Do you love magic? Is it in your soul?

[divinityfrompain]

WHO: Julia Wicker and you!
WHAT: Catch-all for November
WHERE: Solvunn, Nocwich, Horizon
WHEN: Throughout November
WARNINGS: Nothing right now.





[ooc: feel free to wildcard below or ask me for a custom starter on plurk]

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Around Solvunn

[divinityfrompain]

Julia is settled in a little more to Solvunn now that time has passed. She is seen most often with the kids in the settlement as she volunteered to do babysitting duty. She's either doing arts and crafts with them, playing tag or chasing after them while laughing, or doing story time where she describes a place called Fillory with centaurs and dragons. Anyone can listen if they'd like or come play tag with them.

She is helping with the harvest or willing to do some manual labor, showing an unusual amount of strength at times for someone so petite. People can see her using magic to bring some plants from drooping back to healthy life or changing rotten fruit into healthy. She uses her magic primarily with plants and trees, but she may bloom some flowers and give them to the kids.

She can also be found walking alone in the forests, seemingly in a trance or very in-tune with nature around her, unconcerned about whether it's safe. She'll do this in the mornings or even late at night. If it's at night, she'll have a magic spell creating light with her. While she avoided the shrines in the start, she starts visiting the shrines over the course of the month, learning a little bit about the gods to identify which ones are where. She sits at some of the shrines quietly and may be spotted talking to them, although whatever she's said can't be fully heard.

forests

[heavymetals]

[ For the past few days, Erik has actively been avoiding places with a lot of people. He's helped with the harvest when there seem to be fewer people around, or doing tasks that keep him farther away from most other people, and outside of that, he's been largely absent.

Luckily, it's not a difficult thing to achieve, in Solvunn. There is always space, there's always a place he can go to when things become too overwhelming. Which is often these days, with a new ability he's yet to understand, let alone fully control. He can barely handle his own feelings at times, let alone others.

The forests end up being a frequent destination for him, then. Particularly at night when he can't sleep, he walks until this is where he ends up, perched on a tree or, as it so happens right now, lying down on a clearing, looking up at the stars.

He doesn't see Julia until she's close enough for that glow to register in the periphery of his vision, and he sits up, turning around so he can see the source of that light. ]

Julia?

[divinityfrompain]

[ It is very easy to slip into the darkness in Solvunn and get private time, and Julia's been doing that herself. She's extroverted so she likes being around people, but she has enough noise within herself that some absolute quiet is appreciated. She has her reasons for being out there, trying to see if she can get a sense for the divine, having gone to the shrines but caught on to nothing so far. She never got silence like this in the city or even in her general life to relax in.

She's surprised when she notices movement nearby, turning her head toward him and for a moment her eyes glow as white as the rest of the light around her. She seems to radiate light but it fades away when she recognizes him and it's clear her senses aren't fully caught up since she didn't notice him. Her arms are wrapped around herself, she's wearing layers for the chill, but she comes closer and lowers the brightness so it doesn't blind him. ]

Erik. What in the world are you doing out here?

[ As if it's not also strange for her to be out here! She just hasn't run into anyone else on these walks of hers, most people being wisely sleeping when she does. Julia's gotten to know him enough that after only a few seconds of hesitation, she sits down on the ground near him. ]

[heavymetals]

[ That's something he will quickly point out, with a raised eyebrow and a twitch at the corner of his lips. ]

I could ask you that very same thing.

[ It's the dead of night, they both should be asleep. If not asleep, then at least not here. And yet. ]

I couldn't sleep. [ He looks up at the sky over the clearing. ] Thought I'd go for a walk, watch the stars.

[divinityfrompain]

Same.

[ Mostly. Julia was searching, but she's found nothing so far that makes her think her time is worth it. But there is peace in it too, at the same time. She's filled her time with children and harvests and quiet is appreciated.

She puts the light out since it's just the two of them sitting and she doesn't have to worry about where she's walking. They're immediately put right back into darkness and the stars are particularly bright. ]

They're not the same, I don't think.

[ And why would they be? They're on another world entirely, it wouldn't make sense to have the same galaxy, the same stars. Julia lies back the same way he is, a safe few feet away. ]

What year was it, when you were taken?

[heavymetals]

[ Well, Erik was searching for a quiet place, so he supposes they were both out here looking for something. Maybe he hasn't found it. On the other hand, of all the people to cross paths with right now, Julia's one of the very few he's fine with, and besides—

Her emotions are gentle, quiet. The surface ones, at least. It could be that Erik is just too tired. Either way, it's a break from how overwhelmed he's felt. ]

I didn't think they would be.

