Are we, lost? Disoriented? Fugued?

[finalbows]

WHO: Rose, et al
WHERE: Rose Barn
WHEN: day 16+

it is a lovely day in the pasture and outside there are horrible birds

Comments

Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[pleasantmisery]

[Late Day 16, Shadow Fiend will send everyone in Rose a cubecall, asking them to come to the kitchen for a surprise. The questions about favorite flavors and scents paid off!

Once everyone has arrived in the kitchen (or, for those not feeling social, been gently rounded up and shepherded there), they will see a mysterious pile of objects covered in fabric that used to be a pajama shirt. Shadow Fiend will gently shake her staff to get everyone's attention before setting it aside.]

It's been pretty rough around here lately, so I thought it'd be nice to do something for everyone. That's why I called you all here for...

[With a little magical drumroll, Shadow Fiend whips off the cloth to reveal...ice cream! Five pints and a pile of bars in surprisingly delicious flavors considering the answers that some people (not naming names) gave her. There's also a stack of bowls and spoons ready.]

...an ice cream party! Well, not just an ice cream party.

Blood Fiend and I were talking a few days ago, and...well, you know how those games or rituals can get pretty, um, messy. So we thought maybe it would be a good idea to talk about things like...fears! Sore points! Things that might lead to being, uh, emotionally compromised!

Like, imagine if you were super afraid of spiders. And in the next game, we had to fight a giant spider. If we knew you were super afraid of spiders ahead of time, you could just go hide in a corner and not worry about explaining it. And we'd know not to get all weird about you hiding in a corner. That kind of thing!

At the end of the day, I think what most of the games have in common is that we win or lose as a team. So being able to work together as a team is pretty important! We don't have to all be friends, though I'd like to be. But we're stuck together and we've gotta work together, and that's probably going to include some pretty shitty situations. Better to start thinking about that stuff now, when nobody's been maimed recently, then when the maiming is imminent, right?

And if you don't want to talk, and just want to listen, that's okay--help yourself to some ice cream too! And if you really don't want to talk or listen, well, you're free to leave. But you don't get any ice cream.

Ummm... That's it from me, I think. Blood Fiend, do you wanna add anything?

[ICE CREAM FLAVORS:
Curry: a sweet vanilla cream mix with the subtle heat of pepper pods, ginger, and tumeric.
Sea Salt: a tray of creamy, teal ice cream bars with a hint of salt for a sweet but oceany flavor.
Afternoon Tea: a variety of herbs mimicking black and green teas, with just a hint of cardamom and sunflower seeds.
Cat Nap: a honey nectar based ice cream made with honeysuckles and valerian. (basically catnip)
Fresh Flower Cream: Lavender ice cream that isn't too perfumey.
Vanilla: vanilla]

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[catposting]

[ Blood Fiend is leaning against the wall, arms folded and expression neutral, betraying none of his annoyance at being outed as a position of authority, Shadow Fiend what the fuck

he nods approvingly at the end of her speech. ]

Not much — you've covered most of the points, in a better way than I could have.

[ stretches, pushing himself off the wall. ]

Now that we've all settled in somewhat, I'd like to propose a whitelist of guests. For example, I've offered Lyra and Sonata from Clover access to our obstacle course. Judging by our current frequent visitors, I'm sure that some of you have names that you'd like to add.

If anyone views certain guests to be a threat to our barn, I'd like for those concerns to be aired here.

[ glances at Angel Devil, smiles ]

Otherwise I'd prefer to operate under the assumption that all whitelisted guests will be treated with courtesy while on-premises.

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[finalbows]

<sub>[ angel devil, for his part, was to be found burrowed deeply into his new tacky bed while it was still daylight out, after a bird encounter that make him want to sleep for 13209049204 years. he'd slugged in and dropped onto his bed so fast he didn't even put his creepy zap-seal on the door, which means he didn't mind getting disturbed, right? and indeed, he hadn't reacted overmuch to the intrusion.

his expression is perfectly neutral, as Shadow Fiend pitches the actual reason they're here... and he's not getting up to try and leave, so... angel devil, is that tacit acceptance...?

...even when Lyra's mentioned as a brand new carte blanche guest...
angel devil, is that tacit acceptance...?

Stop looking so distracted, space case, this is important! ]</sub>

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[pleasantmisery]

Oh, that's a good idea! Though...if we're gonna have more guests, maybe we should get locks for our rooms? Not that I really think anyone's gonna go rifling through our stuff, but still, everyone should have their own private space.

[themanofyourdreams]

Not a bad idea. I'd like it if Spinel was generally whitelisted.

[He has to take a moment to think about the threat part, hmm.]

