March Undercurrent: Lost Connections

[lifeaftr_mods]

MARCH UNDERCURRENT

Who: Everyone!
What: We remember those lost, and connect with one another
When: March 3rd to March 19th
Where: Everywhere!
Warnings: Please mark anything as it comes up!

From Stardust to God

Those months since the Water's introduction to you all have been...tumultuous, haven't they? These two gods have more or less been trying to consistently undermine each other, and you all have been caught in the middle of it - whether or not you wanted to be! Kind of a miserable state of being to be stuck in, right?

All that is going to change.

For the duration of this particular month, both the Storyteller and the Water will be operating under a tentative ceasefire as they commit their efforts to one singular, joint goal:

They wish to remember those who have been lost. Those who have left the archipelago, those who have died, those who have come and gone, those who you lost in your homes...and these gods will be, also, commemorating those who they have lost. This commemoration will be facilitated with the use of memorials and offerings to those long past.

The Storyteller will provide you with materials to craft paper lanterns that can be illuminated and sent sailing into the ocean waters. They can be decorated with colorful paper, cut designs, and so forth. The Water will guide the currents to allow the lanterns to drift to...wherever it is they need to go. You can send as many lanterns as you like, and as many nights as you like. The skies will always be clear, and the water will always guide them to the horizon, where they eventually fade from view...

Both the Storyteller and the Water will be available for discussion for the duration of this event.

The Highs We Trade for the Lows

This month isn't only about remembering what's been past. To conjure Ai'tuoh back to the archipelago, it will also entail that all of you do some reflecting on what has been lost in your lives, and sharing in that pain together. This may be a somber month for some of you, or it may be an introspective one.

At any point during this event, your character may wake to discover that one or more thin threads of colorful light appears to be emanating from their chest and trailing through the empty air. These threads cannot be removed or influenced in any fashion; attempting to grab at them will simply cause one's hands to phase uselessly through them, as though they are ethereal constructs of some sort.

The purpose of these strands of light might not immediately be apparent, but if you spend enough time observing your fellow islanders, it might get a bit clearer. Each tether connects you to someone else - someone who has a pain similar to your own. Should you follow your tether to whoever it has linked you to, you may find yourself compelled to comfort or relate to the other party. This compulsion can honestly vary, from a gentle nudge to a sudden impulse and anything in between. There may or may not be a subtle pressure on your thoughts that may help you discern what you might have in common with this other person, whoever they might be. This facet of this event is completely opt-in, naturally, and we encourage you to interpret this however you like. What counts as shared pain? It can be as literal or as figurative as you like. Whether characters underwent the same events in this game or another, or whether there are certain parallels you wish to explore within certain canons or across multiple ones...or if you just want your character to have a nice sit down and talk about their problems for once, the choice is yours. Your character can be connected to as many others as you like - there is no limit to how many characters you can share any related trauma with!

Should you choose to reflect on that which you have endured, and the shared pain of others, what follows is fairly intuitive. The tether binding you together will fade, though hopefully a stronger bond will be forged, and ideally you'll all feel better afterward...but that's not necessarily a given, now, is it?

This is No Place Like Home

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 February's Undercurrent Event, as well as any of the other minor events listed on our Monthly Rundown post. And, of course, 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 the Questions header on our Monthly Rundown post!

March Timeline

[ ♆ ] March 1st: "The Return of Your Special Lifting Friend" begins and lasts until March 10th
[ ♆ ] March 3rd: "Lost Connections" begins and lasts until March 19th
[ ♆ ] March 12th: "Spring Forth" begins and lasts until March 21st
[ ♆ ] March 20th: Ai'tuoh returns to the archipelago
[ ♆ ] March 22nd: "The Happy Hang Glider Vacation Society" begins and lasts until March 31st

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[vagabone]

[He isn't going far. He doesn't really need splints, after all. He'll get by.

But he does sit down as soon as he can, very much against the idea of standing when there's no need.]

