Welcome to Gaia! ::

Finding Iolite had been…honestly the biggest break that Jaina had ever stumbled upon. It made her miss Julienne something fierce but…having the warmth and weight of a cat draped across her shoulders again was…very welcoming. They had worked out a system in their first and only meeting before this, that if Mal was someone capable of awakening into a Senshi…Iolite would nibble on Jaina’s earlobe…and if he wasn’t…well. Iolite would hop down and slink back into the night and Jaina would continue Sleeping Beauty’s training on her own.

Not what she wanted but…it would allow this friendship to continue without the awkwardness of Mal knowing that she was some…crazy watermelon…woman.

If he wasn’t going to join her in the mirror, than she didn’t want to expose that side of herself but…if he was going to be a part of her team…the team that she had only just decided she wanted…a part of the court that she was forced to join…then…well.

He would just have to deal with Madame Watermelon, and he’d learn to like it…hopefully. Of course she’d tell him that there were outs if he really hated it but…it wasn’t ideal, as she very well knew.

Approaching the playground where she had instructed Mal to meet her, Jaina grinned. “Hey there, Sleeping Beauty. Missed you.”

Iolite yawned as she hung off Lenka's shoulders. She felt more like a fashion accessory then a cat. Though her ears perked up with they arrived, flicking in the young mans direction. She started purring instantly and she glanced at Jaina. She grinned as she swatted the young girl in the face with her tail before leaping off her shoulders.

Jaina would probably get her for that one later. Oh well.

"Well, I'm certainly no dragon, if that's what you were expecting." Iolite said, jumping up on the table. "But no. Let's just say I'm here for... moral support." There was only so much she could do as a cat. Jaina would make a far better teacher then she ever could.

When the talking cat approached him on the table, Malory held out a hand, fingers slightly curled in the customary human scratching post position. He opened his mouth to comment and then closed it again. Glancing over at Jaina his mind started formulating some trick, some kind of ventriloquism on her part. And then stuttered to a stop as well.

A talking cat could be just a neat trick, but the transformation was clearly, and purely, magic.

Thankfully, she asked the one thing that would be easy to answer, "Well," he choked out, then cleared his voice before continuing, "I'm interested."

The reality or unreality of the moment almost didn't matter in the face of that interest, surging past curiosity and miles away from any sort of caution that should have followed.

Grinning slightly, Lenka shook her head. “You got it backwards, Iolite, I’m Prince Charming, He’s Sleeping Beauty…and…it’s time for you to awaken, maybe if you’re lucky I’ll even kiss you this time~”

It fit, all of it fit, and as Lenka held her hand out to Mal, she grinned. “That’s what it’s called, you know. When we take the magic inside of you and just…let it out. I knew you were special, and now…you’re going to be even more so…but, I warn you.”

Grabbing his hand, Lenka tugged him over to a large mirror hidden in some bushes. “You will have to work out for this. You will have to get a little stronger, there really are monsters out here, both people and actual monsters. And a lot of them will want to kill you just for being so hot, unfortunately.”

"What do you mean. I was talking to-" Iolite sighed. "Nevermind." She grumbled as turned her head into Malory's hand.

When they moved over to the mirror, Iolite stood, stretching before she hopped down from the bench. "You are expected to put in some sort of effort." She said, sitting at the boys heels. "But I think you'll be fine." There were things far worse then the Dark Mirror he could become. She just hoped the kid could handle it.

He absently gave her hand a playful squeeze at the claim, willing to lightly tease and flirt even as the world changed. Even as he was literally through the looking glass. Well...one of them, Mal thought, gaze taking in the mirrors lining the room they stepped into.

Pale. The impression was fleeting as they strode forward. Not white but pale. Leeched dry and awaiting some kind of vibrancy. Jaina looked particularly bright against the backdrop, filling up the mirrors like a sudden burst of fireworks.

And then they were somewhere else, with still more mirrors, a throne, and a Mirror that was...still more. Very much more, if he was supposed to simply walk through it the same as Jaina had brought them through from the park. Fortunately, Mal had yet to look into a mirror and not like the result. Getting closer? Moving inside of one?

Why not?

It was easy to ignore the foggy forms within the room's other mirrors. Jaina was confident in him and he, as always, was also confident in himself. Though maybe that confidence faltered, just a little, once he was through and surrounded by a million miles of darkness.

Mal was used to dark places, could thrive in them really. But those places and moments were always accompanied by another body, friend or lover or the soft smallness of a pet. Even a book in hand could be considered a company of sorts. He teetered unpleasantly on the verge of alone for a too long moment and then exhaled abruptly as a path of light emerged from the darkness.

The voices called out at his first step, HYBRIS OF REFLECTION. There were two, at first, calling out in stereo. And before the sound faded they called out again, Hybris of Reflection. Lower, a little further away. And again, before they could fade away, the voices sounded once more. Twice more. And on until the words became an indecipherable hum and he stepped out of the mirror, facing Jaina and Iolite in the throne room once more.

Physical presence had always been Mal's touchstone of self. He grounds his existence in his body and his now. There's little thought for the future, and past is something gone and useless to dwell on. There's many who may consider him shallow for this, and in many ways he is shallow. But it also means he has a constant and acute awareness of his body in the moment, of how it looks and moves, how light may be absorbed here and reflected there. It's useful for a stage. It's a sense that’s heightened and exhilarating now, the familiar suddenly refined and strengthened. He was a little more perfect and he could feel it.

Turning toward the mirrored walls to see it as well, he gave Jaina a confused look. "I thought I was becoming a watermelon person."

Lenka watched with obvious excitement as he came back changed...and holy s**t did he look good. THe mirror looked good on him and…that took a lot to say, but…

It couldn't be denied. Lenka liked what she saw and maybe…this was really a big step into her starting to possibly a little bit like who and what she had become.

Maybe. Kind of. Glancing at Iolite, Lenka snorted and reached out for Hybris? Was that his name? That was a good name too. Everything about this was good. Taking hold of his hand and looking to make sure that Iolite was firmly planted she drew the both of them back out of the mirror and into the park once again. “No, not a watermelon person, that’s what I am, who I am. I’m Sailor Lenka, Dark Mirror Senshi of Watermelons…you’re a mirror person now, which…is pretty cool, seeing as we can just…walk through mirrors. That place we were just in is called Mirrorspace and it’s…kind of trippy, I’ll admit I haven’t explored much but…my older brother, the rich one I told you about, he’s one of us too, I’ll have to introduce you at some point, he’s…kind of a prince? So he’s like. Really in the know.”

It was hard to sound irritated when Hybris was scratching at her ears. She puffed up again as they went through the mirror, swishing her tail irritably. Though this time she tried to avoid smacking the senshi in the face with it this time.

"That place is hell is what it is." Iolite growled. "And that's coming from someone whose been around youma and in the rift." The cat jumped down from Hybris' shoulders, careful not to dig her claws into him. When she turned to face him again, a henshin pen was in her jaws. She stretched, placing her front paws on his leg to get his attention before setting it at his feet.

"Think of it as the head of the organization. Princes' and the like effectively oversee the various groups that float around." Iolite shrugged lightly. "Though I've heard that some are absolute trash at it."