november catch-all

[grice]

who: falco and some others!
what: event tls, wandering & ghost talks.
when: november!
where: various!

content warnings: talk of possession of a minor, violence, corruption of minors, cannibalism, mentions of torture & mutilation of a minor, mentions of child soldiers and gore. will add more as they come!


if you want to plot or play something out, hmu either on falco’s plotting comment or liberos!

Comments

[danserai]

Hi Falco!

[ she looks a bit sheepish as she arrives. ]

Sorry it took me so long to arrive.

[grice]

[ meek and modest as is, falco pulls out a short laugh (that sounds more like a sigh) and reassures her. ]

You didn't, really? I feel like I'm the one who just got here. [ getting to know the place takes time! ] It's nice to meet you.

[danserai]

[ she bows lightly. ]

It's nice to meet you too! Oh, and I brought a basket to collect the mushrooms. But I don't know a lot about them so if there's anything I should know, please tell me!

[grice]

Someone told me to stay away from the ones that walk.

[ unless you really know how to pick them, said the merchant that was willing to trade his ingredients for mushroom caps. he’s a green horn at this, too, but as long as they don’t immediately eat what they find— it should be fine!

(it’s not fine, but he has yet to figure that out.) ]

I got a bag too, [ a cloth one, that he holds up just a bit! ] whatever you pick is yours, and then I can show you what you need to get to make bread.

[ so, he nods! let the hunting commence! ]

[danserai]

[ walking mushrooms. sure. why not. nothing weirder than her regular life. ]

Do you know how many we should get?

[grice]

As much as we can find?

[ and so begins his walk, looking over his shoulder to make sure she was tagging along at appropriate talking distance! they need to think moist and mossy, and he’s sure they may find that in patches with the canal so close. ]

Even if we don’t use them all right away, we can always use the rest during the winter, or some other trades, I think.

[ and after a pause: ]

You can let me know if you start getting tired.

[ because falco has the stamina of a young field bull, even more so now as a sleeper. ]

[danserai]

Don't worry, I have lots of energy!

[ probably the one thing she always has in abundance. ]

[grice]

[ falco gives a little laugh and starts out with a spotted patch of grass— there are clusters of mushrooms ripe for the picking, mostly oysters and other safe varieties, for the time being. he plucks them from the base of their stem, shows it to her, then plops it into his clothbag, hanging sideways from his shoulder. ]

So, what else do you like besides bread?

[ he doesn’t say it that way to tease, at least. he just wants to get to know her better. ]

[danserai]

[ hmm. ahiru takes time to think about it. ]

I guess I don't mind cake or sweets . . . but bread is my favourite. It's the one I'm most used to. But I guess that's weird, ahaha . . .

[grice]

I don’t think so?

[ reassurance! even though falco now has had access to the joys of cakes and sweets (that weren’t filled with knives or poison). he considers what he wants to say for a moment. ]

Back home, I wouldn’t have a lot of things like that to eat all the time. Bread’s simple— and delicious.

[danserai]

[ she immediately brightens at that. someone who gets it! ]

It's the same for me! Which is why bread is my favourite.

[grice]

[ !!! someone who gets it! although falco’s reasoning for that and understanding likeness makes his smile falter just a bit, he manages to keep his energy up. ]

We can make a lot of things with bread, too. And you don’t need much to make it. [ let him remember . . . ] Flour, water, yeast and salt. That’s it.

[danserai]

I hope it is that simple . . . I've never cooked or baked before.

[ good luck having ahiru in the kitchen. ]

[grice]

They always have instructions, so if you follow the steps it should be fine.

[ pick, pick, pick— oh, a floater. though falco doesn’t know, yet, but he sees flowing tendrils hovering in a dance-like way up ahead. ]

That one’s big—!

[danserai]

[ ahiru skitters back. ]

They're so big . . .

[grice]

[ she's skittish— but he won't put that against her. ]

I don't know what that one does . . . [ he should've asked for more information other than the walking terror, but it didn't occur to him that he'd have to. people in trench, at least the ones he's come across, are pretty open to sharing. ah, well— for reassurance, he offers a look up at ahiru: ] But we shouldn't have problems as long as we stay away from it.

[ better safe than sorry, though falco had to admit to himself— he was curious. not enough to blatantly endanger himself and others, though. he could be caught glancing at the floater from time to time, regardless. ]

I won't go there, promise.

