November Undercurrent: And We Give Thanks

[lifeaftr_mods]

NOVEMBER UNDERCURRENT

Who: Everyone!
What: Have you told someone you loved them yet?
When: November 3rd to November 20th
Where: Everywhere!
Warnings: Nothing of note; please mark if anything comes up!

Take Me Back to the Reasons Why
The Water wishes to demonstrate their power to you, as well as just what they mean, when they suggest that they require your cooperation. They are going to bring back the harvest island of Nuidan, a generally fondly remembered island that explorers have encountered in the past. What's more, they're going to require your help to do it.

Starting November 3rd, characters will discover a simple strip of dark leather among their belongings, meant to be worn around the neck or wrist. They can disregard it, of course, but if they attempt to discard or destroy it, it will always find its way back to them, no matter how improbable this might seem. How strange...

Perhaps even stranger is the sudden appearance of a smooth slab of stone, half-submerged in the waters just off of Ensō's coast. It's an altar, and around its edges are a series of deep notches, as though something is meant to be inserted into them. In its center is a pool of water, though it curiously doesn't seem to reflect anything.

The purpose of this will only really become obvious once the month goes on. Characters will find themselves to compelled to be honest with the people around them as to why they care, why they appreciate them as people, or what they like most about them. This compulsion can vary wildly and at the player's discretion, from a gentle mental pressure to an unstoppable force, and anything in between!

The bottom line is that every time one admits to some feeling of gratitude, no matter how small or big, their little plait of leather will receive a crystal from the interaction. All crystals will be roughly the same shape, but they may vary in color, pattern, and texture. Some might be simple sticks of quartz, while others might be comprised of myriad, ever-changing swirls of color. Again, the only limit here is your imagination. Now the presence of that strange, altar-shaped stone in the water might make a bit more sense. Those notches in its sides are the perfect size and shape to fit a crystal smoothly into any one of them. The more grateful interactions one has with others, the more crystals they will gather, and the more they can fit into the altar. As more crystals are fed to the altar, it will start to glow. The pool of water at the altar's top will start to reflect the likeness island of Nuidan in increasing clarity, as though one is peering at its likeness in a snowglobe. What's more is that the number of crystals in the altar will very obviously affect Nuidan's state: very few crystals will make the island look as though it is mostly wilderness only a handful of structures in dire need of repair, while a great deal of crystals will cause the island to look as though it is thriving, in full bloom, and in more need of harvest than maintenance.

But, ultimately, the state in which Nuidan returns to you is up to you...and how far you're willing to go to express a little gratitude. Don't worry if you don't know anyone, either - this marks a great opportunity to start doing nice things for people, even if you don't know them! You've got most of the month to get to know each other, after all.

Don't think you can get away with heaping compliments on your closest friends and companions, however; variety is the name of the game here. While you can collect all sorts of crystals for personal use from repeat interactions, you can only feed one crystal to the altar per person. That is to say, Character A can be as grateful to Character B as they like, but only one crystal from each character can be delivered to the altar. If they want to procure more for the altar's purposes, Character A will have to have a positive interaction with Character C, and so on.

Take Me Back to That Big Sky

Of course, there's a lot going on in the background as well. You're free to use this log as a catch-all for the duration of November's Undercurrent Event, as well as the other minor events listed on our Monthly Rundown post. You are very, very free to let your dreams about creepers and baby lorbies become reality, and you are always free to create your own individual logs and posts as needed.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them over on our Monthly Rundown post!

November Timeline

[ ♆ ] November 3rd: "And We Give Thanks" begins and lasts until November 20th
[ ♆ ] November 4th: "Aw, Man" begins and lasts until November 12th
[ ♆ ] November 11th: "The Lorblings" begins and lasts until November 25th
[ ♆ ] November 20th: Nuidan returns to the archipelago
[ ♆ ] November 21st: "Return to Your Roots" begins and lasts until November 30th

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[atailoftwoworlds]

[As it happens, Zidane's pet lorby Blank is missing. It's as if Blank hasn't go off on his own and he doesn't harm others unless those others harm Zidane so normally Zidane doesn't find it a big deal. But did the young thief's lorby companion have to happen at such an inconvenient time?

So, Zidane has no choice but to go out and look for him. He has gone around, calling the lorby's name but to no avail.

And while he is searching, a particular person causes him to stop right in his tracks.....]

Héctor?!

[And before he knows it, Zidane finds himself saying:]

Hey, uh......there's something I need to talk to you about.

[.....Shit shit shit shit.]

[vagabone]

[You look nervous, buddy. Are you nervous? He's not. It's just another day, nothing terrible is going on, no ominous signs, unless the leather loop is going to try to strangle him in his sleep or something. Bad for everyone else, no big deal for a dead man.]

Sure, hit me. What's that look for? Something happened?

[atailoftwoworlds]

[It's not as if Zidane didn't want to tell his skeleton friend eventually. In fact, what was going on made him realise he should once the event was over. But lo and behold, by luck, he ran into him anyway. Oh boy, this is going to be awkward. Since it's coming out anyway....]

Um......you know, I haven't talked much about......certain stuff. Stuff that's been bothering me. Like missing home. That sorta thing. I know I should. Dagger told me to.

But uh.....there have been a few people I thought I might be able to talk about 'em to. And, well, nearly did......You're one of 'em. Probably because we do a lot of fun stuff together and you found a little about that blue light I was searching for.

Crap this is not how I wanted to tell you. [Nervous? What do you mean there is sweat on his forehead from the fact that words are just coming out?]

