APPLE ORCHARDS AND TORN DREAMS [OPEN]

[cordibus]

Who: Open Log (All)
Where: Around the city (one prompt at the Green Valley school
Summary: Welcome Ceremonies, Dreams, Stirring a shadow hornet's nest. No big deal.
Warnings: N/A

"Are you ready my black lambs? Let's get to work..."

Apple Picking (General Prompt)

As September begins, the apple orchards of Greenfield Valley school are bursting with thousands of apples of various flavors and colors. There's even an experimental breed that's blue!

Those who have been attending the school know that this means a few important things. The first (and most important of course) is that it means that fall vacation is coming in just a few weeks (despite school having started just a few weeks ago), the second is that the school's menu is going to have a high number of apple-themed dishes until winter, and finally, the opening ceremonies.

The opening ceremonies are - well - one would consider them mostly boring for typical schools. And truth be told, Green Valley is not an exception. A single camera posed at the school's main gymnasium, a large podium in the center. For those who can't be physically there, the school's televisions all synchronized to a live broadcast as does the audio feeds. You can't quite escape it. Yet most people don't - after all it's one of the rare times of the year where the principal appears to wish students good fortune.

The person who stands in the front, Ms Michelle Andersen, is the very definition of an ice queen. Her face is perhaps locked forever into an emotionless stare. Bright blonde hair with blue eyes, both contract to her orange and black outfit.

Behind her, three men, the vice principals, who tend to play the good cops to her bad cop routine and insist that most students call them by their first names unless something really bad has happened; Norman (the most average man on campus that no one would know who he was if it wasn't for his name tag), Jeremy (the tallest staff member standing at over 195cm, thin, a bit of a lisp but he always means well), and Felix (possibly the hairiest man on campus as far as the rumors go, muscular, and a black beard that matches his scowling face when he isn't laughing - which is usually all the time. In fact, he's holding back himself from doing so when Ms. Andersen speaks.)

The presentation is short, as the Principal wishes all the students a great year, gives a bit of data on the number of students (they are up 300 new students from last year), the number of important guests that have passed, then as quickly as she was there, she leaves, explaining that there are additional meetings and events she will explain in greatest detail in the upcoming months.

Afterwards the students are treated to the vice principals singing a welcome song (it goes as well as one would expect it to go), telling the students that they are free to pick as many apples as they want as long as they all get eaten, but everyone is limited to two of the new apples and report to the hospital wards if any of them feel anything unusual after eating them. Just in case.

When the ceremonies are done, students and staff can return to their day...although some of the staff can be heard commenting that the Principal seemed even more...cold this year. Of course asking them for details would just cause them to shoo anyone away and pretend they didn't say anything.

[OOC: Players are welcome to speak to themselves or go have some apples. It's a general school mingling prompt! Additionally, it will be possible to email the vice principals during that week should the characters want to talk with them or ask school questions. Typical school stuff.]

Sound the Rebellion

(Special Prompt for the Unawakened, Monday the 4th)
The school's opening ceremonies aside, the Unawakened’s Monday was rather...strange. The night was plagued with restlessness as they heard the voice of someone laughing. Waking up feeling 'odd', although that differed between all of then - some would feel sick, others have a headache, or some just deciding that wearing a piece of clothing they haven't wanted to worn would look great right now. Perhaps they got a few comments from their relatives about how strange they were acting that day, or a worried glance if they felt sick. It might get dismissed with a wave of a hand.

After all, how can you explain that when they sometimes look upwards, they hear the sound of a child laughing and briefly see a symbol above their heads? Or that this somehow feels...fine?

Maybe in their new state of mind, they might not even notice the people that keep following them around...

Better than a GPS

(Awakened prompt, Monday 4th, day and night.)
"Alright Lambs, time to get to work."

Luci's voice echoed in their phone, laughing. Was he doing a peace sign?

"There's only a few but they'll be useful. I want you to find them and see what you can do. Who knows! Maybe you might be better at this than me, although I doubt it heh heh heh…Now remember what I said! You have to get them to fall asleep...but there's no real rules for that!"

For the Awakened, the symbols above the Unawakeneds’ heads will be as clear as day - Luci will even go so far as play little musical tunes when the characters are close by or distract them using electronics. "Come on! Stop wasting time and do something!"

