready. He'll leave the speeches to others. Slumping spider hidden shiv time.

Sailor Moon's appearance draws the attention of both youma. "Oh it's that girl!" Shiroko points out!

Kuroko frowns. "Hm... more interference. This one is from our world. We'll just have to deal with you too."

...And then Usagi falls to the stage.

Shiroko, the louder of the two, immediately starts to laugh. And it's a full belly laugh, one armored hand over her waist and the other on her head. "WAHAHAHAHA! How do you expect to KNOCK 'EM DEAD when you can't even get your entrance right?!"

Kuroko responds to Shinewander Sky. "Do you think we would give the name of our Great Leader to someone like you?" she sneers. "You aren't fit to say her name!" Whoo, this one has a bad case of snooty!

Fortunately for Chrollo, the youma don't seem to be able to literally 'taste' the energy. Besides that, once he's turned out his pins and doesn't have any in his possession anymore, the energy drain would have stopped. And what they did get just isn't enough for them to 'taste' him. So all his secrets are safe.

Besides that, Shiroko and Kuroko are concerned with Sailor Moon and Shinewander Sky, respectively. The concert hall is pretty big, they're not likely to be able to notice Chrollo with all this going on.

But what the youma girls can do... is attack. Which they do.

Shiroko lets out a high-pitched roar that blows out electronics near her with its sheer aggressiveness, sending visible rings of black energy at Sailor Moon!

Kuroko draws herself up proudly, placing a hand on her chest, and sings a clear, pure note in her deeper voice that ripples in the air around her. It sends white motes of light flying at Shinewander.

On the bright side, this means Chrollo's left unmolested for now... so he can spring an attack pretty much whenever he would like.

    Not as planned.
    NOT AS PLANNED.
    "Ow ow ow ow owwww..." Sailor Moon whines, rubbing her backside as she tries to regain her shattered composure and rally. It's not happening fast enough though as she looks up and...
    Oh. Oh the youma are attacking now. She sure could use Shinwander's backup that's for certain as the black rings of Shiroko's sonic attack come right at her.
    "Wah!" USagi blurts as she scrambles left-- scrambles right-- spends a beat right where she started and panics, then rolls over onto hands and knees and starts trying to crawl away!
    "Ohgodohgodohgodohgod not again not again not again NOT AGAIN!" She squeals, voice growing higher in pitch and volume, the gems in her hair glowing as her voice hits peak and...
    It's like a sonic boom hits the room.
    If there's any glass nearby? It shatters. Nuts and bolts rattle in the stage and rafters above, the speakers blow out again, while Usagi screams and flails.

    Shinewander Sky does a combat-maneuver which, at this point, is pretty standard for her when she's outdoors or in an open space like a concert hall. That is, she does a ten-foot vertical leap over Kuroko's oncoming motes of light, and swings her sword a few times, launching out sword-beams at the singer as she glides through the air, drifting downward at a steady but slow rate ...

    Right before Shiroko and Sailor Moon each unleash loud sonic noises in succession, and Sky falls out of the air and comes crashing to the floor.

    She jumps back up. "Do the two of you need a bigger auditorium?" she says, a note of amusement in her voice which sounds a lot like Shard.

The Spider's ears are ringing painfully when Shiroko's high-pitched attack is hauled off at Shinewander, only made worse by the sound of Kuroko's for Usagi. They're distracted. /Perfect/. And so Chrollo plays the part of jumping spider prepared for the ambush. 

Or at least that's the plan. The problem with the kind cooked up in the moment? Well, they're prone to interruptions from unknown quantities. Chaos, thy name is Sailor Moon! 

Biting down a curse, one of Chrollo's ears literally bleed as the world goes spinning for a second. It takes him a moment to realize the source: bravely retreating on her hands and knees Sailor Moon. He'd be impressed by the sheer power in that sonic blast if he wasn't nursing the splash damage from it. Instead the trio of sound-based beings in the room are very quickly off of his christmas card list. 

As soon as his balance isn't aurally dead, the man is up in a stealthy flash as he quite literally dissappears in a burst of silent speed. He's aiming to sneak right up behind Kuroko. Knife in hand, he'll try to jam the tip right towards her mouth from behind, tip trying to find tongue. 

"I...am starting to lose patience with the singing in this concert hall. So, Miss, answer my questions quickly while I can hear the answers, please." Whispers the man to Kuroko. 

