build that wall [OPEN]

[builditstrong]

Who: The Kid and YOU
What: Kid aims to do the thing he does best after breaking shit--building shit.
When: 9/4
Where: Islet 2 and Islet 3
Warnings: None?



Kid knew when he saw the buildings out on the islets, and the haphazard bridges between landmasses, that there was going to be a whole lot of work to be done. None of this is up to code, you could say. It's a whole lot of work for one man named Kid, but he's not gonna complain, plus he kind of expects people to start pitching in once they realize how dilapidated all of it is.

Getting cut stone isn't an option yet, so people are gonna have to settle for wood--both cut down from the jungle and salvaged from the shore--and lots and lots of palm fronds. It's better than nothing, and Kid's been practically stockpiling both. He was figuring he might just have to start making houses just from scratch, so it's nice of the Storyteller to give him something to work with. Maybe he can have a word with the rabbit sometime about setting up a quarry somewhere, see if they can't get their hands on some quality stone.

In the meantime, he sets up a sort of base of operations in one of the shacks on the third islet, eventually figuring that he might as well just live here. It takes awhile to transfer all the wood, building materials, and his own possessions through the mana pool. Once that's done, he goes to work.

He works on his own shack first, shoring up the walls and weaving some palm fronds together to cover a pretty gnarly hole in the ceiling. Once he's got the bare-bones repairs done, he goes to work on other buildings. It doesn't even matter if someone's trying to live there already--if there's a hole in the wall or some crumbling stone, Kid aims to fix it right up. He knows full well that people aren't going to survive long in a bunch of ruined houses. The first storm that hits will be a nightmare for anyone who still has holes in their ceiling.

He spends the remainder of the day working on two of the islets, figuring he'll tackle the other islets over the course of the week. He takes breaks now and then to rinse off in the ocean and grab a bite and a drink. He's not a machine, after all. Probably.

Comments

[prettypurpleparlor]

[It seems somebody's noticed his efforts and approves of them, because when he comes back from his break he'll find Muffet standing by the shack he's working on, smiling and holding out a coil of newly-spun silk rope for him.]

Here, I think this might come in handy. Mind if I join you?

[builditstrong]

[Oh hey, it's the spider lady. He gives a pleasant nod in her direction, and he smiles behind his bandanna when she presents the rope.]

'S kind 'f ya. I'd apprecaite th' help.

[prettypurpleparlor]

Oh, the work needed doing. I've been feeling rather dubious about those bridges, myself. I don't suppose you've had any ideas on reinforcing them?

[builditstrong]

Was my thinkin'.

[The work needs doing, and it might as well be him to do it.]

Replace th' rotten wood. Check th' ropes an' replace the ones what're too frayed. Redo the knots. Add more slats. Shore it all up.

[prettypurpleparlor]

[She nods in agreement, eyeing the structure thoughtfully.]

Replacing the rope I can definitely help with, although we'd have to measure it all out carefully- doing too much, too fast would risk exhaustion, and standing on one of those bridges seems like a very bad time and place to wind up passing out.

Did you have any plans for the rotted wood in particular? I was thinking it might still be useful for kindling, if nothing else...

[souris_keteer]

[At his current break, there's an impressed whistle.]

Are you the one that's been bringin' all those materials over?

[builditstrong]

[There's...some kind of two-legged mouse talking to him. Kid only does a bit of a double-take. He's seen weirder in his days, and the last few weeks on the island have taught him that people come in all kinds of shapes.]

Yea, tha's me. Better t'have it on hand.

[souris_keteer]

Well, then I've got two things to say.

[He doesn't mind the look, he's getting pretty used to it by now.]

First off, thanks a whole bunch for all your hard work! We really appreciate it!

[Okay he's speaking for everyone without... speaking to everyone but he's sure they do, really!!!]

[builditstrong]

[He blinks a little. He's not really used to being thanked. Plus this guy is talking as if a bunch of the islanders are aware of what he's doing out here, like they had some kind of discussion about him. Which makes him feel just a touch shy.]

Oh, well. Y'all are welcome. Ain't nothin' special. Buildin's jus' what I'm good at.

[souris_keteer]

And humble too! That works out really well.

[A little chuckle.]

So the second thing would be... Is there any way I can help?

[ajackandanace]

I appreciate the generosity of your spirit

[Jack sidles up curiously, remaining a few paces back so as not to get in this man's way]

Its a rarity.

[builditstrong]

[He looks up when he realizes the stranger is speaking to him. He even manages not to look around in case the guy's talking to someone else.]

Oh.

[He goes back to tying off some palm fiber rope to some roughly cut wooden boards. He doesn't have very many nails, so he's had to get creative.]

Ain't really gen'rosity. Jus' needs doin'.

[ajackandanace]

I'd argue that's its own breed of generosity

[He chuckles]

I'm not particularly handy but is there anything I might be of use for? Or would you mind if I observed? I promise to do my best to not get in your way.

[builditstrong]

[He just shrugs at that.]

[The idea of people just sitting around watching him work is a little foreign. Masons didn't tend to generate any sort of audience back home. Some of the other guilds had people who would go out and do street performances or have contests, but Masons didn't go for that sort of thing too much.]

Don' mind. F' ya want t' help...

[He tries to think of something basic that this stranger could do. Then he produces a small stub of charcoal from a pocket and offers it out.]

That pile o' boards there needs cuttin' into smaller boards. Not gonna make ya do that, but if ya wanna mark my cuttin' points for me? Need 'em t'be 'bout a foot long each, but it don' need t'be exact.

[ajackandanace]

[Jack reaches for it]

Now that I can do.

[He's been around enough construction sites and work yards to be able to figure that out. So he sets about starting the marks, biting the corner of his lip as he concentrates on what he's doing]

I am assuming that you do this sort of work back home then?