For the Unawakened who have a relative, it will be somewhat easy. It is the others that will be a pain. Maybe that's why Luci asked for help. Or maybe he just wanted to see his 'lambs' struggle. "Get them to bed! It's not that hard! If you have trouble, just show them the program I've put into your phone and toaster! Or knock them with your toaster first if you want, I don't care! Just go in teams when you go after them, got it?"

It's obvious that 'sleeping' as far as Luci is concerned, is when someone is unconscious - he seems to almost want someone to knock an Unawakened out and then drag him into a room and let themselves go to sleep.

Once the task is done, and the place is secure, the characters will have to do the same. While the hypnotic wheel from the program is the easiest way, there's no hard rule about knocking oneself out either.

MINDJACK
Once the characters get inside, they'll be in the person's mind and dreams. Eddan's memories are predominant, and the unawakened will be standing there wandering around. It will be up to the Awakened to peel back the fabric of reality, much like curtains and show them the true memories of their past...

But beware. Shadows lurk here, and transforming will be necessarily. And if a character dies in someone else's dream...they might never wake up. So be careful...

The main mission is to showcase the person a few memories. Give them an idea that something might be amiss...it can be a little or a lot. Just be careful that the more memories, the stronger the shadows become... When both are done and awaken, ten minutes will have passed. Perhaps it will be time for question afterwards.

[OOC:The Unawakened characters need to be isolated for the program to run, and so do the players, so half the 'fun' will be setting up the traps so that the characters will be alone.

Awakened might decide to have someone stand on guard while the others go to sleep with the Unawakened, or just all stupidly go together, or find an area where they won't be disturbed - everything is up to you.

The dreamscape can be anything the Unawakened desires! It could be good memories of their time in Eddan or bad memories, a mixture of both, or just silly dreams. Whatever it is, the Awakened will need to 'peel' those memories away - for example showing them that their mother was someone else in their other life, or even directing the person to a mirror so that they can see their true selves. But for each memory - both good or bad, shadows will start to attack both the Unawakened and Awakened. Be careful and let the mods know if a mission goes REALLY bad.]

Comments

[whitefox]

They work well enough.

[Standing with his drink, Kit crossed the short distance between the bed and the exit and pulled open the door. The trembling in his hands from earlier seemed all but gone for the moment, though how much concentration was required to perform the act was difficult to say.

He leveled a flat stare at Vincent then, vibrant green eyes saying for him what the rest of his expression would not. He would concede to a rematch whenever Vincent felt that he was ready. He would even fight him here and now, in his condition, if that was what the other boy desired. But he also had no intention of losing.]

Pain is sometimes necessary, but it is also easily overcome. The human body is capable of many remarkable feats.

[blacktemper]

[Vincent laughs aloud at the blatant rebellion against his little quip and, despite even his own better judgement, proceeds to down the rest of his beer in a single breath. whether it was to stifle more mirth or push his companion to the brink once more by setting forth another silent challenge he couldn't say.

whatever the real answer, he knew one thing for certain: just like Kit, he refused to lose. it's what spurs him into completely ignoring the screeching protestations of his body and pushing himself off the bed and upright at last. the brief rest made the movement even worse than when he'd gotten dressed, but unlike last time that fails to stop him now.

he moves at a deceptively leisurely pace to stand before both the other boy and the door. before answering he observes the open doorway for a moment, expression clearly unimpressed.]

So they say.

[his gaze returns to Kit, an unpleasant smile tugging at the edges of his lips. this was a poor idea for several reasons, but he never could seem to find a way to talk himself out of such things. oh well.]

Makes you wonder how far you can push, doesn't it?

[and with that he raises a hand and slams the empty beer can down, substituting Kit's shoulder for the usual forehead required for this particular party trick.

he can't be absolutely certain whether the action is hurting himself or the other boy more, but he refuses to let the possibility of his entire arm falling off stop him. the can crumples appropriately thanks to his dogged triumph over common sense and the human body's warnings.]

[whitefox]

The school's gates came and went, students filing into the building through the front doors as the bell sounded. Ahead of them was a boy of average height with short, flaming red hair. A dark-haired girl walked closely by his side but, while she seemed to be enthusiastically talking about something, the boy's mind was elsewhere.

