Entry tags:
[ OPEN/CATCH-ALL ] we garner this poor hour of ease.
WHO: dextera, and others.
WHERE: the town.
WHEN: throughout november, labeled accordingly.
WHAT: some important prompts (following guren for a canon update), some not-so-important prompts (snow!), and eventually, possibly, quests.
WARNINGS: dextera’s existential despair is gonna be BIG in this post, plus definitely discussions of blood/gore (mostly for animals)!
i. LET IT SNOW (OPEN / PRIOR TO NOTICING NEW ARRIVALS)
[ when dextera wakes up the morning of the eighth, it seems that overnight the rain of the day before has turned to snow. he’s seen snow before, by now, but it didn’t stick the first time it fell. now, however, the ground is covered in an inch or two that’s getting a little thicker with every passing minute, and certainly with every passing hour.
dextera, true to form, is scrambling out of his room after catching a glimpse of the blinding white through the window, to go grab the chickens and usher them all inside their coop. it’s too cold for them! it’s also too cold for dextera, who forgot to put on his warm, protective coat, so he’s standing outside shivering trying to make sure that the chickens are safe. ]
ii. the suffering of christ (OPEN / AFTER THE NEW ARRIVALS)
a. [ dextera had followed guren into the woods. of course he had, of course, because guren had gotten up for seemingly no reason and wandered in—responding to nothing at all. no matter how much dextera tugged at his arm or tried to stand in the way, guren kept moving on as a man possessed. what this meant, what this means, is that dextera stumbles out of the woods alone a few hours later, at some point when the dawn breaks over the horizon and reflects on the ever-growing pristine snow. blood of various origins stains the path behind him.
he looks bad. he looks like he’s been in there for days, even though he was ostensibly only gone a few hours—there’s blood down his shirt, on his mouth, his fingers, dried and fresh in equal measure. the tentative light in his eyes that’s been blooming these past few months is extinguished entirely, but that’s only visible for a moment before he goes face down into the snow and stays there. ]
b. [ over the next few days following the above incident, anyone who knows both dextera and guren, and possibly even people who don’t, are going to receive a desperate message from his hex code in their inbox. possibly more than one, possibly several. ]
Wheredid he go?
c. [ until guren’s return, dextera is going to be in his room. definitely crying, maybe not eating, but he’s not going to fight anyone who comes in to check on him. ]
iii. WILDCARD
( here is everything else! assuming that the mini-event doesn’t fuck me right up with the timing of this, anyone can respond to those first two, but if you’d like to do something else, something more specific, or quests, let me know by PM or at
pavaal! )
WHERE: the town.
WHEN: throughout november, labeled accordingly.
WHAT: some important prompts (following guren for a canon update), some not-so-important prompts (snow!), and eventually, possibly, quests.
WARNINGS: dextera’s existential despair is gonna be BIG in this post, plus definitely discussions of blood/gore (mostly for animals)!
[ when dextera wakes up the morning of the eighth, it seems that overnight the rain of the day before has turned to snow. he’s seen snow before, by now, but it didn’t stick the first time it fell. now, however, the ground is covered in an inch or two that’s getting a little thicker with every passing minute, and certainly with every passing hour.
dextera, true to form, is scrambling out of his room after catching a glimpse of the blinding white through the window, to go grab the chickens and usher them all inside their coop. it’s too cold for them! it’s also too cold for dextera, who forgot to put on his warm, protective coat, so he’s standing outside shivering trying to make sure that the chickens are safe. ]
a. [ dextera had followed guren into the woods. of course he had, of course, because guren had gotten up for seemingly no reason and wandered in—responding to nothing at all. no matter how much dextera tugged at his arm or tried to stand in the way, guren kept moving on as a man possessed. what this meant, what this means, is that dextera stumbles out of the woods alone a few hours later, at some point when the dawn breaks over the horizon and reflects on the ever-growing pristine snow. blood of various origins stains the path behind him.
