Don't Be Afraid To Be Who You Are - Auradon Side

The Rain Rain Rain Came Down Down Down

Just over a week after the Isle visit people would find themselves drawn outside. The reason might vary, it was a lovely day and the air had the sweet scent of spring. It was the first truly warm day, and perhaps that was it. But for whatever reason everyone, or nearly everyone, found themselves outside and then drifted peacefully off to sleep.

As they slept a gentle rain came down upon them, soft enough to wake only those in a cursed sleep. The water not only broke dark spells and curses on the people the rain touched but for some people it brought a very different sort of transformation.

A number of the Missrecalled might find themselves awakening older than they had been when they fell asleep. Some of them might awaken with all their older self's memories, or maybe those would come with time, or maybe the memories would need more help to return. But when everyone awoke with a light dew on their faces and clothes, some people would be in for quite the surprise....



Gift In Time Gift In Time Nary A Reason Nary A Rhyme Gift In Time!

After the odd outdoor nap, many might wish to head into their rooms to get changed and freshen up. Or maybe they wouldn't go back to their room for a while, but when they did they would find a gift on their beds waiting for them....

All The Boys From Auradon And The Girls ’Cause They Know What's Up!

Getting Ready
Finally, the path was cleared of snow enough to not just get to the docks, but also to carry stuff with them. Which meant that it was ISLE TIME! Time to go to the Isle and bring them supplies as well as to check in on everyone.

The day before the Isle visit there was still a ton to do. Many people had spent the long weeks - weeks? Months? Almost felt like years at this point! - making things to bring to those on the Isle. But their work, and thus that which they made, has been scattered all over the school. It all needs to be found and gathered into the crates that would be used to bring everything over to the Isle.

Morning of, the King seemed a bundle of energy checking and double checking everything, making sure that everyone was ready. Making sure that those who hadn't been there before were prepared for what they would encounter.

The Queen, however, was leaning back, watching everything over her coffee mug. While she might have seemed more disinterred and distant by far than the hyperactive Ben... Those who knew Mal probably caught on to the fact that she was noticing more than Ben was, and was directing him wherever he was needed most. Subtly.

She wasn't lazy, she was supervising. Clearly.

Once everything was ready, she pushed off of the wall and set her cup aside. Those watching her closely might see that she had been about to toss it over her shoulder and stopped herself at the last moment. Then she clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

"Alright. We've done this before. Those staying back at the school get rooms ready for whoever we bring back, and make sure things are clean and neat and whatever. Those coming with us just as far as the docks, you're pulling the pallets," she said, nodding to the sledges where everything was loaded. Just without the horses to pull them. But that's what the Missrecalled were for.

"Those of us getting on the boat, if you haven't gone before, pair off with someone who has. I want everyone to know what they're doing in the way of boat safety by the time we get there. I don't enjoy fishing people out of the ocean. Alright, let's go, day aint getting any longer, folks."


Life Is Like A Boat
Once the boat was loaded, Ben made sure everyone planning to go had a life jacket on, and was ready to answer questions. Once everyone was ready, Ben gave Sylvando the signal. Off went the royal yacht, heading to the Isle.


"This will be so much easier once they clear their side of the bridge already," Mal muttered, then shook her head. "Alright, listen up. The closer we get to the Isle the worse the waves will get, and the storms... Well there are reasons beyond just the barrier that no one gets off the Isle without help from Auradon. So be sure you have a good grip on the rails. Once we're there, we are opening the barrier long enough to unload only. Keep an eye out, and stop anyone who tries to escape, and as soon as they're stopped let me know. I'll deal with it. Once the barrier is back up, we unload. We'll be there about 2 hours this time. You see anyone you know, let us know. At the end of the two hours, everyone needs to be gathered here, or you might be left behind. We'll make final decisions then who is coming back with us, then I will open the barrier just long enough for us to get back on the boat, then it will be closed once more and we'll head back to Auradon. Once on the Isle, with the barrier closed, magic will not work. Be prepared. If you have questions you can ask them. Otherwise. Chat or whatever, we've got a while because somehow they cleared the stu.... an inconvenient landing place for us."