The parallel between himself and Reimi caused him to listen more intently to her story, and when she began to tell him about the strange sound in her home that night he felt a twinge of something. It wasn't fear. But anger...perhaps.

Had something happened to the boy she'd been babysitting?

He was fortunate that his hands were already buried deep in his pockets. Reimi wouldn't be aware of the tight fist that he was making, or the fact that his knuckles had no doubt turned white...and he could feel skin beneath his fingernails. Something about harm coming to a child left a bitter taste in his mouth and his heart ready to scream.

"I presume you went to investigate."

Because of course she had. There was no other way for this story to continue.

[secretmakesawoman]

Of course! Christina tries to always be friendly to the students.

"It is. Acting can be quite handy in everyday situations, like speaking in front of a group. We learn to adapt and gain confidence."

She gives a little wink. "Of course, it's also fun!"

[failedhandjob]

She shakes her head gently. "I didn't think to at first. Ever since I was little I had a dog named Arnold; at night he'd sleep under my bed, and if anything terrible happened he'd get up and protect me."

Her most loyal companion. There was nothing in any world that Arnold wouldn't have protected her from, and even in the midst of a late-night fright she'd known that. "I put my hand down to check on him, and when he gave me a big lick I knew that everything must be fine."

The thought chills her to the bone, knowing what she does now. But it had been nothing but the reassurance her fretful mind had seen searching for then, delivered with the warm friendliness she'd come to know and love. With Rohan still tucked securely at her side, what did she have to worry about?

Only...

"But the sound didn't stop. It was so strange to me that my parents hadn't woken up to take a look - it was so loud. So eventually I got up and went into the hall to look."

Her gaze (and footsteps) had been following the boy and his little companion this entire time for no reason other than as something to focus on, but now Reimi looks up at the school as the lump in her throat forces her to pause. Even now, the image of what she'd found tore at her soul.

"It was Arnold. Someone had slit his throat and hung him from our coat rack."

She can still see him dangling there, tossed away as carelessly as if he'd merely been a dirty rug. Her friend, her greatest protector...he never deserved to see the end of his life like that.

[whitefox]

[A small sound of discomfort left Kit when the can was crushed against his injured shoulder, but he would give Vincent no other outward signs of the pain it caused him. No twinge of hurt behind his eyes or at the corners of his mouth, no fluctuation in his breathing, and no dropping the beer he was holding despite the way his fingers ran cold with the threat of growing numb. He didn't even retaliate, righting himself instead only to brush Vincent's hand away and wipe a trickle of alcohol off his shirt.

He'd just put a clean one on, too...]

Are you satisfied now?

[He fired a look down at the other boy. To think he'd not only been contemplating making them something to eat, because a healthy meal would help speed up the healing process, but that he was going to salvage some aloe from a plant he had growing in the living room, too...]

[blacktemper]

Never.

[his stomach had been completely empty when he'd pumped the contents of a nearly full can of alcohol into it with a single gesture. standing upright was perhaps the most foolish thing he could be doing right now, but with the intoxication still buzzing through his head Vincent doesn't even consider such a thing.

all of his remaining focus had gone into checking for little tells in Kit, all of which had been expertly smothered aside from his groan. it really wasn't all that satisfying, but he took comfort in knowing beyond the shadow of a doubt that it took the other boy even more energy to paper over his reaction. small mercies.

with no idea that he'd finished what Kit had started in eradicating the possibility of a nice meal, he simply meets his companion's disgruntled gaze with a vaguely smug look of his own. did either of them even have the physical ability to carry on with this? Vincent has no clue.]

[whitefox]

The scene before them flickered like an old film that had come off its reel, but the mishap seemed to last only for a second. If Reimi hadn't been watching Kit, she wouldn't have noticed the way he'd stopped with the staggering vision, but standing so close to his side she may have felt his incense at the source of the sound in her story.

And then...it was as if nothing had happened, and Kit continued unflinching toward the school following the younger students.

He was beginning to connect the dots. If Arnold hadn't been under her bed, then the one who had killed him was. And if that person had known how to behave to convince her all was well, he must have been studying her family and her. If he was studying her, then the unhappy ending Reimi was referring to...

...but that's impossible, or is it?

He'd recalled something similar of himself, when he'd buried his soul deep inside Shiori's womb and unborn child so as to ensure his rebirth. If he'd been able to do it, was it really so hard to believe she could, too?

