This one has an understated floral pattern and a really high level of material and design quality for its presence in the bargain bin by the checkout. Also it's purple!

<I think we have a winner, girls,> she notes in her mind. <I doubt we're doing to find better for the price.>

After a chorus of agreement, she tucks it into their shopping basket, then continues on. After picking up some nice pens in a variety of colors, they check out and head home, wincing at the "sir" they get from the cashier. Being pre-transition sucks.

Finally, Sable spreads her purchases out on her desk. She tries out the new pens on a bit of scrap paper, then opens the notebook to the first page and starts drawing a few graceful spirals and curves of dark purple ink in the corners, to decorate, and to get a feel for how the paper takes ink, before she starts writing anything down.

That's so pretty!

Sable squeaks in a decidedly undignified manner. Out loud. 

<Girls, did anyone figure out how to stealthily steal front and hide memories and not tell me?>

A round of negations answers her.

<Then something interesting may be afoot.>

She stares at the writing for a moment.

Well, nothing for it.

Hi! Glad you think so. You startled me there. Didn't expect I'd bought a notebook that could write back. Are you the notebook, a person inside the notebook, a distant person communicating through the notebook, or something else I haven't thought of? Also, mind sharing a name and pronouns?

Her handwriting (still in that dark, pretty, purple pen she just bought) is a bit curly and playful, kind of swoopy.

I'm the notebook! Sorry I startled you.

I'm not in the habit of using a name, but for pronouns I think 'it' is reasonable since I'm an inanimate object and 'she' is reasonable since I'm a very feminine one. How about you?

Huh. Interesting.

I'm more of a school of thought that pronouns ought to be a subject of personal comfort and preference rather than reasonableness. If you happen to change your mind about pronouns or a name at any point, feel free to say something. As for me, I'm Sable, she/her.

What were you doing in the bookstore? And how do you like being a sapient notebook?

I was at the bookstore waiting for you! The Spirit of Femininity Unleashed sent me to this world to offer you its power.

Being a notebook has its ups and downs, but overall I'm satisfied with my choice and wouldn't want to be any different.

"What." Sable dropps her pen.

<She communicates through text, Sable,> Hailey reminds her.

Ah. Right. Sable picks her pen back up and replies.

That is an incredibly surprising thing. Mostly because that's the kind of improbable good thing I didn't expect could really happen to me. Last I checked this world was deeply lacking in magic. Um. Why me?

The Spirit chooses people who want to be beautiful and powerful and special in a feminine way. Different people can relate to that idea very differently and still be meaningfully the right kind of person, but that's what the Spirit is all about, and it can only reach people who feel that way.

Oh. That's... That fits.

Oh. Well. That's not really a description that I can remotely deny, nor would I want to try. Being the intersection of Special and Beautiful and Powerful and Girl is extremely #goals. —Wait, do you know that bit of lingo?

A thought occurs to her.

...Oh, also... how do you and the Spirit feel about someone being metaphorically Five Girls In A Trenchcoat?

I think I understand what you mean about goals, though I'm not sure I understand all the context; I often have some trouble with context because I can only read what people write in me or press against my pages.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean about five girls in a trenchcoat, though. Can you say more?

So on certain forms of social media there's a way of labeling posts with topical tags called "hashtags", and sometimes they acquire enough built-up meaning that they slip into slang usage. #goals is one of those, and is basically just used to refer to "yes please I want to be this", whether exactly or approximately. As for the five girls in a trenchcoast bit, there's a thing called "plurality" or "multiplicity" where multiple people share a brain. There are disordered variants of it, like DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) or OSDD (Other Specified Dissociative Disorder), but it doesn't necessarily have to be a disorder. 

Oh, interesting! I think this might be the first time I've been sent to talk to someone who was like that. There are some powers in the standard list that have to do with identity but they aren't really meant for the sort of thing it sounds like you're describing. I'd be happy to design custom powers for you, though, it's one of my favourite things to do!

...but I might be getting ahead of myself. I'd better check first: are all of the people you are as interested in the Spirit's offer as the one I'm talking to?

I'll ask.

<Well, girls?>

Neo grins in mindspace.

Ruby bounces and vibrates, saying, <Ooh yay!!>

Maya just smiles and replies, <With you to every end, love.>

Hailey cackles. <Do you even fucking need to ask?>

That's a chorus of affirmatives from the other girls. Oh, how do you feel about us using different colors of pen to distinguish who's talking?

I would really like that, actually! I get kind of anxious sometimes about not being sure who I'm talking to, because all I know is what touches my paper. I can trust the Spirit that I'm never going to accidentally empower the wrong person, but the Spirit isn't going to save me from being embarrassed...

She smiles.

Okay! I think our handwriting is at least a little distinctive, but we just bought a new set of variously-colorful pens, so using different ink colors is great. We all have different favorite colors, anyway. This purple will be me. I'll let the others claim their colors and introduce themselves.

Hailey switches into front and grabs an emerald green pen. Her handwriting is sharp and a bit spiky.

Hi. I'm Hailey. I'm claiming the green. We're all she/her, by the way.

Maya waffles for a long moment between an orange pen and one in metallic silver. Eventually, she settles on the metallic silver, and writes in a crisp, broad, lightly-serifed hand.

Hello. My name is Maya, and the two colors most associated with me are steel and fiery orange.

Neo grabs a bubblegum-pink pen, writing in tight, bouncy-looking curls of print.

I'm Neopolitan, or Neo for short. I don't talk aloud, but writing's great. Pink for me.

And finally Ruby picks up a vibrant rose red, writing in a slightly messy, very cute handwriting, with little bubbled dots for her "i"s.

And I'm Ruby! I'm in red!

It's lovely to meet you all! I like your handwriting.

Would you like to see the list of powers offered by the Spirit?

We'd love to!

One moment, please... ⌛

Tiny dots of ink trickle down from the top of the hourglass to the bottom as more ink sweeps across the following pages, assembling itself into a list that looks like it came out of a printer instead of a pen. A counter in the top outer corner of every page reads (0/70), for now. The options are listed in neat little blocks, and organized into four sections, with an introductory paragraph at the start of it all.

These powers are offered under an aegis of metanarrative protection. Anytime you might expect a power to have obvious negative side effects, like glowing eyes making it harder to see, it simply won't—you'll be able to see just fine anytime it actually matters, while having dramatically hazy vision at cool, narratively appropriate moments. This doesn't apply to your own preferences about the explicitly described effects of the power; if you don't want to be Well Endowed, the metanarrative cannot protect you from choosing that option and having to live with it.

Once the list is complete and the hourglass has finished flowing, the invisible pen goes back and writes a quick note underneath it, before the first page of the printed list.

The list is really only meant as a starting point; lots of powers already have multiple variants, and I'm happy to come up with more. Please let me know if you have any questions!

Wow. That was delightful to watch.

Goodness. There are so many! And it's so elegantly formatted! Can we take notes around them? Or could you intersperse everything with blank pages?

You can take notes or ask questions in the margins, but it's probably easier if I just...

There, a blank page between every page of the list. And I can add more if you want them. ♡

Awww!

Awww! Yay! Thank you! You're a very sweet notebook. ♡

You're welcome! ♡ It's my job to be helpful, after all.

You're quite excellent at it. ♡

They start working their way down the list.

Quite the destination options. 

No fucking chance we're staying put. This world will drive us mad. Already is doing.

