Open Horizon Catchall

[nadine_he_loves]

Who: Nadine and YOU! (One closed starter)
When: November
Where: Horizon/Nadine's Domain
What: Catch-all for the month
Warnings: Will add as needed



[Following Halloween night, Nadine's been spending a great deal of time in the Horizon. Her domain is familiar, comforting, safe. Or at least offers a very solid illusion of safety. Particularly the square. She's often sat on a bench outside the little church, watching the clouds or the fall of autumn leaves and just thinking.

She has a great deal to think about.

Since she was twelve years old, Nadine has known the path of her life. She'd known the rules, known what she had to do, and known where her future led. And she had, for the most part, followed the rules and did what she had to do. Yet here she was, alone - by a certain definition - in a strange world, with none of the things she's been promised.

There's anger left in the wake of Flagg. Anger and fear and a sense of loss she doesn't know how to navigate. Whatever joy there is in the idea of freedom, it's overpowered by all the rest. What would she even do here? What would any of them do? She isn't the only one who's had the rug pulled out from under her. How is she supposed to take care of Lloyd and Julie? And then there's Susan... She isn't even sure exactly how to take care of herself in this world.

And then there's those tantalizing thoughts that hover at the edge of her mind. The ones that do find joy in the prospect of freedom, and how close it truly is. She's already had a small taste of it. There's so much more to life than what she's experienced, the chance to just live is right here. If she's willing to take it.

Sometimes, to try and quiet the storm of thoughts in her head, she wanders to the edge of her domain to add a little something. A pond with geese here, a winding stream with a wooden bridge, a spray of wildflowers... it's just something to occupy her mind, to keep her busy...and maybe just catch the attention of anyone in a nearby domain. A part of her has no real desire to be alone.]

Comments

Closed to Julie and Lloyd

[nadine_he_loves]

[She asked them to meet her in her domain. It just seems safer, to talk about these kinds of things in the Horizon. Nott, Nadine suspects, is full of ears that are always listening. It just seems like that sort of place.

She's sitting in the gazebo to wait for them, dressed plainly in jeans and an over-large black sweater with a cowl neck - the sort of things she used to wear before the desert.

They need to figure out what to do now. Nadine can't speak for the other two, but she's not nearly as inclined to take vengeful action against Thorne without Flagg to take charge.]

[princessvegas]

[ Julie is from a small town too, but Nadine's domain does not ring of much familiar to her. The things Nadine seems to remember are picturesque and darling, like the backdrop of a family drama where things are always back to the status quo when the hour is up. Julie's memories are of abandoned, decaying homes overgrown with weeds, boarded up storefronts long covered in dust, a single Wal-Mart that's completely decimated the local economy. There aren't trees in beautiful, violent shades of red and yellow; there is only dead grass as high as your knees. Only the church bears any resemblance to anything Julie ever knew before the desert, and she wanders around the town with a curiosity and a vague sense of unease as she looks at everything. It's so homey, and yet there is the feeling of being in a quiet horror movie.

Fucked up shit always happens in towns like this in horror movies.

She sticks out like a sore thumb, gold and sparkling, though she wears a white, fur-trimmed coat over her party dress. Joining Nadine in the gazebo, she takes a seat, still looking at everything around them. ]

Nice place. Is this where you're from?

[nadine_he_loves]

Thanks. Not...not exactly. It's just sort of an idealized version of a lot of places I lived in. An artist's idea of New Hampshire. Barnstead wasn't nearly as nice as this.

[More chain link fences and paved over lawns and sagging duplexes carved out of old Victorian houses. At least in the part of town where Nadine had lived, in her modest little rented house. The other side of town, where the school she'd worked was, had been practically a different world.]

But I always loved the fall in New England. The colors...there's nothing else like it. It's quiet, but I could use the quiet.

[princessvegas]

Looks like a movie. Or one of those family shows, 7th Heaven and shit.

[ She tucks her hands under her thighs, curls in on herself a little. Something about this all makes her a little uncomfortable; it feels too perfect, too idyllic. So she changes the subject with a grin. ]

Hey, so did you have a good time at the party?

[nadine_he_loves]

I remember that one.

[Nadine laughs a little, struck by how strangely normal it feels right now. But Julie's right, there is a certain fictional quality to this little slice of east coast life.

