[DECEMBER INTRO LOG | WORLD TWO]

[spellbindmods]

Who: All coven members, especially new folk!
Where: In and around the new world’s apartment building where the coven is staying, as well as the rest of Shehui
When: Day 160
Open/Closed: Open to All

How did you get into this building? This apartment room? What the fuck is going on? Let's refer back to this page for a semi in-depth, wow so detailed, explanation of your current situation. Are you up to speed? Great. Now, here's the question of the hour: what are you going to do about it? A ▢ Unlike the other coven members, the newbies are coming into the apartment building with non-empty apartment rooms. Depending on how polite or cautious you are, your first instinct may be to find your apartment and knock on the door. But it is your apartment now, too, and you do have an ID card that'll get you in. What horrible calamity will you walk in on? What eccentric roommates will you happen upon? The wacky situational comedy scenarios are ENDLESS. B ▢ One of the jobs on the job board this week is fundraising -- neat, right? Before you even make it up to your apartment, you may be accosted by an excited citizen -- coven member or no -- that is trying to push something onto your character. Chocolate bars? Cheese logs? Cookie dough? Some other luxury item or overpriced snack food? Because this fundraising task is based on commission, the citizen in question may be a bit pushy...or you may be inclined to buy ridiculous amounts of goods and not know what to do with yourself.

New coven members showing up today are in luck. This week, Shehui is celebrating a Keep the Community Clean event. It's rare that they force jobs on people, but there has been an influx of new citizens and the population growth is leading to more trash. Fulfill your assignment and you'll be rewarded 1,000 credits. Don't? Be fined 500. Everyone has been sent a job to their ID, be it collecting trash, cleaning their apartment building or holding up signs/handing out literature about recycling. Sweeping, bagging...it's dirty work, but someone has to do it. C ▢ Cleaning up trash on the street might be hard, but it's fulfilling! Okay, that's a lie. It's demeaning and a lot of citizens don't really care about the minimal littering credit deduction as they toss trash from their cars or miss throwing it into bins. Volunteers are outfitted with gloves, vests and a roll of trash bags, but it doesn't prevent them from being rudely splashed with snow or having to pick up nasty things. Have fun! D ▢ For those who decided to pass out literature, you did pick the better job! It's a lot easier to avoid getting nasty, but it's also awkward...having to hand out fliers, be cheerful, regurgitate boring facts about recycling. Please sir, stop and listen to this exciting speech about why should put your cans in the red bins, not the blue ones! E ▢ There is a bright side to these jobs: local businesses are getting in on the outpouring of people out and about to try and get them into seats and buying things. Free samples are abound! There's a local coffee shop, Mooncents, that is handing out free small drinks to anyone who is actually working today. Come inside, regardless if you "volunteer" or not. It's warm inside with all that snow out there...

Speaking of snow! Most businesses and buildings in Shehui have paid to have snow falling every other hour, which coats the city areas in a fine, powdery dust of snowflakes. You may be familiar with snow, or maybe you've never seen it in your entire life! It's unavoidable either way, so you're going to have to deal with it. F ▢ Children in Shehui are usually in a school building somewhere, but snow days call for some leniency. School is pretty come-and-go anyway, so don't be surprised that there are quite a few kidlets out and about on the streets. They're also fully into the spirit of snow, throwing snowballs at unsuspecting strangers. Will you get in on the action, or will you plan the murder of innocent children today? G ▢ While it's unadvised to just go lay out in the street and make snow angels, there are plenty of parks in which to examine or play in the snow. You won't be the only one acting like a fool -- it's Shehui. You're allowed to live a little! H ▢ Finally, Coins! has bought the most snow as a means for their seasonal activity -- snow paintball. If you're looking to have a good time and enjoy Shehui for what it is, you'd best be inclined to sign up. A massive field with snowbanks and excellent areas for hiding, snowball paintballs that hurt twice as much as usual. What more could you ask for? I ▢ Wildcard! How will your character interact with this new and unusual world?

