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Apocalypse How Mods ([personal profile] apocalypsehowmods) wrote in [community profile] apocalypsehowcomm2021-10-15 05:46 pm

Event - Lullaby


Lullaby

➥ For You Never Shut Your Eye

Photo of a small grassy area within an urban environment. Two men are passed out across the grass and sidewalk. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, supernaturally-induced sleep disorders/somniloquy, needles/injections)

The line between waking and sleep is beginning to blur. People will find themselves sleeping far too much, but it never feels like enough. The music is growing more prevalent and persistent throughout town. The effect is still weaker within the building, but as October wears on, more and more people are affected and ADI staff are more intent than ever to find the source and also figure out how to block the effects. Characters will find themselves conscripted (between Halloween Party preparations) into assisting with building or testing anti-music and sleep devices along or with helping to try to track down the source of the music.

For those helping to build and test devices, there is an R&D lab in the basement levels of ADI that will be available. Devices native staff have been able to devise include:

  • Headphones that play different frequencies to try to cancel out the sound of the singing.
  • An armband that periodically stabs a small needle into the arm with a small dosage of adrenaline.
  • Headbands set to a constant low vibration.
The efficacy of all of these devices is… questionable, but perhaps others may have their own expertise to lend to the efforts, attempting something on a broader scale than just personal protection devices.

For those helping to track the source of the music, finding it seems to be impossible, but there is a definite pattern that characters will note as the days pass. The epicenters of the music are moving, migrating out of the graveyards and converging on ADI Headquarters. As this goes on, the building will become less and less of a safe haven, the music penetrating its walls and affecting the staff there more heavily. You might find yourself having to help a neighbor who's fallen asleep while working. Or you might not even be able to fully tell they've fallen asleep as they sleepwalk and talk almost like they're actually still conscious. Even those who have never been prone to sleepwalking and talking may find themselves affected and… far more open with what they say when in the unguarded state of semi-unconsciousness.


➥ Till the Sun Is In the Sky

A caucasian woman is lying on the floor, eyes closed. The room is dark around her with a spotlight shining on her. A secondary image of the woman, semi-transparent and wrapped in white clothes floats just above the woman on the floor. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, thanatophobia, character death, death by poisoning, blood, choking, emetophobia, death by crushing)

By the 25th, some people may find waking up to be a challenge in and of itself. But they do manage to wake up. Seemingly. Perhaps the day is much like any other, heading to ADI or out around the city, grabbing coffee and- something is wrong. Something is very wrong. That cup of coffee you just drank had tasted a little different than usual. A touch of almond to it? It hits you that your throat is burning, bile and blood rising up and choking you as you hack and gasp and vomit. Your legs grow weak, you're losing control of everything, falling, dying.

And then you wake up.

Just a nightmare. Just a bizarre and horrible nightmare. You head out and… is this home? You're home! Or maybe… wait, this doesn't seem right. Have you gone somewhere else? Some things might be familiar, memories intertwined and mixing with fantastical elements, some your own, some not. You notice people you recognize, ones who might be as confused as you are. This isn't where they should be and they remember dying, too. Or seeing you die or someone else. It doesn't make sense, but somehow, they remember they had a dream they shared last night. And then something falls from above and nearly crushes you or your partner. Or maybe it does crush them, and you're suddenly looking at a dead body as the world and this nightmare that feels so very real becomes more and more hostile. Maybe something falls on you.

And then you 'wake up.'


