TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 7

[avalonmods]

✨ Greet new players on the OOC intro while apps are processed HERE! ✨

{ QUICK NAV } Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Reserves ⚔️️ Apply ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary ⚔️️ Top-Levels Only ⚔️️ A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival KERPLUNK, SPLASH! Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, helping to rescue any wayward travelers who look like they're struggling in the water. This month's helpers are giant pillow jellies, a species of jellyfish that is capable of ballooning itself at the surface to create bouncy pads for characters to hop across to the shore, should they choose or not be able to swim. They come in a variety of bioluminescent colors, but do not seem to be very talkative even to animal magic users. Those who try may find themselves being ignored, even if they hear the jellies talking amongst themselves about this and that. If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly. *Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players. B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of special ear buds (the supplier was out of the regular ones) and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go. These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with nip bottles. Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service, avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk. C ⦿ The Red Spring The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies. If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out! The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there. After the new arrivals come in, they'll find that this month they came in on the middle of a rather tumultuous time... people are arguing and debating about a future decision to be made. King Arthur recently tried to negotiate with Celliwig's people to open the doors to Camelot, but they refused, and the people have been left with a decision: 1. attempt long-distance, slow wooing of Queen Elphame via the Elphame Traders of the next couple of months, 2. attempt to prove a balanced and deeper understanding of the need for both pure and impure hearts by suggesting an acceptance of trials from Celliwig, or 3. band together under Camelot's flag to invade Celliwig. Celliwig is a place of communication between Elphame and Camelot that bypasses the need for weeks of dangerous, often fatal travel, so the choice is very important in regards to how Camelot both presents itself to the fae people in the future. To that end, people with strong beliefs about particular choices have arranged gatherings to draw people in to hear their perspectives on what the choice should be. A ⦿ Honey Over Vinegar A wide variety of people have sided with this group, including the Elphame Traders, as cutting Celliwig off from them would mean a much harder journey each month to the city of Camelot. (Though commerce always does find a way.) This group is hosting a Tree-Picking Tournament! Of course, the trees to be picked are out in the farmlands, and members of the lobbying group will be giving people free one-use Farm Totems to get to the tournament. The trees in this grove are a little different than normal trees, however. For one, they don't bear fruit. This is Camelot's cookie orchard, composed of special fairy tree hybrids that grow a variety of sweet treats on their branches instead of fruits. There are your usual chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies, but also little puff-like wedding cookies on bushes or checkboard cookies blossoming out of stems instead of flowers. There are even some trees that have clusters of miniature French macarons! The best part, at the end when you turn in your cookies for the count and get your participation prize (and bonus pamphlet about how slow and steady wins the race), you can totally keep and eat them, so be careful not to drop them! How you get them down from the tree is up to you, of course. Try some magic, or maybe just some regular old tree-shaking will do the trick.. just be careful you don't accidentally knock down any wasp nests. Those stings will hurt bad! B ⦿ A Balanced Approach The party of people who want to try to woo Celliwig over to smooth things over see this little political gathering with cookie-based bribery and quickly fashion their own event to make sure the fanfare isn't all for just the one idea. To gather people in to hear their side of the story, this group has decided to host a bug catching contest! Head out into those flower fields between Camelot and the Red Springs that are now thriving thanks to April's plentiful rains. Whether you use a net or figure out how to use your magic to get the bugs, it's how many you catch, not what kinds you catch that count-- so make it fast and make it plentiful! And at the end of the day, what you choose to do with your captured bugs is up to you. Crush them or free them, keep them or eat them, whatever it is you want to do... ultimately, all moral choices are valid, right? So