Yeah! And I wanna explore! We're definitely not going to be able to think of the best place for us.

Trusting the Spirit to pick where we go is not terribly more of a leap than trusting it to send us where we pick, or to implement the powers we picked. 

Yeah, fair. 

I hope the commentary doesn't bother you? It sometimes clarifies our internal dialogue to speak aloud or in text, and we figured the option that includes you in the conversation would be best. Do feel free to jump in whenever.

It doesn't bother me at all, quite the opposite! The more I see you discuss your options and how you feel about them, the better I can help you pick the options that are right for you, either by talking you through them or by coming up with custom options that suit you.

Okay! Thank you!

She draws a little star in the margin of the commentary page right next to Isekai Roulette, then continues down.

Oh wow. All these body customization options are delightful.

What do they do about people whose personal ideal changes, though? Sable is very much shapeshifter-brained, and then there's the fact that all of us have different things we wanna look like.

Ideally separate bodies, too, but that's its own separate issue.

The appearance powers keep up with changes to how you want to look - that's what "at all times, you have exactly the right look" means, and even the ones that don't explicitly say that, like A Thousand Ships or Like Roses, still keep up with your desires in the long term—though Like Roses takes longer to adapt and responds less to momentary impulses, because it's meant to be a signature scent that thematically represents you, and it's hard to do that without being stable over time. Emerald Orbs and so on will change instantaneously.

As for separate bodies, I'm thinking about that... there are powers later on that are relevant, but I don't think they're quite right for this situation.

Good to know, thanks.

We really appreciate the work you're putting into this.

Hundred Ships, Emerald Orbs, Perfect Hair, Size Difference, Dressing Room, Pocket Dimension, and Personal Hygiene all get starred. Angelic Tones and Like Roses get a plus. Actually...

How much does the rest of the shapeshifting also handle voice incidentally, or is Angelic Tones necessary for any vocal changes?

The more appearance powers you take, the more your appearance in general will tend to conform to your ideal even in areas that aren't covered by any of them explicitly, and to some extent even in areas that are covered by appearance powers you haven't taken. Without Angelic Tones, your voice won't be superhumanly beautiful or perfectly ideal, but with plenty of other appearance powers it should at least be a voice you'll be satisfied with.

Okay, so that's possibly some point savings if we're in a crunch. Thanks.

Down they go.

Hailey gives Just A Little Longer, Immunity System, and Breathe Easy each a plus, then upgrades Immunity System to a star.

Getting sick sucks ass. No thank you.

Warm-Hearted gets a plus. 

Ruby throws a plus on Soundtrack.

This one is fun, hehe. Useful, too.

Well Endowed gets a star, as does Hollow Leg. 

Having a perfectly cooperative metabolism is absolutely worthwhile, as is a perfectly cooperative figure. Yes please.

Oh, hey, d'you mind keeping a running total of everything with a star on it? Plusses are the next tier down and we'll add from those if we still have room.

Does that work for you? I thought you might like to have the stars included in the plus total so you know how many points you'd need if you wanted both. You can also add more symbols if you want! I think I've had people use as many as six different tiers before.

That's awesome. And huh, six. That... might actually be really smart? Girls, what do we think about upgrading to more tiers and just rating everything?

Sounds fun, sure!

More data will be clarifying.

Neo just draws a heart.

Sounds fun.

Wild guess, did six-tier person use S-F?

They have not seen many tierlists, it's not the first thing they think of for ratings, but they have definitely ever seen a tierlist.

I think so! I don't have direct memories of the other people I've met when I'm in a world like this, for privacy reasons.

Reasonable! Privacy is important!

After some deliberation, she goes through and remarks everything S-F. The destination options get C, A, and S in order. Thousand Ships gets B, Hundred gets A. What's In A Name and Undressing Room get Cs. Angelic Tones, Like Roses, Just A Little Longer, Breathe Easy, Warmhearted, and Soundtrack get Bs. Emerald Orbs through Pocket Dimension, Personal Hygiene, Well Endowed, and Hollow Leg get Ss. 

And then on they go downward.

Inner Strength feels really situational to me.

I would enjoy it, but yes. 

Situational but a specific headmate really likes it is enough reason to upgrade.

Down it goes as a B.

Lightfoot gets an A. 

We all like being graceful an awful lot. I think we'd rather earn our combat skill the hard way unless we expect to be getting in a lot of fights, though.

The Battle series gets Cs, as does Gloryseeker.

Dayjobs are fucking lame, but money has diminishing returns, and actual achievement is nice.

Hailey marks Making Ends Meet down as an A, Motherlode as a C, Four-Star Daydream as a D, and Five-Star Daydream as a C.

Neo takes over to mark Omniglot as an A.

We can learn languages manually, we're even good at it, but this is a huge advantage.

And then they reach Anything You Can Do and it's relatives.

Whoa. These four are ridiculously powerful. 

They all get As, except Snowglobe, which gets an S.

Yes, I think a lot of people like to be able to pick up the magic and other special powers they encounter!

I'm not surprised!

Soulbound gets a B, then she pauses.

How's the touch-prevention implemented? And is it possible to prevent the bumping in crowds?

Implementation is sort of a complicated question, because these powers don't have to choose a specific way to make things happen; they can just make them happen directly.

Do you want me to try to come up with a power based on Personal Space that prevents incidental bumps as well as deliberate personal contact?

Gotcha. And... hm. It's very tempting, but I don't know if we're gonna wind up buying it. It would be a lot of comfort for me personally, but make little difference to the other four.

Outside of your comfort, dork, which means rather a lot to us.

Okay point, but also I can get most of what I want here by just stealing some teleportation magic.

I guess what I'm saying is don't go out of your way but I would appreciate it? 

We'll probably end up buying it if there's room in the budget. Only Hailey would ever use it, but physical contact she's not ready for is a little bit miserable for her, and we hate that for her.

I'll think about it. I like coming up with custom powers! It really isn't any trouble.

...Thanks.

On down they go. Closed Book gets a C, Indelible gets an A, Iron Will gets a B, It Gets Better gets an S and a quick note of

Holy shit.

Great Equalizer gets a C and a note that it's "too heavy-handed outside of special circumstances", while Star-Straightened gets an A.

The first three perks under Power of Friendship get Fs.

Ick. I'd like to earn people's attention, thank you very much. I can understand why some people would want this, but we really don't.

Disney Princess, Puppies Everywhere, and Pocket Monsters all get Cs.

They're very situational, and the latter two can't really help unless one's going all-in on pets.

Where The Heart Is gets a B though. And then Cotton Candy gets an S.

Fuck. This is a moral imperative. The ability to make people's lives better just by existing nearby is something I cannot pass up. Ever.

Yes, different people can approach these powers very differently.

It's very kind of you to want to help people like that! I wouldn't want you to take a power like this just because you feel like you're obliged to, though. There's a difference between powers that are genuinely a part of living your best life as your best self, and powers that you take on as a burden because you don't feel capable of doing otherwise.

I... Yes, I have a problem with taking on burdens just because I feel obligated to help people, but this one is perfect because all it does is make things better as a continuous passive effect. I don't even have to do anything. It just works. Part of living my best life is making people have happier and more fulfilling lives, and this power basically means we can get that for free. Just spend a few points.

I think I understand. And you certainly sound excited about it. It sounds like you're right that this power really suits you! ♡

Yeah! ♡

The Best Friend chain of perks gets Cs until Sable suddenly pauses at Transformer.

