riverviewlogs | [OPEN]

Entry tags:

[OPEN]

who: Líadan and you
what: Open/Catchall in the wake of the Butterfly Effect
when: June 25th through the end of the month
where: Everywhere
warnings: teal deer

I. COMMUNAL HOUSING: ELEVATORS / FLOOR ???

[ To say that Líadan's relationship with housing's elevators is an odd one would be something of an understatement. She's taken to them certainly since her arrival some months ago. Perhaps not in the way most would like or their designer intended, but she's most assuredly taken to them, what with her fondness for climbing great and challenging heights and a developed love for elevator surfing, not that she'd know what to call it. 'Good fun' sounds about right, whether she's making a game of chicken out of climbing to the desired floor or simply surfing for the sheer enjoyment of it, and it's that much more fun for the hook and line she received earlier in the month.

Today is no different except that the fun is spent and she rather has some things to attend to. Don't mind the brunette pulling the doors open with her bare hands as though they weigh nothing. She steps onto the floor proper and pauses, turning her eyes about curiously for a moment. Picking out the nearest person, she offers them a smile even as she reaches to rub at the back of her head. The doors close soundly behind her. ]

Pardon, but which floor is this? I do believe I've managed to lose count.

II. COMMUNAL HOUSING: FLOOR 2

[ 'Out' tends to be where Líadan is more often than not, but then, that's been the case for as long as she's had a bed save on those days she brings in meat from the hunt for the floor. When she's in, she's a flurry of activity, perpetually messy boots discarded by the door without fail so as to forego tracking mud, dirt, and various other unsavory bits across the floor of the shared space. Her second order of business tends to be a general greeting called to anyone who may be present provided it's not too terribly late as she hurries to deposit any number of new acquisitions in her increasingly carefully organized chest in a bid to keep up the illusion that she has some space left to house her ever increasing possessions. Then, she's quick to step out onto the deck to have a look at the vegetables housed in the planters she setup in her first month in the Quarantine. One lengthy rectangular planter stands off to the right with ample walking space between it and the rail of the deck while the others follow the outside of the rail with ample depth allotted per careful design. A musical tune-up and some physical touch-ups later and she's usually ready to clean up, cook, eat, and fall face first into her bed given or take a step.

Today isn't much different from any other day save that it's earlier than later and she keeps her usual greeting to herself primarily for her preoccupation with what remains of the ice cream cone she bought while out. With the temporal anomalies resolved by the chalice's departure, she's got the usual amount of free time back in her hands again and she means to take advantage of it, getting back to some specific concerns she'd come into upon properly returning to the settlement at the beginning of the month for the frequency of them. Namely, and she flinches upon opening her chest for just how little space is left in it, the issue of space and the piteous lack of it. A glance at her desk and she finds herself reaching to rub at the back of her head as she observes just how much space the transmutation station she's not quite finished building takes up even now with all its frame, glass, tubing, and burners. ]

Mmmh...

[ And, of course, once she drops her cloak and folds it atop her chest, her feet carry her outside to observe her garden. 'Too small' is always her first thought given her intent to provide enough to make trips to the market less frequent for the floor. Between the vegetables and the meat she brings in, she's sure she does, but the idea that anyone on her floor might still be wanting isn't a comfortable one as she walks between the rail and planter, observing the various vegetables. They've grown strong and persistently produce under her care, for it. Ah, and she needs to remember to warn any new roommates away from a certain corner of the freezer as well, but that speaks to an issue of space as well, doesn't it? There's more new faces than familiar ones these days, not that she minds. She'd just as soon her ingredients not be mistaken for a questionable treat, though.

Pausing at the end of the deck, the brunette turns, leans forward, and props her arms atop it, peeking past green leaves and outward at the settlement beyond. ]

It doesn't seem to me that we're able to expand given these conditions. I may very well have to look into making a place of my own here. Wouldn't that be something?

