⇨ CAMPING GROUNDS

[ringleaders]

Who: Everybody!
When: Day 64
Where: The Camping Grounds
What: While the Ringmaster attempts to purge the carnival of magical tracing spells and deal with the angry fire fae in her belly, everyone else is getting sent on an emergency camping trip with some unusual local fauna.
Warnings: Camping.

CRYPTIC CAMPGROUNDS↴ You're given about three hours to prepare, after the Ringmaster tells you her plans for the coming week. There is a vast selection of camping equipment at your disposal, and the means to take along enough food for the length of the stay. The wilderness of the planet you're left on is nearly idyllic, but some people just don't like the great outdoors. ► CRYPTOZOOLOGY: As it turns out, the carnival won't be alone here. There is a varied ecosystem of cryptids to be found as well, living in relative peace and mostly reacting to the newcomers with curiousity. More details can be found on the plotting post. You are free to NPC the cryptids as much as you need to, as long as you stick to the behaviours described. ► DREAMSHARING: There is a player plot going on which will allow characters to share dreams! These are specifically more dreams than nightmares, and the mushi-adept characters will be here to help. ► CHILLAX: There isn't any plot twist for this setting, so this is mostly an opportunity to decompress from the last plot and get ready for the future. The Ringmaster will show up occasionally to help with needed medical treatments and check on things, but won't stick around for long.

Comments

[pipers_son]

Size of a Pomeranian... Joker laughs. After all, she's not wrong. Even as a villain, Steven had been hilariously endearing. A shame that he'd been so miserable after all of that.

"But he's a tough little Pomeranian, right?"

[fortuneglass]

Well, she'd been referring to Gongenzaka when she mentioned the pomeranian...

Big Deputy Dog got himself shrunk into a mascot for a bit there. (If she were to compare Steven to a dog, it would be a Chow puppy.)

But misunderstandings continue, and Carly shrugs. "Well...he was. We both know how big Gongenzaka typically is..." She huffs. "Seriously though, using Steven as your shield..."

[pipers_son]

Listen, in his defense, there was so much happening there, it's easy to have it slip his mind on who got changed into what weird thing. That was all a mess.

"Bein' tiny just made him all the more endearin' in a whole new way~." Zaka is just such a charming boy, after all. "And anyway, Steven was just the only one willin' ta trust me! Tanyuu sorta.... nearly killed me, after all."

Along with her brother. And Scout. It was a bad time.

[insidescoop]

"Hmnnnn...she was sort of scary, come to think..." As to the others, that's what moving to different background positions does Joker. That's what it does.

"...But I'm not going to hold it against you too much. Maybe a bit of judgement..." Human Child Shields, Joker, "...But it isn't like we were all thinking straight when you were around after all..!"

[pipers_son]

Listen, it wasn't like he was really using Steven as a shield, just their relationship...!!

"Yeah, that seemed ta mess up all sorts of folks. I can just imagine how it would have affected the rest of us. Glad it didn't do that much, then." He heaves out a sigh. "Would have preferred we hadn't gotten dragged in at all, 'tho. Still." He starts to dig through his bag.

"S'all I wanted ta get off my chest."

[insidescoop]

"The harder they fall, right..?" she weakly adds, unable to completely laugh about it. "...We got out of it, at least. And...I'm glad you decided to come forward, too!" she adds, nodding.

"...It's important to not dwell on things like this, I think..."

[pipers_son]

"Ha, yeah." Setting some of the basics out of his bag, Joker pauses to rub the back of his neck. Why does this remind him of something... Oh, right, of course. Obviously.

"I've been told I should probably be more open about stuff like that... So I figured, well, don't wanna make Carly of all people made, she might really carry on that threat ta put me in embarrassin' clothin'."

[insidescoop]

"It's true, I will~" she cheerfully replies. "Did you see Lambert's shirts yet~?"

Evidently, this was a wise choice. She sobers quickly however- from a bubbly grin to a calmer smile, if not a sad one. "...I've been wondering if I should do the same. ....It's a little hard I think- risking someone's happiness like that, making people worry! But..."

Carly swallows, and sighs. "...I guess in the long run, it's trying to prevent that too much, that hurts everyone most. ...It certainly doesn't make doing our jobs any easier."

[pipers_son]

"Not yet, but I can't wait ta get the full view~." Assuming Lambert will stay still long enough, of course. For either him or Carly, well, it's up in the air. It doesn't really matter in the end.

After all, like so many things, it's just a fun little distraction, something light in the air so that the heaviness of their discussion doesn't drag them down so much. Well, maybe in another conversation, with other people, it would be a full distraction so that everything else is brushed off and hidden again. It's temping, but.... Feathers presses against his back, right inbetween his wings, watching him as he starts to get out some of the material that will make the tent proper.