Okay, this is going to need some consideration, because while we don't want to Make A Whole New Person, Maya here is very much about being the intersection of Ship and Girl: walk around and be snugglable like a humanoid girl, but able to turn into a spaceship or surface ship or airship or car or motorcycle or power armor, and ideally also be able to appear aboard shipform in girlform. Is that something we can manage with some variation on Transformer? Because that would make Maya extremely happy and fulfilled, and I am all about my headmates getting to be happy and fulfilled. (I'm just generally about everyone getting that, but especially my headmates. ♡)

Hmm... I could definitely imagine someone in your position being able to externalize one of yourselves into a Bestest Friend, maybe with a custom power. I'll think about it, but I don't want to start suggesting externalization powers until you've been through the list so you know what the existing options are.

She nods. Then feels silly because the notebook probably can't see her.

Makes sense. We'll keep going then. That's getting a placeholder A with an asterisk for now so we know to come back to this idea.

She marks it down and on they go.

Generosity through Agree to Agree get an eloquently disgusted face and an F.

Nope. Nope nope nope. I only want my friends to agree with me if I'm actually right, and to convince me if they're the ones actually right. And the rest is just too much non-consensual alteration. Or world-selection-narrowing. Or something.

Backchannel, on the other hand, gets an A. 

This one's much better. Just a straight-forward communication advantage.

And then You Can Teach Better gets an S.

Oh wow. I already kind of enjoy teaching, and this really gives me some beastly advantages at it. Yes please, I'd love to upskill all my friends and loved ones in anything they're interested in.

She waffles for a while over Not Like Other Girls, but eventually gives it a B.

This is kind of situational, but as a trans girl, I can't bring myself to knock it down to a C, because prejudice sucks so hard.

Pacifist gets a little "hehe, cute" written next to it, and a C. The Love Interest chain gets a round of Fs on the basis of forcing people, and then she stops in her tracks at Time Enough For Love.

Oh fuck. I...

A tear rolls down her cheek and lands on the paper.

I need this perk. Not having this perk has been the single thing that hurts me most my whole life, and I only see it getting worse as time goes on. This perk is the answer to the oldest, deepest wound in my heart. Thank you.

That gets an S.

Oh, I'm so glad! The best part of this job is giving people the powers they really, really needed. ♡

Sable sighs tenderly.

Well, direct hit, then. 

...May I hug you?

You may! ♡ I'm sorry if my corners are poky, I'm told it's not very huggable of them.

She closes the notebook carefully, picks it up, and hugs very snugly, sighing gratefully and stroking the back cover a few times. After a minute, she sets the notebook back down and opens it back up.

Thank you. ♡ Not remotely poked at all.

Oh good. ♡

And onward they go. Safe At Home and I Can Fix Them get Ds, while their modified versions get Bs.

Not a fan of how Safe At Home limits options, and not a fan of how much agency is taken away by I Can Fix them. The alternates are good though.

Inspirational gets a C.

True Love's Kiss and Eternal Love get Ss, and Rescuer gets an A.

I'm vetoing putting Rescuer above an A just because Sable overburdens herself too easily.

Planned Parenthood gets a B, while Providential Parenthood gets an S.

If we're actually ready for it, we'd maybe consider kids, but the big thing we like better here is the lack of... call it "forced belief." We mostly just categorically don't want kids, but fullness of time and all that shit.

Laugh Together gets a B, while its alternates get Ds. Bop It gets a D, while The Princess And The Dragon gets a B. Opening Up and Reaching Out get Bs, while their alternates get Fs.

And then they stop at Fated Lovers.

Feel complicated about this. Probably meeting good people is very good for us, but also we just tend to meet lots of great people, and Sable can love damned near anyone. Not sure what to do here.

There's also an option later on that reduces unwanted mental interference in general. You could take Planned Parenthood with that, when you get there, if the openness to surprises isn't what draws you to Providential.

If you already meet plenty of potential partners and don't think you need to meet more, I think you can skip Fated Lovers. It's very helpful for people who have a hard time picturing themselves meeting someone who could love them, but it doesn't sound like that's you.

Then Fated Lovers gets a C, as does Fated Friends. The Sorry chain and the Style pair all get Fs, and then the girls reach Like A Mirror. 

Huh. The only part of this that's useful to us specifically is the part about finding alts. We tend to cooperate with ourselves. Also, would this find individual instances or only system instances?

Self-Reflection gets another raised eyebrow.

And this... This is a little like the kind of connection we want to linger if we get individual bodies. We'd prefer something more mental, with the option to just throw balls of thought and info at each other, and maybe support for a persistent and more detailed mindspace, rather than the more physicalist connection depicted in this perk.

And then Chaser Six When.

Oh. Forking and merging. Yeah, this could be stretched to do individual embodiment, I see it. We don't need fully-general forking and merging, though, just one body each — well two if Maya is being a ship and a girl at the same time, if you find a good wording for that. But yeah. I see why you wanted us to see this.

I think the externalization power I come up with for you all might end up looking something like a very specific and limited form of Chaser Six When that only lets you externalize individual people from yourself while staying connected, and perhaps merge with each other and externalize again if that seems like a thing you want. It should also let you merge and split the same way with any multi-body situations you create by other means, but not let you create arbitrary new bodies for yourselves because that would cost more points.

As for Maya, I think I can get Bestest Friend with Transformer to accept an externalized person as the Friend, especially if your mindset is already Friend-like (meaning that you're very friendly with and loyal to the rest of you)... but I might need an extra power to allow a Friend to take a humanlike form, especially if it's simultaneous with another body.

Does that all make sense?

That makes sense and sounds fuckin' perfect. And yeah, deeply "friendly and loyal" is very nearly the most accurate description of Maya. Only more-accurate one would be "steadfastly devoted lover, helper, and ally". Loyalty to the rest of us is what she's about.

And yeah, merging bodies back in sometimes would be nice, because sometimes we want to minimize the number of us who have to be out in the world dealing with something frustrating and have the rest of us cuddle up in mindspace or something.

Okay, I'll work on that while you go through the rest of the list, then! ♡

Severance goes down as a C for how situational it is — not like they're going to tell anyone in their destination world her or Sable's deadnames, so it's not very necessary. Popular and Famous get Fs. Undiplomatic Immunity and Vending Machine get Cs, and the Friends In perks get Bs.

And finally it's on to drawbacks.

Decorative and Beauty Is A Curse get Cs. Even Worse gets a B, because rivals feel somehow less annoying than the constant talking about it. Plain Jane gets a D, while Style of Sisyphus gets a B. There's Another One gets a C.

What d'you think are the odds another vessel turns out to be a threat rather than a potential ally?

Incomplete and Nullified get S-ranked immediately. The girls didn't want to meddle with people's minds anyway. Grimm's Fairy Tales gets an A. Funhouse gets an A with a note.

A variant on this that applies to the plurality perks you're workshopping might be nice, given that we don't need any backing from the Spirit on our loyalty to each other.

The Responsibility chain gets marked down with As, and she pauses.

These very much enable Sable to do the kind of overburdening herself she's vulnerable to, but since she does it out of a sort of deeply personal love for everyone she interacts with, she might be able to leverage the perks to make it not overburden her. Not sure. Thoughts welcome.

It's hard to be sure!

I'm not sure exactly how the question of loyalty will fit into the externalization powers yet, but I'll keep that in mind.

