ringleaders: (Default)
Lost Carnival Mods ([personal profile] ringleaders) wrote in [community profile] lostcarnival2018-01-15 02:54 pm

⇨ WISMUTH

Who: Everyone!
When: S2:D6-D11
Where: Wismuth and the Carnival Grounds
What: The carnival enjoys a few days in Wismuth, a coastal city on this planet's version of the American east. However, there are a few things very unique about this version of the planet...
Warnings: The usual, wholesome fun.

PILLAR OF CREATION

Upon arriving, things in Wismuth will seem pretty peaceful. It's a massive city, with no shortage of things going on, but things like violent crime and homelessness are at an all time low. You can wander the streets without much scrutiny, presumed to just be tourists, and most people here come across as helpful and friendly.

VIBRANCY: The main thing that sets this planet apart is its vibrancy - AKA, the raw creative energy its filled with, flowing from its status as a Pillar of Creation. There is no literal pillar, but Wismuth and its planet is a place where Creation's energy comes through strongest. As a result, everything here feels somehow more real, more intense in a way that's hard to put a finger on. Life is abundant, and its bleeds through in every sensation.

ATTRACTIONS: There are plenty of things to see while going around the city. First and foremost, there is a lovely beach area bordering the ocean, and a number of tourist aimed attractions built around it. There are giant malls, movie theaters, live stage performances, museums and all kinds of other points of cultural interest. Anything you can do in a big city you can do here, but better.

ALLOWANCES: The Ringmaster will be giving everyone a reasonable amount of local currency for a few days on the town. You can't make any massive acquisitions with it, but it's more than enough to eat out, see some shows, go to the beach, and whatever you like. You can feel free to pick up some casual supplies, like mundane clothing and souvenirs. There will be more given out later, after the performance week.

PERFORMANCE: Performance week is starting early this time, after only a couple days of exploration. When the carnival has already been on vacation for a month, the Ringmaster figures they may as well get right to it, and then do more touring afterwards. Members of the local populace will find themselves in the carnival once performances begin, dazzled by the other worldly sights. Magic doesn't seem to exist here, despite the fact that it will flow easier for people bringing it from other worlds.
whattaprick: (ugh not this shit again)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-01-29 03:24 am (UTC)(link)
Lambert blinks at her, slowly, like the idea she might not be mad at him hadn't even crossed his mind. Only the thought that they're still technically at the entrance to the medical tent -- thought Steven is most likely passed out by now, and the only person they have to worry about disturbing is West, who Lambert doesn't really care about.

"The only reason he's got anything to recover from is because I didn't tell him to forget about going to talk to the Rose in the first place." Lambert jerks a thumb over his shoulder. "I made a bad call and he paid for it. Isn't that something to be angry about?"
periphrasing: ((mouth fart))

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-01-29 03:59 am (UTC)(link)
Oh. And now she sees where the confusion lies.

It's actually something of a relief. Peridot snorts, and then, with her arms still folded at her chest, literally shrugs at the notion. "Not really. He's a Crystal Gem, rebellion is kind of their-- our-- thing. If he really wanted to do it, he almost definitely would have found a way no matter what anyone said to him."

She looks thoughtful for a second, and then adds: "Besides, this is far from the first time he's put himself in mortal danger, and I can pretty much guarantee you one-hundred percent that it won't be the last."
whattaprick: (Default)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-01-31 03:52 am (UTC)(link)
It's still a little hard to believe that Peridot isn't actually pissed at him, and Lambert looks at her warily for a few more seconds before he relaxes lightly, managing to smirk back.

"You say that like you weren't right there getting into trouble with him," he points out. At least, if that 'cluster' crap they alluded to by the Blue Rose. Which Peridot had been eager to shut down discussion of. "What was that about?"
periphrasing: (Um. Gosh. Okay. Fine.)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-01-31 05:42 am (UTC)(link)
Eager to shut it down then, reluctant to expound on it now. Anything casual about Peridot's demeanor just shrivels away, her posture going rigid.

She starts to say loudly, defensively: "It's not like I chose to put myself into danger, I-- Ugh." She huffs, crosses her arms and pointedly glances away. "It's like we both said back in the Rose's chamber. Steven and I confronted an entity together, back on our version of Earth. An amalgamate, a geo-weapon... Thousands of shattered gems all fused together to form a single being. We were meant to destroy it, but Steven found a way to talk to it instead, like he was hoping to do with the Blue Rose."
Edited 2018-01-31 18:22 (UTC)
whattaprick: commissioned art! (♈ cause i turn that beat to thunder)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-01-31 09:58 pm (UTC)(link)
'I never said you did,' Lambert would point out, but Peridot keeps talking and he loses the opportunity. To be honest, it still doesn't entirely make sense to him -- Steven talked to a weapon? -- and he doesn't understand why she seems so hung up about it. It sounds like Steven did all the work. Maybe it's an inferiority complex?

