lifeaftr | you and me in the moonlight

Entry tags:

you and me in the moonlight

Who: You!
What: A year end party MINGLELOG to help everyone recover from the Shit we’ve been through.
When: Forwarddated to Nov 24
Where: Enso E4, close to the ST Temple
Warnings: Mark as necessary, but none expected.

As the end of November draws near…… it’s time for that player plot the mods hinted at in their latest announcement.

~~Laurent’s Witch Labyrinth!~~ -no, actually, it’s just a party.

[preparation]

All day on the 24th people are hard at work setting up on the golden beaches of Enso. The Storyteller’s Temple can be seen from the site and vice versa; it’s just a short walk away. There’s quite a bit to be done, so every extra pair of hands are welcome!

[the party]

As evening falls, a series of torches light up the party site for the lost; most prominent are the three large campfires spaced out across the beach, offering a variety of gathering spots for those who don’t like the loud partying going on at the other one.

There’s more than enough food to go around. An entire Cariborn is being dug up from the sandy soil way up the beach, having been roasted in the ground. There’s a wide variety spread out on tables… of handwaved origin… maybe they’re the ones left around from 4/20?? It’s probably fine. Herb- baked vegetables, fresh fruits, meat of various types, pizza!! and yes, Muffet’s Magic Blackberry Alcohol abound.

We’ve also got party favors. Amongst them, it seems like..... owo are these sparklers?

Come hang out! It’s a well-deserved break.

[activities]

The children (and adults so-inclined) have some cute party games to have fun with. There’s a simple little ringtoss area set up, with rings that aren’t even proper circles (listen, Laurent tried) and wooden stakes in the ground to be ringed.

Across the wide stretch of sand there's a lot that can be done- want to build some sandcastles? Pick some shells? Fight some crabs? The beach is dotted with doodles in the sand, inviting you to join in.

The biggest attraction is perhaps the petting zoo- well, it’s a cluster of animals just hanging out, but you get the idea. Located far up on the beach and away from the danger of the waves, the petting zoo has three whole Chocobos, two whole Tigerlilies (one of which is clearly guarding the Chocobos), and one whole horse. Sometimes two horses, but the grey wandering one is wearing a plaque that says “I BITE. PET ME CAREFULLY.”

[storyteller?]

Yes, ST-chan is invited! I’m leaving it to them to top-level or tag out at their leisure. Keep an eye out for the bunny god, they’re Coming.

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[She understands his struggle completely. Pie crust is, to use the official baking term, a massive pain in the ass.]

By all means, I'm happy to share table space. Do you want any help with those? They look lovely, it would be a shame to drop one.

[Muffet uses one pair of hands to quickly and neatly clear a small patch for Shion's pies.]

Yes please. [He doesn't want to drop any either, he's not sure there's going to be enough for everyone as is without him wasting any.

It's not too much of a problem as many other people have made food too. Space is quickly made and Shion carefully holds out the pies so Muffet can grab one of them. Two were easier to handle.] It all looks delicious Muffet, you must have been baking for days.

Why, thank you. Yours looks quite lovely as well.

Though I suspect I had a bit of an advantage on timing. [The nice thing about monster food not spoiling is that you can start cooking pretty far in advance.]

You did? [He was glad his had turned out alright but he hasn't slept, five pies was a lot, especially without any equipment that he was used to.]

I guess... you have more hands than I do. [That is bound to be helpful.]

Well, there's that, too. They do say that many hands make light work.

[Muffet, no. Stop.]

But I was referring to the way my magic preserves the food for far longer, keeping it fresh.

[That got a smile out of him at least. But that... was really helpful.] That does help a lot.

Have you found your magic works the same way here as it did where you come from?

[That question receives a slight frown, though not at him in particular. It's something she's puzzled over for some time.]

The majority of it seems to, but certain parts have been far more difficult to use than they should be- healing magic, in particular.

I've asked about, and it seems I'm not the only one who's had that specific issue, either.

[He finishes placing the pies and then reaches round to take his notepad out of his bag, flicking to the pages about magic.

Healing magic was interesting, as that's one Aster had.]

Is healing magic the most affected? How is it harder to use? Are there any places, or times where it is harder or easier? How about having them cut off completely? Have you ever not been able to use your magic here?

[Sorry Muffet, sometimes he forgets to breathe.]

[Fortunately, Muffet looks amused rather than annoyed.]

In order... [She counts off the answers on her fingers:]

Yes, it's harder in that I can't seem to use it nearly as many times before becoming exhausted as I could at home, no, no, and not unless I've already exhausted myself completely.

[She adds, smiling in a fond, if slightly teasing, manner:]

Oh, and do try to pause for breath, dearie. I'm given to understand that humans need air.

[Breathing is mostly overrated. But he does pause and smile sheepishly as he scribbles all her answers down.] Sorry Muffet... There's just... [So many questions not enough time for air.]

So it seems to be a case of magic being harder to reach and taking more energy rather than something blocking you from using it. [He needs more information before making any kind of theory on the matter. Like everything here nothing is certain and all he has is half guesses that will probably end up being wrong.]

Hmm... 'harder to reach' isn't quite the right way to describe it, I think.

[She gives the matter consideration, trying to put it into words.]

My magic isn't an outside force, it's part of my being. Rather the same way your flesh and bones are part of you. It's... perhaps a bit like trying to move around with heavy weights attached to your limbs, as compared to moving unburdened. Your strength, the power of your body, isn't any different than it was- but the same actions take far more effort than they normally would, you tire far sooner.

