Mingle: For a limited time only...

[hearsthesea]

Who: Everyone!
Where: Anywhere on the hub
When: Days 134-139
Open/Closed: Open mingle goooo!

[Copper, lizards, and vines - oh my! With the recent installation of 9S and co.'s scanning equipment and the also recent, significantly wetter rainstorms there's quite a lot to check out on the island right now. Plus, the monitor robot still needs a name. You're not going to leave them nameless forever, are you?

Too bad Genette's put out word that everyone's about to be moving location soon. That means these are the last days the coven has for a little while to get everything in order, whether it's to take things to the next destination or to leave them behind. Get your bags packed and your huts cleaned, everyone!]

Comments

[hearsthesea]

A - Need a hand?
[Being relatively new on the island, Shirley doesn't have a lot to pack or to leave behind. She doesn't feel like she needs much, anyway. She's spent enough time moving around or being moved around that she hasn't had much by way of possessions for a while now, even before being magicked onto this island.

That leaves her with several days to fill and few affairs to get in order, though, and in the end she needs something to do or else she's just sitting around feeling useless. It takes a while to work up the courage and seek others who might need help, but eventually she does. She isn't much if she isn't doing anything, after all. So she hangs around shyly near the area where the huts are lined up, and if anyone looks a little busy around here she might wave briefly to get your attention.]

Excuse me. Do you need help with anything? I know we're supposed to leave soon, so I can help with any preparations that still need to be done.

B - Testing, testing (closed to people who've threaded with Shirley previously)
[And considering that, there is one thing Shirley wants to try and figure out before she leaves. She's still mulling over the power Genette mentioned to her upon her arrival and the things Stella said...has it been a month now? Shirley can't tell if that time feels long or short. But Shirley can't stop thinking about things like wishes and happiness, and what that's all supposed to mean. Eventually she chases her own thoughts in circles long enough to drive her out of silence. She's going to feel silly doing this, and she has a feeling she'll probably screw it up, but she needs to do this. Better to approach people she knows, at least, to avoid making that somebody's first impression of her.]

Can I ask you something? I want to see what my power is, but I think I need another person.

C - Lizard hunting!
[Once word gets out about the lizards with medicinal mucus...well, it's a little gross but still potentially useful. Who knows where they're going, after all? If it could save someone in a pinch - well, Shirley's seen people die who didn't have to before. Even just the hope of prevention is more than worth braving something gross.

Unfortunately, she hasn't quite figured out exactly which rocks they live on yet and that seems like the best bet for grabbing some of the mucus. She has located one of the lizards, though so for now she's just following one of them semi-stealthily. How stealthy do you need to track a lizard, anyway?]

c

[talim]

Um... Shirley? What are you doing?

[ jude peers on curiously, giving her a quizzical look. ]

B

[splinten]

[Ah, it's sea jesus. Dirk knows Jay wants people to look out for her, and he knows that the snappy, irritable personality isn't exactly who Shirley is, not normally. What he doesn't know is how to actually handle this. He isn't Jake or Roxy, he doesn't have boundless kindness and goodwill on his side. He is, frankly, just a dude who is terrible.

So, sure. Let's see how this goes.]

No problem. What do you need?

[rootandbranch]

A - if a wood chuck could chuck wood

[Geir doesn't usually frequent the stretch of island around the base camp, but anyone in the area during the days leading up to the move might hear some almighty crashing from just over the forested hill to the north. a short, brisk walk away from the estate, Geir has appropriated a clearing to stack up a truly formidable number of tree trunks. he's already stripped their branches off and discarded them in a pile to one side, and is busy using his claws and body weight to cut the wood of selected logs down and split them.

predictably, the cords of firewood that he's already completed using this technique are a splintered mess compared to those made with the uniform cuts of an ax. Geir looks pleased with himself anyway as he rears up to survey his work and greet whoever's just walked into the chopping zone.]

Hey, do you think this will dry if we leave it out here? Or do you want to take some back to where you're staying?



