Hijinks Mingle

[potentite]

Who: Everyone!
Where: Anywhere around the hub!
When: Days 103-105
Open/Closed: Open mingle!
Notes: See this post for details on the moon prompt and this one for the telepathy/dream/spirit prompts!



[A | Flower Gleam and Glow]
[The nearby moon is still passing close to the hub island, meaning the effects are still in play. Perhaps now is the time to stop and smell the large lit up sparkling moonflowers that have bloomed? Or be annoyed by the mosquito-like insects that came with them.

Alternatively, the deer seem to draw some sort of energy from the moon's light. Given their size, at least their sudden aggression and proximity to the base camp isn't the worst thing in the world but a kick would still break a rib or other bone so be careful! Possibly help each other deal with these cute but troublesome fauna.]



[B | Eavesdropping]
[For some reason, the telepathy will suddenly get rather wonky. Characters won't know why it's happening, though of course no doubt there will be ponderings, but it means characters won't be in control of their ability to broadcast — or more specifically, not broadcast — their thoughts. Time to find out secrets of an embarrassing nature. Or maybe something sadder is going on in your character's head.

If this wasn't bad enough, the area around the signet might experience burning or tingling. Just try to keep a lid on your brain for the day and distract yourself from any annoying pain.]



[C | Talking In Your Sleep]
[Or maybe your character just doesn't have the most interesting thoughts. Maybe they're busy thinking about pie instead of their upsetting childhood. That's fair. Pie is great.

But surely sometimes it haunts their dreams. With the telepathy running amuck, it's no wonder dreams and nightmares are leaking through, too. Of course, it doesn't have to be an accident. Feel free to grab a friend and share a fanciful dreamscape together on purpose! But for those nuts that are tougher to crack, accidents can and will happen.]



[D | Who You Gonna Call]
[Last but not least, as Friday rolls around, there seems to be something odd going on with the island. If your character is inclined towards the spiritual or supernatural, they'll no doubt notice the strange heavy thickness hanging around. There are whispers in the air and all of new energy just feels solemn. Might be good to give people a heads up and keep an eye on it.]

Comments

[imsorey]

[there's a slight hitch in breath but otherwise no indication that anyone heard him

the wood shifts slightly under his claws, a corner of it disappearing into the wall.]

[rootandbranch]

Um, don't be scared, if you're scared. I'm just trying to find out why you're behind a wall in a burning building.

[Geir tries to keep his tone as polite and nonthreatening as possible. clearly, the person behind the wall feels threatened. it's a threatening situation. things are burning down.

he presses harder against the wood, curious.]

[imsorey]

[the shelf swings inward--it doesn't take much force to push it in! there's a hole in the wall there leading into a room filled with those silvery, heatless flames. there's so much of it, so bright, that it takes his eyes a second to adjust.

on the floor are the ashen remains of yet more books that have been burned down to nothing. the room appears to be sagging in on itself; a third of the room has already half-collapsed, and a support beam in the middle of the room is the only thing that's preventing the rest of it from falling. the beam is...hunched...over? the longer you look at it, the less it looks like a beam and the more it looks like a shadowy person trying to hold up the whole room. it also seems to be the source of the heavy breathing you're hearing.]

[rootandbranch]

Hey... you need to get out of here. It's all going to fall in.

[concerned, Geir moves into the room -- or at least as much as he can if it's not big enough for him.]

[imsorey]

[he is magically able to fit into the room, because that's how dreams work. he fills up a lot of the space, though, and he has to stoop low in order to not smack his head on the slowly collapsing roof.

the figure is still shadowy and slightly transparent (how he's holding anything up is a bit of a mystery) but this close it's easily recognizable as Sorey. he doesn't seem intent upon moving anytime soon.]

It's...okay. I can...hold it.

[rootandbranch]

[Geir casts a pragmatic eye over the room. even allowing for weird dream logic, he doesn't see anything worth saving.]

What's the point of holding it? This building is burning down anyway. It's not going to make any difference once everything's gone.

[imsorey]

[he's still straining under the weight of the roof, but does his best to meet Geir's eyes]

If I let it go...I won't...get any answers. Everything'll burn.

[he'll also probably be crushed under the roof if he lets it go]

[rootandbranch]

Everything will burn anyway. Fire doesn't just stop because someone is there.