[ But it doesn't matter, to him. He's not here to study constellations, not that he would even know how to recognize them. ]

1983. [ He looks over at her. ] What about you? I don't think you've ever said.

night walk in the woods

[notrunninganymore]

No need to sleep means a lot of time to get bored, especially for someone like Gabriel, who really needs to be entertained constantly. Combine that with a newer need to also be distracted from any chance to dwell on unpleasant thoughts, and he's taken to filling up his nights with whatever he can find to do. Sometimes it's helping out villagers with extra chores, sometimes it's meeting up for a late-night rendezvous with the pretty woman who makes mead out in the Tertiary Settlement, and sometimes it's just wandering around looking for anything that catches his attention.

This is the latter, as although a person with a magic light out in the forest at night is certainly not the weirdest thing he's ever seen, it's still unusual. Unusual enough that he can't help but appear out of seemingly nowhere, accompanied by the sound of a fluttering wings and a obnoxiously casual comment.

"Nice night for a walk in the spooky forest."

[divinityfrompain]

When Gabriel appears out of seemingly nowhere, something similar happens, and by that for a second or two Julia just blips out of existence. Disappears entirely, but she's accidentally teleported away, no wings included, and she appears back where she was. Slightly frazzled. It's good she did come back with her light spell since the entire area fell into stark darkness until she flickers back along with it.

Gabriel might be able to sense a similar energy to some of the deities he used to know. It's not the exact same vibe as Kali or Loki, but it's just strange enough it might stand out. He might also be able to notice that an energy shield of some kind zipped into being the moment he talked, completely covering her, but it's not visible to normal eyes. It's still there.

"Teleporting in front of someone in a spooky forest? Horror movie behavior." She looks exasperated at him but not afraid.

[notrunninganymore]

Interesting. Very interesting, on several levels, and maybe potentially concerning as well. Maybe. Gabriel's pretty confident in his own power at the moment, so isn't super worried about anyone or anything other than his siblings being a real threat to him, but he at least knows better than to be too overconfident when facing someone unknown and potentially dangerous.

Though the fact that she sounds exasperated rather than anything else is a good sign. It's also the exact reaction he was aiming for, so he'll take it, and just gives an obnoxious little grin in return. "It sure is. Can't say the person teleporting away themselves is the usual reaction, though. Especially not coming back afterward."

[divinityfrompain]

"I'm still learning. It's a new power. I did some creepy horror movie stuff myself, very haunted blipping around people by accident." Julia looks like a normal human, just as Gabriel on the outside looks like a regular person too. Dark hair and eyes, dressed in layers for the weather, more as a style choice than a necessity because apparently her kind don't get 'cold' which was actually a bummer. She's going to wear the layers anyway just out of defiance.

"Gabriel, right?" She thinks he was at the party and Julia doesn't think there's a single Summoned around here she doesn't know on sight at this point. It's not like there are a lot of them. Twenty-three, by her count. If he was anyone other than a Summoned she probably would have stayed blipped away. She still is weirded out by the natives. Now they feel Midsommar-esque, nice as they are.

Nocwich

[divinityfrompain]

Julia takes the opportunity to go to Nocwich for all the days it's open, although she has to go back to Solvunn since she can't afford a room. It's just nice to have a break, although she's come to like the simple lands she was kidnapped into. She finally has some warmer clothes thanks to bartering in Solvunn so she gets to be back to her layered style, in shades of a light blue and gray. It's not her fancier threads from home, but it suits her, although she continues to have no heels so her petite size is obvious.

Julia enjoys watching the theatrical productions and she's often there cheering them on or enjoying the stories. Broadway usually costs an arm and a leg so it's fun to watch plays without needing to shell out hundreds. From any musical shows, she walks away humming the songs. She'll even dance a little when there are dancing encouragements.

She has no real money to get anything in the stalls and she's quick to say so to the merchants so they don't waste their time on her. "Sorry, if you don't barter, I'm just here to look." It's the New Yorker in her to know that salespeople have to focus on who they can get a sale from, so she looks through the jewelry and herbs and flowers. She sees one flower that seems a little withered and secretly touches it, causing it to flare back into life so it'll get a better price.

"I'm sorry did you say werewolf hair?" she asks, surprised, at one elixir. Go figure!

This time around she does go to the hot springs because while Wanda has plumbing, she often gets something like this. However, despite the looks that she's getting from the natives or anyone else used to nudity, Julia insists on wearing underwear so she's not naked. Call it modesty, but she needs those scraps to feel good. She seems to enjoy it otherwise and is open to being talked to once she settles in.

