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Half an hour later.

Jacinto frowns at his phone as he leans against the wall on his hotel bed once more. The two got some chips and sodas on the way back, and have just started figuring out what the heck they have gotten themselves into.

"So..." He takes a moment to sigh. "According to the FAQ they set up - figured they'd have one - while it's not directly stated, they somewhat imply in the comments that not many people leave the community, and if they do, they're not heard much of again."

"Doesn't necessarily mean anything happens, since I can understand cutting ties anyway."

Rowan sits in the middle of his bed, legs crossed, going through the Anthrocon website. "...still seems ominous. But probably just folks not wanting any part of this. If I decided to leave, I'd probably at the very least get rid of the charm, and at most destroy the fursuit..." He cringes, actually saying that aloud after all that hard work hurts, "I can't imagine reaching back out to the community..."

Jacinto nods. "Not much to do if you decide to never delve into this again, yeah." He continues reading, quoting. "'Is everyone a creator of a fursuit?' to which the answer is that most are, due to the way the charms work, apparently. Guess that makes sense in some way."

Rowan hums, "No shortcuts just commissioning one, hm?" He pauses, scrolling through the list on the Anthrocon website, "Oh! Rowena was right! Audie is here! Fab-Wolf Trinkets and Crafting. Table F4."

Jacinto blinks and looks up: "Oh? Well, if nothing else, we can ask her why us." He hums: "I mean, Rowena made it sound like we were obvious targets..."

Rowan hums, "Yeah, with what criteria? I guess we made our own suits... and we had bought a lot from her for past suits while we were learning. Plus, us keeping this whole project a secret, and... sheesh, maybe we do fit a profile."

Jacinto nods, then winces. "...I also realize a bit of a pitfall in this line of thinking. For us to get her to admit to knowing what we are talking about when we start talking about magical fursuits and becoming thereof, if they are keeping this as hush-hush as they seem to be..." He swallows. "We may need to be in suit again."

Rowan frowns, looking over at the table where he set Akari's head, next to Cindi's. He reaches up to finger the strange new necklace the pair had discovered around each of their necks. "...I don't know... is that really a good idea?"

Jacinto glances at the heads as well, then kind of gives a somewhat defeated shrug. "Is anything a good idea at this point?" His gaze lingers at Cindi's head, then at the pink-and-white pendant on his neck, just a bit long.

Rowan shakes his head, "Just going home and forgetting about all of this?"

He pauses, glancing at Jac', "But... I know how you think. Once you get interested in something, you don't let it go until you know as much as there is to know about it."

Jacinto nods. "I do, yes. But for your sanity's sake, we could just head home and not know." He lifts a finger up: "Question is, Rowan, can you forget any of this anymore than I can?"

Rowan slowly lowers his phone, hand closing around the pendant before easing up to release it. "...fuck. I don't know, Jac'. I..."

He lets out a deep sigh, "Honestly... no. Probably not. But putting on Akari again..."

Jacinto glances at the suits, for now neatly folded but not packed into suitcases yet. "...yeah. A thousand 'what if's, and few more to spare." He hums softly: "I suppose we could let Audie know via discord who we are and whatnot, but I have a hunch she may not read much of that during one of the biggest con weekends."

Rowan considers, glancing back at Akari. "...no, it's okay. If you're going to go through with it, I'll do it too. Maybe I shouldn't agree so fast, but... I like being Akari."

He swallows, "I just feel like I like it too much, you know?"

Jacinto pauses, looking at his friend: "Like it... too much? What do you mean?" His voice has a tinge of worry in it.

Rowan frowns, staring down at the bedding, "Just that it feels so cozy. Almost felt too easy to fall into her character. That's the fear that I keep going back to. How easy it was to just 'be Akari'..."

Jacinto nods slowly. "I... I think I understand. Being Cindi is... uncomplicated. Everything is doable with enough optimism, kind of thing. Even, or especially if it makes no sense to do." He swallows: "...and it feels really good."

Rowan nods, "Suiting up has always felt good, but this took things to a whole other level. She's so happy and innocent. Part of me just never wanted to take it off, even when I knew we had to get out of the suits."

