⇨ The Tourist Trap: WEEK 1

[ringleaders]

Who: Anyone, anywhere in Portland.
When: October 1st - 7th, 2017
Where: Portland area, in the new reality.
What: Memories begin returning to the displaced as the fall gets chillier. How the hell did we end up here, again? Also, apparently, the fair is in town.
Warnings: Individually marked!

PORTLAND BY NIGHT↴ Memory regains will come into effect at the beginning of October, to whatever degree you've decided upon, and may be regained at whatever pace you desire from then on. For those with their full carnival memories, it will be like waking up in the body of someone else - for those with half and half, it will be like rapidly recalling sets of memories from a totally different life. Those with full amnesia will simply feel as if this is how it's always been. Unfortunately for you, memories aren't the only thing you have to deal with. The supernatural community of Portland is bustling all of a sudden - could your presence and these events somehow be related? ► THE OUTER CIRCLE: As of the start of the month, the Portland Circle of Enlightenment will find itself starting to get swarmed with members from other chapters. Most notably, it would seem that a small cabal of top mages from the North American Enlightenment Council will be making their home in Portland's HQ. For anyone but the highest of ranks, the purpose behind their visit will be unclear, but it seems like something is definitely up on a metaphysical level. The Circle will be buzzing with rumours of unique planar activity and threatening omens. It seems that it all started with an unusual flare of activity in the planetary ley-lines, starting approximately a week ago. However, even if you would usually be the type to keep tabs on such things, you will find that you oddly have no memory of observing this phenomenon yourself. ► THE ANIMAL FAIR: Good news, the fair is in town! Or, at least, it would be good news... if this was a regular fair. Instead, what's being observed is a bunch of nearly identical flyers, spread all around Portland - each of which bears only the words "THE ANIMAL FAIR", a seemingly bloody paw-print of unknown origin, and the directions to a vague forested location outside of the city. It's dated for October 7th, and all instances of its posting having been discovered with a scattering of rose petals, crow feathers, and pre-burnt matches laying on the ground around them. Most are taking this to be some kind of bizarre viral marketing campaign, but others may know better. ► THE EARTH SPIRIT: If you have connections to The Pack or any of its many variations, you'll probably hear whispers of something very odd that occurred last week - according to the elders, it sounds as if the Earth Spirit, the magical and spiritual center of the planet, has suddenly taken a wound. It's not clear why or how, but there is a fair bit of concern among spiritual types, as it is werebeast belief and nebulous magical fact that the magical forces within the earth are the source of all magic here, as well as the source of life. While many werebeasts claim to have felt the Spirit succumb, you strangely have no memory of such an event occurring. Though things do feel strange, if you know how to tap into the Spirit yourself. ► THE WAR CRY: Though Anath's rain of terror across North America lasted for the first fifteen years or so of the Severing, most independent demons have had enough time to start taking the arch-demon's relative inactivity for granted. For that first while, the warrior queen had seemed determine to rebuild an army on earth by forcing her scattered brethren into service - only for her to gradually settle down in a fortress somewhere in Texas and dig in her heels. Of course, this was too good to last - it sounds as if she and her demonic legion have begun tearing their way up the west coast, their goals remaining a mystery. Their destination, however, is almost certainly Portland.

Comments

Lambert | OTA

[whattaprick]

Cat Cafe [Oct 5th onward]

Those visiting the Cat Cafe will notice another one of the Animal Fair posters put up on the wall next to the counter. However, this one's a little different than the others around town: it's twice the size of the regular posters, and it says You Are Invited To the Animal Fair.

Oh, and that big bloody animal print on it? That's twice the size now too. Creepy.

The scowly barista seems even scowlier than usual, for some reason. Maybe it's because of that fresh set of cat scratches on his cheek? He also doesn't look like he's gotten a lot of sleep, maybe slightly hungover, as he takes orders.

