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TDM 005: HAPPY SPOOKTEMBER
| TDM 005: HAPPY SPOOKTEMBER |
Arrival  This time, you come out of the water, the Nameless Island's own inherent energy drawing people in. It's like being suspended between realities and abruptly pushed from behind through a rift in dimensions. It may make you sick, or that might be the motion of the ocean, lifting you to the surface and carrying you to shore. Waterlogged and covered in sand, new arrivals will be greeted by robots who welcome them with towels and bracelet devices. The A5 card is already loaded up. Feel free to explore the Island, though there isn’t much to see. Most of the buildings are abandoned and in dire need of repair, and beyond the city lingers a thick fog that obscures much of the wilderness from view. Wander too far into this fog, and you will find yourself mysteriously looping back to where you began, your memories of what you were doing and how you got there erased. With that in mind, it may be wise to stake your claim on a rundown apartment, a tent on the beach, or a bed in the "comfortable" new barracks. Your inventory will be found a day later, wrapped up haphazardly and delivered to each person's makeshift home. I. Harvest Hunt  As the daylight grows shorter and the muggy heat of the island’s summer gradually shifts to temperate days and chilly nights, Erku’s accessible wilderness explodes with a colorful collection of tempting fruits, fragrant-smelling herbs, and nuts and seeds plumped and ready for harvest. With warnings to beware of monsters, the robots of Erku encourage Islanders to take advantage of the land’s bounty by distributing basic camping supplies to those who are interested in exploring, hunting, and harvesting. They strongly encourage making the journey with a friend! Any surplus foods that Islanders bring home with them can be exchanged for credits with cafeteria robots! Just be careful out there - some of these fruits have strange effects once consumed. For extra protection out there in the wilds, the robots have fashioned crowns of flowers or foliage to wear on their adventures. The sweet and herbal smells from the crowns will discourage most Erku-native monsters from approaching, they assure - this is ancient knowledge from the planet’s long-gone civilization, so it can’t be wrong! What the robots don’t know is that the crowns have a deeper, more ritualistic purpose: after a few hours, the scent of flowers or herbs begins to awaken primal instincts within the wearer. Those who are wearing the foliage crowns feel overwhelmed by an urge to hunt, while those who wear the flower crowns delight in every opportunity to tease, outrun, and outwit the hunters. What happens when the chase ends? Well, that depends on the personalities and the chemistry between the hunters and their prey. While the robots are very insistent on placing crowns atop the heads of any Islander they see, they aren’t stuck on in any way and they are easy to remove, which can prevent or break the hunting trance. II. seeds and sap  Of particularly high credit value, the robots explain, is an elusive flower known as the skull sunflower. It appears exactly as one might imagine: at the center of an otherwise innocuous, towering sunflower is the gruesome visage of an open-mouthed skull. Don’t worry, the flowers are harmless! Even if it’s strange how the empty-socketed eyes seem to follow your every move. And why is it that the teeth - which, on closer inspection, are actually the seeds of the flower - only seem to chatter when your back is turned? Any Islander who can withstand their heebie-jeebies long enough to collect the petals and seeds from the flowers will fetch a handsome reward in credits upon exchange with the robots. Beware the sticky, blood-red sap that seeps from the eyes of each skull, however. Those who absorb too much through their skin will begin to hallucinate, visions of frightening or emotional events from their past dancing in the shadows. One might even mistakenly imagine that another Islander is someone they recognize from their past, someone who meant something to them - no matter whether that person is alive or dead in the present. The hallucinogenic effects of the sap can last for hours, or they can be shortened by a dip in the public baths. III. Tarot  Night comes, and in the darkness, a robot sets up a table by the beach. A solitary candle sits in the center, illuminating a deck of cards. F̶i̴n̵d̸ ̸y̶o̸u̸r̵ ̵f̵o̸r̷t̵u̶n̶e̷?̴ The robot reveals tarot cards and will do a variety of spreads to tell your fortune. Each fortune can be distilled into one central theme, which characters will find pervades their life for the next 24 hours. There is magic afoot: it can be sensed, and perhaps even dispelled, if luck is on your side. Though most robots on the island show a capacity for greater-than-average artificial intelligence, this pseudo-psychic 'bot -- M.S. Cl30 -- is less advanced. It only has six interpretations prepared:
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At first, he thought it was another one of those robots that just had a similar design to BB-8, but it only takes a blink for him to realize that's... not the case. And judging from the pause, he has to think this is BB-8. He drops to his knees with a gasp about a millisecond before the droid starts chattering away.
