sheep_game | Misty Morning

[...looks between Ananke and Charon and nibbles on his dandelion shortbread

I don't think it matters if we win or lose. Just playing sounds like enough. The game is just about hitting a ball through some little hoops. I've got good aim, I can do that easy.]

Just to make sure, ma'am: it isn't a matter of winning or losing, but just finishing a single round with you, yes? Is your version of croquet different from how we might normally play it? Only asking for one round seems...

[lethe you JUST got kidnapped and there are multiple variations of it with different rules]

Which variation do you intend, Lady? Garden, golf or wicket? Or another we don't know?

[snaps her fingers.

Her garden expands some, and wickets made of vines appear from the ground--a modified version with fewer wickets we do NOT have time to do 28 rounds,,,

It's basically a small bougie backyard version. Next to the table are two lily white mallets and balls.

She takes another sip of tea.]

[ ganba, lily. ]

[ After listening to the elder Lilies engage in mental bickering followed by Charon shoving the rules of croquet at them over the connection, Ananke goes for one of the mallets as soon as they appear

Both of you need a break. ]

Edited 2024-03-10 05:29 (UTC)

[lethe getting cut off mid mental tirade:]

Oh.

[audible to Lethe only probably since he has control of the link and what gets passed over:

aaaaaaaaaaaaa

outwardly he is impassive, though; just folds his hands around his half-full teacup and watches calmly.]

Splendid. It's lovely to see the eagerness of the youth.

Well then. Shall we?

[a giggle, and she sets down her teacup, standing and taking a mallet and ball of her own, waltzing over to the garden.

And with no further explanation, and waiting for Ananke to follow. . .she simply starts playing, gently knocking her ball through a loop.

Yay :3 This is fun :3]

Goooo team

Of course. I don't want to keep you waiting.

[ Just follows her lead, knocking his own ball when his turn comes up. He's doing a decent job of keeping a friendly face up for this. Haha it's so fun :) :) ]

[just echoes Charon's aaaaaaaaaaaaa right back at him and nudges him to dump all of his croquet knowledge at Ananke--not just the rules but also the physicality, how to move when one hits the ball, how hard to hit it, the subtle bits of wisdom etched into one's body memory from playing a game over and over again. it probably doesn't matter because it's just playing one game of croquet but just in caseeeeeeee]

Good luck. Have fun.

[he applauds politely and impartially whenever either of them gets the ball through their target, even as he finishes his cup of tea and shoves that knowledge at Lethe to give Ananke

he is not like. a pro player because why on earth would he be. but he has in fact had to casually deal with this game at more than one social garden-party and make a decent showing before, so that's what they're getting]

[a polite clap when Ananke manages to knock his ball through the loop. Good job!!

she walks over to her ball, crouching, and tapping at her chin as she considers the distance to her next hoop. . .

meanwhile, Charon will hear a faint snap. Several, actually, barely audible. Should he look at the source. . .it's Ananke.

All his tethers to this world have snapped off. Though, it looks as if they look like they may want to reattach at any moment. . .

The lady demon stands and knocks her ball through.]

[ woaaaah dude that's some crazy shit ]

[ Stands back to watch her, trying to balance listening to the onslaught of instruction against watching her general technique. Generally wondering if croquet is always this serious? Do rich people really think this stuff is fun? Wild.

He's fully oblivious to whatever the heck is going on with his threads ]

[fully oblivious to what is going on with the threads, but he does notice something off--it's hard for him to pinpoint what, but it has him glancing over at Charon]

[he has one hand flat on the table now so he doesn't shatter the Lady Demon's cup and the other gripping his staff firmly. his expression is fixed and very cool. the passing of croquet information to Ananke comes to a natural-seeming stop, but there's a kind of--sense of things recalibrating rapidly underneath. whatever internal shrieking was going on that Lethe was getting just mutes out suddenly

Ananke, she is doing something strange to your connections here; we'll try to fix it. Keep calm and play. Start reaffirming your bonds to Ananke, Lethe. Carmine -- do your best.

he himself is going to check first if he can like. even do anything? as a shepherd. he's got the crook and Ananke's still collared. can he reach out to Ananke's connections somehow and nudge them back where they should be]

[He can't reattach them, no. All he can do is. . .grant him a wish and have him be sent home. Of course, that would mean. . .

The lady demon looks over, head tilted.]

Oh my, what a serious expression. Is our playing that intense? Do let me know. . .

If we need to stop the game.

[:3

meanwhile, another snap. This time Lethe's ties are fully severed. And Carmine. . .well, he's still firmly tethered, sorry. But his feathers? Wow. He sure is shedding a lot of them now. They just keep falling out.

Seemingly completely unrelated, in the distance, they hear the howl of wolves.

And then see beams of lights randomly being shot out. Damn. What is going on there.

Not the lady demon's problem as she giddily prances to the next wicket.]

[ HAA... is he still able to control how they move. if so he is carefully maneuvering them back into place :);;;;; ]

It's just that it's been a while since any of us played croquet either, probably!

[ Bites the inside of his cheek to tamp down the immediate flare of panic. She must be trying to scare them. It's all for show. This is going to be fine. This is— ]

[ okay the howling lightshow gets his attention for a second. is someone having a worse day than them? is this another cool new problem being added to the croquet game? he doesn't have time to think about this right now!! ]

[ Outwardly though, he looks as calm as anything since he's still wearing an illusion over is suit. He straightens up to follow her to the next wicket, ready to knock his ball through when his turn comes up again. It's cool. It's fine. He's got this. This is only almost as bad as flying into space to fight an entire invasion fleet, and he's pretty sure that worked out. The howling light show can wait five... ... Three minutes.

He manages a mildly confused tone, still friendly ]

Why would we stop? We agreed to a round of croquet, so I'm going to finish a round of croquet. Wouldn't be civil not to, would it?

[Lethe is briefly distracted by the wolf lightshow going on in the distance, and by Carmine's feathers shedding. neither of those things seem normal??? what is team distraction doing. but it's easy to put on a reassuring smile and give Ananke a thumbs up. no one's dying so far so it's fine

Everything still feels normal on this end. We're still connected, and nothing's attacking us, so don't worry too much, Ananke.]

...If you want to keep playing, Ananke, then keep playing. We can deal with any potential interruptions.

[all or nothing.

takes a slow, deep breath and absolutely does not let any specifics or visual leak though Teacher, though he can't conceal all of the general internal freakout and there's nothing he can do about Carmine's wings except motion him closer so he take both him and Lethe by the arm]

No pause to the game we've committed to, Lady, but I'm a little disappointed. We came to deal with you in good faith, not as suitors to be toyed with.

[What IS the distraction team doing,

Carmine can still control his feathers, yes! They're just shedding a rapid rate, but he can call them back/reattach them. The most pressing concern is making sure the feathers on the others stop trying to fall off, less they be whisked away by the mist.

Of course, there's also the approaching threat. . .possible laser wolves, but can he afford to check on that?

Meanwhile, as Lethe cheers on Ananke, he'll feel a creeping sensation up his leg. A vine, full of thorns, embedding itself, drawing blood.

The lady demon positions herself for her next turn.]

I've no idea what you're talking about, dear. I stated the terms quite clearly. You should know by now that everything has a cost.

[she goes to tap her ball, but stops just short of hitting it]

Oh, by the way. . .I heard through the grapevine, that the scruffy one--Styx, was it? He seems to be out of sorts. A pity.

I could fix that for you, if you all wish to retrieve him right now.

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