let's go along with what Celliwig wants! Don't forget that May is the season of the frog, however, and you'll be in competition with a variety of sentient and wise members of the Frog Tribe, a group of bipedal frogs who live in the southernmost part of the lake and come up to the flowerfields to stick their tongues out for some delicious bug treats. They have no problem sticking their tongues right into your captured bug nest, hopping on heads to steal your catches, and do all kinds of crazy interferences like snipping belts and tonguing ankles to trip people. You may want someone to watch your back for this event, lest you get done in by a hopper. C ⦿ A Show of Strength The more war-hungry citizens of Camelot seek to go to war. This whole issue will be over if Celliwig itself isn't the one in charge of communication and it's just made directly between Elphame and Camelot, rather than having a mediator who refuses to mediate. They believe that a show of strength is the only way to solve this problem, and as such, they'll be demonstrating that the greatest rewards come from strength by organizing an expedition to a cave at the base of the Ash Mountains. Taking a path squarely between the Dusklight Woods and the edge of the Lands of Rot to the base of the Ash Mountains, this expedition will lead into a cave known as the Giant Cave. It's a pretty on-the-nose name, since it really is a big cave. One of the cool things about this cave is that it's filled with geodes. Those who have enough strength can use provided pickaxes and drills to dig up their own crystals and gold, both great for jewelry and enchanting. In particular, there is a large amount of: • Rose quartz: dark mages can make their love spells much more powerful and healers can use this to enhance spells that soothe anxieties and self-doubt • Amethyst: siphoners increase the potency of counter-curses and light mages will find this stone makes their hard light shields stronger than ever • Agate: strengthen cognitive abilities like post-cognition for a clearer picture of what happened by enhancing perception, and death mages will find they're able to extend their possession times by about 30 minutes by using an agate to stablize their aura • Moonstones: will increase navigation as a traveler's protection for kinetic users-- no longer will you risk tripping over a rock while going at enhanced speeds, or can be traded to fairies to potentially bring down a steep price to something more reasonable • Black tourmaline: a crystal that shields from opposition/negativity-- for technomancers and elementalists, this means that technology is more likely to side with them over another technomancer, or elementalists will find that when using opposing elements, theirs will come out stronger-- like water vs fire, electric vs rock, etc. • Hematite: can soothe blood, leaving it a good tool to enhance animal and blood magic-- animals may trust you more readily by having a calming effect on them, and blood mages may find that they heal more readily after using their abilities • Boji stone: alchemists will find that this is a good stabilizer for for particularly volatile potion combinations, and the properties of this stone leaves green mages to sense new types of plants they haven't yet encountered in passing, even if they're not looking at them It's not particularly a contest in this case-- you can keep and use what you want, and this show of strength has given you more power than ever, so why not consider the same concept for how to deal with our unneighborly neighbors in Celliwig? It may be sweaty business, but surely hitting some rocks will show you the value of strength! With the surprisingly tame day in the Giant Cave, one would think that the Ash Mountains were something of a safe place. No one really bothered the travelers, but that's because no one had been home at the time. as it turns out, the Giant Cave is home to a giant... douchebag of a minotaur. Not a giant, despite the name. His name is Simon and he doesn't like to share, and now that a bunch of people have gone and taken his rocks (he didn't even know there were crystals inside, nor does he do anything with them). Now he has to take his revenge, regardless of not knowing who actually took the crystals that were never really his to begin with, they just happened to be in rocks near where he sleeps. A ⦿ A Stone's Throw from Revenge The minotaur is a very instinctive creature, and his instincts say that the people of Camelot, the nearest settlement, are the ones who need to be punished for this. He uses his superhuman strength to drag huge rocks and boulders all the way to the north-east edge of Camelot, seemingly for no reason, until he's got practically a wall built. At which point he starts picking them up, spinning, and then vaulting the rocks into Camelot's buildings. You may find yourself inside of one of those buildings and scrambling to check if everyone and yourself is okay, or perhaps you're rushing out to stop the minotaur from throwing another. Either way, it's a sudden attack and you're going to have to