[HUB ISLAND | MANSION CLEANING]

[spellbindmods]

Who: Coven members
Where: The Hub Island (the mansion, beach huts, etc)
When: Day 83
Open/Closed: Open to All

Not much has changed about the Hub Island since the first coven members ended up here, but there is an obvious unkemptness that's crept over the existing structures. Rains and winds have come and gone, flora and fauna have taken over some of the mansion and a few windows are broken. In short, despite activity levels being low, a lot needs to be done. First on the agenda is getting the mansion in working order -- there's also an incentive from Brie who doesn't want to do literally everything on her own. Helping with this task AND unloading the caravan means you get a boar roasted in your honor. Well, everyone gets one single boar roasted in their honor, but that's better than starving, right? A ▢ The first floor of the mansion is the one that's obviously been hit the hardest. The front doors are off their hinges, apparently battered down by a rather large boar (who can't be found, at the moment). The front hall needs to be swept out as it's now filled with leaves and climbing vines that have crept through cracks in windowsills. Two of the windows have also been broken, and fixing them might involve a little bit of brainstorming. Door fixing Sweeping and other cleaning busy work Window repair B ▢ If your character is less inclined towards hard labor, there are a lot of individual rooms that could use some sprucing up. Some of the Palai blankets can be used to make the multiple bedrooms more presentable, but a thick layer of dust exists on almost everything. From the kitchen to the bathrooms, only slight plumbing work needs to be implemented in order to get the water running again...but your character can also hole up in a bedroom and pretend to fluff pillows if your character wants to slack off. If your character's got a source of electricity, wink wink, your character can also help to power the lights, kitchen appliances and other electrical things in the house. Plumbing repair Dusting Bedmaking Sweeping (or vaccuming, if your character can find a way to power one) Making the kitchen clean and functional C ▢ The beach huts, on the other hand, are much less affected. While those pesky crabs that used to live in the bathhouse have fled into the wilderness, for the most part, some of them have taken up residence in these beach huts and aren't happy to see returning coven members back to claim their territory. In one beach hut, a boar has decided to have their babies there. If your character wants to clean out this particular home, beware that mom could come back at any moment for her piglets. D ▢ If your character want to take on a true challenge, someone can find a way to start cleaning out the bathhouse. Your character may have a solution to the bigger problem of getting the heat back to the water, but the more pressing issue is the layer of pond scum covering everything. It's gross, but something should be done! E ▢ There's a lot of things to be unloaded from the caravan and brought into the mansion after it's been cleaned out. From crates of shrimp to all of the supplies and gifts the Palai provided, someone with muscles needs to help with the heavy lifting! ...Or if your character has magic that can make this easier, they can of course use that. F ▢ Later on that night Brie makes good on her promise of boar -- and it's that massive boar. It pays to have violent magic when it comes to hunting and gathering, although I'm sure someone's character could have helped with lugging the giant thing to the beach. For new coven members, unfamiliar with how boar meat is something of a meat to get used to, this meal could potentially make them ill. Either way, the work is somewhat done and it's time to relax under the stars...untill it starts raining, anyway. G ▢ Wildcard!

Comments

(just pretend jude helped, okay)

[talim]

f.

[ thanks to velvet and the others, jude's already had more than his fill of boar, so here he is.

it seems like ages since jude saw the stars. sure, he could see them just fine in rieze maxia, especially fennmont, but even that seems like so long ago, regardless of the fact that he's only been here for a couple of months. he took those stars for granted.

so jude is letting the sand tickle his bare feet while he sits on the beach with his knees drawn to his chest, arms wrapped around them as he tips his head back to stare up at the sky. he can't claim to know much about stars — he can't pick out and name constellations, things like that — but they're still pretty, and he's always found the stars comforting. no matter where he is, no matter how far from where he wants to be, those stars are always hanging in the same sky.

that means these stars just might be dotting the skies in rieze maxia and elympios, too, and that gives jude a great deal of comfort.

he's relaxed, at peace, but a little company is always welcome, whether it's from a friend or a total stranger. do you want to join him? just be warned: there are dark clouds beginning to roll in. that isn't enough incentive to move him just yet, though. ]

Nice, aren't they?

wildcard.

just toss something here, or feel free to contact me to plot something out!

[enflame]

( What all did Emil do today? A lot -- cleaned out pond scum, dusted out a mansion bedroom, got rid of disgusting boar droppings on the floor. All of this while taking care of a tiny baby lizard thing that wants to touch all they lay their eyes on.