Then a fleeting look crosses her face, something hard to read and she glances away. She still isn't sure what she thinks about everything that happened. She'd enjoyed herself, yes, but...it almost doesn't feel real, looking back. And there's a sliver of guilt that's crept in, illogical and she's aware of that, but still hard to dismiss.

There's still a lot to unpack from the night of Eifstide.]

Yeah. Yeah, it was a nice time, thank you. Afterwards left a lot to be desired...I really need to hit the books a lot harder if I want to manage any magic that will actually help us if we get attacked by a horror movie again. Or some bandit with a crossbow.

[princessvegas]

Yeah, that was fuckin' crazy, but I was so goddamn tired, all's I could do was hide and cover my head with the pillow. If I'da known all that shit was gonna happen, I woulda had the party on Saturday instead. I was so drained after that I could barely walk.

[ Nadine doesn't want to talk about it and Julie could scream from annoyance. Does this woman not understand the point of doing shit like this? It's to talk about it afterward! You owe your wingwoman deets when she pulls you a great lay! But it's fine, she won't push, at least not now. And she'll just go get her own deets, so there.

She sighs and looks over her shoulder, irritated at what's taking Lloyd so long. ] So... what are we gonna do?

[nadine_he_loves]

I don't blame you. I think I normally would have done the same thing, I was just...I was in a weird headspace that night. Not a bad one.

[She's quick to clarify that, she doesn't want Julie to get the wrong idea about what went down at the party. If anything, she'd felt powerful and confident in the wake of it all. That's faded now, though.]

Honestly I wouldn't mind if I felt like that more often. Because I don't know what we're going to do. The plan had been utilize the tensions between Nott and the capital to take revenge on Thorne but I really don't care much about that anymore. The worst thing they did was lock Randall up and I can't really blame them for that.

after her talk with Julie

[jealousbitch]

[ He shows up later than he'd anticipated, but had gotten caught up and forgot. Lloyd isn't hard to spot with one of his flamboyant suits, sticking out like a sore thumb. When he spots her hanging out in her gazebo, he jogs up to her and takes a seat on an empty railing with a sheepish grin. ]

Hey, sorry I'm late! I miss anything? [ He doesn't happen to see Julie, so he's a lot later than he thought. ]

No Jules?

[nadine_he_loves]

Hey. Yeah, you missed pretty much everything.

[Nadine looks up at him with an amused sort of fondness. It isn't as though he'd needed to be there, the pair of them had worked everything out pretty well.

Assuming no crises happened to change their plans.]

It's okay, Julie and I figured stuff out. We're not seeking vengeance against Thorne, and we're going to stay here in Nott and save up money and eventually maybe head to the Free Cities. And if things start going really bad, we book it for the Singularity. We're not fighting these people's battles for them.

[jealousbitch]

[ Lloyd sits and listens, his arms crossed casually in front of himself. It makes sense that they're not going through with Flagg's plan without having him here. Honestly, having him absent has been kind of bittersweet. He hasn't really known what to do with himself, but he keeps at it to support the ladies. Nodding his head, he chews on his thumbnail as he thinks.

It's as good a plan as any that they've got, and there's no reason for any of them to go back where they came from. He catches her eye and glances away, letting out a quiet sigh as his shoulders sag. ]

I'm tired of fighting for shit that's bigger than me.

[ What good had it done him? Not that he even knows how to go forward now, just a ship caught in a slow, perpetual circle. He's never been good at knowing what he wants long-term. Always the here and now before Flagg came along and showed him something different. Something big. ]

[nadine_he_loves]

We all are.

[Nadine offers a smile and stands up, moving to stand in front of Lloyd. She reaches to take his hands in hers.]

We're going to be okay, Lloyd. Julie and I had a long talk about things...as messed up as this whole situation is, we get a chance to have lives. Actual lives, where we make our own choices for ourselves. So we're dungeons and dragons characters now, okay, fine. We've got a whole world that's not dead, and we can do whatever we want.

[Her voice is earnest, understanding well Lloyd's feelings of loss and vague confusion.]

And I'm going to take care of you guys. I promise.

[And she isn't even asking for any oaths of loyalty or unquestioning obedience.]

[jealousbitch]

[ He allows her to and watches her hands around his own. Hers are so soft and well-manicured. Lloyd offers a wry smile. ]

Thought that was supposed to be my job.

[ He's always aimed to take care of her and Julie since he got here, and it's not about to stop without Flagg around. Hell, he cares pretty damn deeply for both of them and they've all been through a lot of shit together. In for a penny, right?