act fast. Trying to attack the minotaur will be difficult, since it has superhman strength and durability, sharp horns atop its head, and can smell you coming from a mile away. Get creative, and stop the minotaur before it's too late! B ⦿ There's Safety in Numbers Once the minotaur's attacks stop, it flees to recover its wounds, promising it will come back to destroy Camelot once and for all. It's a time for reprieve and to help clean up the damage. Use your magic to help clean up broken buildings and structures, or heal and help others who were injured in the sudden, mostly unprovoked attack. Many of the uninjured citizens will be going around town and providing drinks, towels, and cups of noodles to those who are helping out. Because of the impending threat of the minotaur's return, it's recommended that otherworlder's use the (Recipe) Buddy System spell. The way they explain it, it's a spell designed to alert your buddy if you're in danger and lasts about an hour. The way it actually works is you must be touching your buddy in any way at all times for the next hour. Unfortunately, it seems like the volunteers sharing the recipe may have missed that it was created in a kindergarten class, not for adults. C ⦿ Gross Thankfully, the Buddy System wears off before the Minotaur is back for round two. When the Minotaur returns, the castle has since gathered forces to the edge of town to defend it from another attack. It's unclear where the Minotaur went to get healed, but whoever he went to apparently had some advice, however, and the instinctive minotaur gave into a different instinct for part two of his revenge. Rather than go right back to his pile of rocks, he instead travels the day to get to the southernmost part of Camelot and barrels into town unopposed, as most of the troupes are where they had thought he would come from again. After all, minotaurs are not known to be big thinkers. Instead of violently destroying this time, however, the minotaur instead heads straight to lowertown's well-- and takes a pee in it. It turns out, not only does he have a giant-- ahem, but he is a giant dick as well. Now the entire lowertown has to be evacuated due to contaminated water up to other areas of Camelot. Many people who live there are relocated to live in extra castle rooms. After all, Minotaur Urine is known to be incredibly potent and stinky. Mages who are able to handle the smell are asked to come help perform a ritual of water purification for the lowertown's water system. This ritual involves multiple groups of people performing synchronic magic, a magic type that requires you to be in perfect sync with your partner. Draw a special ritual circle with four candles at equidistant points. Chant a spell in sync with your partner, and blow a special powder made of ground jasper, charcoal, and rosemary into the center of the circle. It will be drawn into the candles' flames and with enough people doing this, all impurities will be removed from the lowertown's water and dissipate into the atmosphere. KEY POINTS New arrivals drop into the lake and have to climb up a cliff to the Rent a Ride, where they are given their device and some headphones and can retrieve their personal materials. They travel to Camelot, which is a multiple day journey, so they stop at the Red Springs along the way and stay at an inn there. There is a vote pending for Camelot and each side of the issue is trying to engage otherworlders to their side of the vote. The slow/steady approach is hosting a cookie harvesting tournament from a grove of cookie trees, the middleground group is hosting a bug-catching contest, and the group that wants war is hosting a mining expedition. The mining expedition aggros an asshole of a minotaur, who throws rocks at Camelot. Driven away, the townspeople try to help by distributing a spell called "Buddy System" which binds two people together, not realizing it was intended for kindergarteners. (Oops.) The minotaur returns and pees in the lowertown's water, so a ritual of water purification must be performed because it's gross and stinky. The minotaur is still at large. **** The above key points are a new feature we're going to start including on TDMs and Events. Since it's new, the format is still fluid, so please let us know if you have any feedback for this section here. It should just include brief summaries of each prompt to make parsing information easier and more accessible. The original prompts should still be read and referred to for complete information and details. **** MOD NOTES: • All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post. • If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities. • A poll will go up a little later this week regarding the mentioned voting, which should be answered ICly by each character you play. The poll will remain open through the 15th so that newly accepted characters may also vote if they choose to. •If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt. • The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly. • Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

