ayto | Week 1 Mingle;

❤ Week 1 Mingle

Welcome to a new week, lovebirds! Monday dawns gray and misty, and it's actually not long before a thunderstorm rolls in! You can, of course, kiss dramatically in the yard in the rain and risk getting struck by lightning-- or you can stay inside, cuddle in the conversation pit, USE THE GODDAMN BOOM BOOM ROOM or do anything else until the storm blows over by the evening! Don't worry, the rest of the week will be bright and sunny and beautiful!

There's also a new section of the house, weirdly enough! There's a bright turquoise door located near the bedroom and opening it leads to... a massive indoor pool. The water is a pleasant temperature, there's a hot tub, there's an assortment of flotation devices for those of you who might have trouble swimming (tubes, life vests, boogie boards, pool noodles that can also be used to wage Deadly Combat if you are Sara and Kasque or Jeritza or anyone else ready for Violence). And if you somehow didn't pack a swimsuit because why on earth would your canon let you have one--

Worry not!! There's a rack of swimsuits in every size you lot could need! The catch (or not): they're all sexy. Like. Barely there sexy. Impossibly adhering to you sexy. Shoelaces would maybe cover more sexy. Absolutely great to play Chicken Fight in sexy. You get the idea.

Anything having to do with being able to write is still also Not Present.

Enjoy!!!

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[ There’s a brief pause as Blaze takes in what Marcille just said. She’s never been called out quite so succinctly before, but she’s hit the nail right on the head and Blaze can only laugh. It’s a bright, amused sound that rumbles between them where they’ve snuggled together under the blanket. ]

No one’s ever called me that before, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t accurate.

[ Blaze is happy to let Marcille close. A bit of contact never hurt anyone, and there’s been a bit too much distance between all of them this last week in her opinion. Even if it’s just casual, they’re due for a bit of cuddling! ]

That’s the question, isn’t it? In the end… will it really matter, so long as we’re happy? Surely that’s what’s going to count the most in the long run.

[Marcille looks proud of her correct assessment, her face lighting up into a contented little smile as she lays her head down on her arm. Of course it's accurate!]

I think it definitely matters! [she protests, though she is still smiling.] Just not for the reasons somebody might think. Because you're right...it matters more that we end up where we're happy.

[She splays her fingers out, then brings them back together, like she's trying to figure out how to start weaving a big story. Her studies on building a safe dungeon - a controlled environment, just like this show might be - seem so different now compared to the real thing.]

Everything that ever happens or has happened to us is the result of a choice we or someone else made. That's not...good or bad. Like magic, it's not a moral thing. But we want to be happy. So when the time comes for us to ask questions, like "what happens after the game?" or "how do we know we'll find each other again?" ... I don't know if I can answer those questions without thinking about why I'm asking them.

Um... [That was already quite a bit to chew on, but the last thing she says is just so earnest.] Also, it's really romantic if a love story defies certain fate!

[ She already has put a lot out there. Everyone here has chosen to be here, and for every one of them that did, there were likely a dozen more who refused. Are they supposed to take all those missed opportunities into account when it comes to their perfect match? Are they supposed to believe that this sort of thing can be genuine and real when someone who is actually perfect for them might still be out there?

Those are the risks they all signed for. The risks any of them take when pursuing a relationship even outside of this game. ]

You’ve really put a lot of thought into this, haven’t you?

[ And then there’s that last part, which really is so very earnest. It makes her laugh again. ]

I see, you’re a philosopher and a scholar of romance.

So what if I am! [So what if she has, Marcille is also saying, but that's a harder conversation, one that's hard to have when she's sleepily warm and they have something to giggle about.

She laughs, too, squirming again.] Seriously, if only I could have brought some books with me. You'd see. [Said with all the confidence in the world: Blaze, too, would find herself caught up in the labyrinthine journey of desire and intrigue and courtly love.]

... Besides, a lot of people here need an education on the principles of romance and affection. [This is...an understatement.] I bet even you'd learn a thing or two.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing!

[ On either front. Someone has to ask the hard questions, and she's certainly given Blaze something to think about - but yes, those thoughts or for another time. It's nice to share a laugh with someone, to gossip and chat and tease like it's the easiest thing in the world. ]

I've never claimed to be an expert on either.

[ Her hand moves under the blanket to prod Marcille in the ribs with a finger. ] Go on, then. Teach me a lesson.

[She jumps when she's poked in the ribcage, letting out another, squeakier and much less intentional giggle.]

Hey, hey! I'll tell you what you want!

[She takes a moment to collect her thoughts, then settles on the convention that controls so much of their time here.] Well, I think I know why we're in this setup to begin with.

It's called "forced proximity." When people are stuck in a closed space without outside contact. Like... The castle is walled in by a great blizzard, and you have to share blankets around the fireplace and wait for the storm to subside. Or a vacation on a house on an island that's only accessible by strange means, when all the beds are together. Everyone learns more about each other and gets closer together to survive.

The Overseer is waiting for us to realize that. But... I think the reason some of us are finding it hard to open up yet is that, well, what's missing. Trust. If we want to get closer, we need to show one another who we can depend on.

That someone is worth going into the snow for.

Ah, wait, I know this. I might have read a bodice ripper or two in my day with a similar sort of plot.

[ By forcing the characters together physically, they are also forced to open up emotionally. It’s certainly a good method for getting them to be close - in multiple ways - in so short a time.

She just didn’t realize this was the same ploy until Marcille pointed it out. ]

That’s a lovely sentiment, Marcille. Tell me, is there anyone here you’d go out into the snow for yet?

See! You do know more than you let on already! Let me read them sometime.

[She follows that with a playful swat. And after she went through and gave that whole explanation...]

Hm... if we're sticking with the story, then I'd actually it's like - no one's run out of firewood yet? [Nothing's come to push her into anyone in a way that she can see herself sharing herself totally openly with.]

But there are people I'd share a blanket with while we wait for that time. [She lifts the corner of the one they're under and gives it a little shake, indicating she means both in the metaphorical sense of the metaphor and literally.

Then Marcille's voice gets smaller.] When I agreed to this I thought that... maybe if someone had seen me and felt something, they'd put their arms out for me first.

Week 1 Mingle;

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