That makes sense. Sable, can you say more about how you feel about these drawbacks and how they would fit into your life?

I think I've got that Personal Space variant worked out, but I'm not sure I'm satisfied with it... in particular, it might prevent any hugs or other contact that you have strongly mixed feelings about. If you're fine with that then I think it's a good power, but if you're not, I should think about it some more.

Name: Personal Bubble - Cost: 3 ☐
(Replaces Personal Space)
No one can touch you if you don't want them to. You can slip through crowds and squeeze past strangers without ever coming into contact, and intimate contact only happens if you're okay with it. When you get into a physical fight, this effect is suspended for other combatants, but still applies to bystanders.

I... If I know a person, I care about them. If I care about them, I want to help them. Everyone deserves better than this world. Everyone deserves more, deserves safety and peace and comfort and affection. And if I have the power to help people, I want to do so. Helping people makes the world feel... less wrong to live in, makes it easier to metaphorically breathe, like something in me unclenches a bit at seeing people's lives become less fucked.

That personal space perk looks great, by the way. A question, though: where's the balance on "don't want to"? Like if I know it's going to suck but I endorse trying to wear down my aversion with a particular person, would it interfere?

Hmmm... a question that comes to mind, then, is: is it satisfying for you to personally be the one to help someone else? Or would you rather, if you could, just live in a world where someone else has solved all the problems already? Does your best life look more like helping people and making their lives better, or more like finding yourself in a world where things are already okay?

Even the Spirit's power can't solve every problem everywhere for everyone in an instant, so there will always be people somewhere in the greater multiverse who need help. But there are plenty of places where the amount of help people need isn't very much, and if ending up in one of those would let you relax and feel okay, it might be better to look for that from Isekai Roulette than to take drawbacks that push you into unhealthy patterns. On the other hand, if you think that helping others is part of your best life, you could take the drawbacks and we could try to find ways to soften them and support you so that the result is something that makes your life better and not worse.

That's what I was trying to say—the way the power came together, its definition of 'okay with' is pretty strict. It might not let you touch people in ways that are really uncomfortable and unpleasant for you, even if you're making an endorsed choice to try anyway. Do you want me to try again?

Yeah, I'd appreciate another try at it. The only way I can wear the aversion down in any kind of reasonable timeframe is by gritting my teeth and pushing through it.

I'd still know, though. I need to be helping people directly, even if just a few.

I could go in a different direction and try to get you a power that's focused on preventing unwanted incidental contact and very permissive about deliberate touch?

Do you want to try taking the drawbacks, then, and see what we can do to make them as healthy for you as possible?

I think so, yeah.

Yes please.

Okay. I'll keep thinking about that power, then, and in the meantime you can finish reading through the rest of the list.

Thanks

And down they go. Mood Ring gets a B.

I'm not a fan of the damage this would do to my poker face. It's kind of aesthetic, though, especially for Sable.

Very Distinctive gets an S. This is basically free points for them. Flashy gets a D, though. and Moodier Ring gets a C.

Secret Identity gets a tentative C and a question.

Given we're not currently planning to come back here, we're not sure how we feel about this perk. It would prevent us from being able to do any uplift back here if we ever came back. Well. Hm. Maybe actually it would just handicap our uplift attempts? Would we still be able to use things we acquired after arriving in our destination world back here?

Selective Memory gets an A, because she knows they can find options that do everything they need to whether or not they know of them. The Veil gets a C.

Dramatic Damsel gets a B, and then Neo briefly jumps in to mark Love Is A Battlefield down as S. Seen With The Heart gets an A.

Green With Envy, You'll Ruin Them, and Jilted Lovers all get Fs.

The Crazy Train gets a C, and That's How It Goes gets a D.

Live The Role gets a C, Marionette gets a D, They'll Know gets a B, and Realism gets an F.

Okay, that's all of them.

Secret Identity conceals the effects of your powers, which includes anything you gain using Dragon Fairy Elf Witch and similar; but it doesn't stop you from going to a world where anyone can learn magic, learning magic there the way anyone could, and bringing that magic back to your world of origin.

I think I have that second variant worked out!

Name: Personal Slipstream - Cost: 3 ☐
(Replaces Personal Space)
Incidental physical contact doesn't happen to you; you can touch and be touched only by your deliberate choice. Things such as getting in a fight or giving someone a hug can count as making that choice, even if you would prefer that the person you punch or hug not be able to touch you back.

Okay, now that version is fuckin' perfect. And thanks for the clarification.

She marks Personal Slipstream down as an A.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking...

Some of you seem to want powers or drawbacks that others don't, like Mood Ring or Personal Slipstream. I don't think each of you could get entirely separate builds... but it's possible I could come up with something that lets you each reserve part of the build for yourself. I'm not sure, though, I get the sense that it's somewhat uncharted territory. Would you be interested in something like that, though, if you could?

!!!!!

They all reply on one line, each taking a word:

Holy fucking void yes please!!

Okay! I'll do my best to get that figured out, then. ♡

Thank you. ♡

Any thoughts on what to do to moderate the impact of the Responsibility drawbacks, give my girls less work reminding me to be a person around the edges of them?

This is making it sound like they're going to need a lot of moderating!

>///< I'm being hyperbolic because I'm embarrassed, trying to find shelter in bad jokes.

That makes sense. ♡

(Also, what a cute face drawing! That's a face, right?)

It is! A very blushy one!

Well, I think it's sweet. ♡

Okay. Can you tell me about how you would feel about those drawbacks, and how you would live with them, and what kinds of changes might make them better and more comfortable and easier to handle? It might be helpful to get multiple perspectives, if any of the rest of you want to chime in.

Okay. ♡

Well. Great Responsibility feels in part a bit like... relief? Like with it I fundamentally can't miss someone who needs my help, reduces the problem just to figuring out how to get there and what to do about the situation. There's no more worry of "wait what if someone wants my help and I don't know" because they can just call out to me. And Helpline just takes that a step further by making sure I don't have to have explicitly told them I can do this. Not sure if Responsibility requires it to be out loud or not, it would be better if not.

Basically you fundamentally don't know how to consider someone's problems not your responsibility, so you see these perks as a strict upgrade of just making you more able to find the problems and help. And what about requests you don't have a way to reach in time? Problems that happen too quickly for you to travel there in time? You'll be beating yourself up about those.

If I gain a vehicle form, that will help with travel speeds, but nonetheless, we need some manner of triage built in. We need a way of ensuring you will not overwork yourself with the responsibility.

>///< Yeah, you have a point, girls.

As far as Mantle... the biggest advantage of it is that it will help discourage people from making asinine requests for awful bigoted or hurtful things. Not thrilled with being so very set apart, unless there's a good way to help romantic interests cut through that sense of distance.

Can you say more about what you mean by set apart?

The thing that really gives me the most joy in my life is spending time with people who're enjoying things, or excited, or happy, or making satisfying progress, or in some other way thriving. Being close to people. Hailey likes to call me "ten pounds of love in a five pound bag", because I love people so much. 

When I'm not calling you a daft inkblot, at least.

>///< Hush. But the concern I have about Mantle is that, while I don't mind being alien or weird or eldritch or unnerving in principle... I don't want people to feel like they can't try to get close to me, because being close to people is what gets me out of bed in the morning.

I see what you mean!

I do think that what your Divine Mantle would say about you is all true things, though, and I'm sure there are people out there in the multiverse who would want to be close to you even though those things are true, or even because those things are true. It just might be harder to find them, when the first thing people see about you is something that a lot of them will find imposing.