[ wildcard ]
[ Lambert can also be found at the library, or I can write you a starter, or something! Let me know what you need. ]

[For Yamato, Oct 5th]

[whattaprick]

[ Sometime in the late morning, Yamato's going to receive a private message from veni_vidi_verti, direct and to the point. ]

Hey, I had something I was wondering about.

You ever hear of anything called the Wylds or The Beast before?

[ It's a long shot, but really, the guy's one of the few people Lambert's spoken to online who gives sensible, straightforward answers to things. Maybe he'll know something Lambert doesn't. ]

[walkonedge]

[ The private message isn't something that he's expecting. Sure, knifeofday and veni_vidi_verti occasionally talk, but it's not like either of them reach out to the other on a regular basis. It's sporadic at best, even after he's found out that veni_vidi_verti actually is in Portland, too. ]

can't say that i have, but i can do a little bit of digging among my contacts now that i have something.
is this in relation to the animal fair thing?

how urgent do u need this, asap?

[whattaprick]

It is.

Apparently, the Animal Fair's some kind of party run by a faerie. Not any of the local ones that people usually mention. But that's the only solid information I have to go on.

Sooner would be better than later, but I'm not sure if I want to go myself. Just figured I'd give you a heads up, in case you know anyone who's planning to go.

[walkonedge]

huh, that's weird, i thought it was a were thing
no wonder i couldn't find anything
i'll probably have to dig through whatever fae sites i have on hand to see if there's any mention of those two names but i have a bad feeling about this for some reason

cool. i'm not sure if i want to go myself but i think i know some people who might.
if you decide to though hmu, safety in numbers and all that

[whattaprick]

Apparently the reason it's here is to pick a fight with the local fae, so yeah. I'd say the bad feeling's justified.

I think I'm sitting out of this one. But I'll let you know.

[ Of course, if his sisters end up finding their way there, he'll probably charge in after like an idiot, but. They get to find out later! ]

So you've never heard of something like this before?

Oct. 5

[periphrasing]

Peridot has her own busy life to deal with, and usually she sees more than enough of Lambert at home and at the library. Thus, she doesn't often come calling to the cafe without some sort of agenda.

Today, she has locked herself out of the apartment. Neither of her siblings are answering their phones, and Peridot wouldn't even know where to start with looking for Miko, which leaves Lambert as her sole hope of getting back into the apartment to retrieve her research materials.

Anyway, she's not in such a bright-and-chipper mood herself when she walks in. She's frowning pretty intensely, at least until she sees that huge, ostentatious poster on the wall, and then her eyes pretty much bug out of her head. This one... It's different. Bigger, more wording...

The matter of the keys is forgotten entirely. Peridot muscles her way over to the counter, pushing past a few patrons to creep up at Lambert from the side. She points at the poster: "You didn't tell me that the ones in here were different from all the others around town!" she hisses.

[whattaprick]

Lambert doesn't even spot Peridot come in the door, though he sure does notice her when she sidles right up and cuts the line. Everything is still too loud and too bright and shit, Peridot, some people have work to do, all right? He grimaces, shaking his head at her.

"Let me finish ringing up." Which he does in quick order, though probably still not fast enough for Peridot, but too bad, that's what she gets! Lucky for her, the next couple of customers are just people who want to pay the entrance fee and aren't looking for drinks. Task done, he's going to turn to her with a scowl.

"You're interested in the Animal Fair?"

[periphrasing]

Well scowl to you too, mister.

"'Interested' is one way of putting it, I suppose," Peridot growls ominously. That's totally the sort of question you want to get a vague, cryptic answer on, right Lambert?

"Did you happen to see who put it up?"

[whattaprick]

Lambert crosses his arms, a position Peridot's probably used to seeing more than once in her life. Normally, it's a prelude to shouting, but at least they're in a restaurant so he'll confine himself to a hard, sharp hiss of breath. He'd already told John he wouldn't be able to keep his sisters away from anything; knowing that and actually having to deal with it is another reason altogether.