"S'what I've heard," is all he can say to her words, which isn't much at all. He gives it another tentative try, trying to keep his voice airy and not nearly so fidgety as he wants to be. "I don't think that sorta thing makes it any easier, s'pecially when it's someone real close ta ya whose happiness yer thinkin' of. Right?"

Totally not something he's always thinking about or anything.

[insidescoop]

There will definitely be at least one day to see it. She made certain of it.

Granted Lambert could easily have just not worn the shirt but hey, he's being a good sport about it. So Carly simply stretches and casts her mind away from the matter, thinking of better things herself.

It lasts for until Joker says that. Then she just deflates, and sighs. "Hauuuhhhhh.... definitely not..." she groans.

[pipers_son]

"Ha ha." Leaning backwards, wings bending in ways that would be uncomfortable to anyone with regular bones and joints, he reaches backwards to swat lightly at her leg.

"There there. People, always so hard ta manage, right?"

[insidescoop]

"The hardest..." she groans. But for now, at least- "...at least we can just relax here..."

[pipers_son]

"Ha, that's true." Straightening up again and having to nudge Feathers out of the way to do so, Joker chuckles. "It'll be good for all of us. There's been too much goin' on. Remember when it used ta be simpler?"

[insidescoop]

"Hhhhhauuuhh, do I ever.... ...even just being the 'lone tailor' was less intensive..." she sighs.

"Mnnh...I suppose it's better to have the official role than just sew everything though..." And it's not as though she wasn't mother-henning people already.

[pipers_son]

"Ha. Well, it's a role that suits ya." Moving around, he has Feathers hold down one peg.

"I'm glad ta see that ya stepped up ta the role when it became clear we needed someone new."

[fortuneglass]

"Well!" she hums, looking around for a peg to help out with. "It's the least I could do, I was already doing the job almost..."

She does laugh a bit nervously however. "Ahe...I... I just hope everyone's been alright with the stumbling about I did getting used to it ahahahahaaaa..."

EMBARRASSING!

[pipers_son]

"It's fine." Joker spares a hand for a moment- which is still a really great thing that he rather likes, thanks- to wave at her. "It wasn't that bad, if ya ask me. All ya had ta do was get used ta bein' in charge and all that." Moving to another, he reaches out with one of his wings to lightly smack at her.

"Have a lil' more confidence."

[insidescoop]

"Hauuuhhh, not to mention figure out how to be authoritative in my own way..." She actually has to pause. "H..hey, I figured that one out right? It's not all weird and scary or ineffective when I give orders..?"

It is absolutely always one of those.

Anyway. "....phew...w..well. If you think I'm doing ok, then!!" She cheers to change the subject, hammering a peg down.

[pipers_son]

Oh, it is absolutely always one of those, and Joker's grin spreads slyly across his face. "Oh, it's often scary," he says, going with the more hilarious of the two options. At least, it's hilarious to him, considering how often he gets to see Carly be such a dork normally. Maybe his sense of humor is just warped.

"If yer not careful, you'll end up traumatizin' one of the people under ya~." Voice rising up sing-song, he finishes with the pegs on his end.

[insidescoop]

That..............was the wrong thing to say.

"I..." Actually Carly looks ready to break already. "N-No..! I really hurt one of my workers, trying to pretend to be like that..!! I can't still be doing that..!!"

[pipers_son]

Oh boy. Joker lightly bats her with his wing already.

"I know, Carly," he says, a good deal more gentle. "S'just a tease. I know yer more careful than that."

[fortuneglass]

"It..." It's hard for her to simply get cheery again, even with the placation. Carly sighs, trying her best to smile when she doesn't quite feel it. "...It's something I really want to avoid, is all..."

[pipers_son]

Alright, time for him to get up onto his feet. Hey, Carly, how much do you really care about your personal space? Because it's being invaded as he goes around to lean against her in a back hug. Even with his right arm back, he uses his wooden one.

"And if yer thinkin' about it so carefully," he tells her, "then that means you'll definitely manage it. Everyone has faith in ya, Carly."

[insidescoop]

Carly invades too many personal bubbles to be allowed to really care. As it is the motion is appreciated, considering how much she deflates.

"...I certainly didn't manage it after the manor, I don't think..."

[pipers_son]

"None of us did." Joker says it bluntly, forgoing any of the usual dancing around. "I mean, Sans got caught and started harassin' us, I got caught and made a bleedin' fool of myself- "

You know, because that's what being tortured in prison and being changed into an animal for his loved ones to kill is.

"And basically it was everyone's worst moment. If yer gonna be hard on yerself, be hard on all of us."