We're All Mad Here An Offer

TMITM

TMITM

Megalomaniacal Arbiter
An Offer.
" Some problems have the simplest solutions."

@Lish - Cheshire Cat
The Man had called Cheshire here, to his study, for a reason. It was quite simple, really.
He had an offer for her.
He didn't know if she even knew who he was, but she would. Not many did, and she was so ... consumed in the story, that she didn't pay attention to the things around her so much. The Man found very often that if you live your whole life in fantasy, you get caught up in the story, and it was very, very hard to break free.
But he guessed that didn't matter that much right now.
Nevertheless to say, the Cheshire Cat earned more of the Man's respect than a lot of people did nowadays, outside of the Shards, of course, but they were a special case. The reason why.... I am, of course, not going to tell you.
 
Cheshire Cat didn't know why she was here. She was a little confused, actually. She didn't think herself that important, but maybe she was just cool or something. Because this felt... This felt important. This felt different. This wasn't an offhanded, "Hey, let's-" This carried the power to change the whole story.

Wait, what story?

Eh, nevermind, it probably wasn't that important. Chesh didn't know why she had even thought that in the first place.

She was in this cool study place, and she spied this guy clothed in black. He had a kind of dark and cool aura about him. Maybe she was cool after all. She smiled in a friendly way. "Oh, hello! Um, what's your name again? I feel like I know you, or I know of you, but- we haven't met."

@TMITM
 
The Man smiled.
"Y̷o̶u̷ ̵m̶a̵y̴ ̴c̵a̴l̷l̷ ̶m̶e̴ ̴T̸M̸I̴T̵M̴,̵ ̶t̵h̷e̸ ̷M̷a̴n̸ ̸i̶n̷ ̶t̵h̵e̷ ̵M̷i̴r̸r̶o̶r̵,̴ ̸t̷h̷e̷ ̸M̶a̷n̶,̶ ̷I̴'̴m̷ ̴n̴o̵t̴ ̵p̵i̸c̴k̵y̸,̶ ̵r̷e̸a̷l̴l̸y̵.̵"
The Man smiled. She did know him, or at least, she knew someone who knew him. Like... a friend of a friend.
And she was right. This could change the whole story.
All of it.
By extending this offer, the Man was going to change this entire world.
 
At the Man's smile, Chesh relaxed a little. If he smiled, he definitely couldn't be that bad, right? She smirked back. "Ah, the Man. How descriptive," she said. "I'm Cheshire Cat. But you can call me Chesh, Cat, Cheshire, Weird Cat Lady. I'm not picky either." Her eyes shone with mischief.

"Aaaanyway," she said, coming away from her own little joke. "What's up? Did you call me here because like- you wanna be friends? Or something cooler than that?"

@TMITM
 
The Man turned around toward the window at the back of his study.
"A̴s̵ ̵y̵o̷u̵ ̷m̴i̴g̶h̶t̴ ̵k̴n̸o̵w̶,̷ ̷t̶h̷e̴r̵e̸ ̴i̴s̵ ̴o̶n̴e̶ ̸r̸u̵l̷e̴ ̶t̷o̴ ̸t̵h̸i̵s̸ ̷w̸o̸r̷l̷d̸.̸ ̷"
The Man turned back towards her for a moment and smiled.
"J̴u̴s̶t̸ ̷t̵h̶e̴ ̴O̶n̸e̶.̸"
 
He was one of those fancy talkers. The Man was, that is. And you can't say- or think- for that matter, "fancy talker" without saying or thinking it fancy. You know what I mean. Fancy. He didn't seem to react to her joke, which did disappoint Chesh, but he moved onto her second question. "Uhm. Yeah, I totally knew that," she bluffed. "Just, remind me what that was, again? The One rule in this world? Just to make sure you know, of course." What Rule? Cheshire hadn't been included in the knowledge of rules of the world. Well, he had said "this world," implying that there were other worlds or something. Like I said- fancy talk. And how did rules relate to their conversation? She hadn't broken the rule, had she? "I- I didn't break the- um. I didn't break the rule, I'm a very rule-following kind of..." she paused, reading his expression. "...person." She was rambling a lot, wasn't she?