[ Something she hadn't planned on, not that she generally gives long-term planning much in the way of thought. Coming into the Quarantine had been no more a voluntary decision for her than for anyone else in its way, but she's content to stay for the exciting adventure she's found herself on. Turning her eyes to the plant in front of her, she smiles and reaches to tug an odd little horned worm off it. The little guy gets a good look-over, then he's placed on her shoulder as surely as though he belonged there. ]

Not that you lot will have to worry about it, but I'd almost rather it not come to that.

III. THE PORTAL

[ Líadan sits perched a short distance from the portal atop a rock with her legs folded beneath her and her satchel open at her side for the current effort she's putting into blindly picking an apple out of it. The mission is complete; she doesn't have to be there anymore. The chalice is gone, sent back through the portal, and the settlement free of its effects thanks to Lucretia, but there's something still bothering her and that something sees her tilting her head just so as she observes the portal. Could such a thing really be alive? Taako had told her as much, that he'd found out through a spell, and she believes him. That such a thing could be alive and have died... and what does the moon supporting it have to do with anything?

What does that even mean exactly?

Biting into the apple, she leans forward as she lifts her spare hand to give her temple a good rub. She sighs after a moment and shifts to allow her feet to dangle over the side of the edge of the rock, narrowing her gaze at the portal. ]

Perhaps I should try communing with you sometime, hm? If anyone should have the answers to these questions, it should be you if you're in any state to give them. What are you even?

[ She levels the portal another look as she takes a bite of her apple, kicking her feet idly as she Listens and wonders. Maybe she should pay that Gramarye place a visit? She's been meaning to, anyway, and surely that institute is just as curious as to recent happenings as she is. ]

IV. MONSTER MISCALCULATION

[ She could handle the birds. That had been easy enough. For as long as she Líadan can remember, she's led animals and soothed spirits by virtue of her voice. Rounding up oversized birds and returning them to the yard, calming them -- that's child's play. It's the plants that have earned a quirked brow and the stench of burnt vines a wrinkled nose as she regards her troubled exit. She means to go beyond the fence to check on someone -- namely, a red-eyed, blue creature with a bulb on its back that she's been working to befriend for some time now -- and she'd just as soon not be held up here, but given the difficulty people seem to be having -- ]

I suppose it can't be helped.

[ And her hand slides to the dagger at her side. She's stuck with one again since the one she acquired at the market couldn't stand up to use, but she doesn't look the slightest bit troubled. Drawing it, she's quick to move forward and that hum? It swells into a wordless song, something cool and quiet and edged that sees several ice snakes slither up the wall to find the blossoms and freeze them. Care to join her? ]

V. THE MARKET (CLOSED TO LOCKON)

[ As painstakingly serious a tone as much of the month has seemed to carry what with the temporal issues, lingering questions, and the near constant reminder of an increasing lack of space, Líadan is more than a little relieved to be graced with something lighter and more promising. The prospect of having a water gun fight with Lockon is something she's held onto throughout the month along with a growing determination to become the absolute best she can to properly challenge him. That sad expression hadn't suited him at all and if she can see that replaced with a smile, well, she'd like to. A smile would suit him much better and given how he'd described it, a water gun fight sounds like it could be a lot of fun.

That's why the beat in her step is near electric as she leads the way to the market. Her eyes are bright and her smile widening for their increasing proximity to the place and with it her excitement for the task at hand. You can scarcely have a water gun fight without water pistols, after all, and that's what they're hunting for in the market today. She's so excited, she can barely contain herself and that excitement sees her reach to grab Lockon's hand with a mind to lead them in weaving a quicker path by cutting through the alley for a quicker arrival. Looking over her shoulder, she flashes him a bright smile. ]

Come on! It's just through here!

