abraxaslogs | [ SEMI-OPEN ] talk it through as a crew

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[ SEMI-OPEN ] talk it through as a crew

Who: Ed + Staff
When: Sometime in early August
Where: Ed's Inn & Tavern & Fine Gift Shop
What: It's a staff meeting....of a kind
Warnings: Canon warnings.

A Little Notice
Who can say what brought this on. Might he have heard Tifa muttering about people drinking on the job? Did a customer mention a small wind that keeps sweeping through the place and sending napkins aflutter? Has an ugly demon statue scared the shit out of a toddler?

(Possibly, it could be all of the above, but no one's actually taken notes around here.)

Whatever it is, the dedicated and underpaid (okay, fine, fully unpaid) staff of the inn will find a notice pinned to the inn's door. Yes, it's been stuck there with a dagger. It appears about a week before the meeting, with a date and time and, you know, all the necessary information people need to know to show up. Maybe. If the notice is missing details, you'll have to track him down and ask him yourself.

Meeting Day
To avoid offending the good people of Solvunn (he needs their reviews), Ed holds the meeting during off-hours in the morning when most people are asleep or haven't checked in yet. The bar/kitchen area is decently quiet, and it's got plenty of stools and chairs, which seems...like a pretty good spot? Yeah, it'll do.

He's got the usual refreshments, courtesy of Himeka. Marmalade is definitely included somewhere and it's probably a, frankly, fucking insane amount of food, but that's alright. That's not a problem. Himeka is a madwoman wielding massive cheese wheels and a frying pan. Massive respect.

There's also a big bucket of fish in the corner. It's technically for Nanaue, who may or may not show, but if you're very excited about the prospect of shoving raw fish into your face, Ed won't stop you. Someone else might, but Ed won't. Just, uh, don't eat all of the big guy's food, he's a growing shark and he's apparently raising a child now.

Most important, of course, are the comment cards. In theory, they're anonymous, as in, you haven't got to sign your name or anything, but, well. That's about all the steps you can take to remain anonymous. Good luck.

Some handy dandy links: OFFICIAL MEETING THREAD || CREW WREATH || COMMENT CARDS

OOC
Feel free to mingle before and after the meeting! Threadjacking encouraged, and be as chaotic as you want. Just don't destroy the inn itself, Ed will be sad about that. The comment cards are real, and yes, they will be brought up in the meeting as they get added. Ed will read them out and address the concerns, as every effective boss should.

Characters who are not part of the staff are welcome to drive by!!

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

The comment cards are a mix of blank cards and ones that've got some semblance of a "form" to it. The format isn't...actually consistent, but it probably looks something like the below if you like structure, which Ed isn't super good at.

Otherwise, just scribble anything. Draw a picture if you want. Please share the "pencils," they go missing a lot and he's running out.

Pick some flowers, twigs, or shells, and build a giant wreath together. You can add whatever you want to it. He's got a couple of buckets of paint leftover when he painted the inn (in shades of pink and purple), ribbon scraps, and bits and bobs from "offerings," which are free for use. Art from the heart.

When it's done, he's gonna hang it up outside the inn. :)

[ Official meeting starts...whenever everyone's here and Ed decides to start it. ]

Okay, I just want to start by saying big thank you to everyone for coming out, your hard work's greatly appreciated and I promise, all our valued guests appreciate it, too. (All three of them. It's been a slow season.)

Now, obviously, you're all happy to work here, and we want to make sure it stays that way. And, even though I'm the captain—or, innkeeper, rather—I understand I'm not infallible so you may, of course, freely verbalize any...dissatisfaction...you might have with...my leadership...

[ Ahem. ]

But, before we get to that, we're going to address comments amongst and directed towards all of you. The staff. Oh, and—so that everybody feels heard, we have—

[ Ta-da. He presents: ]

—the Talking Fish. To clarify, the fish doesn't actually talk, it's a fish you hold when you would like to talk.

Excellent, okay. Who wants to go first?

(( ooc: No strict threading order or anything!! ))

Edited 2024-08-02 21:11 (UTC)

Pseudonym: NANAUE
Remarks: HI ED
Say something positive: :)

[ Nanaue sits on one side of the wreath circle, busy at work. At either side of him are a pair of feety fish (what appear to be grouper, now given their own pairs of human-like legs) and Baby, the bipedal baby seal. For his part of the wreath he's winding a piece of old, tattered netting like ribbon around the base, while Baby messily paints over it in pink with a brush. The feety fish are... not really helping so much as darting around, confused.

