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

I've been here a pretty long time now.

[ Yuri answers calmly, despite his private bafflement. Dimitri is here yet again, and he recognizes him, but his age... What fufure is this prince bound for? If he told him any of what he knows, would that change anything?

It could as easily make matters worse instead of better. ]

It's just me from Fódlan though. Has been, anyway.

[ He suspects it will be the first thing Dimitri wants to know: whether any of the others are in this place. ]

Oh.

[ A long time. Dimitri had met someone on Aphaia who said she’d been here for over a year… how long has Yuri been here? Hadn’t he just seen him? But the look of his room… it looks well lived in, unlike the rest of the grounds. ]

Well, that’s a relief, isn’t it? [ there’s a little bit of a pained smile as he drops his gaze to the floor ] If lady Aurora’s reason for us being here is true, then out of everyone I know you’re probably one of the best people for this position.

[ That… felt a bit like word-vomit… And it’s not like Dimitri has spent a great amount of time with the man… but he knows Yuri will go to great lengths to protect his people. He’s kind, caring, and strong. Funny too. Sweet, although Dimitri can’t quite remember why he thinks that.

Certainly better than a hypocrite like himself. ]

I could say the same about you, but I know things you don't yet.

[ Yuri throws the fact out there, obvious as he knows it would prove to be. Dimitri had already eyed his hair, and the man had a penchant for drawing his own conclusions, so Yuri deems it better to head that off at the pass.

He doesn't know which future Dimitri is bound for, but he doesn't think he has to. Dimitri has a caring heart, even when he tries to bury it. Even when it actively torments him. ]

I know you most likely don't see that in yourself, but isn't that the Faerghan dilemma? None of us do.

[ Yuri closes his books, tidily stacking them so he can clear space enough to pat the bedspread. ]

Why don't you sit, rather than hovering there?

[ Dimitri’s eyes return to Yuri and his eyebrows knit at the other’s rebuttal. That… oh no, that feels a little like hope, doesn’t it? Hasn’t he tempered his expectations enough at this point?

A denial is forming on his tongue, but Yuri beats him to the punch which almost lends credence to his argument. What is he supposed to make of this? Yuri, here in his room, looking older, clearly having been here awhile… The man’s heart is true, Dimitri has visited the abyss enough to know that… And how can the man not see his own merits?

Yuri spares him the indignity of a response by inviting Dimitri in further and he’s unmoored enough to let this coax him closer. ]

Thank you.

[ Whether this is for Yuri’s kind words, the invitation to sit, or both- Dimitri can’t say. He slips the bag of supplies he’s been carrying since Aphaia off his shoulder and lets it rest at the foot of his bed. …Yuri’s bed?

He hesitates for only a moment longer before sitting with Yuri. A sigh escapes his lips, the kind one might make after a long hard days work, and Dimitri’s cheeks tint pink, embarrassed by the sound he’s just made. ]

How have you been faring?

[ It’s not just because he’s attempting to cover up that soul-weary sigh that Dimitri asks. He does truly wish to know how Yuri is doing. Dimitri just also happens to not be ready to evaluate why he feels such relief at sitting on a bed that has only been his for a handful of months. ]

[ Yuri sees the way Dimitri plods along like a man exhausted. That may suggest he was on Aphaia, or it might be the toll of his ghosts. Either or both, he supposes. For the time being he doesn't question it, simply grateful Dimitri hasn't seen his way to showing up a bloody mess.

With Dimitri, it would be entirely possible he'd find himself enough trouble to collect injuries. Strong as he is, they deal with no small measure of madness here. ]

I can't really complain. Well, I could, but I could do worse than getting thrown strange tasks every so often. Small price if our world's really on the line, yeah?

[ He even seems to have entered Aurora's good graces, if the key-card he'd been given recently is anything to go by. Yuri still doesn't entirely know what to make of that, but he is no less Faerghan than Dimitri. He fully intends to keep that item safe, whatever that requires of him. ]

How about you? Seems like you've been through something.

[ Yuri had been a student of the Officers Academy, Dimitri knew this, but seeing the man sit so comfortably here on the bed really impresses it upon him. Someone else here who cares deeply for their world. That’s such a relief…

A smile reaches Dimitri’s eyes and he nods, agreeing it be but a small price to pay, especially with the memory of Aphaia so fresh.