Comments

Marianne von Edmund | Fire Emblem: Three Houses | Animal and Healing

[sereneadherent]

Arrival

[Marianne is more graceful than she was as a teenager, but she still by no means has the balance required to keep her footing across a sea of giant jellyfish. Especially since they seem to be... gossiping? She swears she can hear voices, and the jellyfish are the only creatures near enough for her to pick up on the conversation. It's similar to how her Crest works, but clearer. Stranger.

Between a lack of balance and the distraction, Marianne topples into the water more than once before she finally makes it ashore. There, she finds that she isn't the only one who's collecting her wits after being unceremoniously dropped into a lake. It's a mixed blessing. While it's a relief that she isn't alone, being among a large group of strangers is overwhelming. She scans the sea of faces, trying to find a familiar one, and steps backward--right into someone passing by.]

Oh! I'm sorry.

[Instinctively, her gaze falls to the ground. It's easy to slide back into old habits when under stress like this.]


Caravan(ish) & Red Spring

[The Caravan ride over is largely uneventful, and Marianne spends the ride asleep while curled up with a diminuitive version of Dorte, her favorite horse from back at the monastery. A red-breasted robin flies in at some point, picking at her hair to try and rouse her, but ultimately gives up and flies off.

The party arrives at the Red Spring, and Marianne sets Dorte up in the stables before finding her room for the night. She could almost swear she hears the horse say goodnight to her before she leaves. She tries not to think too much about it.

Having slept most of the way here, Marianne isn't especially tired. Still, she wishes for some quiet and has little interest in exploring the springs or anything of the sort. Her head is still spinning from everything she's been told and from the situation she's left behind, and she simply lacks the emotional bandwidth to be social. She wants nothing more to read a little, pray to the Goddess (assuming she can even hear her, so far away), and rest.

However, she arrives to find the room occupied. Right, they're assigned two to a room, aren't they? She freezes in the doorway.]

Um, hello. I guess we're supposed to room together tonight.

If you would prefer to be alone, I can find somewhere else to go.

[A night in the stables probably wouldn't be that bad.]


Honey over Vinegar

[There's almost a cruel irony in the fact that Marianne has left a world torn apart by war only to be dropped in the middle of one considering it. She's not eager to see this place fall into horror and chaos, especially as the aggressor, and so she finds herself drawn to the faction intent on avoiding it at all costs.

Which is how she's found herself in an orchard filled with cookies, of all things. It's magical and a bit silly, but Marianne doesn't really mind. She doesn't really have much opportunity to, since right now she's kneeling on the ground and arguing with a horse the size of a large dog.]

Dorte, you can't keep eating cookies off of the bushes. You're going to make yourself sick.

[Dorte nickers in response.]

I know they're delicious, but you have to learn some restraint. Just because we're not in Fodlan is no excuse to let yourself go.

[Those familiar with Marianne really won't register this as unusual. Dorte is the one creature in Garreg Mach she talks to the most.]

honey over vinegar

[leicesters]

[While she scolds the horse, she'll hear a familiar voice from behind:]

In fairness to Dorte, he looks like he's practically shrinking and withering away! If you want him to grow up nice and strong, shouldn't you feed him well?

[Claude sidles up to Marianne and the pint-sized Dorte as if this is the most normal thing in the world, crouching down to join them and to get a better look at the mini-horse. And because, you know, saying hello like a normal person is overrated.]

look dorte even gets his own icon

[sereneadherent]

[Marianne startles at the unexpected voice. Honestly, between Claude and Raphael and every other nosy (and noisy!) person in the Golden Deer House, she really should be used to his by now. But she isn't.

Dorte, for his part, doesn't pay Claude much mind. He must have seen him coming.]

Claude! I didn't realize you were here, too. I'm so happy to see you.

[There are few faces she would be happier to see, if she has to be honest. He gets a rare, earnest smile from her.]

Dorte isn't withering away. They said he just became smaller when he arrived here for some reason. And even if he was, there are better things to feed him than cookies.

so cute oh no

[leicesters]

[Claude returns the smile with one of his own, certainly more earnest these days than his deceptive, fake smiles of old, and he can't resist offering a cheeky wink at her surprise. He's as casual as he ever is despite their unusual situation.]

I know, I'm just teasing. My familiar is a wyvern, but she's practically the size of a little hatchling. Mini-Dorte here will be just fine.

[He reaches out to the horse slowly, before patting him on the neck. He's sure Dorte will remember him, but he doesn't want to spook him all the same.]

So, did you two just get here? [He's talking as if the horse is included in the conversation. It only seems polite!]

[sereneadherent]

[Claude is treating her basically the same as he does back home, which is a relief given some of the things she's seen in other people from Fodlan here. It's nice not to have to puzzle things out, at least at first.]

That must have taken some getting used to, considering how large wyverns usually are. My familiar is a robin. He says his name is Pippin.

[She says this without a trace of irony. Of course she can talk to her magical bird. Doesn't he talk to his wyvern?]

We just arrived a few days ago. It's... it's been a lot to take in.

[leicesters]

[Talking familiars aren't too strange, at least, so it doesn't throw him too much.]

I'll bet. Well, I've been here a couple of moons by now, so if you have any questions I'll do my best to help. Dorothea's around, too.

[Amongst others, but she's probably confused enough without him bringing up the likes of Dimitri and company just yet.]

[sereneadherent]

A couple of moons?! But I just saw you.

