[center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/684ddb45-4fc1-4da4-89c5-42f0263bd666.png[/img][/center][right][sub]April 13th[/sub][/right][hr]
Pushing through the mirror, Emi gasped as the familiar sensation of [i]change[/i] enveloped her; her uniform, once trim and neat, fell away into a white empire dress that floated around her, and all over her skin, unseen by her but announcing their presence all the same, crawled vibrant tattoos of lotus blossoms, moving subtly as if in a breeze. The air was different from the changing room, more still and stifling, and the large room she’d apparently emerged into echoed loudly with the concussive sounds of bouncing balls and thumping feet. 

The foreboding environment didn’t seem to deter her, however, and the first thing she did upon stepping into the Other Side was stretch out her hand, where a card bearing the Moon arcana sparked to life. 

[color=E5C4CD]“Euryphaessa, on the lookout!”[/color]

Emi crushed the card in her palm, and at once a swarm of black-and-white butterflies burst out in a blaze of cyan flames, dispersing like mist into every corner of the space until they were hardly noticeable. 

For Emi, the effect was like taking a bag off her head. In an instant, her awareness of her surroundings multiplied exponentially; having previously gauged the size of the room by sound, she now knew its precise boundaries, was acutely aware of its occupants and their exhausted behaviour, noted the balcony and the doorway, and pinpointed each of her companions. But more than that, she could tell the dispositions of their Shadow companions, that there were more rooms beyond the gymnasium they were currently in, and most importantly, that something big and menacing was waiting for them at the end of it all. 

The awareness was almost overwhelming, having been away from it for so long, but at the same time it was only now that Emi remembered how completely blind, deaf and numb she was in the real world compared to the Other Side. 

It felt [i]fantastic[/i] to be back. 

Remembering why she was there in the first place, Emi stopped revelling in her reclaimed power and returned her attention to the group. She had missed whatever was said prior as her senses recalibrated, but she did tune in for the very end - including Hinari-kun’s nervous questioning. 

[color=E5C4CD]“No,”[/color] she replied confidently, taking a few more steps into the room. She zeroed her attention on the Shadows running laps, noting their attention was on something other than her companions, but that something dangerous lurked underneath. 

[color=E5C4CD]“They don’t want to be disturbed. They’ll get hostile if we mess with them, but if we sneak around them and leave them alone, they shouldn’t be a problem.”[/color] She glanced back to her companions, now notably better at pinpointing exactly where they were. [color=E5C4CD]“There are five rooms in this dungeon; this one, and four more. Something big is waiting for us at the end of it.”[/color] She shook her head at Hinari-kun. [color=E5C4CD]“There is no outside. The only way out is through.”[/color] 

Despite the serious tidings, her tone was nothing of the sort; in fact, Emi was genuinely struggling to contain her glee at finally getting inside the mirror again. ‘Feeling’ around the room, as she called it, for any thread of evidence that her friends had been nearby, a shockingly familiar presence practically shouted out to her from the middle of the room. It was really a miracle she’d missed it - she must have been a little out of practice with Euryphaessa’s senses. The discovery made her forget all about the shadows, the dungeon and the foreboding presence at the end of it.

[color=E5C4CD]“Mineri..?”[/color]

Emi gasped, her Euryphaessa senses confirming it was true. It wasn’t a perfect match - a little fuzzy around the edges, so to speak - but even if she was a little rusty, there was no mistaking the leader of their little band, the one who started it all, and the one who would hopefully lead Emi to the rest of their lost friends. 

[color=E5C4CD]“Mineri!”[/color] she exclaimed again, running up to the girl and pulling her into a hug. The tattoos all over her body rippled, the lotus flowers falling away to be replaced by cherry blossoms. [color=E5C4CD]“Oh, I [i]knew[/i] you were alive! You sent me those signs and I [i]knew![/i] Are you alright? What happened?? Where is everyone else?!”[/color]
[hr][right][sub][@Scribe of Thoth] [@Asura] [@Lord Orgasmo] [@Hero][/sub][/right]