deercountry | Promises Promises/Insomnia

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Promises Promises/Insomnia

Who: Luz and you!

What: Accepting loss and dealing with NEW problems (yay)?

When: The first week of September

Where: Check prompts for locations!

A- Cellar Door

Luz would have said she was being needless emo. After all, there was rainfall here and she was depressed, so she figured being here would match her mood. How more dramatic did you have to be? But Luz wasn't in laughing mood, and it was everything she felt like right now.

Margot wasn't coming. She knew that now, she accepted it, and accepting that meant everything else that came with it. Margot was back in her world, robbed of her ability to think and reason as a person, back to her basic instincts as a wolf. No more playing and late night talks. No more huddles with her adopted sister. No more gardening. She wouldn't even remember Luz when she was there. It would be like she was never with Luz at all.

But Luz would remember. She'd remember and know that Margot wasn't just some person who wandered and left the dream. She was the sister she never had, the girl who'd share a room with her and helped her paint it and watched Eda cook as they eagerly awaited being fed and what the next day would bring.

She'd remember, and now, in the rain, she could at least cry with her hood up, and she'd be as much a passerby as anyone. Just some shadow person passing, weeping about something or other.

Or so she thought anyway.
thinky-Copy

B- Cassandra (The Disaster House)

Luz has had some time to think, and it was finally time for her to head to the place that would be her home. It's be nice, honestly, to have a place where there were more people her age, she reasoned. Obviously living with Eda and Margot had been ideal, and after that it had been the Doctors and Vira Lorr. Now she was at a new place, and a new place required a completely new way of living and, most obvious of all, would be redecorating her new place, which was the attic upstairs.

If you were visiting or a resident yourself, you'd see Luz busy at work already trying to make this place her own. There were already several stuffed animals, although Trenchwood seemed to have it's own ideas of what was cute, so the various creatures might be a bit off putting. There were several easels in the corner, one notably a wolf friend she was missing as well as one with various witches: Azura, Miss Hardbroom and of course her beloved Eda. The curtains were pulled back and there was air rushing in, so Luz was having a bit of trouble keeping all the papers from flying away.

"Darn it! This is the fifth time!"

C- Disaster House- I don't need sleep, I need clean!
needs-sleep

Was Luz getting a little unhinged because of her recent depression? Was she just overcompensating somehow? It was hard to tell. What one could SEE, however, was that it was the dead of night and Luz was not at all sleeping, but was instead intent on cleaning the disaster house, half mumbling to herself as she did so.

"I could tackle the living quarters, got to arrange the skulls. I don't want to get to the garden because I'll be crying again, or the greenhouse because I could probably die, or get poisoned. No good. Not going into Fern's room yet, I'll definitely die. The kitchen, YEAH! That sounds perfect!"

She had to go to the bathroom first.

"ARGH! WHY IS THERE A HOLE HERE?! VARIAN! THEY'RE JUST BATHROOMS!"

hunched-over

D - Drifting into Dreamspace

So after finally "convinced" to try and get some sleep, Luz finally had settled down, her omen (that was new) giving her a reproachful stare.

"I promise, I'll try!" Luz insisted, though Tempest did not look convinced. Luz blew a raspberry at the wolf and added, "thanks, you're the best" and closed her eyes, attempting to drift off. She'd been trying to do this the past few days, and doubted anything was going to happen, but figured if she couldn't sleep, she'd maybe go to the tower and get some reading done.

However, she DID drift off, just not in the way she though. For a moment, she felt a wave of color pass over her, and she figured that she was finally nodding off, but instead of that she felt light. She exhaled and felt herself leave, and for a moment, she was assuming she was unconscious.

But it was a strange feeling. She opened her eyes, and realized she was very much not awake, not quite. She was instead floating, drifting quietly down the attic steps and then out the door. She should have been freaking out, but her body felt so tired, and whatever was happening now felt NOTHING like that.

A passing though occurred to her. Maybe I should try these lamp location thingies out.

But where would she wind up?

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Luz didn't blame him, and was fine with him holding on. She made sure not to go too fast, but to move enough that they would spot the tree. When Fern gave the direction, Luz started their descent, so when they spotted the tree they'd be able to disembark quickly.

"I see it!"

