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Shimmer, Glimmer, & Gleam - A Quest of Loss & Gain

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Where The Heart Is 15: Humility New
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    • You finish out your shift, and take a shower, and try to work your way through some feelings. You don't quite succeed, but you do try. You change, and you meet Orchid up in one of the conference rooms that hasn't been repurposed. It too has showered and changed, and you are distracted by how low-cut that op is until it sets its notebook down and opens it up.

    "So uh, what are we going over?" you ask, as you sit down next to Orchid, who has also? Put on perfume?? The scent of lavender is distracting you a lot more than the top was. "If we um. If we don't need to...talk about earlier.."

    It tilts its head back and sighs. "...Jill. If I talk are you gonna listen?"

    "Yeah, flower," you agree, softly, and Orchid closes its notebook. "Can I apologize first?" It folds its hands on the table and kinda gives you a look, and you take that as a yes. "I'm sorry for...puttin' that on ya. For kinda. Havin' it both ways? I've been thinkin' and the thing is that I kinda. Switch which hat you're wearing on my head to whatever's convenient for me. You're this innocent when I gotta protect ya, and this, this...amazing person whenever I'm mooning or I need you to do somethin', and that's not fair to you. And I'm sorry."

    Orchid sucks a deep breath between its teeth, and quietly says: "...I'm still mad."

    "Yeah, apologies are like that," you admit, glumly. You hang your head a bit and sigh. "...Maybe I shoulda just skipped out, let you have a fun night with Sash - ow!"

    It has bit you. Not like, crazy-person biting, you're not bleeding, but it sure fuckin' bit your forearm.

    Orchid sets your arm back down, and leans back in its chair, and then it goes digging in its jacket's inner pockets. It flops out that romance book, The Failed Dragonslayers, that one with the fantasy polycule, and points at it. "I think that's me."

    "...Which one?"

    "Yes." Orchid blinks. "Erm. I think. I think. Maybe, that I'm just. That I don't do the whole...if you went out and slept with someone else I'd be happy for you and I don't understand why you think it'd be a problem for you and me. Like that."

    Oh fucking gods. You pinch the bridge of your nose, and you open your mouth to say something, and -

    - And then you don't. Mrs. Holbrook flashes through your head, and Mara's words about the Empire being dead, and...

    Mm.

    "I've been taking some notes, talking to the married couples," Orchid continues, quietly. "The ones we have, anyway. Clara wasn't very helpful but she basically described marriage as 'bullshit' and made some points about it. Nettleson was a bit more helpful. But. I'm gonna tell you right now, Jill. We're building a home and I want you in it. I don't need an answer now or soon or even a yes but I need you to be able to explain to me why it's such a dealbreaker for you if I want other people too. Okay?"

    "Okay," you murmur, and then Orchid turns back to the notebook and opens it up. "...So what're we doing?"

    "Setting some priorities," Orchid answers, a little absently. "Here, look."

    Gardening
    - Maybe try to refine my plant thing?
    --Pros: PLANTS, possibly cool plant powers, maybe weird plant tentacle sex??? Ask the engineers about that
    ---Cons: Every possibility that I do get better powers but I just fucking sweat blood
    - Dedicated gardening spaces
    - Seaweed farming?? Found a cool magazine article about it but it needs space and also things live in the water
    --Consult with Clara

    Routing
    - We need roads cleared between these facilities and Harrow Park
    - We need to figure out what the fuck to do with the roads the asphalt is dying fast
    - Vehicles????
    --We have so many bicycles now
    ---SO MANY BIKES
    - Long-term shipping is gonna be a problem
    --Boats? River? I can't even begin imagining what a naval campaign looks like on the river

    Technology
    - Bullets don't make themselves
    --Neither do other weapons but there are so many cars to salvage for non-bullet things if we can get the skills
    - Tidal generators?
    - Salt works. Get one. Love it. Worship it.
    --SALT SALT SALT SALT
    - Weather prediction??
    --Andrea is working on this by 'whacking the old-timers'
    ---Please tell me pre-satellite weather prediction doesn't require human sacrifice
    - Gotta talk to Nattie, this is her whole remit

    Spider Marriage
    - 3 way relationship minimum to reproduce
    --NO idea what kind of kids come out here but a lot of them really want to try and I have to assume the new ones will too
    - TALK TO JILL TALK TO JILL TALK TO JILL THE GENDER THING MEANS I GOTTA TALK TO JILL WHAT EVEN IS A MARRIAGE
    - Is this even its own priority?

