pineslog | ( february intro ) WELCOME TO THE PINES!

( february intro ) WELCOME TO THE PINES!

INTRODUCTION LOG

waking up

There was an accident. That's basically the only thing you know for certain. Maybe a car wreck - metal and broken glass everywhere, and the sirens and the screaming. Or maybe there was an explosion. Maybe your bike hit a rock and you careened uncontrollably off a mountain path. You can't can't quite make out the details, not who was at fault or why. Try as you might, the chaos is all you can remember.

It's also the last thing you remember from before you wake up here.

When you open your eyes, the accident is gone. Instead, you're in a hospital bed. You're sluggish, covered in a scattering of minor injuries you only vaguely remember getting, not to mention the vaguely-healed remnants of any wounds you might've had before.

It's a shame you won't be able to tell the difference between the two. Your memories are an indiscernible fog if not absent altogether, only a few standing out in your mind with any kind of certainty.

Whether or not the room's empty when you wake, it's not for long. Nurses bustle in, taking your vitals and asking your name and anything else you might remember. Welcome to Wayward Pines, they tell you. You'll make a full recovery here.

Much of what you say (especially anything unusual, anything about monsters or magic or outlandish technology) will earn placating speculation of head trauma “from the accident”. You'll be told to stay put, not to push yourself, and to wait for the doctor to clear you before you leave... Then you'll be left alone. The hospital's population is quadruple the usual, and you get the impression the nurses are working themselves ragged just running damage control. You can even leave your room without much fuss - whichever doctor or nurse intercepts you gets called away almost immediately to deal with something even more pressing.

Mingle, visit your fellow patients, even poke around for a few basic answers. Or maybe, maybe just stroll right on out the front door.

heading outside

Outside, the birds sing a joyful song, and though the air is awfully crisp to be wandering around in your hospital gown, the sky's as sunny as you've ever seen it. It's bright enough to make you squint for a moment before you feast your eyes on the quaint little town of Wayward Pines, though that might be in part because of the glare off the scattered patches of snow along the sides of the street.

Trees line the street at regular intervals, carefully manicured. Cars cruise by at a safe and respectable speed. Pedestrians spare you glances, some wary and some concerned.

This isn't even the picturesque city center, though a colorful nearby sign reads "Main Street" with an arrow pointing due south, followed in smaller font by a list of businesses you don't recognize and one that you might: Wayward Pines Police Department. Whether you asked for yourself or simply overheard, you've likely caught wind by now that all of your earthly possessions now lie with the Sheriff until you see fit to claim them.

Might as well head that way, right?

items reclaimed

So you've visited the Wayward Pines Police Department and reclaimed... well. Most of your stuff, anyway, though you can't quite remember what's missing. Best to put it out of mind, as you head down the steps toward the Main Street sidewalk. At the very least, pedestrians have stopped looking at you like you're sick or crazy. (Then again, depending on what you're wearing, maybe it's gotten worse.)

The sheriff also forked over what looks like the key to a house ("A cozy place to stay while you're here in town."), plus the address that it belongs to. You could check it out, see what kind of digs they're putting you up in.

Or you could stick around Main Street and sight-see a little. Also a perfectly viable option. Hell, maybe it'll jog your memory a little. A few of the shops do feel inexplicably familiar...

( ooc notes )

Welcome to the first newbie mingle log! We apologize for the minor delay.

This log is meant to cover characters' first day in Wayward Pines. For the most part, only the five memories detailed in your character's application are remembered throughout the duration of this log, although the first couple of false Wayward Pines memories might begin to surface (in those who've opted to utilize this mechanic) as the day wears on. These memories, as noted in the FAQ, feel very real and are accompanied by as much emotion or sentiment as a real memory would be.

Any questions about the log or its contents can be addressed to our FAQ or the intro log's designated Plurk.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ A moment before, Noah couldn't remember anything about a school in town. All he could remember was some expensive private school; pressed uniforms on all of the students, plush carpet in every one of the classrooms, a parking lot full of shiny, expensive cars belonging to teenagers who really had no business driving them, the words 'Aglionby Academy' burned into his mind.