Honestly, I have no idea what's going on inside that kid's head. Think I insulted his pride or something by bringing him food whenever I felt like baking. I don't know. He's not comfortable around me, that's what matters. And he's never going to admit it, because he has some kind of self destructive... [Vague wild gesturing!!] Thing going on. We, uh. No offense, but we probably shouldn't have dragged it out that long.

[onegreeneye]

[Ginko sits down carefully next to Hector, balancing with his good arm on the way down. His brow creases slowly as Hector talks. There's... a lot to unpack here.]

Probably not... but I don't think he'll feel any better from you running out after he asked to help. What do you mean, you insulted his pride? Did he say something to make you think that?

[vagabone]

I don't think you get exactly how much he hates being around me. Only thing I could do was leave. Let's never do that again, okay?

[A faintly amused tone.] He doesn't say anything. I could probably punch him in the face and he wouldn't say anything. I'm just guessing. I know he didn't appreciate it, ahhh, in hindsight.

[onegreeneye]

[He raises his eyebrows slightly.] ...No, it wasn't. But, sure, we won't try again.

Right, I was wondering about that - he said he was rude to you? What was that about?

[vagabone]

...What would you have done? [Now he sounds like he's so very tired again. Hard not to.]

He wanted to be left alone, when I was trying to snap him out of watching his worst memory. You remember that, it happened to me too. [Boy, does he not want to get into that. He fucked up. It's what he's best at.] Suppose it was rude by his crazy standards.

[onegreeneye]

I don't know for sure what I would have done, but I'm not a good role model. He would have felt better if you'd let him help.

...I do remember. What did he say?

[vagabone]

Hah, neither am I. Never said I was. [An almost laugh, wowie.] He tried. Not his fault, I quit healing like fifteen years ago. [Give or take five years. Thank goodness it was his arm that broke first, he didn't have to walk on a broken leg for over a decade...]

Ahhh, I don't think he'd like me to repeat it. Don't worry about it, I've been called worse.

[onegreeneye]

And I didn't say that, either. But it's never too late for either of us to improve. [God, he wishes he'd remembered to ask the Storyteller for more cigarettes.] I meant with the splints. That was something he could have actually done for you.

[Another meaningful eyebrow movement.] Are you saying Yukio swore at you? [If that happened, shit had really gone wrong.]

[vagabone]

[That's a big mood. What he wouldn't do for some booze... he can't ask for any, it all pours right through him unless it's magical!!] ...I can splint bones, I've done it for people before. Uh, dead people. I don't think I could for a living person. [Too much flesh in the way, he'd get blood on him.] He'd have had to deal with me that much longer.

[...Yes, a drink, please. He doesn't want to say it. Doesn't want to hear anyone else confirming it's true. (He knows it's true, he'll believe anything negative about himself.)

It comes out anyway, a bit irritably.] Fine. He said I was just being cruel, okay? And I'm trying not to be, believe it or not.

[onegreeneye]

I know you can. But Yukio would have appreciated feeling like he was being of some help. [As opposed to trying to help someone, failing, and then having his patient leave before he could do anything else.]

...Huh. [That is weird, and it shows in his voice, however slightly.] Well, I do believe you weren't trying to be cruel. [He doesn't know if Hector is even capable of that.] Do you have any idea why he may have thought that? What did you say?

[vagabone]

Suppose I could go back in. I think it's a hundred years too late to convince anyone I know what I'm doing or that I won't change my mind every time someone sneezes. [Ha ha ha. Yeah.]

Mostly that he needs to stop punishing himself. Be a little nicer to himself, for a change. He's, what, sixteen? He's not a lost cause.

[onegreeneye]

You could. And if that doesn't work out, we'll figure something else out. [He doesn't know what to say to that next part, except:] It hasn't been a hundred years here.