[Geir snorts, not unkind, and steps forward to do his best to use his weight and strength to shove the ceiling up and away from Sorey as much as possible. will this even work, in someone else's dream?]

[imsorey]

I still have to try--!

[the ceiling is heavy, heavier than it should be--it feels weighed down with the sense of DUTY and the desire for ANSWERS. but Geir is a big dragon, and pure brute strength has some effect. the ceiling pushes up just enough for Sorey to straighten up, his arms stretched above his head and his palms flat against the roof. but it doesn't go any further than that.]

What are you--?

[rootandbranch]

Go look for whatever answers you wanted, if any aren't burned yet. Or put out the fire. Or do something that isn't stupid.

Go fast. I don't know where to look!

[imsorey]

I don't know where to look either! That's the problem! I can't find anything in here.

[rootandbranch]

What are you looking for, then?!

[imsorey]

Answers! Everything!

[that is not helpful at all but he says it with a lot of sincerity and determination, and maybe a tiny hint of desperation]

[rootandbranch]

You think everything is narrow enough to fit in one burning building?! If you're trapped in here, of course you can't find it!

[imsorey]

Well it's got to be in here somewhere! There's nothing outside!

[rootandbranch]

I was just out there! There's an island and a bunch of weird stuff!

[imsorey]

None of that has the answers I'm looking for!

[rootandbranch]

[with a kind of exasperated compassion]

Listen--

You're stuck. You could keep doing the same thing and watching it not work till you're dead, and you won't even have made a real effort to get what you keep saying you want. All you're doing is getting out of trying, because as long as you're not trying, you don't have to admit it might not work.

I can hold this for you while you take one last look or I can leave you here to not look at all and think that's better for some reason.

[imsorey]

[lowering his hands a little, inching them down slowly until there's just a few token fingertips still touching the roof]

...I don't want to ask you to do my job for me. It's not liked you asked for this.

[rootandbranch]

I'm not going to do it for the rest of my life!! Get out of here and take your look before I bite you!

[HE SNAPS AT SOREY DEMONSTRATIVELY TO MAKE HIM GET HIS DAMN HANDS OFF THE CEILING]

[imsorey]

--Fine!

[HE

reflexively lets go of the ceiling to smack Geir's nose, bad dragon

and then takes the suggestion to heart and runs for the opening. can he search a burning library for information before it's all destroyed??? time to find out]

And thank you!

[rootandbranch]

[Geir SNEEZES at the bapping and braces himself against the ceiling to wait for Sorey with a little huff.

the nice thing about supporting the dumb burning library ceiling on Sorey's behalf is that if Sorey takes too long he can totally just drop the thing and not feel guilty. this is an extremely stupid task to begin with and he doesn't feel bad about contemplating putting it down. maybe if you cared about the library ceiling you wouldn't have just stood here with it on your shoulders quibbling while it burned down, Sorey.]

[imsorey]

[wow don't judge him he's trying his best!11

the weight of DUTY still falls heavy on Geir's shoulders has he holds up the roof, but the desire for ANSWERS has vanished out the hole in the wall with the shadowy Sorey. while the weight doesn't get heavier, it never becomes comfortable to carry. the heatless flames lick at the walls, the collapsed side of the room, and at Geir's feet are equally filled with a sense of DUTY but are mostly just bright and annoying. if he focuses on them for too long they start to form various humanoid shapes that flicker and vanish with a sigh.

it's hard to gauge how long Sorey has been gone, but just when Geir is getting bored enough to drop the roof he comes running back in, still empty handed and still vaguely transparent and shadowy. but he looks a little less troubled than when he left.]

Thanks for waiting. You can let it go!

[rootandbranch]

It's about time!

[Geir ducks his head and dashes for the entrance; he's quick enough that he's sure he can make it out before the collapse is complete. he shoves Sorey out in front of him if Sorey is dumb enough to be in the roof-falls-on-his-head radius at all. sorry Sorey. no trust]

[imsorey]

[he was, in fact, standing in the open hole-in-the-wall doorway and gets a not so gentle shove out; Geir's speed was unexpected and he goes tumbling as the room crashes into a burning heap behind them. the library looks much as it was before, except the fire has grown in here and has a higher chance of spreading thanks to the fire seeping out from behind them.

after a pause and some groaning, shadowy Sorey rolls to his feet and tries to dust his clothes off]

Sorry it took so long. It's a big library.