She otherwise can be found simply wandering around, enjoying a change of pace.

[righteously]

I'm sorry, did you say werewolf hair?

He hears the question over a rack of elixirs he's perusing, and knows instantly that the person asking's gotta be a Summoned. People around here, locals, they wouldn't be nearly so taken aback by the cost. Hell, even a tenured Summoned probably wouldn't bat an eyelash at the unusual currency.

So yeah, he ambles a few feet her direction — still leaving plenty of space between them, but close enough that he can speak up without having to be too loud about it.

"Oh yeah, it's full-blown Twilight monopoly money around these parts," he confirms on behalf of the shop keep, who only seems to be half-way paying attention to somebody they assume won't actually be a paying customer. "They take blood and spit, too. Still working out what the hell they do with that."

[divinityfrompain]

Julia is easily spooked when people are close so it's good for him to keep some space, and she glances over at him. Oh someone who actually knows what Twilight is, that's delightful. He's obviously a Summoned too, and not one from Solvunn since it's impossible not to know every single person in the commune.

"Please tell me the vampires don't sparkle or I'm going to get eaten for laughing at them. Or maybe going oooo pretty will win them over." She smiles at him, more than game for a little pop culture chat. Her group reference pop culture so frequently they can have entire conversations of just references only they can keep up with.

"We should all be careful with that. Blood, hair, and spit are the kind of thing specialized spells are made of." And just a little sus that they're asking for that kind of thing freely. Well, at least it's public, but for people who don't know, uh oh.

[righteously]

At her crack about vampires sparkling, his lips twist up into a crooked, dorky little grin. Oh, thank god — somebody that gets the reference. Do you know how long it's been, Julia? So long. After Sam disappeared, the only person who understands him half the time is Jo, and frankly... not to be morbid or anything, but she's been dead so long, her pop-culture reference game is like a decade behind.

It's like finding somebody who speaks your first language in a foreign country. This is great.

The grin fades down a little at the mention of spell work, and he nods.

"Yeah, I know. I haven't been giving up the bodily juices for exactly that reason, but uh... for what it's worth, these- they're definitely more Bella than Buffy. At least, from what I've seen over the last six months or so. Doesn't seem like they've been doing anything sketchy with the components, but... you never know. Not everybody's a saint."

[divinityfrompain]

Julia's much the same way because there are a few people in Solvunn who are from different time periods or different worlds, and some who just don't have the instinctive edge of pop culture references. Only Eliot does normally but they're from the same group, it's their thing. She sees that grin for what it is and mirrors it. As if to say oh hey, simpatico.

"Not to get all Charmed at you, but as a witch, they could store that stuff for much longer if they're careful about it. Just keep the bodily juices inside, that's all I'm saying." She could tell him stories about the things bodily juices have been used for in her world. They'd all be very, very gross, but she definitely knows what she's talking about. (Julia also doesn't want to think about how as a goddess now she could technically be giving 'juices' like the others and yuck, no thanks.)

"The only sign to me is that if they're selling their hair, they probably worried about it being used in shady ways." That would be reckless and if they're in conflict with the vampires, that would be stupid. So hair is probably okay.

She offers her hand to him. "Julia Wicker. Nice to talk to someone who actually speaks geek."

[pathologise]

The hot springs had been a delightful find as Adrienne had explored Nocwich this time, a slightly clearer head on her this time. Being here was still weird but it didn't feel quite as intense as she looked around the markets or asked a couple of people what else there was. Hence the hot springs.

She had gone nude, already dipped under the water when Julia arrives, her hair tied in a small bun at her neck.

There's a smile for the woman as she steps in, keeping her eyes up to help her not feel watched as she settles in.

"This will make me wish this place was open for longer." It was so relaxing you could forget other things.

[divinityfrompain]

Julia is tense as she comes in, holding tightly to her clothes and a towel which she sets down nearby, but she relaxes once the hot water and recognizing her partner settles onto her shoulders. It's a relief to not be with a stranger and she's less likely to anxiously watch anyone who comes by with company.

"Seriously. I am going to be here for these few days every month, taking advantage of a time out of the farmland." Julia sighs, her own hair pulled up into a sensible bun. "Solvunn is nice but it's like living in Amish territory. Agriculture stuff all the time, no real culture to speak of, at least not comparatively."

Julia isn't so annoyed at Solvunn that she's complained really or talked about leaving, she does not want to go to either of the others, and she thinks it's important that she's there. It's just hard to go from New York City to that. "I think my hands permanently smell like grass now." There's still plenty of it under her fingernails which she cleans up now.

