deercountry | [Session 3] "They're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace"

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[Session 3] "They're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace"

Who: Albert Wesker and... you!
What: December catch-all: His return from the dead, a Krampuslaufen and December event stuff.
When: December 5th onward.
Where: Around the town, in his memoryspace.

Content Warnings: Post-death effects including temporary mutism, stalkerish behavior, event specific weirdness.

November IC Impact Statement - December 10th: Open Link

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Krampuslaufen/Run, Rabbit, Run Open Link

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Wildcard Got an idea to punt at him? Feel free to toss in a top level! Lyrics nicked from "River".

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"You had your own burden to shift, so there's no need to worry. However, I appreciate the kind words," he says, shifting the tree slightly.

"Every rebirth runs differently, and it would not surprise me if something in each Sleeper affects the process." A pause and his gaze drops slightly. "I grew up more quickly than most people do: I was in medical school when most people are starting high school. Perhaps this place took compassion on me and let me have a taste of that." He grins at her, trying not to look sinister. "But you would be an adorable toddler.

"A small deer bringing cheer to a strange town? That's you all over.

"I'm celebrating my first Christmas on my own. It probably sounds tragic, but... I never celebrated the end of the year until I came to this world. Christmas felt like rather a waste of resources: it's too commercialized, when ironically, it started as the celebration of a God made human who'd encouraged His followers to live simply and help the less fortunate," he muses. "However, I'm observing it as something broader, as a celebration of light in the darkness, and as I've hinted, I've lived a dark life."

At an open space among the buildings, he'll stop in his tracks, holding out his arm, hand lifted in a quiet warning. Then he points toward a gap between the buildings, where something large and dark with antlers steps out, treading softly through the snow.

"Sure, I'm glad you think so. Gives me the opportunity to concentrate on something that isn't wholly depressing though."

Luz had not even thought of that. But it certainly explained why Wesker's rebirth was different from Reapers, and maybe other Sleepers would have their own sort of coming into themselves. Luz would have to ask some of the others that had already experienced their first death.

Too bad Luz was going to get that in spades very soon.

"I always just thought of Christmas as a celebration of family and friends, and based on the whole thing of gathering harvest from fall so you'd have provisions once it was colder and you were safe and warm. I think you're definitely on the money with the celebration of light in the dark though."

After all, there had been plenty of "darkness" in Luz's last few months, she could certainly use a bit of light.

She did stop dead with the large animal that seemed to be approaching though.

"Whoa. Is that...?"

"Hmmm! That fits as well, though I'm still learning to open up to a family of friends. Ironic, since I lived in a family of twelve other siblings, and all of us adopted from all over the world," he muses.

"A Deer... and it resembles the Deer form I'd had..." he says, his voice lowered, almost reverently.

The Deer comes closer, revealing themself as a black deer, vaguely resembling a white tailed deer the size of an elk, a string of small lunar lights snagged in its antlers. They walk up to Luz, tilting their head, their red eyes calm and sniffing at her.

"No way? That is a lot of siblings! I'm an only child, so you can imagine it was a fair bit different, but Mami definitely loved Christmas! I loved helping her put up the tree, arranging the lights, pulling out the old Christmas movies! It was pretty special!"

And she missed it. Luz exhaled and seemed to look away. If there was one thing that hit her hard, it was thinking of her mother. The prospect of ever seeing her again started to seem farther and farther away, and that just made her heart sink.

Luz was silent and watched as the Deer approached her. Luz held her hands for the deer to sniff if it felt like doing so and found that the apprehension she was feeling about her mother slowly dissipating. She couldn't help but stare in appreciative awe.

"I suppose 'family' is putting a rosy tint on the arrangement I grew up in: we were more like a school where the students all shared the last name since we were adopted, at least on paper, by the scientist who managed it. Some of us were acquired by trickery, with a promise to provide these children with a top-notch education in a comfortable environment, some by coercion and in my case, via force." He falls silent, letting those words sink in.

The Deer nuzzles Luz's face gently, booping her nose with its own, then lowering its head, careful to keep from grazing her with the prongs of its antlers. "I have a feeling our deer friend is offering you those lights," Wesker muses. "A little gift from the spirit of the season, perhaps."

Ah. Of course. She had to get accustomed to the idea that just about everyone had a pretty rough story, and someone like Wesker would certainly be no different. Now that she thought about it, he was pretty guarded in general. It would have been weird if he didn't have his own troublesome backstory.

"That sounds pretty messed up," Luz said, and decided that if he wanted to talk more about it, he would. In the meantime, Luz looked down at the light a moment, smiling, then nodding and untangling the lights from the stag's antlers.