➥ When the Blazing Sun Is Gone

Three sheet ghost halloween decorations stand in a line. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, thanatophobia, character death, body horror, detailed description of painful physical transformation, description of the loss and regrowth of teeth, violence, mental status alterations, temporary power-loss, spiders)

Even with people dropping left and right thanks to the odd sleep effect taking hold, ADI staff are hellbent that their Halloween party will not be completely ruined. And on the 28th (a little before the actual holiday), everyone wakes up. Or… seems to. For those trapped in dreams, it will seem very much that they've woken up, the music has stopped, and they can actually carry on. For a few days, it even seems like things are normal. The party on the 31st is a blow-out bash. The entire first floor of ADI HQ has been transformed with decorations. The canteen is serving festive food and has set up a dance floor with holiday-appropriate music playing. Some of the offices feature additional activities, including party games like bobbing for apples in a trough that's been brought in, a guess this gross food booth, and more general party games. For a quieter time, there are also areas set up with board games and card games to play. And for some extra fun spooks a mini-haunted maze has been set up with faux spiders and webs, along with other goofy-looking monster creatures.

It's around 9 PM when the music and lights suddenly cut out. There's nothing for several seconds. Then, a voice begins to sing, filling the halls of ADI. It's a young girl's voice.

"Bye-bye, bye-bye,
Quickly you will die,
On the morning will be frost,
And you’ll go to the graveyard, the graveyard.

Grandfather will come there, too,
And he will bring the coffin.
Grandmother will come along,
Her tears, they will not soften.
Mama sings the prayer song, then,
And falls down on her knees.
Daddy takes you to the grave,
No one can hear his pleas.

Bye-bye, bye-bye,
Quickly you will die,
On the morning will be frost,
And you’ll go to the graveyard, the graveyard.


As the last notes of the song fade away, all hell breaks loose. Those who had been wearing particular sorts of costumes, ones that are more monstrous in nature, may find themselves transforming, growing, twisting, shifting. It's not a clean change, but a violent, agonizing one that cracks bones, tears and reshapes muscles and tendons, pushes out teeth to make room for new ones. Those transformed will find themselves compelled to chase, to hunt, to kill anyone they can get their claws, teeth, or other appendages on.

For those who stay themselves, it's not just their transformed friends who pose a danger, but the decorations they've set up, as well. Those fake giant spiders and webs? They're no longer fake. Neither are any of the other demonic little creatures. The goal of everything in ADI and even outside for those who manage to make it out the doors, is to remind you how very, very mortal you are. Those typically possessed of fantastic abilities will find that they have been sapped away. There's no calling on magic or innate abilities. You are mortal and you are going to die like everything mortal does.

In the chaos, characters will catch glimpses of a young girl flitting amongst the chaos, seeming unperturbed by it all. Trying to catch up to her or speak to her is fruitless, but she's there, and she's humming that song from before.


➥ When He Nothing Shines Upon

A caucasian woman has just woken up and stares grumpily at her phone. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced fatigue/malaise, thanatophobia)

Those who are killed at the party will find themselves waking up wherever they actually fell asleep a few hours or even days ago. If your character was one of the lucky few who somehow managed to escape the effect, you'll notice people waking up all over ADI HQ and elsewhere. There are no signs of damage on the bodies, but those who died in the dreams will find themselves feeling incredibly weak and generally ill for several hours to several days after the experience.

The music has actually stopped, and this time, it would seem you've actually woken up. Depending on how long you were passed out for, that may be a more unpleasant experience for some than others. There's a message posted from a random ADI employee's phone a few days later to the network:

Mr. S was right. This was fun! I'll have to come back next year to play with you. - Ava, the Lullaby Girl

P.S. Sorry for stealing your phone, horsegirl67. But I wanted to say, hi. C:


Unfortunately, there are no further messages and attempts to respond to the message will receive no reply for now.

But... fortunately…? All of the Halloween preparations are still up, and there's a festive party to attend if anyone actually feels keen on trying it in real life. Pam Ruan, the main organizer is bloody-minded about it now and will have her God damn Halloween party, but those who work themselves up to attend out of festive spirit or morbid curiosity will find it a distinctly muted affair that breaks early in the evening.

Happy Halloween, Gloucester!