    Morale
    - Rec areas suck
    - Spare tires to help make something for the kids?
    --Get the engineers on this
    - Media preservation?
    - Holidays? Religion?
    --WHAT the FUCK is a Cathar
    - Memorial/day of mourning? People can't avoid this forever
    - That cathedral in the city might be important

    Medicine
    - Doctors want to hit the hospital for specialized tools before we can't use them any more
    - Plants, plants, plants
    - No refractions that can heal directly just yet
    --Except Jill?
    ---Ask Jill about that
    - Many doctors are also Old People except they're not Old People for some reason. They're anxious to pass along their knowledge but most of them feel like they're bad teachers
    --Hate to say this but where are we gonna get the spare bodies?

    [Here you turn the page and find a new header]

    Sex Ed
    - Andrea's been -

    You close the notebook at that point and look away, a blush high on your cheeks. You clear your throat and...

    Prioritize
    [ ] TOP PRIORITY: write-in
    [ ] SECOND PRIORITY: write-in
    [ ] TERTIARY PRIORITY: write-in

    This decided on, Orchid its head back against the office chair and lets out a long sigh. You feel a bit better.

    "I'm gonna go have a cigarette," Orchid says, tiredly. "It's been a long day. Hey...Sasha said to be direct about things. Andrea did too. So um. If I get back in from my cigarette and you're still in here I think I might just go 'fuck it' and suck your dick. If you're not into it just say bye when you go back to your room, yeah?"

    "This isn't one of the sex rooms," you protest by way of avoiding the subject.

    "Sure isn't," Orchid says, and then it gets up and walks towards the door, lighting up on its way out.

    Lose 1
    [ ] Your defensive distance from this topic
    [ ] This opportunity
    [ ] Your temper
     
  • New
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    • Orchid being direct and to the point, I respect that!

    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Medicine
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Morale
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Spider Marriage

    Help out others, get that polycule experience down sometime.

    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic

    Let's have some fun ig! Orchid you are one lucky, lucky person.
     
    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic
    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Morale
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Technology
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Spider Marriage

    our mood is our survival, happier people don't cause so many problems. salt is *also* our survival.

    and spider marraige is just for me.
     
    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Technology
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Morale
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Spider Marriage

    arachnid polycule <chanting>
    also
    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic
    c'mon Jill, you gotta open up eventually, and better to get it over with now than later.
     
    We've got a new reader catching up who is directly to thank for the playground idea, by the by. That's Darkersolstice, whom I am not tagging so they don't accidentally windmill slam into spoilers.
     
    [x] TOP PRIORITY: Routing

    Tech, Morale, and Medicine all get a lot harder without this. Logistics is the be all end all in everything, gotta have the roads and paths worked out to make getting everywhere and gathering everything work out, as well as for reinforcing areas, looting places, and transport. All the supplies and scavenge in the world means nothing if it can't be moved from A to B to C to A.
    [x] SECOND PRIORITY: Medicine

    With that end, Medicine. Getting the stuff that can be stockpiled for the long term under control is good, getting immediate medical supplies is good, having the equipment to do any surgeries that can and should be done before that option becomes very limited, etc. And having this stuff on hand may allow anyone else's unique manifestations to recreate some of the more generally important things, and/or allow maintaining of certain bits: Painkillers, Anesthetics, Sterilization, Antibiotics, etc.

    [x] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Morale

    I feel like Spider-Marriage, and Marriage in general, will become part of Morale anyway; But even if not, its an important concern. We're getting to a point of real stability, but with that comes a lack of ALL THE WORK to keep people going forward and motivated. As seen with the 'Invoking God' moment, people have the time and energy to find hills to die on, which means we're not far away from people having sorrows to dwell on too. To pull from one of my favourite games, the Discontent is being managed now, lets improve some Hope too.

    [x] Your defensive distance from this topic

    Take the plunge, Jill. Do the self-examination you need to do here, figure out if you can work with this new future of love and relationships to come, and if you can? Enjoy the Orchid in every way it and you desire!
     
    Like, on one hand, those stuffs are all important. On the other hand, this is for Orchid - shouldn't we focus more on it? Which means we definitely need to explain gender, so Spider Marriage.

    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Spider Marriage
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Routing
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Morale

    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic
     
    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Routing
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Morale
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Technology
    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic

    This vote would be easier with Task-based formatting, but people have already started voting, so the point's moot.
     
    [X] TOP PRIORITY: Technology
    [X] SECOND PRIORITY: Morale
    [X] TERTIARY PRIORITY: Medicine

    [X] Your defensive distance from this topic

    Salt shortages are the kind of thing that get really ugly really fast and I don't want to risk that. People have, in general, been having a shitty time, and I'd like for it to be less shitty. Medicine isn't an immediate emergency but does very much need to be taken care of. As much as I enjoy putting Orchid in situations, these feel like the best picks in my mind.

    Jill is going to be open about her damn feelings whether she likes it or not. She will also, I hope, get down and dirty with Orchid.
     
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