etrayalogs | APRIL MINGLE

APRIL MINGLE

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: April 25th - Early May
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, spring activities, and feathered friends!
NOTES\WARNINGS:

⏵ arrival ⏴
Welcome to Etraya!

Arrival goes as expected - characters awaken on hospital beds and are offered an explanation of their situation: that they have arrived in the city of Etraya, and they are their world's only hope. They are welcome to wander the hospital if they would like to - the upper floors are mostly empty, full of pristine hallways and numerous rooms filled with supplies, cots, and things one would expect from a relatively average 21st-century hospital.

However, if they are arriving from Aphaia, it's a little different, though mostly through means and familiarity. They will still show up in the hospital of course, but how can vary. Either through Aurora offering a portal for escape, their own demise (however it might have happened), or even a simple blink of their eyes and they're in the hospital. They had been given the briefest explanation last time they were here, but at least Aurora can better answer their questions now. No time constraints nor rushing them off to a dying world, this time!

In the hospital's lobby are several party tables set out with miscellaneous baked goods: croissants, cookies, breads, cake slices, as well as tea and coffee to accompany them - or hot chocolate, for those who are opposed to the other offerings.

Outside the hospital, spring is sprung, it is warm and comfortable. Flowers have bloomed, and everything is in a sharp contrast to Aphaia—there is life within the bubble, and even the myriad wildlife seems to be basking in the glow of it all. Almost as if a celebration of that life itself.

Bees are buzzing, birds are—warking?

⏵ Birds of a Feather ⏴

Etraya has always had its interesting assortment of critters, but there seems to be a particularly colorful array of birds wandering around. Those familiar would know they are named Chocobos, those less so familiar, well, these are some strange looking ostriches, or whatever large bipedal bird equivalent fits. While the birds all seem to be of the same species, there are certainly some variety in their features. Some with friendlier faces and others looking a bit more eagle-like.

They are not particularly congregated in any one spot within Etraya, seeming to stick to groups, while others don't, yet even some are accompanied by newly hatched chicks. The observant might be quick to notice that their colors dictate some level of behavior, or even where their little groups mingle:

Colors	Behavior and habitat
Yellow	Can be found just about anywhere in Etraya, they don't necessarily stick to self-made groups, and typically are more likely to be friendly to people. However, if they are in the company of a newly hatched chick, they can become wary, though easily won over with some greens.
Green	These Chocobos are mostly found in grassy or woodsy areas, almost always in pairs, and sometimes found in the trees themselves. They are more wary than their yellow brethren, though if they see someone struggling or in danger, they are quick to offer assistance in what way they can. Doting like motherhens.
Blue	Most often found by bodies of water, these Chocobo seem content to keep to themselves. Three to a group, they are not so easy to approach without being noticed. Their skill and love of water is clear, however, and it's not unusual to find them flapping about or swimming. Though they may flee to the water if you spook them.
Brown	The most skiddish of the Chocobo, they can be found throughout Etraya, though further away from anything occupied by people. They stick to groups of four, though they have a clear leader who sports blue and green feathers, but seemingly is not of the other two types. Should they catch sight or sound of someone approaching they are like to run off, or they might attempt to defend themselves.
Red	There seems to be only one of these running around. Highly aggressive to anyone who dares to approach it. Best to avoid it. Very likely to hurl comet-like balls of fire your way. Untamable.

The birds all favor these strange cabbage looking plants that can be found out and about in the wilds of Etraya. Some proving a little overeager in their voracity to eat the leafy greens. One should be careful, with those large beaks of theirs.

⏵ Gift Hunt ⏴

It isn't only the birds that have shown up out of nowhere. Small to medium sized boxes, wrapped as if they should be under a tree, and maybe not hidden in a tree, have also appeared. For whatever reason (possibly the same reason eggs were given out over winter) there seems to be gifts hidden all over Etraya! Some in more difficult to find locations (in trees, on top of a roof, on snake island), while others look as though whoever "hid" it gave up halfway through and simply dropped it on the ground and put a leaf over it.

For those who need a little extra help, well, certainly your fellow Etrayans could lend a hand, however there are also perfectly capable birds about for those still left wanting. Certainly that blue chocobo could assist with crossing the river to obtain that perfectly balanced gift on a rock! Or what about that green chocobo roosting in a tree not too far from that gift stuck in the branches because it has entirely too many ribbons?

With that said, there might also be some dangers in trying to take one of the myriad gifts from a chocobo's nest, especially if there's a chick presently sleeping next to it. Perhaps befriending them would be a good idea first, besides, isn't friendship with a big bird the truest gift of all?

On the tag of each and every gift box says the same thing:

To: You
Love: 💋

Each gift has a random assortment within. Some contain candy, others contain alcohol, make-up...maybe even a pair of socks, very perfunctory gifts with very little thought or feeling put into them. However, there is at least one gift that is personally relevant to each character in Etraya. This item will be the equivalent of a 5 point AC reward, and does not have to be found by the person it is intended for.

What better way to break the ice than to give someone their gift which you opened!

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Welcome to Etraya newcomers and happy spring to everyone!

It appears that someone is trying to correct her previous mistake of handing out eggs during the winter holidays, and now there's a hunt for gifts accompanied by a bunch of lovely birds to help out!

Some notes in regard to Chocobos:

-Each color can be tamed except for the red one, he's a free spirit. Should someone wish to harm or attack this chocobo, let us mods know. There is only one of him, after all.

