hotelcaelum | Event Log #002

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Event Log #002

EVENT LOG
number 002

The hotel humbly hopes that you're settling in well and are taking advantage of the various pleasures on offer for your stay. In Mr Bennet's opinion, things have been going quite well and he doesn't think that the guests are unhappy at all. New guests have arrived, some have left, it's all going along perfectly. So, of course, this is when the next troublesome thing pops up.

SHADOWS

One morning, characters will find the hotel to be a little dimmer than usual, a little more shadowy. Yet if anyone asks Mr Bennet about it, he will claim to not have noticed anything different than usual. Either way, as the characters move on with their day, they'll start to notice a few odd things start to happen.

PHASE ONE: Initially, characters will notice their shadow beginning to move a little out of sync with them. Discreetly at first until eventually, their shadow takes on a life of its own, mischievously playing with characters and enjoying their newfound freedom. Very Peter Pan, and completely harmless.

PHASE TWO: Now, shadows might disappear entirely, roaming the hotel to their own discretion and ignoring the characters they belong to. As the shadow takes on this free will, characters will begin to feel slightly off balance and have a hard time feeling whole without their shadow around. The shadow may become slightly aggressive as well if told they should return to their characters, fighting back in their own way from knocking things over to outright attacking other characters. It's a little hard to fight back though when your opponent is a shadow, isn't it?

PHASE THREE: The shadows have become fully aggressive now, fighting anyone who tries to get them to return to their original person. Characters will find themselves feeling weak and low energy as a result of losing their shadow. Eventually, the shadows will come back to their owners but the characters will find themselves sinking into their shadow, eventually changing places entirely with their shadow. The only way to rescue a character from this fate is for another character to pull them out of their shadow forcibly. The bright side is once a character is pulled out of their shadow, it all returns to normal and their shadow is no longer sentient.

These phases will last over the course of the week and it is quite alright to stay in phase one/two/three. Not all shadows will become aggressive, not all shadows will be playful. Feel free to manipulate your character's shadow in the way that's most fun for you.

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[It's a different kind of exhaustion from the restaurant. He was still exuberant then, but this is more like resignation. Maybe this is the way Astarion really is. Still, Reiju can't shake the growing unease as she crouches down to reach his eye level, arms at her sides.]

You might not be able to come back up once you're under.

[She's correct, of course. This is resignation; and perhaps, in some of the darker moments he's experienced over his centuries of un-life, this is simply a part of Astarion that acquaintances rarely get to see.

He seems unbothered by the prospect of melting into the unknown void of his own shadow, his eyes remaining closed.]

I don't know if that would be so bad, darling.

[That doesn't sound right.

What happened to the man who wanted to be pampered? To seize an opportunity few would ever have? Then again, it would be hypocritical of her to hold onto those impressions. She doesn't truly know this man.

Still.]

You won't be able to redeem your wish if you go somewhere else now.

[His wish?

He opens his eyes again, still half-lidded, still bleary. This time, they do see to fix on her expression, now with her crouched so close.]

My wish? Perhaps not...

[His mouth tugs into a frown, faint.]

But don't you think they can manage without me?

["They." Though he doesn't say who that is, it's easy to assume his wish involves a goal that he's striving for with others. Something for them all, back home. And this exhausted, shadow-drained version of Astarion thinks his presence, maybe, isn't so critical to that success.]

[Her eyes narrow at his frown. It's a look of defeat from the inside, turned outward. It would be humiliating for any man even half as vain as Astarion, who still bears a certain spark behind the lethargy.

She considers grabbing his arm right then and there, if he didn't pose her a question. There's still time.]

I don't know. Are they important to you?

[Somehow, that question lances in deep. Even were he fully cognizant, harboring sharp awareness in his gaze, it would bring him pause. Admitting to others being important to him feels the same as carving himself open, but...

Maybe it's the weariness that makes him say, with no real hesitance beyond that moment of silence.]

Yes. We've been through so much together, at... this point, it would be silly to say otherwise.

[The displeasure in her expression drains at the answer. A wan smile tugs on her lips before she schools her features into something harder.]

Then it would be silly for them to go on without you.

[More precisely, it would be stupid of him to let all of that go if he's telling the truth.

Reiju is not particularly kind. Having said that, she can't ignore those familiar words. She leans forward to grasp Astarion by his arms just below his shoulders in a viselike grip, her palms like metal on him.]

Friends like that don't come around every day. Think hard about what it is that you really want before you take the leap, Mr. Magistrate.

[If she's allowed the contact, she'll summarily pull him out with great strength.]