"Thank you," she said, and looked down at the lights a moment. "Wanna help me put them up?"

"I managed to bring some order from the mess. It's probably contributed to some of my obsession with balance and fate and rising above what fate throws one's way," he says, dryly.

The stag kneels even lower, making it easier for her to reach and tilting its head slightly, letting out a soft rumble of delight. "Not so lost in nightmares now, old friend," Wesker muses.

"Once I deposit this evergreen on the porch of my house, I'd be delighted to be of assistance." An uncle helping his niece at Christmas, a first for him and in this strange new world, he's ready to embrace it.

"Oh, so you were one of those kids," Luz said, teasing slightly. Clearly that worked out for him in the long run, and she was glad that he grew up to be the kind of person he was now. "Not that I didn't have to do some 'rising above' stuff myself in the Isles. If I'd listened to what people said, I'd never be able to do magic."

Luz nodded in agreement with Wesker, giving the stag a light pet, so she was being both reverent yet still Luz, animal lover.

"Right, of course! Let me help you with that too, and then we can put up the lights!"

"If you mean 'an insufferably arrogant smart-alec who actually *was* intelligent', then you'd be correct," he says, dryly. Nice casting shade on your younger self, when you're still insufferably arrogant.

The Stag leans into the pat before nuzzling Luz and lifting its head gracefully, then falling in step beside them.

"I see we have a companion," Wesker notes, as they approach a Lamp. "Hold on, I can bring us right to the Lamp in my courtyard."

Luz chuckled. "I can totally picture that, actually. You're pretty much still smart, and very self-assured."

It was a nice way of saying that he was still a bit full of himself, but she also thought he had a reason to be. After all, he was one of the smarter people she knew.

Oh good, he wasn't leaving just yet! Luz petted him gently, then followed Wesker. "Oh, cool! Maybe they want to help us decorate too?"

He might preen a bit at this assessment, but he relaxes it quickly. "The more we change, the more some aspects of our self remains the same," he muses.

"The Deer were the better aspects of those of us who had died in Deerington. This one's probably here for just that reason. And since this one appears to be the Deer who ...arose from me, it's no small wonder they're following us, willing to help, or at least be at our sides...."

...They'll step through the Lamp into the now snowy courtyard garden behind Arklay House. He'll lead the way to the rear door, unlocking it, then reaching down to remove the trip-wire laid at foot-level across the doorway. "Mind the security device: I've had intruders while I was out and the odd Beast try and break down the door." If she looks up, there's a carefully hung iron chandelier with more spikes than it needs overhead, though it's clearly not budging as they step through.

A hallway leads to a foyer with a dining room on one side and a porch-room sitting room on the other, the scant furniture moved to accommodate a tree.

"I've seen that be the case for a lot of things," Luz replied.

That was a bit of lore that Luz had not been privy to though. She hadn't died yet, so she knew that was likely part of the mystery. She also wasn't sure how to reply to that other than to acknowledge that it was probably the truth, so she did and the two of them continues to the lamp. Coming through the courtyard Luz was pretty entranced with the place, and then they entered the back door.

"Whoa, that is some cool looking security!" Luz commented, eyeing the chandelier with a little envy. She wouldn't have wanted to have been caught in that thing though.

"Very spartan," Luz commented, but then, he did live along, so that made sense. "But I love the tree."

"And effective, too. There's another like it on the front door. I had something like it in my house in Deerington... of which this is a very striking twin. It's as if this world copied it and placed it here as a welcome gift," he muses, lugging the tree into the far corner, diagonally across from the hearth and behind an antique black leather sofa pushed back from its usual spot in the middle of the floor and now covered with bags and boxes of decorations, brand new: glass balls in silver, black and red, strings of lunar lights, even tinsel garland.

He props the tree in the corner, beside a silver metal washtub, then brushes loose needles from his sleeves. "I'll get some sand to fill that tub. Shall we bring those lights which our deer friend found to your home?"

Edited 2022-01-30 06:03 (UTC)

"Yeah, that was the same thing that happened with Varian and Fern's house too! I'm not really sure how that works, but at least it's made it easier to adjust to living in Trench. Honestly, I'm really glad you kept all of your stuff from Deerington: it looks really cool! I love the aesthetic!"

It was a lot of black, but she liked it, and now there was a tree to match! Awesome!

"A bathtub? Hmm. Never thought of that. Cool! Yes, let's do it!"

