lostcarnival | ⇨ THE LUNAR SOLSTICE

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⇨ THE LUNAR SOLSTICE

Who: Everyone!
When: Winter Breaks: Day 6 - Day 25
Where: THE MOON
What: The carnival journeys to one of its moons to celebrate the Lunar Solstice. More information here.
Warnings: Winter fun.

MOON WALKING↴

The journey to the moon only takes a blink of an eye, but it leaves the carnival far away beneath you. The second moon can be seen on the peripheral, massive compared to its usual view. At least when the holidays start out, there will be no notable wildlife on the moon, though this is something you can talk to the Ringmaster about if you think it needs a change. It sounds like this is the first time she's used it in quite a while - it probably needs some dusting off!

Claim your cabins, and proceed to... well, do whatever you want! There is no rush and little obligation, besides to enjoy yourself. For real, this time. She promises there will be no vampires. Or, at least, none that don't already work for the carnival.

► CABINS: Living arrangements are character choice for this event, and there are a variety of cabins of various sizes, mostly built to house 2-6 people, though you can fit more in if you squish. They are all made of wood and of a rustic design - no fancy modern furniture, here! Each building is housed with a fireplace and the needed amenities. You can pick up materials to cook with the private kitchens if you like. Theoretically, you could spend the whole holiday sequestered away, watching the snow fall. Some of them also have outdoor hot tubs available!

► ACTIVITIES: Activities are mostly going to be character driven, though there will be some large group games like bingo and maybe a poker tournament happening at some point in one of the festival halls. Otherwise, there is a lot to offer: skiing, snowboarding, hiking, ice sculpting, snowball fights - it goes on! If you'd like to run a winter activity, just let the mods know, and we will get the word out there for you.

► FEASTING: Every day isn't a full-out feast because that would get a bit unhealthy, but there will be a number of specific feast events over the holidays where everyone is encouraged to let out their inner hedonist and stuff themselves. There will be one big feast per week, with smaller but also delicious meals offered in between. The feast dates will be B12, B18, and B24. There's also plenty of alcohol available for anyone who wants it.

► SHOPPING: As mentioned in the planning post, there is a massive market being run by the World Walker Caravan! The Ringmaster has given everyone 1250 credits to spend on items, but there is a caveat - must spend at least 500 of those credits on gifts for other people. And it better be a good one, if you only buy one! (She will ask that you do not buy her presents, however. She appreciates the sentiment, but it seems sort of silly buying her things with her own money! If you'd like to gift her, please have it be something more personal or handmade, but you are not obligated to get her anything at all.)

► TREATMENTS: The beginning of the holidays will also be about the time that the emergency Medical Team will have finalized their treatments for the Prince's poisoning. Watch out for further information on that - and make sure to get treated if you are suffering from petrification or poison induced illness! The holidays will be a lot more fun that way.

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"Eh. Probably." His memory is foggy on that part. Really, it doesn't matter. All he does is nudge his nose further against Ginko's shoulder.

"Wish ya weren't. Wish I could take ya up there. It's amazin'." His sigh rustles out in a puff of warm air. "I hate not flyin'. Hate bein' stuck."

And yet it keeps happening.

"Ha. I'll take your word for that... and stick to climbing trees if I want a better view." Trees are one thing, being lifted into the air by a person is another entirely.

He pats Joker's shoulder. "You can fly again once you're feeling better. So, probably tomorrow, assuming we can keep you from ending up too hungover."

"S'not the view..." Another frustrated nuzzle. "S'about.... not being stuck. Or trapped. You can just-" He tries to make a gesture, forgetting that his hand is behind Ginko's back.

"Go." Before he can say anything else, however, his feet get tangled up in one another, and he wobbles forward with a curse even as he digs his fingers in.

"Ah-- hey, careful." Ginko catches Joker and pulls him upright, getting him back on his feet. He regards him for a moment before scooting over so Joker is right behind him, placing Joker's hands on his shoulders - and then, in a quick movement, crouching just enough to get a hold of Joker's legs and pull him onto his back.

"There we go. This'll probably work better after all. Anyway, I'm... afraid your point is probably going to be lost on me, no matter what. I just can't really think that way."

Fuck. "Oh no," he says blearily, blinking as he's suddenly heaved up onto Ginko's back. He's always had good thoughts about Ginko's shoulders. Those thoughts are ten times better (worse?) with his position being what it is. As they start to move, he remembers to use his one good arm to wrap around him Ginko before he slides off again.

"Then- what do ya think of?"

"Don't 'oh no' me. We can't have you falling over yourself all the way there," sighs Ginko, completely misunderstanding the issue.

He gives a quiet hum, glancing up at the sky above them. "About flying? Mostly that I don't want to fall to my death. Not like I don't trust you and Psi, but it's kind of nerve-wracking all the same."

Ginko has no idea if that's actually what Joker meant, but anyway.

"S'not the worst death." Shifting his face to mutter directly into Ginko's shoulder, Joker continues on. "Starvin' is bad. That's the worst one, I think. And burnin' alive. Anythin' else.... seems like it'd be nicer."

Because this is how you get rid of thoughts on how attractive a good friend is. Morbid thoughts on death.

"But I meant..." Sighing, he shifts so that it's his cheek on Ginko's shoulder. "I don't know."

"Oh, I know that much. ...I suppose I don't feel like I'm at so much risk for those things these days, but... other than that, I can't explain it. Unless it's by climbing, being too far off the ground is just... it's uncomfortable."

That's a huge understatement, but then Ginko has always been good at those.

