[open] welcome to the city

[excaliburden]

WHO: Altria Caster (excaliburden) & perhaps you!
WHAT: Help out a gal who just got here and is still getting used to magical city things like powdered sugar
WHERE: Across the city! Namely: a convenience store, park, subway, etc.......
WHEN: Early November
WARNINGS: N/A! Will update if necessary


a. local victorian orphan discovers convenience stores

[You're probably popping into the local convenience store for sensible reasons, like to buy a soda or to grab a few things you're missing for your dinner. Maybe for one of those hot dogs. No judgment.

Either way, you're getting interrupted by a gremlin in young woman form, who comes right up to you as soon as she makes eye contact, holding up... one of those small little packs of powdered sugar donuts.]

Have you ever tried one of these?

[She sounds awed.

There is powdered sugar around her mouth and on her fingers. She seems to have already eaten three of the five in the pack. It's a little bit like a religious experience, honestly.]

b. park break

[There's only so much walking around the city she can do before she gets tired. Even a few days in, it's still a pretty overwhelming place, and despite making many plans with many helpful people upon first arriving, she... has not acted on any of them.

So it is that even though it's either very early in the morning or very late at night, Altria can be found seated on one of the benches in the park, shoulders hunched and hands in her lap. She doesn't seem to be asleep, just... thinking very, very intently.

Of course, if she notices that someone's near, she'll immediately straighten, lifting a hand to wave--but with how deep in thought she is, it isn't hard to sneak up on her, either.]

c. subway

[Using the subway today to get across the city? That's a perfectly normal thing to do.

There's a young woman there as well, nose pressed to the window as she stares out as the train moves, even though it's, you know, underground and there's nothing to see. It's fine--she still seems amazed.



Also, if you hop back on the train a few hours later to go elsewhere, she's... still there. She might be leaning back in the seat, staring at the ceiling, or moving from seat to seat idly, or, in particularly empty times of day, sprawled along two seats at once.


Don't worry about it. Everything's fine here!]

d. wildcard

(Wanna tag in but these prompts don't work? Totally fine, hit me with whatever--or poke me over here to plot something out!)

Comments

b

[fanstheflames]

[ What is Tsuruno doing out so late at night? Don't ask. Rather, don't tell any of the overprotective adults in her life, but sometimes a girl just can't sleep very well and has to run it off.

But she rarely runs into fellow teenagers during these times, so when she nearly passes Altria on the bench, she digs in her heels, windmills to a stop, and turns her head in clear surprise. ]

Altria?? What're you doing here?

[excaliburden]

[Tsuruno's secret is safe with her! ... Mostly because she also hopes that nobody will find out ever that she's just been chilling out here in a park for like three days.

She straightens immediately at the way Tsuruno trots by, eyes wide.]

Oh! Tsuruno!

[... how embarrassing. AHEM.]

I was just... ... ... [???] ... thinking?

Sorry, did I interrupt your training?

[fanstheflames]

No, I just couldn't sleep so I like to burn off my thoughts, you know?

[ ... maybe she doesn't know, but she says it lightly. ]

I just don't usually run into a lot of people out here this late.

a

[featheradrift]

[ After parting with Altria and finally having time to himself, he'd found it rather—disgusting? Surprising? Scary, maybe, how quickly he'd gotten friendly with the woman. He's not like this, normally. He's not... friendly. Not supposed to be someone people talk to, or want to be with. And yet that's exactly what he'd been to her—on the first meeting, too. He's not entirely sure it wasn't influenced by the city, which had already proven itself to be manipulating their emotions.

Either way, he decides that he should not approach Altria any time soon, especially now that he knows their kidnappers are likely trying to extract something from them—energy, emotions; whatever it is, it's just better not to be attached to anyone.

That plan immediately falls apart a few weeks later, of course. He'd been in the convenience store merely for research. To understand what the kidnappers wanted, he had to know more about this world. And that there was just so much food and resources lying around, free for the taking, was suspicious. As a divine puppet, he had no need to eat, so he'd yet to try anything. But he was curious—was the food tampered with somehow? Was it truly safe to eat? He wasn't about to subject himself to undue effects though.

Anyway, it's under this premise that he finds himself encountering Altria again, who looks like an absolute mess of powdered sugar and sticky fingers, and he can't help but immediately scrunch his face and back up a step. ]

Get away from me. You're an absolute mess, woman.

