pineslog | (catch-all) the storm & the st. paddy's day festival

CATCH-ALL: 16TH & 17TH

march 16

THE THUNDER ROLLS

The day starts off atmospherically heavy. The clouds are low, and the temperature is unusually warm, settling in the mid to high 50s (teens in Celsius). Townies are wandering around town in lightweight jackets and hoodies making small talk about the unusual weather, but for the most part they're pleased with the warmth, even if the clouds off in the distance look rather ominous. As the day goes on, the clouds creep closer and the residents seem more inclined to get a roof over their heads and stay there. The midmorning news predicts heavy rainfall by the late afternoon, but the savvier townsfolk say it’s going to be worse than that.

They’re not wrong. The sun drops low, and the winds start to pick up, howling through the trees, bringing with them nickel-size chunks of hail and torrential rains. The darker the night gets, the worse the storm hits Wayward Pines; by the time the sun has set, the sky is obscured with opaque, swirling clouds, the winds snapping trees in half, rattling the power lines, causing electricity to flicker and sometimes go out. The hail pings against the cars not safely parked inside garages, leaving the more exposed with significant damage to paint and windows, and anyone brave (or stupid) enough to step outside is instantly soaked to the skin in cold rain.

The most chilling thing of all isn’t the rain. Anyone trying to wait the weather out on Main Street will hear three wrenching cries coming from the woods, almost like the exact moment a person shreds their vocal cords in a scream. The townies claim not to hear anything unusual. It’s just the wind, they say, and they may be right. The sound as it shrieks through the trees and between buildings is similar enough to cast doubt, and combined with the rain even the most experienced camper would likely get lost trying to find it.

march 17

THERE’S WHISKEY IN THE JAR, OH

Whatever damage was caused by the previous night’s storm has mostly been cleared from Main Street by the early morning of St Patrick's Day. The streets are still a little wet, with plenty of puddles for the more adventurous children (and adults) to splash around in. The air is still a little chilly, but nothing a sweatshirt can’t fix. Nothing’s fully set up until about nine in the morning, but when it is, the St. Patty’s Day celebration gets under way. It’s small, more of a farmers' market or small festival than anything major. There’s food stalls and tables for eating, as well as a few booths where townsfolk are plying their crafts and non-food wares, as well as live music. The festivities during the daylight hours are pretty tame, a PG-rated good time for all.

When the sun sets, the party gets a little more rowdy. Someone busts out the booze and someone else busts out the Mardi Gras beads, and the music gets louder. While many food stalls are still open, the rest have shut down as the street fills with revelers, many of them holding cups half-filled with beer or something a little stronger. This part of the party isn’t for kids, and if anyone underage is spotted they'll quickly get escorted back home by the police — so try not to get caught, yes?

MOD NOTES

This is a catch-all for any and all threads pertaining to the storm (March 16th) and the St. Patrick's Day festival (March 17th)! Details on both of these happenings can be found in the March Newsletter.

PLEASE INCLUDE IN SUBJECT LINE: Character Name, which Day(s) your top-level takes place in, and Open or Closed, to help keep things a bit more organized. (For example: "Joe Biden | 16th & 17th | Open!")

Should you choose to participate in both mini-events, you're welcome to make separate top-level posts for each day or to combine them both into one.

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

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hey, hey. It's okay. It's not real.

[ And that's more chastising than it should sound, it's definitely not him trying to comfort Jefferson. ] Do I look like a guy who's set foot in any tea rooms. [ Other than to seduce a PYT. ] I'm in your mind. Here, we talk freely. About the accident. [ He leans in. ] About before the accident.

[ Jefferson scoffs and shakes his head. That's not particularly encouraging, hearing they're in his mind right now. ]

The last place I want to be... [ It's a frustrated murmur, but he at least seems to calm down enough to lower his hands and lift his gaze to look at Damon. With his hands wringing in his lap, he speaks carefully, trying to explain as clearly as he can. ]

I was sick, before the accident. It's only gotten worse since. I should be in a hospital with... padded walls.

[ Well, he judged this all wrong. Damon Salvatore makes mistakes. He leans back, then. ]

Points for me, scaring the psych patient. You can not be enjoying any of this. Does it help that you're not crazy here? Well, this isn't your crazy. It's all our crazy. If it helps. [ It probably doesn't. ] Did you admit yourself?

I'm pretty sure I'm still crazy here. [ He laughs, seeming genuinely-- if unpleasantly-- amused for a moment. ] A change of scenery doesn't change that.