Finn might look a little different from the last time BB's seen him. He's older, hair grown a little, bit more muscle, bit more exhausted, but the big smile is probably pretty familiar. ]
BB-8!! You're-! Ah- [ He can't get a word in edge-wise, not that he's trying terribly hard to do so. In fact, after the first try, he's focused a little more on trying to listen. It's been at least a year since he's practiced his binary but this is even more difficult than he thought it'd be.
That was Poe's name, right? Something about a ship. Missed. Been. Excited! Something something something-- Finn's nodding, confused. ]
I- Uh- Bee- Bee, slow down, I-- Uh-huh- Yeah, but- I'm- I can't really-- BB-
[ Still awesome to see the droid, though. ]
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Hey, is everything okay over there, buddy, you sound —
[ Poe's catching up just in time to hear Finn doing his best to get a word in, stepping around the same corner with a look that's more curious than alarmed. For his part he looks like he could have just stepped away from the base on Ajan Kloss — right down to the outfit, since it's one of the few that's made it across with him to this place. It's no exaggeration to say that his face lights up when he sees Finn, though his excitement is almost immediately tempered, as if he's not entirely sure what to say, or how Finn's going to react. ]
... Finn?
[ It only lasts for a second though. It's quickly replaced by that familiar grin, as he strides across the distance between them, carefully side-stepping BB-8 to go in for a hug, if he's open to it. A firm grasp on the shoulder would work too, if he seems uncertain, but regardless of what those subtle differences mean, or don't mean, for both of them, Finn's always going to be... well, Finn. His partner, his ally, and his friend. ]
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As far as Poe goes, there was a time when Finn would do literally anything to see him again. And he has seen him! But only in passing, their time together never lasting shorter than a few minutes or longer than a few days. Yet, there's a sudden hope that maybe they'll both stick around for a while longer.
For a brief second, he wonders if Poe remembers seeing him in any of those passing moments. Poe's not the type to judge for the sort of things he may have seen or known before, but panic tries to set in, anyway.
Tries and fails when Poe comes in for the hug. Finn's quick to return it firmly, a smile on his face that must have appeared at some point before the embrace. ]
Poe.
[ He laughs and pulls back after a moment of enjoying him being close again. His hands don't leave his shoulders, though, keeping him in range in case Poe vanishes again. ]
How've you been? Are you all right?
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Maybe Finn's gripping him a bit tighter than expected, but he doesn't mind. He's more than happy to stay right here for now, even if this proximity has the potential to get awkward after a minute or two.
He just.. really wishes he knew what Finn was expecting. From this, from him. But that probably goes both ways. He's already resolving not to worry about that right now though. They'll figure it out. ]
Me? I'm fine. Aside from the part where we're marooned on another planet, probably in the wrong galaxy altogether. Kinda getting used to it, and I don't know how to feel about that. But what about you? When did you get here?
[ It couldn't have been that long ago. He would have noticed, the city isn't that big. Definitely smaller than the last one. ]
/walks in 11 days late without even starbucks to show for it
[ The thumb against his jaw is distracting but in a good way. He and Poe hadn't been... like that, not even on Prismatica when they were roommates for a short time, when it was encouraged. Not that he hadn't thought about it maybe, but no one would know that except for him.
Anyway, the thumb. Finn's smile and eyes are warm and happy from the contact. Damn, it's always shocking when they run into each other again, but Finn finds that he's missed him a lot. ]
This isn't my first planet out of our galaxy to get marooned on. Trust me, you get used to it. Glad you found BB-8, though. [ He flashes the droid a quick grin before looking back to Poe. ] Anyone else here?
what does time even mean anymore anyway?
[ At least they have that in common too. Not that Poe would have wanted Finn to experience the same kind of crap that he's been through, it just saves them both a whole lot of awkward explanation if they know more or less what they're dealing with here. Which doesn't get rid of all the awkward potential, but... Well, it's better than it could have been. That's what he's telling himself anyway. He really is happy to see Finn, it just hasn't actually been that long since they were together, not for him.
BB-8's still swaying slightly side to side, clearly overjoyed to see Finn and having a hard time containing his excitement. He beeps his own response to Finn's question, slower this time so that Finn has a fair chance at actually understanding him. No one here from home, at least not until now, but a couple of particular faces that he remembers from the last place, one especially well.
Poe does eventually realize that he should probably let Finn go. His hands pause on the man's shoulders, squeezing them slightly, before he's consciously pulling them back. ]
From our end of the universe? Just me and you now. But you didn't come straight from Ajan Kloss either, did you?
we're still in march, it's just pumpkin spice flavored now
He pulls away when Poe does, not totally all right with distance just yet, but he stays close all the same. Which is just as well, since he's immediately distracted from touching of all things, evidenced by his eyebrows lifting. ]
Ajan Kloss? Can't say I have. I came from a planet called Prismatica. Before there, it was Vaikuntha and, before there, it was the Falcon after leaving Crait.
