I am a Shadow, the true self [open]

[izanagis]

Who: Shadow Yu and YOU!
Where: all around town
What: In multiple instances, Yu glitches into various Shadow versions of himself
Warnings: violence and aggression, others will be added as necessary

You're not me.

The Shadow represents the worst parts of a person. Secrets buried so deep they may have forgotten they carry them. Their darkest thoughts and wishes, the impulses they keep behind closed doors to remain palatable to society.

Yu has never had to face a Shadow self before. That changes today.

(prompts in comments!)

Comments

[izanagis]

[It's not very visible, but there is calculation behind each expression, each thought. Yu doesn't know Ryoji very well, but there is opportunity for growth, there. He seems friendly enough, and that means Yu mirrors the friendliness, his smile genial and maybe a touch generic.]

I haven't seen any, either. [He sounds confident in that fact, but unconcerned, at the same time. His attention goes to the selection of different paths for a moment before he turns his attention back to the other boy.]

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't relieved to see a friendly face, though. Maybe we'll have better luck getting through it together?

[luneminary]

[They may only have conversed for just a couple of times, but Ryoji has always been a trusting person. All of his encounters with Yu have been pleasant, and there’s no reason for this to be any different! Unfortunately this also means that Ryoji doesn’t know Yu well enough to notice anything off in his smile.]

Two heads are better that one! [Ryoji nods enthusiastically.] And it’s best to stick together in a place like this — you can get lost easily in here.

[He leans off to the side, squinting at the selection of corridors behind Yu.]

So where did you come from? Let’s eliminate the dead ends one by one!

[izanagis]

I couldn't agree more.

[Then again, the both of them are basically lost already. Have been lost from the start, because in this maze, there's no way not to be. Not that that particular piece of information is pertinent to the situation...right?

But the Shadow breezes through that entire logical twist, focusing instead on that first part. Two is better than one.

Ryoji has no idea how true that is. The Shadow himself doesn't even seem to know how true that is. Nonetheless, he considers the question, looking around as if he's trying to remember. Was it...?] That way, [he finally points, and it seems reasonable that that particular direction might be where he came from. With that path eliminated, as well as Ryoji's, it leaves only north and west.]

Which direction should we try first?