Luz lowered them down, and then were at the tree, which towered above them and looked to be fat with blood, a fair bit pooling at the root out of hollows around the base. Despite this the tree itself was the color of white birch, with various branches at the top protruding out into smaller branches and their ends.

Luz stared at the tree, then at Fern. "There's supposed to be a sanctuary under the tree. We can visit it, or we can stay out here. What do you think?"

Flying isn't too bad. It's a handy form of travel, and Fern makes sure to take note of the rooftops - it's good to know what the city looks like from above, for future reference.

When they arrive at the tree he's hit with a weird, overwhelming uncertainty, something he immediately chalks up to them visiting a creepy giant blood tree with a few Disciples surrounding it, praying to it. Fern isn't good with religion or rituals, especially not one involving possibly man-eating tree things. He tightens his grip on Luz and the staff, until they're at the ground.

Then he slides off the staff, unconsciously reaching up to rub at his right upper arm. Leaving would be his preference, though he can't quite explain why, so against his common sense he decides they should just plow forward. "Might as well check the sanctuary out, first. Maybe there's something important down there we should know about."

Luz notices how uncomfortable Fern feels, and she gives him an understanding stare.

"A little different from what you expected, right? Me too. But I don't want to leave, not yet. Maybe it's my blood, but...I feel like we need to get into the root of the tree, see what it's about. From what I read, it's supposed to be a place that people go to fight off some of the corruption."

There seemed to be a lot of emphasis on blood that Luz wasn't sure she was comfortable with, but either way she wanted to see what else they could find. Taking Fern's hand, Luz took a breath and stepped inside.

-
She immediately had to shield her eyes. The winding steps downward were lit by paleblood stones, and they were bright, just enough to be startling at first but once your eyes adjusted you realized it really didn't hurt. She walked down with Fern, and soon they came to an outstretched room that displayed several statues that seemed to depict Pthumerians, one of which Luz lingered on for a moment. It was Doorway, and Luz put a finger to the statue a moment, right at where the flowers blossomed on her shoulder.

There was a dias in the middle of the room, and there were small enclosures that looked to be places for people to sit and meditate. Luz looked over at Fern.

"Looks like don't call it a sanctuary for nothing."

It should be unnerving to hear Luz wants to go with her gut - her blood, rather - but Fern trusts her instincts. If she thinks they should go into the tree, then they should definitely go into the tree. Still, he gives her hand a small squeeze as they head inside.

His eyes adjust quick enough, and it takes a lot of willpower to not poke at the paleblood stones. Those things are weird, okay. This whole situation is weird, but it could also be an indication that it's good that Luz, someone with this kind of blood, is here. Maybe the whole blood thing gives her a unique connection that will help them? At the very least, chances are she'll be more alert than he is - being inside this creepy tree is really wigging him out and making it hard to concentrate. It means he doesn't give much attention to the statues, though when he sees one resembling the Moss King he glares at it before looking around.

"What should we do now? Have a seat and see if you can pick anything up?" Is that how this works? A paleblood meditates in the paleblood sanctuary and gets psychic vibes?

It was definitely something that Luz was not used to. Magic, after all, had been a journey she may have approached with Eda and King in hand, but in the end she had been the one to push for it, to develop and get better with. Here, it was the same kind of situation only she had a whole place that seemed to have dedicated a whole sacred space in helping to develop one's uniqueness and their abilities.

But Luz also knew this wasn't only about her. She looked over at Fern, who seemed to be glaring at one of the statues and mostly seemed to look ill at ease.

"Fern? Are you uncomfortable here? We can go, if you want. I don't want to keep you here if it's creeping you out."

He snaps his attention to Luz, shaking his head tensely. As tempting as it would be to just leave, they've only just gotten here. It would be cowardly to run now, when they haven't even had a good look around the place.

"No, no I'm okay. It's bad jubies," he's not going to deny the uncomfortable feeling he's getting from being here. "But this is important, right? And if it looks like anything bad's gonna happen we can book it out of here. Or, y'know, fight a big monster that's gonna bust out of the roots and ambush us."

Luz nodded, then walked over and sat quietly in one of the places atop the dias. She couldn't help but think she was here for a reason, and quietly closed her eyes.

