sheep_game | Misty Morning

[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.

[ PHEW. BEEN A WHILE SINCE HE HAD TO MANUALLY FOCUS ON FEATHERS. everyone can feel their specific feathers pressing a little more firmly against them ]

[ His attention flicks between Charon and the demon a few times, fixing firmly to her at that last offer. He's not waiting to see how the others react — across the connection there's a sharp spike of rage ]

No offense, ma'am, but I don't think a demon is the best choice to cut a deal that important with. Styx wouldn't forgive us for paying a cost like that.

[oh, no thank you, he's going to reach down and rip that thorny vine right off of his leg if he is able. yes it will hurt and no that doesn't matter. he pushes a wave of CALM to everyone that they're not required to pick up, but it's an extra boost if they need some chill in this moment.

with the hand not trying to rip thorns out of his leg he is going to catch any of the feathers falling off of Carmine's back, just so he doesn't have to focus on quite so many of them.]

Please refrain from disturbing Styx's beauty sleep, ma'am. Have you seen his face? He really needs it.

And besides, I thought you wanted to play croquet? It sort of feels like you're stalling.

[okay. okay. okay. okay.

So it's like this. Keep going, no matter what you see or experience, Ananke. We can't call it off or she has rights to us all, I think.

nods to them both, letting the calm settle over him like an ice blanket. then reaches down and casually works on helping remove the bloody vine from Lethe's leg. maybe if he does that Lethe can use both hands to help with Carmine's feathers. presses the one tucked in his coat pocket closer with an elbow]

He's not nearly as out of sorts as your ex-husband, if you'll pardon me saying so. We'll resolve his situation in time on our own, though we appreciate the offer.

Edited 2024-03-10 17:29 (UTC)

Really? I always thought he was quite handsome, if a bit young.

[The vines get tighter, now spreading to Charon's hand has he reaches for them, and creeping toward Carmine as well.

The demon laughs coyly behind a hand, before taking her turn. It lands just a bit away from the stake.]

I did hear about that, though. Such a shame. [said with the same cadence of a rich widow.] Though I'd hardly call him my husband.

Anywho, your turn deary. You'll have to forgive me, I haven't had this much fun in a while. Though it is quite surprising what your Shepherd's priorities are.

[ turns several feathers (NOT THE ONES TOUCHING LILY) knife-sharp and steel-hard and places them between him and the vines. absolutely not ]

If you were in his place, would your priorities be much different?

[ Latches onto that sense of calm for stability, though his anger only pulls back to an even, regulated burn. He flashes a bright, cheery smile with a few too many teeth bared at the demon as he steps up to take his swing. ]

They don't seem all that surprising to me. Maybe you just need to get to know him better.

[ Sends his ball through the loop with a squarely placed but gentle clack ]

Besides, I'm sure you've met people more surprising than us before. It had to take someone pretty far outta left field to do...all this to the world.

[ Gestures in the direction of the wolf-powered light show ]

[gives Carmine a small gesture to step back if he needs to; they don't need everyone wrapped up in vines, especially if someone needs to pull them out of them later.

takes his gun and points it point-blank at the base of vines wrapping around them and shoots several heavily concentrated mana shots into them in the hopes of severing it]

It's a little rude of you to single him out when we all have the same priorities. We work as a team, you know.

[removes a knife and starts cutting whichever vines aren't getting shot near the base, though he's not moving back himself but rather also shifting to block them from getting to Carmine at all. if they truly fuck up here, he's the one with the biggest best chance of getting back to the pasture and telling people what happened

a deep cold calm of his own is coming through the link, called up by Lethe's and reinforcing it.]

You know the value of patience and the long game yourself, I think.

[does that gunshot make sound? Because that's gonna attract wolves buddy.

but the vines to crawl up further, instead the thorns just extend where they are, digging deep into flesh and muscle, possibly literally attaching them to their seats.

The demon looks to Ananke and then Lethe.]

I think. . .if I were in your situation, if I had the opportunity to grant my loved ones whatever they desire and send them safely on their way? I'd jump for it.

But it seems, your curiosity is so much stronger than anything else. Ahaha, are you a cat, or a sheep?

[she taps her ball. It misses the stake.]

Oh, poo.

[ sends one sharp knife-feather to sever the closest vine at the root, since she didn't seem too fussed by lethe shooting his vine ]

I dunno anything about granting any wishes.

[ If the gun makes a noise then he's also flinching. It'd be cool if he didn't, but gunfire is not a good sound in general, and especially not in the middle of everything happening here.

He doesn't look back though. Takes a deep breath and steps back to line up his next shot at the stake — also a miss ]

Only someone who doesn't know Styx well would say something like that. He wouldn't want us to take this offer, so we won't.

[ Steps back to give her room for her turn ]

And I'd say we're neither. We're people.

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