VI. WILDCARD

[ Want something else? Go ahead and hit me with a starter or give me a poke at

c_anon! ]

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[Ed was about to head out, so of course he was on his way to the elevator when she popped out. He didn't recognize her, and he was pretty sure Chloe was the only female on their floor, but with new additions being a thing and people coming and going often enough he wasn't sure what to think anymore.

That is... until she spoke, because she seemed lost.]

Ah... Floor Six.

Floor Six? I suppose I really did lose count, then.

[ Folding her arms, she casts an almost accusatory glance over her shoulder at the elevator, as though it bears some responsibility for her current pre -- predicament. Wait a minute. Turning her head back around, she takes a minute to look the man over. Blond hair, golden eyes, a none-too-pleased expression -- ]

You... you are Edward Elric, are you not? From the Friendr appliction?

[ She may or may not be whipping her phone out to compare him to his Friendr profile picture. She is, and while squinting bit. ]

[He's just going to stand there dumbfounded and quirk a brow at her looking at the elevator like that. Ed was really starting to regret using his full name as his network handle, but it made sense at the time and it was a little late to complain about it now.]

Uh... yeah-

[Oh. Oh. If she was asking about his Friendr he's definitely going to assume that she's the only one that contacted him on it. Sure, that could be an inaccurate assessment, since it was public for just anyone to read but considering no one else had bothered to use it yet.]

That's me.

[ Looking between the face of the person in front of her and the face on the picture of the Friendr application profile, Líadan is sure of his words and rather pleased with herself. Not that it had been her intention to run into him like this, but she considers it a stroke of good fortune all the same. The chalice issue is resolved; her time is, for the most part, her own again save in the event of work, which she doesn't quite consider to count and here is one alchemist standing before her. If that isn't a stroke of good fortune, she isn't quite sure she knows what is. ]

So it is! It has been some time we spoke. I am Líadan. [ She inclines her head just so. ] I do hope the last few weeks have treated you kindly.

[Okay, it was admittedly a little weird that she was comparing like she couldn't just take his word for it, but - he wasn't complaining so much as ... confused.]

Yeah... You're the- girl with the dagger, right?

[Honestly, Ed so much time smothering himself in his work, and that research that he would adamantly insist wasn't work that the last few weeks might be a blur of research and lack of a concept of time. Maybe.]

More or less. What about you?

[ Did... someone just ... open the doors like it was nothing? ]

Floor? ... it's the Tenth floor - did you just... is something wrong with the elevator?

Hmm?

[ Looking over her shoulder, Líadan blinks at the elevator doors as though the elevator itself may have done something questionable in the seconds she's had her back to it. Turning her eyes to the unfamiliar young woman, she blinks again. ]

Nothing out of the ordinary, I would think. It has run at its usual pace today. To think I lost count so badly, though...

[ Because that is the true oddity in all of this. ]

Do... you do that regularly? [ SHE IS SO WEIRDED OUT BY THIS. Though to her credit she's doing a pretty good job of not looking totally weirded out by it]

Well, yes.

[ Snapping out of her momentary lapse in thought, she smiles easy. ]

It isn't anything remotely near the same as climbing the great trees in the northern forests where I come from, but it is good fun and poses its own challenges. It tends to be quicker than waiting on the carriage, too. A great deal many people live here, you know, and no one is on a set schedule from what I can tell.

[ Faster then the stairs too, she'd guess. ]

The carriage? ... Oh, you mean the elevator. Yeah I suppose it would be, but, isn't it dangerous also if someone called for it while you were in there?

It is, but it can be equally dangerous if not more so to climb the trees beyond the fence. I suppose you could say it is something of an exercise in addition to good fun. Danger and I are not so much bitter enemies as fond friends, you see.

[ That is, from her perspective, anyway. Who knows what danger would say were it a person? ]

You know, I think I saw something like that on television back home - extreme sports and things.

[ She honestly can't judge since she goes out swinging around on her yoyo fairly regularly. As Ladybug, of course. ]

Fond friends? But this place doesn't seem too dangerous -- well.. not in the city proper. [ Outside is another matter entirely. OH! ]

Sorry, I haven't introduced myself have I? I'm Marinette.