But I did run into Rey before. She told me about things that happened later. I guess Ajan Kloss was one of those?
[ She hadn't bothered with details. Finn hadn't asked. Who was and wasn't alive once the end came was enough for him.
Which reminds him about Poe's loss- losses and chooses not to mention it. Not until he knows what Poe knows of the future, anyway. ]
I could legit almost believe that
[ Not just because of where else he's been. Those were tough times that came directly after that clash with the First Order, and at the moment when they all piled onto the Falcon no one was thinking too much about that. They were just grateful to be alive. Rightfully so, but he'd been so hopeful that their distress calls would have been answered. If not in time to change what happened there, then definitely to help them put the pieces back together afterward. But it hadn't worked out that way. They had to fight hard for every inch of ground, and for a while it felt like they just had nowhere to go.
But things got better. And through it all he still had Finn. He had Rey. And BB-8 and Chewie. The losses have hit him hard, and it's probably easy to read in his expression that he still feels them, but he can't forget just how much he still has, and how lucky that makes them. ]
Yeah, we had a base there. [ If it could be called that. Technically it was more of a collection of tents in the jungle. ] I spent almost a year in a place called Duplicity before we landed here, before and after we finally won the war.
[ The streets here aren't exactly crowded, but it's not the most comfortable place to talk either. So he motions for Finn to follow him as he walks, back toward his apartment. But he'll still be sticking close, almost as close as BB-8 on their heels. ]
How long have you been gone? Since Crait, I mean.
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Too long. [ Answered with a bit of a sigh as he falls into step with Poe, glancing down to make sure BB-8's tagging along. As if he expected anything else. ]
Maybe-... I guess it's been about two years now, but I haven't been counting the days. BB-8 was with me for most of that first year, though.
[ He smiles down at the droid again, recalling a few of the misadventures that he should relate at some point. But, uh- He looks back to Poe. ]
Ran into you a few times, too.
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[ Poe gets what it's like to lose track of time. Sure, he could ask BB-8 exactly how many days he spent in Duplicity, how many passed back home after the day that Finn's referring to, it just wouldn't do enough to describe what they've been through. Though there are plenty of stories that they'll no doubt end up sharing, once they've had the time to settle in. Assuming they do have that time, since the way Finn mentions previous run-ins with him is a familiar story. It actually reminds him a lot of what Finn told him back on the last planet, and it's still weird. It's just one of those things he tries not to think about too much.
That particular conversation was under circumstances that were similar and yet very different. But he was different then too, in many senses of the word. ]
But I never stuck around for very long before, huh?
[ It seems likely, given the way Finn said it, it's just strange to hear it again, and it makes those questions about what they have and haven't said or done that much harder to ignore. Still, he'll do his best to cover up any awkward feelings with a grin. ]
For what it's worth, I'm apparently less flighty than the average Poe.
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I mean, the second time you didn't. I was the one that left the first and third time.
[ The third time was incredibly recent, and he misses the opportunity to really catch up again while also feeling guilty for leaving Poe in an apartment with a way too intelligent goose. The first time, though... still hurts. He promised to go back, tried and tried and... gave up.
Even if he never sees Poe again with those memories, he still doesn't think he can bring himself to mention it or apologize. To bring it up means explaining that he turned to the dark, and he could never tell Poe that.
Maybe time can change his views on disclosure, though. ]
Still, we didn't get more than a week before being separated again. I'm glad it was different for you. [ And for this other Finn. ] How long have you been on this planet?
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About four months here, I think. It's been hard to keep track of the days. I don't know if it's any weirder than the last one, but it's definitely gone through a lot of changes since we got here. All of this used to be dust and broken down buildings.
[ It's more of a patchwork now. Plus there's the forest and the beach, and generally a lot more life to it than there had been before.
One of those clearly repaired and occupied buildings is their destination. It's a good-sized apartment, nothing fancy but they've managed to fix it up and drag in enough furnishings to make it relatively comfortable. The front room that Poe leads Finn into has a decent couch, which he gestures at once they're both inside. ]
You thirsty? Hungry?
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Either way, he's glad he didn't interrupt. Finally, someone's able to provide useful information about the planet. Whether or not it's all the presumed sex going on is still up in the air, but to hear that this planet is healing alleviates some of his paranoia.