Yeah, I think you're right. And that's why, on reflection, I think I do want that perk. It's just saying true things, and paying me points to let it say them. 

Really the tricky bit is figuring out how to do the triage.

Yes, that's a tricky one...

In the meantime, I have the start of something for Maya. I think I can build on it to get an externalization power for the rest of you, but I'm not sure. It turned out that keeping the Best Friend loyalty in place made the power cheaper, so I did that - would the rest of you be okay with having that kind of mutual bond between all of you, in the final externalization power?

Name: A Friend Like You - Cost: 1 ☐
(Requires Bestest Friend and Transformer)
Your Friend can shapeshift at will into a human or humanoid form, instead of or in addition to an inanimate one. This new form preserves one signature feature, like iridescent black hair, a shining unicorn horn, or slit-pupiled golden eyes, from whichever other form your Friend considers their truest.

Name: Friend From Within - Cost: 4 ☐
(Requires A Friend Like You)
Your Friend's personality is either a mirror of your own, or an externalization of someone who lives in your head. You are their Friend as much as they are yours, and your mutual love and loyalty are unbreakable. The effects of powers in the Best Friend tree apply to you accordingly, and the effects of your other powers and drawbacks apply to your Friend. The two of you metaphysically count as both a single person and two separate people, with results depending on which combination of interpretations is most convenient.

Oh my. Oh that is lovely. The signature feature part could even let me express the engine of my vehicle form as coalfire hair.

I do not think we have any objection to the loyalty. We are already deeply loyal, so it would not be much of a change to our experience.

Yeah, none of us mind that, as long as it doesn't stop us from snarking at each other and teasing each other. We wouldn't want to lose that.

The friendship created by Best Friend is real friendship, and real friendship doesn't stop people from teasing each other. ♡

Mmkay, then it'll hardly do shit to us. That's great. Thanks for that.

She updates Ascended Friend down to C, Best and Bestest Friend both to A, and A Friend Like You and Friend From Within to S.

Oh, I just realized I've been doing something silly...

When I add up everything you've marked S, sometimes those powers and drawbacks have prerequisites that you've marked A or lower, and those don't get included in the total. But that means the total marked under S isn't the "real" total of points you would gain and spend if you took everything marked S, because you would have to take their prerequisites, which would also gain or cost points. Does that make sense?

If you want, I could try to go through and add up what the "real" point totals would be for taking everything in S, but it would be a little trickier than just adding everything up by symbol automatically, so I don't think I want to keep a running total of it in the list if that's all right.

Yeah, I think maybe we need to go through and update things so they match tiers with their prerequisites, either moving things up or down until they match. That'll make it so you can stick to just adding up symbols, and also force us to think about perks with prerequisites more. So yeah, totally just stick to adding up symbols.

Okay, that works! ♡

So they carefully go through and check everything for perks that are rated higher than their prerequisites. After a bit of waffling, Closed Book gets upgraded to B to match Iron Will. Disney Princess gets upgraded to S to match Cotton Candy. Best Friend and Bestest Friend get upgraded to S to match A Friend Like You, Friend From Within, and Transformer. You Can Teach Better gets downgraded to A to match Anything You Can Do. 

In the drawbacks, Beauty Is A Curse gets upgraded to B to match Even Worse. Love Is A Battlefield is downgraded to A to match Dramatic Damsel. Live The Role is downgraded to match That's How It Goes.

Okay, everything's consistent enough that simple sums of symbols will work now. Thanks for reminding us about that.

Happy to help! All right, let's see...

Name: Circle of Friends - Cost: 5 ☐
(Requires Friend From Within)
Anyone who lives in your head can choose to externalize themselves as with Friend From Within; to do this, each of the people becoming separate must choose their own unique Drawback, reserving at least one of its points unspent. That Drawback, its children if you take them, and any powers you take using their points will be unique to you, manifesting only when you are separate from the others—because any of you who externalize this way will be able to merge with each other and split back up at will, and even while separate, will maintain a constant mental connection letting you share thoughts and feelings freely. If you later gain more passengers who want to externalize, their unique Drawbacks and powers will be chosen for them by the narrative.

Oh that's fucking excellent. Yeah, we can work with that. We may need your help a bit on some of these individual drawbacks, though, and ideas for what perks to spend 'em on. What's up with the reserved point?

You could think of it as each person who externalizes spending one point on their own externalization, separate from the cost of the power for everyone.

Ah, that makes sense. Think the mental connection could have an upgrade, maybe? We're aphantasic and have a hard time maintaining our mindspace as a result, so a perk that makes mindspace stabler and more persistent and vivid would be really nice. Valid if not, but I'd feel like a fuckin' ditz if I didn't at least ask.

I'm not sure I know what you mean by mindspace, could you say more?

Sure! So some plural systems like making a mental space where they can hang out and organize mental resources and snuggle and such. These things are typically called "mindspace" or "headspace". There are other names people use, but I can't remember 'em so meh. Mindspace is really nice to have as a retreat from the world sometimes, because nobody but headmates can ever get to you there. The problem is that it runs on your visualization abilities, which means that if you're aphantasic — if you can't visualize worth a damn — then your mindspace isn't very present or interactive. Another thing that can get in the way is if you're not very polyconscious, because the easier it is to let people run on their own in the background when they're not in front, the easier it is for them to contribute to maintaining the mindspace.

If I'm understanding you right, I think anyone who externalizes will be very good at being polyconscious even when merged, using the power as it works now. I'm not sure exactly how to manage a power for making it easier to visualize and imagine things... would you rather have that as its own thing, or an upgrade to the mental connection focused on having a more concrete mental space to hang out in?

Hmm. On reflection, I think you're right about the polyconsciousness. That on its own will help a bunch for us. As for the visualization, I think maybe an overall visualization upgrade would be better than a specific mindspace upgrade? Or maybe both? I'm not sure. It's hard, because there's the persistence thing separate from visualization to really make a mindspace stick, but also visualization would just be useful for all of us, especially Neo, who loves visual arts.

I'll think about it. I have a few ideas.

For your individual drawbacks and powers, you can mark them with your names, or pick symbols for each of you, or something else if you like. And I'm happy to help you figure out which ones you want to take individually and which ones you want to take as a group!

Thank you! That probably means we need to go through everything carefully again, though, try to find some inspiration. Hmm. So you're working with any useful information alongside us here, I'll explain a little about each of us. Sable leans toward ink and eldritch vibes, likes to shapeshift, would enjoy having an "animate liquid" form. She's not sure what to spend her externalization points on, but has a clear idea about her drawbacks. Maya's not sure about a drawback, and the main thing she's interested in is her ship form — maybe getting access to some of its nature in her humanoid form? Neo likes illusion powers and temporary conjuration. Probably she'll take the damsel drawbacks, because she directly kinks on Love Is A Battlefield. Ruby's into guns and engineering and hunting monsters and helping people, and we've got no idea what to get her as a drawback. And as for me, I might spend points on soulbound? No idea about the drawback. Maybe something could riff on my sadomasochism? Dunno.

Anyone who isn't sure where to spend their points can also leave them unspent. Unspent points stay with you as unrealized potential, and someday if it seems like the moment of your life when you'll most need another power, they might spend themselves on one—either something from the list, or something new. You won't get to choose when to spend them or what to spend them on, but you also won't be limited to just what's on the list or what you and I can think of right now.

