⨂ Eustace's Bach--er, Camping Party ⨂

[pactmarshal]

Who: Eustace & all his male CR
Which: Semi-closed log, forward-dated to the weekend before the wedding (November 26-27)
Where: Out in a cosy clearing of the Wildlands
What: Eustace can't make up his goddamn mind, so he invites all the men he knows to his bachelor party. He intends for it to be a relaxed hangout, but...well. We'll see.
Warnings: Alcohol, underage drinking, ghosts, more to be added if they come up

» invitation
At some point in early November, all those named by Eustace (aka, every man Eustace has had CR with) will receive a short message from Trahearne over the journals:

Hello. If you aren't aware yet, Eustace will be getting married this winter. He has invited you and several others to join him in a pre-celebration of the occasion called a "bachelor party." This will be held on Saturday, 11/26 at a location in the Wildlands (see attached map). Please bring food and drink and anything else you will need for camping.

No need to reply. If you are unable to attend for any reason, feel free to ignore this message. If you will be coming, we will see you there.

For those who are reluctant, or want to go but can't find a good excuse, some of Eustace's dogs will appear at those characters' houses without warning to dognap them. The flower dogs can make use of vines for those who really want their characters to suffer for this party.

While any of the dogs may come to grab people, only the male dogs will stay for the party, of course. There will be 5 dogs in attendance total--4 corgis and 1 flower dog.


» campgrounds

In the weeks beforehand, Trahearne and Beat went and scouted out a suitable little place for the shindig: A clearing in the woods flanked by a small cabin. The cabin sits nestled among the trees at the edge of the clearing. The clearing itself is sizeable--there's a place for chopping firewood, a ring of stones in the middle suggesting its use as a bonfire spot, and a grill built into the ground nearer the cabin.

The ground here is soft, but not muddy--perfectly suitable to sleep on. Beat and Trahearne made sure to clear away excess leaves from the ground to make things more comfortable.

The woods around the clearing are not thick, but they are still wilderness. There is abundant, if mundane flora to be found, and smaller critters that happily scamper around in the daylight. Who knows what lurks beyond in the nighttime... Better keep those fires going to keep the bad things away.

» cabin

The small cabin at the edge of the clearing is just that--small. It is comprised of only two rooms. The front room is a sitting room with a small kitchen, kept warm by a wood stove. Visitors to the cabin are free to make themselves comfortable in front of the fire on the couch big enough for three, or the large sitting chair by the window. The dining table only seats two, and it sits snug against the back of the couch.

The back room is home to the bedroom. Here, the visitors will find two bunk beds--enough sleeping room for four (or more if you wanna share i'm not judging). All the beds are made and equipped with soft, clean blankets and pillows. It seems whoever was here first was anticipating the party.

There is also another door in the bedroom, which leads to a closet. The particularly nosy will find all sorts of things useful for a cabin stay inside: extra pillows, blankets, tools for maintenance, an extra grill... You name it! Within reason!

On the outside, there is a stockpile of wood for the wood stove, and an outhouse. Just the one.

» nighttime

This is an overnight party, by the way. And when night falls, that's when the real fun begins.

As mentioned before, there is more than enough space in the clearing to create a big bonfire. But be careful--it's dry and windy. Take care not to unwittingly set any of the trees on fire. The ground is comfortable enough to sleep on (especially for those seasoned travelers), but for those who don't want to rough it completely, there are tents and sleeping bags.

The cabin is for those who don't like or can't sleep outside. It is comfortable and warm, yes, especially with all those others in the same room... But there's a catch. It's haunted. The ghost that inhabits the cabin isn't malicious, thankfully. It's friendly, in fact. Perhaps a little too friendly. Those sleeping in the cabin may find themselves poked and prodded into awakening at odd hours. Besides that, it's harmless. Promise.

Treat this as a mingle log! The setting description above is just the stage--feel free to come up with games, have your characters bring things to add to the mix, play around with the things mentioned above. It can be as chill...or not as chill as you want.