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[catnyap]

I have just one I would like to add, although I don't know how frequently he'll feel like visiting.

Kuu~chan... that is... Crescendo from Bluebell. I mentioned it briefly before, but he is someone of some importance to me. [...] Although I'd prefer to keep that between us, considering he's not aware yet aware of that fact.

[strateelgic]

I was of the belief that my brother was already welcome here. It would seem we have many acquaintances in Clover.

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[pleasantmisery]

Oh, I just remembered! Awhile ago I said Blossom should feel free to visit and hangout anytime. Is everyone okay with her being on the whitelist?

[themanofyourdreams]

[...well, he is going to try the curry ice cream. This is surprisingly palatable.

He is otherwise wary about this premise, settling in to listen to start with.]

We've already been doing pretty well so far, at least that I've been around for...

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[catnyap]

[Ritsu blinks; a soft smile on his face. It's "early" for him so he's feeling energetic and full of spirit. The promise of ice cream is sweet and the thought itself is a wise one he can appreciate.]

I think it's a wonderful idea~ Thank you for the treats.

[strateelgic]

I can't say I'm a fan of sharing my weaknesses with everyone, but I do see the logic of it.

[Sigh.]

... I'm afraid of heights.

It is... unnerving for a merman to find themselves suspended in nothingness as opposed to being able to move around comfortably in all directions as one does in the ocean.

And on that subject... merfolk are particularly susceptible to heat, even moreso dry heat. Exponentially so if reverted to my actual form.

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party! // cw suicide talk

[catposting]

[ pointedly not looking at Pond Fiend ]

... If something like the first ritual happens again, and we're presented with the choice to kill ourselves or kill Lily, we should pick ourselves.

They have soul retrieval. We don't.

[ is this a weakness or a pragmatic approach? who knows! ]

Re: Late Day 16 - ice cream party!

[catposting]

Ah, a couple more things:

[ aka more things I the player forgot about because sheep goes too hard ]

Lethe wanted us to have this information.

[ summons his blue cube, projects the information from the book. each page is laid out side by side, Star Wars holo style. he'll leave the projection up long enough for everyone to read. ]

Perci also wanted to know if any of you tea snobs wanted to go collect tea shrubs with him sometime, near the honeysuckle vineyards.

FOUNTAIN

[catposting]

Re: FOUNTAIN

[finalbows]

<sub>[ Angel Devil's got.... how many coins was he supposed to have, again? Anyway, he's got a red coin, and he strides up first to the fountain to stare down into it... He tosses his red coin up in the air, catches it as he always does... and finally reaches out over the water with it held in a closed fist, to slowly curl his fingers open and let it drop.

...

for once, nothing happens.

his shoulders fall. ]</sub>

mildly nsfw discussion in this memory,

[themanofyourdreams]

[Face-Making Devil tosses a coin in the fountain, and a memory plays:]

"Face-Making Devil" and "Spinel" are sitting at the bar counter in a small, intimate bar setting, with a flashy bartender polishing a bonito. Strangely, even though Spinel looks the same age as she is now, the scene seems to be seen with full vision. Did Face-Making Devil still have two eyes at this point?

"Damn. I thought you of all people would know something," mutters Face-Making Devil, frustrated about dead end questions that he must have just asked.

"I am an informant, but really dangerous information doesn't just come rolling in here. But I promise, I'll keep my eye out for anything."

"Please do."

"And if I find something... You have to take a bath with me."

"Absolutely not."

"Aw, why not?" asks the bartender, petulant.

"Because you'd take up all the hot water."

"That's your issue?" asks a feminine voice from inside of Face-Making Devil's head. No one else seems to hear it or comment on it. Face-Making Devil doesn't acknowledge the comment having been made. Maybe you imagined it.

"I promise I won't! I'll even take the costume off," assures the bartender.

"It's a costume?" Spinel finally chimes in to ask. She's been awkwardly quiet, mildly nervous about being here.

"Mm-hm, and I look good without it," says the bartender with a wink.

Face-Making Devil starts sliding off the bar stool. "Time to go. Thanks for the chat, Mama."

"Aw, leaving already?"

"I have an investigation to finish. But I'll be back."

"You are so impatient... Even though you take your time in bed."

Face-Making Devil glances furtively at Spinel out of the corner of his eye before responding. "Don't say things like that!"

Spinel is still sitting on her bar stool, staring blankly between them. "'In bed'? What does that mean?"

"You don't need to know! Let's go." He urges her off her stool, and they head out of the bar onto the street outside.

[Face-Making Devil blinks as the memory subsides, not yet considering how other people might react to seeing any of that.]