*Lola appreciated, and didn't, the constant flux and sway of life here. It was always new, always different... but she had no real place to hide from it. Who slept in the next bed over often changed as quickly as it didn't. And then there was Li and her constant vanishing, only to return to tend plants and bring meat... and vanish again. It was weird. Sure, it saved money going to the butcher or the markets for anything that could be grown or killed.

But it was weird. And this was after Lola spent two weeks being her own evil twin.*

Oh, you're back, I thought those were your boots and dirt by the door.

*Lola was dressed for around the house walking, nudity wasn't really an option with the co-ed living arrangements. Her hair was wet, fresh from the shower, and weird tie die of purple and red as it dried. The moisture kept the hair from settling on a color for long, at least until it dried. Lola looked a little more frayed an on edge than usual, but she was trying to hide it with her polite small talk.*

How was your last trip?

[ Most people would probably take some measure of offense to Lola's initial statement. Líadan? She takes it as a compliment. Dirty boots means a busy body and the pride she takes in being as much is not at all unlike the pride she takes in providing for the floor. It sees a smile tug at the corners of her mouth even as she turns her head to regard the owner of that familiar voice. That smile tugs that much wider at the wondrous display of colors that is Lola's hair, gaze dropping to Lola's face after a moment. A face that looks... not quite Lola, she thinks. ]

Successful! We should have meat and vegetables enough to last for some time given what I... think is our current number. It has become somewhat challenging to keep track.

[ Somewhat, especially given her coming-and-going habits, but she thinks she leaves early enough to get an accurate headcount. ]

What of your recent adventures, Lola?

That's good. Although I had to throw out some of what you brought before. I didn't get to cook it and it went a little fuzzy. I couldn't cook for the past two weeks. It was... really trying.

*She didn't remember Dolores having any interactions with Li, on the plus side it meant she didn't remember any of Dolores's thoughts on Li either.*

I nearly got fired for being rude to customers. And I screwed up one of friendships doing something stupid. Well, I didn't do it, but I did. The last two weeks were very stressful.

*Under. Statement.*

[Iris only expects elevators to do two things-open when she presses the button and close when she steps inside. The doors opening unprompted, before she can extend her finger to press the call button, isn't among them. Neither are a pair of hands. The heck? She takes a few steps back, gripping the vegetable filled bag tightly. That's normal. Sure. Just walk on through. Rip through those thousand pound doors.

After a small pause to assess what is happening in front of her, she responds:]

This is floor 3. Are you...where are you trying to go?

Floor two, actually!

[ Líadan chirps her response as surely as though this were nothing out of the ordinary. She realizes it is for others, of course, as she only knows two besides herself to take to the shafts, one of whom did so out of necessity when the carriage became stuck. For her, though? It's all in good fun; though, she doesn't suppose the young lady looks like she's having very much in the way of that given the situation. Tilting her head, she offers her a smile, her tone somewhat apologetic. ]

I do apologize if I startled you. I played a bit too much in there today and lost my count. I'm Líadan, and you are...?

Oh, it's fine, Líadan. My name's Iris.

[The apology isn't necessary, but she appreciates it all the same because for that short moment she couldn't tell if she was about to be put into a horror movie or if she was just seeing things. Judging by how nice this girl seems, there's definitely no horror involved. She's about to press the button for the girl so she can go down one level, but wait-did she hear that right?]

You were playing in there? Playing what?

[And how??]

[ If that isn't a question she's happy to answer. She realizes the answer is likely unexpected, but that's no reason to withhold it. ]

Chicken at times.

[ A hand find her hip as she gestures. ]

The climbing is good fun, too, and challenging in that it is different from climbing the great trees of the northern forests of the Isle. The drops are their own, however. More different than similar than descent from the trees, I would say.