But the second the school in town is mentioned, it's like a light clicks on inside of his head. Another memory, but one that conflicts in places with the others that Noah already has.

He's gone to the school Jiaying is talking about. He goes to the school that she's talking about. ]

Oh. Yeah! I know where that is..... [ He's not sure how, but he does. Like a muscle memory that he can't place the origin of. And there's a puzzled sort of tone in his voice that makes his confusion all the more obvious. ] He didn't tell you the name of it, did he?

[ Inwardly he's hoping for her to say Aglionby, but realistically he's sure it's probably something like Wayward Pines High School. ]

Wayward Pines High School, I think. [she takes a half step forward out of concern upon seeing his confusion and tilts her head. She also realizes that they are earning stares from the locals, so, on a whim, she speaks in a slightly louder tone] The accident must have muddled our brains worse than we thought. Why don't we listen to the sheriff and go home to rest?

[She reaches a hand out to him invitingly. Maybe they can talk safely in her home. Maybe. Still, she adds in a much softer tone.]

Did you... remember something?

[ It feels like the memories in his head are conflicting -- there's a part of his brain telling him that he goes to the school in town, he's almost certain that if he goes to his house, he'll find books and homework from his classes there, but the things inside of the bag the sheriff gave him tell him otherwise.

The entire thing makes his head hurt and he nods in agreement -- perhaps because he notices the looks that the rest of the townsfolk are giving them, and also because rest did sound good. ]

I remember a lot of different things. [ Noah talks just as softly, stepping just a little closer to Jiaying and trying to prevent anyone from listening in on them anymore. ] Not a lot of it makes sense, though. It's kind of weird.

[ More strange looks. Noah shifts uncomfortably. Nervously. Anxiously. ]

We probably shouldn't talk about it out here. People are kind of....

[she strides alongside him, shoulders back and head held high, avoiding eye contact with the locals who seem to be fearful and suspicious in equal measure. She nods in agreement and reaches out to take his hand in her left while covering it with her right]

Everything will be all right.

[She doesn't know this. Isn't certain of it at all. But it seems right until they get to the residential area. She looks up at the signs as she goes, searching for the street that'll lead them to her 'home']

[ His hands are literally freezing to the touch. Not cold, like perhaps he should just put on a jacket to fight off the midday chill, but actually freezing. A body temperature that no person should be at while still alive -- not that he seems to notice, any time he's touched himself it hasn't felt any different. What he does notice is that Jiaying's hands are warm against his own, something that eases his mind quite a bit and makes him feel just a little less nervous.

Noah sticks close to her as they walk, a few of the street names registering as familiar to him, but he's not sure why. He doesn't understand how he can both feel like he remembers a place, but also feel as though he's never been there before. ]

I'm, uh, Noah, by the way. [ Because in all of his inward panicking he'd yet to introduce himself. And, he figures that this woman might appreciate knowing the name of the random teenager she's picked up. ]

[The cold startles her into letting go for a moment, but only briefly, she reclaims his hand soon enough. It's just another thing to add to the repertoire of crazy that's happening today. For Jiaying, she hasn't recovered any memory of this place nor much about her past. Her ability to navigate the streets right now hinges on the directions she received from the sheriff's office]

It's nice to meet you, Noah. Let's get you inside and warmed up. I'll make you some tea. [she hopes there's tea in the house anyway]

[ He doesn't think twice about her reaction -- people have been acting pretty weird since he woke up in the hospital, at this point he's pretty much expecting abnormal reactions to things rather than normal ones. -- but when she comments that he should "get inside and warmed up", Noah becomes visibly confused.

He doesn't feel cold. It's a pretty mild day outside and the sweater he's wearing is doing its job to keep from being exposed to the occasional cool breeze that blows by. ]

You don't really have to go through all that trouble, it's not really that cold today. [ He shrugs a bit shyly, not that he wouldn't accept the offer of tea if she still decided to make it. His parents had taught him proper manners, after all. ]

Do you remember anything? [ Noah asks only when they've come to an empty stretch of sidewalk. ]

[It's true. It's not that cold but still. She decides not to make a big deal out of it for now. Not until they're indoors. She looks troubled at the question]

Only very little things. My husband, my baby daughter, a young man under my care. [she opts not to mention the other more disturbing items that accompanied her waking] None of whom I've managed to find since I woke up. What about you?