Comments

[rootandbranch]

Sure, of course...

[it doesn't look like it should be possible for something so large to move with such impossible delicacy, but Geir does carefully, very carefully, lean down and lick the cookies off her palm, carefully keeping his teeth away from her fingers. he does catch a taste of cool metal, but he doesn't comment on it, taking the opportunity to roll the cookies back further onto his tongue and swallow instead.]

Oh! ...they're sweet, but they're a different texture than I'm used to.

[Geir's only had pastries before so far, among his sweet things experience -- not cookies. these are a bit crunchy, and he savors the taste before making his final judgment.]

--they're really good! Thank you!

[marakukaja]

You're welcome. I think we'd both hate for these to go to waste.

[ She inwardly breathes a sigh of relief at the lack of comment about her limbs, but says nothing more on that front. ]

Um...forgive me if this is rude to ask, but are you a dragon...?

[ A real dragon, not a Shadow or anything of the sort. ]

[rootandbranch]

[Geir could probably take the question as rude if he really mustered up some indignation, but he isn't about to when the person asking it just gave him cookies. besides, he's getting pretty used to the question.]

Hahahaha! It's not rude. I'm definitely a dragon. Did you think I might be something else?

["are you a dragon" implies that his benefactress knows what a dragon is, but she wasn't sure whether he was one or not, despite how obvious it is. are there other giant lizards where she comes from?]

[marakukaja]

Well, I did think for a moment that you could have been a new form of an old enemy of mine...

[ A Shadow. There have been table Shadows, tank Shadows, lion Shadows, scale Shadows, the works. A dragon Shadow isn't entirely off the table.

As strange as meeting a "real" dragon might be, given her mental framework of modern society, she's also a robot fighting monsters that come from people's heads. So she really shouldn't be talking about what's weird and what's not. ]

[rootandbranch]

I don't believe we're enemies. You don't want to be, do you?

[Geir peers at her with interest. she doesn't look much like she can fight, but she is also possibly made of metal, or at least wearing some kind of metal armor that looks like skin, so you can't be too sure. he doesn't have a lot of doubts that he could fight one of the people he knows is an android (2B and Nines both come to mind), but since they're people he likes, he's never actually tried it.

enemies that can change shape sound pretty cool, though.]

This has always been my form, anyway. So whatever I am, I'm not that.

[marakukaja]

Yes, I can see that now.

[ She's not being sarcastic about it either. After conversing with him for this short amount of time, she's pretty sure he's not a Shadow. She's not picking up anything Shadow-y about his readings, either. ]

Of course I wouldn't want us to be enemies. [ More friends = good. More enemies = bad. ] You're rather friendly for a dragon.

[ Of course, the only thing she's heard about actual dragons is in stories and mythology and the like, which did not always have the most flattering descriptions of dragons. ]

[rootandbranch]

[Geir is a creature of darkness, that's for sure, but if anything he's his own Shadow. his readings probably aren't familiar at all, but they definitely don't look like what she'd be used to seeing in one of her typical enemies. for now, Geir just laughs at her commentary, his teeth showing in an expression that's very much more a smile than a snarl.]

Have you met many dragons? I would rather be friendly! If you're a member of the coven too, I have much more reason to protect you than fight you.

[he'd do it, too. they haven't had to fight yet in Shehui, and he rather hopes they won't for a while, as mundane as existence without fights may be -- he's gotten used to a more peaceful life in the last couple of months. but the idea of protecting the coven comes more easily to him the longer he stays with the group. he likes them, so why not...?]

sorry for the delays/lateness; feel free to drop this!

[marakukaja]

I'm happy to hear that. I feel similarly.

[ Although her protection extends to basically everyone in the coven, there's also the people in the worlds that they travel to that she wants to protect. Life is life is life. ]

I have not met any dragons at all, no. Dragons such as yourself would be considered mythology and fable, not fact, where I am from.