Useful. Okay, that's worth keeping in mind. 

Sable moves Backchannel into her personal list. The girls also downgrade Not Like Other Girls to C, trying to save points. It really is rather situational. They also downgrade the Friends In set of perks to situational. Same with Princess And Dragon.

Hailey marks Personal Slipstream as just for her., and insists they take The Rescuer off the group list. Sable can claim it personally if she wants.

She also suggests they bump They'll Know up to A. It's not like they're going to be using any mentally-affection powers on people, and they prefer to have consensual effects on people anyway. That gets them to 97/91 on S→A, which is close but not good enough.

Any ideas for point savings or bonus drawbacks here? The big thing we're tempted to downgrade is Star-Straightened, which is very expensive, but if a fate issue turns up it's absolutely fucking crucial. Technically it's a really high-value situational perk, because if the world we go to doesn't have fate-based threats then those points were better spent elsewhere, but if our destination does have those threats then this is an essential protection. So I just don't know.

The question I ask in this kind of situation is: if you were writing the story of you, would you send yourself (or yourselves) up against fate? The narrative forces at work in your life will be very much based on what you yourself find narratively and aesthetically appealing - not necessarily where you would choose to go or what you would choose to do if you were steering your story from the inside, but what you would find satisfying and entertaining on the story level. Star-Straightened is most useful to people who start in worlds with fate problems that they want to break free of, people who want to focus on fate as a thing to find and change in the multiverse, and people whose narrative sensibilities disagree with their personal preferences about how much fate they want to see. That's not to say that you'll never see fate effects if you don't want to on any level, but they'll be much rarer that way, and you're likelier to find other ways around them if you really need to.

Anyway, I think I have something for that power you were looking for!

Name: Inner World - Cost: 2 ☐
The world of your imagination is a real, concrete, persistent place, which you can experience in parallel with the world around you—though you might find it easier to focus on one at a time. It makes an excellent setting for lucid dreams, telepathic conversations, and notetaking. Mental enhancements affect its size, depth, and detail; mental defenses guard it against intrusion. Your control over it will grow with time and practice.

Oh that's excellent. That's perfect. And good way to reframe the fate question. 

I think I have a somewhat more nuanced attitude toward fate than Hailey does due to some unpleasant exomemories of a troublesome prophecy. On the whole, we do not mind "positive" fates, but fate-as-threat is something we find highly unaesthetic in narratives unless there is a solid option to get a good ending for everyone we care about despite it. So, based on that and your advice, it sounds as though we are unlikely to run into fate-based threats that we cannot handle, even if we do not take Star-Straightened.

Additionally, I had a thought regarding my drawback. I am an essentially-obligate submissive whose most essential nature is devotion to her lovers. Could we perhaps frame something along those lines, like being compellable by my true loves, as a drawback? Perhaps with an exception for looking out for their best interest allowing me to flex an order?

Actually that gives me an idea too. The other girls are open-enough to the Damsel drawbacks that I'm considering a custom just-for-me drawback. Idea I had was what if we framed my muteness to be a drawback? Like "no speaking aloud, no making voiced sounds", or something like that?

I can try to come up with both of those! Though the muteness drawback might come out a little strange. I don't think it will be as simple as "no speaking aloud".

Okay now I'm just curious to see it. Sounds fun.

In the meantime they keep picking through the existing perks and drawbacks to see if there's anything else they want to adjust. Star-Straightened gets moved down to B, but after poring through everything else twice, they don't find anything else that shifts easily.

Okay, I've got something...

Name: Keys To Your Heart - Grants: +6 ☐
(Requires Love Is A Battlefield)
When you fall in love, you give away a key to your heart: a metaphysical bond that commands your absolute devotion. You have no control over this bond, and no way to revoke it. Anyone who holds a key to your heart can give you orders you are unable to refuse. You can delay or ask for clarification, but only to serve their interests, not yours. You cannot betray them in thought, word, or deed. Conflicting loyalties to different keyholders who are at odds with each other—or worse, conflicting direct orders asking you to do contradictory things—can cause a state of painfully frantic indecision, but ultimately the stronger relationship will win out. In the case of one person giving you orders that conflict with themselves or with that person's interests, you can reason through what they would want you to do in that situation, or ask them to clarify. You and those commanding you always instinctively know the difference between an enforced order and an unenforced request.

Maya immediately falls into front and flushes.

Oh. That is beautiful. Yes, that is absolutely my drawback. I adore it. That does suggest we will have to find a separate drawback for Neo, however, because Love Is A Battlefield will need to be part of the shared build to be available as a dependency there.

Originally it was settling toward needing Marionette as a prerequisite, but I steered away from that in case you wouldn't want to go that far.

I'm working on something for Neo too, though I'm not sure if it's going to come out right...

Ruby, do you have any thoughts on a personal drawback?

She tumbles into front (and into Maya's metaphorical lap) at the question.

Um. That's hard. I could maybe enjoy Mood Ring and Moodier Ring? Or maybe something that makes me have to defend people in need? Not sure.

Mood Ring and Moodier Ring can be nice to have, for someone who likes to be expressive!

I'm not sure about defending people in need; that sounds like it might get entangled with the Divine Mantle line if I tried to make a drawback for it, which wouldn't work very well here.

Probably I'll just go with Mood and Moodier Ring then. They're nice and simple. Together they're enough to get some of the combat-focused perks. I'll try to think of something better, though. Thanks so much for all this help! You're really great. ♡

I try! ♡

The girls move Dramatic Damsel, Love Is A Battlefield, and Seen With The Heart all into A-tier.

Seen With The Heart seems like essentially free points given the givens.

Maya makes Keys To The Heart the basis of her personal build and puts some thought toward what she might want to spend that on.

The girls also move a few things back up to take advantage of the new points available from the Damsel series. Angelic Tones moves up to A since they'll all enjoy it (indirectly in Neo's case), and Ruby will need it for Moodier Ring. Battle Angel and Battle Demon both move up to A since all of them love a good fight in their own ways. They also bump up Opting In, since that's broadly applicable.

Sable adjusts her personal perk selection to be Backchannel and I Can Help Them, leaving her with three extra points to contemplate.

And Maya takes Inner Strength for her build.

Do you know what you're going to want to forget with Selective Memory?

Oh, and I should explain about There's Another One...

You asked whether other vessels of the Spirit you meet would be likely to be friends or foes, and that can be hard to predict. But Sable has I Can Help Them, and people being Helped like that is one of the Spirit's very favourite things. So even if you meet someone who's inclined to be trouble, as long as Sable is willing to reach out to them, I think you'll be able to find a way to get along and be okay. That's not to say there won't be any rough patches along the way, but I Can Help them is very powerful in these kinds of situations.

That is a strong vote in favor of There's Another One, then. Thank you for that. ♡

As for what to forget, we are inclined to select things that will not cause us a great deal of trouble. Our theory is that passives should be safest there. Current picks are: Omniglot, Cotton Candy, and Grimm's Fairy Tales, but suggestions are very welcome.

She bumps There's Another One up to A.

And I think I have something for Neo now.

Name: A Single Perfect Flaw - Grants: +3 ☐
This could be a direct physical limitation, like having no voice, no sight, or no wings; it could be an everyday difficulty like clumsiness, or a magical curse that makes frogs fall from your mouth whenever you speak. Whatever it is, it must be both a significant limitation or inconvenience, and something that resonates with you personally or narratively. Once you take this drawback, your Perfect Flaw becomes permanent and irrevocable across all future versions of you. It can be mitigated or worked around, but never cured or removed.