he looks bad. he looks like he’s been in there for days, even though he was ostensibly only gone a few hours—there’s blood down his shirt, on his mouth, his fingers, dried and fresh in equal measure. the tentative light in his eyes that’s been blooming these past few months is extinguished entirely, but that’s only visible for a moment before he goes face down into the snow and stays there. ]
b. [ over the next few days following the above incident, anyone who knows both dextera and guren, and possibly even people who don’t, are going to receive a desperate message from his hex code in their inbox. possibly more than one, possibly several. ]
Wheredid he go?
c. [ until guren’s return, dextera is going to be in his room. definitely crying, maybe not eating, but he’s not going to fight anyone who comes in to check on him. ]
( here is everything else! assuming that the mini-event doesn’t fuck me right up with the timing of this, anyone can respond to those first two, but if you’d like to do something else, something more specific, or quests, let me know by PM or at
iia!
Ah—!
[ He doesn't see it, but they look genuinely horrified and concerned as they dart through the snow with practiced ease, willing their exhaustion away so they can lean over to pull at the back of his collar - careful not to touch any of his skin with their frigid hand. ]
Hey...
[ Is he dying? Should they be running to get someone else instead of doing this? The sense of panic settles in quickly. ]
no subject
he’s hungry, he’s delusional, but even if cairngorm hauled him all the way back to bluo, he would trudge right back to this very spot. ]
…
[ that voice is distant, but familiar, and dextera turns his face up at them with an unfocused, glassy look in his eyes. he’s not really looking at them, though he sees them, and when he breathes out, it’s such a shallow breath it hardly even mists in the air.
he feels like he’s been gone for days. he’s been so cold, so alone, for days. ]
no subject
... [ Is he injured, or is something else wrong with him? They remember that the cold makes it hard for humans to move around, probably hard for him to sign, too. Maybe they shouldn't ask what's wrong. ] Come on.
[ They keep a grip on the back of his collar, moving their other hand to tug at his shoulder - all so they can try to hoist him up. ]
Let's go.
no subject
Where is Guren?
[ it’s hard to move his cold, shaking hands, so the signs are halting—but his intention is there. if it’s been this long, then guren must be back. ]
no subject
What? I don't know. I haven't seen him. [ From the way they answer so quickly, they clearly have no idea what he's talking about. Nevermind that - they're not gonna let him stray away from the urgent matter at hand (from their perspective). ] You're going to freeze out here. Let's go.
[ When they repeat it, their tone is a bit more forceful, even a little dismissive, while they grab at his shoulder again. ]
no subject
Can’t… find.
[ dextera followed guren into the woods for hours, finding nothing. nobody. he was completely alone, and when he tried to turn around, the path had sealed itself off. ]
How long…?
[ how long has he been gone? ]
no subject
[ Now they're not having it, since he's pulled away twice. If that's how it's going to be, they're stronger than him, and it's for his own good, so they don't feel bad when they grab at the front of his shirt gruffly and try to pull him to stand. ]
I saw you earlier today briefly. [ Something is definitely wrong with him. A memory lapse, perhaps? That's common among gems, and thus, is the first thing they assume. They tug at, but more like drag him up with surprising strength given their delicate figure, unrelenting. ] You can explain things to me somewhere else.
no subject
Back…
[ even with cairngorm holding onto him, he’s swaying, and he points back toward the forest. he’s not done here. ]
no subject
[ Their voice is firm, and decisive. At this point, they're well convinced he's just acting strangely because of the cold, or perhaps a head injury? Lupin told them once that head injuries can cause memory lapses among humans. Still. That 'can't find' is worrying them, as is how he seems reluctant to leave. Was he looking for Guren inside the forest? It's not that strange for people around here to try that, but only when it's someone who isn't here or has gone missing very recently.
Even if they come to that conclusion belatedly, they're not in the mood to ask him and get a confusing answer, or worse, have him beg them to stay. They start pulling him in the direction of Bluo, carefully trudging in the snow so he doesn't topple over. ]
I'll carry you somewhere else if you want, and if you can't walk, but not there.
no subject
Nn…
[ such an intense protest, that he tries to speak it, but of course there’s nothing that he can say. the sound is all he has, and he just shoves cairngorm like he wants to make a break for it.
he’s not going to make it, of course, but the attempt is there. ]
no subject
You're not going to be able to move me, you know.
