SETTLING IN (OPEN MINGLE - JULY 1-7 PERIOD)

[oneandmikleonly]

It's a much bigger group that trickles in to the home base from the monolith, by Seamoth or Seaglide, by magic or tech or just pure swimming power. Some of them are supporting the less aquatically-inclined newbies; some are in dire need of a rest from fighting that Reaper. Fortunately, with all the expansions and additions people made in June, the base isn't bursting at the seams quite yet, but fifty-odd people still makes for quite a crowd...

(VERY LOOSE) PROMPTS:

I. the spirit of discovery
[Newbies, there's so much to do! So much to see! Some of you brought your own things, but you'll also be getting your gear and your nanite modifications at the base, including the handy-dandy telepathy older crew have been demonstrating. There's tech everywhere; experiments and constructs in progress in the lab; a modest library to browse; aquariums of fishy friends; URSULA to meet; perhaps a couple of her helpful drones roving about if you wanted to futz with them. There's the sealife of the Safe Shallows to see (so much less threatening than a Reaper!), either on your way in, or if you sneak out later, or from safely behind glass in the observatory. There's the horrendous discovery that there are now several dozen people in this place, and one single toilet.

Older crew, there's plenty for you too! Are you showing newbies around? Maybe taking a couple to the med bay to rest up, since they came out of that dream business in pretty rough shape? Finding someplace to tuck yourself away after all the excitement, or launching yourself out the nearest hatch to get away from the increased crowd? Maybe some of you recognize each other, and are comparing what you last remember before coming here...]


II. domestic b...liss...?
[A bit later on, with everyone more or less in one place and one piece, maybe it's time to get a bit more organized, or play around a little with what's becoming more familiar. Perhaps it's time for round-robin introductions? Maybe you want to hold cooking lessons and get new people familiarized with what they can eat here. Or swimming lessons so folks can get around more easily. Or, if you're more mechanically-minded, it might be time to consult people and figure out some further expansions and accommodations -- though don't forget that hurricane season is coming. Maybe it's just time to built a giant fort out of all these air mattresses and have the mother of all underwater sleepovers. Your call!]


III. where the wild things are
[For new crew, the Void Song and the ocean still have a powerful pull. The dreamscape appears to still be open for this week, as well.

Do you give in to those strange, sleepy, oceanic impulses and head back out into the water, swimming to who knows where? Are you an older crew member trying to keep newbies from doing that? Maybe one of you sang the Void Song to someone to wake them, and have noticed the effects...]


IV. wildcard
[Have something else in mind? Go for it!]

Comments

[parodeity]

You can borrow mine, I don't mind.

[ why would you want to, though ]

How goes the settlin' in shit?

[potentite]

Everyone remains to me as frightfully nerve-racking to talk to as they did previously. I can at least talk a mite bit but the toll it takes wears me out. I don't know what I'm doing. It's so hard to hold conversations?

[parodeity]

Shuttin' up is the one problem I've never had.

[ serious conversations are another story but just talking? yeah, dave strider can talk about bullshit forever. ]

What do you find hard about it? Just like. Nerves talkin' to people?

[ he's curious, but won't bug jake if jake declines to answer, since. that would be mean. ]

[potentite]

[He's still a little shy around Dave but he wants to try explaining it.]

Kind of? It is that but it's also... [Man, he doesn't know how to word this in a way that sounds normal.] Maybe just that I haven't known enough real human beings in my life? The scarcity of actual interaction in my life that doesn't involve a computer is limited at best. But Dirk and Roxy and Jane hadn't, either, and well— I have no idea about Jane actually, she was rather unconscious but Dirk and Roxy are fine? So maybe it's just something wrong with me that I know but don't consciously know because my noggin is a mess.

[parodeity]

What the fuck do you mean "know but don't consciously know"?

[ THAT SOUNDS LIKE HOMESTUCK BULLSHIT AND DAVE IS APPROPRIATE WEARY SOUNDING. ]

Idk. I get the feeling all of us didn't have tons of interaction outside of people linked to sburb or sgrub or whatever you wanna call it? I don't think it's something wrong with you though. Everyone deals with shit in different ways. I don't think any particular way of "dealing with people" is like, the worst way. Except like. Punching them out as hello or something, avoid that and you're probably good?

[potentite]

Uh. It's complicated? The head thing. It's weird. [HE CAN'T HELP BEING SUBJECT TO WEIRD SHIT.] I mean, you are right but... it still feels like something I should be able to help. Maybe I can? Do I secretly like this? Jesus fucking dickens I hate my thought trains. They chug along and careen into valleys of self-loathing and confusion.

[parodeity]

Is it a sburb thing because I feel like most of the confusin' complicated shit we gotta put up with is a sburb thing. [ HE KNOWS HOW YOU OPERATE, P SPACE. ]

You're overcomplicatin' it. You don't sound like you like it, I'm pretty sure you therefore don't secretly like it, what would even be the point in trickin' yourself about that?