[ He might sound more testy than usual, but that's only because he's conflicted about meeting her again. ]

1/2

[excaliburden]

[He sounds testier because it's her that he found, and she sounds extra chipper because it's him; not only is it good to meet people again who she knows, she'd found him easy to get along with the first time they met.

Still, it's upon seeing his scrunched up face that she realizes what a mess she is, and she drops her hands a little sheepishly, laughing weakly. Whoops. Looks like, despite her best efforts, she can't help the way that she does things that are clear markers that she's a low class faerie.]

Oh, sorry! I didn't realize they would be so messy, too... I've never seen sugar like this before.

[Powdered sugar! So white, so processed, so clean!]

2/2

[excaliburden]

[Anyway, the donuts don't matter near as much as the fact that she's found him again.]

Anyway, it's you! It's been awhile... have you been okay? I'm glad to see you again.

[featheradrift]

[ That she's so chipper is both a comfort and a—not annoyance, because he's not annoyed, but he's a little disgruntled that she brushes off his attitude so easily. It's hard to be rude to someone who refuses to return the rudeness, and he's certain she's not intentionally ignoring it—she just doesn't seem to think he's being rude. And what can you do to that?

So he just ends up simmering with an undertone of displeasure as he ignores Altria's question in favour of his own. ]

You trust that stuff? Did it not cross your mind that it could be poisoned?

A

[nomoresharks]

[Hythlodaeus blinks down at the girl a few times in surprise, but then chuckles softly and shakes his head]

Nay, not those...

[He gestures for her to follow him over to one of the shelves and picks up one of the packaged snacks

Behold: the cosmic brownie]

But these I can highly recommend.

[excaliburden]

[Now this is exactly the sort of influence she needs. He gestures over to one of the other shelves, and she follows, intrigue clear on her face.]

These...?

[... Now that she looks closer, that brown color and that texture...]

... Is this chocolate?

[nomoresharks]

[Hythlodaeus is absolutely the best influence on others, it's true.]

It is indeed! As are the brightly colored bits here that decorate it: smaller pieces of chocolate covered in a thin candy coating.

[He holds the brownie out to her]

And here you are.

c!

[mazios]

[ Akihiko has been trying to get a lay of the city and a lot of that means following the maps located in the train stations and trying to get a good understanding of where they go and how to get from one station to another. When he spots Caster the first time on his travels, he waves to her.

The second time, he's a little confused but greets her again.

The third time — ]

Caster-san, why are you still on the train?

[excaliburden]

[Caught...... the second time he hops on the train and ends up in the same car as her, she blushes a little and ducks her head, though she greets him back.

The third time, though.......]

Ah...

I was... thinking?

[On the train, for hours.]

[mazios]

[ girl........... ]

You were... thinking.

[ He thinks about this for a moment. And then accepts it. Sure, okay. ]

Thinking about what?

[ And he's going to settle in the seat across from Caster now, getting comfortable himself. ]

B

[recreator]

[Oh bother.]

[At this hour, Emet-Selch would have expected the park (and his favorite bench) to have been vacated, yet it seems he's once again mistaken about that. It isn't that there are no other benches available to choose from, and it isn't even true that he can't find other ways to make do. It's the very nature of the thing. Whilst some have their preferred parking spaces, Emet-Selch has his preferred sitting spaces, much like a cat claiming a sunny window as its own.]

[Only it's not sunny at all but immensely dark out, the trees little more than deeper shadows stretching across the inky sky. And...oh, they're waving.]

[Emet-Selch sighs and offers a lazy flick of his hand in return. Looking more closely, this girl seems awfully young to be roaming about alone. Not that it's any of his business...]

[...]

Are you waiting for someone? It's hardly an ideal night for star-gazing, after all. Too many clouds.

[excaliburden]

[The people here are truly so kind, she can't help but think. He sighs, but he waves back nonetheless, and then he comes over to speak with her anyway. It's a little amazing, the way the people here are much more... open with their time, their thoughts, their words.

He brings up the stars, and she shifts her gaze up at the clouds, breathing out a sigh that crystalizes in the air.]

That's a shame, isn't it...? It'd be nice to be able to see the stars right now.

[But! It's okay. She's sure they'll be back.]

Oh, but I was just thinking, actually. And then I saw you! If it's a strange night to be out... does that mean you were going to meet someone yourself?

[recreator]

[Perhaps it wouldn't be quite so surprising, had she any idea at all just how much time the man has on his hands. And just how much more of it he will accumulate later.]