➥ Mod Notes
  • GENERAL - Players are welcome to play NPCs for themselves when they are needed in a thread. If you need more information on general behavior for these types of NPCs, please feel free to ask! In general, the information provided in the prompt should be sufficient and you're welcome to make up any details beyond that for your specific scene. The Lullaby Girl (Ava) can be seen throughout character dreams, but they will not be able to interact with her during this event. They will either wake up or simply find that the physics of the dream are warped and she cannot be reached or there's a sheet of glass between her and the character or whatnot.

  • FOR YOU NEVER SHUT YOUR EYE (15-24 October) - Characters are welcome to develop their own devices for attempting to stop the music. Characters will have modern day technology available to them along with a few slightly more advanced electronics and tools. Please do not go too out there. This isn't Tony Stark's array of tools and the like. But characters can create additional devices to test within reason. Some of them may be more or less effective, but with how sporadic the effect is, it might be difficult to tell what's actually working or not. There can also be negative side-effects from devices, if you'd like to play those out. Characters with the appropriate magical charge may also attempt to supernaturally block the music, but this will not be condoned or facilitated by ADI. Characters searching for the source of the music will not be able to find it, just discover that it is moving. For characters who are sleep-talking, they may find themselves unusually honest. They may or may not recall conversations with other characters and all that they told them.

  • TILL THE SUN IS IN THE SKY (25-27 October) - Characters will experience repeated nightmares of dying in a shared dreamscape. They will remember every time that they die in the dreams. Feel free to get as creative and gruesome with this as you would like. These are dreams and fantastical situations that might not actually happen (e.g., a robot showing up and shooting a laser through your character) may occur. Players are welcome to introduce elements of their memories into the nightmares and mix those memories around between characters who might wind up in a dream together. Please ensure all top-levels are appropriately tagged for any and all content warnings. Add content warnings as you go along, if needed. Dying in the dreams will trigger the sense of waking up. This can be a fake wake-up or characters might actually wake for a short while and find others passed out around them.

  • WHEN THE BLAZING SUN IS GONE (28-31 October) - Again, this will be a shared dreamscape where characters will be under the illusion (at first) that all has returned to normal. For those who investigate, everything seems to be real, nothing too off, excepting the night of the Halloween party. Once the Lullaby Girl finishes her song, characters who are dressed in costumes that depict animals or other monstrous creatures may find themselves transformed into their costumes. Transformed characters may gain powers for the duration of this prompt/event related to their monstrous forms without mod approval. Go wild, kill your friends and neighbors, and generally trash everything around you. The decorations that come to life will be attempting to murder all characters, transformed or not. If characters escape into the city, they will find all of the festive decorations out there have come to life and want to kill them, as well. Death is unavoidable for this particular prompt, but it can be something swift and painless or something drawn out and horrible at player discretion. It is the only way to actually wake a character fully. Players also have the option of keeping their characters awake. They will not experience the shared dreamscape and will just be stuck with a lot of unconscious people around them for the duration of this portion of the event.

  • WHEN HE NOTHING SHINES UPON (31 October) - Ava, the Lullaby Girl, cannot be contacted or immediately located, but she will be available in future plots for interactions with characters. There is no immediate information regarding who Mr. S. is. Players may have the general sleep/death malaise last for a minimum of two hours and a maximum of three days. Regular medications for the flu can ameliorate some of the symptoms, but they will ultimately clear up on their own. Characters may wake up in whatever state players would like. Feel free to play out the effects of them having been slumped in a corridor for three days without food or water. It's going to be a bad time all around. Those who attend the real Halloween party will be thanked profusely by Pam and showered with candy. At least they'll get a few HR brownie points?

medicative: (eurydice.)

[personal profile] medicative 2021-11-07 09:55 am (UTC)(link)
Still, I apologize. I caused you distress, and...

[and she can now see where her broken coffee cup is.]

Can I help with anything at all?
medicative: (push.)