In that moment something changed- Luz felt as if everything around her flickered, and when she sat down, in that moment she felt the change in the air. She wasn't sure how to describe it, but it was as if there was a "bigness" that revealed itself around the room, vast and powerful and grand, and she was in the presence of it. It was both scary and thrilling, and it was hard to pinpoint which Luz felt more. Nonetheless, she sat, listening to Fern quietly.

"I don't see a monster, not in here. This place is supposed to be a shelter from Corruption, right? As long as you don't stay."

He gives her a small, reassuring grin, and follows her over to the dias. It wouldn't help to interrupt her using her paleblood powers, so he tries his best to focus on anything except the weirdness going on in his head. It's not great, but he trusts Luz, whatever happens with her powers will be worthwhile.

He raises his eyebrows at what she finds. No monsters, huh? This seems like the perfect place for some evil monster to show up, in his opinion. It being a shelter seems suspicious, and he glances around. "Really? This creepy tree is actually supposed to be safe?"

Luz was definitely hoping that something here would at least draw Fern in, though she did understand his reluctance. Luz was still getting a picture of how important blood was in this world, and all of it pooling in front of the tree was definitely one of least inviting things she could think of.

At the same time, she was feeling a pull to this place she couldn't quite understand. She wasn't sure what to call it, but she'd hazard a guess that it was like being in church. Not the feeling of going every Sunday, but seeing it for the first time: it feels bigger than you can place, and you cane sense the importance of it. Being quiet and allowing herself to take it in, she felt the power that was protecting the place just as she felt how alien it was too.

"I can sense the power here. It's a culmination of what keeps this world going, I'd guess. I bet if we go to other cities, their own power stations are influenced by its people too! But I also don't think you should stay longer than needed. That would be dangerous."

The alienness of the place is definitely a vibe Fern is picking up on. It reminds him of places like the cosmic prison back in his home universe or Prismo's room, but with the uncomfortable addition of the place being similar to his own nature. It isn't a combination that he finds very pleasant, not when he's been trying so hard to hold onto his humanity. That this whole world is still so unknown to all of them doesn't help him in feeling overly secure.

"Cool, great, so it's a super important creepy blood tree," he says warily. That's awesome, this is some Deerington-level nonsense and he doesn't know why he's so surprised. "Any idea what happens if we stick around for too long?"

Even Luz had to admit, as tranquil as the place felt to her, there was still the way it was presented that would give anyone pause, and for Fern, that doubly made sense. He was a plant guy after all, and this place was plants. Why wouldn't he be a bit put off? Besides that, Luz could also feel that there was something to this place that wasn't all just good intentions.

"It is, and it's also kind of important in a way that you can't just vacation here? It's hard to describe. Like, there are stories about this creepy monster named Cuthulu that if you were to try and see him, it'll drive you insane. That's what I feel like this place is. In a way, it's its own entity that you shouldn't stay around too long, or its bigness will swallow you up. Does that make sense?"

Luz's description sounds absolutely horrible and, unfortunately, he understands exactly what she's trying to get at. This isn't the first time he's come across eldritch Lovecraftian nightmare terrors, even before Deerington he was dealing with that stuff on occasion back in Ooo. That this tree is one of those things makes perfect sense to him, and he nods.

"Actually... yeah, I know exactly what that feels like," he replies, running a hand through his hair. "At least we got a better idea of what we're dealing with here, even if it isn't good."

"That's the crux, isn't it? As big and staggering as it is, it's also kind of good, at least for the people it can help. We're starting to get a scope of how much bigger the pthumerian stuff is now, and what that means for us. Blood use to be just a thing that helped you live and if it came out of your body, it was bad. Now, it's stuff that can be used to enhance things and depending on what you have it has an effect on us."

She looked up at the tree and put her hand to the wall. There was a look of a dawning quiet in Luz, something between puzzlement and starting to see the scope of the picture.

"But I do think it can help. You have to be clear about your intention, and not take too much, but you have to steer it to you. In some ways, its what magic is all about: taking the things that already exist in the world and steering it to your aid, while still respecting the circle it plays in nature."

She could scarcely believe the words coming out of her mouth, but it was the weird thing that maybe being in Deerington had done, and having this blood in her had made her think about.

The lack of sleep had certainly made her have some strange epiphanies.

This is all way, way more than Fern could have ever hoped to come up with on his own. In fact, he's feeling a little overwhelmed as he listens to Luz's explanation. From what little he knows of this world and their whole new blood powers she sounds like she's on the right track. He isn't totally sure whether any of it is actually good... but he's suspicious of all this Pthumerian business in general.

