9th Adventure

[forever_cheery]

[Phone call filtered from drones:]

Is everyone doing better now? I was so worried... I wish there was more I could do for you all. It's terrible what they do to us, and I hate the fact that there's nothing we can do to stop it! But we'll get through together, right? We're fighting this together.

Oh! There's another holiday soon, right? Valentine's Day? The children in my class keep giggling and whispering about it, and they want to make cards. It sounds familiar, but I don't remember much about it. Can someone fill me in? At any rate, if it's a holiday, we need to be careful in case something happens again.

---

[Action A: 912 Bilko Blvd. Aurora's got some things in the mail today! One is a box, the other an envelope. Curious, she opens the box first to find her usual outfit inside. She's glad to see it! Considering it's what she wore all the time in the Afterlife, it's something familiar from home. After that, she opens the envelope, and inside is a blank card. How odd. Confused, and still looking the card over, Aurora goes to head inside... and passes right through the door. Startled, Aurora lets out a little yelp.

Oh. Oooooh. She gets it!

She walks back out onto the porch, straight through the walls. She's gotten the ability to be incorporeal again, making her closer to being the ghost she once was. She claps excitedly, laughing happily.]

---
[Action C: Feeling more like herself now than when she first arrived in Mayfield, Aurora is happily going about her business. You'll find her all over town, hovering a few feet off the ground instead of walking, passing through obstacles in her way. She'll be in the general store, buying food and stocking up on art supplies for her class to make Valentines. You'll see her passing through shelves, or poking her head through one to see what's on the other side. Hopefully she won't scare you or anything.]

Comments

[ooeeooahah]

[ The woman on the other end of the line sounds hesitant, not at all like the time they met in the park. ]

Ah, Valentines day? Which grade do you teach? Do you want the history, or just the modern basics?

[forever_cheery]

I teach art in the elementary school, so it's all of the grades. Um... just the modern thing I guess. Maybe I'll remember some of it.

[ooeeooahah]

Okay, that's good, because I don't remember all of the steps from taking a martyr's saint day to make it a holiday for love. Near as I can remember, it's Chaucer's fault for starting it all.

In the modern era, it's a holiday for expressing affection for others, like giving them cards, sweets or flowers. Different cultures in my world that recognize the holiday have different ways to celebrate it, but the affection is the constant.

Card-making sounds like a really good art project.

[forever_cheery]

Oh. Oooooh! So that's why they get all giggly and silly about it. [She giggles herself, amused by this.] Okay, then I'll do that! They can write secret notes to each other.

phone

[yvnyet_uv_mekrdhehk]

Of course we'll get through this together! We can't let them get to us!

[Never say die! Except for when you have to.]

I don't know anything about this Valentine's Day thing, though. Why should we be careful about it?

[forever_cheery]

Right! What they want is for us to fall apart, but we can't let them do that.

Oh, well, a lot of the bad stuff that goes on here seems to happen around holidays. I wanted to make sure everyone knew to be aware of it.

[yvnyet_uv_mekrdhehk]

No, we can't! We'll show them.

And that's good to know. What do they have against holidays, anyway?

[forever_cheery]

I'm not sure. I mean, they don't always do stuff on holidays, but they sure like to ruin them too.

ACTION C

[imbodytemp]

[Oh, she will scare Mesousa. He stands still (as his his bunny instinct) as he stares, horrified, at Aurora as she Ghosts her way around town.]

W-w-w-w-w-g-g-g-g-g-g

[forever_cheery]

[She passes through a nearby mailbox, and then stops when she hears stuttering, looking around... and then down.]

O-Oh! Are you okay?

[imbodytemp]

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee y-y-y-yes! eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[forever_cheery]

[She lands softly in front of him, looking concerned. She kneels down.]

You don't sound it!

Phone

[kinship]

[There's a short pause before an answer comes, he hadn't even considered that as a holiday - it hadn't exactly been one he'd celebrated before.]

Valentine's Day is traditionally a holiday to spend with someone you love, often exchanging elaborate gifts and demonstrations of affection.

[forever_cheery]

I see! So that's why they want to make cards and things. They thought I was crazy when I said I didn't know what it was. It's kinda ringing a bell now...

[kinship]

Ringing a bell?

one of two.

[draumar]

[ he's really not sure about what he just witnessed and whether or not it's an ominous sign or not.

and so, he pursues. ]

[draumar]

[ upon seeing she's alright, he breaks into a smile. ]

Good morning!

[forever_cheery]

[Aurora has her head and shoulders peeked through the front door. She smiles and waves at him, looking a little embarrassed, before popping back inside whole.]

Hi!

Phone

[queen_of_swords]

So you're finally starting to see this place for what it is?

1/2

[forever_cheery]

[There's a pause, as she goes to say something, and then stop.]

[forever_cheery]

I-I know how cruel it can be! I just... didn't know it could be this terrible. I don't know how anyone could be.

[queen_of_swords]

You must come from a very peaceful place. It's too bad you were brought here, otherwise you might have never known how horrible people could be.

[She really isn't a fan of such persistent innocence being crushed. She may not have like Aurora's happy all that much, but it had been a bit refreshing.]

Action C

[all_ofthethings]

He stares as she passes though a shelf, then books it to find her on the next aisle.]

Now that's what I call a killer trick, girly.

[forever_cheery]

Oh, hi! Ha, you think? It's so normal for me...

[all_ofthethings]

[He nods.]

I've never seen anyone do that before, and I've seen some pretty strange stuff. Can you take someone through the walls with you?