He considers for a moment what else Joker could have meant by that. He can't say for sure, of course, but if he were to guess...

Ginko lets out a breath before he speaks again. "I guess I've never really thought of leaving as being difficult." Even when he felt like he couldn't leave, for one reason or another, it was more a matter of personal reluctance than physical constraints.

"Ha. Ha." His voice has lost all sense of mirth. "I've never been able ta leave when I've wanted ta. Or when I've supposed ta." That's always been his worst problem in life, he's figured. But that's what happens when you're born on the bottom.

"S'what's gonna happen here. It's gotta be."

"...What do you mean? You can stay in the carnival as long as you want to."

Unless... unless he does want to leave. As far as he can tell, Joker's never shown any sign of intending to end his contract. But... after all that's happened, he supposes he can't blame him if that's changed.

"Six more years." Another slow mutter, the material of Ginko's coat scraping against his cheek as he grimaces. "Only that much.... and it seems long sometimes. So bloody long."

And he's starting to think he might not have enough of him to last that long.

So that's it.

Again, Ginko certainly can't blame Joker for being... well, tired, from the sound of it. Things keep happening, keep going wrong. Even planning to stay indefinitely, when he's been approaching it a step at a time, six years does sound like a lot to Ginko.

Something about the thought of Joker leaving does make Ginko's heart twinge uncomfortably. But it's not his choice.

"I... I'm sorry." Yes, he knows it's not like it's his fault (probably, he hopes). "I know there's probably not much I can do, but-- let me know if there is anything, alright?"

...Man he still hasn't talked to Psi about this whole thing.

But.

It's kind of important.

Ginko's apologizing. Why is Ginko apologizing, of all people? Joker shifts his head again to blink at him, not paying much attention to the tears that have started to make his eyes ache. "Yer one of the best things about this place," he slurs in quiet bewilderment. Immediately, however, his mouth twists.

"But I'm not- s'not fair. So I won't." He means to reference Psi, but the name gets lost as he talks.

Because, Joker, one way or another he's sorry you feel that way, dammit. Unfortunately, though, it doesn't occur to him to actually explain his feelings on the subject. Instead, his ears give a confused flicker as he tries to process that answer.

On the bright side, he resists the impulse to make a crack about how Joker really must hate it here.

"It's not fair to you to cut yourself off from help." It's not hard for him to guess that Joker is talking about Psi, and he understands that hesitation - but.

"...I'm going to talk to Psi tonight." Just putting that out there. "And, Joker, I need you to understand - if he has a problem with me helping other people, that was going to be an issue one way or another, whether you told me what was going on or not."

He lets out a breath, tilting his face downward as he watches his own hooves. "...So I'm glad that you did tell me. So I... at least have the option of helping. And I want to take that option, whatever happens."

Now he hardly knows if he's making sense, and he's not even the drunk one.

It's perfectly fair, actually, but, even drunk, Joker knows that's just going around in circles considering they've already talked about this before. There's no way to convince Ginko that he deserves whatever comes to him, that he's lost any right to be redeemed.

All he can do is make a small noise as he presses his face back down into Ginko's shoulder. Great. The last thing he wants to do in the world, and it's going to happen regardless.

"Just want both of ya ta be happy..." His face is starting to ache with cold meeting his tears, but at least Ginko's shirt will take up some of it.

Ginko lets out a quiet sigh, his shoulders slumping a little. He adjusts his hold to keep Joker steady. "And we want you to be happy. Or as close as you can get."

Look, he knows there's probably a limit to how much he can help Joker. But he doesn't want to give up prematurely.

Somehow, that's the joke. That's the thing that makes Joker start to laugh into Ginko's shoulder, quiet racking movements as he makes an attempt to choke it back... and then choke back the tears which begin to follow. It's an ugly, pained sound, trying to hide pain with something else whether laughter or silence, and it never works.

He's tired, and he half wishes people would know better.

Quiet, shaking laughter, then a shift as it gives way to choked sobbing, and Ginko's stomach twists.

He should... say more, maybe. Or maybe he shouldn't. Shit.

Finally, he twists a little to look over his shoulder at Joker, or... try, anyway. His ear kind of gets in the way and might actually sort of bap Joker in the face. "--Sorry. If... you don't need to try and hide if you're upset. Better to let it out."

The laugh-sob stutters again at the fleshy smack of Ginko's ear and- then it restarts again, the laughter part of it a little stronger. Now isn't that just how things go?

"No," he wheezes, digging his fingers further into Ginko's shirt. "S'not me. Can't be."

"...What do you mean by that?"

Given how drunk Joker is, Ginko supposes he shouldn't be too surprised by having some trouble following his line of thought. But it does make holding a conversation kind of difficult.

Whatever Joker's answer is..... Ginko will have a hard time hearing it. That might be, of course, because Joker's face has sunk even further against his shoulder, and everything that comes out of his mouth is unrecognizable.

That's probably not on purpose.

That... clears nothing up, except, perhaps, that Ginko whould wait until Joker has sobered up to ask him to clarify literally anything, and maybe that's the most valuable lesson of all.

So he adjusts his hold, and looks ahead again with a quiet sigh.

"...Well. I meant it that we wanted you to be happy - and that you don't need to worry about hiding your feelings from me, okay? I just want to make sure you know that."

Does he? Joker really wonders. Still, nothing has really happened so far in his clumsy drunken attempts to explain, and he's getting sick of his own tears. So all he does is keep his face hidden, chest heaving as he tries to get himself under control.

It doesn't work, but it's the best he can do.

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⇨ THE LUNAR SOLSTICE

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