![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
June-July 2024 Test Drive Meme
June-July 2024 TDM
Introduction
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly Test Drive Meme! Please feel free to test drive any and all characters regardless of your intent to apply or whether you have an invite or not.
All TDMs are game canon and work like "mini-events". For new players and characters, you can choose to have your TDM thread be your introduction thread upon acceptance or start fresh. Current players are also allowed to have in-game characters post to the TDM so long as they mark their top levels ‘Current Character.’
TDM threads can be used for spoon spending at any time by characters accepted into the game.
Playing and interacting with the TDMs will allow characters to immediately obtain canon items from homes especially weapons or other things they may have had on their person when they were pulled from their worlds! There will always be a prompt that provides some sort of "reward" to characters who complete certain tasks.
🦊 New Star Children meet the Fox still in their worlds, and she brings them into the new realm of Folkmore. As you follow her, your body begins to change and new characteristics emerge. These may stay for a while, or perhaps they will hide away after. And during all of this, the Fox explains to you where you will be going: to Folkmore.
and then... you fall like a shooting star, falling to the land in a burst of starlight.
🦊 Experienced Star Children are already familiar with this time of the month. There are shooting stars all across the sky, and some fall to the land, which means the Fox has brought new arrivals. These newly arrived Star Children will face some tests, but Thirteen wants the more seasoned residents to participate as well.
Perhaps you follow the falling stars on your own, or perhaps the Fox simply teleports you there, but it appears you too will be part of this.
Content Warnings: Ghosts, Potential Violence, Potential Death
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.Do not pass go. Instead they will haunt the ghost town for one week in the room where they were killed. Other Star Children may recognize them and work to snap them out of their routines. Yet nothing will free the Star Children's spirits before the week is through. At the end of the week, they'll come to, alive, in their bodies in the room they died in. Best get through and out of the ghost town before dying again!
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
- Whispers, echoes of screams, etc become common throughout Cruel Summer
- Huts become bigger, interconnected, growing together. Anyone lost, overheated, in need of something in Cruel Summer gets a friendly spirit redirecting them to these buildings
- Buildings will still be in some state of disrepair, but like a whole twisting winding town
- Insides are a cool respite
supernatural ghost spirit air conditioning - Only way out is through, no turning back, as the exits disappear behind you
- Many are friendly, but some are not. One can attempt to talk to them, but how interactive they are varies
- Occasionally other creatures from Cruel Summer may burst in and attack
- If a Star Child dies, rather than return to life immediately, they stay a ghost for about a week, part of the tour
Content Warnings: Fire, Coerced Confessions
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessionshelp Folkmore grow as well. Gardens bloom in beautiful displays. Crops grow healthy and joyful. It’s even possible to hear humming from some of the vegetables and fruits. The land grows with the Star Children. Anyone who lacks a green thumb can work their way around that with confessions! Save that dying plant and grow those tomatoes.
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessions
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
- Last two weeks of June, wildfire burns across Folkmore. After that, they are rare.
- Confessions can protect or rescue buildings, land areas, and spirits.
- Come July, embers spark across Folkmore like fireflies. They provide insight for Star Children. Talking helps.
- Confessions help the land grow.
- Confessions reveal a jeweled box containing an item from home.
Evan "Buck" Buckley | 911 | Legend | Current Character
CW: Fire, Coerced Confessions, possible mentions of childhood trauma, emotional neglect, possible mentions of natural disasters, violence, blood, injuries, etc.
[As soon as the wildfires start appearing, Buck jumps into help. Of course he does; this is his literal job. He realizes the fire itself is magical when he notices that the flames don’t actually hurt Star Children but they do burn everything else – buildings, gardens, trees, etc. to ash. At first, he tries to contain the fires as best he can by smothering them with stones he finds nearby but that only helps so much; smothering doesn’t actually extinguish the fires. Still, he flies around, having adjusted to his wings and learning to fly with them, trying to help wherever and whenever he can.
Standing in front of a fire that dances like the wind, Buck has run out of stones to try and smother the flames. He lets out a long, slow breath. He doesn’t have the luxury of time to figure out what to do next, but he does catch sight of someone else nearby talking about…some kind of memory to someone else nearby. In a moment, that memory seems to appear in the flame, and, eventually, as the memory dies, so too does the fire. Realization hits him like lightning.