It's uncomfortable thinking about all that uncertainty. Fact is, he doesn't know what he wants. He's always deferred to what somebody bigger and meaner has wanted because he's not a leader. Never has been. What the fuck is a follower without a leader? It might have been easier if she was asking for his word. ]

[nadine_he_loves]

We take care of each other.

[She squeezes his hands encouragingly, and thinks back to the conversation they had back in Castle Thorne, so many months ago.]

But maybe I'm Catherine the Great after all. She didn't become the Great until she lost her husband. And I'm not going to let anything happen to you or Julie. Or Susan, because she's one of us now.

[That's not a debatable point, she and Julie already decided.]

We can still have so much of what we were promised. We'll just have to work a little harder.

sneakin in here

[cointosser]

[It is no surprise that after his rather lovely night with Nadine -- and having left little time for talking by the end of it -- he was curious about. Well, everything. Certainly Julie is a very intriguing woman, but moreso the woman who trusts her friend to, well. Petition a relative stranger to show her a good night.

(And perhaps he wants to ensure that he did so. He thinks he did, but... well, even one with his expertise can experience doubts. It was a lot riding on his shoulder. One may even consider an entire woman's history with romance was.)

As ever, Jaskier loves to explore others' domains. It's much harder to find one in particular. So this time he is only on his horse, a highly decorated beast with emblems of The Sun all along her bells and flowers braided in her mane. Much easier than dragging a wagon around with him, and because he needs to leave Moglad behind to watch his vineyard. (No offense to the moogle, but he intends to find Nadine alone first.) He passes all his usual haunts -- the mountain ranges, the dark, depressing forests, and the ice caverns -- and is quite sure he's passed this place, with its bright autumnal leaves and unfamiliar buildings. It's so quiet, however, that isn't quite sure who could be here.

So it's his second time around that he actually sees a woman on the edges. As he approaches, a spring in the step of the horse that leaves spots of green grass in its wake, he realizes -- oh.

It's her.

Isn't it?

Jaskier has a moment of hesitation; honestly, while he hasn't forgotten anything from that night, the drugs had left a sort of shimmer over everything, and he'd seen her in costume (and then nothing at all.) But at second glance, yes. It must be her. It's only that this place, with its cool air and nestled quiet, are the polar opposite of Julie's frantic and overwhelming domain.

He likes it. It is exactly the sort of place a man takes his horse for a relaxing ride. As he rides up and the horse's bells gently chime, he gives her a wave and then a bow from his saddle.]

Why, good afternoon, my lady. I daresay it must be Destiny that we've finally run into each other again. [That's a bit of a joke. He slides off his horse's saddle, giving her a pat to be still.] How are you, Nadine? All of this must be yours, is it not? It's lovely! Especially the colors.

[Autumn was one of his favorite seasons. How could it not be? Between the turning of the leaves, the winds, and the painted sunsets, it was a season of inspiration.]

[nadine_he_loves]

[Oh good god, it's him.

Nadine freezes where she stands, feeling as though she's been caught doing something she shouldn't. Which is ridiculous, all she's doing is altering her domain a bit. She isn't even engaging in any self indulgence, dressed practically in a cream turtleneck sweater and a long black skirt.

But she had assumed, due to her own nature and the fact that Jaskier was a continent away, that they'd likely not run into each other again. Which was good. Not that she regrets the night they spent together, it had been wonderful, but she'd thought of it as a sort of experience out of time. Fully contained and existing only in the moment. A good memory to hold with her. That was the whole point of one night stands, wasn't it?

Now her one night stand is riding up into her domain on a fancy horse, looking like he just stopped by on the way home from a renaissance fair.]

Uh...hi. You're...here. I wasn't expecting visitors.

[Did he just wander around the Horizon looking for people to talk to? She can see that. It never occurs to her that he's specifically sought her out. Why in the world would he?]

Welcome to New Hampshire, I guess. Or at least a projected magic version of it.

[cointosser]

[Oh, dear. Suddenly, he knows intimately well what the professors he'd once had felt catching him doing -- catching him not studying. That is, distinctly, the reaction of someone who wishes he had not simply strolled back into her life.

It's not his first time. Of course, he isn't inclined to believe that feeling gets easier to swallow with age. Or repetition.

How awkward.

He brings his hands together in front of him, rubbing his knuckles.]