[Just a few days ago, he had given everyone a speech about breaking down the barriers between Fódlan and the rest of the world as explanation for why he had invited the Almyran army to fight alongside the Alliance. It hadn't been entirely necessary for her to hear--he had all but told her the full reason not long before, when they promised to try to set down their burdens and change the world together--but it had roused the rest of her classmates and allowed them to rally behind the cause.

But if he'd been here, that would be impossible. Wouldn't it?]

Has Dorothea been here that long, too?

[leicesters]

She has. [He nods, and tries to think of the simplest way to explain their predicament.]

Umm... Basically, time works differently here. All the worlds have been frozen in time by a powerful magic, so while time has been moving here for me, to you and everyone else back home, it wouldn't seem like I was missing at all.

[sereneadherent]

I... see.

[Kind of. If she squints. Dorte, as if sensing the way her mind is working overtime, nuzzles the side of her head a bit.]

Did we all leave Fódlan at the same... time? What's the last thing you remember?

arrival

[carligrapher]

( Kojiro, you absolute imbecile. he doesn't want to know how the gorilla managed to drop him in the sea and land him in a fully different place, but he's choosing to believe it's Kojiro's fault somehow.

(okay, no he isn't, but being mad at Kojiro is much, much easier than coming to terms with the way his world was, almost literally, flipped on its head with one simple crash into another world. that whole mess is going to have to wait until his yukata and hair are both dry.)

he's halfway through squeezing water out of his ponytail, squinting in a rather futile attempt to see the world around him (surely someone had the forethought to at least bring his glasses and Carla with him on this little... ahem, excursion, right?) when the young lady bumps into his side and pulls his attention away from the blurry blue expanse of the lake. )

No, it's alright. ( it seems disorientation is the theme of the day, and he'll admit to himself that his head is spinning, the annoyance at his childhood friend something he's desperately grasping onto to prevent the fraying of his sanity and the familiar clutch of panic in his chest.

which is why he's not going to ask about Kojiro, or any of the boys, not yet. because if he doesn't ask, he doesn't have to know that they're not here, or think about what that means. ) Have you seen a pair of glasses by any chance?

( he can... probably manage to stumble his way to civilisation without them, but it would be preferable to, well, be able to see where he's walking without aggravating this already blossoming headache. )

[sereneadherent]

[It's very kind of this stranger to forgive her for her lack of awareness. Instead, he asks about his glasses. Marianne picks her head up from the floor and looks at his expression. It's clear from the way he's squinting that he cannot see very well.

She can't just leave him alone and in need like this.]

No, I'm sorry. I can help you look for them? Or, I thought I heard someone talking about... [She cannot for the life of her say the word "shit."] About a box. With some of our belongings. They might be there.

[carligrapher]

( it's an understandable error, in Kaoru's mind, and as they both appear to be new, there's no need to make enemies out of anyone. )

Is that so? ( it's more mumbled to himself than anything else. that's as good a place as any to start. ) Shall we locate this box?

( it's not because he needs the assistance, nope. just... because this young woman seems quite nice and the company is appreciated right now. )

[sereneadherent]

[The young woman is nice, and her kindness to him is genuine, but she's fighting the reflex to run away and not deal with any of this right now.

Marianne swallows that instinct back, giving him a smile even though she's not sure how well he can see it.]

Yes, I think we should.

[She looks around.]

It looks like people are moving toward something. Let's go see if that's it.

[carligrapher]

( he would hesitate to admit to a stranger — hell, he would hesitate to admit it to his best friend — but that's a reflex shared between them. curling up into a ball and hyperventilating is a thought that's crossed his mind more than once in the last few minutes.

but no. deep, steady breaths. in and out. measured and deliberate. he can handle this. he's not the only person who's been thrown in the deep end, so to speak. he has to keep it together. )

Alright. ( it's as good an idea as any. after all, there's often a reason for any given crowd. (good reasons? not always, but reasons nonetheless.)

setting off is fine, the shoreline is that ideal balance between wet and dry which makes it near solid to walk on and means he doesn't need to worry about his balance until they begin to approach the cliffs. he's sure this place would be rather beautiful if he could see it in any amount of detail. of all the times to not be wearing contacts. ) ...Are they heading up the cliffs?