"How's everything going in the desert?"

[pathologise]

"Sandy.

The word comes with a smile, Adrienne lifting her head a little to properly look at her now that she's settled in the water and that much more comfortable.

"The injuries are getting less and I'm having to actually... accept where I am." Which she can't say without slightly pulling a face at. Magic world. Too weird.

"But... the barracks aren't too bad? There's food, somewhere to sleep and showers. It could be a lot worse."

[divinityfrompain]

"Yeah, sorry, eventually you have to do that. It could be worse. I've been in worse."

She's thinking of timeline 20 when everyone was dead and the world was dark. In comparison, most things aren't so bad. She does think Abraxas in general could be worse; in some ways Fillory was more backward and problematic in comparison. Although it had the same amount of political bullshit.

"Wait, barracks? Like with the army?" Obviously that's what she means, but Julia scrunches up her nose, confused. "Aren't the Summoned there in like, an inn? I've heard they have this little commune of their own there."

Horizon

[divinityfrompain]

Julia has finally set up her Horizon which is a tree house of a kind. It is made of wood and has leaves at the top of it, placed in the middle of a small pool but can be walked up to and into. It has two floors, the winding staircase bringing people to the first floor which is the Physical Kids' common room space. This has a lot of comfortable but worn couches and chairs, and a huge bar with any options of drinks in there. There's always music being played in there, mostly pop from the 90s and 2000s, although some quiet and sad ballads occasionally. It's meant to be very good background music. There is a fireplace and it's usually bright and comfy in there. The Fillory map she and Quentin made as children is on the wall as its own painting.

The second floor has Julia's own apartment from home which is a slightly more upscale and beautiful place with many blues, purples, and light shades. Her bedroom is permanently locked. Her apartment can be accessed by people she's already met in the real world, but locked to any strangers. There are bookshelves in there of her favorite texts and a laptop with magical spells on it.

People visiting will meet Hudson the dragon. The same size as the hatchlings from the Nether, this dragon is designed after the Hudson River Dragon who did a solid for Julia back home. She is friendly and flies around, and she will sit on top of visitor heads or chew their hair. She will settle on their lap if they stay long enough.

[thedreamer]

Outwardly, the Doctor doesn't appear to reflect much on recent events in the Nether, at least so much as it affected him. No, all external reflection is entirely focused on his friends and how they fared, how they're doing now. For himself, he does what he can to avoid being alone with his thoughts and being forced to sit with any memories that were dredged up solely because...well, there lies a dangerous path.

One such friend his thoughts turn to in recent days is Julia, and he recalls her invitation to visit her Horizon. He finds a quiet comfort in that shared space, having gratefully visited the domains of others in recent weeks. Today is a day to be with a friend, though. Yes, that'll do. So as he quiets his thoughts — a challenge at times for a busy mind — he thinks of her and he's delighted to see it up close now. Perhaps because she'd mentioned that map she'd made with her friend specifically, the Doctor finds himself standing in front of that first before anything else, and he smiles softly before looking around, though not before gingerly touching it with a hint of reverence. It means something to her, which means that it likewise means something to him.

"Julia?" He calls out now. "It's the Doctor. At your service!" A pause. "Do we like that, at your service? No, bit formal." He scrunches his nose a bit, beginning to wander already. "Doesn't fit us, although I am at your service, here to help, always there when you need me. But I'll do you better, hang on." Another pause, and then his voice is pitched a little higher and with a clear smile in his voice, "Hello, Julia, missed ya!" He makes the end syllables purposefully rhyme.

[divinityfrompain]

The greeting he gets first is from an adorable little red dragon, slightly bigger than the hatchlings, who flies down from the second floor to drop to the ground nearby him. She curiously nudges at him and dances around his feet before flying away again. A few moments later Julia walks down from a private staircase with the dragon in her arms, in a bit of a hurry because she instantly smiled when she heard his voice.

"You came!" Julia says with a smile, already seeming like the heavy weight that was on her shoulders before is lifted in here. The divine glow around her is lessened in here too, as if she can decide for herself to be more human than not.

"This is Hudson. Someone told me you could create creatures in here so I just couldn't resist." Her behavior is similar to the hatchlings as she's curious and maybe has a little mischief, but she looks like none of them. "The Hudson River Dragon helped me out back home." So she created the creature as a sort of homage. She sets Hudson down so she can do as she wants; there seems to be no real 'control' of them once they're made, for whatever reason.

"Did you see the map?" Julia assumes that he did as it's right there on the wall but she's just glad he's there and beaming with it.