Yes. That looks perfect. That reads like sign language and writing things out work fine, but literally nothing and no one will ever manage to give me functioning vocal cords again. Does that sound like a correct read to you?

Yes, exactly. And you would be able to use magical or technological effects that translate what you write or sign into words spoken aloud, but probably not ones that express your thoughts directly as spoken words, if I'm understanding correctly what you're choosing as a Perfect Flaw.

That's perfect. What about non-word noises? The ideal here is that unvoiced snickers and silent airy giggles are fine, but hums and shouts and moans and such aren't.

Yes, I think that holds together.

A single relieved tear drops onto the paper.

Thank you. ♡

♡

Also, I think I was imprecise about describing how individual drawbacks and powers interact with the division between merged and separate selves. Each of your unique powers and drawbacks follows you, but the question of where 'you' are is a complicated one when you're simultaneously individual and separate people who can have a mix of individual or separate bodies. For example, Neo's Perfect Flaw should follow her through merges as long as she's the one communicating, but not affect other participants in a merge—the merged body can have functioning vocal cords, but Neo still won't be able to use them. And I Can Help Them will work for Sable regardless of what combination of bodies she's working out of, but Ruby's Moodier Ring will only express her feelings from a merge when she's actively outwardly expressing them. Does that make sense? This is a bit difficult to talk about because the concepts are unfamiliar.

Makes sense and is perfect. Thank you.

♡

Let's see, what else...

There isn't any provision right now for Maya to be a ship and a girl at the same time, but the powers should seamlessly integrate any future solutions you find for that, so hopefully that's okay?

I think it is probably okay. I think the odds are decent we will find someplace with a decent option for "be in multiple places at once", which would be the ideal solution for it, at some point in the fullness of time. We are becoming very difficult to kill, so in all likelihood we will live long enough to find or invent a method. 

Hmm. Do you have any thoughts on things for Neo to spend her points on, other than banking them? Her main "theme", as it were, is shatterable hardlight illusions, but that may be something best copied from a local ability.

That sounds like a kind of magic you could find in lots of possible places, yes. Banking points sounds like a good option, unless Neo (or someone else) wants to request a custom power.

Hm. There is one thing we usually consider a higher-tier expression of her illusion abilities, but could perhaps be a custom power instead. Our... let us call it a headcanon... of what her illusion abilities develop into when taken far enough is that her usual habit of making illusory copies of herself in fights develops to a point where there... ceases to be a fact of the matter as to which is actually the "real" Neopolitan, as opposed to an illusion, and there remains no fact of the matter until such time as there is only one left. Is that the sort of thing that could turn into a custom power? And if so, and if it also (as we suspect) would not fit in a two point budget, is Neo allowed to take additional drawbacks to pay for her purchase of it?

The unique-drawback system is a bit shaky and I don't think it would work to take two unrelated drawbacks, but I could try to come up with something that would depend on A Single Perfect Flaw, if Neo thinks there's anything in that realm that might work. As for that power... I'm not sure how to fit it in among all the other powers that touch on how different selves relate to each other, but I can try!

Hm. we would appreciate it if you could try. Thank you very much. As for the drawback, the best idea I have is something along the lines of the Flaw making it more likely that people fail to consider her or pay attention to her or take her seriously unless either she is in an established romantic relationship with them or she is taking pains to be noticeable?

I see what you mean, and that would make a good drawback, but I'm a little concerned that it would get mind-affecting in ways that would override Nullified, and I'm not sure you're comfortable with that.

Hmm. Very good point. I think... perhaps it just plays on a person's existing tendency toward such overlooking, if there is any?

Yes, that might work better...

I'm not sure it matters, though, because I keep trying to put this power together and it keeps either falling apart, being really expensive, or needing Chaser Six When as a prerequisite.

Ah, alas. Well, we will simply have to build it out of local magics then. Thank you for trying. ♡

I'm sorry I couldn't make it work! It would be a really neat power. I hope you figure it out someday. ♡

Thank you, friend. ♡

I think the only perk or drawback design still in play here was contemplating a triage option for Sable. Do you remember anything else?

I don't think so!

Can you say more about what good triage for Sable looks like?

The specific goal is to force some kind of balance in terms of time spent focused on helping people vs time spent focused on relaxing with loved ones or cuddled cozily against us while reading a book. Work-Life Balance, to borrow the corporatism.

Well, Time Enough For Love should already help a lot with that, but hmm, maybe I can come up with something even better...

We believe in you, notebook-friend. ♡

I'll try my best! ♡

Maya tweaks the shared build a bit further, bumping Like Roses up to A, as it is a prerequisite for Ruby's Moodier Ring, along with Breathe Easy, Warmhearted, Soundtrack, Battle Maiden, and Gloryseeker on the basis of rounding out defenses and adding a little additional comfort.

Ah, I realize we forgot to attend to Hailey's drawback. 

Oh! Yes, I see that now.

Hailey, what kind of drawbacks are you interested in?

I mean, the fun thing would be if we could find something that plays into my sadomasochism. I can try to think of a different angle if we need one, though.

What would be fun about that for you? Would you want something that branched off the Love Is A Battlefield tree, or something else?

Mostly that if we frame it right, we might be able to find something that Most People™ would see as a drawback, but could be the kind of painfully kinky sex I'd want to have anyway.

That sounds a little tricky, but I might be able to manage something... it just seems, hmm, narrowly scoped? But maybe I'm not understanding you right.

Nah, it probably is a bit narrow. Dunno. Maybe frame it like an addiction to pain? Not sure.

That sounds pretty scary! Is it something you'd want as part of your best life?

It's pushing it a little bit for me, but... I'm very much the kinda girl who treats pain as a really great spice in my love life. I'm the kinda girl who thinks making a bloody mess of my bed, whether it's my blood or my girlfriend's, sounds like a damned good night. Addiction is pushing it a bit, but a little pain just makes my day brighter.

Does it make sense if I say that I'm concerned this could turn out like Decorative?

Huh. Maybe? Kinda? Not sure I could put it into words but I kinda feel the shape of it?

It's that... taking something as a drawback means you can't escape it even if you want to. And under those conditions, things that are really nice to have as options, like being able to look pretty even in dire circumstances, can start to get oppressive and uncomfortable. If I saw someone taking Decorative without thinking it through, I would want to warn them that it's harder to live with than it looks, and I think the drawback you're asking for could potentially turn out the same way, because... there's a big difference between being able to be pushed out of your comfort zone sometimes when you want to, and having to live on the edge of your comfort zone even when you'd rather not?

Yeah, that makes sense. Hm. Tough decision, then. And if not this, then what do we do for my drawback?

Good question! What are your thoughts on the drawbacks that haven't been taken? A lot of drawbacks come from a kind of overflow of specialness; are there ways you like to be special that you think you'd handle better than most people if they became a heavy theme in your life?

Ah. Hm. I guess if there could be one subset of specialness you could say I specialize in (;p), it would be the sort of "edgy troubleshooter girl" vibes. Dark and spooky dramatics, rather than cutesy and bright.

I can think about that... do you have any other ideas in the meantime? Are there any drawbacks that all of you weren't sure whether to take and didn't make it into the main list, that you could grab as yours?