Jacinto nods. "So... we're afraid that if we do it again, we may end having really hard time 'coming home', as it were." He winces: "...y-yeah, I can see that argument loud and clear. It's a problem, isn't it."

Rowan sighs, but turns to give Jac' a shrug, "That's my fear, yeah. But we didn't have any trouble with it the first time, right? So... maybe it's me getting all worried for nothing."

Jacinto considers, then finds his smile again: "We'll keep each other in check. Like we always do." He glances at his phone: "Guess I'll do a bit more reading, just getting a feel about the people who... well, even if we don't end up being a part of the group as such, we may need some help from them. I'm not too proud to admit when I am out of my depth."

Rowan looks back to Jac' with a small smile, "Maybe check that FAQ to see if people have problems getting stuck in character? Maybe I'm just being paranoid... hell, I know Akari well enough to know she wouldn't do that to someone. And if I'm Akari, I wouldn't do that to myself?"

He twists his expression slightly, "I don't know if that make sense at all."

Jacinto looks at Rowan for a moment, then nods. "For all of the not-sense in last two days, if Akari and Cindi are our creations and we act as such when we are them... then yes, what you just said does make sense. Akari would not wish to trap you."

He lifts his phone: "But I will read. Someone surely has come across this sort of thing, given the general prevalence of furries like us for creating personalities for their creations... I am going to ignore how insane all that sounded, for now."

Rowan chuckles, reaching for one of the sodas, "That makes as much sense as anything else this weekend, you're right about that. And that twisted bit of logic does make me feel a little better about trying it again... if just to get some answers."

Jacinto nods: "Just to get answers. If we feel horrible and trapped right afterwards, we come back here and pack up, I promise." On some level he knows that won't be the case, but it's important to say that anyway...

Rowan opens his soda, "Yeah... sounds good. We learn as much as we can tonight, and then... suit up, and go find Audie tomorrow. It is a lot less dire when we can sleep through the night as... uh... ourselves."

Jacinto chuckles softly: "If nothing else, finding a comfortable sleeping position should be a lot easier. Cindi was not designed for being horizontal." He blinks. "Er. That sounds way different and worse now."

Rowan laughs, "I know what you mean, neither was Akari. Antlers are not friends with pillows. Or even with beds." He looks over Jac', thinking back to how badly he wanted to cuddle with... well, with Cindi, right? That was all Akari. At least tonight there won't be any wayward thoughts about snuggling his friend... right?

Jacinto nods: "Yeah... maybe this all makes more sense, or at least feels a bit better, in the morning." He glances at Rowan with a smile. "We can probably find some more thoughts on how to deal with this tomorrow, if not from Audie, then from doing it again but on our own terms this time."

Rowan hums, "On our own terms, eh? That does sound like a much better way to do this." He reaches back up to the necklace, considering it.

Jacinto touches his own necklace: "We decide when and where and for how long, this time. I don't want to say Rowena was entirely right, but... she has been doing this for a long time. Maybe she has a point, and this isn't as awful as it first felt like." He lets go of the trinket and shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe maybe maybe, that's all that my mind can do right now."

Rowan lifts the pendant up, looking into the strange depths of it, seeing the swirling images within, "Yeah... I wish it were as good as it seems... I worry about all the maybes that could bite us... but Rowena seemed pretty confident... and maybe trustworthy, but that was all through the lens of Akari, and I really don't know how much being her influenced me there."

Jacinto nods: "All fair points. And... I do not know. But I do know that there are people out there who know more than us, and if this is somehow still aimed at hurting us... it's the most convoluted, magical and incomprehensible scam possible." He smirks. "I think I believe Rowena, even if I was Cindi at the time."

Rowan chuckles, "It is a hell of a good scam if they have to go to the degree they went, including the impossible use of magic. But... my gut feeling is the same. I believe Rowena was telling us the truth."

Jacinto sighs. "Our best option might be to head down there, talk to at least Audie, maybe others if we come across them..." He lifts the pendant in his palm: "...now that we kind of know better what to look out for."