@TMITM :3
 
The Man paused, looked back at her, and said, simply,
"D̴e̵a̶t̵h̸ ̵i̸s̵ ̶p̸e̶r̵m̷a̶n̶e̵n̵t̶.̴"
He turned back to the window.
̵"N̷o̶ ̸̸̸̸p̸o̶w̶e̷r̵," ̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸He smiled to himself, "-̴ ̵o̶u̴t̴s̸i̴d̵e̷ ̷m̴y̷ ̸o̵w̶n̶,̷ ̴o̸f̷ ̶c̵o̵u̵r̴s̴e̸ ̶̶-̶" ̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷̷He said, the meschevious smile creeping farther up his face, "c̶a̶n̵ ̵r̸e̷s̸u̷r̷r̶e̶c̷t̸ ̴t̷h̶e̵ ̸d̴e̸a̸d̴.̸ ̷̷̷̷N̵o̵t̷h̶i̸n̶g̵."
"B̸u̶t̷.̸.̸.̵" He said, the smile slowly sliding from his face, "U̶n̸f̵o̵r̷t̵u̶n̷a̸t̶e̵l̸y̴,̶ ̸I̵ ̷h̸a̷v̵e̴ ̸n̵e̸i̷t̵h̸e̸r̸ ̴t̷h̵e̷ ̷t̷i̶m̵e̵,̶ ̷o̴r̷ ̵-̷ ̶c̸e̸r̸t̷a̸i̵n̶l̸y̶ ̵n̸o̵t̷ ̴-̴ ̸t̴h̶e̴ ̶p̶a̴t̴i̴e̴n̶c̴e̶ ̵t̵o̵ ̶e̵n̷f̶o̷r̶c̵e̷ ̵t̶h̷i̸s̵ ̴k̵i̸n̵d̵ ̴o̴f̴ ̵r̶u̶l̸e̸,̷ ̶w̶h̸i̷c̷h̴ ̸i̵s̷ ̶w̷h̴y̶.̷.̸.̷" The Man was suddenly cut off by a strange figure opening the door to the study, a shivery form of a this man - in a suit. But that wasn't the peculiar part. The peculiar part was his absence of eyes, the sockets being covered by smooth, unusually pale skin, although you usually could'nt see them through his greasy black hair. The most peculiar part, though, was the black energy that replaced his mouth, curved in a sadistic smile. He was carrying a case, long and black.
"A̶h̴,̷ ̶t̶h̵e̵r̴e̵ ̴y̶o̴u̵ ̷a̷r̸e̴.̵"
 
The Man didn't seem to mind very much that she was rambling off. He was progressive in their conversation, and Chesh was determined to keep her cool. Yeah, she was cool. He told her that death was permanent. She cocked her head a little, in understanding. That made sense. People could like, murder and whatever, they could do whatever they wanted. But once they were dead... There wasn't much they could do about that. He was a little bit tooting his own horn in the way that he told her that his powers were the exception to this rule.

Chesh's spine straightened as he made a smooth segue into the reason she was here. Then she turned around in her chair right before the guy came into the door. She had felt some sort of soul approaching. She squinted a little at him, taking him in on instinct. No eyes, but that didn't mean he couldn't see. And his smile gave a little hint to his personality. "Oh hello!" She said brightly. "How are you?"

Her eyes landed on the case. It was... It was important. That much was clear. Her gaze turned back to the Man. "So what does this have to do with... Death and stuff?"

