Post Crossing Meeting

[knockingatthedoor]

WHO: Kel and anyone who wants to discuss The Crossing
WHAT: Second 'Town Meeting'
WHERE: Oasis
WHEN: A bit after the crossing, when everyone has time to calm down and breathe.
WARNINGS Talks of death, definitely, mention of blood and wounds, other CWs to be added.

[Kel has seen people scatter around and, despite still acting like a foolish fool around Mari and Sunny... he is doing his best to try to coordinate things as he can. Armed with a set bright of pink pencils, definitely merchandise of the Sweetheart brand from his place, he prepared a whole wall in one of the shelters to work as a rough chalkboard and, written on it, there are his few observations from staying behind.

- Nothing beside the wraiths did show up. What are we running from?
- Ferryman honest or not?
- When you don't pay the tool, you may still lose memories
- Our bodies can get hurt as if we're still alive.
- Discussion About Crossing from both sides?

It's not much but try to get stuff to appear properly on a blank wall when all you have is a bunch of pencils that don't even write that well. He's trying, though, he really is. A message is sent out to everyone after he's done gathering enough pillows for everyone to sit in, inviting people to come and share experiences, and... that's all. He did, at least, prepare water for everyone to drink.... it's somethin, right?

"Why, thank you for coming! Take a seat, mingle and let's get down to businesses!"

OOC: This is a mingle thread. Feel free to interact with each other and have discussions about things. The 'chalkboard' will be updated if anything is brought up to Kel's attention, I'll leave an open post for that.

Comments

The 'Wall'

[knockingatthedoor]

Feel free to post here things to 'Add' to the wall. I'll leave a secondary post here with all the 'hints' and 'stuff' the characters decided were important.

Current 'Wall'

[knockingatthedoor]

- Nothing beside the wraiths did show up. What are we running from?
- Ferryman honest or not?
- When you don't pay the tool, you may still lose memories
- Our bodies can get hurt as if we're still alive.
- Discussion About Crossing from both sides?

[blindluck]

[Added in blocky script:]

- Lantern room notebooks

[It is up to you all to interpret this.]

Re: The 'Wall'

[callsignhornet]

[Allybee reads the information so far, writing in surprisingly neat handwriting]
- eye iconography in caves
- potential individuals in wraith population

Re: The 'Wall'

[marblenest]

Daniil scribbles this out in his usual cursive, if you didn't believe him about being a doctor, his handwriting sure LOOKS like a doctor's:

Current Hypothesis: The Wraiths are meant for some means of punishment for attempting a crossing, or perhaps, for even being here to begin with. Will continue to investigate.
Confirming memories lost if forgoing toll from personal experience. Commonality involved if some retained memories after the first crossing. Requires further investigation.
Also confirming injury possible. Healing follows typical natural patterns, but is 'sped up.' Seen months of healing happen in seconds. Speak to Daniil Dankovsky for medical attention if needed. Better to be safe rather than sorry.

He does consider writing that he still doesn't think any of them are truly dead, but he knows now that nobody believes him, so there's simply a small dot below his last line where he was about to write that.

Sometime during

[solitarynote]

[While everyone adds more notes to the Wall and debates, Sunny… eventually just starts drawing pictures on it.

Relevant ones, of course: a lantern, an eye (that’s then scratched out but still visible), flowers…

Either he’s bored or wanting to add what he can remember seeing in the cave visually.]

[blindluck]

- Multiple instances of selves dying at different times; deaths of people you know may not align

[Are we getting philosophical now? Maybe.]

Another Wall

[solitarynote]

[After talking to Frieda, Sunny makes his own little list on the Wall Kel had started. So far, it’s something like this:]

Important Things to Ask for (For the Next Crossing)

- Bottles to put water in
- Wind up flashlights

[Anyone is free to add to the list too.]

a late addition to the wall

[protectorofkouka]

[Soo Won added his own findings in neat handwriting.]

According to the Ferryman the wraiths can't cross like we can. Their current journey is different although it once was like ours. They would not elaborate what happened to change them beyond saying a lot of things.

When asked if it involved the crossing, they answered it can. Our souls are vulnerable during the crossing. The Ferryman is here to help us keep it safe.

I believe the Ferryman knows more than they are saying so keep that in mind with this information.

Meeting!

[toilet_bound]

Hanako hadn’t been here for the first Crossing, so one might wonder why he’s here at all.

Well, one of the best ways to be prepared was listening to what the others had been through, right? And with no rumor mill here to provide him information, that meant he had to do this the old fashioned way.

(Actually, he could have just sent Yashiro to do it, but he was bored. There really wasn’t much to hold his attention here… and speaking of Yashiro! He’s currently hugging her like a clingy cat! Don’t worry about it.)