It would.

[Although he agrees, the words still manage to sound noncommittal at best as he folds his arms and peers down at her. Not of Etheirys, of that much he's certain. Though it seems like now that he's spoken up, he'll have little choice but to humor her with conversation.]

Staying up this late has become something of a force of habit, actually. A pointless exercise considering one half of the party I'd normally meet up with is not even here.

[A pause, and he waves his hand dismissively.]

And besides, the late-night establishments in this place are hardly to my tastes. That being said, it isn't the worst of times to sit and to think and to wonder.

B.

[reflexio]

[ Sleep evaded Yi Sang last night, as it often does. The morning's fresh air helps with clearing his head. The park is typically empty at this hour, allowing him to simply exist within the stillness.

There's... someone here today though?

He draws near, not unlike a curious blackbird that's spotted something interesting. He says nothing and instead opts to take a seat next to Altria on the bench. ]

[excaliburden]

[The abrupt and easy way that he sits next to her causes Altria to jump a little, eyes wide--more with an impressed sort of air than anything. Wowwww...]

That was so smooth and easy!

[reflexio]

[ The benefits of being someone who's never had problems with blending in. ]

Ah. My apologies if I startled you. It was not my intention.

[ He scoots a bit away from her, offering a bit of space. ]

You seemed to be contemplating something and I thought to join you.

A

[hardestbattle]

[It appears that the chaos starts here. The blue painted woman is currently eating a giant ass tub of ice cream.

With a large spoon.

As you do.]

Mm? No... what is it? Some form of bread?

[Squints then shovels more ice cream into her face hole. As should be expected from a freakin' Pict.]

[excaliburden]

[Honestly, she's so valid for that. Altria does not seem at all put off by it--really, she'd be doing the same thing if not for the donuts.]

I'm not completely sure what it is, to be honest... but they're very delicious! And the sugar on them is so light and almost fluffy.

I've never had anything like it before.

b.

[fussiest]

[ kaveh, who's rolled up a chain-link fence and is currently maneuvering it across the park, stops to look at the waving figure. his face brightens. ah, he knows that one. the young lady from the ballpit, he thinks.

there's something of her brightness and her energy that reminds him a bit of tsuruno, and it's what prompts him to set down his burden with rattling clink, so's to wave back at her with a grin. ]

There's you. You look well. What are you doing in the park at this hour?

[ after all, they are both cast in resplendent shadow. night has fallen, and deeply so. ]

[excaliburden]

[It is very late, very cold, and Kaveh is maneuvering a chain-link fence across a dark park. Altria blinks a little to herself, even as she waves.

He sets it down and waves back, and she hops up from the bench to make her way over to him, head tilted to one side.]

I was just thinking, that's all.

[Nothing to worry about or dwell on. Far more importantly!]

Do you need help carrying that? I'm a lot stronger than I look, you know!

storybook event.

[fussiest]

[ pops this in here like the late delinquent i am - ]

[ the sun is shining. the birds are chirping. kaveh opens his eyes. this is another story, he thinks, wherein the sun is shining its relentless shine, and something in kaveh wants to reach up and gently turn the bulb of it and dim it. it is ever the characters and the stories that change, story by story. but the forest and the sun and the sky remain ever the same, as if a perpetual audience to unending joy and laughter, terror and tragedy. it occurs to kaveh that if there were an absolute good, it would be the fixtures in the stories, the ones that can never leave it. if there were an absolute evil, it, too, would be the unending scenery that perpetrates it.

for the child would not lose itself in the woods without the woods. for the mermaid would not burn beneath the sun without the sun. for the bird would not fall from the sky without the sky.

kaveh closes his eyes. the script floods in - two people on a journey, a long wending path, a castle, a rose garden, and the endless blue sky. oh, kaveh thinks, and feels moved for it. it's this sort of story. he sits up from the green knoll on the hill. two translucent wings peel from the pale robe of his back. kaveh looks. he smiles. of course he does. ]

There's you.

ilu

[excaliburden]

[For Altria, every new story is a new experience. For Altria, these sorts of storybook worlds don't exist--they've never existed. She lives in a world with one single story, and it isn't even a good one, she can't help but think.

Altria considers the script.

She considers the story.

She looks over at Kaveh and sees the wings on his back, and she laughs. Of course she does. He smiles, and she laughs, because what else can they do?]

Like this, you look like you could be a Wind Clan faerie.