The Laundry Casket

[Liou]

Aw, you should have known that pumpkin maze would leave you with patches of goop clinging to that nice part of your costume. You guess you can still finish the night like this, but it is a pity about your costume.

Fortunately there is a laundromat in this next street!

Unfortunately it sounds quite busy. The high-pitched wailing you can hear from a block away does not bode well - what kind of washing machine makes that kind of noise?

Oh look, the door is decorated for Halloween. Maybe you could at least get treats, or even coupons. You peek in through the open door.

The ambient purple light washes over your head as you do so; it is bathing an orange-walled interior with a floor tiled in teal, and filtering out the colour from the tall potted plants that claim the corners.

Any other parts of the decor are hidden by the crowd jammed in there, of ghosts, skeletons, vampires and other spooks and fair folk all in a tizzy. Nobody seems to agree on whose laundry is whose, and whenever one attempts to check one machine, they are rebuffed by another patron!

One machine is open and spewing copious neon pink suds - you're pretty sure they've formed a cackling head - that have oozed all over the place. Watch your step.

Other machines seem to be blocked by queuing ghosts, with the one at the start of the line appearing to hand out tickets. Inside the machines, you can make out glowing ghostly faces spinning rapidly in the laundry. That would be the source of the loud wailing you could hear from outside.

Perhaps your excellent detective skills, honed by years of forum roleplays with secret roles and puzzles, could help you put some order into this mess, and earn you some extra treats.

> Pick a machine to investigate with a number between 1 and 12,

or

> hang out with some aforementioned spooks.

[downrightdude]

Dressed up as the most popular and glamorous performer in the world, Fancy Snaw enters the laundromat. They approach machine number 6, which is empty and dry. Compared to the other washers, this one is covered in dents.

"This thing better have the capacity of washing exosneisve clothes," grunts Snaw, placing a frilly dress and fur stole into the front-loading washer. "Now, where's the fabric-softener softener?"

[June Scarlet]

June really didn't want to get this brand-new dress dirty, but every laundry machine seems taken. She walks over to machine number 3. "I can help sort out who this laundry belongs to, if you want. And then maybe I can give my dress a quick rinse as well."

[Liou]

downrightdude
Error - Laundromat does not support godmodding.
Resetting machine description
The sixth machine is one of the largest, standing on top of another. There is a faint echo of singing coming from it. When you approach, you see a flash of something scaly dart within.
As you are about to attempt to place clothing within the machine, a very manicured hand pops out to gently push them aside.

"Uh, excuse me, we were like, rehearsing in here."
Two ladies' heads pop out, one above the other, their long, wavy hair exquisitely decorated with seashell and pearl tiaras. They take you in, and one whispers in the other's ear. Still you think you can see something scaly slithering behind them.

"Yeah sure!" says the one. "Okay, you can come in and join us." They both disappear inside.

> Follow them inside?



June Scarlet
The laundromat thinks that sounds good!
From within the depths of medium-sized machine 3 in the corner, you withdraw something quite thick and heavy. It has an odd, hairy sort of texture. Almost like fur! Which would be silly, as you're not supposed to wash fur in the laundry, of course, right? Unless...

"Oh no," comes a soft little voice from the other side of the shop. A plump young woman tiptoes up to you. "That would be mine," she whispers, part of the fur already wound around her arm. "Oh no, I don't think that was quite the right thing to do, was it. It was not supposed to look so pink."

She pulls out a little package. "Well, thank you for helping me find that at least, else I'd be in trouble. Take this? It's really waterproof. Like, you can probably just swim in it and stay dry."
It's a really really really waterproof like for real waterproof folding rain poncho.

[downrightdude]

Oct 29, 2022 17:29:42 GMT -5 Liou said:

downrightdude
> Follow them inside?

Fancy Snaw was surprised; wasn't this washing machine the portal to Narnia? Then again, perhaps the two ladies were from Narnia??

Microphone in hand, Snaw carefully crawls into the washer. If the weird strangers with amateur hairstyles were going to start a group, Snaw was going to be the leader! And then their tiaras will be Snaw's!

"I shall dedicate our first song to my beloved Liou," Snaw proclaims into the echoing drum.

[Lizica]

Lizica cautiously pokes her head into the laundromat. She's dressed in an overly-complicated crossover costume inspired by The Phantom Tollbooth and wearing a weird 31-faced costume head. Hoping this place will be less messy than that dang pumpkin maze, she carefully steps inside, over several pools of the neon pink suds.

She pauses at the back of one of the lines of ghosts and glances at the wailing, spinning ghosts within the washing machines. She can't quite tell if the wailing is excited or horrified.