"It's dangerous. Stop looking into it." He rubs a hand along the scruff on his jaw, clearly missing his morning trim, and grimaces when his fingers brush against one of the scrapes Catastrophe -- no, Goodberry -- left behind as a parting gift. It hasn't even been twenty-four hours yet, faeries exist and they suck, and Lambert ... Lambert just wants his family to stay safe.

[periphrasing]

Peridot's eyebrows go up automatically. "Excuse me?" she growls. That kind of response-- telling her not to do something without even explaining why-- He's treating her like a child.

Honestly, sometimes she just can't understand why Lambert is always so suspicious of her, like she's a walking disaster magnet. Sure, she can be abrasive in a way that often upsets strangers. Sure, she's been a known source of property damage to the various abodes she's inhabited over the years, and SURE, her temper has caused her to make a scene of herself and her family out in public more than once! But Peridot isn't an adrenaline junkie like Miko is. She mostly keeps to herself, she doesn't take risks without good reason, and the fact that Lambert is still so quick to shut her down both makes her highly suspicious of what he knows, AND it pisses her right off.

"Scientifically speaking, that was probably the worst thing you could have possibly said to me, if your intention was to get me to drop the subject," she says, folding her arms. "You know something, don't you?"

[zebrarhyme_everytime]

When Zecora wandered in for her usual, she couldn't help but stop and stare at the very unusual poster. Which was surely as intended, so mission accomplished, poster-crafter.

"What is that about?" she asked as she made her way to the counter.

[whattaprick]

Lambert glanced up at Zecora.

"It's an advertisement for some kind of party." Should he be trying to warn people off it? Possibly. He certainly isn't going to encourage people to go, but... "I don't know much about it myself, but... they definitely seem to want people to show up."

[zebrarhyme_everytime]

"Out of morbid curiosity, if nothing else." What else could a display like that inspire? "And they actually got permission to put it up?"

[whattaprick]

Lambert nodded. "It's a little over the top, if you ask me, but ... that goes for most of those." He sounded a little wry, saying that.

It was October, after all. A poster stamped with a bloody, unidentifiable animal print wasn't going to look too out of place among others advertising Halloween-related events, decorated with dancing skeletons, rotting ghouls, and cackling witches.

[zebrarhyme_everytime]

"Blood feels more primal than any of the rest of it," Zecora mused. "Skeletons, witches, ghosts -- they've all been made light of in cartoons and comics. Entertaining. Funny. Friendly. But blood is never sanitized."

Cat Cafe

[spaghettimonster]

The enigmatic Animal Fair posters are a veritable plague upon the city, between the ominous bloody impression and the way they spread. Not least of which because they distract people from whatever they were doing, like going to the counter to order coffee.

"Hey, this one's bigger than the others," Papyrus says, loitering at the register as if there's nobody behind him. "And more detailed, it's almost informative now! Almost."

[whattaprick]

A plague of posters is not quite of biblical proportions, but it certainly is troublesome. Lambert raises a brow at the non sequitur, waiting to see if there's anything more forthcoming.

"Is it?" He says, blandly. "I hadn't really noticed. Are you ordering something today, or just paying the entrance fee?"

[spaghettimonster]

"You hadn't noticed...?" Papyrus echoes. "Uhh, I want whatever the seasonal special is! But really," he goes on, fully prepared to ramble at Lambert during the coffee's creation, "you work at a cafe for animals, and you have a special poster for the fair, also for animals! That's no coincidence."

He's very satisfied with his impeccable logical train, and not at all attributing his leap to this assumption on how the barista's voice sounds familiar. He's been here and talked with Lambert before, but it's not that kind of familiarity.

[whattaprick]

The 'seasonal special,' since it is October, is 'Spiced Punkin' Catte.' Lambert just sort of wearily nods and takes the rambling in, ringing up the purchase and expectantly waiting for the guy to pay.