B - the great people tally

[in those times when he's not disturbing the peace with woodcutting, anyone walking out of the mansion, the beach huts, or the tiny houses -- any place that Geir is aware that people in the coven live -- might just find a dragon's full length sprawled out in front of wherever it is that they're leaving. his toothy muzzle is only a few yards away from their door, his chin on the ground and the tip of his tail just barely twitching in the distance. his gaze sharpens whenever anyone crosses his line of vision. he's watching people enter and exit v e r y i n t e n s e l y.

anyone he hasn't met already might or might not be surprised when he abruptly speaks, depending on whether they're used to the idea of talking dragons.]

You! What's your name?

[anyone Geir knows already will get an acknowledging nod instead of such a pointed greeting, but either way, he's up to something.]



C - surprise bath bomb

[there's been no real reason for Geir to go to the bathhouse till now. after all, he has his own pool in front of his cave, and the building is very hard for a dragon to enter. on the other hand, he's brought Vern here to wash his hair several times, so he knows that it's there... and that there's warm water inside. it's a little chillier on the Hub island this week, and the flooding destabilized his own pool enough that he isn't sure he should swim much yet. and they've all been doing so much work to pack up! surely he deserves a treat.

the door to the ornate stone bathhouse is an oversized, vaulted one, deliberately imposing and much bigger than the human-sized doors that give access to the other island buildings. if Geir really flattens himself out, why, anything is possible. but it's just as possible that people walking into the bathhouse wouldn't expect to find a blissfully dozing dragon filling up all four hot spring pools at once.]



D - a lizard reunion

[whether on his own or in company, Geir would have celebrated the pod's first discovery by going to see if the band-aid lizards are really under their rocks in the east. once he's there, though, it's hard for him to make himself actually start overturning rocks to find the little creatures. he can't help but feel a flash of sympathy for them: how would he feel if someone pulled the roof off of his cave while he was inside of it? that's just rude.

instead he curls up as small as he can (not very) and puts his chin on his foreclaws to peacefully watch for the lizards to leave their hiding places and show themselves. it's a sunny day, and there are still a few insects out and about to attract them. he has time to observe them while they flick in and out of their burrows. more helpfully, he doesn't grudge letting anyone else who's found their way to this area know what he sees.]

Did you catch that? I just saw a tail...



E - choose your own adventure

[write in any scenario or pm this journal for a custom prompt!]

C

[rootandbranch]

[Geir's taking the extreme opposite approach to lizard hunting: stealthily waiting for them to emerge from under their rocks so he can watch where they're coming from. well... semi-stealthily. not very stealthily? he's actually just curled up in a big pile on the leeward slope of a small ridge, sunning himself. as soon as Shirley crests the hill he's lying on, she can see the giant lump of lazy dragon in front of her on the other side.

it does seem to work on the lizards. he's so large they haven't processed that he's a potential threat and are treating him as another rock. the one Shirley's following pauses, as if it's considering using the space under Geir's chin as a nest.]

Oh, hello...

b

[terezias]

[Maybe Dirk let Geir know that the tiny hut-houses on the western side of the island were now inhabited, or maybe he just chose to stop by on his own, but either way, if he wanted people he chose his timing well: there's a skinny girl with gray skin and horns heading outside. She stops when she sees the dragon, and her eyebrows go up when he talks--dragons don't generally do that in her experience, at least not out loud.

But she recovers quickly, a grin coming across her face as she points back at him.]

I'm Terezi! What's your name?

[soulcomet]

a. a lizard quest for wizards (and a lizard)

[anyone who happens to find themselves near the base camp at some point during the day may also find themselves suddenly accosted by Madoka, determined and enthusiastic as ever.]