@TMITM (too much information, the man >u<)
 
The Man chuckled, amused by her disposition.
"I̵t̵ ̷h̵a̵d̷ ̵e̸v̶e̸r̵y̸t̴h̶i̸n̵g̵ ̴t̶o̴ ̸d̵o̴ ̶w̵i̶t̴h̴ ̷d̶e̵a̴t̶h̷,̸ ̵a̸c̵t̵u̸a̷l̴l̵y̴.̶"
The Man paced back and forth around his study, as he often did, because worn-in footprints could be seen on the wooden floor.
"B̴e̴c̴a̸u̶s̶e̸ ̴o̵f̴ ̵m̴y̵ ̴l̴a̸c̷k̴ ̸o̵f̵ ̵d̶i̵s̶p̴o̶s̶i̷t̷i̴o̸n̶ ̴f̴o̷r̷ ̴t̶h̶i̸s̵ ̷j̸o̶b̵,̷ ̷a̷n̵d̶ ̵t̸h̸e̸ ̸f̷a̶c̸t̵ ̵t̸h̸a̸t̵ ̸t̴h̶i̶s̵ ̶w̷o̵r̵l̴d̴ ̶i̴s̶ ̵c̴l̸e̷a̸r̷l̸y̵ ̴t̵h̴e̷ ̴o̷n̷e̸ ̷f̵o̴r̵ ̸e̸x̷p̸e̶r̶i̷m̶e̴n̸t̷s̷,̶ ̶I̴ ̷t̸h̷o̶u̶g̷h̷t̸.̴.̵.̵"
The Man smiled as he took the case from the Grinning Demon.
".̵.̸.̵a̸b̸o̶u̷t̸ ̴y̴o̵u̷.̶"
 
The guy did not seem to feel like she was important enough to be replied to, and Cheshire held back a huff. The woman narrowed her eyes at his comment about her. Why would he think about her? She wasn't anything special, was she? Just a girl in the world. Just Chesh. "What's so special about me?" she asked, a little confused. When you think "great responsibility," you don't think of silly, bubbly Cheshire Cat. Nobody would think that. Except for the Man, apparently. "I'm not your average 'control' for an experiment," she said.

@TMITM
 
@Lish
The Man shook his head. "Y̷o̷u̷ ̸u̷n̸d̵e̴r̴e̸s̶t̶i̵m̴a̶t̸e̶ ̴y̵o̸u̵r̸s̷e̸l̴f̷," He said simply. "̴Y̶o̸u̸ ̷a̸r̶e̷ ̶o̴n̵e̷ ̵o̴f̷ ̷t̵h̷e̷ ̷F̶i̴v̸e̸,̴ ̵a̷r̷g̸u̸a̵b̷l̶y̴ ̸t̸h̶e̴ ̵m̴o̶s̷t̷ ̵p̷o̵w̸e̴r̵f̷u̶l̸,̷ ̷a̶n̵d̷ ̵s̴o̶,̷ ̵I̶ ̸h̷a̴v̵e̸ ̸c̴h̸o̶s̸e̶n̸ ̴t̵o̴ ̸g̵i̵v̷e̷ ̶y̵o̸u̷ ̶t̵h̸i̷s̵.̷."
The Man opened the case, hereby changing the world forever.
View attachment 10050
Inside, was a black scythe, long and lean, but incredibly balanced, with a dark, iron-grey edge. It radiated not power, like a lot of artifacts would, but the opposite of it. Void. The taking away of power.
"C̷a̴r̶e̵f̸u̴l̴ ̴-̴ ̵f̶o̴r̵ ̵a̴n̵y̷ ̸o̵t̷h̴e̶r̸ ̸b̷e̴i̴n̶g̴,̶ ̵o̴n̵e̶ ̷t̷o̶u̵c̵h̸ ̵f̶r̷o̸m̷ ̵t̷h̵e̴ ̷b̷l̴a̴d̸e̶ ̴w̵i̸l̷l̶ ̷s̷e̴v̶e̴r̶ ̸y̶o̷u̶r̷ ̷s̴o̷u̸l̸ ̸f̷r̷o̷m̶ ̵y̴o̴u̷r̸ ̵b̶o̴d̷y̵.̴" The Man went on, explaining, "U̵n̴l̴e̸s̶s̴ ̸y̸o̸u̴ ̵y̷o̶u̵r̶s̴e̴l̴f̴ ̴d̵i̶e̷,̴ ̸t̸h̷e̴ ̶s̸c̶y̵t̸h̸e̸ ̷w̴i̵l̴l̶ ̶a̶l̷w̸a̸y̸s̸ ̵r̴e̷t̵u̶r̸n̵ ̸t̴o̸ ̴y̴o̵u̵,̵ ̷a̶l̸w̴a̴y̵s̷ ̷o̶b̴e̸y̶ ̸y̴o̸u̸r̴ ̶w̸i̷s̸h̴e̸s̸,̷ ̴y̵o̷u̷ ̷m̷a̵y̵ ̸h̶i̴d̵e̵ ̸i̸t̸,̸ ̷s̶h̴r̸i̷n̶k̷ ̶i̷t̸,̴ ̸i̶t̵ ̶e̸v̷e̷n̴ ̵h̴a̸s̸ ̴i̸t̶'̶s̸ ̷o̷w̶n̶ ̸p̸o̸c̶k̸e̴t̴ ̷d̷i̷m̶e̴n̶s̵i̶o̶n̴ ̵y̵o̸u̷ ̷c̸a̵n̶ ̶s̷t̷o̷r̵e̷ ̴i̴t̸ ̴i̴n̶.̴ ̷" The Man wouldn't even touch it himself to give it to her, he used his telekinesis to have it float up, out of the case, and right above his palms before he bowed slightly, extending his arms and offered it to her.
 
