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Jeremiah was beginning to make a habit of checking in on other ashdown. The detective lieutenant was hoping for some sign of the others that were still missing. He had found a way in, eyes catching that familiar filmy appearance, and with that ridiculous umbrella on his elbow, crossed over.

It was opened up once he was over and held above his head. He kept moving through the town, eyes alert and watching, and was not that far along before he noticed ...

"Kuroda?" he called out. When Jeremiah had said the younger detective would be pulled in sooner rather than later, he had not meant this soon.

"other ashdown? Yes." Jeremiah walked up towards the other man, holding the umbrella over his head so that the rain did not fall on him. He was better dressed for this weather for more than one reason.

"I assume you just found yourself here?" As Shun did not look like he was totally drenched, not yet. At least the rain was letting up but the weather here was chill now compared to the warmer weather in Ashdown proper.

A hand was held for Shun to hold the umbrella if he wished. "I'm dressed for this, you're not so it's best if you keep yourself dry as possible. We can take cover under that awning down the way as well."

That wry look was likely becoming familiar to Shun as Jeremiah nodded slightly. "It appears that it may be that way for those that have just found themselves pulled in but more or less that it ... sneaks up on you." A roll of his eyes. "I do not know that this place is sentient but there certainly seems to be some kind of sense of humor at play sometimes."

"There's a story about the umbrella," he told him at the look. "I'll tell you some other time."

Jeremiah fell into step next to Shun, blue-green eyes constantly on alert for either a way out or anything out of the ordinary. "It's never a one off ..." There was a shake of his head. "Though they can tend to be a bit of a break if you've been having stressful dreams." A wry twitch of his lips.

The awning was not far, it seemed, and part of some restaurant that looked abandoned despite being something that was, in Ashdown, constantly full.

"In most cases, yes. I've only seen a group of people here once and ..." Jeremiah's eyes focused on Kuroda. "There are other beings here but not all of them are friendly."

"Dreams about this place are just eerie. If they're unpleasant, there may be something else going on," Jeremiah took the umbrella, shaking it out out of habit and then hooking it on his elbow.

"The creature I mentioned, the one that attacked me. It goes by Pax, The Peaceful One. Here it's a many legged deer - there's two others like it. The Prideful One and The Sorrowful One. Pax is an ally, so long as you mean no harm to Heliodora."

Shun was given a look, blue-green eyes gone flinty and hard. "There is also a being here, one that is persistently on fire. While it may not mean you harm, it may even try to make a deal with you, it dangerous and can hurt you."

"In most cases? They're likely to be far more powerful than you but you're not defenseless." Jeremiah tilted his head to look at Kuroda.

"Knowing self-defense, being aware, if incredibly helpful but ... Magic is real, Kuroda. Especially here."

"The magic we have over there, the things we spontaneously gain, are nothing compared to the magic we can do here." Jeremiah held a hand up in front of himself, fingers snapping together. "Far less spontaneous as well. It's controllable." A small fire blazed to life above his hand, hovered in the air as he opened up his palm. It was burned cold if Shun reached towards it.

With the fire there Jeremiah's eyes glowed briefly as it reflected it back in the gloom of other ashdown. "I've always been the kind of person that dives right on in. It's not always the best approach but things are moving quickly." There was a smirk. "So I can at least share with you what I know about magic here."

In fact, there were a number of things he could share now. "If you're going down the rabbit hole might as well follow it all the way." Especially in light of the fact that Michael's body had been found. This entire thing had a much more serious, darker edge to it than before.