Right. [To her credit, she is far from the last who seems surprised by his intrusion into their domain. Is he truly the only one who explores them? Who wouldn't be fascinated with what other worlds those connected to the Singularity would create for themselves?

Worlds like, apparently, a breezy little abode called New Hampshire.]

I thought I'd stop by, since I was curious, you know... but, ah, I can go. I needn't interrupt your work. [He turns, digging into the saddlebag of his horse, who's begun pawing at the ground nervously. Out he pulls a bottle of wine, with a label sporting the same Sun emblem painted across his horse. He offers it to her.] Here. A sort of homewarming gift for your New Hampshire.

[nadine_he_loves]

[Now she feels badly. Nadine's intention isn't to insult or be unfriendly, she's just taken by surprise. People don't generally wander into her little realm. Compared to most others, it's nothing spectacular. But seeing his face fall like that, it feels like she just kicked a puppy.

She may be, technically, a 'bad guy', but not the kind that kicks puppies.]

No, it's fine. I'm not exactly busy. I just wasn't expecting visitors, I don't usually get visitors here...

[Oh god, he has a present for her. What is happening? None of this is expected and she's thrown off her guard. She steps forward to take the wine, feeling somewhat dazed.

She wasn't supposed to ever see him again. Now, sober and in her own place, she feels vaguely guilty. Of course she knows she shouldn't, but some things are just instilled so deeply....]

Thank you. Um...there's not much here but I can give you the tour if you want.

[cointosser]

It was a simple happenstance.

[He finds it's for the best he does not mention he was looking for her on purpose, though perhaps the gift makes that a bit obvious. Even if he hadn't found her, of course, he would still be wandering the Horizon for the simple enjoyment of it. And by the gods, he intends to explore every corner of the Horizon. Why wouldn't he?

He's not in danger here. It's the one place he isn't in danger.

At least she takes the wine.]

Something is far better than nothing. [He looks at the leaves rustling above their heads, painted as orange as the sunrise. Like Geralt -- at least, before his memories -- it appears her domain is a place for solace and quiet. For peace.

So it brings the question, what is she looking for peace from?

His gaze drops back down to her, and he considers turning her down. It's quite obvious she'd rather he fuck off, but... well. Curiousity, for once, is overriding his desire to be impeccably polite.]

And what do you want? [He teases, a small smile returning to his face. Oops. It might echo too close to what he'd said that night.] If you're free and willing, I would love a tour.

[nadine_he_loves]

A desperately needed sense of normalcy.

[Nadine answers the question without thought, a slightly bitter and sarcastic note coloring the words. She hears them clearly and winces a little, holding up her hand apology.]

Sorry, that wasn't directed at you. I'm just...dealing with a lot right now. Like the song says, the hits don't stop. Or it never rains, it pours if that's a more familiar expression to you.

[Idioms don't always translate well between worlds, she's found. And it really isn't Jaskier's fault that she's a bit off right now, he's simply come into her life at a difficult time. It's not going to hurt to just tell him she's having a difficult time at the moment, and maybe he'll pass off her behavior as just a product of stress. She supposes, in part, it is.]

But yeah, let me show you around New Barnstead, as I call it. Barnstead is where I lived the longest.

[baltimores]

[ Turns out it can be kinda rough, spending your days isolated, alone, cut off from just about everything and everyone. It's still better than prison. Whatever it is Amos is dealing with now, it's not that. He has freedom of mobility and, comparatively, that's enough. And when you always feel empty, having nobody else around doesn't really make a difference.

Or at least that's what he'd thought, but there are things that still aren't. Going away. There's a part of him that's still pissed about prison, but he tries to keep his anger tamped down, and has mostly succeeded. And then there's a part of him that, just, fuck.

He's got nobody here. And maybe he'd liked having people around, after all. Got used to having something nice, and it wasn't even his fault when it was taken away.

The Horizon is the only real option Amos has for any attempt at quenching that emptiness, that bottomless feeling that he'd thought was normal for him but now just. It sucks. But even the Horizon isn't good enough, because the Roci is empty, so he wanders.

The spray of colours, the newly blossoming wildflowers — that's new. And looking beyond that, Amos realizes he's been here before. It's different now; before it had been white, opposite to the endless black of space, and he'd been curious, so he'd come. Now it looks... fake, really. Like one of those postcards they use to trick tourists into coming to different parts of Earth, look at how idyllic it is, the perfect place to kill time, spend money, and remember, there's no trash here, human or otherwise.