[Jack has gotten the sense that this young man is not a big talker but at the same time it feels strange to simply sit in silence]

[want_to_belong]

"Hey."

The voice would likely be pretty familiar, from back when they'd spoken in the ruins. Now that they knew how to go back and forth it was just a matter of setting up a home. Unfortunately, they knew how to pitch a tent, but building a home from rubble not so much.

When he saw what was going on on the other islet he decided to walk over and take a look. Of course they weren't the only ones attempting to build. Lots of people seemed to be scavenging and doing whatever they could figure out how to do for the moment.

"Mind... showing me how to do a few things?" He pointed back over his shoulder. "We're trying to set up shop over there. We've got a hammer and a couple of tarps, but..."

Not much more than that. And, at the very least, they had some strong, fairly young men with him, Noct and Nyx - Iggy would surely do what he could, but none were about to push him. They could just use some pointers, and Prompto didn't mind helping out Kid a bit if it meant he could learn what to do with their place.

[builditstrong]

He looks up abruptly when he hears the familiar voice. He smiles a little behind his bandanna. It's nice to have friends in such a lonely place, and he considers Prompto a friend, or close enough to it.

Doesn't really take much for this Kid.

"Yeah, a'course."

He stands up and dusts his hands off.

"Hammer 'n tarps, huh? What sorta hammer?"

Probably not a Mason's hammer, but it's not like they'll need one until they get to smashing rocks and such. A simple household hammer will do for now. Even with the scarcity of nails.

[want_to_belong]

They could be bandana buddies. Except Prompto wore his on his arm. He'd readily become fond of Kid as well, seeing him as a pretty friendly person.

He held his hands out to indicate an average sized hammer. "'Bout this big. Just, normal?"

That it was a hammer was about the depth of his knowledge with it. He was more familiar with a different set of tools.

"Don't think we really have any nails or anything, though. We just need to figure out how to build a wall up so that it doesn't fall on us while we're sleeping."

[builditstrong]

He nods. An average, household hammer then.

"Gotcha. Should do ya jus' fine."

You don't really need a big old Mason's hammer unless you're working with stone or Mancer-worked materials.

He nods, propping his hands on his hips.

"'M plenty good at buildin' walls." He's done it for most his life, in fact. "Have a few nails, but I been savin' em for patchin' stuff. With a wall, they's methods 'f settin' it up sturdy without needin' nails. S' a matter of slottin' wood in t'place real secure."

He's already thinking over the best way to go about it and calculating how much wood and such they'll need.

"'F I take a good look at it I can figger out what t'do. Kin show ya some tricks 'n all."

[want_to_belong]

"Show me the ways of your people, boss," he teased, but he really would be following whatever Kid showed him. The more people who could build half-way competently, the better, and the sooner he could help get Iggy and Noct a safe place to sleep - not to mention a bit of shelter for himself - the sooner he could rest easy. He didn't want Iggy to get dirty rain water or something all over his wounds.

He glanced over at what Kid had going on there, stepping over to what he was building. "So, what first?"

[achievementhunter]

Of course, there's always going to be someone who takes less kindly to having their space invaded. Honestly, they're not sure how else they can project random visitors aren't welcome than setting themself and their companions up in the most isolated place possible. Should they leave blood prints on the walls? Coat the grounds in the bones of fallen prey, stripped of anything that would have been of use?

In comparison to some places, Chara personally believes they're getting there. Helpful, to have a hammer and some nails; Tim certainly knew how to use them, and the very first thing they'd fixed was the front door.

They suppose having someone do the work for them is to their advantage, in some ways, and yet, it still doesn't sit well. The holes and cracks in need of fixing certainly display the shacks contents; goods and supplies that they need to survive.

A helpful front makes a great guise to profile other's goods.

"Can I help you?" Which is why the Kid won't so much as get to said front door before a suspicious, smiling child is there to bar the way.

[builditstrong]

Seems they've got themselves a door up already. That's good. He's already looking over the exterior of the place, noting any weak points or major damage. At least one of those walls could use some shoring up. He's down to the last of his wood and nails for the day, but when he notices there were kids living over here, he figured he might as well use up what he has for them.

The child that greets him with a polite smile is familiar. He remembers them from a few days ago--they showed him how the mana pool works.

"Hullo."

He's not sure if they remember him or not. He knows he's pretty forgettable. But he indicates the pile of wood under his arm.

"Noticed yer place could use some patchin'. Figgered I could help." He nods toward that one unsteady-looking wall. "South wall needs proper shorin' up. Kin get t'that tomorrow too, 'f ya want."

[achievementhunter]

They might know him from their discussion over the mana pool, but that hardly constitutes trusting him with their space. Nor do they have any idea what 'shoring up' is supposed to mean... but they have no doubt that someone here does.

"I'm afraid I can't be of much assistance, however, my roommate will likely want to partake." As loathe as they are to admit it; this is a job for Tim, not them. Chara scans their surroundings for him, even as they continue addressing Kid. "If you would wait a moment, I'll see if I can collect him."

[builditstrong]

He gives a polite nod. It's nice to hear that they're not along over here, at least. He's seen the other kid around, but they must be talking about a third person.

"'Course."

He'll wait. It might turn out that none of them want his help at all, and that's just fine too. He just wants to help if he can.

Tim after Chara!

[achievementhunter]

"Thank you. I shan't be long then."

And certainly, they won't; searching the inside of the shack first to uncover one Tim Wright in the process of doing- whatever it is he does, whenever nihilistic children aren't bothering him. Marinating him his self-deprecation, probably.

"There is a man outside who wishes to assist in fixing up our abode. He mentioned something about shorin the south wall." They actually lift their hands and use quotation marks, clearly dubious.