“Ne, Shounen, what exactly is this meeting business?” If Nagito’s in the room, maybe he’s getting confused by the nickname, but Hanako is actually asking Kel (for the moment). He didn’t know the other’s name, so nicknames would have to do. (Plus, to Hanako, both of the aforementioned have that ‘vibe.’ What vibe? Don’t worry about it.)

((OOC Note: While Hanako mentioned three or four people specifically, feel free to respond to this otherwise! It’s meant to be general, was just provided some prompts. Want to get on his case about how clingy he is? Please do XD)

[knockingatthedoor]

[Everyone is welcome! Even new faces who just arrived and who may or may not want to learn what the heck is going on with that goddarn place. Kel grins widely in Hanako's direction, snapping his fingers and offering a small wink. Shou... nen? He could only hope that was not an insult of some kind, but that didn't matter- he was going to be friendly and, considering Mari and Sunny were possibly going to show up, also chipper as usual.]

Business is figuring out what the heck is going on and keeping the group safe, of course! We're a group, we stick together and share knowledge! And, hey... are you new? Yours is a new face for sure.

Nice to meet you, I'm Kel. Have some water and... well, welcome to the team.

[witnessvelama]

The shounen in question might be nearby, but the questioning also attracts the attention of a nearby stranger instead. Celehar has come to the meeting in his full black robes, thanks to the choice of location, though his braid remains pinned up off of his neck, offset by the long elfin ears.

"Your pardon," he says, turning to face a... another young man? Or perhaps not, but at this point he's so used to assuming that many of the others here will be younger than him. He certainly looks like a weathered adult - not yet old, but certainly weary.

"It is a means of sharing information, mostly. Have you spoken to the Ferryman?"

Re: Meeting!

[daikonheroine]

H-Hanako-kun...

[Yashiro sat in a chair, her face beat red. What would everyone else think with Hanako-kun clinging to her like this? She would never get a boyfriend at this rate...]

C-could you please let go?

[She wasn't entirely sure what she was doing here in the first place... but at least she could meet people here right?]

Meeting, Take 2

[solitarynote]

[Sunny didn’t like meetings - he was pretty sure that fact was established at the last one.

However… he had agreed to take notes during these, so unless someone relieves him of said duty, he feels somewhat obligated to show up.

So that’s what Sunny does: entering the room, making a small note on the wall Kel had written on, before trying to find an open seat. There were more people here compared to last time, but he still attempts to sit near someone he knows or, preferably, on a seat that doesn’t have occupants on either side. That doesn’t stop the seating from filling up later…]

… [At first, he’s silent, notebook and pen in hand so he can… well… take notes.]

As if Kel wouldn't warmly welcome his best bro

[knockingatthedoor]

[Ah! It's Sunny! Kel swallows before approaching him- friendly and dumb as usual, that's the plan! The teen flops on one of the open seats near him with a big big smile.]
Ah! If it isn't my favorite note taker! how are you doing? Are we ready?

To be honest I still don't know what I'm doing but someone has to at least get people to come together and talk, right? I'm so happy to see you here!

[A massive improvement compared to the previous four years of complete silence for sure.]

Re: Meeting, Take 2

[perfecttune]

[Mari quickly notices her brother and goes to make sure he's ok. After all, the large amount of people in her is sure to make him nervous if past situations were repeated. She doesn't take a seat but does give him a warm smile and a wave as she gets closer.]

Sunny! I'm glad to see you came!

[As usual he had his notebook and pencil out and she smiled. Ever the dutiful student when he wanted to be.]

I see you're still the designated note-taker for the meeting.

[blindluck]

[When Nagito arrives, he doesn't take a seat time; rather, he favors leaning against a wall, near enough to the chalkboard he can see what's added but definitely apart from the group as a whole.

This doesn't stop him from speaking up.]

Could someone clarify the situation about those who didn't travel with Ferryman-san losing memories?

[Nagito is also here if, for whatever reason, you want to talk to him about something else! He will remain up against the wall until further notice.]

[knockingatthedoor]

[He approaches Nagito keeping his voice low. Sunny is right there and he's not ready to talk with him about... his current situation.]

Well... I think I forgot something from my arrival to... now.

[It's barely a whisper, really, as he leans as well against the wall.]

I didn't pay anything to the Ferryman, but I am under the impression I forgot someone important. Which... means I lost that memory at some point. The walk without the Ferryman being the most plausible explanation.

[marblenest]

"I also lost a memory, if you must truly know." Dankovsky said, sounding annoyed, which is mostly about having to share his personal business, but he's sucking it up, "I noticed after the crossing was complete. Though that doesn't necessarily correlate to a reliable timeline."