He turns to the closest person he can find, gesturing towards the fire wildly with his hands as his eyes burn gold with fear and anticipation.]
Okay, I know this is going to sound insane, but. Hear me out.
[He inhales deeply, as though he’s gulping down air.]
Okay, so. I was standing on the Santa Monica Pier when the Tsunami hit back…I think it was four years ago now. I had my best friend’s son, Christopher, with me. The Tsunami hit, and I struggled to keep us together and above water. But.
[Here, he takes another shaky breath, the emotional weight of that day still lingering in his bones.]
I lost Christopher in the chaos, trying to save other people. He survived and found his father. But part of me has never been able to forgive myself for losing him in the first place.
[The flames in front of him spark with the memories of that long and grueling day; Christopher and Buck getting separated, Christopher reuniting with Eddie, and, eventually, Buck collapsing from exhaustion, combined with being on blood thinners after his pulmonary embolism and the injuries he sustained in searching for Christopher. As that last memory fades, so does the fire. Buck lets out an obvious sigh of relief, turning to the person nearest to him with a sheepish smile.]
Sorry for uh. Dumping that all on you but. At least the fire’s out now?
II. Embers
CW: Childhood trauma, fire, possible mentions of violence, blood, injuries, death, dying, lightning strike, etc.
[After the wildfires die down, Buck feels a deep sense of relief, though part of him found comfort in the act of trying to put fires out, even if he had to emotionally eviscerate himself to do so. He’s now enjoying the warm quiet of summer by spending as much time as he can outside, particularly in Willow, which feels like a green sanctuary especially lately.
He’s enjoying walking through the various trails around the Lakes, particularly. The weather is just this side of almost perfect, and Buck finds himself at peace. Like he’ll be okay here, able to build a life of his own even if he can’t return to LA just yet.
He doesn’t notice the spark of light until it lands on his head, bursting into flame like a kind of wayward halo, surrounding his head and face. It doesn’t hurt, by any means, which leaves Buck with more questions than answers. His eyes widen as understanding blooms along with the flames; the lightning strike wasn’t his fault. He isn’t weak for having died or struggling to fight his way back to life while in a coma.
He’s not weak for still finding himself still scared of thunder and lightning; being Buck is, in fact, enough, and he’s the only one allowed to define what ‘being Buck’ means. He gets to define what it means for him to live a meaningful life.
He blinks back tears and realizes he’s crying; his eyes turn a deep, soulful navy blue, like the night sky without stars. He reaches up to brush away the tears falling out of his eyes.]
I’m going to be okay.
[He says aloud. He inhales deeply, then exhales slowly.]
I’m going to be okay.
[His voice is louder now.]
III. Wildcard
[If you want a different prompt, feel free to DM me or leave a starter of your choosing!]
flames to embers
Approaching his good friend, Bobby's brows crease as he places a comforting hand on Buck's shoulder. ] Hey, you okay? Everything you just said - [ He doesn't pry. He heard everything, anyway, so he just squeezes the other's shoulder. That can't be easy to confess. ]
no subject
He lets out a shaky breath before inhaling again; he lets out another shaky breath before speaking.] Yeah, uh. It was a lot. I thought I lost Christopher and failed Eddie. I kind of...well. I kind of lost hope for a moment. I don't know what I would've done if Christopher hadn't found us.
[He lets out another shaky sigh, trying to laugh it off.] Well, I know putting out fires is exhausting but I wasn't expecting this fire to be that exhausting.
no subject
Yeah, I can imagine it was a lot. I'm good everything turned out well, in the end. You shouldn't beat yourself up for it anymore. [ His smile widens, trying to keep it light for now. ] We still have a lot of fires to put out so I think we have our work cut out for us this time.
no subject
I'm trying to get better at the whole 'not letting myself beat myself up' over the past. It's...well. It's a struggle, most days.
[All days, really, Buck thinks. But he's in a better place than he used to be, and that has to count for something.