Finally, Kit stopped in the entryway but, holding open the doors, he didn't dare look back at her.

"How did it happen?"

[whitefox]

[Meanwhile, Kit was well aware of his physical limits. He knew that he could continue to fight so long as he had breath in his lungs and retained any ability at all to move. He didn't require the use of his hands to inflict injury upon someone who had the audacity to look at him that way in his own dorm. But was it a good idea to act on those impulses?

Absolutely not.

Common sense was his voice of reason, keeping him from forcibly pushing Vincent back and out of his personal space. Unfortunately, that voice was not loud enough to tell him to keep from glaring defiantly at the smaller boy. If Vincent wanted a fight so badly, let him be the one to pick it. If pushed, Kit would fight back. But only once he'd confirmed that whatever Vincent was trying to do now wasn't mere posturing because he'd lost and needed to feel better about himself.]

[failedhandjob]

Her eyes had been elsewhere, but Reimi was too attuned to her surroundings to miss the rage that rolled off her companion in waves. She knew that feeling all too well - it's what had been buried deep beneath her own blind terror.

This was why she'd pretended her past had been nothing more than a scary story to be passed around at campfires the last time she'd relayed it. No one else deserved to grapple with these emotions as violently as she'd been forced to.

Her pace slows to a halt just before she reaches the doors herself. Kit may not be looking at her now, but the shift in her voice was all the evidence required to understand that the following words weren't her own.

"Miss, your hand is so cute and silky smooth. I've already taken care of your parents...heh."

It's a poor imitation, but the frightening chill of that lovesick confession came through all the same. "That's what he told me when I ran back into my room."

Reimi passes through the doors at last, shoes clicking softly against the floor of the school building. It's understandable that her companion likely still doesn't want to look her in the eyes, so she proceeds several feet more before halting again to continue speaking.

"I never saw his face, but I found out later that it was a boy I knew from school. I'd even invited him over a couple times, which was probably why Arnold let him get so close."

She sighs, turning slightly to aim a humorless smile Kit's way. "It's funny how that sort of thing happens, isn't it?"

[blacktemper]

[just the sight of that ugly look on the other boy's face has Vincent's blood practically aching. it is possibly the worst thing anyone with a pulse could do, and yet initiating his revenge round immediately is the only thought floating through his mind currently.

it would be so easy to do. their expressions alone had pushed Kit within a hair's breadth of lashing out - he'd barely have to breathe wrong in his face to start a fight. the adrenaline would more than make up for his currently diminished state.

his hand rises up once more, and it seems that impulse has won out over rationality yet again. it descends slowly, inexorably...to give Kit an almost playful thump on the chest.]

Looks like that makes two of us.

[...so it had just been surly posturing after all. Vincent may be a musician, but his acting skills were nothing to sneeze at.

having delivered his judgement, he makes to move past his host. the intent is to rudely descend upon the other teen's fridge and find something for himself to eat - without asking, of course. this was what happened when one kept their aborted meal plans to themselves.]

[whitefox]

Kit's response was cold and mirthless.

"I would have dismantled him."

It's a wonder the words didn't paint the scenery red for the blood lust that was present within them. He could imagine it, even. Slitting the throat the way that man had taken care of Arnold would be much too merciful. Instead, Kit would begin with what that man seemed to prize most. He would saw off each hand one at a time for daring to so much as look at Reimi's let alone touch them, and then he would make good on his promise to take him apart. He would unravel his very being and carve away at him until, little-by-little, nothing was left but a husk that didn't even...

...deserve...

...death's sweet embrace...

He clutched his head suddenly, the pain of two memories trying to surface at once bringing him to his knees. The vision wavered again, the musical cheer of children's laughter and chatter distorting. To the untrained ear it sounded almost like the manic amusement of some kind of demon closing in from the wings. His chest felt tight, but it was her voice that drew him back. Calling loudly from across the classroom...

Shuichi!!

[failedhandjob]

This was Reimi's fault.

She'd been so absorbed in relating her own tale, selfishly, that she'd forgotten where they were. This school wasn't just a convenient backdrop, it was memory. And her own tribulations had caused more of Kit's own to surface, hitting his unready mind with too much force.

