lostcarnival | ⇨ THE SUMMERLANDS

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⇨ THE SUMMERLANDS

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 138 - Day 152
Where: The Summerlands
What: The Ringmaster brings the carnival to the Summerlands immediately after being freed from Portland so that everyone can take a fucking nap. Her included.
Warnings: Individually marked! Most likely discussion of torture and trauma in here.

DAYS OF SUMMER↴

You made it! And things are back to normal... more or less. Upon waking, you will be greeted with a clear blue sky and gentle breeze – the carnival has found itself situated between a pair of mountain peaks, with great fields of flowers extending in the distance. In the other direction, you’ll see mountain-top cities and tall waterfalls accenting vast swaths of forest.

Some of you will already know this place. It’s the Summerlands. You game here once to rest in safety nearly a year ago, and now you’ve come to rest once again.

► WAKING UP: Shortly after the carnival arrives, the Ringmaster will send out a somewhat cryptic radio message - but her immediate location won't be clear. Whatever items you had on your person at the time the Severing was broken will still be on your person, including whatever clothing. All of the animals and pets of the carnival will have returned to the grounds as well, though they are currently free from their designated living spaces. Things in the carnival will appeared to have naturally aged a month, as if the carnival was been sitting here empty and waiting while everyone was in Portland. The lawn needs mowing.

► SUMMER CITY: After the Summer Fae become aware of everyone's presence, they will welcome you into their city. There are stairs that lead up the sides of the mountains, but thankfully there are also magical means of getting up there as well. The Summer Fae will be willing to help workers with the injured as needed, offering herbal remedies and healing magic to those that want it. You'll also be invited to join them for dinner, but they will not be particularly offended if they are turned down, for now.

► SUMMER PEOPLE: The fae here will mostly enjoy the company of any carnival members that offer it - it doesn't seem that much happens here besides day after day of peaceful meditation and relaxation. It is not uncommon to see Summer Fae spent days doing exactly the same thing, whether that be enjoying the weather, listening to music, or dancing - the day and night periods may be similar to earth, but when you don't need rest it can all blur together just the same. Some of the fae work on feats of agriculture or craftsmanship, and while there is no particularly need to work in this place, they take pride in the fact that they do.

► NEW ARRIVALS: Though the Ringmaster will not be offering much guidance for the first week or so, eventually the carnival will begin running for a few small performance sessions, off and on, as a thank you to their fae hosts. The carnival will also be open to receiving new arrivals during that period, and so there will likely be some newbies to train and get orientated as well.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

So you can channel magic, you just didn't study as much? [If he's following that line of thinking right. It's still more magic than Yuya's capable of doing.

Yuya leans over a little more to peer at the white shapes.] Really? It's just like a fairytale out here... [Not at oppressive as the Summer Court at all.] That's so cool.

[ Lambert can't help laughing at the idea, even if there's no way for Yuya to really grasp why it's so funny to him. ]

I could study my whole life and I'd never even touch what a source can do.

[ It's like comparing a lake to the sea. As Yuya keeps watching the unicorns, they disappear into the greenery, and it's quiet again. But the sight of wildlife below has made Lambert frown, scanning the skies. He can hope no predatory airborne creatures show up -- the faerie certainly didn't warn against the possibility -- but better wary now than sorry later. ]

[He glances over to Lambert with a raised brow. So there's different levels of magic capability? Interesting. But it makes sense, people are more talented in some things than others.

He looks back down at the scenery again.] It's more than what I can do! There's not really magic like what's in the carnival where I'm from. Everything's pretty normal.

[Except Yuya. Yuya is decidedly not normal by his world's terms.]

[ Yuya's lack of normality is, naturally, not something Lambert is aware of, so he's going to only shoot him a mildly amused look. ]

Does that mean you can't throw things around with your mind? Damn. So much for recruiting you as a nightrunner.

[Yuya sighs dramatically.] No. I tried it while I was stuck in bed and nothing happened!

Guess I'll just stay an acrobat. [Not that he sounds very broken up about that.] I wasn't very good at fighting anyway.

You really weren't. [ Lambert says cheerfully. Never mind that he really wasn't good at fighting until the last week of that, either. It's not been that long since they left the dock, but they've been making good speed, and the city's already disappeared into the cloudbanks behind them. Up ahead, they're due to hit another wall of fog. ]

Let's see if you're a better navigator. Check under your seat if there's a map or something, would you?

[ There isn't a map. ]

A map? [Yuya was content to just coast along. He glances around at the fog before twisting around and ducking to the floor to check under the seats.]

Uh, there's no map. Are we supposed to be going somewhere specific? [Actually... where have they been going up until now, except away from the city.]

Not really. [ Lambert shrugs. He doesn't seem particularly concerned at this turn of events, only mildly annoyed. ]

We've got a pretty good view. Worse comes to worst, we know to head towards where there's some clear air. Let's just where we end up.

[ Famous last words? ]

[Yuya sits up, looking a little incredulous as they drift into the fog.] Couldn't we just turn the balloon back the way we came?

[That seems like the most reasonable way to get un-lost, provided they know which way the city was. He glances back, but when you float into a cloud it kind of obscures your vision.]

Uh, but can we get under the cloud? Or over it? [Over it would be pretty cool, they could go even higher!]