He glances around before following Poe inside. He actually hadn't been inside any of the scattered out apartment buildings yet, likely to pick his own temporary home at another time. It's not one of his priorities right now. Which may seem strange to anyone else... ]
No, no. I'm okay. Thank you. [ Would Finn trouble him if he was?
Anyway, he takes a seat and gives a soft smile. ] You've made some friends, I take it? [ Poe Dameron is nothing if not charming and charismatic, in Finn's opinion. He's sure his friend isn't without allies on this planet.
And if he is, well, Finn's here now. ]
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A few, yeah. A couple of people made the jump over from the last place too, and there have been a lot of new faces coming in. Gwen's not here right now, but she'll be happy to meet you. She was friends with you before. Other you. You know what I mean.
[ He should probably sit, which he's clearly inviting Finn to do, but he's not sure he could sit still yet. There's still a lot they have to talk about, and while he doesn't think it's anything that's going to scandalize Finn too much, depending on what he's experienced so far, there's a lot about this situation that makes him uncomfortable. He doesn't want anyone to be subjected to the kind of crap that he's been through, let alone someone he cares about so much. ]
Speaking of new friends, I'm assuming that you got the same speech from the local droids that we did? About what they want us to do here?
[ Familiar for him, maybe not for anyone else.
And no, he's not avoiding a conversation about Gwen, there's just... a lot to get through here. ]
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He smiles, pretty happy about meeting this person, too. This would be the first time he's met someone who knew him from another place rather than vice versa. The thought isn't as intimidating or uncomfortable as he thought it'd be.
The only smidge of him being uncomfortable is that Poe won't sit down. He refuses to worry about it, though, and just leans back to get a little comfortable. Also, he might just be too tired for all that. It hadn't caught up to him until now. Evidently, Poe makes him feel safe. ]
They did. Didn't really believe it worked until you mentioned that this place has gone through some changes. The last planet I was on was kind of like this, anyway, so I can't say it's anything new.
[ Maybe that's what's making Poe look so restless. ] Could be worse, right?
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[ That seems to relieve some of the tension that Poe's not even really consciously aware of, since it's one more entry crossed off of a list of things that he'd hate to have to be the one to tell Finn about, even if he'd rather be doing it than leaving him to figure it out on his own. Another planet where people are pulled in and expected to have sex for some kind of 'greater' purpose? Apparently that's more common than he ever would have realized.
Still, it could be worse. The last place was worse, he would say without reservation. As much as they have to put up with between the robots and this planet coming back to life, it's better than being under the thumb of a system that was all about controlling people and keeping them in line. ]
You don't have to. [ He adds, finally deciding to settle next to Finn on the couch, absently patting BB-8's head as the droid rolls by. That's one of the things that makes this place better, there are no 'quotas' here. Just incentives, and lots of hints. ] They like to spike the food and the drinks, and sometimes we run into things that have similar effects, but no one's going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. Not while I'm here.
[ That said — ]
But you'll probably want to figure out who you'd be comfortable going to when that kind of thing rolls around. I guess that's not new either, huh?
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Then again, to Poe, they have known each other awhile... ]
I'll be all right, Poe.
[ That said, he'd only been with two people on Prismatica and one of them was maybe two or three times? The topic of James is a whole... thing. And Finn might find it a little tricky to move on once he's actually faced with it, but time will tell. As of right now, regarding the direction Poe's talking about, he will be all right. ]
But thank you. It's not new, though, you're right. I'll just meet some new people. See what happens.
[ Sounds easy enough. To Finn, it kinda is. ]
What about you? Things going okay?
[ He kind of sort of talked about that a bit already but not in this particular area. Not that he thinks Poe would have problems finding someone. In fact, he's certain he already has. That said, yeah, Finn's offering. ]
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Yeah. Yeah, I mean, considering that we're stuck here for now with no idea how to get back to our own galaxy. [ He does mean that. It almost feels selfish to say that he's been lucky, that he's never needed to worry about who he might call when he needs a helping hand. He's never been alone, at least never for very long. Nothing like the months that Finn had to deal with back then, and that was always hard to deal with even if there wasn't anything he could have done about it. ] I'm okay. Better than okay, honestly.
[ But there was more to the question than that, wasn't there? ]
It wouldn't be like that with you. [ This comes much easier to him, just saying what he feels and going ahead with it, even if it makes things awkward for a while. They'll manage, they always do. No matter what happens, or doesn't, Finn's his friend. And as much as he really wishes they could have this conversation on their own terms, that's just not how these things go, so... ] If we do anything, I want it to be because you want to, alright? Not because they want us to.
[ Of course he'd do anything for Finn, but he can't pretend that it wouldn't mean something different than it would with someone he's just casually friends with. ]
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It's not all that surprising to hear when he thinks about it but it still wasn't totally expected. Maybe it was because of how blunt Poe put it or something. Just being straightforward like that.