On The Isle
(Please TL Here for Isle Shenanigans. TY)


On The Way back
The trip back from the Isle always had a different energy to it than the trip out. Between people being exhausted, and the million and three questions those on their way to Auradon for the first time might have...

Subdued, pleased, excited, scared... There were a lot of potentially new emotions swirling around, and this might be the first time some of these people have had access to their magic since their arrival. Wouldn't that be exciting?


Home Again Home Again, Jiggity Jig
Once in Auradon, the trip back to the dorm was almost a formality. It was once they got to the school that all those details that had to be put off during the boat ride had to be addressed. It was time to help the new people settle in, see if Mallia was up to making food for those who needed it, or maybe just give those from the Isle a chance to wash up, change into clean clothes, and sleep in an actual bed. Whatever it is they wanted to do, Auradon might just be the place to do it.

Getting Down To Business

Who: Lea and Aqua in one thread, Lea and anyone in the others
When: After the memory event, but before the next Isle trip
Where: Various places, see thread prompts
What: Now that the days are getting longer and the possibility of not being stuck inside any more looks imminent, Lea is feeling motivated. Time to get things done, some of which he's been putting off for awhile.
Warnings: Feels probably in the thread with Aqua. Otherwise, we'll see.

While the getting is good )

Let's See What's In The Cards (Mmhm)

The weather was still bitterly cold, and the snow was still thick on the ground, but it was finally possible to at least go outside by the front doors. The King and Queen have still forbidden anyone from staying overnight at the museum district in case it started snowing again. But the King could be seen outside trying to shovel snow enough to make a path to the castle at the least.

The snow was still too thick to get easily anywhere not shoveled, and the snow was so heavy that even beasted out, Ben needed to take constant breaks inside to sit down and dry off. This wasn't going to be a fast task.

It was only made harder when it started. For those who slept, it would start after they have fully awoken for the day. For those who don't sleep, they'd find that they had fallen into a pleasant daydream, even if it wasn't normal for them to do so. When they came out of it, that was when it would start for them.

But what is it, exactly?

Small snippets of memories, playing for anyone who was with the person remembering to see. But the thing was, these memories... were memories the person had not yet made. Memories of the future.

Not enough to give answers, probably not enough to give reassurances for much other than "oh hey, I do have a future after all," but generally pleasant, and short. Hey, it will give people a thing to talk about, at least. Especially since this will go on for the next two weeks or so.

The Littlest Sleeping Beauty

Who: Bitty Leia and anyone who finds her
When: Mid-afternoon, the day after the talent show
Where: The Auradon Prep library
What: Magic has no respect for naps, AKA Bitty Leia's arrival
Warnings: Probably none

No kiss required )

All The Decorations And The Lights Up On The Tree

Festival Planning

After listening to so many stories and traditions, Mal and Ben worked together on a new plan. Ben had been about to get Sylvando and Mallia in to help, but Mal stopped him. They have both been working so hard, she wanted to give them both a gift as well. So this was planned by the Royal couple as a gift to all the Missrecalled.

And so one evening when everyone gathered for cocoa and stories they would find the usual room and the halls leading to it decorated in a fashion that was a mix of traditions. There was soft cotton fluff, the sort of thing used for inside stuffed animals and pillows pulled loose and spread about to look like small snowdrifts here and there, and a steady fall of pale magical glitter that vanished half a minute after landing somewhere just to reappear on the ceiling to fall again. There were garlands made of twisted greenery and feathers cut out of paper. There was a potted tree from the greenhouse in one corner decorated in lights and tinsel and glitter snow and... little plush creatures. Chocobos and the little rabbit like creatures that still lived in one of the ballrooms and some small cute creatures from other worlds. Any adorable non-sentient critter that anyone ever told Mal or Ben about, even in passing, in a positive way might be represented if one looked hard enough.

Mal was curled up in a large purple chair, sipping one of Mallia's little glowing drinks, looking tired but pleased with herself. Ben was sitting on the arm of the chair.