[ floaters cannot make promises to stay where they are, unfortunately! and the wind can't either. ]

[danserai]

Mmm, you're right. Let's be careful.

[ monsters, everyone said. she wonders how much of that is true. not that she's questioning what people know but her knowledge of monsters is fragmented at best. all she's ever seen are the ravens and . . .

rue. poor rue. she wonders if rue was okay back at home.

she glances at him. ]

Do you fight?

[grice]

[ falco cants his head to the side, a little uncertain with his wording until he organizes his thoughts there— they had been one thing in the past, and now it has indeed warped into something else. ]

. . . When I need to. [ he has an automatic pistol at its holster, clipped to his hip underneath the cover of his cloak barely seen between arm movement, along with a switchblade in his opposite pocket. he's made a promise three times over, now, and he can't exactly break any of them. ] I never liked it, but— I can, so I can't pretend I won't, if we ever need it.

[ whether for self-defense or for someone else's. just looking at ahiru's frame type and he knew she wasn't a warrior at the slightest, though. ]

Your home isn't like that, is it?

[danserai]

[ she shakes her head slowly. ]

No. Only a few people know how to do that.

Everyone said we should fight to protect ourselves. But is that really the only way?

[grice]

A lot of people think so. [ more often than not; violence had always been the easiest answer for anything that was feeling threatened. it was kind of like— nature, maybe? then it just evolved. falco worries his lip as he puts away another good-looking mushroom, and doesn't seem to pay as much attention the aimless floater that he had some minutes ago. ] And sometimes . . . They might be right. You can't really reason with something mindless.

[ he wouldn't even go as far as to use the label monster, it's been misused for long enough as is. trying for peace with beings that don't think beyond malice, like the corrupted or possessed dolls, was like trying to tell a pure titan to stop eating people. you'll just get eaten. ]

Even someone with their mind made up is hard to get through to.

[ because that too, had no easy way around, and changing that mind takes time— not the seconds it takes for the other end to pull a trigger out of fury or poorly planted necessity. ]

But, there's magic here. There're resources . . . [ there's magic at south sister, too. he has a gift in his soul, a little blessing from admin to keep the silence at bay— and he could still use it, albeit weak and short-lived: a pacifying ability. ] Fighting's the more obvious and the easiest— but there has to be a peaceful way that everyone can learn.

[ especially in a place that's so blood polluted. ]

[danserai]

[ that would be ideal. she knows, of course, the difference between those who are bent on destruction (like the great raven) and those who might be misguided. she has always done her best to communicate and find a way outside of hurting someone.

she knows . . . if it came down to it, she would let herself be hurt instead of hurting another. she just doesn't have it in her.

but that too, is not a solution. it won't fix things. it's just . . . passive. ]

Mmm . . . We just need to keep looking until we find it.

[grice]

[ falco would have thought more on it, but a look at ahiru, her eyes . . .

falco’s paleblood empathy picks up on something that’s way too familiar— sacrifice over harm. how many times has he done that? and how many more children, hell l, even adults, need to keep going through this? ]

I have . . . Something. [ falco holds his hand out to her, palm up, and points at the middle. there’s nothing actually there to the naked eye, but— it’s there. ] It calms people if they’re really aggressive, but the person who gave it to me said it shouldn’t go to anyone else. The wrong person could take advantage of it.

[ what he’s saying, is that he’d like to disobey rules for once, because— emergencies, and evolution. and different circumstances. he’s also (mostly) an excellent judge of character. ]

But I don’t think your the wrong person. Maybe it can still be— split?

[ he may be spitballing ideas, but if they find the right person—! ]

[danserai]

[ she squints at it, trying to figure out what it is. but the idea behind it sounds perfect. a way for her to be safe but also avoid hurting anything in turn. falco is so amazing! he's so competent and smart. ]

Maybe! Wow, I didn't know such a thing existed. I really hope we can use it to find better ways to avoid a fight or getting hurt!

Thank you for showing me that. Uh, if you want, I'll keep it a secret until you're ready?

[ she can be patient. ]

[grice]

[ he'll get embarrassed if any of that is said out loud . . . good choice ahiru. he nods at the thanks, in a way that says "don't mention it". ]

That might be a good idea. I'll take a look at it and let you know if I find someone who can help?

[danserai]

[ she beams. ]

Yes! Let me know if there's any way I can help. Even if I'm probably not much help. . . .