Honestly? It feels a little unearned. He smiles, anyway. ]
Of course. I mean... I wouldn't do any of it because they wanted it. It's not between them.
[ Sure, his first little while on Prismatica (and that whole heat situation the first go-around, hoo boy) were really intimidating, but it didn't turn out like that. None of it was because he had to but because he and his partner wanted to. Which was James about 99% of the time, so that played a part, too.
He's not going to change that stance just because James isn't- Yeah. ]
You make it sound like-... [ He trails off, considers just stopping or making something up, but there was a Finn before him in Poe's life... So he shrugs and continues. ] You make it sound like you're not against the idea.
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It wasn't like that in the last place. [ His tone isn't grim, he was lucky enough to have people there he could count on, but he has to acknowledge that much. ] They liked to force people into it. Especially if they weren't getting enough done on their own, if you know what I mean.
[ Of course Finn knows what he means. He didn't exactly ask that, but he figures that if this was something entirely new then Finn would be a lot more shy about talking about it.
He's looking at Finn more closely now, clearly considering his words this time. And maybe just realizing how much he's missed Finn, even though it hasn't really been that long since they were together. For him, anyway. ]
I'm not against it. [ He's smiling now too, maybe even a bit wry. ] Did you think I would be?
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But-... But... Poe's not there anymore. He's here, with Finn. There's nothing he can do with any anger built up over this little revelation. Though, it's not exactly easy to let go of either.
Instead, he sets those thoughts aside to parse through later. Poe's here now. They're together again. That's as much he can do for the time being.
So the frown loses some of its hardness pretty quickly then softens a lot more by the time the question. Had he thought that?
... Finn ducks his head and laughs to himself a bit. ] No. Not really.
[ They hadn't talked about it on the last planet, not really given enough time to even get to that point. Still, it goes beyond the bone deep knowledge that Poe would help him out if he needed it. He just... knows they'd have fun together... Again, maybe he's thought of this before. ]
I'm not either. [ It's out of his mouth before he can consider whether or not it should be out in the open. Ah well. ] In case you were wondering if I cared what the droids on this planet wanted or not, y'know.
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He's not sure how to feel about the fact that twice now he's been the first to broach this subject at all. Whether that's because of some fundamental difference with him or just consistently different circumstances, maybe he'll never know. He's not going to waste too much time wondering about it, especially since he just tends to get a headache thinking about all of this alternate dimension stuff. Even after almost a year of dealing with it he's still not sure he totally gets it.
That's alright. He's not thinking about multiverses or difficult conversations or even the stark differences here compared to the last place. He's just thinking that he missed Finn's chuckle, and that smile,and just...
This. ]
Not really. I'm mostly wondering about what you want.
[ The question is implied, the flirtation is just as obvious, but more than anything there's just that same fondness and warmth to his eyes that he's always had when it involves Finn. Practically since the moment he realized that they were escaping the First Order together. ]
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It's Poe wanting that, he realizes. Finn's changed so much, is sure that Poe wouldn't like anything he finds down closer to Finn's core, but maybe he's just thinking too hard about it. It's just for fun, right?
Right. Sure. As if feelings didn't come into play with every partner Finn has, much less someone who he already cares about so much. Dammit, when did he get introspective about all this?
He should probably respond instead of staring back with an amused yet kind of surprised smile. His eyes go over Poe again, really thinking about it and being honest with himself... ]
Yeah... [ It takes a moment for him to realize a question wasn't actually asked. ] I would want that. I would like it.
But you know that already. Don't you?
[ This is not their first time breeching this conversation for Poe. It can't be. ]
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Even then he rarely leaves it at that, he's made a few friends that way.
And he's always going to have a lot of feelings about Finn. That's just a given. He knows that, Gwen knows that, it's just exactly how they handle those feelings that's up in the air. ]
I had a pretty good idea. [ That said... ] It was like that before. With you and me. But even though that was you, and you're you, it's not the same. I don't expect it to be. We're us, right?
[ He reaches over to settle a hand on Finn's arm, giving it a warm squeeze. ]
I'll be here for you, no matter what happens.
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It's something he should ask about... It's something he's definitely not going to ask about. If that is true, if Poe does have deeper feelings, Finn's less unsure about his own feelings for Poe than he is about just... moving on.
Plus. He's different. He's so very different. Best to not ask, at all.
His own hand finds Poe's arm, too, and squeezes back. ]
I know.
How about... we see what happens next? After all, I'm not sure I'm really the same guy you remember.
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