[vagabone]

[Not what he expected to hear. Something's up, something serious. It drives the silliness right out of him, there's nothing playful in his look. One of those moments when he behaves like a proper papá adult, not a goofy big brother.]

Hey, relax. Don't rush yourself, I'm not going anywhere. Whatever you've got to say, I won't tell anyone.

What's the matter?

[atailoftwoworlds]

Uh....[Héctor's sudden change in demeanor does not go unnoticed. Zidane isn't even sure he's seen his friend behave like this before. It's like...he sounds older and wiser. Zidane cannot help but stare in shock at the moment, although he does say:]

.....Something funny's going on again. For the past couple of hours, I've been trying to resist the urge to blurt out exactly how I feel about my friends to their faces. Every single damn thing.

[vagabone]

[He's staring right back at the kid, eyes wide. Forced truth-telling. It's not the first time. Not good, not good, not good--cold dread seeps into his bones.]

You're not, ah, feeling sick, are you? Got a sore throat or cough?

[He's afraid of what the answer could be and no one who knows the full story could blame him.]

[atailoftwoworlds]

Uh.....no? I feel fine? I mean....apart from the fact I can't keep my mouth shut.

[He raises an eyebrow, confused. Zidane's heard about the hanahaki event but only bits and pieces of it and not enough to conclude what his friend is talking about.]

[vagabone]

Okay. Okay, good.

[So far! He relaxes about a hair, still unnerved by whatever's rattling around his empty skull.]

Be glad that's all you're feeling. Last time we were forced to spill our guts, it wasn't just a gentle suggestion. It was confess or die.

[atailoftwoworlds]

Uhhh.....[Wait a minute. Now he remembers Héctor and Keith mentioning...Oh god, if it's that disturbing thing then...] Y-yeah, I'm pretty sure it's not that bad. [Not as far as he knows anyway.

Either way, he's just saying things without wanting to. SPEAKING OF WHICH...] That's what I like about you. Apart from the fact you're fun and relaxed [Although sometimes dumb but we are talking about positive things here.] I...um.....think you might be someone I can talk to about....stuff...

[vagabone]

[Alright. This is happening. Can't be helped. He can only try to make it easier. So...]

It's going to come out whether you like it or not, I bet. Like I said, this isn't the first time. You want to go sit down someplace quiet and get it over with?

[atailoftwoworlds]

[Zidane blinks, not saying anything for a moment. Sure, Héctor has been here for a while and crazy things happen all the time but he's still a little shocked by the casual reaction. So maybe....]

.....Man.....I guess this sort of thing happens way more than I thought, considering you're pretty blasé for someone who's just heard a guy's thoughts about him out of the blue and in way too much detail.

[vagabone]

[He lets out a laugh--one laugh, singular--and pats Zidane on the shoulder to take the edge off his teasing.]

You call that too much detail? And you haven't even said anything bad! Eesh, you're the last guy I'd have thought would be embarrassed about having friends.

[atailoftwoworlds]

[Zidane knows that his skele friend is teasing him but he still cannot help but turn red.

He needs to be more honest to people. He knows. And he'd rather not do it this way. And yet, seeing Héctor just laugh and pat him on the shoulder like that and act like it's not a big deal....]

Geez, uh....[And he rubs his head, looking down at the ground.] ....I really feel pathetic.

[vagabone]

No, no, you don't need to. Now if you went on for about a half hour about how pretty my hands were or something, that would be weird and way too muc detail and maybe even kind of creepy.

[Now who's the real weirdo here?]

[atailoftwoworlds]

Uh.... [Yes that would be really creepy. But he gets the impression that his friend might be trying to cheer him up. There's a small but awkward smile.]

Heh. I....guess....

[And this is embarrassing to say but he feels he should say it. At least he's saying it voluntarily.] Sorry I uh......still find...personal stuff.....well...hard to talk about.

[vagabone]

But you haven't said anything personal.

[Not in his opinion, for whatever that's worth. Consider him a little bemused...]

You want me to get out of here before you really start confessing?

[atailoftwoworlds]

[Zidane was about to say yes but....whoops, too late.]

It's just when you mentioned that blue light and seemed to shrug it off. I mean, I don't know what you exactly heard on the stones you didn't seem annoyed or weirded out, and I felt maybe I could...talk to you at some point.

But then lots of stuff happened during the past few months and I figured it wasn't the best time to say anything to you.

[And he kicks the floor frustrated. He especially did not want to say the last part. Héctor didn’t need that.]

[vagabone]

[He holds up his hands, shrugging. To tell the truth, he barely remembers--it was so little.] You didn't say anything that seemed weird to me. Is there something, ah, significant about a blue light?

And you're never going to find a good time. We're always going to have things dumped on our heads until we get out of here. Don't worry about that.

[atailoftwoworlds]

Man, if anyone can find a description about this place that is sure to kill everyone's moods, you've kind of nailed it. I'm kind of impressed. [Skeledude isn't wrong but still….

Anyway, let's not think about it. Héctor has asked something else.] Uh....well, there is to me.....I mean, there was....but....not anymore.

I'm mostly over that part of my life. [It's not something he can change and parts of it still suck but it's not like he doesn't have control over his own life. Besides, there are good things about it too. Like his friends, back home and here.]

[vagabone]

[Pointedly:] If you're over it, why is the thought of talking about it bothering you out so much?

I'm not saying you have to, not right now. But it's like I said, the island forces this stuff to come out one way or another.