-The others will just take various amounts of work to win over, however, but they are loving and cute companions for those who are willing to put in the effort! And who knows, maybe more colors could arise with time and patience...

-Feel free to pull from all the designs of chocobos throughout the Final Fantasy series. If you fancy FFXII's, for example, there are some that look like that. Variety is the spice of life!

Concerning the personal item, be sure to plot out and get permission when finding someone else's item. This is meant to encourage possible new CR and mingling, but the choice of the item should ultimately be within the hands of the player who is receiving it.

If you are uncertain if your item is appropriate for the reward cost, feel free to ask here!

For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Who the fuck even cares? I get what I want, he gets what he wants. It's real fucking simple.

[Cue dramatic teenager walk off!]

[Nope. He's following]

Except it'd be more like he gets what he wants and you get jackshit. Since when does Scarecrow play altruist?

[Still walking! Lil Jay has short legs, though.]

You don't even know what you're talking about! You don't know anything about me, otherwise you would know exactly what Crane offers.

When it comes to the Scarecrow, it's always about fear. He knows how to trigger it and enhance it, which means he would know how to work in reverse too. Except he's not the kind of doctor who'll help someone with that. He just sees lab rats to manipulate and more psyches to dissect.

[Jason is vaguely aware that he probably sounds like Bruce but now is not the time to let the teenager go off alone]

Yeah, okay, Bruce. [Older Jason is very correct about how he sounds.] Just go away!

[Jason scoffs]

Yeah, nice defense there. So what're you gonna do? Walk up to Scarecrow and just ask pretty please over a cup of tea or coffee? Then just hope for the best? Or get all gung ho about it and not think about he might have some of the fear gas already up in his sleeve?

[Oh how right his older self is. Jason tries to walk faster.]

I'm not some evil villain who is going to give his whole deal in a long speech.

[Jason is keeping pace]

No but I see someone who's going to confront a known sadistic psychopath with zero plans and zero backup.

[He sees you tall, long-legged Jason.]

I've got a plan.

[The Lazarus Pit was great for his growth spurt]

Enlighten me then. Tell me how it's nothing like anything I just said.

I don't have to tell you shit.

[Jason shakes his head at his older self.]

[Older Jason remains unimpressed]

But I can guarantee the others are gonna be all up in your shit too, especially if you're gonna do something like that.

Why don't you riddle it out like Nygma?

[Jason keeps walking; his legs are starting to get sore.]

[Nope. Still hasn't given up]

Riddle me this. What're you gonna do if this doesn't work out? What's your plan then to supposedly win back being Robin?

[That makes Jason turn on his heel, a rush of anger flashing through him.]

Who says I even want to be Robin any more. Who the fuck do you think you are?

[Jason knows the guy is his older self, that he likely knows better than anyone else how desperate Jason is to slide back into that role, to be a part of something more. And still, Jason's anger is explosive, ready to burn up anything in its path.]

[Jason's on guard in case his younger self wants to take a swing at him. Better to delay and distract by pissing him off instead of letting him go. Maybe a word or two will even stick in the kid's head]

The guy who made the same kind of mistakes as you. He fired me too. What else would be pushing you this hard to do something that crazy? Without Robin, you feel like nothing, right? Like you're back to being the same street rat from Crime Alley?

[The older Jason hits the nail right on the head. And all that emotion, all that anger explodes out of him in a matter of a few words.]

I am not a fucking mistake! [And as soon as the anger floods his system, it snuffs out, leaving behind a vulnerable teenager who begins to quietly cry.]

I'm not a mistake.

[Jason looks back at the teenager sadly and with empathy]

I know. You're not a mistake. You never were. But you got dealt with a shit hand for so much of your life that sometimes, when things are quiet and there's nothing to punch, there's that voice in your head that questions things.

[Jason tries to cover his face, tries to turn away from the older version of him. He wipes his eyes on his hoodie sleeve.]

Maybe. [His words are muffled as the stress pours out of him.]

[Jason softly sighs. Part of him does feel bad for purposely triggering his younger self but maybe now something will get through to him]

He benched me too when I was Robin. I overheard him talking to Alfred saying I was "losing it." At the time, we had been arguing a lot. He thought I was getting too angry and too rash. Said I needed to get my head on straight if I wanted to keep being Robin. I ran away.

He said I had to talk to Leslie to be Robin again. I talked to Leslie. He fucking... [Jason is quiet, wiping furiously at his eyes.] He fired me and told me I was a mistake.

[Jason hates how similar they are in that aspect. When will Bruce ever learn?]

He shouldn't have said that to you. He should've listened to what you had to say first, especially after you listened and went to Leslie.

Yeah well it didn't fucking matter. [Jason seems to have calmed enough to not be crying, but the irritation is clearly there.] He didn't want me any more.

[Jason wonders if maybe that's not true and younger Jason's Bruce is just as awful as his Bruce used to be when it comes to expressing his real feelings. But now was not the time to question it. the younger Jason's feelings are very much real and the older one can understand where they're coming from]

It's hard to take and it hurts. That pain probably will be there for a long time. You... you try to make something new out of it as a way to process and heal.

[Jason shakes his head, feeling like he's truly hit rock bottom.]

Yeah. Right. Let me get on that healing bullshit. 'Cause I wasn't trying hard enough before.

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