"Um...is it like a ride? Or is it more like...ghost sheet maintenance?" she tentatively asks the ghost who's handing out tickets. She hopes that was okay to ask. She's not sure if it's rude to ask how ghosts keep clean.

[Liou]

downrightdude
The drum elongates into a sort of tunnel and opens up into a wider version of itself, like a vertical arena. The acoustics work well enough. The mermaids, floating with their tails coiled under them, harmonise beautifully with your voice as you belt out flattery. Jellyfish made of soap bubbles and fish-shaped sock puppets swim through the air to the rhythm of your song.

The mermaids are happy to sing along until you take a break. To commemorate this jam, they pull out a few packs of treats.
You receive Flood Capsules, the Totally Edible Colorful Shiny Detergent Capsules 100% Safe to Eat We Promise, the No Longer Forbidden Snack.
And a mermaid tiara, sure. The girls have plenty more back home, come back any time <3



Lizica
"This is our revolutionary method of combined amusement ride and spa treatment!" says the ghostie in a cap, handing you a ticket for a free trial. "Very invigorating and rejuvenating for your ectoplasm. Go on, give it a go!"
The ghost knocks on one of the washers. "You've had enough for now, Mildred."
The washer opens and a sheet ghost flops out with a huge grin, still giggling a light "wheeeeee".

> Hop in?
> Coax them out to search the washers they're using?

[Lizica]

"Ooooohhhhh," says Lizica, her mouth very round as she begins to understand. "That sounds very cool and clever! A fun ghost spa! --Oh! Oh, thanks very much, that's very generous of you," she adds when the ghost hands her a ticket.

As the spa's previous user tumbles out of the washer, Lizica smiles at Mildred's good spirits, and peeks into the washer she's been invited into.

On the one hand, she's not a ghost and doesn't really have ectoplasm to rejuvenate, and she's not sure how safe this spa treatment would be for alive folks who still have all their bones. But on the other hand, the clientele here seems friendly, her nice costume she spent almost a month making is covered in pumpkin goop and could stand a wash, and also, it seems a shame to waste a good coupon for a free trial. Also also, honestly, isn't everyone sort of curious what it would be like to be inside a spinning washing machine?

"I'd love to give it a shot," she tells the ghostie in the cap. "Do I owe you anything for the nice ticket and opportunity? ...Also, I'm not cutting in line, am I?" She glances at the ghostly queue.

[downrightdude]

Fancy Snaw is intrigued by the tiara. Who would have thought the strangers were actually washing machine mermaids!

"The one time I don't dress up as the most beautiful and sparkly Mermaid Princess, and I finally meet other mermaids." Snaw relents and agrees to perform, singing a magnificent song that is heard throughout all of the washing machines.

[Gelquie]

A person wearing an owl-wing cape, holding a notepad and paper, and wearing a business casual outfit with pens in their front torso pocket and the sleeves stained with smudges of apple juice-cider steps inside. It was unfortunate that they made such a mess as they did. This shirt also functioned as an actual work shirt, after all.

But for now everything just seemed chaotic! Nothing would get clean at this rate. Still, it was best to solve problems one step at a time. With that in mind, they approached Washing Machine No. 4 to investigate the trouble.

[Liou]

Lizica
"No worries dearie," says another sheet ghost, "we've been at it for a new nights now, you're spinning real fast around me as far as I can see, you take your turn now."

When you do hop into the washer, a voice instructs you to keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times. It is a spacious drum that seems to extend very deeply. When it starts to spin, you manage to stay mostly upright in the center. It certainly is wet, but not completely flooded, and a nice shower-like warmth. You are whisked away into the ride, the drum spins past other round washer windows.

You see schools of swimming socks, a mass of tentacular scarves building a nest out of what looks like a collection of car keys, an alarmingly large eye filling the entire window for a moment. You cruise slowly past a large ensemble of exquisite gowns, all of them performing a synchronised choreography to a haunting song. They are soon followed by a troupe of sprightly trousers dancing a merry jig.

Warm air follows the water so that you are quite dry and refreshed when the drum comes to a stop.
Oh, something stayed in there with you.
You get the One Sock. You know, that one. It was here all this time.



Gelquie
Atop washer number four is a blob of soap suds. "Soap!" it squeaks menacingly, hopping up and down. The little pile of bubbles attempts to tackle your shirt and immediately hops back in a challenging fashion. It was not any part of your shirt, though, only the stained part. Perhaps the little guy is looking for a stain to battle.

But inside washer four, you would find an ancient, sturdy peacoat, weathered, of the kind made to last ages at sea. It comes with barnacles that are a feature more than a bug at this point. It has a very interesting assortment of pockets.