He doesn't bother trying to hide his physical pain, letting it flow into his nen along with a very, very good dose of the cold, detached kind of killing intent a good assassin would have. His aura flares, no longer hiding himself. 

Sailor Moon might be too far away for him to throw nen shade, but the glare should be enough to get the idea across. He finds himself agreeing with Shinewander.

Fortunately for Usagi, the sound waves from Shiroko's attack are canceled out by the sonic boom caused by Usagi's sonic crying. Furthermore, the high-pitched squeal prompts Shiroko to place her hands over the horns on her helmet! "GAAAAAAH SHUT UUUUUUUP!" she whines loudly, this time NOT dangerously. She does seem to be incapacitated, however briefly that might be.

Kuroko might not have expected Shinewander Sky to react in precisely the way she did, as the sight of the sword-beams coming at her interrupts her song with a surprised hitch of her voice. She's barely able to get her arms up in time so the beams hit her arms instead of her face.

But make no mistake, it's obvious that hurt, since there's a yelp as she's pushed back by Shinewander's beams. Pushed back right into Chrollo's waiting arms!

Kuroko shrieks loudly -- hey here's some more trauma for Chrollo's poor ears! -- as that knife essentially pins her tongue to the inside of her mouth. Thankfully he doesn't seem to actually be trying to stab her in the mouth (as that would make it very hard for her to answer his question!

But Kuroko does seem to have the smarts enough not to move. And besides, she's a toady, as most youma are... so Chrollo's aura is working a number on her snooty attitude! "Y-you..." she manages, in a small voice. And she asks a question of her own. "You're... no human... are you... even a mortal...?" Though she seems much more willing to listen now. One might even call it cowed!

    Oops. Didn't mean to make Shinewander Sky crash like that.
    Usagi rubs at the back of her neck awkwardly as the other magical girl gets back to her feet, looking apologetic as she stands up, herself.
    It takes her a second to rally, but Sailor Moon steels herself with a breath.
    And nearly loses her composure again entirely at the sight of Chrollo's glare.
    Wow look how fast she scoots behind Shinewander Sky.
    "Eheh... Heh...
    This is when her cat reminds her that she's still in the middle of an active battlefield:
    "Sailor Moon, now's your chance, use your tiara!"
    "My ti- oh right! Right... It's been a while... aheh heh~."
    It has been a while since she's used it but that doesn't stop her from plucking the tiara from her forehead, twirling it on a finger until it becomes a bright beacon of golden, swirling light.

    "Mooooon... Tiara...!"

    She declares, hurling the spinning frisbee of golden light and magic right at Shiroko!

    "...Boomerang!"

>> GAME >> Usagi Tsukino spends an Edge for: Moon Tiara Boomerang!

    Shinewander Sky's mask isn't just for the aesthetic (or to hide her identity): it also has a tactical display. And the energy-reading she's getting exuding from Chrollo causes her to pause, and frown.

    But Sailor Moon is also worth paying attention to. She pats the younger mahou's shoulder when she goes to hide behind her, and takes a step back to give her some space to use her attack. "You can do it, Sailor Moon!" she says, trying to be a little more encouraging than the cat.

Having the youma by the tongue is gratifying, both for the pleasure of exerting power over another, as well as the vantage point it gives him! He gets to see two 'magical girls' in action! Shinewander's competence, and even her ability to try to keep up morale are jotted down in his memory. She wouldn't make the Troupe, as far as he can tell. She's too innocent. But someone to watch, surely. Those types can drive others to dangerous heights. 

But it's the seemingly incomptent Sailor Moon that gets his attention truly, as she plucks that tiara, and hurls the thing right at Shiroko. An ability like that, on the face, wouldn't be shocking to Chrollo. Already he's pinning a combination of Emission and Conjuration in his little inner notebook of Abilities (not that one!). 

His eyes hurt to look at it, so used is he to being in darkness. The feeling about that tiara, with it's cleansing supernatural nature, is nothing like any Hatsu he's seen before. Sure, people come up with extremely specific abilities. 

The energy from that blinding tiara almost feels like a ray of light from a higher power. Judas may not be a traitor to him, but he's at least contemplated the existance of the divine. 

His eyes widen. That shrieking Kuroko, with her questions about his humanity, get his attention again. Whatever fascination he had is now gone. There's a much, much more enticing transforming lady in this auditorium now. 