Suddenly, Nanaue coughs, then hacks, then spits into his hand a fleshless fish skull - presumably from the fish bucket in the corner. He offers it to Baby, who offers it to whomever is next to it, staring at you with its wide, black eyes.

How could you not accept this gift?? ]

[ Tifa is up bright and early most days, and she'd made sure to get her daily training routine done and finished before the meeting was scheduled to start. It does mean that her long hair is still damp from the bath she took after, but she didn't think it would be very professional to show up here all sweaty.

(She misses showers.)

Ed seems well-meaning, even if she's not sure he's ever run a business like this before. Then again, Solvunn functions differently from a place like the slums, where gil had been the primary language for anything that was done there.

There's quite a few of them gathered around, but Tifa feels the awkward tension that comes when any group of people is suddenly put on the spot. If only to make that stop, she steps forward and reaches to take the Talking Fish from Ed.

Is this what company meetings are supposed to be like? Did they do things like this at Shinra? Somehow she doubts it. ]

Umm. Well, I guess first I'd just like to say that I'm glad that we were all able to meet up like this. [ She looks from face to face with a smile. ] If we're going to work together, it'd be good to get to know each other better, right?

[ She wonders if she should mention the whole "drinking on the job" thing. She wonders if that's why Ed called this meeting, and she worries that she's already rocked the proverbial boat when she shouldn't have, so she doesn't want to comment on that right now. ]

... I was wondering. We haven't had a lot of guests stay here so far, so maybe we should brainstorm some ways to drum up local interest in the inn?

[ Tifa's heard a lot about the shark man. It would be hard not to, when he's such a presence, and she'd seen him when they'd all been packed into that ritual site together. This is their first time interacting. She hasn't actually gathered what he does here at the inn, if anything, but he's here so... it must be something. Right?

Even stranger are the fish with human legs that follow him around, although the baby seal is pretty cute, she'll admit. She hasn't said anything to either of them yet, not sure how to break the ice, so she's just been focused on weaving some flowers together for the wreath. Aerith showed her once when they'd made a flower crown for Cloud, although he hadn't been willing to wear it in the end...

Then, the little seal is handing a fish skull to her, like it might be something she needs. ]

Oh. [ The word comes out more like a cough. ] Umm, thank you. [ Her gaze darts from the seal to the shark and back again. ] Should I... add it to the wreath?

EHH....?

[ Nanaue stops messing around with the netting and looks from Baby to the new woman and the skull he'd only just handed to Baby. ]

NO WANT? [ He asks this to Baby, who doesn't seem to respond other than to start playing with some bits of shell on the ground. Nanaue grunts, then turns to Tifa with a solid nod. ]

OKAY. YOU ADD. [ And then, because he is attracted to pretty, colorful objects... ] FLOWERS NICE...

[ It's been like a whole day since someone's made him a flower crown! ]

[Oh that is a good deal of talking. Arthur mumbles quietly under his breath as he begins jotting it all down, repeating what's being said as he writes.

This is a company meeting, after all. Arthur Hastings, who has worked in two separate offices, knows all about company meetings. He's shown up with a bottle of ink, a pen, and multiple sheets of parchment.

Someone needs to take notes and record the minutes! Which Ed probably doesn't know, he's never run a business before. But it's alright, Arthur is prepared.]

Slow down a moment, I'm falling very behind already!

[He doesn't have the talking fish, but he assumes he'll be forgiven - no one wants inaccurate notes, after all.]

[ Thank you, Tifa. Ed hands her the Talking Fish with both hands, quite pleased that he has obtained a volunteer to take the stage. This is why he hired her! For her team spirit and go-getter attitude. He's all prepared to listen to her concerns, when—

Okay, first of all, the Talking Fish rule is already being broken! Why did he introduce the Fish if people (one person) are just gonna roughshod all over it.

Second of all: ]

Artie, mate, are you writing down every word? You don't...you don't have to do that.

[Arthur glances around at the gathered inn folks. Not a quill or pen among them. No one showed up with a journal or paper.]