Comments

[lonelysmiles]

Of course!

[He finishes off the last of both the sandwich and the moonshine. The food did help absorb the liquor, but Alastor also had a pretty fast metabolism.]

[He wobbles as he starts to get up. Like a newborn fawn finding its legs.]

[lonelysmiles]

"Just what it sounds like: It's all me!"

He raised a finger to tap the side of his head.

"I think of a song up here and then I project it out. Quite a useful power if you ask me!"

[steadypulse]

[76 sat forward enough that he could easily offer up a sleeved arm- just for brace, out of reflex.]

Here, bit of help. Sure once you're on your feet you'll be alright- but getting there can be a trick.

[Old super soldier to old demon from hell.]

[flamekthunder]

Of course.

[He's even keeping the dogs away from Alastar—granted all the ones here aren't as pushy or inquisitive as the girls that are with Tifa.]

[flamekthunder]

[It's a strange position to be in... Eustace isn't really want to probe into someone's background or origins unless he needed to. In this case it would just before casual conversation... Which is perfectly normal. He's just not used to it.

...]

So you were born from a tree.

[YEP THAT'S HOW HE STARTS.]

...From a seed or...

[This is so awkward.]

[flamekthunder]

[...

Brushing off the leaves.]

Why?

[stillarhino]

'Cause I wanna. Do I really gotta have some kinda reason?

[He... seems to be taking that a little too personally really quickly. And there seems to be a bit of a slur to his words.]

[pactmarshal]

[ Eustace's caution is honestly amusing to Trahearne. Considering how close of a friend he considers the erune, he's expecting--and willing to entertain--much more forward questions. ]

A pod. [ He says is definitively, and calmly. Hopefully to dispel some of the awkwardness. ] I was the first, you know. Eleven others awakened after me, and we were the firstborn.

[ That really isn't Eustace's question, though. Trahearne smiles a bit. ] There are many more sylvari now--all created by the Mother Tree, all awakened from pods--but there were only twelve of us in the beginning.

[flamekthunder]

[There's a slight raise of his brow.]

So you're the oldest... Then who took care of you as children?

[Okay he is imagining a giant seed pod and then just. Baby sylvari?? Popping out.]

[flamekthunder]

[.....]

No, but it seems a strange time to do it.

[Suspicious.]

[stillarhino]

I was just lookin' at the tree an' I thought that view's gonna be great from up here. So I'm climbin'.

[And that is just more leaves falling down on you as Beat slips. Then slips again. But he's able to get his bearings and hold on.]

Whoops. My bad.

[disdelusioned]

[It's better on both sides to keep the conversation on the business and hobby of alcohol, really. Bachelor parties aren't really the right venue for navel gazing and regrets.]

Ah, I was going to ask if you've made this available through the Wild Harvest.

I still think it's a shame that our two business can't cooperate more closely, but that issue is beyond the both of us.

[disdelusioned]

A friend of Ori's. And, my complicated feelings aside, that's enough for me.

[He trusts Ori's judgement, all things considered. And he knows that his ability to judge of what happened a few months ago is limited by the fact that he's toeing a very similar line.]

[flamekthunder]

[After the first slip, Eustace is stepping away to avoid most of the leaves.

......]

Get down before you hurt yourself.

wow. that sure was a heck a lot of typos i'm crying

[flamekthunder]

[A fair response, so he only nods.]

Likewise.

[The very weird way they first met aside, as long as Oriphi trusts him then he will as well. And at least so far Diluc hasn't proven a problem...yet.]

...Have you managed to look into traveling to different worlds? Or staying?

[stillarhino]

Nah, yo. I've already made it up this high. I'mma keep goin'!

[You're going to have to do more than just try to talk him out of him at this point, Eustace. And it really doesn't seem like he's going to stop any time soon as he steps up on the next branch.]

I was politely ignoring them!

