( mingle ) field day + camping trip!

[officialnotice]

FIELD DAY & SCHOOL TRIP

JUNE 8TH

FIELD DAY

With the current school semester coming to a close and summer vacation on the horizon, school administrators have elected to end the year on a high note with an invigorating Track and Field Day at the park, in order to better foster fitness and health in the children (outside of their government mandated physical education classes, anyway).

The event is, of course, open to the community at large, whether you have a current affiliation with the school or not. Because, well, everyone could stand to get up off their couches for an afternoon of running around in the sun. Or, in the case of residents with a particular sun allergy, under the shaded tarp canopies that dot the field here and there with healthy snacks, drinks, and some of the less expansive games available today (such as, oh, a nice sedate beanbag toss).

Wayward Pines thrives on the inclusion of all varieties of people, after all. Even those that aren't, strictly speaking, people at all.

All of the most recognizable games are available, of course: sack races, relay races, three-legged races, any sort of race you can think of, really; flag football and dodgeball with soft spongy balls to keep anyone from getting too competitive (the school nurse is on hand just in case though); a massive tug-of-war rope that spans nearly the entire field; and water balloon and blanket tosses. If you're not too sure what the latter is you can ask Linda at the makeshift juice bar and she'll be all too glad to explain for you.

Actually, on second thought, don't ask Linda anything. Don't give her the satisfaction.

JUNE 8TH - 9TH

HELLO MOTHER HELLO FATHER

While most of the citizens of Wayward Pines disperse back to their homes or jobs as Field Day draws to a close, the students, teachers, and a small handful of volunteer chaperones simply relocate the festivities to the campground in northeastern forest for a two-night camping trip. The evening of the 8th and the first half of the 9th run smoothly enough; tents are set up, marshmallows are toasted on an open fire, sunblock and insect repellent liberally applied, a thin veil of nostalgia and bonhomie settles around the entire event and people are in generally good spirits, despite the... excitement of last month.

All in all, it's a pretty great day. Of course, something's got to give.

There's no warning, no steady build up or slow decline. On the afternoon of the 9th, between one breath and another, the power to the fence surrounding the town increases exponentially, and anyone more than 100 yards from town feels suddenly exhausted and de-powered. And unfortunately for the students and staff trying enjoy a weekend of nature and simplicity, the campground falls squarely outside of that 100 yard perimeter of safety.

The camping trip is called to an abrupt end, and most of the camping gear is left abandoned while everyone drags themselves slowly home, but perhaps even more troubling is the question that's on everyone's lips (whether they choose to risk actually saying it aloud or not): why did it happen?

And what does it mean for the future of Wayward Pines?

MOD NOTES

This is a catch-all for any and all threads pertaining to the field day or the school camping trip! This includes the point at which the camping trip is rudely interrupted by the Precautionary Measures event. You're welcome to make your own logs for the rest of the Precautionary Measures event, as there will not be a catch-all for this one. The next mod log will be going up on the 19th!

PLEASE INCLUDE IN YOUR TOP-LEVEL SUBJECT LINE: Character Name, date, location, and open or closed, to help keep things a bit more organized.

If you have any questions regarding this event, feel free to ask them here.

Comments

[volitaunt]

[ The words hit him like broadside blaster fire, taking him by surprise.

He tangles his fingers with hers, momentarily at a loss for what to say.

There's something about the permission, the acceptance of his need to go somewhere, do something, help before all else. It clashes with the memories he has of their fights, but this, unlike those, is real. Her saying it is real, and one of the obstacles between them comes down with a finality that scares him.

Bemused, he says: ] No one saves a world by themselves.

[coy]

[ The girl he remembers is not the girl that Caroline really is. Caroline has never stood in the way of letting someone be the hero they need to be, to do what they need to do even if it breaks her heart. And she isn't a martyr about it. At his words, she offers him another gentle smile.]

You're not alone. [ There's a whole host of people ready to fight, including her. To her, some of them have become family and maybe even more, in one particular case.]

[volitaunt]

I know. [ He touches her cheek tentatively, like he's waiting for her to revoke his permission to do so, and maybe he is. This is the first time he's felt like he's with Caroline, this Caroline, the real Caroline as his real self. Their remembered past outweighed by new experience, the intensity of reality.

Poe glances back again, though this time it's just to close the door. ] I came to make sure you were okay.