Still, she must have something, especially when it comes to how magic works. It sounds a little like wizard magic in Ooo, though Fern isn't totally sure many wizards actually respected the role it played in nature. He knows the Grassy Wizard wasn't being respectful when he made the Grass Sword, he did it for the pun factor. Man, what does that say about him? If Luz is right does that mean he's got even more of an uphill battle, since he was made out a jerk messing around with magic?

"So we gotta find a good balance, is what you're saying." He hopes that's what she's saying, this feels like it's all going over his head. "And if we can't then... it might be like you said, we get swallowed up?"

Luz very much realizes what she's saying is her groping around in the dark, but she doesn't feel wrong saying it. She came to those conclusions watching magic at work, and the people who taught them to her certainly did know magic wasn't something you toyed around with: you had to be serious.

"That's what I mean, yes. You have to be able to balance all of it out, and you can't stay so spellbound that you forget yourself. The stuff in this world is running on its own rules, and beyond magic and all the cool stuff with it, I think the real name of the game seems to be blood."

Which definitely tends to make this weird, even for her. She was not used to blood playing as much of a role in magic and she couldn't imagine it was any more comfortable for Fern.

Downsides to never having paid a ton of attention to the intricacies of magic and instead just rolling with it when it happens: you don't develop the critical thinking skills required to approach it like Luz is doing. Fern is glad he's on the same page as her, and he's glad that she's able to make these connections, since he certainly never would.

He doesn't feel particularly confident about all of this, of course. If there's one thing he isn't good at it's balance, though he's been trying his best to improve in that area. Not only that, but the importance of blood still throws him off.

"Greaaaat," he says, not at all pleased. "Man, I still think the blood thing is weird. I don't know if I'm ever gonna get used to it. I'm a plant, plants don't have blood."

"Yeah, I know. It's pretty much as hard as Varian's got it, since he's never been too hot on magic. For you guys its going to be rough. But that's why I'm here! This might be a little unfamiliar to me too, but I at least get magic to a degree, and I'll be able to help a little bit."

There was, of course, still a lot she was going to have to figure out too, much of this was some new stuff for her, but she was going to make sure that she'd help give the blueprints of what she knew to her family here.

"We'll get through this together, one step at a time! It'll just mean readjusting what we know and supporting each other when it gets bad. Just like old times."

Except now they lived together, which were going to make things very interesting.

She's got a really good point. Luz was always eager to learn magic from Eda, and there's no reason why she couldn't continue exploring that here in Trench. In turn, she can help him and Varian and anyone else who needs it.

"Right. One step at a time. We don't got many other choices here, do we?" No, no they do not.

He glances around, frowning a little. They've learned quite a bit, so hey, coming into the scary blood tree was pretty useful. "You got everything you need here?"

That was ultimately Luz's goal, among a million other things: she was hoping to gain a broader understanding about what she could do, which way worked best, and based on that try and give support to people who were still trying to figure it out. She knew she'd sort of been dropped into Deerington when there had been lots of things already going down years before. This time, at least, she could be here for the Sleepers' new beginning.

"You could try and hurry it if you wanted to, but that doesn't seem like a very good idea. So yeah, a step at a time seems like the best fit!"

Luz lingered a moment, putting her hand to the tree, then slowly drawing it back.

"Yes. I think we're good!"

One step at a time isn't ideal for him, but it looks like their best option right now, so it is what it is. At least this place isn't Deerington, that's one small miracle.

"Okay," he says, taking a step back towards the stairway. "Let's get outta here, then." He'd like to put some distance between himself and the creepy tree, in hopes of that letting his head calm down.

Yep, it was a lot to take in. Luz hadn't even been sure what the two of them had witnessed yet, that this tree was something she couldn't quite place and might have to visit again.

"Right, ok," Luz agreed, and matched his pace. Fern definitely felt uneasy around it, a sure sign that there was more to it than either of them thought, but Luz wasn't scared of it, strangely. She wanted to know more about it and what it's purpose was.

Looks like I better grab Dipper for this one, she said to herself. They were both palebloods too, so maybe there was some correlation to why she felt one way and Fern another.

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Promises Promises/Insomnia

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