Once everyone was gathered, Ben stood to address them. "Before we start with the stories, we want to present you all with a surprise. Call it a gift for the winter holidays so many of you mentioned in your stories." He gave them all a warm smile, even as he reached his hand back. Mal took his offered hand and held it, but for once, let him do the talking.

"Tomorrow will be the first of a two day celebration. It will start in the evening where we will exchange gifts. If you have any you want to add, please place them under the tree with a note on it saying who it is for. If anyone needs help with any gifts between then and now, feel free to talk to Mal, she's promised to help." He glanced back, and when Mal nodded he looked forward again, continuing. Mal and I will also be preparing tomorrow's feast. Mallia has done so much for us, when it has come to food, we wanted to give her an evening off." He offered Mallia a smile.

"So tomorrow evening, instead of stories, we'll have music and gifts for those we like and those we love, and a small feast and hopefully just a good and joyous time for all. The morning after, I have a special surprise for anyone who has been itching for something more physical to do. A few of you talked about games this time of year. While we don't have enough people to play Tourny, even if the field were accessible... Roar is a sport that can be played one on one or in small teams. While it has traditionally been a male only sport, Auradon Prep has recently had cause to revisit that particular tradition, and anyone of any age or gender will be welcome to join in. though we do ask anyone with healing abilities or medical skills that do not want to participate to still come and be on hand, just in case."

"Alright, so that's the big speech. We'll do more stories tonight, and Mal is going to be hanging out in the next room, so if anyone wants to slip out and speak to her one on one for help... she'll be there waiting. I think that's everything. Thank you all, again, for everything. This... isn't the situation any of us would have chosen. But you have all been wonderful despite being ripped from your worlds, and we are beyond grateful. To all of you. Now... that's enough talking from me. Let's settle in with some cocoa. Who wants to tell the next tale?"


Holieve celebrations

As magical as the room had looked the night before, it was more so when people stepped in for the celebration. The tree was now on a platform to accommodate all the gifts under it. There was a table laid out with foods. There was a huge bowl of very red punch that Mal assured everyone was neither blood nor alcoholic, but made to look that way as a nod to Cassidy and Grey's traditions. Ian had agreed to serve as DJ and was playing tunes throughout the night. Mostly Earth Christmas songs, because that was what they had on their phone that was suitable, but a few non-holiday songs did slip into the mix. Like Lola and Shine Through (Warning for one non-game approved word that the magic of the world would of course change in game). Look, so long as no one ratted them out, there was no reason for the King and Queen to know those weren't holiday songs from Ian's world...

Speaking of Ian and music, at the end of the night, after the feasting and the gifts would be an open mic section for Karaoke, acapella, and even spoken word. A chance for everyone who wanted it to have a turn on the stage.

The feast would be a mix of foods, but far heavier on the deserts and sweets than on the proteins and grains. For proteins there just a few options, fish and ham. For sweets, however, there were cakes and fruit salads and ice creams and puddings. For drinks there was the afore mentioned punch, as well as sparkling cider, soda, coffee, water, tea, and even bubble tea!

There was a ton for everyone to have as much of everything they might want. But as people eat they might notice something... they didn't get full. Actually as the night went on they might even get hungry. The food all felt and tasted real enough, but apparently there wasn't enough to it to actually feed people.

The gift exchange was done open and public as a big event since there were gifts for everyone, though there were chances for people to exchange gifts in private as well, if they wanted.

Over all it was a very festive night, mixing in as many traditions as they could. The room carried a fragrance from countless scented candles that also produced most of the lighting, other than the lights on the tree and on the walls. The glitter helped some there, and somehow they had created or found a disco ball that threw the dim lights into spots around the room.

Ben and Mal were the ones to hand out the gifts from under the tree to the people whose names were on the tags, cards, and notes. But while she was trying to hide it... those who knew Mal could see how tired she looked. And Ben was tossing her concerned looks whenever he thought no one was looking at him. Of course the rest of the time he was all smiles for everyone.



ROAR!

There were many gyms and ballrooms in the school, and the one opened for this was one that few of the Missrecalled would have seen by this point. The room had upper level balconies - at least 2 stories up - for those who wanted to watch. and was draped in the school colours of blue and gold. There were boxes that seemed like part of the floor, they were so heavy, scattered about the room. There were similar boxes on parts of the walls, under the balconies.