Orias rises protectively above them both as Reimi immediately drops to her knees as well, one hand bracing her companion by his shoulder. He didn't seem to be outwardly injured, but that was hardly the most important aspect. No level of Dia could repair a damaged mind.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I should've been paying more attention. Are you alright?"

[whitefox]

Kit didn't charge Reimi with the onset of his headache. There had been no way for her to know what would trigger a memory in his mind or what commentary of theirs was truly benign. Besides, she had come here for the sole purpose of guiding him through this dream and opening his eyes. It would have been completely foolish to think they would would be able to navigate such a dangerous minefield unscathed.

What's more, he had accepted her direction and had refused to turn her away.

Reassuringly, Kit placed his hand atop hers and nodded. He was fine. The young girl calling his name had helped deflect the other memory, whatever it had been. Something told him that he didn't want to recall it, not yet. And now he didn't have to.

They were safe. Doubly so with Orias' many arms ready to cage them protectively. Kit no longer felt unnerved by its presence. In fact, he found the creature as curious as he did the new scene before them, a classroom with students congregating in a circle around their desks, and the red-haired boy stopped by the dark-haired girl to discuss the reasons for the possible disappearances.

Kit pushed himself back to his feet slowly, guiding Reimi with him by his grip on her hand, and only once they had both stood did he let go.

"Forgive me, I didn't expect any of these memories to be as forceful as the first." But clearly he would need to be more careful going forward. Kurama's life had obviously been one full of strife. "Betrayal is a soulless beast...I'm sorry that you had to endure such a thing."

But he was sorrier for what he was certain it had cost her.

[failedhandjob]

She rises easily with him, but it's only a moment or two after he's released her hand that she finally stops chewing her lower lip in consternation. With people who refused to share their burdens, it was difficult at times to perceive what was a lie and what wasn't. It seemed that, for the moment, he really was fine.

The persona backs away as she mentally accepts this, providing them with a less suffocating amount of personal space. Reimi shakes her head gently, brushing off the requested apology with the action. "It's not your fault. I'm supposed to be watching out for that, not you."

What kind of guardian couldn't even do that much? Not one worth any regard, and certainly not one whose forgiveness was merited for false transgressions. With a half smile, she moves her gaze away to watch the young children dissect the mysteries of their own life.

"And you don't have to feel sorry for me. I made him cry so much he forgot me for a while, but little Rohan grew up to be a famous manga artist. I think that's worth it - even if he's still got an awful personality."

Given the chance to revisit her own past and make any alterations, Reimi knew without a shadow of a doubt that she wouldn't change a thing. If fate had decreed that only one person could escape the Sugimoto house alive, then it had to be Rohan. It would always be Rohan.

The thought makes Reimi laugh, the sound a little sad but utterly free of regrets. She'd done pretty well for a naive teen, she thinks.

"But it's like I said before: justice is a natural part of the world. I had to wait a while, but I set things right in the end."

Re: 1

[megacurious]

I agree. I even heard that there are some of the apples that are juicier than last year's.

[voodoo_revenge]

Her expression goes a little disbelieving. "There's a reason people call her an ice queen." She pointed out. In other words, it's hard to get less enthusiastic than what Natsu remembers her being in the past. She makes a little amused noise. "I wonder if anything gets that lady going. You think she watches paint dry with the same expression?"

[whitefox]

A mirthless chuckle escaped him.

"How can you watch for something you don't know is coming?"

She hadn't told him whether or not she was new to this sort of thing, and if he had to hazard a guess he'd have said she probably had more experience than she let on, but navigating dreams could be nothing shy of unpredictable. Their very nature was unstable and given to change. Kit could not, and would not fault Reimi for not being able to predict what he himself hadn't anticipated.

"You sound like you had no regrets." Kit couldn't help but smile a little more sincerely at that. Disregarding Orias, Reimi was stronger than she looked. "But you can't skip ahead in a story. You didn't tell me how you managed to save Rohan."

See? He'd been paying attention. Very close attention, in fact. Such that he hadn't quite noticed the scene around them changing yet again. They were still on school property, but the classroom had disappeared and instead they found themselves in a hallway with the sun going down just beyond the windows. The boy with the short fiery red hair was also there, musing to himself as he wandered alone towards them.

[failedhandjob]

"I can actually sense some of what's coming, you know," she responds with false admonishment. While Reimi refused to allowing the burden of responsibility to shift off her shoulders, she was willing to simply let the argument lay as it was.