( given the angle of people filing up, he's guessing stairs of some kind. maybe a ramp. )

[sereneadherent]

[They'll have to each settle for deep breathing as they scream internally, for now.]

Yes, they are. Are you going to be okay climbing stairs without your glasses?

[Marianne will help him navigate if he needs it, although she hopes that she won't have to. She's not the best at balance, so she's worried she'll knock him off the side of it somehow. She'd never be able to live with herself if she accidentally killed someone in her first hour here.]

time to make some bland name product references

[carligrapher]

( a familiar sensation, to be sure. )

Yes, but thank you for your offer. It's very kind. ( well. um. he's saying that, because pride and face and manners, but that is a lot of stairs facing them and that headache isn't going away any time soon.

oh they better have pufferin up top.

but the trek upwards — carefully, on Kaoru's part — means there's plenty of time and silence to fill. ) I take it your arrival wasn't intentional either?

( not that he can imagine anyone would just... walk into another... place? world? ugh, this really is some after school cartoon thing, isn't it? )

Arrival

[picoboo]

[As it just so happens, her gaze falling to the ground makes it much easier to be looking Pico eye to eye, because this little girl is much shorter than her. Poor Marianne's habit has backfired on her if she'd hoped to hide her face from the other 'new' arrival, because Pico is practically right up in her face.]

Aww, that's okay! It's pretty disorienting being dropped in that lake! I almost drowned the first time it happened to me!

[The first time? Pico doesn't give Marianne much time to dwell on that train of thought, because the little lady is quick to straighten out the other girl's damp clothes for her, and then offer her a friendly handshake.]

Besides, this way I get to say hello to you! I'm Pico! What's your name?

AHHHHHH I love Rune Factory 4! ♥ I'm so happy to see a Pico!

[sereneadherent]

[Marianne screams and tumbles backwards, not at all expecting a small girl getting right up into her face like this. She lands hard, but she doesn't really register the pain from it. Really, she's not given much of an opportunity to even fully register what's going on until she's suddenly dry and staring at the girl's outstretched hand.]

M-Marianne.

[Hesitantly, she takes the girl's hand and shakes. She's too overwhelmed to offer anything warmer than that in greeting.]

How...? Where... are we?

Awww! Yay! ♥ I love all the fire emblems, so I've been drowning in 3h feels!!

[picoboo]

[Pico blinks in surprise when Marianne screams and topples over like that. She's not unaccustomed to people screaming at the sight of her, but usually it's because she's got her head peekinh through a wall or something. Actually she hasn't had anyone screaming at the sight of her at all here... except maybe Dolly, but she was doing a bit of screaming herself when they both realized she was no longer a ghost.]

Hey, take it easy now... I don't bite you know.

[There's a novel idea, she's not sure if she's ever bitten anybody before! No wait, stop getting distracted Pico! This poor girl is clearly not handling her transition to Camelot well! Pico is just going to be as gentle as possible, treating Marianne a bit like a startled chipsqueek.]

This is the land of Camelot if I remember right? It's a bit of an island nation, and at the moment there's a magic at work that threatens the very fabric of reality, which is why you and I are here.

[Pico may be a small little thing, but she's surprisingly strong! She helps Marianne back on her feet with that helping hand, and then gives her a reassuring pat on the back.]

You're lucky Dolly is here with me or I probably would be a lot less calm, helpful, or friendly. The first time I was here I was probably screaming even worse than you just now, so take your time, okay?

[Half of that likely didn't make any sense, but if she knew Pico a bit better it'd probably make perfect sense. Context was just about everything when it came to understanding the often distracted mind of Pico, and she was usually too impatient to just sit down and give it. Marianne was being given the rare opportunity to have a slightly more calm and understanding Pico because she felt sorry for the poor girl.
In some ways she reminded her of Dolly when she was a frightened little girl seeing scary ghosts no one else could see.]

3H is my first FE, but playing it makes me want to go back and play the rest of the series now :D

[sereneadherent]

[It's not biting that Marianne is worried about, although now that the thought has been put into her head she can't help but stress about it. People here don't actually bite, do they?

(Sure, it's not a logical thought, but social anxiety is rarely logical.)