Hi! Do you have some time to help us out? I can pay you for your trouble. [if food she's squirreled away and/or a terrible drawing could be considered an acceptable payment, at least. but she's willing to negotiate to help round up as many people to help as she can — just name your price.]

b. quest log updated

[anyone who agrees to lend a hand will be whisked away via dragon to the eastern portion of the island, where Madoka is leading a frantic roundup of the coveted first aid lizards. there's no telling what the new world they're going to will be like, so her goal here is to at least gather enough to get them started — to at least temporarily hold together whatever injuries she may come across.]

[though, have a seat next to her as she takes a break from lizard questing, letting one of the little critters crawl across her hands, and she'll offer a small, but rather concerned smile. rounding up the lizards is the easy part. utilizing them, or even safely keeping them, is a concept completely lost to her, and she's maybe having doubts that she's capable of doing it.]

[please give her advice.]

c. cooldown

[it's been a long few days of hard work, and Madoka is, quite frankly, exhausted. but she isn't particularly interested in resting — on one evening, she can instead be found at the beach, one of her usual haunts, a various assortment of supplies in the sand before her. there's a sleeping bag, as if she's intending to actually stay out here late, a box containing one of the lizards she's captured earlier, a notebook, and a dagger, should a boar happen to have wander too far away from the forest.]

[she's not paying attention to any of that, though — she's instead concentrating on a bright ball of energy that's floating above her extended hands, providing a bright light as the night approaches. she lightly sort of tosses it from hand to hand and up and down, careful (she gets only one heal a day, after all), but also marveling that she's able to do this at all. thanks, Eltos pendant.]

d. wildcard

[for anything else!]

[wingfic]

a. out hunting

[Prepare for the next world, Genette says. It would help if she had any idea what that new world was going to be. If it's like Aimintas, they'll be able to get or buy anything they need from the inhabitants, but she's also very aware that it might not be like Aimintas. So--it makes sense to have a few days' supplies on hand, right?

Members of the coven may run into Tara-Fay collecting those supplies: gathering strawberries from the patch on the west side of the island, tubers from the north, or fish from the lagoon. Or they might be lucky enough to sight a skinny girl pulling a dead deer by its legs into base camp, the effort of dragging it seeming to take its toll on her. She looks around and her eyes finally land on you, although she seems hesitant to actually approach you.]

Hey. [ . . . ] If you help me with this, I'll give you some.


b. she's a little old for this

[Of course, all this gathering of supplies means a lot of wandering around different parts of the island, and at some point she wanders her way into "what used to be a playground to the north of the base camp. The equipment is rusted but workable: a swing set, merry-go-round, a jungle gym and a large slide."

From the look of confusion on her face, she doesn't recognize any of this stuff. She prods idly at the swing set.]

What is this supposed to do?


c. wildcard

[Message prospit for a personalized starter or make something up! Tara-Fay may also be found: weeding and doing other farm work in Haru's garden near the forest, taking care of laundry in the bathhouses, or making use of the mansion kitchen.]

a

[splinten]

[Ah, Madoka with a lizard. He can easily imagine where this is going.

Without needing to be asked, he grabs the knife Brie gave him and casually cuts open his palm. He then holds it out to her.]

Here you go.

a

[imsorey]

[there might have been a time in Sorey's life when hearing a bunch of loud noises and seeing a large dragon would have been a cause for alarm. now, when he happens upon the scene with a mix of concern and interest, there's a sigh of relief and a mental "Oh, it's just Geir." he eyes the wood critically as he hops over to get a better look, and glances up at the sky.]

If the weather stays dry it'll be fine, but it might be better to put some of it in the huts just in case. I wouldn't want all of your hard work to go to waste.

c

[rootandbranch]

[Geir isn't surprised to find Madoka at the beach. it's the first place he ever really talked to her, after all. winging overhead like a shadow to catch a last glimpse of the sunset over the waves, his eye is drawn by the ball of brightness, and he circles around it a couple of times, wondering. it doesn't take him more than a glance to recognize Madoka, but what power is this...?