Especially when her companion proves that he isn't quite satisfied with her decision to cut her story short. It makes her laugh a little as she sweeps some wayward hair behind her ear. "Sorry. I didn't think you'd want to hear anymore after that."

Whatever the memory was, it had clearly been quite painful for him. She hadn't wanted to pile onto the suffering by drawing out a story that had almost nothing to do with him. But Kit had proved her assumptions wrong, and so she obediently continues where she'd left off.

"I'd never been so scared in my life; all I wanted to do was get away. But with him right under my bed, I knew we'd never make it to the door. Especially not with Rohan right on top of him."

Her head tilts to the side, expression inscrutable. "So I threw him out the window."

There had barely been any time to think in the moment, and so she'd only learned how much her actions had frightened Rohan much later. It had been necessary, but it still tugs at her heartstrings to thing about it. He must have been so afraid, roused from sleep only to find his protector flinging him out a window. And then to be forced to wait alone in the dark for someone to find him, listening to her scream...

She has to blink violently a few times to keep the tears out of her eyes.

[kokuyoyo]

"That does make it easier..." He shrugs, limply. "You'll figure it out, I guess... Although since people have different classes in different parts of the buildings, there's that as well." Even in a school for only the best of the best, there is still that consideration. Even a very smart ten year old can't compete with a college student... at least if that college student is also very smart.

Chikusa might hate Eddan, Green Valley, and everything they stand for, but he does have to admit: it gives people further levels to reach.

As he guides Riki out to the paths, it soon becomes very clear where the greenhouses are located. This is partially because they're massive, many with multiple levels. As they reach the green areas, Chikusa slows a little bit as he looks over them all.

"...What fruit or vegetables do you like?"

[kokuyoyo]

It's not much that gets Chikusa to react expression-wise, especially in any particular severe enough manner. However, this whole... thing? That has him spare a glance at Natsu with a wary squint, even as his finger pulls on the trigger to contrarily send a Sleep spell straight towards the creature's chest.

"It's a crossbow," he answers finally. "And if you don't have weapons of your own... For that particular being, in this particular place... Fighting with only your fists won't work."

This one... is going to be a difficult one when she Awakens, he can tell already, and Chikusa's sigh echoes throughout the stage. How troublesome. "I wonder how long has passed," he murmurs, to no one in particular- or perhaps the enormous snake still coiled protectively around him. This wasn't supposed to be an extensive deal, as far as he knew...

[voodoo_revenge]

Kyoko is basically Chikusa's opposite in that respect. The girl is expressive to the nth degree. It fits her choice of careers in her real life well and makes her pretty easy to read, or would if her thought process was normal anyway.

"Oooh!" She makes a frustrated gesture, Kyoko still overriding Natsu enough to look completely uncool "I need a weapon, where can I get one?"

Then she cheers when the arrow hits. Not in his face but you know in his general body. It's not as good as doing it yourself but... wait... why isn't he bleeding or even looking hurt? Stupid Shotaro was laughing. He'd slowed marginally but he was still moving forward, dragging a mic stand and trailing a mic chord next to him. "Do your best not to be embarrassing." He says snidely, and the chord seems to pulse. Damn Shotaro for always being out of reach. "Shoot him again!!"

[miseris_socios]

"Yeah."

He stays quiet as they walk, though once they approach the greenhouses his eyes go a bit wide. All of this, just for the students to use? It's... pretty impressive, even if they're just flowers and stuff. "I... carrots, I guess? And grapes. I know they might not be in season right now, though."

[sociallyarcward]

As he picks up more of the apples, he falls silent. He doesn't have much to say after all, so why not just quietly pick them up and go. Still, there is something to be said for small talk, so when the other asks a question, Jaune doesn't mind responding.

"First year, higher level," he straightens up, smiling awkwardly, "Oh yeah? I remember being the new kid. We didn't move here until I was in elementary school. I had it pretty rough for awhile there, but I made friends eventually." Or they took pity on him, he's not sure which honestly.

[miseris_socios]

"... Oh." He glances sidelong at Jaune, hand closing a little too tightly around an apple before he puts it back in the basket.

"I'm not... ugh. People are going to talk about it anyway. I... my dad. He goes to school here. I didn't know he was my dad and neither did he until a few weeks ago."