But when Yuri spins the conversation to point at him: the first gut reaction is to deny any hardship; Dimitri knows plenty of others had it worse than he did. Not to mention those who belong to Aphaia proper. ]

No, I…

[ But he can’t say having been there hasn’t affected him. How could anyone not be impacted by Aphaia’s situation? ]

Well, yes, I suppose, but I’ve been managing alright, all things considered. [ his smile is weaker ] Were you there at Aphaia as well?

[ Dimitri supposes Yuri must have been. Likely handling it far better than Dimitri had. ]

I was. Twisted little arrangement they've got over there, isn't it?

[ Yuri can't relate. Something must have made those people give up, otherwise their priorities make no sense to him. Difficult as it was just keeping people from being obliterated due to low points, however, Yuri couldn't say he really had the chance to figure out why.

He wonders though. He has to.

What options had they exhausted to decide there was no point wasting what little they had trying to save themselves. ]

Our people fight with everything they've got. It's hard to fathom yielding to some inevitability.

[ No less getting drunk on the violent, ruthless spectacle whilst awaiting the end. ]

Indeed. [ he shakes his head ] I do not know what their leadership is thinking…

[ Dimitri’s gaze drops from Yuri down to his hands folded in his lap. There is no doubt within Dimitri that he shares the sentiment of it being an unfathomable thing to give up on. And yet, he is forced to consider it. He needs to. ]

I did try to put myself in their position, as it very well may come to pass, and I… [ his hands tense, waiver from the strain, then release ] If all hope is lost and we are indeed condemned… I would not be wasting my time on such frivolity.

I would do all in my power to keep my people as comfortable as possible for as long as I could.

It is the king’s— the governing body’s duty to take care of the their people. We are meant to be a servant for them, not demanding they entertain us or die. [ his eyes squeeze shut ] Truthfully, it disgusted me. I loathed every second of being there.

Such power. Such excess. And for what? What good is it doing for their people?

[ Yuri suspects most trueborn Faerghans would feel exactly the same way. They were raised on adversity, on struggle, taught how to fight and claw their way through and survive. Cutting a path to the future was something many of them strongly believed in, because they had to. Anything less than an acceptance of needing to take hold of one's fate with their own hands was a recipe for defeat.

Sometimes, it makes them reckless fools, but it's better to die on a hill for a purpose rather than close one's eyes to reality. The decadence of Enbarr had always repulsed Yuri, a den of privilege for those with money to live decadent lives well away from the reality of their people. In a twisted way, Aphaia reminded him of that callous excess. ]

Seems to me when the going gets tough, too many people give up on doing good.

[ Yuri's instinct is to number himself among these, yet the crimes he committed were still for the sake of his people. Ashe had thrown the fact in his face before, in fact. He may not do the right things, he may have that royal knight dogging him until the fact ever changes, but what he does, he does for those who need someone to fight for them.

It's a tragedy that none among the Aphaians have the will or interest to fight for their own any longer. ]

It's an ugly reality, but maybe that was the point. Some people don't want to face that kind of thing, or imagine that it exists. Giving up can be pretty damn hideous... But our countrymen simply aren't built for it.

[ Dimitri smiles weakly as he opens his eyes, looking at the odd arrangement of items on Yuri’s desk without really seeing them. ]

No, we really are not built for that. Our home ensures we are prepared to do what it takes to survive…

[ His eyebrows knit as he considers how to phrase this. How to put voice to the feeling he got witnessing those near the bottom of Aphaia; unable to entertain. ]

But, I can’t help but wonder… Is that not because those who would give up get weeded out? They too don’t survive. The ones you find laid out under snow after a bad storm; frozen to death. Or the farmers who would rather take themselves out than face another blighted crop… What about them? Do they not deserve to live as well?

[ As king to be Dimitri must consider all of his countrymen; how he can make all their lives better. Watching those languishing in Aphaia really drove it home for him.

He glances at Yuri then away again. ]

Apologies, I’m not really good company right now.

[ Right now? Realistically probably ever. ]

I don't know that I'd say it's precisely the same. Their entire world's given up, the only difference lies in the manner in which an individual goes out.

[ Faerghus can be a brutal and unforgiving land. Famine runs as rapacious as red wolves nearing the winter, but people usually fight for their lives until they're no longer able. Aphaia knew desperation, but it luxuriated in burning the candle out from both ends. Whoever got burned in the process seemed to be of no concern to the rest.