[Her words sink into him uncomfortably, but only because she's right. At his core, he knows that what began as a connection born of convenience is now... a blasted group of weirdos with their own issues, their own baggage, that has seen him through so much. They've faced down death together. Fight for survival, tooth and nail. And without them, he never would have been delivered into freedom. He knows that, intrinsically.

He owes them a bit more than allowing himself to sink into some unknowable abyss, doesn't he? Isn't that part of why he's here?]

I...

[He doesn't know what to say. But her words have sparked enough energy out of him that he can afford to retort, snappish.]

Come now, who said anything about friends? [TSUN] Gods, you're strong-

[Her grip's like steel. She hefts him out with ease, but he'll raise an arm to grasp onto hers, just to be certain.]

Edited (i can't spell, clearly) 2023-11-09 18:00 (UTC)

[There's that missing spark. Despite herself, Reiju smiles at the hand around her arm. Emotional men are just so shy when it comes to those important to them.

And then he's out. Her hands linger on him, ensuring that he's steady on his feet, before she retracts them.]

There. That wasn't so hard now, was it?

[Up and on his feet, a little wobbly at first, but in the next moment... his shadow slips back beneath his feet, then spreads along the ground to align to his current frame.

Back to normal, so to speak.]

Well, it certainly wasn't... easy. Seems as though I couldn't do it myself without someone else to help me.

[Slowly, he can feel his strength returning. He feels steadier, more awake; though he's still gripping her arm.]

[That explains a lot at once. Reiju's gaze darts over to Astarion's shadow, which seems to be behaving itself now.]

Then it was the shadow's doing. How do you feel now?

[She doesn't mind the grip. The situation is unusual enough that the more both of them know, the better and safer they'll be.]

I feel more... energized. It was as though the longer I was away from my shadow, the more exhaustion I felt. Until I just...

[Gave into the shadow trying to engulf him whole.]

Strange, isn't it? No one expects their shadow to be vital for survival until it's been taken away.

[It's a little concerning. Hers is still who knows where.]

Well, it's a good thing that you're back to normal.

Yes, it is. Ah...

[As his disorientation ebbs away, he realizes he's still latched on, blinking. He peels his fingers away soon after, retracting his hand, slowly and awkwardly.]

I suppose I owe you thanks. Proper thanks, for pulling me out.

[What's this? Is he feeling awkward? There's a tug on a corner of her lips. Maybe he really is shy.]

Of course. I wasn't about to step over you as you suggested.

[Shy!! Does he look shy to you!! ~~he's just allergic to sincerity~~]

Ha. [The sound isn't completely lacking humor. It does make his lips twitch upwards, just a tad.] So you've a bleeding heart under there, is that it? Or have I just grown on you that much?

Edited 2023-11-10 16:09 (UTC)

[He looks kind of shy (and allergic).

Maybe she just didn't want an uneven path on which to walk.]

I couldn't help thinking that you were acting out of character. If it had to do with the shadows, I wanted to know.

[Out of character is a kind way to put it. Kind enough to pretend like the resignation she saw was not a part of him that's floated up to the surface before. But his grin skews a little more angled, anyway.]

Oh, most certainly. Good thing now I'm feeling more... right as rain, so to speak, now that it's back.

But what about you?

[So it's the shadow, after all, the source of this trepidation. Fortunately, it sounds like it's something that can be fixed, if not without its dangers.]

It feels like something is missing, which I suppose is true.

[It's been true for years, but that feeling is more palpable with her shadow gone. Funny, how that works.]

Did yours find you first?

[These shadows sure be bringing out some issues that therapy could help, huh.]

You mean when it tried to swallow me whole? No, I had collapsed well before then. Suppose, then, it found me sometime after that.

[If there are details to recall, he doesn't recall them. So flush with exhaustion, everything between then and now is something of a blur.]

[Who needs therapy when there's a bunch of weirdos right there!

Her easy smile falters into a thoughtful frown. Collapsed? That's dangerous.]

Then I suppose the same is bound to happen to me at some point. I don't feel on the verge of collapsing, though.

[That means she has time, yes?]

You do. [Time for the half-glass empty viewpoint:] But for how much longer?

I suppose with any luck you won't lose your vigor at all, but who's to say?

[Not terribly, judging by how quickly everything is moving. She's been quite lucky all her life, considering, but is this something her body can withstand on its own?]

Luck isn't enough. The fact remains that my shadow and I are apart. Sooner or later, we'll have to come back together.

[He pauses, considering.]

Then we should seek it out as soon as possible. While you've still some of your strength.

[We?]

Are you offering to go with? How gentlemanly of you.

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i forgot to hit send smh

the real final boss of dwrp . . . the post comment button

please avenge me

I've got you, friend.

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