[personal profile] medicative 2021-11-07 09:55 am (UTC)(link)
[she's about to reply, but what happens next stops her cold - she hears howling, distant but distinct, and slowly turns to see if anything in the world is more able to be seen. absolutely not, but it was worth a shot. regardless, it's the sort of sound that shreds her nerves, tears down, and her eyes flick to Harry to see if he's reacting the same. of course, not everyone has the same fears, but...]

Did you hear that?

[please say no. please call her crazy, say she's making it up. she doesn't want them chasing after her again.]
medicative: (endless.)

[personal profile] medicative 2021-11-07 09:56 am (UTC)(link)
How could it be a memory, Dr. Strange, when it is happening around us?

[he'll learn, something in her spirit whispers. he'll learn the rules, and be bound just the same. everyone enters, and no one leaves.]

It's more apt to say we have to get out, if you must define it any way. The key opens the gates to leave - it's very simple.

[there are stairs, crumbling and frail, and she takes them down, down - something skitters over metal, something moves in the edge of vision - and they still must descend. like a yawning, ancient pit with the sharp scent of gun oil.]
medicative: (visible.)

[personal profile] medicative 2021-11-07 09:56 am (UTC)(link)
But you're hurt, she wants to say, and maybe it's clear enough in her expression - a pinched sort of worry that she doesn't voice, wishing that she hadn't used everything in knocking that person out. There's no time to stop and try to mend him, just...

"Let's not let it come to that."

If they're fast enough, no one will need to defend anyone. No one's blood will be on the other's hands. If they stop moving - which they won't - then it will all change.

Still, something feels wrong in the air, and she can't help but think the woods aren't safe at all.
murderology: (144)

I. FOR YOU NEVER SHUT YOUR EYE

[personal profile] murderology 2021-11-07 10:29 am (UTC)(link)
[ It likely doesn't seem like it, but Jerry's been keeping a close eye on those who look to be complete shells just wandering about. It's a lot of work once he realizes the number of people around who are struggling to stay awake. And for as much energy as Jerry usually has, it's tiring work! Really, really, tiring. But he manages.

When he spots Jeff stacking paper bats one on top of the other not far from himself, he casually slides on over and gestures emphatically to the stacked decorations, his voice just a touch louder than it needs to be. ]


Hey, I see what you're going for. It's like a rat king only with paper bats. Totally spooksville — nice one!

[ In fact, in a show of support, he starts to do the same with the paper bats he had been setting up. ]
bossyboiler: ((shadowy) 6)

[personal profile] bossyboiler 2021-11-07 03:37 pm (UTC)(link)
"Does it look bad?" Her tone is soft, almost child-like. Kate is not looking herself because her eyes are closed and the spinning has stopped. Surrounding each puncture mark is a bit of purple mucous that has caused the wounds to turn dark and sickly looking. The poison is spreading through her system.

"But I can help." She feebly protests and then lets out a little breath. "Just let me rest a minute and I'll be good to go." If she can just rest a minute then she knows that she'll be ready to go. However, Kate continues to have her eyes closed and is on her way to losing complete consciousness.
ratjesus: <user name=rabdoidal site=tumblr.com> (10)

[personal profile] ratjesus 2021-11-07 06:40 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Well, fuck.

Kugrash watches as the kid absolutely wrecks himself on a door, face surprisingly passive. He should have probably prevented that, he thinks, but it doesn't look too bad, just troublesome. If it's really bad he can reach in to what little he has and cure him, at least. ]


Yeah.

[ They're at Bonnies, so Ren is greeted by a human instead of a rat. Kugrash smiles in what he hopes is a reassuring manner, and, after a brief moment, sucks some air in between his teeth and attempts to talk to the guy. ]

You sounded pretty, uuuuuuuh... Adamant about some stuff. You okay, kiddo?
bloodalwaystells: Hrm (Default)

[personal profile] bloodalwaystells 2021-11-07 09:56 pm (UTC)(link)
A nap feels like a good idea. Part of Jaeger remembers the small shocks of adrenaline going off every so often from his armband, but it's been a while since he's felt that heart-jolting artificial spike. Instead, everything seems stretched paper-thin and brittle with exhaustion, distortion that keeps shifting at the boundaries of his perception. Coffee won't help, but maybe, just maybe, if he closes his eyes for a minute things will make sense again.