He manages a brighter grin when Bobby mentions other fires.] We sure do! Never thought this place would have any kind of wildfire season. Even if it's magical wildfire.
no subject
Every journey starts with a single step, right? Before long, you've finally reached your destination. So, just keep on taking those steps, Buck. You'll get there.
[ Still in the spirit of keeping it light, Bobby grins. ] Never thought our little fire brigade will have to fight magical wildfire this soon.
no subject
You're absolutely right. Feels like I've kind of wandered off from time to time but I like to think I'm heading in the right direction these days.
[He chuckles at Bobby's light words.] I know right? Guess this place really likes to keep us on our toes.
no subject
That's great. But if you do feel like you're straying off the path again, just let me know and I'll drag you back.
[ That's a promise. The light banter, though, makes Bobby chuckle too. ] Guess we jumped the gun by thinking it's generally peaceful.
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
Flames To Embers
Do not worry. I am well-used to the group therapy sessions places like this love to force upon people.
[Then he did something surprising and pat Buck gently on the shoulder.]
At least you were attempting to save people while destruction was ongoing. Those are noble intentions. In the wake of death, life is preserved, and the cycle of both continues on. They keep each other balanced.
[A very philosophical point-of-view. But at their core, being a Sith wasn't just a lifestyle. It was a religion and one Maul followed closely, which occasionally meant he had moments where he acted more like a priest of darkness than a space wizard. He didn't believe something like a natural disaster was necessarily bad but merely half of a whole.]
no subject
So I can expect more of these super fun and not at all harrowing confessionals in the future? Damn, and I'm not even Catholic.
[He definitely doesn't expect the pat on the shoulder, but he doesn't shrink from it, either. The touch is grounding, and Buck is grateful to Maul for that.]
I - thank you. I never really looked at it like that before. Like a balancing act. Weighing the good with the bad.
[Buck tends to focus on what went wrong; the ways in which he could have done better, or the regrets he carries with him even when he acheives a happy ending or doesn't lose anyone during a call. He rarely takes the time to dwell too long on the success stories.]
no subject
[He waved a hand towards where the fire had been a minute before.]
You're welcome. You see, the problem is most people think good and bad are the same thing as light and dark. They are not. They are two sides of a whole. Much like order and chaos or sameness and change are. If only good things happen to you, you do not appreciate them when they come along the way you should. The bad is there for a purpose.
no subject
So this place likes to use disasters as like, group therapy sessions?
[That's...a lot. On so many different levels. He rubs a hand over his face.
At Maul's explaination of good and bad, he chuckles. Maul's answer is nuanced, and not condescending, which makes Buck receptive to what he's saying. He actually agrees, to an extent.]
We've got a lot of...well, I guess 'cutesy' isn't the right word, but uh, a lot of 'meaningful' sayings about how you have to learn how to dance in the rain. And it reminds me of what you're saying, and you're not wrong; you have to appreciate the good in life because the bad still exists and is always going to exist whether you want it to or not.
no subject
[Maul had once been forced to travel in a boat on a river of blood with corpses of his slain victims on either side while he had to confess to people about them in a previous world, so really, this was a lot easier for him to deal with. It was practically tame in comparison.]
'Dance in the rain'? Hmmmm. [He had clearly never heard that expression before and mulled it over in his mind for a few moments before deciding that he liked it.] It appears you understand then. You cannot beat yourself up for your failings when you also have accomplished good thing as well.
no subject
You say that, but uh. What you describe definitely doesn't sound all that great either.
[Buck tilts his head, considering the way Maul describes the expression.] Yeah, something like that. Learning to find the good in the bad and live with them both. Doesn't make that learning any easier though.
no subject
[Eventually, Maul would balk and start snarling if the fox pushed him too hard. He just had a higher tolerance than most before he would break.
He let out a soft huff, something too subdued to be called an amused laugh but which was close.]
Is there ever such a thing as an easy lesson to be learned?
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
Embers II
Tommy was walking along the lake, thinking about the fires, thinking about a lot of things. What his life could be here, what he'd lost back home. It finally started to feel like he was putting together a whole life. He loved his job, and he had a budding relationship that, despite the rocking fucking start, had the potential for something meaningful and serious.