Amos blinks, remembers Nadine's Earth is not his own, and maybe it's not fake for her.

So, alright. He can take the wildflowers for what they're probably supposed to be, commit, head over to inspect them, hand raised in awkward greeting at the woman among them for just a second. The last time he saw Nadine, she... had still wanted to talk to him, despite, well, him. It's been a while since then. But maybe it's still okay. ]

[nadine_he_loves]

[It feels like a lifetime since she last saw Amos, but time has a way of stretching in hard times. Their parting at the portals had been alright, as far as Nadine's concerned. They were neither of them prone to sharing a great deal of emotion or personal thoughts, but she'd felt they'd smoothed over their little argument perfectly fine.

So she's glad to see him, and lifts a hand to wave in return, a smile breaking over her face.]

Hey!

[She stops what she's doing and immediately heads over to greet him properly, dressed plainly in an oversized gray sweater and black leggings with simple sneakers. She hadn't even run into him at any of the parties she's managed to attend here in the Horizon - but he's probably not much of a party person. And he doesn't have a Julie to encourage him.

It's good to see him. He's another one of those fellow summoned like Geralt, she can just talk to him and trust he's not going to ask any probing questions or make a big fuss over anything unpleasant that comes up in conversation.]

Just doing a little domain maintenance, I know those aren't seasonal, but...this is my magic slice of New Hampshire, I can have summer flowers in fall if I want.

[baltimores]

[ The smile surprises him, and it's all Amos can do but blink. He hadn't thought Nadine would be happy to see him, let alone that happy. His hand falls limply to his side as she approaches him, part of him appreciating this development, most of him completely thrown by it.

Not like he's in space, so there's no need for a jumpsuit here; black shirt, black jacket, grey pants, combat boots suit him just fine. And it's true, he isn't much one for parties. Had just trailed after Sam a fair bit at his barbecue, hadn't gone to anything else. Even if he'd had someone to encourage him to go... he probably wouldn't have.

And he feels awkward as fuck being here now, face to face with Nadine again. No bars between them, memories intact, no time factor telling them to leave immediately. He almost gets the sense that Nadine's friendliness is overcompensating for something, because there's no way she should be this happy to see him. But he's not gonna bring it up if she won't.

He shrugs, that awkwardness probably permeating the air, the way he holds his body almost stiffly, voice with an uncertainty to it. ] Wouldn't know the difference. Not exactly a whole lot of flowers in Baltimore.

[ Right. So this is all fake, but there are parts of it that are real to Nadine. Okay. He can work with that. Amos looks down at the flowers — or maybe just his feet — back up at Nadine. His voice is softer when he speaks up again, like if they're at peace then he's going to try to commit to that. ]

You grow up around these?

[nadine_he_loves]

It doesn't matter anyway. None of this is real - it's not even a real place. Just sort of an idealized version of a bunch of little towns I grew up in. I moved around a lot.

[She makes no comment on Amos' awkwardness, not that surprised by it. It doesn't bother her. They've had enough encounters that she has a sense of what sort of man he is.]

Come on, I'll show you around. It's not that big, but what do I need a bunch of space for?

[Nadine isn't one to wander. She's done damned near enough of that in the last two years, she doesn't need it in her escapism place. The idea of just staying put is so very appealing.]

[baltimores]

[ There's sort of a relief to hearing Nadine say none of this is real. Of course it isn't, and some people acting like it is at times has thrown him. That's one thing he can appreciate when it comes to her: that no-nonsense straightforwardedness.

(Except maybe when she turns it on him, but apparently bygones are bygones, so whatever.) ​]

Sure. [ His tone is light; he's agreeable enough, same as he always is whenever he's around someone he generally likes. Amos looks out at the compact skyline, so completely unlike anything he's used to. Either there's a massive city or there's nothing, not this weird in-between like it can't decide what it actually wants to be. ] Never been in a little town before.

[nadine_he_loves]

Do they even still exist in your time?

[Nadine could see small town life just...fading away, eventually. For multiple reasons. Hell, it was gone in her own world. Maybe this would be something nice, for Amos, something new and different that's quiet and contained.

She leads the way out of the forested edges, to the farmland on the outskirts of the little 'town'. It's not a proper town, not by any means, but it gives the impression of one. But here are faded red barns and white wooden fences, a few lazy and generic looking black and white cows grazing in the distance.]

I...sort of think of this place like a memory. One of those ones that looks a lot better as a memory than it did in reality.