Except they have to leave, and quickly. As much as he wants to stay and talk, to tell her all the things that he wants to say, leaving is more important.

In this version of the world, Jordan isn't dead yet. He's here somewhere, an immediate and threatening presence around every corner, behind every door. There's no alert and the halls are quiet, but the menace is thick in the silence and Mercy's hand feels so small and fragile in his.

"Sometimes the right thing to do hurts," he says softly. "But I've tried to make it right. To make sure no one would hurt you because of me."

Jaeger pauses at the elevator as the car arrives and the doors slide open, one arm out to shield Mercy from whatever's on the other side. But nothing happens except the soft whirr and hush of the space, and after a moment he steps in carefully. Not entirely trusting it to really be here, but it is.

"I'm sorry. I'm very tired," he says then. The motion of the elevator feels like a head rush, his body standing still but his senses somewhere else entirely. He takes a deep breath, the way he's always trained himself to do. The air tastes bitter, sterile, an edge of metallic tang like fluorescent lights and thin razors of broken glass.
bloodalwaystells: Hrm (Default)

[personal profile] bloodalwaystells 2021-11-07 10:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Even covered in razor cuts, weak from wear and beatings and loss of blood, he's still dedicated, still intent on moving forward. A little bit of it is momentum: if he keeps moving, if he focuses on his companion and doesn't think too much about everything, then he won't fall down the way he wants to.

Exhaustion burns in his muscles and the light stings his weary eyes, but he's still there. Still moving. He gives Emily the best smile he can, though it looks particularly ghastly in the stark light.

"We keep going." He gives a stiff nod.

The oppressive fear and apprehension doesn't fade, though, not even a little. In spite of the clean, bright lights, there's a sense of approaching dread that has the fine hairs on his arms and neck rising. With it comes a whiff of something stale and metallic, old iron undercut with something thicker, bitter, more visceral.

He knows that smell too well, well enough that it sends his heart racing, a dull roar of pulse in his ears in the otherwise silent space.

Jaeger glances sideways at Emily and quickens his step. He's just short of throwing her over a shoulder and carrying her, except he's not sure he can manage it and they don't have the time to wrestle with logistics. He'll have to trust her the same way she's trusting him, and together they'll make it as far as they can. That's the best they can do.

"Something's coming."
thatsreallygreat: (pic#14863948)

[personal profile] thatsreallygreat 2021-11-08 01:52 am (UTC)(link)
"Just us," he answers. "We were a little out of the way, and with the Savalierwood becoming more corrupted, people didn't come around quite so much anymore."

Caduceus looks at the gravestone and reaches to press his hand to the ground at its base. He opens himself up and, like a cool trickle, he finds himself deeply aware of the bodies in the ground, all decaying and with each passing day and decade becoming closer to the earth packed around them. Beyond the graveyard he feels the tendrils of death following their set paths. He tries not to see them, but it's getting harder not to notice. It isn't unnerving so much as... distracting.

"The earth will remember you," he says to the grave. "It will remember all of you, even if those walking over it forget."
lowficharm: (« [Shock] OKAY THATS TOO SEEN NOW)

[personal profile] lowficharm 2021-11-08 06:02 am (UTC)(link)
In the same way that Mercy can snap herself into functioning by seeing a terrified Martin, he can hold himself more together when there's someone just as scared as he is right next to him against a greater evil. He clenches his hand, wishing for the warmth of Jon's palm in his, and has to just pretend for now that it was going to be okay.

