yogen | Two adult men circle each other like wary cats, the post

WHO: James Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes, and you!
WHEN: Probably after the whole...murder discussion thing
WHAT: Two men have found their way, and as is normal for them, immediately start blaming and barking at each other. And then after the girls are done fighting, they'll be around snooping in the area.

[Today, there's...a commotion in the auditorium. Looking out from the hallway - or approaching when you were already inside - will give you an eyeful of what looks like two adult men - one tall, thin, and with slicked back black hair, and the other with a head of gray hair and a mustache - in high school uniforms warily circling each other while also apparently talking.

One of them - the older man - has a decent set of lungs on him, which is probably what drew you to look at the courtyard in the first place.]

"...Blaming me for this, Holmes? How very arrogant of you!"

[The tall man is shockingly pale, his eyes daring around then back at the short man, his movements harried, sounding oddly breathless when he retorts]

"Can one be blamed when you always seem to be on the edge if not right in the middle of suspicious incidents?"

"Surely you can't believe I'm responsible for all of this! Isn't it much more likely we both got dragged to some kind of Singularity?"

[A pause and an unreadable expression flits across the tall man - Holmes' - face. His arms folds over his chest, his right hand gripping his left forearm tightly in the process, shoulders hunching up]

"...It is possible."

[The older man gives a scoff, shaking his head.]

"Yes, because I just happened to find another demon pillar to team up with, and chose a school to do my dastardly plan in."

"Fine. You're probably not involved. And no contact from Chaldea..."

[The younger man paces, still tightly gathered into himself.]

"Can't rely on outside here..."

"At least you can make out that in your current state."

[The men continue to circle and bicker as they keep their eyes on each other, practically wearing out a path with their feet as they do so.

There's the feeling they're not going to stop until someone breaks them up...Or, maybe you should leave and try to catch them later, alone?]

((OOC: OKAY SO - Moriarty and Holmes will have Individual top levels with prompts you can hit up, if you don't want to be involved in their little weird circle dance up top. If you DO, then just comment to this post and we'll both reply!))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Whomst??? the fuck??? Is this???

Moriarty stops yelling for a moment as this man suddenly comes into a very tense standoff, blinking in confusion.]

...I - Pardon me, but - who are you?

[Sherlock shoots the man a wary look, glancing at Moriarty then at the stranger]

[ ah, tough crowd. no matter, he’s certainly dealt with worse. ]

Ah, of course, introductions. Where are my manners? I am Figaro, one of the Sage’s wizards who works as a doctor in Southern country.

[ not that it’ll ring a bell for either of them, but they were also spouting unfamiliar stuff so it’s only fair ]

But right now I’m reduced to being a mere student, as do both of you. With your spat just now, does that mean you two have an idea how we were summoned here?

[Well, that certainly doesn't sound familiar at all. Not a Servant he knows - potentially a member of an alternate human history?

...Too many potentials. Still he shrugs, spreading his hands out as dramatically as he can.]

Ah, yes - well, we may have been a bit...hasty in our assumption. But, normally, it's a certain kind of...situation once Holmes and I are in the same place at the same time.

Right, Holmes?

[Time to yeet the buck at his nemesis. EXPLAIN, DETECTIVE]

[He shoots Moriarty a look, before looking over Figaro, how to explain in layman's terms? of course assuming the man has no concept of magic or metaphysics as they know it.]

What the Professor and I were referring to is a phenomenon known as a "Singularity", which is...

[He taps his finger tips against his arm, biting his lip for a moment]

Skipping the hows and whys for now, it's a "Hole" in the timeline - or perhaps a "pocket world" that deviates from history might be another way to explain it, and in these singularities tend to follow their own rules that deviate from normal logic and allow for the existence of things that would be considered impossible under normal circumstances. These Singularities are usually cut off from the rest of the world, or worlds as it may be in this case.

[He lets out an exhale, the explanation is perhaps too simplistic - and no doubt there would be other questions]

[ hm. on one hand, that is rather simplistic. so let this good doctor simplify it even further. ]

So it's an alternate universe, in other words. Can't say I'm familiar with the subject, unfortunately. I've no experience with how a normal high school in Japan works, for example.

[ he's been reverse-isekai'd, in other words. he only got the idea that they're in japan thanks to some gleaned knowledge from the sage who's currently absent, but that's just it. ]

But what I'm familiar with is the concept of being summoned into another world to fix what went wrong. So there's no need to fight when we all should be working together.

That is where you would be wrong, good sir.

[Okay, so that....is this guy seriously a servant from another timeline, maybe? Or just some unlucky sap? Curious and curioser, but there's a greater matter at hand -]

While I am no stranger to working together, our 'fight' is based on a much more personal level than it would seem.

[A pause, and then-]

Unless, of course, you could work happily with the very man who killed you.

[There's a brief moment, his breath catches in his throat, knuckles bone-white, contrasting sharply with the chemical stains on his hands.

Silence, he was completely silent for about ten seconds before an annoyed scowl crosses his face, but there's something off about it]

Is that how you're going to frame it?

[ even with the rather stifling air shared between these two men, figaro continues on with a chipper smile on his face. ]

Oh, it shouldn't be a problem. I know an instance just like that, where one party has killed the other over a misunderstanding. They're still working together to this day.

[ in fact one of them has been isekai'd to this very world as well, but figaro will keep it down for now. ]

Either way, the both of you are going to be stuck here in a while so you may as well grit your teeth and bear it. Seems we're thoroughly locked in, and my magic doesn't seem to work in general. [ it's more than a little worrying, tbh. ]

[The response Holmes gives....well, it's not what he was expecting at all. He actually falls silent for a moment, all of the wind immediately taken out of his sails - before figaro continues, and he gives a quick cough to cover up the awkward moment.]

Fine, fine....I suppose we can call a truce for now. Though, you are a magus, then? Or a Mage?

Is there a difference? I'm merely a wizard like I said, though I'm not too powerful compared to the other ones of my kind here.

[ just lying through his teeth like that. well, heathcliff's rather sensitive but he does have potential as an eastern native, and white's already fuckin dead. but with his own powers locked away he's more or less a mere human now.

and he can't stand that. ]

I suppose at the moment it doesn't matter, though we'll have to compare notes on what sort of magic we are used to - to avoid misunderstanding.

[And there are others?]

Who would be the others, if I may ask?

A cute little boy named White, and a beautiful young man named Heathcliff. They're both from my world, and are Sage's wizards like me.

Oh, but does that mean you two can use magic as well?

Absolutely not.

[That is said as flatly as he can muster.]

I know of Mages and magecraft, but I cannot truly use it myself [Fucking liar who lies(potentially)], and I have not had many good experiences with the Mages of the Clocktower.

Oh, do tell me all about them.

[ if there was a chair nearby, figaro would've pulled one over and took a seat, as though raring for a gossip session. ]

I suppose you two are humans, then? Both of you were talking about demon things and Singularities though, so maybe you are more than that.

Two adult men circle each other like wary cats, the post

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