"The Pthumerians seem to possess some amount of power to shape reality or at least the substance of it. I suppose it's little trouble for them to peer into our memories and rebuild our havens," he muses, looking up at the goffered plaster ceiling above them. "I suppose it's a sort of Victorian-Gothic minimalism. The house isn't a carbon copy of a house where I lived for a time, in my world of origin, but it reminds me a lot of it. That, it appears, adds to the home-like quality."

Edited 2022-02-11 05:44 (UTC)

"I did wonder how they were able to accurately recreate the homes we had back in Deerington," Luz said, though she certainly didn't include her place, since she left it behind for a good reason. Varian and Fern's was her home now.

"I like it though. It has distinction, and its very fitting for you! I'm almost afraid I'd break something by accident!"

"For all the strange things they do, our hosts seem to have our best interests in mind for us. Don't worry about any damages: If I can't fix it myself, I can find a Trenchie to look into it. I've had a few carpenters who've come through my office at the Lumenarium and who've agreed to trade labor for my services rendered," he says. "I doubt you could do any more damage than the Beast that tried to bash in my back door," he adds dryly, even amused. The Beast might have gotten other ideas when he confronted it.

"Shall we sally forth to your place and deck its halls? The greenery here will need a little time to warm up before I can start working with it."

"You have a point, though I'm sure some people might think it's a little creepy. Personally, I'm glad they wound up doing that. The place where I live now is perfect for where I am."

And she got to redecorate, which was just. Awesome.

"Ooh, favors for favors! Though I think I might not want to know what you traded to get favors from carpenters."

Blood work, maybe?

"Oh, yes, sure! I'm assuming you know most of the people at the house?"

"Treating workplace injuries: stitching cuts, treating bruised thumbs. Given the damages some Beasts have caused to the buildings, there's often work for them," he notes. By extension, there's work for him, given the blunders of apprentice carpenters.

"I know a fair number, though not all the denizens. In a time like this, it seems proper to introduce myself to the rest, if they don't mind the presence of an elegantly menacing gentleman," he says, with a bit of a darkly playful lilt.

"Ah, I get it now. So you all pretty much help each other out. I guess that's the part that works out the best. No one has to want for those services if you can manage them amongst yourselves."

Luz was starting to think she had to give some serious thought to what she was going to do for a full-time job soon.

At the last thing he said though, Luz actually burst into laughter.

"The elegant part will be the thing that's strange, but menacing? Do you know who comes to visit here from time to time? Darth Maul!"

Actually, now that she thought about it, BOTH Reaper and Darth Maul tended to show up, so they were pretty good at the menacing part.

"I have to admit, the barter economy in this place is something I deeply appreciate, but I won't bore you by elaborating, unless you'd welcome it," he says, slinging the Deer's string of lights over his shoulder and beckoning her to follow him to the rear door.

As she mentions Maul, he might stand up a little straighter. "Somehow it passed me by that he's a regular in your domain," he notes. "I don't intimidate easily, but he's one of the few Sleepers who inspire a respectful fear in me. I would not wish to feel his wrath or to have merited it." He does not say any of that lightly.

"We can always talk about that another time! I'll admit, knowing the ins and outs of it isn't my priority, but that doesn't mean that I want to stay negligent!"

She made sure to follow him through the door.

"We did used to live near him. I'll say that he used to be much worse than what he is now. That said, if you ever think that he's lapsing into a feral state, don't try and fight him. His force chokes are no joke."

"I'd encountered a telepath in my world of origin, which has given me a healthy respect for their capabilities." He might wince just a speck: he'd prefer not to think about Alexia Ashford and her command over plants. And insects. Particularly ants.

The Stag has waited by the Lamp, laying down in the snow and lifting its head as Luz approaches. "You certainly enjoy lingering here, old friend," he notes.

"I totally respect Darth Maul's abilities! Just...not in that particular moment. He kind of killed my sister, Varian and nearly killed me at the time. It was not a situation I think of too fondly."

In retrospect, it was still pretty cool that you could choke someone without touching them. Mostly.

Luz walked over to the Stag and gave it a respectful bow before extending a hand to pet its antlers.

"I feel so much more at ease when they're around. Must be left over from that town."

"He is the sort of being who incites a healthy fear, though once you grow accustomed to that, a fondness emerges. It takes some time, and I don't fault you in the least."

The Stag leans into her touch, letting out a pleased rumble. "If you ask him politely, he'll let you get up on his back before we pass through the Lamp. He's a very proud creature, as you can likely tell," Wesker notes, almost affectionately toward the both of them.

[Session 3] "They're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace"

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[CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

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Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

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Re: [CW: Kidnapping, child endangerment mentioned]

[CW: Insects mentioned.]

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((March came in like a lion that ate me.))

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