Frankly, he's exhausted.

There's also a melancholy vibe that's hanging over him. Something about visiting the same place twice serves as a from reminder that home is further away than his mind can comprehend...especially when the island itself, in a lot of ways, looks so much like it.

After getting Lisko to calm down (more aptly, probably pawning her off on Lalli so they can crawl in some underbrush together), he certainly wants to take some time to relax -- away from those depressingly small beach guys, though. The beach is as good a place as any. )

The stars? I suppose. ( Hello Dr. Jude. Don't worry, Emil took full advantage of the tub he cleaned and then heated. There's no boar funk detectable as he matches Jude's position to try and see how these stars make him feel. ) I guess every world has them.

[talim]

You guess?

[ jude turns to emil and chuckles with a fond smile. ]

I'm pretty sure that's just a fact.

[ but then he pauses, sensing the mild tension radiating off of him, the exhaustion and stress clouding his expression. his eyes softening, jude pats the space on the ground next to him. ]

... Sit with me?

[enflame]

Well, this place is literally an island where space worms fly overhead, so forgive me for not having much faith in science being real anymore.

( If worlds can have worms and lizards, one may eventually lack stars, okay? It's said as with as much good nature as possible, though, as Emil sits where Jude requests. Wow, his legs hurt. )

They're something of a comfort, I suppose. Couldn't tell you if they're the same as from back home or not.

[talim]

Okay, you have a point there. I'd like to think the stars are the same, though. It's a comfort to me, too.

[apatheia]

They are.

[2B's standing as she takes in the night sky, but the quiet awe in her voice might be slightly reminiscent of when it rained back in Aimintas. While experiencing her first night there was definitely something special, with no ocean here, the night feels like an entirely different thing. She can only assume that this is what it's like in the Night Kingdom back on Earth.

It's also very different to see the stars from the ground than through the window of the Bunker or while descending from there to Earth. The change of perspective is really something else.]

The night sky here is quite different from Aimintas's.

[talim]

[ her reaction does remind jude of when it rained. that memory isn't one he'll be forgetting anytime soon. ]

It is, isn't it? It's... refreshing. Relieving, even, to see the stars again.

[ jude looks up at 2b. ]

Were there stars like these back where you come from?

[apatheia]

Yes and no. I was able to see the stars from space in the Bunker, but I've never been able to see them from the ground like this.

[She's never been to the Night Kingdom, so she has no idea what it might've been like there. The machines had probably developed in very different ways.]

[talim]

You and 9S have both talked about it, but I've never really asked. So if you don't mind...

What, exactly, is the Bunker like? I can't get a clear picture of it in my head.

[deem]

[The smell of that boar meat is enough to deter 9S. They sure aren't like that where he comes from, and the odor seems far too thick in the night air even after people have finished eating, so he's content to stray from the more populous stretch of the beach.

And maybe that works out in his favor, since he happens upon a familiar figure. It's a bit unusual to find Jude quite so still, and it certainly makes him wonder what he's doing, but by the time he's stepped up behind him he's no more certain of what he's looking at than he was before.

That is, until he speaks]

...The stars, you mean?

[Honestly, before Aimintas, the last time he'd seen them was when he'd been on the Bunker. It's been strange to look at them from the surface of any planet]

[talim]

Yeah. The stars.

[ jude belatedly realizes that the person who answered him is 9s. ]

Oh... Nines.

[ it's been a few days since their little adventure in housekeeping. he gestures to the spot next to him. ]

I'm not doing anything interesting, but do you want to keep me company anyway? Figured you're good at that.

[deem]

[9S is parking himself beside Jude before he's quite finished speaking. He dislikes getting sand in his clothes, but he doesn't hesitate to join him anyway, accustomed as he is to having to tromp, slip, and slide his way through the desert]

Who says you're not interesting?

[That's not actually what was said, and he's well aware of that. But by now it should be no surprise that Jude doesn't actually have to do anything. Spending time with him has value all on its own.

Although maybe that would be strange to say]

[talim]

[ it wouldn't be strange at all. not to him. ]

That's not quite what I meant, but I'm glad you think I'm more entertaining than I do...

[ he huffs out a light laugh. the sand doesn't seem to bother jude at all. his feet are bare, sand between his toes, and his lab coat is hiked up to his knees. ]

What have you been up to since we finished cleaning?

[secrowtary]

I suppose so. That reminds me...

