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

[onegreeneye]

[It just takes those three words, and suddenly a lot of things make sense. Especially those freeze-ups.]

...Right. [There's some understanding just in that word.] That sounds... incredibly frustrating.

[reflash]

[He laughs, sort of. It's a stressed rush of noise, breaking through all at once, just for a second.

He should say something, but he can't trust his own voice anymore. So he nods instead, because it's beyond just incredibly frustrating, because he's spent so much of his life smoothing things over with polite little lies that he doesn't know how to even talk anymore.]

[onegreeneye]

[Well, that not-laugh communicated enough on its own.] ...Worse than frustrating. Sorry.

[Now that he thinks about it - other than the occasional downplaying of his own emotions, he doesn't do much lying himself these days. Not like there's any need to do so to make money, and he's rarely in positions where lying to someone to comfort them would actually work, now that he's no longer the resident expert in any given situation. So he'll usually just say what he thinks.

Yukio... is more careful than he is. Has been as long as he's known him.

Shit. Some things are starting to make sense.]

Is that what happened when Hector was here, too?

[reflash]

[He nods. It's not just today, it's the entire time he's been on this island, it's every time he's talked to Héctor, or Ginko, or anyone.

He shouldn't have told Ginko. He should have tried to handle it on his own but it's been too much for him and he doesn't know what to do.]

[onegreeneye]

Shit. I'm sorry. [Again. For making Yukio deal with that, even more so than he was already regretting bringing them together, and just... in general. It just sucks, in general.

But he asked for a reason.] I guess that's not... something I can really solve. [Obviously.] But if you want to find ways to work around it when you have to... I might be able to help with that.

[It's not like he wants to encourage Yukio to lie or anything, but nobody should have to be ready to spill their guts or clam up every time someone asks a personal question.]

[reflash]

[He breathes out, a shuddering exhalation between his fangs as he tries to plan out what he's going to say, tries to decide if he can even get the words out past the choking pressure in his throat.]

I've been trying. [He says, but it's a whisper. Why is this so difficult? It has nothing to do with telling the truth, since this is the truth so it should come easily. But it feels like anything he says is going to be something he doesn't want said, like his voice is going to betray him in ways he can't ever recover from.]

Fae are... known for never lying, but being very clever with their words.

[onegreeneye]

How's that worked for you so far?

[He imagines not great, given how he's already seen Yukio struggling to communicate, but if Yukio is having at least limited success, under particular circumstances... well, that's better than nothing, and something to know when trying to help him.]

[reflash]

[...

Yukio knows. He knows he can't do this, it isn't working and it isn't going to work. And Ginko knows.

There's nothing for him to say.]

[onegreeneye]

[Shiiit. Ginko rubs at the back of his neck, fingers pulling at his fur.]

Right... I guess there's always just refusing to talk, but that'll only take you so far if you're trying not to insult anyone, huh.

[He's definitely thinking on it, staring down at the floor with his fingers buried in his fur. This would be a lot simpler if Yukio were anywhere near as comfortable as Ginko is with just being constantly rude. But he isn't, and asking him to change his entire approach to interacting with other people all at once isn't likely to do Yukio much good at all.]

...I'm sorry. I... really appreciate that you were willing to tell me this; I wish I could be of enough help to reflect that properly.

[reflash]

I'm not refusing to talk. [He says, forcing the words out, trying to explain, trying to make sense of it himself. That isn't what's happening, and it certainly isn't what he wants.]

And you've been helpful. I shouldn't have bothered you. Thank you.

[onegreeneye]

--I know that's not what you've been doing. [Just to try and be as clear as he can.] It was just... a bad suggestion.

[He shakes his head quickly, briefly.] No, I'm glad you told me. I can at least try to avoid putting you in difficult positions in the future.

...And, if I ask something you really aren't willing to answer, you can tell me as much, alright? I'd rather you do that than hurt yourself.

[reflash]

[It's so much. It's so much and Yukio feels like he shouldn't be here.

Ginko wouldn't lie, and he's not the sort of person who just says things to be polite, and Yukio's claws dig into the fabric of his pants and he has nothing to say, but he has to say something.]

... thank you.

[onegreeneye]

[Ginko nods, and... stays quiet. Not much more for him to say - and he doesn't want Yukio getting more overwhelmed than he already is.]