Ben stood at one side of the room with a tall slender bin of what looked like fencing foils, complete with blunted tips. He stepped forward as everyone gathered, wearing padded armor, a helmet under one arm, and a foil in his other hand. He smiled warmly as he saw them. "Welcome. This is Roar. It is kind of like fencing, if fencing was designed by a hyperactive child and then given rules and safety precautions by adults," he admitted with a chuckle. "Since you are all beginners, we'll stick to the floor and the boxes on the floor," he said as he set his helmet on one of the boxes. "If any of you are interested tomorrow, I can show you some more advanced moves that use the walls. For example..." he pulled on his helmet and took a run at one wall. When he got close he jumped at it, twisting in the air so that when his foot and free hand hit the wall he was able to use that momentum to launch himself forward. He tucked into a spin and landed on his feet on one of the floor boxes, sword held at what would be neck height on some floor bound foe, had he any here.

Panting a bit he pulled off his helmet again to address them. His hair was a mess and he was panting a bit, but he was also beaming a bright smile. "In Roar, valid targets are the chest, stomach, back, arms, and legs. We wear helmets to be safe but head shots are not allowed. You can use the whole floor and any boxes to stand on, leap on, or trap someone against. A touch is a point and once the point is scored, both competitors are to back off. You cannot go after that same person for at least 30 seconds, either the one who scored the point or the one it was scored against. A judge sits in each balcony during an actual team match to watch and count points. One on one matches only need a single judge. You may only touch an opponent with the point of your foil. No other parts of the blade, and no using your body against them. you can, however, assist teammates or accept assistance in the form of physical contact, but if you hurt your teammate, even accidentally, your team loses half their points, minimum ten, and you are pulled from the match. So it is important to practice any team maneuvers carefully in advance of a match. Today is just some basics to get you all up to at least a basic level, and then a practice scrimmage. Now, who here has ever held a fencing foil before....?"





Shindou Hikaru Intro (OTA)

 Open/locked?: Open
Who: Hikaru and anybody who wants to put up with him
What: Arrival (Auradon)
Warnings: Uh, nothing I can think of offhand, but I'll edit this if I need to?

Let's Go! )

Winter is no place for a butterfly...

Who: Gabriel Agreste (and potentially Nooroo) and you
When: The early morning hours of the day of his arrival, then more reasonable morning hours
Where: Various locations in the school
What: A very confused superhero arrives
Warnings: Gabriel's world is kind of terrible, but other than that, shouldn't be any.

Read more... )

Prompto Intro ~ OTA


Open/locked?: Open
Who: Prompto and whoever finds him
What: Arrival in Auradon
Warnings: Possibly some panic attacks/flashbacks? Nothing graphic though
This was not a relaxing photo-op actually )

If We All Can Do Our Part

Ben's Speech

Ben passed word that he wanted to speak with everyone, to get a sense of who was still here, and to discuss some things. He made sure the message sent around was as politely worded as possible. Mal followed it up with assurances that it was still mandatory to attend. And so word spread.

The meeting happened about one in the afternoon, in one of the boardrooms of the castle. A lovely spread was laid out. Mallia provided the food: fresh fruit, over-sized berries, hand pies, cookies, and mini cheese quiches. Sylvando worked with her to make sure everything was set out elegantly but practically. There were also pitchers of ice water, bottles of room temperature water for those who preferred that. Some of those bottles had a faint glow to them, filled with magic by Mallia. There was also chilled juice and some hot tea. And of course, since Mal was there, there was coffee. Regular or thick burnt dark sludge. There were elegant looking cups of the proper types for every drink option as well as plates, utensils, and cloth napkins.

Ben stood at the head of the table with Mal, waiting for everyone to gather their food and drinks and find seats. Once everyone was more or less settled, he began.