[disdelusioned]

[And if Diluc does turn into a problem, he trusts that Eustace is the type of person to exterminate that problem--and therefore him--swiftly.]

I've followed a potential lead, but it didn't get far.

[I.e., his god doesn't know anything about interdimensional travel. Thanks, Venti.]

Ori asked around during the carnival. There's some promising information there, but we're far from being ready to act on it. I need to take control of this nightmare energy I've built up, first.

[pactmarshal]

No one.

[ Trahearne's smile widens; there's a faint chuckle behind it. He knows it sounds funny to the other races. On the flip side, that he ever needed someone to take care of him is a funny thought to him. ]

We do not experience childhood. When we awaken, we are equipped with the knowledge to navigate the world and venture forth.

[ With his free hand, he places a hand to his chest. ]

You may think it strange, but I have looked like this since the day I awoke on Tyria.

[ An adult from the get-go. ]

[stillarhino]

[He shuts his eyes for a few moments, wincing slightly as he feels the lingering burn of the liquid down his throat. But he shakes his head in reply before opening his eyes once more.]

Whisky, huh? Naw, never had this before.

[He realizes that he almost slips but tries not to bring more attention than to it. Considering this was his first foray into drinking alcohol, he didn't want it to be too short-lived either. But it was odd that a part of him didn't seem to care much about getting caught either.

But that didn't matter right now. He just had to play along.]

Yo, was I not supposed to do that?

[stillarhino]

While Beat had seen a couple of odd things around Reverein since his arrival here, this was by far one of the coolest ones so far. Standing from where he sat, he goes around the... Whatever Alastor is, just trying to listen to the area around him, as well as the projection of music that followed. Even if he didn't understand how they were doing it, he could definitely appreciate how it sounded.

"So you's like a walkin', talkin' speaker? Damn, yo. That's hella dope."

Beat looks back to Alastor, meeting his eye. He taps his finger to the side of his head. "So you talkin' any song. Like any as long as you think 'bout it?"

[pactmarshal]

[ Trahearne isn't suspicious about his age--naturally, as a sylvari, it's not the first thing he thinks about--but that Beat might get sick if he treats it like beer. ]

Whisky is much stronger than beer. You may find yourself regretting your actions if you continue to drink it like that.

[ Absently, he swirls his own glass in his hand. ]

Pace yourself. I would eat something if I were you.

[ As much as he doesn't want a drunk teenager on his hands, little does he know... ]

[steadypulse]

Could call it a watered-down version, mostly because I'd rather no one get swept off their feet after a sip. Doesn't take from the taste of it, at least.

[There was a faint chuckle there because- yeah. Yeah.]

It is, and maybe one day that issue will be less of one. [Said the man who went after Kazuma when he started to turn Noctaere over van Zieks arriving in the world.] Still, we can still talk about it at least.

No harm in it- and we did do well for the pop-up, at least.

I am so sorry. I don't know what happened to this tag. DDD:

[lonelysmiles]

Alastor's ears pricked in confusion before realization dawned. His ears lowered slightly as a hint of red dusted his cheeks in pure embarrassment.

"Ah. I...may have gotten a bit overexcited, I suppose. Though not too much time! When one hardly sleeps, one has plenty of time to do things!"

His toothy grin was large and awkward now. He seemed to have made a serious faux pas despite his best efforts.

[lonelysmiles]

"Radio, actually." Alastor rotated his head around to keep the young man in view. Probably didn't get less unnerving with a repeat performance. "And if it played on the radio waves in my version of Earth or Hell, it's up here." He tapped the side of his head again. "My internal receiver never shuts off, so I've got quite a library built up!

"The name's 'Alastor', my good fellow! Also referred to in certain circles as 'The Radio Demon'! Pleasure to meet you!"

[lonelysmiles]

[Alastor giggles a bit, reaching out to steady himself on the offered arm.]

It'd help if dis world didn' need ta move so much!

[He laughs at his own joke. However, he's definitely going to need that arm until he finds some semblance of balance.]