Realizing you've lost a memory feels like suddenly realizing there's a hole in your favorite dress shirt. You don't see when the hole is torn, but you certainly notice it later on.

"I am assuming whomever else lost memories without paying a toll must share some sort of commonality with me." He says, nodding, "This is the only logical conclusion to come to."

[solitarynote]

[When Sunny sees Nagito enter, he waves. When the other teen sits against the wall… Sunny has to wonder if he did something wrong.

Maybe… Nagito had had his fill of talking with him over the hamsters. Or when they had chatted after the other found his way back from the Desert.

That thought had Sunny fidgeting nervously where he sat. How could he make it up to Nagito, if he had been a bother…?

He already couldn’t help answer the question the other had asked, because Sunny had been with the Ferryman too.

Diligently, he wrote down what he could hear of other conversations, adding notes from the Wall too.]

[perfecttune]

[Mari had been strategically giving Nagito his own space over the past couple of days. It's not that she was avoiding him per say, merely that they both had stuff they had to think on. As she approached him it seemed as if he was in a slightly... calmer mood than the last time they had spoke.]

Nagito! Are you feeling better?

[She tried to smile at him as naturally as she could. Surely if he wasn't feeling better he wouldn't he here right? But his question did raise some concern, mainly of the things she had taken note of after seeing Kel. He hadn't gone with the Ferryman...]

Are those who didn't go with us losing memories as well?

[She hoped not. After all, the whole reason they hadn't traveled is cause they didn't want to give up memories- or in Kel's place to see what happened if you didn't travel with the group...]

Wildcard

[urtitan]

[It's been an eventful meeting. Having listened to the others' discussions, contributed to the notes on the wall, and spoken - whether in the assembly room or privately in one of the other shelters after dipping out for a bit - with Kel, Sunny, Nagito, Soo Won and Makoto and, crucially, Mari, Frieda waits.

Hopefully, Nagito either stays behind or leaves on his own, because as soon as most or all of the others have dispersed, she approaches him for the second time in a short while.]

Nagito? Do you have some time to walk with me?

[She should have spoken with him soon after the Crossing, but she procrastinated, knowing that it'd be a difficult talk... now, though, she can't postpone it any longer.]

Meeting

[urtitan]

[Frieda attends the meeting - how could she not? Her fellow souls are her only society, now, and she cares for them. Even so, she feels a tinge of apprehension. Did he treat all of them right during the Crossing?

She remembers getting a glimpse into Nagito's twisted mind and reeling at all the painful things that happened to him, and hearing of Need's sacrifice and how it saved the lives of her surviving order sisters. She remembers comforting Mari, who was straining under the pressure of always having to be the perfect daughter, and carrying Sunny on her back when he was too petrified by his father's anger to move. She remembers consoling Celehar, who had to condem the one he loved to death for the sake of law, order, and duty, and sympathising with Soo Won, who had to make terrible choices as a ruler, just like her.

But there are other, more diffuse memories - memories of snapping at Mari and Sunny, of telling them and everyone else the truth she kept hidden in her heart for so long: About the Eldian Empire, about the titans, about the lies and deceit and the cage of the Walls.

No one has looked at her with contempt. No one has judged her. It seems like the others are willing to still commune with her, even those who came to know all her despicable secrets. But what of those who don't know - the ones who made it through the Crossing on their own? Surely, they'll come to know what the majority has gleaned. As a matter of fact, shouldn't she tell them herself?

But it's daunting, and she convinces herself that this isn't a stage for her, but an effort to piece together knowledge about this underworld and the Crossing and the Ferryman, things that are valuable to all of them alike. So, she sits back... but she listens and observes, and should anyone query her mind, she'll share her thoughts.]

Re: Meeting

[perfecttune]

[Mari raises a hand in greeting to Freida and makes her way over towards her friend. Things might have been a bit rocky during the Crossing, but Mari knew that they had all been under a lot of stress- and people didn't always mean what they said when they reacted out of fear or stress.]

Good afternoon! How are you holding up?

[Despite the way that Mari seemed, from the way she tugged at her sleeve, it was clear that something was on her mind and she hadn't just approached for idle talk.]

[perfecttune]

[It was comforting, taking a moment to rest and just breathe after all they had been through. Mari had taken time to sort through some thoughts and feelings on her own- how Kel seemed to not remember his brother (although she hoped that wasn't the case and he was just playing a mean joke), the complicated trip that her and Nagito had, comforting Sunny against something that was never his fault and how their father had reacted to it, her own complicated feelings and burdens from memories of the past...

They all had their own stories and pain but had somehow made it through... hopefully next time they would be better prepared. She greeted those that she knew, taking note of the fact that Nagito seemed to be avoiding her- which wasn't much of a surprise given what had happened. She would stick around and be willing to talk to those who approached her.]