[ The bitter smile falls from his face at Damon's question, and he has to think on it for a moment. A lot of his memories from around that time are pretty hazy. (A lot of his memories, in general are hazy, actually.) ]

I don't think so. I was... [ Off his meds? On a binge? Having an 'episode' of some kind? Jefferson furrows his brow and shakes his head. ] They said I was a danger to myself, so I was admitted for 72 hours. [ He scrubs a hand over his eyes, then looks down at his tea again. This may not be real, but maybe he can enjoy it all the same. He starts to add a bit of sugar. ] After that, my parents arranged for me to stay in a family home in Maine. [ Another scoff, even though he can scarcely remember the conversation or even his parents' faces. ] To recover.

[ At least his memories of life in Storybrooke-- what little of a life he had, anyway-- are clearer than the impressions he has of his life before. ]

That's where I was before I was here. And ever since the accident, all that madness is worse than ever.

Edited 2017-03-22 14:54 (UTC)

If you believe it.

[ He really does need to screen these people. ]

The 72 hour hold. [ He knows about it. ] Well, it would be. You went from your Maine sanctuary to whatever the hell this place is. Though, sanctuary might be a stretch. You know that you and Howard, whatever you were to each other, whatever he and I were, it can't be real.

[ Inside minds, Damon gets candid. It's the only way to get his point across. He does feel for Jefferson, and he thinks he could've used more tact. But, desperate times. ]

[ He's quiet for a moment, not protesting, just processing the blunt statement. It's not real. He and Howard weren't real. It makes about as much sense as anything else-- more, in fact. It would explain why he can't conjure up any feelings for the man beyond the loathing that was sparked in their first encounter after his accident. He can't remember ever loving Howard Stark, so why would he have ever chosen a life with him?

Especially since Jefferson is quite certain he's felt love before, for somebody, though everything about them-- name, face, age, even their gender-- completely eludes him.

But there's one little problem that complicates everything, and soon enough Jefferson grits out: ] I don't know what's real and what isn't. [ There. He said it. He finally admitted it to somebody. This is a problem that's bigger than he and Howard and that fake, broken relationship. His voice is rough with emotion as he continues, gesturing to his head. ] My head's full of... different worlds. Fantasies. Too many lives for one person to have lived. [ They can't all be real. Jefferson swallows, looking down at his tea. He reaches for it, his hand shaking somewhat, but can't bring himself to take a sip. ] I can't tell the delusions from reality.

Edited 2017-03-25 15:27 (UTC)

That is a problem. Here's hoping somebody who lived one of those lives with you wakes up next month. [ He's trying here. ] I can't help with your different fantasy worlds, but I know that my brother and me, we come from one and we're both in the same camp. That's real. This, we're still evaluating. Though, I've never gone into someone's head in somebody's head, so I don't think someone's in our minds. Which means, either the Phoenix Stone got a lot more abstract and Stefan and me found out way into the same hell, or, we're all in a Gemini prison world, which, i've done before with a Pop. of about 3. So, in some ways, this is quite the step up.

[ He catches himself going on, knowing Jefferson has no clue regarding what he's talking about. ] Don't get bogged down by the details. Know that something in that head of yours is real. Including all this.

[ They hope. ]

[ Yeah, Jefferson definitely has no idea how to follow this line of conversation. At first, it seems to make sense. Damon and his brother have memories beyond life in Wayward Pines, which they can confirm with each other. Jefferson doesn't have anyone who can provide that sort of validation, and so he's trapped in uncertainty.

...

And then it gets to being in people's heads, and magic stones, and Gemini prisons... and soon, Jefferson's completely lost. ]

Yeah...

[ Well, at least he's not the one talking nonsense. For once. And he supposes it's some small comfort that, yes, there's something real after all. Even if this conversation, happening in his head, through... magic? Is stranger than anything else he's encountered here.

His fingers twitch, and he pulls his hand back from the teacup, tapping his fingers on the table. ] What happens now?

You try to keep it together. More memories come back. Guarantee something will fall into place and all of this will be less... [ He waves his hand in a circle. ] Also, we drink. Drinking helps. [ A beat. ] Are... you okay?

Or I realize I'm well and truly mad. [ That's the most likely outcome, he figures. Who knows what it is that twisted Jefferson into such a pessimistic person. But he at least manages a brief, wry smile at the notion of drinking.

It does, however, take Jefferson a few moments before he can respond to Damon's question-- though not with any direct answer. ]

People ask me that a lot here. I don't think anyone's ever cared to ask before... before... [ He gestures vaguely. Before 'the accident'? Before Wayward Pines? Back in his 'real' world, whichever world that may be? Whatever the case may be, it certainly feels as if it's been a lifetime since people actually asked after his well-being. ] It's strange.

Edited 2017-04-09 05:59 (UTC)

They care. [ Don't they? ] Or, they want to know you're all there. And, really, are any of us in this place? On any given day, I have over what feels like a hundred years of mistakes and grudges and violence in my head. Add in being married and living in this town -- Look, you're not the only one. You might have multiple worlds up there, but, you're not alone. So. [ ... ] If it's any consolation.

(catch-all) the storm & the st. paddy's day festival

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