I guess it'll show things I already remember, too.

open to teammates/existing cr

[catposting]

[ after a moment's hesitation, Blood Fiend tosses his coin.

he's younger, dressed in plain clothing. he's pacing a hallway, agitated. judging by the tension in his shoulders, the knit in his brow, the tautness of his tail — he's been here a while. a few hours, perhaps. minutes pass. he scowls, glancing at his watch one last time, and sighs. sliding an object out from his pocket, he heads a different direction, stopping outside a door. he places the object — a keycard — to the side of a black doorframe. the door beeps, and slides open.

he tenses. something's wrong. purple energy starts to form around his palms, claws beginning to extend —

light floods the room.

"Surprise!!!"

the purple dissipates. he almost drops his keycard.

"What on earth—?!"

confetti hits him on the forehead. peals of laughter can be heard from the corner, the voices' owners hidden by shadow. a girl's voice addresses him.

"Don't tell us you forgot your own birthday, ■■■■■■■■■! You only become legal once in your life, you know!"

"Y-you fools! The test, it's tomorrow —"

■■■■■■■■■'s voice comes out as a growl, clenched fists and curled tail betraying his worry.

the laughter continues.

"Lighten up a little, okay? Pinky here already stole the map. Didn't even set off an alarm this time! We've already marked the exits, and the other teams' starting points, so there's no way we'll lose. Even if we get into a fight, you're waaay stronger than all those other punks out there. I bet you could kill them all without breaking a sweat."

"That's not —"

"Yeah, yeah, killing's boring. A servant's job, we know, we know. But you'd still do it for us, right? If knocking them out wasn't enough?"

"... Just cut the crap. How do we even know that map's the real thing?"

"Eeeeeh? You're not serious, are you? Remember when you called Pinky 'the best Scout you know?' That's 'cause he is! Name one time he's ever let us down — um, setting off alarms doesn't count."

■■■■■■■■■ stares, lips quirking despite himself. she's right.

"Trust us, sweetheart. Like you did back then. And trust yourself. You think we'd have followed you if we didn't believe in you, too? Pffft."

"..."

"Aaand sleep more while you're at it! We gotta get a full night's rest if we wanna perform. You told us that yourself!"

■■■■■■■■■ bites his lip. he looks back toward the doorway, contemplating. he turns back. with a huff, he heads toward the voice, peeling the confetti off his face.

"Fine. Don't call me sweetheart."

the memory ends. ]

[strateelgic]

[Pond Fiend waits until there isn't a crowd around the fountain before going up to it himself. With everyone winning this time around it's seeing a lot of use. Tossing his coin into the water, he waits with the usual trepidation to see if anything he's forgotten will appear.

He's greeted with the sight of a messy bedroom in the familiar Octavinelle décor. Is this the same room as the one he sleeps in? How could he have forgotten he shared a room with someone else, much less his own brother? The mess is contained to that one side, and the merman is overcome with the desire to clean the whole place up even though he knows this is just a memory.

And then he does. His memory self begins picking up discarded items of clothing and arranging them neatly in piles. Off-Beat must have a thing for fashion, as he has far more articles of clothing (especially shoes) than Pond Fiend does. On that vein, said brother enters right as he's finishing up and asks if he can have some space in the other's closet for his things, since he has so much room left over, and is promptly shut down.

And that's it. That's the memory. The worst part is he's still so glad to have seen it]

[stirtheblood]

[Vicious is here with two bottles in his hands.

He... knocks...? on the barn door by kicking it a few times.]

[strateelgic]

[Opens...?

Oh, it's you.]

Gentler, please. It's a very simple door.

[pleasantmisery]

[poking her head out of the barn :V

let's say this is post-ice cream party, so kinda late in the evening]

Oh, it's you! Hello!

[themanofyourdreams]

...

[He opens the door to peek out of it without actually letting him in.]

What do you want?

[finalbows]

<sub>[ watching like. "Huh." up in the now-held-together-with-vines bubble window.


He really didn't expect sort-of-knocking the DAY they had their guest policy convo. Time to see what his teammates' idea of enforcing the graylist is. ]</sub>

morning, day 17--

[finalbows]

<sub>[ as promised...

Angel Devil's scraped himself into his standard of presentability for the day. He's by the opened mouth of the barn, peeking his head out with a hand resting on the frame, very clearly scanning the skies....

with particular attention to the tops of trees and buildings, where something winged might be lurking. ]</sub>

Re: morning, day 17--

[catposting]

[ guess who's back from the lighthouse, looking like he barely slept. he's a little less pale than he was during Angie's ~dramatic declaration~, at least. ]

Looking for someone?