I agree. Seems odd, though, that he'd read that as cruelty. [He knows there's got to be more here. There's no way Hector intended to hurt Yukio, but there had to be some wires crossed between them somewhere along the way.]

[vagabone]

[He rubs at his face for a moment, head down. This is one of those things that would be easier to deal with after a good night's sleep, pain-free, but neither are going to happen.]

I'm sorry. You shouldn't be responsible for my mistakes. Especially not right now.

[onegreeneye]

You don't need to apologize to me. You and Yukio are the ones this is affecting most; I just want to figure out why it's happening and if there's a way to work it out.

[He chose to get involved, Hector.]

[vagabone]

[It was a bad choice. He's nothing but a bad choice, in general. So nyah.]

He's not alright, that's all I know. I can always walk back tomorrow for splints. If it makes him feel better.

[onegreeneye]

[Goddammit Hector]

I think that's a good idea. [Ginko hesitates a moment before adding,] I understand why you're worried about him. I worry about him, too. But... if you want to help him, you've got to be more careful in how you deal with him.

[Sure, avoiding each other entirely is another option. But in such a small living space as the island, he doesn't know if he's willing to assume it'll work out forever.]

[vagabone]

[He spreads his hands for a moment, shrugging.] Hadn't spoken to him in a while. And I did warn you. Maybe it's better if you let this go for tonight. There's always tomorrow. Might want to take these things back inside for now, though. Never know when someone's going to need them.

[onegreeneye]

...You did.

[He can't deny that. Ginko sighs and scrubs at his face, pushing his bangs aside for just a moment.]

Fine. I still think you should go back and let him splint you tomorrow.

[Not that he... really expects Hector to listen to him for a while after this.]

[vagabone]

[He doesn't ignore people, though. Avoiding isn't ignoring...]

We can work something out tomorrow, okay? That's what the stones are for.

[onegreeneye]

[There's a difference between ignoring someone and straight-up not trusting their judgement - which, let's be real, Ginko is pretty used to both, but in this instance he's more expecting the second one.

He doesn't even know that Hector wouldn't have a point in this instance, honestly, but... he'll just push that down for the time being. He sighs again, just a brief, low rumble, and pushes himself clumsily back to his feet.] Guess so. I'll talk to you then.

[vagabone]

[A nod. He stands too, offering the bundle of stuff. What an odd end to the day.] See you then.

[Time to shuffle on 'home'... where there's a cat to drape himself on, and that's definitely nice.]

[onegreeneye]

Yeah.

[No more to say than that, apparently. He takes the supplies back and, without another moment's pause, heads back for the clinic.

He couldn't risk Hector getting away before he talked to him, but... honestly, he's more worried about Yukio right now. He clearly wasn't doing well, and Hector running out couldn't have helped. So he's scanning the clinic the moment he walks in, not sure if Yukio will be by the entrance or not.]

[reflash]

[He's working again, like organizing the medical supplies is going to help him organize his own thoughts. It isn't helping at all.

Someone walks in, and Yukio goes still, watching from his auxiliary eyes until he can process who it is. Just Ginko, or...

Just Ginko.]

Did Héctor decide to leave? [He asks, calmly. The tension hasn't left his body, but it doesn't show in his voice.]

[onegreeneye]

He did. Said we should hold onto these for now. [He maneuvers, somewhat clumsily, to deposit the bundle of splinting supplies on a table.] Might be back tomorrow, if I can get him to accept help - and if you're comfortable with that. I'll handle him as much as possible in that case.

[Not that he expects to be able to apply splints very effectively with one hand, but... you know. Might as well start practicing.]

...I'm sorry I brought him up here.

[reflash]

You don't have anything to be sorry for, Ginko-san. He needs medical treatment, it's my fault he hadn't come here sooner.

[Yukio knew he'd hurt Héctor before, but he hadn't realized just how much the skeleton wanted to avoid him. This is his fault.]

If you need help treating him, I can be here as backup, but I don't know if he'll let me help you.