If I don't, who will? You have to have a record of meetings, so at the next one when people start arguing about who said what at the last one, it's all written down and I can say 'I have the minutes, I'll read aloud who said what!' and then we all know.

[This is basic business meeting procedure.]

Just...keep going, don't mind me.

[ Tifa assumes the little seal is a child, and kids can be pretty particular about what they do or don't want. She doesn't really mind that the skull has been passed off onto her. She's not sure skulls and flowers really go well together, but when she remembers that Ed is a pirate(!), she figures she might be able to make something work here.

At the shark's observation about the flowers, she glances down at the variety of colored petals with a smile. ] They are, aren't they? There's so many around here — it's wonderful.

[ She places the skull onto the table and starts to arrange the flowers around it, trying to find an orientation that looks aesthetically pleasing. ]

We haven't really met, have we? I'm Tifa. What do you do here at the inn?

[ Tifa is possibly just as confused as Ed about this. She blinks as Arthur gives his hurried explanation, and while there is a sort of logic to it, he seems to be making this all much more stressful than it needs to be. ]

Umm... I'm hoping it won't come to us arguing over anything, but I guess you have a point.

[ It doesn't look like he's going to stop any time soon, so Tifa simply glances back to Ed and shrugs. ]

Where were we — right. Any ideas on how to bring in more customers?

[ She glances around at the other employees, holding out the fish in case someone wants to grab it. ]

[ Nanaue nods, while Baby sticks bits of shells in its mouth and spits them out. There's so many flowers, all different colors and sizes and shapes. ]

TEEFA.

[ Like TEETH. He will remember.

Nanaue points to his own chest. ] ME NANAUE - [ then points to the inn's sign, which he helped with - ] ME ARTIST. YOU LIKE ART?

[ He is actually very famous for his art. ]

[ From his seat, which is more like a little foot-stool he'd found somewhere in the inn, Rocket straightens up, looking from speaker to speaker to Ed, and then back to the guy with the writing as if the idea of noting shit down like that is possibly the dumbest idea he's ever heard of.

What a waste of paper. Trees had to die for that shit to be made, okay. ]

That's what duels are for.

[ But, okay, fine. Rocket holds out a paw for the Talking Fish next, and when it's in his grasp, he considers that this is already a hell of a lot more orderly than some of the Guardian meetings had been when Drax and Quill (and OKAY FINE HIM TOO) would shout over each other, trying to get the last word in. Nebula was the growling sense of reason a lot of the time, and somehow decisions were made when Quill made the call.

It was a little different the last time he can remember, now that he's been made captain, and he's trying to be more ... serious about it. He can be a little more serious about this too. ]

So the Treehouse, where I live, we host the welcome mingle with every round of new Summoned. We could always do a little promotion then, make sure people know that they've got options.

[ Oh. The more that the shark man talks, the more that Tifa realizes that his language skills are closer to that of a young child. It's a complete 180 from how Red speaks, which is why it throws her off for a moment.

No doubt a lot of people expected that Red would talk like this when they first saw him, only to be proved wrong. Tifa takes a moment to adjust, then glances up to the sign when Nanaue points to it. ]

Oh! Of course I do. [ Most people like art, don't they? And while the sign is quite amateur, it's also charming. ] No wonder you're helping out with the wreath, then. I think we'll be able to put something really nice together.

[ She shifts the flowers around so they're in a color gradient and centers the skull, head tilting as she tries to decide if it looks good or not. ]

What do you think?

[ Ed holds out his hands. Hang on— ]

No duels on the premises. Duel after working hours.

[ Or, please don't, actually, 'cause he's had enough of a time hiring these people and he doesn't want to lose his shop manager to a misplaced stabby wound. Or his maintenance man. Look, the point is, duelling is bad for business. Also, maybe, they're...his friends and he's not completely okay with his friends getting stabbed.

Moving on. Fuck. How does he keep this orderly? How the fuck does Stede do this without threats of violence or a bit of shouting? (Stede doesn't, that's the unfortunate reality. The crew used to just talk over Stede.)

He claps his hands together. Okay! ] Yes! Promotions. Fantastic idea, thank you, Rocket. And, perhaps—decorating services? We have got a lot of... [ He looks at the spiky fish. ] ...lovely knick-knacks.

