Acantha on last week's bridge. Hopefully, toplevel to come later. Will link!
FluffyFaeCat
Acantha on last week's bridge. Hopefully, toplevel to come later. Will link!
Acantha on last week's bridge. Hopefully, toplevel to come later. Will link!
FluffyFaeCat
I figure separating from my tdl will make it more visible.
Surprise!Cheese
Bwerp - question I've been meaning to ask. Did anything happen that was unusual around the time that fewer people started to "return" with the Foundlings?
FluffyFaeCat
More people were generally content with their lives, pining for lost loved ones aside. "returnees" fluctuate with the general discontent level of the populace. The more discontent and grumblings against the gods, the more "returnees" tend to show up not long after
Surprise!Cheese
....huh. Interesting. Okay~ Thank you!
FluffyFaeCat
it's not super obvious, but anyone with an eye for patterns can probably figure it out if they're paying attention (and have been around long enough)
cacopheny
... with Stone aware of the situation now, I bet you anything he's thought of this too, and will probably bring it up in the council meeting...
FluffyFaeCat
he's definitely been around long enough and is sharp enough to have noticed the pattern, even if he might not have had an 'oh!' moment until recently
Surprise!Cheese
Not sure that Sprout's been around long enough to notice. Snowdrop has been, but he wouldn't say anything.
Surprise!Cheese
Casper was just asking Sprout back in week 1, so I wanted to see if Sprout would have an answer for him.
FluffyFaeCat
(it's more work (and more expense) to come up with convincing look-alikes from the people they've snagged, so they avoid it unless it's "necessary")
cacopheny
he might have rationalized it before as "the gods wanted us to be happy" and now sees it as "they were pacifying us"
FluffyFaeCat
exactly
cacopheny
Stone is a very angry snake after his couple days of confinement with nothing to do but wheeze and think :|
FluffyFaeCat
Acantha understands
cacopheny
I am tempted to say let's handwave most of Acantha telling Stone about actors, since I've already got a handful of threads past it where he basically summarizes what happens? that will free you up for us to have a new thread in the current mingle which is arguably more important for plot plans 
what do you think?
what do you think?
FluffyFaeCat
We can do that, yeah
cacopheny
okay, cool. don't want you too overwhelmed or anything <3
cacopheny
still gonna tag the other old ones, justgonna let that one be
FluffyFaeCat
last week was a wash for tags, so having it sorted will make doing current week stuff easier!
cacopheny
thats what I thought
FluffyFaeCat
so!
FluffyFaeCat
How will Stone start things once they get to the necessary?
cacopheny
"so what is it you have to say and why the hell did you want to do it at the toilet? >.< "
FluffyFaeCat
So, Acantha will stop all his fidgeting and nerves, and have a steady, but very softspoken voice. He'll look Stone straight in the eye too.
FluffyFaeCat
(he'll also look sick and exhausted, but he tends to look that way all the time)
FluffyFaeCat
"The gods and their midges don't follow us here. This is as private as possible. What I said about Circe was true, although I shouldn't have said it publicly."
FluffyFaeCat
and he'll pause there to give Stone a chance to respond
cacopheny
baffled and wary Stone going "er, why?" while he mind tries to work out a good reason for the complete change of personality
cacopheny
he=his
FluffyFaeCat
"The gods," and his expression will twist with disgust while he says the words, "took everything from me. They took me away from the life I had before, changed me, and forced me to work for them down here. Their plan is to take everyone and everything I care about away from me in the most painful ways possible. They call it 'break the cutie' like it isn't
FluffyFaeCat
someone's life they're ruining"
FluffyFaeCat
He'll pause for a moment to gather himself and get his emotions back under control.
FluffyFaeCat
"I've been playing at being terrified and anxious as a way to avoid getting close to people and getting them killed because of me, but there's only so much I can do without making the gods suspicious."
cacopheny
at that point, complete change of personality + unbelievable and paranoid-seeming story = Stone trying to be gentle and acting like he believes him when it's fairly obvious he doesn't and thinks he might actually be sick
cacopheny
I'm sure at some point in Home's history they had a delusional person (or someone they thought was delusional but who was also an actor) and he's going to equate him with that historical behavior
FluffyFaeCat
/nodnod Acantha will just look resigned at that
FluffyFaeCat
He'll continue anyway, because Stone deserves to know, even if he doesn't believe.
FluffyFaeCat
"Circe is also one of their pawns who remembers a life before Home, but she's always been eager to please them, and doesn't view folk as people, so she doesn't care who's hurt or killed in the process. When she saw me as harmless, she used false kindness to lead me like a lamb to slaughter. When I stood up to her about the tablets, she showed her fangs and
FluffyFaeCat
strangled me when I refused to run like a coward."
FluffyFaeCat
He has to stop there for a moment and close his eyes, struggling to remain on an even emotional keel. It's obvious that he believes everything he's saying utterly.
FluffyFaeCat
He'll finish up by saying. "What she doesn't know is that I've devoted my life to freeing Home. I know you love Home and will fight for it, so once you've had time to process these revelations, please find a way to talk to me privately again. If we linger here too long, they'll get suspicious and send in midges, so I should go."
FluffyFaeCat
He'll give Stone a comforting shoulder squeeze, a smile, and then abruptly assume his normal behavior, and dash off, appearing to be upset and scared.
cacopheny
Stone is going to spend the next couple days trying to decide whether to tell a healer about Acantha's "delusions" up until Branch tells him the same things. and now we're good for one of us to hit up the other for "Acantha is Stone's cruch and Stone both apologizes for not believing him and asks a bunch of questions" XD
FluffyFaeCat
yup! XD
FluffyFaeCat
poor Stone
cacopheny
don't feel too badly for him. it's galvanized him to really do something big :B like, you know, tell the whole village and get them free. you have a sharp and experienced mind on your side now, Acantha
Mrs Sheepie
FluffyFaeCat
Acantha is very glad for that, because he's still pretty sure he'll be dead before this is over, but maybe the Travelers can heal Stone so he can manage another few decades
cacopheny
I don't think you can heal from old age. he's not going to last all that much longer, years-wise. less if they have to actually leave the village.
FluffyFaeCat
they turned his brain-damage back in time, so he has a couple weeks instead of a few days. Maybe they can strengthen his body or something! It's magic, after all
FluffyFaeCat
(he's being hopeful, okay. Magic is weird and kind of exciting)