The girl is kind, at least, and the way she shifts her tone helps her nerves quite a bit. Marianne manages a tiny "thank you" when she's pulled to her feet, taking some time to brush the sand off her dress as she tries to process what she's being told.]

You've been here before? And we're supposed to... save all of reality?

[That's a big ask. It's quite the escalation from what she's left behind, and even that seems almost impossible.]

How did we even get here?

I would HIGHLY recommend Awakening! In fact I would probably *buy* you a copy it's that good.

[picoboo]

[She was glad to see she was no longer on the ground at least, and she did seem to be recovering a little from the initial shock... but the shock of being forced into saving the multi-verse could in and of itself be rather daunting even for the most well balanced individual.]

Oh we were all summoned here by our own respective familiars. Magical beings sort of connected with our world to try to help us to save it at this nexus point.

[One might be surprised the vocabulary a several century old ghost of an eight year old could develop. Of course she wasn't exactly a ghost here anymore so that was fun to unpack in its own right.]

Soooo, do you like animals? Because if you do I have a treat for you! A one, and a two, and... ta daaaah!

[Pico removes her hat, and nesting in her hair under said hat is a pink and slightly off colored Chipsqueek. It's a bit like a mix between a squirrel and a chipmunk, but this one seemed to be snoozing contentedly on Pico's head.]

This is my familiar, and his name is Squeeks! He's a little shy, so he likes to hide under my hat all day, but he doesn't mind meeting with people.

I have a copy ready to play when I finish 3H! :)

[sereneadherent]

[Marianne is a little surprised at the young girl's vocabulary, but not by much. It reminds her a bit of Flayn, or how she imagines Lysithea was at that age. If nothing else, the elaboration is greatly appreciated

As is meeting Pico's small furry friend! She leans down a bit to get a better view.]

Oh, he's adorable! I'm more partial to birds and horses, but really I love all animals.

It's a pleasure to meet you, Squeeks.

[Her voice is barely more than a whisper at that last part, so as not to disturb his precious sleep.]

When do I learn about my own familiar?

Oooooh! I need to finish replaying 3H with the underground DLC, I finished it before that finished.

[picoboo]

[The little sleeping chipsqueek seems to wave a paw in its sleep... it's hard to tell whether it's saying hello, or just batting at something in its sleep, but such is the nature of Pico's sleepy familiar. Pico herself blinks in surprise at Marianne's question, almost forgetting about her familiar!]small>

Oh! Umm... I think it should actually be around here somewhere! They're usually pretty close by to use when we first show up since they're sort of the ones responsible for us being here.

[She puts her hand to her brow to scan the horizon for wherver Marianne's familiar might be.]

They're usually a somewhat small and cute version of something from your home-world... or something magical. My friend Dolly's familiar isn't very cute, but it is very magical, but I think you'll probably have something cute!

arrival

[backstreetbard]

[ Dorothea has always enjoyed people-watching. It's a fascinating glimpse into human behavior, and it's something she put to use in her acting career while at the Mittelfrank. This moon, when new arrivals started to tumble through the sky, she decided to make her way back down to the beach to watch--not only their behavior, but for familiar faces as well.

She isn't expecting to be run into, but rather than backing away (since she's already wet now, but it's fine, really), she loops her arms around her sodden friend in what she hopes is a comforting way. Marianne always was the most timid among her classmates, but Dorothea was a persistent sort of person.

Her voice is gentle when she speaks, rubbing her hand along Marianne's arm to try and warm her up after her fall into the lake. ]

Hey now, there's no need to apologize. I've got you, dear. Come, now, let's go back to the city and I'll make some tea for you.

[sereneadherent]

[The voice is gentle, and familiar, and it puts Marianne at least a little at ease. Thank the Goddess, she's not alone here.]

Dorothea! I-it's good to see you.

[Marianne's mind makes the vague observation that Dorothea is mostly dry, and strangely calm about this. By contrast, Marianne looks something like a drowned rat and has been screaming internally pretty much since she had hit the water. The songstress has always been much more composed in the face of adversity than Marianne could ever hope to be, but not quite to this degree.

The reasons for that can be figured out later. Mostly, she just wants to be dry and safe somewhere, and Dorothea is offering that plus something warm to drink. That take priority right now.]

Tea sounds wonderful, thank you. And, um. Sorry I got you all wet.