[thedreamer]

"You told me to!" It is, of course, as easy and natural as that in his mind. And the unspoken implication being that he'll come whenever she asks, invites, or flat out tells him to. Just as often, he comes when not invited either. He'll never turn down company, especially with a dear friend. More importantly, a friend bearing an adorable dragon in her arms.

When they come closer, the Doctor briefly claps his hands together, rubbing them in gleeful and barely contained excitement. Why contain excitement, is his motto.

"Hudson. Oh, I'm glad to meet you, what an honor," he speaks directly to the dragon, watching it in amazement as it moves about. He'd heard of dragons many a time in his life, but he'd never seen them like this before and it's been an utter delight. "I have a companion of sorts in my Horizon, a raven actually, thanks to Wanda. Have you met her? She's fab! We're just getting to know each other actually. Well, me and Wanda and me and the raven. A pleasure on all accounts."

He folds his hands together behind his back, looking back over towards where the map was. "The map was the first thing I saw, in fact. Probably because I was thinking of it. I loved your story." It had meant a lot to him, what she'd shared then. "Will you tell me more about it? The places on your map, your favorite places. You said it wasn't perfect — real, but damaged, I think you said."

It stuck out to him, in any case.

[divinityfrompain]

"I did, I'm so glad you listened." Julia's excited to have her first visitor to the Horizon. Since setting it all up, which was really fun, she hasn't been sure what to do next. Put a 'welcome' sign outside? She has to meet more people from other factions, since everyone in Solvunn is already in each other's back pockets. She plans on walking around the Horizon soon so she can learn more about it, it's such a powerful place.

"Wanda is the best! She's so kind, she is very welcoming to everyone in Solvunn, and makes you feel immediately at ease." Which isn't easy for people to do when they're pulled out of a well into a strange farm land and told they were treasured by the gods of this world. It's a weird place. Julia's adapted to it since arriving but the value of Wanda's immediate kindness is irreplaceable. She suspects it's the same for others.

"Dragons are portal-keepers in my world. They're fairly neutral with everyone, being extremely old and doing their own thing." Julia likes them for that though. There is something to be said for neutral parties who don't really take sides; it's not always great, but it is reassuring in a way. The dragons will help people who trade them and they don't judge.

"Well the gods who made Fillory were very damaged but real themselves, so that's where it came from." Julia might have issues with Ember, and considering her responsibility in her death, it's deep, but he also did create the planet. And even if he was a dick about it in the end, at one point he was someone who wanted to create something beautiful and bizarre with his brother. She'd rather think of him that way.

"In the Great Marsh here." She points at the green forest. "There is a giant turtle called the Prince of the Mud." Julia smiles happily. She's never really gotten past her love of Fillory, going there only secured it. "And this is Castle Whitespire, where my friends lived when they were kings and queens." Down to the right, obviously the drawing done by children so it's not as beautiful as the real thing, but she thinks it attempted. "And the Wandering Desert all the way down here with the Talking Lizards of the Dune." The map is fairly accurate considering she's been there now! Just childishly made.

"It's a very whimsical place, with actual opium in the air in some areas." So sections where people are a little high at all times, by accident. That was definitely something visitors from Earth had to get used to! "Oh and in the middle there is this beautiful rainbow bridge made of flowers you have to cross, I never got to see that. It's where people get coronated." And she used to dream of becoming a queen, of course. At least Q actually got to be a king! One of them did it.

"I didn't get to see as much of it as I wanted. Not yet, at least." But as a goddess, she has time, so when she goes back, she'll be able to travel.

Endrborrin begins

[divinityfrompain]

Toward the end of November, Julia can be seen traveling to the second settlement with a little goat cart and finding the main shrine of Endrborrin. While she's been visiting a few, this is one that she kneels in front of for longer, and can be seen speaking to it directly. Then she leans down to touch the shrine and it blooms into life in a way that should be impossible in the weather. Flowers blossom like it is the middle of spring instead of winter and cover the entire shrine with vivid beauty.

Julia stays there for quite some time talking to the shrine. If someone comes close enough they may hear a little of Julia's life story, so it sounds like she's introducing herself or in the middle of a business interview.

She asks to stay overnight to the people there and introduces herself to them too as a Summoned and helps out around the settlement in exchange for a little extra time there. She visits the shrine again the next day to make certain the flowers are still there and uses her magic on it a second time. Afterward, when Julia goes back to the main settlement, the flowers remain in full bloom at the shrine until she visits again. She can be seen regularly visiting for that reason.