"Sounds like something Steven would do," he says, like this is totally normal and not all weird. After all, this is the Carnival. If a spell could rewrite reality hard enough to make them live through years that reshaped their identity is something that can exist, everything else is plausible enough.
periphrasing: (MMMMM nope I can't)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-01-31 11:04 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yeah," she agrees, glancing back towards the tent with just the slightest hint of a fond smile quirking her lips. "He's pretty great at that sort of thing... Making peace, finding solutions that I wouldn't have ever thought possible..."

That hint of a smile fades, and she hesitates before adding: "He really tries to find the good in everyone. In me, in the Cluster..." She snorts. "Even in Jasper, for whatever good that wound up doing. It's no surprise he'd try just as hard with a stupid rose."
whattaprick: (did you even notice?)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-03 06:55 pm (UTC)(link)
"That's going to get him killed one day," Lambert answers, simply, but Peridot is probably aware of at least that much herself already. That kind of optimism just doesn't have that kind of place in this world.

"Was his mother like that too?"
periphrasing: (Meh.)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-03 08:54 pm (UTC)(link)
Actually, Lambert's comment is kind of disquieting? Peridot has never really considered what might happen if Steven's luck ever did run out completely, or at least she hasn't heard it summed up in such stark terms. Things always tend to work out one way or another for their little gang, so it's hard to imagine otherwise.

...Then again, the kid may also be a lot harder to kill than the witcher knows. Either way the comment causes a flash of discomfort to overtake her expression, just for a moment.

"I'm assuming you mean his actual gem mother, and not the crazy fae one that he got slapped with in Portland?" she asks, refocusing on the question at hand. "No idea. I never actually met her... She had long since ceased to exist before I even came to Earth, let alone met Steven. The only side of Rose Quartz that I've ever known is the version the Diamonds always preached back on Homeworld: The terrifying rebel leader and diamond shatterer, who preached anarchy and turned good gems against their betters."

She's kind of. Waving her hands in a mocking ooooh spooky gesture at each emphasized point.
Edited 2018-02-04 15:32 (UTC)
whattaprick: (Default)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-06 11:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Lambert is used to people being unsettled by death, so Peridot's visible discomfort doesn't mean much to him besides being a reaction he pretty much expected.

"I thought gems lived for a long time," Lambert muses, brows raised. Steven had mentioned the whole rebellion thing, but Lambert wasn't quite sure he believed it, though Peridot's version of events seems to confirm it. "How'd she die?"

He figures if it was a sensitive subject, she wouldn't have brought it up.
periphrasing: (aight hands off)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-07 01:01 am (UTC)(link)
Hey, it's not a sensitive subject to Peridot. Lambert's in the clear here.

"Heck if I know," she says irreverently. "Evidently it had something to do with whatever process produced Steven, since her gem is a part of him. Which, I suppose it isn't really surprising that something like that would cause her to succumb to something as unnatural as death, since gems aren't meant to--" and she looks utterly disgusted when she says the next part, the words unsavory on her tongue-- "give birth."

She shakes her head. "Don't even ask me how that was supposed to work. I mean, I generally pride myself on my inquisitive tendencies? But that's a mystery I do not particularly want the answers to."
Edited 2018-02-07 01:04 (UTC)
whattaprick: (eeeyyy lmao)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-07 08:54 pm (UTC)(link)
To be fair to Peridot, giving birth is usually a bit of an unsavory process even for actual organics, so it's a pretty gross topic as far as Lambert's concerned too. But trying to imagine someone who looks like Lapis or Peridot getting together with Greg Universe to produce Steven is sort of a headache.

Normally, it's also something he'd make a filthy joke about to take advantage of her obvious discomfort, but he just isn't feeling it right now. Steven's mother dying during childbirth, whatever that looks like for a gem, must give you a whole new set of issues.

"Neither do I," he shakes his head. Though now that he's thinking about it... "Steven's dad was here for a while, wasn't he?" It's a vague, hazy sort of knowledge, the kind where you see people around and know they're related but also don't really have a reason to invest in or care for them. "But then he left."
periphrasing: (How do I put this lightly...)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-08 01:13 am (UTC)(link)
"A whole bunch of people from our world left after Portland happened," Peridot shrugs. "For one reason or another. Sucks for Steven, though... I'm pretty sure he made his contract with the Ringmaster exclusively to protect his dad."
whattaprick: (Default)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-08 02:53 am (UTC)(link)
"Wouldn't be the first person to make a contract that turned out to be useless," Lambert muses. He's not thinking of himself, but of Strange.
periphrasing: (MMMMM nope I can't)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-08 09:00 pm (UTC)(link)
"Well... it won't be useless forever, if you think about it. Greg is still in debt. He'll have to come back and finish his contract at one point or another."

Their home universe hasn't proven much safer for the poor guy anyway. What with the alien abductions and the ever-present threat of Homeworld gems popping up to cause trouble...

Peridot falls quiet. Thinking about Greg, and then about Homeworld, makes for a quick jump back to the Cluster, and how uncomfortable she is now, with the prospect of explaining how she first arrived on Earth. It's not like it's a closely guarded secret or anything, and no one is exactly pressuring her to spill the beans, but. All the same? She's worried that her friends might resent her after all if they knew the truth. After explaining everything to 9S and having it count for exactly nothing, it's hard NOT to be concerned. Even Strange had acted a bit weird when they'd touched on the edge of the topic.