"Thank you, everyone, for coming. I appreciate it, and I'll try not to take too much of your time. To start, there may be some difficulties with cell service for a little bit, Ian has been hard at work trying to reconstruct what had been done to allow some data to go through to the Isle, hopefully we will soon be able to communicate with the Isle via the network. But there will be some rough patches while they work on that. Anyone who wants to help them with this, please feel free to reach out to them or to us, at any time," Ben said nodding to Ian when Ian was mentioned and to Mal when he said "us".

"That was the easy part. This part is harder to say. We have two major problems facing us right now," he said, face serious, posture a bit stiffer than usual. "One is food. Many of you may have noticed that the kitchens at the school, the castle, and even the places in the museum district have been all but tapped out. The only reason we haven't all starved is because Mallia has stepped up and has taken it upon herself to make sure that we all get at least one good meal a day in. But the food she creates can't be saved or preserved for later. And we've just had a reminder that the magic that brings people here is unstable. We need a better solution. And even if Mallia were staying forever, it is not fair to her to put this all on her shoulders every day. And the food she makes cannot go to the Isle and survive. So we need a better solution. Mallia and Mal are going to start experimenting with magical food, to see if an answer can be found. If anyone has any ideas please join them at the end of these announcements. I know some of you were working on planting, if anything is ready to harvest, please let me know so we can keep track of what we have."

He took a deep breath. "And that leads to the other issue. I've grown up with Auradon Winters all my life and this one... we're in for a very rough Winter, and it will be starting soon. We need to close down the museum district and I need to ask everyone who is living out there to move back to the dorms until the Spring. I'm sorry, but we can't risk anyone getting cut off with no access to food. On a related note... we are going to make one more trip to the Isle, soon, to bring whatever we can gather for them. We have the dorm and the castle, both of which are warm insulated buildings. They don't. So while we can make more warm clothes for ourselves after, whatever we can spare we should share. As soon as those working on magical food have made enough we will make the trip, possibly sooner if the storms give us no other choice. We may have warm buildings here, but even so, even in Auradon... the cold's going to bother us anyway."

He gave a sigh. "That's about it. Mal and I will probably be moving back into the dorms ourselves, along with Jordan, to keep everyone together. If you know anyone who is in Auradon... even if they've been hiding for fear of being sent to the Isle, please bring them to the dorms. For their own safety. Alright. Does anyone have questions?"


May Your Heart Be Your Guiding Key Until We Meet Again - OTA


Open/locked?: Open
Who: Aqua and whomsoever finds her
What: Noticing her friends are missing
Warnings: Angst, sadness, possible war mentions. Kingdom Hearts nonsense.
Not showing up for a lesson can teach the teacher much )

Behold, someone is throwing a somewhat productive(?) fit!

Open/locked?: Open to all
Who: Mallia and anyone who catches her
What: Some people have disappeared from Auradon....
Warnings: ....angst?

She'd said she didn't meditate, but that wasn't quite accurate....
Her usual morning feast had been conspicuously absent that day. She hadn't even been in the cafeteria as usual, nor had she been found in the kitchen. Perhaps someone had spotted her running through the halls of the school, searching for something... or someone? She looked rather upset, too, close to tears, perhaps afraid....

And then she quietly went into two of the dorm rooms, coming out with tears finally falling, though she was silent. She turned and headed for the nearest exit, looking at nothing in particular as she went, a bit of colorful flower-shaped glitter marking her path as it fell from her boots' soles behind her.

After that, should someone spot her... well, she wasn't too hard to find. She stood by the barrier of piled-up tangled stuff, tugging and pulling at objects, doing her best to work them free. She wasn't particularly strong; about average for a human lady who wasn't very focused on being in shape for physical exertion. She wasn't particularly fast at pulling things away from the mass, or setting it out on the cold lawn where it wouldn't be in her way. In fact, she was making rather little progress to speak of, stalled mostly in trying to untangle things rather than ripping them apart with force.

What was notable was that there was more than one of her. Six, to be precise, seemingly intent on their task, some working together on one item, some carrying small things away by themselves, their tears mostly dry on their cheeks.