"Like a falling star, entropy and the divine all in one." Mutters the man. 

Oh, right! The question registers, and slowly he begins to chuckle. He sounds amused. 

"You didn't answer my question." 

He smirks, even as greedy eyes take in Sailor Moon, etching not only her movements in using the Tiara, but every detail he can muster. 

Dull eyes fill with greed. He flicks his hand lightly, already razor-sharp knife coated with nen. Slash once, as he tries to etch a permanent smile. A second across the throat, all in one motion. Then he casually whispers an answer. 

"The Spider." 

Knife put away, he starts to casually walk to the exit, purposefully past a certain duo of magical girls. His gaze peers to the disguised Usagi. 

"...Where did you learn that, Miss Hero?" A pause, voice curious.

Shiroko is only just recovering from Sailor Moon's sonic crying, shaking her head as though clearing it. "Aaaugh, you little braaaaaat!" she starts.

But then the magical light frisbee comes zooming in, targetting her center! And with a loud screech that rings through the area, Shiroko erupts into what looks like glowing glittery particles!

Kuroko's not given time to even react to her sister's demise! Her treatment at Chrollo's hands leaves her in little better position. Though it's not as bloody as Chrollo might have expected (or perhaps wished?). What flies from the wounds left are more of those same sparkles that Shiroko's form dispersed into. And as her knees hit the ground, strength abruptly leaving her frame, she too disappears into that sparkling glittery stuff.

    In a swirl of golden light the tiara veers back through the air, hooking around to make a return trip back towards the warrior of love and justice, and Sailor Moon catches it deftly before re-setting it upon her forehead with a huff.
    Seeing Shiroko explode into dust is standard fare for a youma, but Sailor Moon can't help but bring both hands up to cover her mouth as Chrollo slashes Kuroko's throat in a far more vicious display, even if there is a lack of blood, she looks on in horror as he goes through with it. And then turns his attention on her.
    "U-uh..."
    Where did she learn that?
    "U-UH!"
    Oh god she better answer and fast.
    Usagi...
    Holds up Luna.
    "Rreow?!" Luna mews confusedly.
    "I learned it from my cat!"
    "HEY DON'T THROW ME UNDER A BUS!" Luna shouts.
    "OH hey look at the time! TIME TO GO BYE!"
    Wow that girl sure can bail a scene fast when motivated.

    <<Okay, this guy?>> Lex says telepathically to Shard. <<Dangerous.>>

    'Not like that's news, given the way he handled the zombies,' says Shard's voice in her ear, inaudible to all. 'But yeah. That was merely gruesome. This is ... yeahhhhhh.'

    Shinewander Sky watches Sailor Moon go. "I think I'm gonna wander off, myself," she says. (It's Shard talking at the moment.) "You might want to make yourself scarce before the press shows up with any ... pointed questions." She dramatically flips her hair. "I guess I'll be seeing you around, Mr. Crow." She starts to walk away, her back turned to him, but marking him out with a bright red label on her mask's tactical readout.

    'Now,' Shard adds, 'I guess that leaves the question of whether those monsters' memory-magic also affects the people of this world, or if it's something endemic to people of Sailor Moon's world, like Yumi's peoples' propensity for turning into their variety of youma.'

    <<... That's a good question,>> Lex replies uneasily.

The terrified girl is not new to Chrollo Lucilfer. Intimidation is a very useful skill for someone in his line of work. He has zero qualms about using brute force to get what he wants, and that's exactly what he's doing right now. 

What /is/ new is this particular answer. There is a cat being held up to him. No matter how objectively awful and broken a human being he might happen to be, he likes cats. They are warm, snuggly, and also capable of cold, detached viciousness when hunting stealthily. 

Consider his attempts at stealing from Sailor Moon neatly derailed. 

"I hope you don't have to put up with that kind of treatment often." He offers to Luna, with a dead tone that has something adjacent to pity in it. 

Inside his pocket, he pats Skill Hunter. Chrollo isn't sure if that answer qualifies. Best to not go against the spirit of the Rules. It matters more than the letter at times. 

Shinewander gets a smile that...while not /nice/, at least isn't murderous. "You're right. I don't do well in the spotlight. Good evening, Miss Shinewander." Offers Chrollo politely. 

The thief dallies long enough to admire the running speed of a rabbit. It's then that he blinks. 

"...Did the cat talk?" he wonders aloud as he slips backstage, then out an alleyway into darkness.