"A Swing and Miss Doesn't Mean it's Game Over"

[mayavericks]

[Well… All of that sure happened. And while Maya is visibly shaken Sissi's literal dance with death, she’d meant what she’d said to the others -- she would protect them. At that moment, it meant voting and making the “right” decision. Now, though? It means ensuring that no one feels alone, and that everyone has a good meal in them.

She’s not Nana Daiba, however, she certainly can’t do this alone. But she does have the resourcefulness and authoritative disposition to to recruit allies. Discord is sure to be… mostly unbothered by everything that’s happened, and Spongebob will likely be eager to help. She approaches both men: one is asked nicely; The other is grabbed by the collar and dragged from whatever hole he’s locked himself in. Sorry Discord.

For Maya's part, several potato dishes are prepared (can you tell someone has a bias). And while she doesn’t have the resources to make baumkuchen, Maya does manage to produce a cake, as well as… muffins? They’re not… quite how she remembers Nana making them, but she can at least recall how hearty the food had felt, and how it had restored her energy on long days.

It’s a pleasant memory, even if it does make her a touch melancholy.

Nevertheless, the food is laid out in the kitchen, as are a number of pies that Maya has uncovered. She even tucks a few bottles of wine in a corner for the adults that might like it. This is in addition to the mead apparently brought by Salieri. Look she’s not a fan of having alcohol but… she can’t tell the adults no.

But hey, courtesy of Benjamin, there is even some cocoa. It doesn’t start off spiked but… you know. Thanks to Spongebob there are, well… Angry Patties? It’s fine. Even Discord managed to contribute some pies and tea, as well as being bossed around to do the grunt work in the kitchen. There’s also that inexplicable pizza? Huh, that’s weird.

Eventually the group goes around extending invitations to the dorms, knocking on doors and explaining what’s been set up. No one will be forced to go, just… strongly encouraged. Maya herself will even duck into the principal’s office and, if she’s there, invite Hester.

She seemed just as upset as the rest of them.]

Comments

[alchemistake]

[Honestly, he appreciates that Connor doesn't mention it. He hadn't wanted anyone to see him like this, which is sort of why he'd retreated so quickly. So when he hears his voice, Varian will sit up and quickly scrub at his face with his gloves. He still doesn't totally stop, but that's probably to be expected.

Instead, he looks up at the paper, crumpled and crude, but. The idea is there.]

...thank you. I...I've only ever seen penguins in books, but...I did my best.

[Maybe Connor has a better mental memory of them to make sure it's as accurate as it can be.]

[yourattention]

It's pretty good, but they're a little more...

[He grabs one of the pieces of paper off the floor and flips it over, pulling the pencil from behind his ear and sketching a penguin. It's fatter than Varian's sketch, and he's added a little baby penguin, just because.]

Like this.

[alchemistake]

[The sketch that Connor provides feels...right. Varian can tell that much just by looking at it. The baby penguin is a good addition too, especially since Mumble always talked about his Ma and Pa.]

...that's perfect.

[He's already trying to decide what to make it out of. Probably metal, mostly...it would look more like a penguin that way.]

I know it's...probably sad to keep something like this in our room, but. I think it's important.

[yourattention]

No, it's....

[No one deserves to be forgotten
No one deserves to fade away]

..... there's this holiday where I'm from, Día de los Muertos. You build an altar to the deceased called an ofrenda, helping to guide their spirit home. This could be that.

[alchemistake]

[Dia de los Muertos...Varian hasn't heard of such a holiday before now. It sounds so...sad, but also...hopeful at the same time. It's not just a memorial in that sense, it exists for the purpose of helping spirits cross over safely.]

You know, I...I was actually kindof worried...about where they might be.

[Because Varian...he's not sure he had anything in particular he believed in, before. He's focused always on science and logic, so of course that would apply to the afterlife.

He's only realizing now how dismal that makes him feel.]

I'd feel better knowing that we helped guide them someplace safe.

[yourattention]

Yeah. It's... someone I know used to tell me that sometimes celebrating death is about celebrating life. You can't have one without the other and the dead... They wouldn't want our grief. But our happiness? Our joy? That's for them too, you know?

[He thought it was weird how Miguel could so steadfastly believe in things he couldn't quantify. Now, though? Now, he kind of gets it.]

[alchemistake]

[Varian thinks he gets it, too. It makes him wish such a custom existed back in Corona...it would make difficult topics such as death much less stressful for those affected.]

I want to remember Mumble and Sissi as they were. Even if we only knew them for a little while...

[He doesn't want to think about how Mumble's frozen corpse was found, even though he didn't see it for himself. Or Sissi's body as she slumped lifeless to the stage floor, her neck snapped.]

They were both good people. ...penguins. [One of them was a penguin.] But they were some of the most...optimistic of us too. Sissi kept telling me over and over that things have to be okay, that we'd get out of here, or her husband would surely come to rescue her...

[It's heartbreaking, thinking back now.]

[yourattention]

Yeah. She was... He was... I told Orpheus this last week, but like. Hope's important and shit, you know? I'm not built like that but... I hope everyone else can be, I guess.

[He shrugs. Again, the grief's not really his forte and he just can't... do that? It's not really that he doesn't feel emotions, mostly just that they make him uncomfortable and, uh. He doesn't know how to deal with them. Can't really imagine why being raised to feel like all his emotions are an inconvenience to other people might make him bad at dealing with them.]

[alchemistake]

[Honestly...Varian can relate. He's a pretty emotional person in his own right, but that doesn't mean he knows any better how he should deal with them. And his track record of the ways he does deal with them is, uh...

Not great. It isn't great.]

I think we will be. It's going to be hard, but...our group seems pretty tenacious. I can't imagine a lot of us going down without a fight.

[yourattention]

[There's a gentle music from... somewhere! Connor stands, holding out a hand to Varian.]

Even when the dark comes crashing through
if you have a friend to carry you
though you're broken on the ground
Courage abounds

R Im sad

[alchemistake]

[There's a moment where Varian hesitates, but...it doesn't last long at all. He'll take Connor's hand, using it to help stand up from where he'd been knelt on the floor.

The words are encouraging. It's a side of Connor Varian hasn't seen before, and it's one he won't soon forget.]

...thank you, Connor.

:)

[yourattention]

You're welcome. I'd say don't expect this touchy-feely shit very often, but I get the feeling it's gonna happen again.

['cause he's 100% sure this? This is all going to happen again.]

C'mon. Maya made a bunch of potato shit and Spongebob made Krabby Patties.

[alchemistake]

[Honestly...Varian is too. He hates that he feels that way, but.

It is what it is.]

I'm glad somebody's keeping up with that...I wasn't even planning on eating anything today otherwise.

[Kindof hard when you just watched a poor woman be executed.]

[yourattention]

Yeah. [He pats Varian's shoulder.] After shit like that it's hard to remember or want to eat, but it's important. Gotta eat to make sure you keep your energy up, you know?

[alchemistake]

Yeah...yeah.

[That last little "yeah" is just...sighed out.]

Let's go.