Chesh usually wasn't one to underestimate herself. But she didn't really... overestimate herself, either. She didn't really estimate herself at all. She just did what she thought was fun. She didn't do anything super interesting or anything. Well- maybe she did. The Man wasn't wrong. She was one of the Five, and she was deserving of something. She was trustworthy, and could be assertive in her responsibility. For a reason that most people couldn't see. She was more than just Cheshire Cat. She was more than herself. There was something... different about her. Something bigger beyond just her.

Standing up, she reached out and took the scythe from the Man, a feeling of calm power inside of her. It was almost as if she had complete control now, whereas before she hadn't. She felt peace. She stepped back a little, getting used to the weight of it in her hand. She let the blade face downwards so that it wasn't dangerous to anybody in the room. Of course, it probably wouldn't be. She looked up towards the Man. "Thank you," she told him. There was an aura of respect between the two, which was different, to say the least. "I won't let you down." She cocked her head a little. "And I have a feeling that you already know that."

@TMITM
 
The Man looked inquisitively at the Cheshire Cat, a little bit of her true nature coming out more and more.
The person he had met before was just Chesh.
He smiled.
"...T̴h̷e̷r̸e̷ ̴y̸o̸u̶ ̶a̶r̶e̵.̸"
This, this, was the Cheshire Cat.
The Man smiled, feeling the respect between them. It wasn't much yet, but compared to all the other people he didn't respect at all?
This was everything.
Strange enough, the Man felt like this stage of the plan was coming along very smoothly. Strange as it was, he trusted the Cheshire Cat to get it right. He marveled at that name. The appropriateness of it. It was like she was made for this. Which she, of course, was. Perfect for this world.
And she had that weird aura about her. Like she knew... but didn't at the same time.
Iiiiiiiinnnnnnteresting.
"W̵e̸l̵l̵,̶ ̴I̷ ̶w̶o̶n̴'̸t̷ ̴k̸e̵e̵p̸ ̴y̶o̵u̵ ̷f̵o̵r̷ ̴t̸o̴o̵ ̵l̴o̵n̵g̷.̵.̶.̷ ̶y̷o̵u̵ ̶m̴u̵s̶t̸ ̷b̶e̴ ̶a̸ ̷v̸e̷r̵y̵ ̶b̶u̴s̴y ̵w̷o̷m̵a̴n̶.̶"
The Man in the Mirror looked at her, hoping she understood that overstaying her welcome in this House would be unwise.
"̷.̸.̶.̵A̴n̴d̷ ̸I̸ ̴k̸n̷o̸w̸.̷"
 
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