"I guess, yeah?" he shrugs, noncommittal. Yeah, he's been getting curious looks and questions since he got in for his shift, not the least from his own coworkers -- one who is, by the way, straining to listen with no small amount of interest in her expression.

"I'm not really sure what it is." That much is still true, at least. "Some kind of party, apparently." Or maybe it isn't and the whole fair aspect was more literal than he thought.

[spaghettimonster]

"Hmmmm. If you didn't hang it up, then... who did???" Papyrus squints at the other employees, like one of them would helpfully speak up to confess to their horrible taste in graphic design. "The other posters are outside! With creepy decorations! Guerrilla advertising at its finest."

The person behind him in line coughs, tapping long fingernails on their phone with an echoing clatter. It's not enough to get him to stop talking to himself.

MEOW...

[fortuneglass]

[On the 5th of October, Carly takes a seat in the cafe in part because of that ENORMOUS poster. It's larger, and that's odd, and she takes a bit of time to photograph it (don't you dare kick her out for this Lambert-). It's not long after that she takes a seat, buys a coffee, and gets to work though. The cafe has wifi after all. And she needs to do some digging.

She needs to learn more about who "The Winter's Claw" was...and why their death combined with this Fair is important.

Also you might see that she's looking this up if you come up from behind. She's a bit absorbed by her work right now.]

NYA

[whattaprick]

[ It's just a poster. Lambert tries to reassure himself of that, even as the fae taking up his criticism as a challenge seems to have resulted in more questions, more curiosity, more interest in the Fair itself. He fields the questions as best as he can, doesn't snap at the people taking photos, though he imagines as soon as he gets home he'll see it posted on the threads already talking about the Animal Fair. Fan-fucking-tastic.

Of more immediate concern is the fact that the cats seem to be unnaturally attracted to one of the patrons. That's not an unusual or surprising occurrence in and of itself -- but it does also usually mean that the chances of said customer having some supernatural quality is high. It's also just plain bad for business when other people notice the cats are all crowding around one individual in particular.

So as he usually does when this happens, Lambert steps over to break up the crowd gathering near the table while trying to be less overt about it, waving one of those mouse-on-a-stick toys less like he's trying to play with them and more like he's cracking a whip. The less interested cats give him a cool look and walk away, slowly, making it clear they aren't being spooked, but a couple of the bolder ones linger still, pawing at the shadow on the floor.

The shadow which, now that Lambert is focusing on it properly, has what are unmistakably eyes staring out of it. Ah, yes. Great.

Wasn't this girl one of the customers taking pictures of the poster earlier? There's no good way to come out and ask someone about what they're searching for on the internet without making it obvious you'd been looking over their shoulder, so he'll just... continue to bait the cats for a moment, lingering by the table and letting the fake mouse drag over the shadow while trying to decide what to say. ]

[insidescoop]

[Aslla Piscu has not enjoyed all of this attention, and his host telling him that he 'deals with this every week' is not helping. How lovely-apparently he's Supposed to be used to it. For now, he therefore remains silent. Carly for her part is therefore quite oblivious to Lambert's actions-instead she pores over the deep, deep threads into the internet, attempting to find what she needs..

Faerie is a word that Lambert sees cropping up if he peeks over her shoulder, same as Animal Fair, and...well in her main window, she's trying to dig through the information on fae in an entirely different location, and specifically looking for 'Winter's Claw' if she can.

But basically there is a Lot of words.

...Also the shadow is hissing.] Not now, Aslla...

[whattaprick]

[ Between the cats meowing happily, the soft hiss of her shadow, and the word faerie cropping up again and again, Lambert's going to give up on being subtle and clear his throat, calling for her attention even as he lets the felt mouse bounce on the shadow once or twice, cautiously testing if it's just a shadow or possibly some kind of being that might have invaded it and she's not aware of it.

Though that chance is looking slimmer by the moment. ]

Planning on going to the Animal Fair? [ He asks, faux-casually. ] Sure seems like a lot of people are interested in it.