[ Well, unless they're talking about the world borne of people's hearts and minds and all that jazz. ]

...Although I know I'm hardly one to talk.

[ And robots would be considered science fiction to those exact same people, but here she is, walking and talking. ]

[rootandbranch]

Aren't you one to talk? That's commentary with some teeth in it. You should tell me why!

[this girl is friendly enough, whatever she is, and Geir decides that he quite likes her. there's much to be said for speaking easily to someone on your first impression of them-- especially if the conversation comes with them giving something to you. which reminds him, actually, that he has his own things to give away for the season...]

But first, do you like flowers?

[marakukaja]

[ Perhaps she'll tell him another time. A first encounter is no time to disclose something as secretive as her true purpose and creation; even back home it's supposed to be kept secret from the public at almost any cost. Aigis tilts her head slightly, smile still on her face. ]

Yes, I do. Why do you ask?

[rootandbranch]

I have a lot of flowers! I wondered if you might like some.

[Geir grins at Aigis. the reason was something so simple, after all.]

[marakukaja]

[ Flowers. Something so simple, so ubiquitous, and yet still so lovely, because they are life itself. ]

I'd love some! They might be a bit difficult to properly take care of in this climate, however...

[ Such is the circle of life. Death and rebirth and death and birth. Something something winter of rebirth. ]

[rootandbranch]

They're snow pansies! They're hardy. And, um, in a pot. So you can just take them inside if you want.

[symbolism isn't one of the things that Geir has explored terribly far yet in his philosophical education, but something about him still appreciates the image of a flower that's able to grow in the snow. his reaction isn't quite as reflective of the larger spiritual meaning of growth in the midst of death and stasis. he looks at them and thinks, fondly, tough little things.]

Shall I bring one out?

[marakukaja]

Sure. Thank you very much...I do like living things.

[ She smiles, and then her mouth mouths an "oh" of surprise, as she just remembered something. ]

Ah, but it's almost impolite of me to accept a gift without even giving my name. I am Aigis.

[rootandbranch]

Oh! Well met, Aigis. I'm Geir.

[he inclines his head to her, an oddly formal gesture for the casualness of their conversation. he doesn't always treat it as such, but meeting new people and the naming of names is a heavy business, of course.]

Wait here, okay? It shouldn't take me long...

[his body curves towards the entrance to the apartment building as he prepares to head in there and retrieve her flowers.]

[marakukaja]

All right, Geir.

[ The smile on her face is soft, and her fingers interlaced. She's used to waiting, although she's still a little antsy about sparing some time to properly investigate the area after all these shenanigans. Nevertheless, she patiently waits for his return. ]

[rootandbranch]

[maybe she can even give away another cookie or two. Geir's not gone more than five to ten minutes, though; they're right next to the apartment building, after all.

when he emerges, he's walking with unexpected grace on three legs, one of his front feet cupped close next to his chest. it's easier to balance a perfectly normal-sized flowerpot with cheerful purple flowers spilling out of it against his claws there. still showing that incongruous dexterity, he extends the small bundle of life to her after he draws close again, its ceramic surface carefully held between two talons.]

Here you go! I hope you like them.

[marakukaja]

[ She reaches out and takes the flowers in the flowerpot from him as expected, carefully making sure to avoid his talons for both of their sakes. ]

Oh, thank you! They're just as lovely as I thought they'd be. I'll take good care of them.

[ Snow pansies: relatively simple, but no less pretty. ]

Do you want more cookies? I feel that that's the least I can give you in return.

[ These boxes are probably tiny in comparison to a big dragon. ]

[rootandbranch]

[Geir lets his talons drop away from the pot as he's sure Aigis has a hold of it. he's reassured that she still doesn't seem particularly wary of proximity to him. most coven members have adjusted quickly, in his experience, but the people of Shehui in general surely haven't.]

Ehehe. Okay, just one more box.

[it's true, Geir wouldn't mind just one more taste of those strangely addictive cookies.]