[It takes her a second to catch up with what Líadan is saying and she tilts her head in thought. She can't argue against playing chicken in an elevator when the game itself is meant to be unsafe, but it's troubling to know she might be in danger if the elevator goes up or down at the wrong time. Even on the days she's climbing for fun.]

You aren't worried you'll get hurt doing that?

[ Listen, no one’s been willing to have a water gun fight with him since he was young teen. It’s been a life of true deprivation, okay? That and, well, it’s a good way to get to know Líadan better. He wasn’t just being nice when he offered to teach her how to use a water pistol (if they manage to find any). She’d been so pleasant and did her best to be helpful – Lockon appreciates that.

Líadan’s exuberance is infectious and Lockon finds himself eagerly manoeuvring through the streets behind her. Idly he wonders if he can find a map of the quarantine to better navigate it, but for now, he’s doing just fine taking note of the landmarks around any given area. Not that he needs one when he has a guide to show him around. Lockon grips her hand in kind, anticipating a throng of people at the market, and speeds up to keep pace with her.

He can’t remember ever being so excited about a shopping excursion. ]

I’d be lost without you!

[ Maybe not lost. He’d find his way there eventually on his own, but Líadan leading the way helps. She’s good company, too. At least that’s his early impression. ]

[ Now that earns a laugh from Líadan. That she can hear the excitement in his voice is as heartening as his ability to follow her movements and keep up with her for the speed she employs and in spite of the volume of people in the streets and alley. She's glad for it, and for the opportunity to spend some time with Lockon and get to know him better. A water pistol fight sounds like a fun adventure, but some of the best adventures she's ever had were had not just with people, but friends. Companions! Those spirits one holds nearest and dearest that grab a person by the heart should they be exceptionally far and guide them home.

Of course, it's a little early to say firmly that she's found another in him just yet, but there's fun to be had in the journey, the discovery. Enough that she doesn't think too deeply about it. Here and now is where she lives and with every intention of doing so as fully as possible. That laugh of hers isn't quite stifled as she shakes her head emphatically. ]

Nonsense! It isn't so difficult to navigate once you get a good idea of this area!

[ 'This area,' she says because she herself is still exploring the settlement for just how vast it is. She knows this area well enough, though, having frequented it during her stay. She skids to a mostly gentle halt at the edge of the alley, which opens to the colorful expanse that is the market. A throng of people is right. With it being so close to the end of the month, the city is bustling in preparation for the upcoming celebration and the market is especially receptive to it. The change in season and temperatures means all sorts of hitherto unseen merchandise is debuting in the various stalls and shops as well. From food, produce, fruits, and beverages to clothing, instruments, and various items ranking from the mundane to the exotic, the technological to the arcane, the market exists in a state of flux as it's tuned by merchant and resident alike.

Líadan whistles for the differences observed, not quite remembering to let go of Lockon's hand now that they've stopped. If she looks a little impressed, a little awed, she is. ]

Would you look at that! It looks as though they may really be going all out this time!

[He's still getting used to having to share his room with nine other people. It's noisy and a little crowded and impossible to get some privacy, and Teddy is a somewhat private person to begin with. It means he's absent more often than not, still trying to find a relatively quiet corner to call his own- even more so recently, he thinks, although he can't very clearly remember much of what happened. Either way, even after two months, there are floormates he's barely seen much of.

Today he comes in just after her, just long enough not to notice her heading out to the deck before he inadvertently follows, book in hand, planning to try and get some quiet reading in while the room is still mostly empty. He comes out at the end of the conversation, just enough to catch her talking to- a caterpillar?]

Uh- sorry. I didn't know anyone else was out here. Do you mind if I sit out here?