At least he can grasp to Mercy as she tries to explain, even if he has no idea who a Sidbutian is and not many wars has ever made a lot of good sense anyway. He leans in to her as if to shield his voice from anyone else listening, even if he has to almost yell to be heard over the existing noise. "That-- are they hurting your friends, or, y-your people, or-- you don't have to just because someone says you do!"
lowficharm: (« [Fear] the sky is looking back)

buddy ur so fine i am in a constant state of Slow

[personal profile] lowficharm 2021-11-08 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
[Frankly, it's no surprise to Martin to see something terrible and then immediately run from it. Part of him wishes he could call on something he was close to one, the feeling of fog enveloping him and shielding him from the world. But it's not good, and it probably would do more harm than good now, even if things are immediately and incredibly dangerous.

At first he starts booking for the nearest door, but so is everyone, and as soon as the footsteps stop he turns his head to look back.]


Are you oka-- wait, where did it go?

[The crashing noise now behind him is enough for him to make that decision and simply not turn around again.]

Okay! Nevermind! Bad idea this whole thing was bad we have to find another way out!
aelwyn_aberration: (hohoho)

cw for descriptions of people being burnt

[personal profile] aelwyn_aberration 2021-11-08 07:01 am (UTC)(link)
Every world's the same in that regard, I see.

Hmmm, I can do you one better than a simple distraction. [She raises her hands and begins muttering incarnations, words pour out of her almost like something's speaking through her, something hungry and blistering and overwhelming and bright.

In an instant, five creatures take form in the distance, a dozen or so feet away from the Father and Brother. They're considerably bigger than the creatures Aelwyn is used to making, at around nine feet tall, they're huge hulking titans of magma and embers and they start moving on the two men of their corrupted faith. She's imagining Daybreak and Dayne, in her head, and she almost thinks they look like them for a second.

One of the elementals grabs the father, and he screams in pain as the searing hot rock presses against his flesh. Aelwyn grins in sadistic pleasure and leans closer to Mercy, she whispers into her ear.]


Take your shot, my dear. I've lined him up good and proper for you.

[What Aelwyn's failed to notice is the way the fires are only rising and spreading now that the titans are there. That's not quite true. She's noticed, but she thinks the sight of the destruction is... intoxicating.

The screams only add to the appeal.]
chrisisofaith: (1- No small thing)

[personal profile] chrisisofaith 2021-11-08 05:37 pm (UTC)(link)
There's a brokenness there, something gutted and hollowed in Jaeger's words, the downward cast of his eyes, the tremor to his admittance, that feels achingly familiar. A Man whose lost faith, maybe not quite so literally, but functionally the same. Lied to and used, possibly even thrown aside when done...that was easy enough to understand, no matter what else Chris did or didn't know.

"I'm sorry. No one deserves to fall into the hands of someone who'd do that to a person." He moves towards the living area, his hand still on Jaeger's shoulder, but his steps slow to encourage him to follow. "But you know what happens when something breaks? You get to put the pieces back however you'd like, no matter what mess it looks like after." Even if the pieces didn't make sense anymore, it didn't mean they were without merit.

"Would you say it was all a waste? Even if it weren't what you thought at first, was there nothing worth keeping from it? Just cause some lout's power-hungry doesn't mean you loose all for it."
chrisisofaith: (1- You really believe that)

[personal profile] chrisisofaith 2021-11-08 05:54 pm (UTC)(link)
He nods, all that sounding pretty familiar, though he couldn't begin to parse what a 'B-Vitamin' was, but that didn't seem too important. A medicine of some kind, likely.

"Body shock from rough couple of nights with near-no rest in sight, no matter how much sleep was had...doesn't surprise me a fair few of us are looking worse for wear." His smile develops a small edge as he looks down and away, working through his next words like some weakness he ought not admit too when he knew it wasn't nearly so dramatic.