Rowan nods, "I... agree. Semi-reluctantly, but only because it feels like there's still a lot we don't know."

He sighs, "But if we're really going to join this community, this con is literally the best time to learn. I can't imagine we'll be using the suits once we get home."

Jacinto hums with a small sigh: "Yeah. Once we get home, there's... even less we can do. Maybe just... try to spend tomorrow learning as much as we can, see where that leads us."

Rowan takes a deep breath, shifting position to the edge of the bed, "That decides it for me then. I have to do it again tomorrow. Even if just... to get another chance to feel like that before we go back home."

Jacinto nods: "Yeah... kind of the same. I want to know if it is possible, then I can decide when and where and if I want to do it again." He looks aside: "Weird and fascinating, this all."

Rowan chuckles, "You've talked me around on it at the very least. But then, you've always been pretty good talking me into stuff."

Jacinto hums in slight amusement: "That, I can promise you, is not just a Cindi trait. But just as much as I talk you over to stuff, it's only when I'm pretty sure you'll also enjoy it."

Rowan nods, "You have always been right, I'll note. I guess there's a first time for everything but... probably not this."

Jacinto gives a soft laugh. "I hope I can assure you I had no idea where our costuming this weekend would lead."

Rowan grins, "Oh, there was no predicting this weekend, I definitely trust you on that."

Jacinto sighs in amusement, before putting his phone down. "I think I've seen enough of the social and information stuff, plenty of time to read that later on the road and all."

He looks at his friend: "How are you feeling about this?" He gestures vaguely at nothing: "This all?"

Rowan takes a sip of his soda, thinking for a moment to look inside. "...alright? Not quite 'comfortable' yet... something is still bothering me but I can't articulate it... but I think I'm more curious now than I am afraid."

Jacinto nods: "About the same for me. There's too much I don't know to get comfy just yet, but... I don't think there's much to actually fear. It's just... new, isn't it."

Rowan nods along, "New, and unexpected. A lot to take in all at once, but... the more we learn, the less scary it seems."

Jacinto nods: "I've spent good chunk of this evening trying to figure out some way this could harm us, and been just coming up with nothing, barring us ourselves doing something reckless." He leans back against the wall again, sighing softly. "Maybe this will turn out okay."

Rowan looks at the fursuit heads, "Guess they would really be our masterpieces, huh? We might have to ask about upkeep, but hard to imagine ever needing another fursuit..."

Jacinto looks at the heads as well. "Yeah... they really are our magnum opuses, aren't they. Though at least that much was our intention to begin with."

Rowan's smile grows, the pride for his creation still there, "They are... Both as suits, and as OCs... as silly as that sounds."

Jacinto chuckles softly. "Not that silly, Rowan. Right there with you on that, after all."

Rowan grins, "Guess that's no surprise. We did make them together, after all."

Jacinto nods. "...some part of me definitely does not want to throw away all that effort and yes, pride, just because of all this."

Rowan: "Yeah... we worked on them way to long. I don't think even if I decide to walk away from it all... I could never destroy the suit. It would feel too much like hurting Akari at this point."

Jacinto nods with a sigh. "So... yeah. We agree on that. But I think we're talking in circles, almost, now. Should we try to sleep, then see what tomorrow brings?" He blinks. "...I feel like a broken record."

Rowan nods. "Shower, sleep... set the alarm early... One more day at the con. I'm glad that, if I had to go through this, it was with you Jac'."

Jacinto smiles: "Yeah, same to you. But yeah, I think tonight's thing for me is reading comics on my phone about something entirely unrelated, then sleep when my mind is properly mushed."

Rowan chuckles, "I can load up one of my dumb phone games and distract myself with those, and sounds like we have a plan."

Jacinto smirks: "Certainly easier to use phone without furs- nevermind, not gonna go there anymore tonight. That's a tomorrow problem."

Rowan stands from the edge of the bed, reaching out to pat Jac's shoulder. "Tomorrow's problem. I'll take the first shower tonight."

Jacinto nods: "Be my guest." He picks up his phone, definitely feeling pretty decent after the insanity that this day has been.

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