[ That's why he's here. The forest will keep, for now. He can go roaring off to be an idiot later, when it's daylight and he has a chance to see what's actually out there instead of rushing off into the dark.

(This is the second time, he realizes, that he's been to Caroline's place this late, and once again it strikes him as an inappropriate thought to have in the moment.)

He shakes it off. ] Do you need to eat? To eat-eat, I mean.

[coy]

[ There's not condemnation for the way he touches her, no reprimand or move to shy away, her expression just grows a little more tender and she wonders when things started to feel real again. It feels less confusing to be touched by him. Those old memories are there but they don't feel as confusing as they did before, it's easier to separate how she feels about him now from how she 'felt' about him then.]

I'm okay. [ She lets out a breath before she continues with a more honest answer.] A little shaken up and I was a mess earlier but I'm better now. [ She squeezes his hand with her own, having kept it.

She glances towards the kitchen, looking almost bemused.] I'm good, I sucked down a few bags when I got home. [ The fact she says it so casually should be a sign of her trust in him, the comfort she takes in the fact that he isn't... thrown off by all of it.

Her cheeks flush for no reason at all and she tilts her head towards the living room. ] Do you want to stay for a drink? Or a game of charades or just... for any reason at all?

[volitaunt]

[ He's glad she can say it so easily, given how uncomfortable she seemed when she first told him.

(Last chance, he thinks, though last chance for what he's not sure. Last chance to make excuses, last chance to head for the door.) ]

Sure.

[ A pause, then: ] What's charades?

[coy]

[ Her tender smile turns amused and she pulls her hand from his to take his arm, looping her own through his as she guides him to the living room.]

It's a game. You have to silently act out different things and people guess what it is. It's more of a teams game though. [ She rolls her eyes.] It's very suburban America. So... basically this place would love it if we got a group together to play.

[volitaunt]

[ Poe imagines Cassian and Jyn playing this game and grins. ] All right, that I might be willing to try.

[ Even if lately he's been viscerally repulsed by the fake normalcy of this place. The opening at Glug Glug's, the track and field day. A mockery of peace.

His grin slowly turns into a scowl. ]

[coy]

[ It might be a good excuse to get everyone together for another rebellion meeting, sneaking off to the rooms that don't record. But that thought is for another time because she notices the way his smile fades and she looks at him.]

What is it? What's wrong?

[volitaunt]

Everything. [ It's the impulse reply. The response that comes before he thinks about it, carrying all his bitterness and frustration like that one word can debride the feelings.

She doesn't know, he realizes. She doesn't know that he's found out why he fell that day. What they did to him in that missing week.

He looks away, forcing a small smile. Running again, trying to outpace what he carries like a festering injury. The longer he's stuck doing nothing the worse it gets, the more useless he feels, but there's still nothing he can do about it. ] I'm not good at laying low.

[coy]

Hey, [ she moves to stand in front of him, her hand lifting to turn his face back towards her own, concern etched in her brow. She knows that smile because she has one of her own, it's well worn and perfectly practiced. And even as he says what he does, she thinks there's more in those words.]

Don't do that, [ she says softly, moving closer, her voice a whisper now, even if she's sure the cameras can hear.] You're helping, you're doing what you can. [ Her eyes flicker to the cameras before they go back to him.] Did something else happen? [ He did he find something else out? Did they find the missing people? ]

[volitaunt]

[ He wrestles with a half-dozen possible answers, some of them truer than others. When he starts to speak, he keeps his voice low, but frustration makes him reckless and recklessness makes him raise his voice. ]

If these people keep pretending everything is okay they're going to die. [ The last is directed straight at the nearest camera. He can't say where his conviction comes from except for past experience. How many years did he spend uselessly trying to get his superiors to do something about the First Order? To argue for action in the Senate? And now they're gone, all of them, destroyed by a threat they refused to acknowledge.

It's that, it's being grounded, it's the lost week. It's all of it. Poe takes a deep breath and focuses on Caroline to keep himself from actually charging back outside and driving his motorcycle through the front window of the police station. Even he can acknowledge that as a terrible idea. ]

They grounded me. [ He blurts it all at once, because there's no other way to say the words except to tear them off like a crusted bandage. ] I can't get more than three meters off the ground before I get so sick I can barely see, and they did it. There's no other explanation.