It's getting late, and Peridot knows she should really check in on Steven, and let Lambert go change out of his gross shirt already. Before she does, though...

"Hey. Can I ask you something?" she says, staring with a frown at the ground a little ways ahead.
whattaprick: (Default)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-08 09:52 pm (UTC)(link)
The lapse into silence kind of felt like the end to a conversation, without actually being dismissed, giving Lambert a moment to lapse into his own thoughts. When Peridot speaks up, though --

"What is it?" he asks, frowning. He's already had one uncomfortably heartfelt conversation this night; he's not sure he's up to another.
periphrasing: (periblush)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-09 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
"I-- Hmmph," she starts and then breaks off, frown deepening. What the heck is she even trying to ask? She craves reassurance, some kind of validation, but stars she'd never be so bold as to ask directly for that, and even if she did it would certainly provoke a lot of questions to contextualize the request. And that's to say nothing of the fact that she's barking up the most wrong tree possible pestering Lambert for that kind of support.

On the other hand... Peridot feels she desperately needs some sort of feedback on this dilemma, and who the heck is she going to ask? She can't ask anyone from her own world; they're all obviously too biased by how great she is to give an honest answer. She already saw how Strange reacted to this sort of thing, and she's not entirely sure she trusts Sans to take her seriously. Lambert's kind of the only option, and he's the guy she trusts the most.

"Neehhh... Do you... Believe that it's possible for someone to make amends for something that they did in the past that was really, really bad, by doing something really really good?" she asks slowly, pointedly avoiding making eye contact by continuing to stare at the ground ahead.
whattaprick: (sincerity)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-09 10:24 am (UTC)(link)
The more Peridot hems and haws about it, the deeper Lambert's concern grows -- what could be bothering her this much? -- but the question isn't what he expected. It's surprisingly heavy stuff, and he doesn't particularly need a high amount of empathy to understand that it's a fairly big deal to her, even though he doesn't see why it should be. As such, he's going to at least try to give the question the serious consideration it deserves before he gives her his reply, crossing his arms over his chest.

"On principle? No. Whatever someone does afterwards won't change the fact that it happened, and that it sucked. But..." he tilts his head, consideringly. "Guess that depends more on who they're trying to make it up to, doesn't it? People have different ideas about what's bad and what's good, what they'll forgive and what they won't. Can't please everyone ... but maybe you don't have to. Why waste time on the people who don't matter?"
Edited 2018-02-09 10:28 (UTC)
periphrasing: (I am concerned.)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-11 04:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Initially, when she hears the word 'no', Peridot's heart sinks, and her whole demeanor starts to just droop. She's listening to Lambert's words carefully, taking everything to heart. By the end, she looks more confused. Edging on distressed, even.

"But-- What if it's someone who does matter?" she blurts out; she was intending on hearing Lambert's answer and then ending the conversation there, but she can't help but ask. "What if they only just found out about this thing, because you never felt it relevant to mention before?"
whattaprick: (smug as fuck)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-16 05:57 am (UTC)(link)
And in answer to Peridot's distress, Lambert scowls, feeling put out. Steven looking at him for answers, Peridot looking to him for answers ... do they really think he knows anything about this kind of stuff? Although he does have to say--

"You can't really make amends for something the other person doesn't know about, can you? Sort of misses the point."
Edited 2018-02-16 05:58 (UTC)
periphrasing: ((BLUSHES))

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-18 02:47 am (UTC)(link)
Poor Lambert. His advice actually would have been really helpful, if it had actually applied to what Peridot is fretting over.

“I… guess that’s true,” she says reluctantly, staring down at her feet now. She kind of scuffs the ground with one foot, and sighs. “Sorry. I’m… being emotional, I know. I’ll let you go, so you can change out of your disgusting shirt.”
whattaprick: (don't know why you're not h-a-p-p-y)

[personal profile] whattaprick 2018-02-18 12:22 pm (UTC)(link)
It happens without really thinking about it -- maybe it's because she looks too despondent to let it go, maybe because he's tired and it's a lingering remnant of another life that, according to Childermass, they actually lived -- but when Peridot looks down, Lambert reaches out to rest a hand between her horns.

"Whatever it is, you'll figure it out." And naturally, since he can't let any moment of affection go without tweaking Peridot's nose about it, he punctuates that by ruffling the hair under his fingers and making a thorough mess before he pulls away, grinning like the shithead he is.

"Good night, Peridot."
periphrasing: (perimorse)

[personal profile] periphrasing 2018-02-22 12:59 am (UTC)(link)
Peridot lets out a little surprised grunt at the contact, and then makes a weird guttural/gurgling noise when Lambert starts mussing up her hair. It's a ridiculous sound, and she makes an equally ridiculous face while making it.

"Yeah, goodnight," she snorts, trying to fix her hair as he turns and walks away. She watches him until he disappears from sight, a thoughtful frown on her lips, before turning and heading into the medical tent.