"I'd usually tell a person some lavender tea and a cozy pillow'd fix you right up, but laying down seems a bit like stepping off a cliff without wings right now. Can't even suggest finding a sparring partner or taking a run to wear the body out, cause I doubt it needs much help there...just...some convincing." Convincing it wasn't about to suffer or die again and be jerked to wakefulness to start all over simply from some latent panic response. He's a Death Cleric, he should know a thing or two about dying and death and dealing with it, his own or others...but somehow it was different when it hadn't even stuck. There was a reason resurrections were tricky magics.

[personal profile] septieme 2021-11-08 06:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[the emptiness of his skull is truly the most powerful thing about him...

and after he gets on she's gonna wave him off and start walking the opposite direction as the bus door closes haha PSYCHE ok no, it'd be a big fat MAYBE during the day because pranking him could be fun, but it's way too late and she's far too tired tonight. so she follows right along, and... well as long as he's not trapping her into a window seat somehow, anywhere is fine. so it shouldn't be a problem since he got on first, right?

...Goodness. He's still going too, sure seems like she may not get any quiet time until she's properly back 'home', hm? Suppose it's not too bad, small talk on the bus ride. Would be quite bad if she were to nod off and miss her stop, after all. Short as the ride ought to be, a few minutes at most; but given everything, it's not too lazy to not walk on this specific night, is it?]


I've been here for longer than you, in case you've forgotten. The accommodations are more than fine, and while there seems to be others also living on my floor, I've hardly ever seen them in the common area. I may as well have the entire place to myself, honestly. [a beat.] What about you?
inutilis: (☼ my hand is a mitten~!)

[personal profile] inutilis 2021-11-08 06:55 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, yes, but not that much longer, right? A couple of weeks or so, wasn't it...?

[ yes yes, one must give themselves Time to acclimate to another time period and/or potentially different 'dimension' or whatever you'd like to call this nonsense, right?? right!! ]

But that does sound nice, if a little lonely... ah-- both of my housemates are friends from their 'home,' so to speak! So I do my best to stay out of their hair.

[ so they're sort've in the same boat, huh... ]

By the way, my first attempt at home cooking went splendidly~! It's really a shame I didn't take a picture. Phones these days are quite handy and I keep forgetting about all the knicknacks they've got stored in them! Did you know you can look up videos of cats making weird noises whenever you want?! A-amazing...
chrisisofaith: (1- Dumb Trouble)

[personal profile] chrisisofaith 2021-11-08 06:57 pm (UTC)(link)
He should have expected she'd toss like the hurt animal she was in the moment, but too many months of fighting more humanoid creatures had him at a disadvantage he couldn't afford. She slams him to the ground and his ribs strain against the pressure, threatening to snap like the twigs they surely were under her force, but just barely hold. Not that it matters much.

His vision spins and his hand feels empty like the raven skull is either still lodged in her face or clattered off somewhere on the ground, he doesn't know and he barely has the wherewithal to try and roll to his feet. Winded and dizzy, the pitiful fighter's stance he takes up with fists raised like they might do anything more than bruise when swung, was his last line of defense and a paltry one at that. When was the last time he'd even fought alone? This would typically be when Amnos would swing in with a rage-filled cry and defend him. When his sister's arrows would find their mark, when Ra'ah would appear from the shadows with cruel cuts aimed to kill, when Silver's wild magic would either offer small distraction or obliterate on the spot...but they weren't here. No one was coming.

[personal profile] septieme 2021-11-08 07:15 pm (UTC)(link)
The time I'm from is also a mere couple decades away from this era, while you may as well be from a different planet entirely. I should be the one asking how you're adjusting, are you used to toasters and the electric kettle yet?

[...this seems rude,]

I used to live on my own before too, so I'm quite used to it. My, that's lucky of your roommates! You're not giving them too much trouble, I hope?

[...RUDE...]