[coy]

[ So that was why he fell before, why she had to catch him. It makes her heart ache to hear it, given that she knows how important flying is to him, even if he couldn't do it here exactly. She remembers, even if it was fake, so many nights spent on the roof of a house or a building, anywhere to get as close to the sky as they could, seeing the boyish grin on his face that he'd get... It felt real and she remembers how it felt when he took her flying in his dream, the excitement and relief he felt.]

Oh, Poe, [ she says, immediately moving to take his face in her hands, to direct his gaze towards her own, to trying to somehow soothe an ache she has literally no power to...

It's then that an idea springs in her head, her eyes meet with his and there's only a tiny bit of apprehension, but mostly it's hope. Her hands drop to his shoulders, urging him to--] Humor me. What do you feel when it happens? Is it physical or does it start from your head? Are you afraid? Does something you feel make you sick?

whoops html

[volitaunt]

[ He's confused, that's plain enough, but he has no reason not to answer. ] Not afraid. It's vertigo. World spinning, no balance. Like I'm doing a tailspin. An unintentional one.

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[coy]

[ Her eyes flit to the cameras and yet, she doesn't care if they can see.] Maybe I can fix it. With my-- [ She points to her temple to indicate her ability to compel because she'd do anything to help him.]

[volitaunt]

[ Hope. It's a flicker, but it grows fast. ]

You think so?

[ He wouldn't even consider it, under different circumstances. He's not sure he wants someone in his head that way, benign or not. But these aren't normal circumstances and he's about ready to lose his mind anyway. ]

[coy]

[ She feels hopeful but she has no idea if she can erase whatever they've done to him. It can't be something truly physical, right? They must have done something to him, mentally, especially since he doesn't seem to remember.

Her hand takes his and she curls her fingers around his, clasping their palms together.]

I promise not to do anything more than try to fix it. Do you trust me?

[volitaunt]

[ His smile says as much as a verbal answer could, but he adds one anyway: ] Yeah.

[ Poe trusts plenty of people, it's true. But he trusts Caroline differently. He trusts her because she's seen what was done to him, knows what it means to him to have someone rooting around in his brain.

She took him flying.

...He's going to kiss her if he keeps thinking about it, so instead he just says: ] I do.

[coy]

Okay, [ she murmurs, looking into his eyes to make sure she catches any doubt. There is none and a part of her wants to kiss him for that. For trusting her after what she'd seen done to him.

Her hand stays in his and the other moves to his face, guiding him to look at her, their gazes meeting. She begins the compulsion, speaking plainly, her eyes dilate.]

Being up high won't make you sick anymore. You won't feel dizzy or strange, there's no 'world spinning' or vertigo. You'll feel the same as you always do, as you always did.

[volitaunt]

[ She opens her mouth; he almost stops her. But then she's speaking, and doesn't feel anything, except himself relaxing under the words. They're honeyed and calming and he couldn't disagree with her even if he wanted to.

A few seconds of silence, then: ] That's it?

[coy]

That's it, [ she murmurs softly, knowing she should pull away but unable to for a moment longer. Her hand finally falls from his face and she offers him a gentle smile.] How do you feel?

[volitaunt]

[ Poe catches her hand as it falls, a muscle-memory action he doesn't bother to correct. He considers the answer to her question, looking himself over with slightly exaggerated scrutiny. ] The same.

[ But-- ] We should test it.

[coy]

Okay, [ she gives him a coy smile, keeping her hands in his for a moment longer.] How?

[volitaunt]

[ He's warming to the prospect. ] I dunno. Climb a tree. Climb the house? Do you have any tall ladders here? I mean I can probably manage without, but it makes things easier.

[coy]

I guess you could climb the lattice that's on the back of the house that goes up to my bedroom window... You know, Romeo and Juliet style. [ Except, she wasn't sure if he'd remember that with false memories. Let's be real, Pines!Memory Caroline Forbes would have made him watch Romeo + Juliet 100x. ] It's a romance. [ Kind of.]

[volitaunt]

[ waitasecond. He grins and heads for the stairs, Caroline's hand in his. ] I forgot about the stairs.

[ DETAILS.

He practically runs to the top of the stairway, bracing himself for the reeling dizziness.

It doesn't come. It doesn't come, and Poe whoops, catching Caroline up in his arms and spinning in a tight circle. ] You did it! You did it. You're amazing, Caroline.