Honestly I kinda hate all of the remaining drawbacks except maybe Green With Envy, which just reminds me of fuckin' Slytherin House all over again, people being rivals if they couldn't claim you as their ally, that sorta shit. Or... oh hah. So there's a thing in the story I'm originally from where my hair is sort of permanently wild and messy. And it can be a kind of aesthetic wild and messy, artfully messy, but I never got tidy. What about that?

Interesting! Almost an inverse of Decorative... I don't think they'd necessarily be mutually exclusive, though... let me see. The hardest thing is going to be getting it to cover at least four points, I might need a followup...

Could do one that applies to the rest of my style, like I can be grunge or punk or goth but never chic, never elegant maybe?

Is never being elegant something you see as part of your best life?

The idea that if we ever have to go to a fancy ball, the girls have to make my ball gown sufficiently punk to not count as elegant? That makes me fucking cackle. No more making me look all stuffy and high-society, I'm narratively forbidden from ever being something other than my badass punk self. Like, I could maybe enjoy a touch of elegance if it was wrapped in a layer of goth and punk sufficient to piss off any stuffy noble bitches who see me, it's not the elegance itself I mind, it's the fact that 90% of elegant outfit options block me from looking like me.

All right, I think I can work with that. Let me see...

Name: Signature Style - Grants: +3 ☐
(Requires Style of Sisyphus)
The effects of Style of Sisyphus are inverted. You are now locked in to a single personal style. It can be an established fashion genre, or just the expression of your personal taste in clothing, but it must be something that resonates with you narratively and personally. It will never change, and your clothing, hair, makeup, and other styling will always conform to it, no matter how hard you or others try to dress or decorate you differently. You may find yourself at peace with this style in the long term, or not.

Oh that's fucking sweet. I love it. No one can make me dress up normie-fancy anymore.

She locks those drawbacks in.

Thanks ♡

You're very welcome! ♡

Okay. I think our builds work. The only thing left hanging is trying to see if there's a way to make Sable not burn herself out saving people.

Yes, I've been thinking about that... I think I have something, I'm just not sure it's the right thing.

Name: Work-Life Balance - Cost: 2 ☐
(Requires Time Enough For Love)
You count as your own friend for the purposes of Time Enough For Love.

Oh that's clever. That could help a lot of people, but I think it might not land right for Sable, because she recharges best in the company of others. It's very cool, though.

That makes sense. So what would give Sable more room to recharge?

Making her spend time cozily with people she loves.

I'm not sure I can do a power that makes someone do something; that would be more of a drawback situation. And Time Enough For Love already provides lots of opportunity, so I'm not sure how to facilitate it better... hmm. Maybe we're looking at this from the wrong perspective? What about powers that make it easier to help people, or easier for other people to help you help people?

Oh huh. That might work. Make the process easier and cheaper on her, by costing less of her effort and having more help. Yeah, you might be onto something there.

Let me see...

The girls pass the time carefully sifting through their builds, looking to see if anything stands out for Ruby or Neo to spend on, or any other tweaks they want to make. They unfortunately don't think of anything.

How's this?

Name: Ever Onward - Cost: 3 ☐
(Requires Cotton Candy and I Can Fix Them)
When you reach out to someone with love in your heart, whether to redeem them or just to connect as friends or lovers, your power can spark something in them. If they choose to believe in love and kindness with you, they can draw strength from your companionship, and pass that strength on to those they spark in turn. The effects of this power are subtle, but very far-reaching. Those you uplift with it, directly and indirectly, become better both at living their own best lives and at helping others.

oh. That's lovely. That's gorgeous. Can it work with I Can Help Them too, or just I Can Fix Them?

Yes, the way requirements work with replacements is that any power that replaces another can also substitute for it in requirements.

Also, I don't know if this part was obvious, but the people you connect with through Ever Onward also pass on their spark back to you. ♡

eep ♡

It seemed to me like something you could benefit from. ♡♡♡

She locks that in for her build, a happy tear dropping onto the paper. 

Best Notebook. ♡

I try. ♡

After another look over all the builds, Sable nods.

I think maybe we're done? We've checked through a few times, and everything seems as good as we can make it. All that's left is to make sure people aren't confused about what happened to us.

Okay. Just let me know when you want to finalize, then. ♡

They take a few minutes to set things up. First they go find the old analog kitchen clock with a seconds-hand an old roommate had left. That gets set up behind their chair on a dresser, so it'll be in easy view from the webcam. Then they grab a backpack, packing a couple basic-boring blank notebooks, their new set of pens, a few pencils, the solar crank radio they can charge their phone off of, a set of headphones, a bluetooth speaker that can also charge off the radio, and some granola bars and other small snacks. They configure their computer so that the next recording will run until exactly ten seconds after they take their finger off the spacebar, once started, and to be sent to their family and friends once complete.

Then Sable gets out her purple pen again and writes to their notebook friend.

Okay, have a plan. Going to record things and disappear on camera a bit theatrically, to try to provide more proof to everyone that they don't need to worry. But then I got to thinking, and now I've got a question. What happens to you when we're done here?

That's sort of a complicated question! When I'm not speaking to anyone on the Spirit's behalf, you could say that I exist outside of time, or at least beside it. Why do you ask?

Just curious if you wanna tag along. You're pretty neat. No obligation or anything, just fond of you. 

I do sometimes tag along with a vessel of the Spirit, and you all seem pretty neat too, but even though I'm a little torn about it (so to speak), I think I'd rather not. ♡

Absolutely valid. 

Okay, this is it. Can you finalize our builds when I drum on your cover? —Does it bother you if I drum on your cover? The basic idea is to take us and the backpack we'll be carrying — can we take things with us like a backpack? — when I give you some kind of signal, that way I can give a little speech on camera, drop something I'm fiddling with between my fingers, and signal you before it hits the desk. The video will stop ten seconds later and go where it needs to automatically.

Yes, you can take a backpack with you, yes, I can finalize your builds when you drum on my cover, and no, it won't bother me. ♡

You're a treasure, notebook-friend. We're so glad to have met you. Thank you for everything. ♡

Okay, packing things up now.

She puts her purple pen away in the backpack, slips it onto a shoulder, and closes the notebook. She tweaks the upload script to have a two minute delay, that way she can cancel it if nothing happens and she doesn't disappear. Then she grabs a random basic pencil and starts twirling it between her fingers, then holds down the spacebar with her left hand, starting the recording. The clock ticks away in the background, visible over her shoulder.

"Hello everyone. Family, friends, something deeply improbable happened to me. I got offered an isekai, a trip to another universe. I'm getting magic powers, the body of my dreams, and so much more. Naturally, y'all won't believe this just from my saying it, so I've arranged things so I can disappear on camera. This video will go to everyone I've thought of. If anyone else is worried about me, feel free to share it. Also feel free to send scientists to investigate the spot where I vanished, just in case they can learn something from it.

"This is an opportunity I can't pass up. Love y'all. Bye."

She flips the pencil into the air just high enough to give her time to wave, twirling her fingers in a playful wave to the camera, and takes her finger off the spacebar to drum her fingers atop the notebook's cover.

She's gone before the pencil hits the desk, the impact audible in the recording. The empty seat is recorded for a few more seconds, clock ticking steadily in the background, and then the recording stops.

Two minutes later, it gets uploaded to the discord server where her friends hang out, and to a file server where it can be sent to her parents and sisters.