Tommy pushes his fingers through his hair, his curls loose without all the product he used to keep it tamed for work. Tommy smiles when he spots the now familiar wings but blinks at the glow around Evan's head and quickens his pace a little.
"Evan?"
no subject
"Tommy?" He calls out to the other man, eyes widening when his gaze catches on his curly hair. He looks gorgeous with his hair like that; Buck can't bring himself to move his eyes away from those curls.
He runs a hand awkwardly through his hair, wondering how much of that Tommy overheard. "This place is really nice, right? I love coming out here. It's good to see you here too."
no subject
He didn't overhear much, but he pursed his lips a little, "It's a very nice place to walk, but are you okay?" He asks, giving Evan the space to say everything was okay if he wanted, but the man looks like he'd been crying, and he saw the weird light around his head.
no subject
The way Tommy utters his name with such reverence, like he's saying some kind of prayer, always takes Buck's breath away. He's never felt so wanted just by someone saying his name before.
It's overwhelming, how much Tommy cares, especially after how much Buck screwed up their first date. That he cares and that he shows up for Buck makes him relent any attempts at trying to pretend he wasn't just crying.
"I think, in a way, yes?" He answers, running a hand through his hair. "But like. I'm also just emotionally overwhelmed."
He lets out a long, low breath. "I was thinking about being struck by lightning," he admits. "And like, I just got this sense that it was okay? That it wasn't my fault for getting struck by lightning, and that I'm going to be okay."
He lets out another breath, longer this time; his wings sink in time with his breathing.
"I struggled after," he tells Tommy, feeling the need to be as honest with him as possible. "I went and sat by the apartment building where I was struck and I just...tried to process it then and I couldn't."
"Sorry, I know this is a lot," he says. He's always a lot; that Tommy hasn't run for the hills because of this feels like a miracle.
no subject
He reaches out and wipes the tears off his face with his thumbs before letting his arms fall back to his sides; he takes Evan's hand and leads him to sit down.
"Evan, you died," He says, letting out a slow breath, "That's a lot to process; if anything were going to make someone struggle, it would be dying." Tommy's quiet for a moment, "Going back to where it happened isn't weird; you do a lot of weird stuff, but going back there, not one of them." He says honestly.
"Also, getting struck by lightning is not your fault unless you're conductive and didn't tell me," He's quiet again before he focuses on Evan, "You're not a lot; you need to stop thinking you're too much for people."
no subject
He nods, trying to listen to Tommy's words and take them to heart. Hearing such reassurance from someone else, from someone like Tommy, who Buck really is coming to cherish, feels like honey mixed with tea; sweet and soothing for the soul.
"I...thank you," he says, turning to face Tommy as he speaks. "I just...I feel like I scare people off with my feelings, or with being too needy. It really helps to hear that, I want you to know."
Buck manages a small huff of laughter when Tommy mentions him being conductive. "Not that I know of but I'll let you know," he says. And then he notices Tommy's eyes. He squints.
"Hey, uh, not to change the subject or anything, but what's up with your eyes?"
flames to embers
Forces beyond our control [ you know, like a tsunami ] cannot give us regrets that we don't invite in ourselves.
[ She turns to the dying flames then, a genuine smile gracing her features as she sees a young boy reunite with (presumably) his father. ] We can sometimes get so focused on doing our best for everyone else that we forget to give grace to ourselves, don't you think?
no subject
I...you know, I've never thought of it like that before.
[He wonders just how many forces he's invited in without thinking over the years; probably countless. He wonders how many more he'll end up inviting in throughout his lifetime.
The image of Christopher reuniting with Eddie as the embers smolder into ashes helps Buck breathe more steadily, as does the kindness in the woman's words.]
That's a really good point. I...thank you.
[He turns to her with a smile.] I feel a lot better now. I'm Buck, by the way.
[He offers her a hand to shake, if she wishes.]
no subject
Ahsoka. [ She takes his hand. Her handshake is firm and brief. ] You're welcome.
no subject
She does take his hand and shake it, and Buck is glad for it.]
Nice to meet you, Ashoka. Have you been here long, or are you a recent arrival?