week one: mingle

[cyclists]

Week One
30 in Competition

As the sun rises on Monday morning, all participants will find themselves awakening with a sense of purpose. Regardless of where they slept the night before, they’ll find themselves compelled to return to the main meeting hall first thing in the morning.

Approaching the hall, however, they will find a large, swirling mass grey in color looming near the sakura tree. This swirl cannot be approached just yet, but seems to be locked and waiting for something more.

As the last member of the village enters the hall, they will find Lune and Sol at the head of the room. Though they’re together, it’s Sol who speaks up first this time.

“Last night, Lune and I were finally able to get some answers. Or, at least, something we can do to help. The core’s still experiencing fluctuations and some instability, but we’ve figured out a place some of it might be coming from.”

They stop, excitedly holding up a scroll.

“This core is connected to several worlds out there. It’s the heart of the universe and everything that happens here can be affected by the outside, and can affect the worlds you come from. We found somewhere that seems to have a source of darkness lurking around…if we find it and clear the corruption, we can help stabilize the core a little more and help protect yourselves while you’re here.”

With that, they seem to lose steam just a little, looking back at Lune for a moment before nodding.

“So, uh…we were able to open a gateway for you to this world. Checking it out might help us pinpoint the source and get this done faster, so…leave whenever you’re ready. There’ll be another gate on the other side to bring you back here.”

That seems to be it, though Sol looks back to Lune again. “Anything else?”

"Look after one another," they repeat again. "And do not believe it is possible to be over-cautious."

The moment participants leave the hall, they will find that the gateway has changed from grey to white, the opening widening enough for multiple people to step through. The Signs will soon take their leave, and all will remain peaceful once more.

In addition, as the week goes on, partners will find that a simple touch (even accidental) may incite the bond between them to grow stronger for a moment. They will experience a swap of memories through their connection, taking a moment to see a piece of their partner's past without any control over what exactly is being shared.



Welcome to your week one mingle! Please note that as of this week, murder proposals are open. CYOA sign-ups are also live, and will close at Tuesday, 8 AM PST. They will be running on Tuesday afternoon and evening, so please be mindful of your own availability!

In addition, ensure that all of your week zero private conversations were reported on the page, and your week one private conversations are reported on that page. If you'll be taking anything from locations, please report that as well.

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Comments

[coastal]

[wow this is

dumb

because if she has two hands then it's not like lili's just going to let his sword fall to the ground?? she'll catch it by the hilt before it impacts the ground

so they've just

traded.

ao, the squirrel, will just curl up against kara though because that's how it's choosing to say thank you]

Don't just drop your sword...?!

[unfriendliest]

[ so on the one hand, he is now holding a cute squirrel, and that kind of makes his day?

on the other

someone

is touching

his sword

so in spite of having an armful of squirrel, he tenses, eyes locked onto where she's holding him. ]

Give it back.

[ though his voice is still relatively even, there's a faint note of stress in it. this is not the reaction he should be feeling while holding a small animal. ]

[coastal]

Be more mindful. If you care so much about your comrade's sword, care just as much about your own.

[she's just huffing over nothing now, and she's not going to like. hold the sword hostage? she'll be careful when she offers the sword back to him

ao will be helpful and scamper up to rest on kara's shoulder instead, like she's used to hanging out with a bunch of weirdos

(she is)]

... and thank you for helping me free Ao.

[kara deadass did most of the work]

[unfriendliest]

[ like he has to be told that - the only thing keeping him from snatching it from lili is the squirrel in his arms, so as soon as she's settled on his shoulder, he takes the sword back. only when its comfortably sheathed again does he begin to relax.

it still takes a moment for him to be comfortable enough to ask: ]

That's its name?

[ now that he's not being touched, he's okay with reaching up to give her a pat. ]

[coastal]

[ . . . weird reaction. she crosses her arms though, observing him for a second. it makes her wonder about some things - and she wonders if she needs to look at the scrolls again.

but it also doesn't feel right, because she's already said that she doesn't really care what they say about people when she can learn about it from them directly.

so she'll let it drop for now]

Mm. Her name. Ao.

... she is a companion of.... a good friend of mine.

[ . . . ]

I wonder why she's here.

[not that Ao is thinking about that, she'll just happily accept the pat]

[unfriendliest]

[ well if she's not going to address it neither will he

he'll just focus on petting the squirrel then ]

Ao...

[ soft ]

[coastal]

[ . . . cute.

Ao is super down to be spoiled, just leaning into the touch and making soft squirrel chatter noises]

....

[lili's going to turn away now because it feels STUPID to just WATCH even if it's kind of endearing. why do boys happen, huh.]

I'm going to see if there's anything she can eat...

[unfriendliest]

[ he is so content to sit here and pet this squirrel, but lili is right, it needs food ]

There are squirrels in the western area, right?

[coastal]

There should be... I've seen her eat all manner of things. She even liked the seafood stew we prepared once.

But she normally has plenty of acorns on hand.

[somehow]

[unfriendliest]

So... if I cook, she'll eat it?

[ interesting but where would he even start? tigers and foxes are one thing, but he's never cooked for a squirrel. ]

[coastal]

... well, she'll try.

[lili doesn't know if it's all safe for her but also like

she's survived this long]

[unfriendliest]

Maybe... aburage?

[ the other animals like it?? ]

[coastal]

... what is aburage....

[unfriendliest]

Fried tofu with rice.

[ it. doesn't sound that appetizing on its own, huh. ]

...The kitsune like it.

[coastal]

... can I watch you make it?

[she might as well make this a learning moment]

[unfriendliest]

[ uhhh why it's not that interesting ]

If you want.

[coastal]

Don't look so wary - I can't keep relying on Nana for food.

[sHE HAS TO LEARN!!]

[unfriendliest]

[ he's less wary than confused, but who's he to clarify? kara can appreciate the initiative, either way. ]

I don't mind.

[ if he were anyone else he might offer to teach her

but nah ]

[coastal]

[to be fair lili asks a lot of questions so as long as he answers, he's still teaching her more or less]

Then let's go.

I haven't eaten yet either...

[sHE WANTS TO BE FED TOO, APPARENTLY]

[unfriendliest]

[ ah

that's fine i guess? not like he hasn't been cooking for everyone anyways

with a roll of his eyes, he'll turn and head toward the kitchen. fate accepted. ]

[coastal]

[neat. she'S COMING WITH

and opening her palms out as she follows along - which ao will notice and leap from kara's shoulder into lili's hands]

How did they put you in a box... Did they take you from Yona...?

[unfriendliest]

[ oh



goodbye ao

kara is a little disappointed, but he couldn't cook with a squirrel on his shoulder anyway, so it's probably for the best. when they reach the kitchen, he'll leave lili to her new squirrel friend while he goes to pull all the ingredients out. ]

[coastal]

[well. ao is not exactly going to have anything to tell lili.

but she is going to wander over closer to kara and observe which ingredients are being grabbed. ao will move from her shoulder up to rest on top of her head, flopping and holding on as she also watches kara move]

I was looking for red miso paste earlier and couldn't find any...

[let's also be clear

she's not entirely sure what she should've been looking for]

[unfriendliest]

[ there's not a lot to aburage, just a handful of ingredients, so he's just gathered everything when lili speaks up again. he pauses, and then moves to the refrigerator to find something else ]

It's here.

[ voila, one container of red miso paste! ]

[coastal]

Oh.

[and she'll reach her hands out for it.

ao, on top of her head, mimics the motion]

... I'm going to make some later.

[she wants to try it since he mentioned it]