Oh? Congratulations! Did you already eat it by the time you realized you forgot to take a picture? Hehe. What did you make? And they really are super convenient, aren't they?
inutilis: (✞ thinking.jpg)

[personal profile] inutilis 2021-11-08 07:32 pm (UTC)(link)
[ rude? is she being rude? Abel doesn't seem to notice at all, haha what, nahhhh surely Ciel would never be intentionally rude to him, no, never despite the multiple instances of it this night alone, ]

Oh~! The toaster is a familiarity, so that's no problem. I don't like those electric kettles, though. There's something about doing things the old-fashioned way that's more satisfying when brewing tea~!

[ mmhm that's definitely it, ]

And of course I'm not giving them much trouble...! It's hard to when I barely see them anyway, Officer Sister~! You needn't worry. In fact, they missed my first meal of spaghetti bolognese in its entirety, I'm afraid... I was going to feed them and everything, but I guess our schedules simply don't line up very well...

[ there definitely aren't any pictures or witnesses because, say, Abel completely flopped his first attempt at making a presentable dinner, like. in case she was wondering, ]

[personal profile] septieme 2021-11-08 09:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Is that so? What a sentimental reason... [u dont say,]

How did you like it? You talk about cat videos, but there's plenty of tutorial videos about cooking too, you know.

[Since he's not sick or dying in front of her, it couldn't have been THAT bad, right?]
inutilis: (☼ cheekily cheerful.)

[personal profile] inutilis 2021-11-08 11:51 pm (UTC)(link)
[ sentimental? hm, hm, is such a thing sentimental? suppose he's never quite thought of it that way...

...gently nudging at his glasses, he puts on a thoughtful expression, ]


Oh, well, I have to say my first go at things could've certainly gone worse...

[ which is to say it could've probably gone a whole lot better, too--

but yes, clearly nothing was on fire (she would've seen the building lit up, for starters) and no one died (that we know of), it was fine,

probably, ]


Cooking videos! You don't say...?! Really...! I'm definitely going to have to check those out~! My, there really isn't anything Mr. Phone can't do, is there?!

[personal profile] septieme 2021-11-09 12:33 am (UTC)(link)
[He's really gotten used to his fake glasses huh, wonder how long he's had them for... 🤔]

Well, have you learned your lesson? Know what you should do and what you should avoid, for the next time? I could try giving you pointers too, but then you'd have to describe how it turned out to me in clearer detail...

[which he may not want to do, from the sounds of it. Wonder why...? 🤔🤔]

It can't magically give you experience, I'm sorry to say. But you're a work in progress, aren't you?

[Did she mean his COOKING?? RUDE (again) to say that to someone out of the blue, even if he seems to enjoy acting like he's never quite put together so her statement is sorta valid as is??]
inutilis: (☼ with great sweetness.)

[personal profile] inutilis 2021-11-09 12:40 am (UTC)(link)
[ excuse me these are real glasses, just like Ciel's are, totally necessary for his sight and... like, stuff, ty???

...he merely gives another thoughtful 'hmm,' at that-- at what, precisely? who knows. but she sure is getting a 'hmm' either way~! ]


A work in progress...

[ 'hmmm,' ]

...Ah, I quite like the sound of that~! Yes, I'm a work in progress...!

[ it's like everything she says, he just decides to take it in an utterly flattering light no matter how obvious it is she is NOT being flattering whatsoever??? he sure does that, ]

We're all works in progress, don't you think, Ciel~? I don't know what you're working toward becoming yourself, but I wish you the best of luck!

[ .......weird, maybe,

that he looks genuinely happy when he says that. like he really means it 🤔 ]
forethinking: (pic#14618690)

cw death

[personal profile] forethinking 2021-11-09 01:08 am (UTC)(link)
Nightmare. Always nightmare.

(And it comes almost as whistles, with how he's trying to catch his breath. He isn't sure what he told Mercy, but he's heard enough from people, and he knows he's spoken too much before as well.

This is getting worrying. What if he accidentally outs Akechi, or himself in the process? This needs to stop.)


Thank you for keeping me safe.

(For all he knows, he could have walked out into traffic and be completely oblivious about it.)

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