We weren't exactly going in a straight line. Wind's been pushing us a little, too.

[ Nonetheless, he'll reach up, fiddling with the controls. The flame spouting out of the mechanism overhead flares brighter, roaring with heat, and they begin to ascend gradually, bursting out of the cloud cover and into clear, endless blue sky.

Lambert whistles, lowly, the fleeting thought of getting back to the city later entirely forgotten. ]

Wow. Look at that view.

[Yuya scrambles back to Lambert's side to check out the view, leaning over the edge of the basket. He stares dumbly for a second before a wide grin spreads over his features, completely awestruck.]

That's amazing... [Why did they need to get out of the air again?]

We should tell everyone about this.

What, trying to make them jealous about the fun we're having when we should be on bedrest?

[ Lambert grins. Not like he has anything against that idea, that much is pretty obvious! ]

[Yuya laughs, folding his arms on the edge of the basket as he watches the view.]

Maybe they'll want to try it too. We could all use something to smile about, after that.

[ 'After all that.' Right. The shadow of Portland, hanging over everything else, even here in the clear blue skies. Lambert's lip quirks slightly, but more out of wry amusement than anything else... ]

Nobody died. Better than I expected, especially considering how things ended up. [ At least, nobody from the Carnival died, and that's all that really counts, isn't it? Nonetheless, he'll twitch his fingers a little, indicating Yuya. ]

I'm surprised you're smiling. Last thing I remember is seeing you get skewered.

[ Tact and sensitivity: it's a foreign country Lambert may have heard of, once, and decided it was for other people. ]

Edited 2017-08-07 06:56 (UTC)

Yeah, I'm really glad about that. [It didn't reduce the emotional scars, but if everyone was alive, everyone had the time it would take to recover.

At Lambert's question, he puts a hand on his chest. Luckily, he doesn't really mind talking to casually about it--it did shake him, he could still feel it. But...] My dad taught me that even when things were bad, if I had the courage to smile through them I would find a way through it.

[His fingers curl absently about the pendulum hanging off his neck.] And I really wanted to go home too, especially when I remembered. And now we're all safe and we have our memories again, so I'm really happy!

[The suffering was worth the end result. Because he was brave enough when it hurt, all that happiness swung back to him.]

[ Yuya's fingers curl around his necklace like it's a talisman, and Lambert can't help his gaze being drawn to it. The motion is familiar and unconscious enough that he has to wonder how many times Yuya has done it. His own necklace, the heavy silver wolf's-head, is nestled safely against his chest once more, where it belongs.

Finally, he just snorts. ]

Doesn't take much to cheer you up, does it?

[Yuya laughs and shakes his head. A lot of his cheerful attitude used to be so fake, he can't really feel bad about real joy in the face of something terrible.]

It helps I have friends here with me. It'd be a lot scarier if I was all alone.

[Like now, really. Activities like this do wonders to take Yuya's mind off his own hang-ups about the past month, instead of sulking in bed.]

Fair enough.

[ Lambert's expression suggests he remains deeply skeptical about all this, but whatever. Yuya's not crying on his shoulder or expecting a sympathetic ear here, which is a relief, because that probably means he's not going to pry at Lambert's thoughts on the experience, either.

So instead he changes the topic entirely. ]

Is that a dowsing pendulum?

[Lambert should just be glad this haa been very good at distracting Yuya from asking questions.

He looks a little confused at that.] It's... some sort of pendulum, anyway? [He doesn't know what a dowsing pendulum is.

He holds it up by the string so Lambert can see. It's the right shape, but clearly too ornate with a light blue crystal in the center, wrapped with silver wings and an etched top. It's very pretty, at any rate.]

[ Lambert is a distracting person in general. ]

It looks like one. [ Fancy and magical, in other words... though if Yuya's expressing confusion on what that even is, he'll clarify: ] That kind of thing's a common tool for magic users. It's good for a focus when you need to locate or predict something.

Really? [Yuya looks down at his pendulum himself. There was something magical in its nature, but Yuya's not sure it's anything that can be tapped into like a wizard.] We don't have magic users in Maiami, so it's probably not that. I've had this since I was a baby.

[He swings it absently.] But could any pendulum be used like that, or does it have to be special?

Depends on who you ask. Some people want their tools attuned just right, but you'd get others who say what matters is the caster.

[ He touches a hand to his medallion again, concentrating his attention on Yuya's pendant. ]

Huh. Well, wherever that came from, it's definitely magical. [ So why give it to a baby? ] You ever take it off?

... You can tell?! [Yuya looks visibly startled at that. Not because it's surprising his pendant has magic. It's from the same source as Yuzu's bracelet and what separated his soul.

But Lambert just called out his weird pendant and now his story sounds weird.] Of course I do! I take it off when I sleep and take a bath.

[Otherwise, though, he tries not to.]

[ That somewhat reduces the chance of it being a cursed item or something, at least, which was Lambert's first thought. But to answer Yuya's question ... ]

Yeah, I can tell. [ He raises his brows. ] That much of a surprise to you?

[Yuya gives his pendant a look of mild betrayal. Way to out him like that.]

... Not really. I guess there's a little magic in Maiami. But it's not common! Nobody else would even hear about it.

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