[ Most people might think of an unexpected encounter as an interruption in whatever task they had set themselves to. Líadan? Not so much. She's shared a living space for as long as she can remember, to the point that it's a norm for her. To live alone would be more odd than not as there is some comfort in awareness of presences more friendly than hostile. It's why she doesn't tense or reach for her dagger when the face she finds is an unfamiliar one. Rather, she offers him a smile and a healthy shake of the head. ]

This deck is as much yours as it is mine unless, of course, you are a visitor, but I doubt that.

[ The caterpillar on her shoulder stands up on his tiny legs as she says as much and she extends a finger for him to climb on. It's quieter here, away from the throngs of people in swollen, crowed streets, and that much easier for her to distinguish the individual pieces that make up the Great Music. She's all too aware of the change, of the sudden introductions of something new and quite different than anything she's heard thus far in the Quarantine. That something is him, gentle and wondrous tones woven with different instruments into a tapestry as light as it is heavy with a melody that gives her the briefest of pauses as she Listens. Something... almost celestial, maybe? No, it's different. It's steady in its pace, not quite empty, but echoing.

Just what...? But she knows better than to ask herself that question or put it to him just yet. Seconds is hardly long enough to become even remotely acquainted with a piece. ]

I assume you arrived earlier this month?

[ That smile of hers softens just a tad as she regards him again. The caterpillar, at least, is none the wiser, busily inching along atop her hand. ]

No, this is my floor. I'm over in bed eight.

[He makes himself smile back, as naturally as he can. It isn't that he doesn't want to make friends, or at least try, and he definitely doesn't want to be rude, he'd just been expecting quiet and now he has to try and get his personable face back on.

Luckily, he has a lot of practice at that.]

I've been here a little while, actually, but... it gets noisy in here, so I keep trying to find somewhere to read in peace.

[And he's had a lot to think about since he got here, between things being awkward with his maybe-boyfriend and a whole new world and maybe not going back any time soon. It's been lonely, and Teddy's been trying to keep that under control, but it's somehow easier to not feel it so much when he isn't in a crowd.]

I guess we've just managed to never meet before. So- hi, I'm Teddy. It's nice to meet you.

[In all honesty, Taako has been a little too busy to care about the whole vine situation, figuring it's best left in the hands of... whoever, but he's bored down, itching for something to do that requires a little more adrenaline than day to day business.

So he's out her, tossing low level fire spells at the plants the fry them, and for once in his life he actually has his short sword sheathed at his hip, just in case shit goes sideways and he needs to hack his way out.

When he spots Líadan, he can't help but grin, and he changes his path through the foliage until he can step up beside her.]

What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?

[He's a shit.]

[ He happens to be one of Líadan's favorite kinds of shits, though, and it shows in how she brightens as she turns her head and greets him with a wide smile. She hasn't seen Taako since he was much smaller and impossibly cuter than a button, so it's something of a relief to see him back at his proper size, if perhaps just a tinge regrettable, but only just so. As happy as she might have been to run with a tiny Taako, she's no less joyful for the opportunity to face the world alongside the big one. ]

I was hoping to make a trip to see a friend, but I can scarcely do that in good conscience given the issue here. I suppose the answer is crowd control?

[ The snakes keep moving forward and up the wall, drawn into being and with direction enough woven into them to see them continue their pursuit. One finds its target and swells, the hiss of forming crystals audible as the ice overtakes the bloom and encases it solidly. Sure of the distance from the sound, the music that reaches her ears, she doesn't turn her eyes from Taako. Rather, she grins. ]

And you? You look a mite taller than the last time I saw you. More handsome than cute, I think, too.

[Taako is kind of hard to embarrass, but the almost looks it now, when she reminds him of that whole thing that happened, just before the chalice was returned through the portal. His memories of it are mostly vague, nothing he could quite pin down, so while he doesn't specifically remember spending time with Líadan, he knows exactly what she's talking about.]

Gods, I wasn't too much trouble, right? That was... a real long time ago, kinda hard to remember what I was like.

[Probably a little shit?]

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[OPEN]

I. FLOOR 6

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V, obviously

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