[ They huff, a little annoyed, but otherwise not disturbed - and continue to pull him along. Sometimes people need to hear the harsh truth, and Cairngorm doesn't have any qualms about being the blunt instrument. Especially to someone that they don't think can harm them. It's tough love. ]
Do you expect to be able to find him in your current state? You'd be wasting your time, so forget it.
no subject
Red.
[ he can’t sign “ruga” like this, nor can he sign “house,” so instead cairngorm gets his desperate attempt to communicate that he wants to check guren’s house if he has to go along. ]
Guren.
no subject
Yes, I'd prefer searching there first. [ It's just a far more logical way of going about things. Their grip in his shirt shifts a little, and they look down to their hand before making eye contact with him. ] If I let go of you, are you going to run off? Or do I need to drag you the whole way there.
[ They actually don't want to pull Dextera around like he's on a leash, because they're not a babysitter, but they'll do it if the alternative is he tries to run off. Even if he does, they have no doubt they'd be able to catch him; it's more a matter of giving him a chance to clear some of the tension if he complies. ]
no subject
[ they can look at guren’s house. that’s okay. maybe guren came home in the week that dextera was missing—but didn’t cairngorm say that they’d seen dextera only that morning? he squeezes his eyes shut against an impending headache, but he shakes his head. cairngorm doesn’t need to drag him. ]
Safe.
[ it’s okay to let go. probably. ]
no subject
Alright. We'll look there first, then...
[ "First", as in, they're willing to look around a little more, at least, they are. They're not sure yet if Dextera should come along given his condition. Ruga isn't far from where they are, but they advance with a pace that will allow Dextera to keep up with them. ]
Are you sure you can walk?
no subject
the combination is potent, and leaves him blinking blearily at cairngorm’s question. ]
…
[ he nods, slowly, but it’s possible he didn’t even understand it. ]
no subject
I'll carry you if you start looking any worse. [ They slip their gloves off their hands, holding them out to him. They'd learned from Guren himself that humans wear these for warmth in the cold... ] Try not to use your hands much until we get there.
no subject
dextera recognizes this kindness, distantly, but everything is just so buried in him right now that it’s hard to express any kind of gratitude for anything. cairngorm is actually something of an obstacle right now, but dextera is much moreso when his own body won’t move the way he needs it to.
a nod. ]
…
[ his hands are just a little too big for the gloves, but they do manage to cover his fingertips. that’s all he needed. ]
no subject
Eventually, the pair come up on the entrance to Guren's house, and they slow their pace as they approach it, squinting. They're not a hundred percent sure this is Guren's place; Dextera knows better than them, probably, because it's not like they're ever really coming over. So they look inquisitively to him for some sign of affirmation that this is where they should enter, though they say nothing aloud. ]
no subject
it’s a stupid, panicky thought, but it’s one that quickly seeds itself in dextera’s mind, and he takes a guilty step back. guren would never—and yet, what if he did? ]
You go.
no subject
[ They blurt out, obviously surprised by this turn of events. ]
No. I'm not going in there by myself. You're the one who said you wanted to come here. [ Not to mention that it's weird if they go inside on their own, considering they're not that close to Guren or anyone else in that house. What if someone thinks they're breaking in?? They huff, taking a step back with him to try and catch him by the elbow. ] Come on. You have to go inside, even if it's just to... get less cold.
[ That'd probably be what Guren would want anyway, right? ]
no subject
…
[ like a petulant child, he shakes his head. ]
Changed my mind. Forest.
no subject
[ They're simply not going to have this. They let him off the hook the first time, but now they won't— if they have to drag him inside, they will. And so, they make a grab for him again, seeming more mad now than the silent worry they'd had before. ]
You're being a fool. I already told you you're not going back there, so don't screw around with me.