[ Noah doesn't know if it's reassuring or unsettling that she remembers as little as he does about himself. He combs a hand through his hair -- wispy, thin, almost transparent -- then slides it further to rub at the back of his neck, brows knitting together as he struggles to recall his own memories. ]

That school I was asking about, I remember that. I remember my friends, and... [ He pauses, carefully considering his words.] this place we went to....

A place? [she prods carefully, giving him space to back out of that subject if he wants to.

She notes that near-transparency of his hair. Something inside her telling her that that's not quite normal. But not in a way that's alarming or urgent. Just that he's different and that's okay.]

[ He's quiet for a moment, chewing a bit nervously at his bottom lip, debating just how much he should tell this woman about Cabeswater -- he doesn't even know how he remembers the name, but it's right there on the tip of his tongue, echoing over and over in his head in a voice that's both familiar and foreign to him. Like one that he's heard a thousand times before, but can't seem to place how, where or even why.

A magical forest where the trees speak Latin, where time bends and doesn't follow rules, where things can appear and disappear with nothing more than the right thought. Sure, it sounds a little crazy, but so was waking up in a town where you remembered hardly anything.

What did he really have to lose? ] It's a forest. [ He pauses a beat to shake his head. ] Not just any kind of forest, though. It's uh... Magic.

[ So, saying it out loud does feel a little silly. ]

Magic? What kind of magic?

[She seems genuinely interested. And, well, the mention of magic does make her think back on the scant few memories she woke up with - the young man she remembers holding having had their eyes completely covered by skin.

In the meantime, she finds the right house number and she looks down at the key in her hand to make sure] This is it. [She hopes. Truly hopes they can speak more there]

[ How does he even begin to explain the magic of Cabeswater? There's something in the far corners of his mind, a memory of a faceless individual who's far better at explaining its magic than he is. Unfortunately, he can't remember said person and he's stuck having to do it himself with what little and fragmented memories that he has of it.

He waits until Jiaying has the door open and they're both inside before he starts speaking again. ]

There's these lines of energy called leylines and Cabeswater -- that's what it's called. -- is right on top of a really strong one, so all kinds of unexplainable stuff happens. Like, the trees talked to us, and we walked through all the seasons in one day, and time moves in circles instead of just a straight line. [ Realization flashes quickly across his features as a new memory makes itself known. ] There was a pond and my friend made fish appear in it because he thought they should be there.

[she shows him in and shuts the door behind them, gesturing him towards the couch. She notes with some disappointment that she doesn't recognize the home either before focusing her attention on Noah again.]

How strange. That sounds like a fascinating place.

Oh. Would you like some water? I don't know what else is in the kitchen but I can look.

Edited 2017-02-26 13:58 (UTC)

[ Noah takes a few moments to look around. It seems like nothing more than your average home, like something out of a Better Homes and Gardens magazine. Everything clean and in its proper place, almost like it's been mostly vacant until he and Jiaying came walking through the door.

Just another weird thing to add to the growing list of them. ]

It is. There's no rules to anything there, it's like being in a dream or something. [ He pauses and it's like something in his mind is trying to uncover itself. ] I think I need to find it again. Maybe if I can, then I'll be able to remember something, you know?

[ At the mention of a glass of water he nods -- not particularly thirsty, but it's the polite thing to do, isn't it? ] Yeah, that would be nice.

[She disappears into the kitchen, somehow knowing where to go and where the cups are, so it doesn't take her long to return with a cup in each hand. She holds one out to Noah.]

I understand. But you've seen the signs. I don't think we're meant to explore this further.

[And then as if the thought just occurred to her, she looks up and around them, only pausing when she notices the familiar dome of a camera. Her expression turns pale.]

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( february intro ) WELCOME TO THE PINES!

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