"Arrrr!" you hear behind you with the sound of hurried bones. "Aarrr," the bones whisper this time as the skeleton leans in towards you. The skeleton remembers they are lightly dressed without a coat and pull their rags tigher around their very see-through ribcage.

"I see you have found my most important map before I could get to it," they whisper, but like, with extra pirate-y accent and words. "Very deft of you. Now before I get into trouble, what do you want in return for my coat? I got eerr. More maps. And this cool iron." They hold an assortment of random but possibly useful papers, and an iron they must have grabbed on the way. "What'll it be?"

[Gelquie]

The 'Night Owl' is startled by the soap suds, but only briefly. Clearly the sud needed a battle to face, and they had a mutual enemy! They transferred the pens from their front pocket to their pants pocket and buttoned off the shirt, revealing an ordinary t-shirt underneath, for the 'Night Owl' was nothing if not overly modest.

As they handed the shirt to the soap suds for an epic battle, they took in the peacoat and the skeleton maybe-pirate offering them the deal. They appeared to want a deal for the coat. ...Although... it was a very nice coat... And the barnacles were a very nice touch. It reminded them of a very amicable fey-like creature who loved to stare at the ocean.

But they resisted. It was, after all, not their coat, and they were sure they could find a costume showing the same. They looked over the prizes. They did need an iron... But they could always buy an iron. You can't buy good treasure maps at a store! Even if the maps lead to nothing much, it was the thrill of adventure that they sought.

"The maps, absolutely!" the 'Night Owl' declared, as they initiated the trade for the coat. "Love the outfit with the coat, by the way. Very fashionable."

[Lizica]

Lizica climbs out of the washer with a warm, excited grin on her face. Her costume is now clean and fresh and smells nice, and even though she doesn't have ectoplasm, she really does feel loose and relaxed and cozy, like that feeling of finishing a shower and curling up in bed with a good book.

"Wow, you were right!" she tells the queue of ghosts and the ghost with the cap. "That was really cool, and so refreshing! Seeing all these amazing ecosystems of laundry really renews my appreciation of the chore of laundry and all its hidden pocket dimensions. Like the--...huh?" She notices the One Sock stuck to her. "What?!" she exclaims. "This sock was here all along?? ...Shall I bring it back home to its mate and my sock collection, or does it have a twin that belongs to someone else here? It must have had an incredible time swimming with the other socks here--kind of like I did!"

She turns to the ghosts again, now clasping The Sock. "Thank you so much again for letting me try out your lovely spa! Can I help out anywhere by matching up other laundry items like this Sock, or simply spread the word for you?"

[Liou]

Lizica
The ghost in the cap tips their cap. "Glad you could finally find it. They always end up in the last place you'd look, don't they. But if one in a pair keeps escaping, I recommend checking how things are going between the two of them. Sock relationships can be delicate to tread."

Another sheet ghost sidles up to the washer for another ride. "So many things end up clogging these drums, it's always good to check who's forgotten or lost something in one of those machines!"

"If you find more sheetfolk spinning around, maybe pull them out after a while," adds the ghost in the cap warily.



Gelquie
"Arrr, less fashionable than you! Stop defeating me at fashion on top of the rest!" says the skeleton but in a piratier way. "It'll be tough to separate from me map, but you fashionable folks drive a hard bargain here, what with finding me coat in these spinnymachines and now holding me coat!"

The skellington wiggles their phalanges in between their ribs, unrolling something from the back of their rags.

"These ancient cabalistic symbols have taken countless hours to decipher, and we're still not clear on what it all means! Extremely valuable."

They pull out a roll of a patchwork of bits of a shiny kind of cloth, and carefully swap this at the very same time they retrieve their coat from your hands. "Arrrr, me precious." The skellington pats their barnacle friends.

You have received: Encyclopedia of Laundry Symbols from Clothing Labels and What They Actually Mean. Absolutely unique information found nowhere else in the universe. Nobody else knows how to read these pictograms. Ultimate power. Use this well.

[Gelquie]

'Night Owl' tilts their head. "Tsk tsk, that was a compliment for you," they say blithely. "I figure it's very clear you've got me beat once you get your coat back! And on that note, here you go, a fair exchange!"

They hand over the coat and accept the written materials. "Happy reunion to you and your barnacle friends!"

They salute before turning to the written materials. Despite the warning that they would take countless hours to decipher, they were also very impatient to get started. After all, really. Materials that actually explain how to read the pictograms that have haunted them for ages, in a way that made sense?? Truly, they were slated to become all powerful at laundromancy.

With such temptations of knowledge at their fingertips, they sidle away from the machine to allow others to use them, before taking a seat at the sitting area and beginning to read and take notes in their notebook.