[ Look, it's popular with the locals, yeah? No, Ed hasn't got a single clue they're buying it out of pity. As far as he's concerned, the Solvunn people love this weird creepy shit. ]

Fine! Fine, no duels until after hours.

[ Rocket rolls his eyes, like this has gotta be the most difficult thing for him to agree to. (It's not, but he's going to be difficult on purpose. It's the principle of the matter.)

He takes a brief moment to size everyone around the room up for an assumption of their interior design capabilities. ]

Well, I ain't much for decorating but I will say the demand for it is probably strong.

[ So, yes, he agrees with Ed; it's probably an idea worth pursuing for that extra revenue. He just won't be personally participating in Home Makeover: Solvunn Edition any time soon unless '20 Year Old Garage Chique' is suddenly in fashion. He's never had enough space to collect things, let alone to collect them in an aesthetic manner. And the moment he got himself a workshop, it just became a chaotic dumping ground. He loves it that way. It looks and feels full. ]

We got a lotta weirdos buyin' a lotta weird crap but who knows where they're putting it when they get home?

Edited (how did i miss an entire first part of my tag lmao bye) 2024-08-22 15:06 (UTC)

[ Nanaue examines her work for a long, long moment - extended his large hand to touch the flowers. His bulky, webbed fingers are gentle as they stroke the petals in the direction of the gradient. Baby mimics him, doing the same with his less dexterous flipper. ]

NICE LOOK. ME LIKE! [ He blinks at her. ]

YOU ARTIST?

[ Like him? ]

[Arthur remembers to raise his hand for the talking fish.]

I think that's moving in the right direction. What about focusing on promoting and advertising all the non-inn bits of the business? Beef up the gift shop a bit, diversify our inventory, get buzz going about the food...maybe put up unique art? Solvunn isn't exactly bursting with galleries...

[And that's what it's all about, catching people's attention and giving them a reason to come. Offer things they can't find anywhere else.]

And of course there's merchandising.

[ The back and forth about duels only makes Tifa scoff and shake her head. She's going to hope that they're joking around for her own sanity, especially since that's the impression she gets from Rocket in particular. The last thing they need is for brawls to become commonplace here, leading to their carpenter having to do way more work than should be necessary. ]

I think most of us are pretty capable of tossing people out if they get too rowdy.

[ She shrugs. It's nothing she hasn't done before.

But Rocket, Ed, and Arthur are all throwing out some pretty good ideas. Suddenly Tifa understands why taking notes might be worthwhile, or they might lose track of things. ]

That's a good point. [ Said with a glance toward Arthur as she takes the fish from him. Is it... actually working in terms of keeping this conversation organized? ] Maybe people don't need a place to stay so much, but somewhere they can look at art, buy some trinkets, eat some unique Summoned-made food, that's a different story. Whether we like it or not, the locals are curious about us, so we have a lot to offer them.

[ The inn can be more than just an inn. Even if it's only Summoned sleeping here for the most part, others might come and stay for the novelty. ]

[ Despite the fact that his fin hands(?) don't look like they can be gentle, Nanaue takes the utmost care with stroking the flowers. The little seal mimics him, and it's all incredibly precious, she has to admit.

At the question, though, Tifa blinks owlishly and shakes her head. ]

No, no, not at all. I'm... uhh... more a fighter, I guess.

[ What does it say that she thought of that first when trying to describe herself?

Though she then glances toward the bar, gesturing at it with a sweep of one hand. ]

And a bartender! That's what I'm doing for the inn.

[ But hmm. Do sharks drink? Somehow she doesn't think giving Nanaue alcohol would be a good thing... ]

[ They'd be giving the carpenter plenty of future employment, Tifa! It's fine! It's good, even! ]

How much are we comfortable with sharing, though? [ Oh. Right. The talking fish thing.

With a slight sigh of exasperation, he reaches for the fish from Tifa before he continues. ] And what kinda shit are we gonna share? I ain't seen any art here, unless we're talking about getting the shark to do some pieces for us.

[ ... which. Isn't actually a bad idea, honestly. ]

And a lot of us don't even know much about each other's homeworlds.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[ SEMI-OPEN ] talk it through as a crew

COMMENT CARDS

CREW'S WREATH

OFFICIAL MEEETING

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