[Shion nods, his frown getting deeper. He wrote it down and unconsciously his hand came up to touch at his neck. It just took more effort... What could cause that? Was it something about the islands? Was it something that had been done to them?] I understand I think. Sorry... I don't have magic myself so it's still something I'm learning about.

[But he understands the bit about everything taking more effort, it's worrying and in many ways opens even more questions.]

[Muffet waves a hand dismissively.]

[She notices the unconscious gesture, but doesn't comment on it. That's not her business.]

There's no need to apologize, dearie- I'd far rather be asked questions than have someone make assumptions. Besides, there's no shame in a strong desire to learn. I find it admirable.

[She tilts her head curiously.]

If I may ask, is there a reason you're interested in learning about magic in particular? Or do you simply wish to learn as much new information as you can?

It's a good way to get some gauge on what sort of power is keeping us here. What sort of controls it has over us. I'm interested in learning everything... To try and figure out what's going on and how we can escape here. But I also just find magic fascinating. There are worlds were to be magic is as natural as breathing and others where it doesn't exist at all.

[The existance of magic had overwhelmed him at first but now he sees it as just something that some worlds have. The fact that magic is not as non existent on his own world as he thought is something he is still getting used to though.]

[Muffet nods in understanding.]

There's no way to be certain what information might be important, just yet, so it's best to get as many details as possible. And besides, other worlds are so interesting to learn about.

It's amazing to think of them all out there, so different from one another...

They are. There are so many differences but also so many similarities and in some ways that's even more interesting that worlds that are completely similar to each other can have things that happened the same, even some of the same people.

Also I wonder how many worlds there are like this, that steal people from their own worlds and... how often it happens, how often other worlds are held in stasis or... my world had ended for over two years but when we restored it it was at the point where I left, as if no time had passed. Now it is in suspended animation. How many times has that happened, with others from my world? So how long has it really been?

[He's dangerously close to panic material here but he's alright, he's still breathing. His tone is more interested than worried. The vastness of the multiverse is terrifying but fascinating all at the same time. But still he seems to recognise where his mind has gone and takes a deep breath.]

Is everyone on your world a spider?

[Something about what he said in all that catches her attention, and seems important in a way she can't explain. A world, being restored... Obviously that's an important thing, the safety of an entire world. But why does that specific idea seem to resonate with her, in a way beyond the normal curiosity for such momentous events?]

[She tries to catch the thought, examine it more closely- but then a single swift moment later, his question distracts her and it's gone, out of her mind entirely. Perhaps she'll remember it later?]

[Then again, perhaps not.]

Oh no, far from it.

[She smiles, and explains:]

In my world, there are two peoples living on the planet Earth- humans and monsters. Humans, I suspect, you're already familiar with. Monsters are my people, and we come in all sorts of forms.

The basic difference between us, you see, is that humans are matter with a soul, whereas monsters are magic with a soul. Monsters are made almost entirely of magical energy. We absorb a very small amount of matter as we form, before our births, which is used to form our physical bodies. But because we're still mostly magic, we're much less tied to physical laws than humanity must be.

Therefore, while humans are limited to shapes that the laws of physics will allow to survive, monsters can come in nearly any form at all. One monster might be a spider monster like myself, but another might be a living flame, or a cat, or a ghost, or a slime, or a machine, or a paper figure, or a dragon...

[With a wink, she finishes.]

Personally, I think a spider is rather the best choice of shapes one can have. But I might be just a tad bit biased.

[Magic with a soul. Rather than the monsters he knows (which really is just a word he uses for anything that is trying to kill him, whatever form it takes) they are an actual people on Muffet's world.] Spiders are a very good choice. [The afformentioned extra arms for example are really useful.]

You are born? Do monsters have parents like humans and animals? Can you change forms? Is it chosen from environment and such or is it just random?

[It's distracted him from his panic at least.] Please tell me if I'm being too nosy.

Oh no, I'm quite happy to talk about my home- do stop me if I start to ramble too much.

[For all that she likes learning about other worlds, there's also a deep sense of pride in her home, being able to tell people about her culture and her family. And maybe it eases her homesickness just a little bit, to be able to talk about it.]

Different subspecies of monsters reproduce in different ways- in the case of spider monsters like myself, our parents lay eggs. Others might reproduce by budding, or other methods that don't require more than one person. Some monsters do have the ability to change their shapes, but it's not a common one.

Mostly, one just ends up the same subspecies as one's parent or parents, though that can get a bit muddied if they weren't the same subspecies to begin with. There are theories that our ancient ancestors chose their forms by mimicking the environment around them, but we have no way of being certain- we've been part of the physical world too long to change that, for all that we're an energy-based species.

[He just smiles, he is one of the worst for rambling so he is not going to stop anyone else from doing it, especially if they are doing it about something they are passionate about, rather than rambling out of fear or panic.] So all of your family are spider formed too? That's really interesting, I don't think I've heard of any people like that. Do you live in harmony with the humans in your world or is their conflict between the two?

They are, yes- at least, the ones I'm related to by birth. There are more than a few adopted family members, as well.

[She looks deeply fond as she speaks about them. When he asks his next question, though, her smile turns quite a bit more sad, rueful.]

We do live peacefully with humans, these days. But until very recently, I'm afraid we weren't nearly so lucky.

[Shion has adopted family who are not even from the same universe as him so Muffet's family, spider and non spider sounds like a good one. Especially as she sounds so fond.

He's not surprised that humans and monster had not always been peaceful, having two very different peoples sharing a world and resources was something that could lead to strife.] I'm glad it is peaceful now and you can live together. [It's just... Better. If he's learned anything in his time in different worlds it is that working together towards a common goal is important, something that should surpass all barriers between people.]

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you and me in the moonlight

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