...when he lands, it's strangely soft. his wings are near-soundless compared to how loud they should be, and the sand is barely disturbed by his claws and tail. he settles there for a moment, about fifty yards further back from the shore than Madoka, before quietly coming up behind her to look over her shoulder at the light.]

...beautiful...

[soulcomet]

— Dirk! What if this gets infected?

[there is absolutely nothing in her tone that suggests surprise, though, because ... quite frankly, she isn't. it's not exactly the most scolding tone, either. both of them have dealt with far worse.]

[Madoka immediately takes his hand to fully assess the damage, a seasoned healer, and nothing at all like terrified person she was the first time he maimed himself so she could learn first aid. she does, in some weird way, appreciate the sentiment, at least, because she really has no idea how exactly the lizards are supposed to work.]

[soulcomet]

[Madoka turns slightly, to offer Geir a little, slightly sheepish, smile.]

Ehehe, thank you! It's my healing spell, but the Eltos pendant gives me a little bit more control over it.

[namely, she could chuck it into the ocean, if she wanted. but the ocean probably doesn't need healing.]

[witchwithoutacause]

A - You can fly you can fly you can flyyy

[ Seriously, though, while this doesn't make up for everything, being dragged off to an adventure in some strange place and immediately getting drenched, losing her wand, and being shoved into a shitty little shack, and also what's with the clothes?

Anyways, this doesn't quite make up for all of that, if only because she could already do it, but she can still fly. The magic she was given is a pretty one-to-one replacement for a tia freyre spell, and she's so new that all she has to do is stuff whatever clothes she can scrounge up into whatever bags she can do the same with, grab her broom and a weapon, and go. That all adds up to one thing - she's going to fly.

The wind in her hair, she's picked a spot to the northeast (not that far, actually, from where the lizard hunting party is going down) away from where she expects to see a lot of people, in case flying like this has some differences and she eats shit. Darting around in the air, lazily drifting, or twirling, dancing, going from a tight roll to her broom held vertically, a foot pressed to the side just barely keeping her on.

She'll come down eventually, whether it's to catch her breath or because she noticed someone watching. ]

B - If she was a wizard that'd rhyme with lizard???

[ Amanda does eventually catch on that something's going on from her aerial vantage point, and drifts over. Once she realizes it's important, it's time to show off in the most socially acceptable way - helping out. ]

This looks like a good spot!

[ Guiding people to lizards from up above, sitting sideways on her broom. She doesn't even have to get her hands dirty. ]

C - Whatever

[ ooc: Or just come up with something and throw it at me. ]

[imsorey]

a. adventurous lizards

[Word of the band-aid lizards travels fast, and upon the discovery of the pod Sorey's curioriosity naturally leads him to investigate further. It doesn't take long to make his way east, but actually finding the lizards is a different story. A few hours of searching rock after rock doesn't leave him with much but sore muscles.

Still, he is nothing if not determined, and eventually his efforts lead to results: a little lizard darts out from under a large rock Sorey manages to yank up. It runs away from him, though, and he looks up and gives a shout to the nearest passerby who is also, most likely, looking for lizards.]

--Quick, catch it!


b. books books books

[When he's not running around outside, though, Sorey can be found holed up in the library. He's settled himself in a warm patch of light by a window, several messy stacks of books spread out around him in what doesn't seem to be any particular order. Even the sound of movement doesn't cause him to pause and look up if anyone approaches; he just keeps scribbling down notes as he flips through pages.

You could leave him be, or you could scare the crap out of him.]


c. wildcard!

[Let me know if there's something in particular you'd like to play out! Sorey can also reasonably be found doing laundry, packing essentials for their inevitable trip, and making inedible things in the kitchen.]

[dawninglight]

a. asking questions

[She's already heard stories about Aimintas and what happened there, but hearing that they'll be traveling to a new world soon leaves Yona with an unexpected amount of jitters. There's no way to calm her restless agitation except to find a way to put her mind at ease, which is why she can be found wandering the paths between the huts and the forest and flagging people down as she spots them.]