[ asks the guy who makes denial into an art form but whatever ]

[potentite]

It's a Page thing apparently so yes. [Which is why he doesn't know if he secretly feels differently? God he hates everything.] I just don't want to hornswoggle myself into some hilariously ironic fantasy world 2: the electric boogaloo. My denial needs no sequels nor prequels or even spin-off materials.

[parodeity]

Oh, ok, no need for further explanation. Although for the record I am still confused.

[ he's pretty sure if it's a sburb thing he would still be confused even if an explanation occurred, though, so it's ok. ]

I get that. But one of the nice things about this place? Even if you're not me, there's lots of time to think about shit. At like, your own pace? I think it's been kinda helpful to just. Not be fighting shit or worrying about fighting shit all the time. We can all work on like, only bein' partial fuck-ups or something.

[potentite]

Oh! [He looks so surprised as if Dave said something really deep just now, because to him he did.] I wonder if that's it? I haven't thought before. I avoided it entirely in fact. The jiggery-pokery I did upon myself couldn't be shaken by even the most explosive kerfluffles until recent events. Usually I could just go get into a roaring good scrum if I needed it.

[parodeity]

[







what the fuck did jake just say to him.

should he telepathically ask dirk for a translation????????? ]

I can personally attest to thinkin' about shit actually bein' a useful thing.

[ did what he just said make context in relation to what jake just said dave doesn't know ]

[potentite]

Bully! Now we're cooking with gas. You really are a hanging gent, Dave. [He's excited. He gets it okay he gets why he's shy. It's stupid like everything else but it makes sense at least!!] Sorry for being such a goop. Maybe I just needed to talk about it with someone?

[parodeity]

[ at least one of them knows what jake's revelation is and at least that person is jake??? dave makes a mental note to ask dirk to train him in jakeisms. ]

Apparently that's helpful, too. I didn't start doin' it myself until fairly recently.

[potentite]

[Hey at least something worked out. That's Dave's power.]

Me either! Gabbing about fucked up emotions never felt like a fun time.

[parodeity]

[ accidentally Winning ]

Right? I only do it now because...

[ a vague hand gesture meant to convey dirk getting upset and staring at dave silently until he breaks although how do you convey that in a hand gesture.

dave.

dave, that's never going to be something anyone can pick up on ever. ]

[potentite]

[Page powers only work when Jake is actively trying and he has no clue what that means.]

...Because of the water? The Stalkers? [Are they playing charades.]

[parodeity]

[ dirk sometimes gets his vague hand gestures but dirk is an expert in dave strider conversation. and even he gets thrown sometimes. ]

What, no. Just Dirk.

[ rose has attempted to get dave to talk about his feelings and shit for years with little to show for it, but if there's any one person who is dave's biggest weak point (there are so many of those), it's probably dirk because dirk is a version of bro who actually gives a shit and dave would do anything not to fuck that up.

including feelings jams. ]

[potentite]

[His look softens and he nods.]

That's just like I told him. That's why he's Heart. He has a way about him, to connect in the ways you need, I think.

[Or Jake loves him but w/e he likes his version.]

He needs to stop thinking Heart is such a bad thing.

[parodeity]

That's not exactly why it works on me, but I do agree he's not the exact variety of monster he thinks he is.

[ which is to say: dave doesn't think dirk is perfect, and acknowledges that dirk could become the person who haunted his every second when he was a kid (haunts him even now) but.

the reason dirk works on dave is because he loves dirk so that version might be more relevant here, jake. ]

[potentite]

[It's not like he consciously thinks about Dave. Which is a good thing, really.]

That's true. I guess it might not work on you otherwise if you didn't already know him. Golly all these relationships sure are weird. Did you get to meet me?

[parodeity]

Are we talking about my universe version of you?

[ because like you were dead and stuffed and stuff and that feels Awkward to bring up? ]

[potentite]

Yeah! You said I stuffed animals.

[It's not awkward; they've all died.]

[parodeity]

Yeah you were like also a stuffed animal. Sorry. Jade's dog was kinda more her guardian?

[ pats jake's shoulder ]

It was apparently some sort of family tradition. The being taxidermied, not the dog raising you thing.

[potentite]

Well, shit. I was so lucky. I wanted to do that to grandma but I couldn't.

[It is indeed a family tradition.]

[parodeity]

[ he is so glad striders don't have that tradition.

granted, the only traditions they had were basically "lmao abuse" but hey. at least dave was reasonably sure his corpse would not be stuffed and left out to stare at people with -

ok no that actually sounds pretty cool. ]

I'm sure Jade'll forgive you for not being able to stuff post-scratch her.