[ It's been a busy day for the coven members (namely for the ones who were willing to work), but it came to an end and they could have a rest now. Hibiki doesn't seem to be affected by the hard work, however, in fact, he's quite exhausted himself and rests down by Jude's side, sitting with his knees tucked up to his chin. ]

If a star fell for every time I thought of you, the sky would be empty.

[ He's just quoting his superior's lame pick-up lines but without context...welp. ]

[talim]

[ in a dry tone: ]

That's the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me.

[ no, it seriously is. ]

[secrowtary]

Are you serious...

[ Hibiki is confused. No, he's straight-out shocked. On top of that, he's feeling sorry for him if it's really the truth. ]

[talim]

Have I ever lied to you?

[ probably. but he isn't lying about this.... ]

What did you expect? I've never exactly been in a relationship.

[lunala]

[Moon took one look at the state of the bathhouse and figured--well, someone's gotta do it.]

D1
[Moving water isn't too difficult for Moon, at least. She figures the best way to get started is to get rid of all this pond scum, and the best way to do that is to take it out in large arcs of water that shoot through the air and out of the door. Razzle sits a safe distance from the water with Cyan--Moon's adopted Lynas Palai--who giggles and reaches up each time the water flies through the air.

So, eager to entertain the child, maybe Moon gets a little careless about checking that no one's near the bathhouse door. Hope you don't mind getting a face full of pond scum.]

D2
[The water's cleaned out! Now the hard part--scrubbing the bathhouse. Moon can't think of a better way to do it than to get as much soap as she can find, a bunch of rags, and using some elbow grease. Most of Moon's Pokemon are helping out, too (Nebby is too big, and Ariri can't grasp with her flippers, so they're in their Pokeballs), though Razzle is spending more time making sure Cyan, who is more playing with a rag than actually helping, doesn't try to eat the soap bubbles.

Lyro is closest to the door. And if you happen to step in? Well, you're getting soap and a rag shoved at you by a three foot tall wolf monster. You help too!]

D3 - Telepathy
[Of course, Moon has no idea how to fix the heating. But someone must, right?] Hey, does anyone know how to fix a--a big water heater?

D3

[deem]

The technology here seems pretty primitive to me, but I could take a crack at it.

[He can guess she's referring to the bathhouse]

[lunala]

Thanks! I cleaned up the bathhouse, but I don't really know how it works. [She can make guesses, but that doesn't help with fixing it.]

[deem]

I can come take a look then. Technology here's pretty ancient from my perspective, but that should make it easy to figure out.

Cleaning up all that had to be a lot of work...

D2

[transcutation]

[Having escaped from cleaning duty, Cagliosto was eager to be... anywhere but the mansion. Still, having been forced into some actual cleaning, she was also hoping to clean off, not aware that... the bath house was still a disaster zone.]

Hmm? Doesn't sound like-[And suddenly some animal is shoving a rag and soap at her. Cagliostro doesn't take them. In fact, she doesn't even move at all, just giving the pokemon an incredulous look.]

...and who are you supposed to be? [Re: who the hell do you think you are, bossing me around?]

[lunala]

[Lyro knows he can't answer in a way she'll understand, of course. Instead, he just shoves the soap and rag at her more insistently. You help too!]

[transcutation]

[She backs away, as if he were trying to push garbage into her hands]

That's not happening in a thousand years.

[She's just going to. Try to sidle on by him into the bathhouse.]

[transcutation]

[B1]

[Cagliostro is about as well-suited towards physical labor as one might expect from her appearance, but even things like housework and cleaning are both below her interest and her dignity. So acting as one befitting her age and status, she's hiding in one of the bedrooms that's already been cleaned. She's not being completely useless though, as she'd stashed away more than a few Eltos bones to experiment with. Sitting on the bed, arranging and rearranging the sparking, electric structures as the sunlight filters in through the window in a dusty beam on her golden hair, she might seem adorably idyllic...]

Shit! Having to use my bare hands for this... still, interesting...

[...until she gets her fingers zapped and opens her mouth.]


[B2]

[Someone apparently found her slacking off, because now Cagliostro is standing out in a hall wearing an apron and... a maid headdress? She's also holding a bucket and mop and looks like she either doesn't know what to do with them or has no intention of doing anything with them. Instead of actually mopping she's just... poking the floor with the other end of the mop sullenly.]


[F]

...and this is our reward? [More tired than she's been since, well, since someone literally tried to poison and kill her, Cagliostro does not look impressed by the meal being set in front of them. She cringes a bit even as she's handed a plate piled high with steaming, roast meat.] Boar... now there's something I haven't had to eat in centuries...