Excuse me, were you here when everyone went to the last world? I have some questions to ask.


b. bring your own meat

[Because Yona is still more or less new, she doesn't have much to stow away or worry about packing to bring along to the new world. She's used to traveling light and hasn't started to collect anythung during her stay on the island. But she can still contribute with ingredients for dinner! More specifically, various kinds of meat. A few hours of hunting leaves her with, well, maybe too much meat. It's more than one person can eat, anyway, so she sends out a telepathic message to anyone in the area.]

Does anyone need some meat? I have a lot, and I don't want it to go to waste.

[Anyone who happens upon her in person will find her carrying two adult-sized boars with some difficulty, although the difficulty seems to be their size rather than their weight.]


c. wildcard

[Want to do something that isn't listed here? Hit me up with anything!]

[rootbound]

a. do it for the--

[Vern, being contrary and also not really wanting to deal with more reptiles than just Geir, went to check on the kudzuesque plants rather than the lizards once the scanner pod started indicating finds. he can be found near Geir while Geir's gently terrorizing people in their homes, messing around with some cuttings and water.

in the energy-boosting aura that's Geir's Qri-given power, the vines are sprouting and lengthening extra enthusiastically. he's trying to see if he can get three of them to grow in a braided conformation, with some success. when he's got a respectable length of it going, he might nod at you if you're passing by]

Think this would work as a rope?

b. other?

[anything else you want! you can hit me up on plurk/PM if needed.]

b

[talim]

[ jude peers over sorey's shoulder, quiet for a moment before he speaks. he doesn't want to startle him., but it's very much possible that he can't avoid that... ]

What are you up to, Sorey?

[ jude is always holed up in the library, himself. ]

b

[talim]

If it's any consolation, I've never had a pet, either.

[ jude can tell what's bothering her by the look on her face because he's mildly concerned about the very same thing. with a slight smile, he moves to sit down next to her. ]

[rootandbranch]

Those things are really useful. Do the necklaces work any differently than the bones themselves?

[Geir's given the raw bones out to some people -- Homura among them -- but perhaps he should have been warning them to make pendants out of them properly.

in the meantime, she says this is a healing spell... and between its brightness, and its nature, Geir can't help but think of Vern. his summoner is a lightbringer, and told him once that he wished he had healing powers, so he could help others. Madoka seems to have combined both of those things together at the moment.]

...I didn't know that healing could look like a light...

c

[oneandmikleonly]

[with the beaches still kind of mucky from the storm as well, soaking in the sea is less pleasant than it could be, so Mikleo heads, for once to the bathhouse

oh.]

Um, should I come back later?

[rootandbranch]

[Geir's laser focus sharpens still further as Terezi emerges: who is she? why is she grey and horned? she seems friendly, anyway -- has she seen dragons before? there are so many questions.

he lifts his head and shifts to a more natural position for having a conversation rather than observing, responding to that grin with a toothy one of his own. friendly is a lot easier to deal with than alarmed, and gives him the perfect opportunity to be friendly back!]

Call me Geir! I haven't seen you before. You're new, right?

[rootandbranch]

I was thinking that we could cover it, but there aren't any of those flexible covers that the Palai used around here. [plastic tarps aren't among the things they brought back with them, probably.] And I don't know what to use for a roof except more logs...

[Geir lets that one trail off: he certainly doesn't know how to build an adequately watertight structure out of the materials he's gathered.]

Do you think the huts have enough room? All the wood everyone's been using for fires is so bad.

[he lived in Odin's hall long enough to know that you can't just burn green firewood and still have a good hearth to curl up next to.]

[rootandbranch]

Hmmmmm...?

[Geir opens one eye in the barest slit and peers at Mikleo. oh, that's who it is; he might have recognized him by the strange starlight-and-water taste of him at the back of his throat, but it's hard to smell anything in here over the steam.]

Oh, it's you. Why?

[oneandmikleonly]

I don't want to...crowd...