He doesn't think their nation, nor most of their countrymen, are nearly so callous as that. ]

As to what manner of company you are, I don't blame you for not knowing that I know it, but I know perfectly well how you are. [ Knowing as well how readily Dimitri will assume the words, he adds: ] And I'm not complaining, am I?

[ And here Yuri sits, just the same. Dimitri is no more brooding and morose than he ever was. The taller version was more so, aside from when their brief tenure in Moorecroft had given the man a taste of simple domesticity life had so long denied him. ]

Edited 2025-05-26 07:17 (UTC)

[ They are in agreement that it is not the same, however Dimitri is still agonizing over it. Over how to best serve those people, to improve their lives, as well as trying to come to terms with a situation like Aphaia’s could come about. Not in the way it is run, but an inevitable, encroaching, death.

When Yuri starts commenting upon just what kind of company Dimitri is his eyebrows pinch in pain. So, Yuri has already suffered my company. But the thought is stopped dead in its tracks as Yuri presses on. With Dimitri’s eyes shooting open he looks at Yuri, blinking, taking in the man anew.

Surprise shifts to disbelief- not in an accusatory way, but rather like when you’ve witnessed something unbelievable. Dimitri’s mouth had opened a little, but now he presses his lips together, still blinking intermittently, trying to digest the whole of what Yuri’s said.

He’s staring too long, and in realizing this Dimitri swallows and tears his eyes away to look about the room. Anywhere that isn’t Yuri. ]

Well… you, ah, needn’t suffer in silence on my account…?

[ It’s said slowly as he isn’t entirely certain that’s what Yuri meant… Normally, he wouldn’t have any trouble in believing that to be true, but Dimitri doesn’t know the man to suffer much of anything magnanimously. But, if Yuri is familiar with his nature and still choosing to willingly sit here through this… does he feel obligated?? ]

[ And there it is: Dimitri's capacity for mental gymnastics in order to find the bleakest interpretation, there on full display. Yuri smothers a chuckle behind his fist. He should have known better than to think he could Dimitriproof his words without saying more. Without specifying more.

Goddess knows that his little wife was equally skilled in self-deprecating interpretation. ]

Have you ever known me to suffer in silence? Me? Come now.

[ He doesn't know what he may be like in some other timeline. Some of what he'd said seemed to set that other Dimitri on his heels with the boldness of it, so perhaps they aren't entirely the same. With that thought in mind, he supposes he'd best make as fine a point as he can of it. ]

It's no hardship to be around you. It never was, and that's not going to change.

[ The sound of Yuri’s chuckle is initially mistaken for scorn, that is until Dimitri lays eyes on the man. His pained expression morphs into one of surprise as he takes in the evident delight on Yuri’s face. The beautiful expression is at once beguiling and confusing in equal measure.

When Yuri confirms Dimitri’s inner thoughts on the other’s inability to suffer silently, a trait in which he finds himself a little selfishly jealous of, he isn’t sure what to think. He studies Yuri’s face trying to glean what this could possibly mean. Yuri seems to be studying him as well, but it isn’t the kind of gaze that makes him squirm. For some reason he thinks he feels infinity in this moment…

And the moment doesn’t break so much as expand- or maybe it fades into permanence- either way, Yuri speaks and it feels like the world is forever changed. He keeps looking between Yuri’s eyes, but finds no lie there.

Slowly Dimitri’s eyes widen and his mouth forms a silent ‘Oh.’ before closing again. His mind goes a little blank and he feels his chest tightening, and a slight burn in his eyes. But he needs to say something. Anything. ]

That is- You- Uhm.

[ His mouth closes and he blinks a couple of times. Ok, maybe not anything. Quickly now. ]

I also find joy in your company.

[ Also?? Why did he say that? That is far too presumptuous, the man only said it wasn’t torture to be around Dimitri, not that he liked it!

Why is his heart hammering. Why is he panicking? Dimitri can’t truly be this bad with people, can he? Should he leave? He should probably leave before he humiliates himself further. ]

[ Yuri's mirth bleeds out of him with alarming swiftness when Dimitri replies. Joy? He's pretty damn sure he's not done anything to warrant that from anyone, save his own mother. As with many things in life, his mother is the great exception.

He takes it as Dimitri's earnest attempt to respond to something he doesn't know how to answer. Accordingly, he doesn't place too much weight on the words and gives the prince a light clap to his shoulder. ]

Don't worry so much, alright? You don't have a poker-face, I can tell.

[ Yuri may readily judge most nobles, but Dimitri is an exception. Usually. ]

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APRIL MINGLE

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