The Hannya Mask

[warandpeace]

Who: Event Post | Open
When: Dec. 5th - 15th
Where: Around Avagi
What: A demon is haunting the station, spurred on by emotional responses. More information can be found here.
Warnings: Violence, possible death, body horror, etc.

THE HAUNTING

The onryō starts making her first patrols in the early morning when most people are comfortably asleep and not wanting to wake up. The sense of unease she creates is palpable, and initially she just looks at who is around. She chooses in the dark who she should be angry with, who is a foolish idiot for making her mistakes and who is an ignorant soul who ignored the anguish of someone else's attention. Everyone else is unimportant.

Occasionally, rarely though, she'll stop and look at something. Usually carved or drawn or molded, something someone used their hands to create. The very faintest of scraps of who she used to be, though that's barely significant. There's not enough left of that self to deter her from stopping more of the foolishness that damned her.

The Noh mask appears the same day, the same time as her first investigations get underway, and there it remains, conveniently close to where the Ingress once was.

The mask will always return to this original state the moment it's not being observed. It'll be returned to its resting place. If it's been destroyed or altered or damaged in any way, it'll be back to the state that it was when previously examined (even permanent marker would disappear).

It's made of cypress wood and is covered in layers of chalk paint and a glue-like sealant. On the back is a raised signature, indicating that it was handmade by an artisan. On closer examination (like swabbing or enhanced senses or super scanner) there's a bit of smoke damage, but otherwise it's not been worn many times. The straps attached are hardly frayed at all. However it's aged, it's not from scuffing or rough handling.

There might not be much time to notice or to bother with it, though. Not when people are being hunted in the shadows, when quick hands reach out from cabinets or a hunched form hangs upside down from underneath a table, waiting for someone to sit down too close to her.

Comments

[stantheman]

[ Stan lets her do the cleaning, biting his lip as he studies her and he doesn't know why he feels so nervous. Well, he's never had a girl in his living space before and this is new. But there's more than that, he knows. He's glad that as she wipes away all the blood that there's no wounds underneath that were hidden.

She really had healed. ]

You'll be better than them then.

[ He pauses a moment. ]

Are you hungry or anything?

[coercive]

[She has to really think about that. Her head tips to the side as she wills herself to remember the last time she ate. Eventually, she nods, and finishes up cleaning off her hands.]

I don't remember when I ate last.

[It's easy for her to get busy and ignore things like eating and sleeping. ]

Your supplies are important. Do not waste them on me.

[stantheman]

[ Stan frowns at her answer and he instantly is moving to grab some snacks from their stash of food. He's not going to let her turn them down either. ]

You need to eat. You're protecting us, right? Then we can feed you.