None looked to be all that aware of their surroundings, an odd mix of concentration and inattention in the looks on their faces: she was very much focused, but on what was terribly unclear at a glance. One of them nearly stepped right into the barrier, but for having her hand up; she paused and blinked as if she'd only just noticed that she'd gotten so close to it by having touched it. One of them had walked a few yards past where other items had been deposited before she looked at the ground again instead of past it, and seemed to wake a bit, glancing around... only to drop the branch she'd held there on the ground before she turned and headed back to rejoin the others in their efforts.

Something was up here... for those used to seeing such things, they might note that as far as autonomous copies went, these were faring rather poorly in being effective and efficient. And the real Mallia, the one who was presumably orchestrating all of this, and who was also presumably a great deal more mentally alert and present, was not obviously in view herself, if one could tell her apart from the others....

Come find out what in the world was going on? Interrupt them? Try to help?

Hwoinch!

Open/locked?: Open
Who: Æn'Kae, Roj, and whoever they wake up at approximately unholy o'clock in the morning
What: Targ Daaaaaay!
Warnings: None


Father. Father, why do you smell like 101 Epohhir? )
phoenixwiz: (What?!?)
[personal profile] phoenixwiz2023-09-03 01:15 pm

Wizard has been displaced


Open/locked?: Open
Who: Harry and You
What: Harry has been displaced across the multiverse AGAIN
Warnings: Tons of disorientation and confusion; Will update if something comes up


I don’t think that we’re in Hogwarts anyway )

A Truly Egg-cellnt Hatchning - A New Epohh Is Upon Us

As many may recall, not that long ago a bunch of mysterious eggs appeared. For several days there was a lot of fun hunting for eggs, trying to figure out where they came from. There were art contests and games and there was fun. Everything in Auradon could be an excuse for a celebration after all. Espcially with Sylvando in charge of morale.

But then, for many, the time passed and the brightly coloured eggs were forgotten. They lay on dressers and desks or under piles of laundry. Just part of the world.

Then one warm sunny noon it began. An egg outside started to shake. Unnoticed under a bush, warmed by the rock it leaned against, the egg shook more and more before cracking down the middle.

A small squirming creature emerged. It was the first. But...

It was not alone for long. All over Auradon, over the next few days the eggs hatched. The ones outside that were never found. The ones in the Castle the Queen had been studying. The ones in the school. In the dorms.

There was a pattern to what colour creatures came from which eggs. But other from that? Some stayed near people, some ran off to hide, indoors or outdoors, wherever they could.

And cute as they are, some became a problem. Because some of them... found the kitchen. And this is Auradon. Where kitchens could be staffed by mice, birds, talking tea pots... so there are ways even for small creatures to get into pretty much anything. Including the dwindling remaining supplies....

As to what the creatures are... if asked the King will say they weren't native to Auradon, and so he wasn't sure. But the Queen... she said they looked familiar, like something she had seen recently. If only she could remember where...

Stronger With Those Daddy Issues

Waking to bird song isn't exactly shocking in Auradon, but it seems... louder than usual on the first morning of the event. And there is a reason for that. Auradon has been visited by a rather large flock of Golden pheasants. An odd flock as experienced birders might notice there are only the brightly coloured males in evidence. But there isn't much time to think about that because with them comes... a complication.

Now this is Auradon, of course, so the only mess the birds are dropping are bright colourful feathers. But the feathers, like the flowers last month randomly trigger a memory. Once again the memory shows in 3D, looking the most solid to the one who touched the feather - and unwittingly contributed the memory. No one can interact with it, and no matter how solid it looks, the figures and places and things in the memory can be walked through with ease. Well, physical ease, anyway. The memory, once again, will not be from the perspective of the one it belongs to; they and their companion or companions will be observing from a third party perspective, thus allowing a person to see their own face in the memories without the aid of a mirror.

The memories this time are memories of fathers and paternal figures. Generally good memories. After all, this is Auradon.

If one interacts closely with the birds or their feathers they might also have strong vivid dreams of their paternal figure. Again, genrally happy dreams given this is Auradon. While the birds will fly away after two weeks, and the feathers will lose their power to share memories at the same time, for every day spent handling the birds or feathers during the event, the character might have up to that many day of intense dreams after.