A Very Trog's Thanksmas

[5a Violista]

[=> Thanksmas Throne]

Some time chronologically after her previous scene, a barefoot woman with a hat goes in line for the throne, waiting for the dragons and everyone else to be finished there.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Electra & Olvisin]

Electra's smile is gentle now, and she blushes slightly as she looks over at Cass again, then back to Olvisin.

"I'll introduce you once she's not busy. I think that might be some of her family with her." Electra hasn't formally met Genevieve, though something niggles at her from just after she arrived in the Nexus, during her first assignment as a MERC licensee. Wasn't there someone wandering around GLoG back then that looked like her? She ponders for a moment, then shakes her head slightly and finishes her drink, before placing the glass further forward onto the bar, to catch the bartender's attention.

"What about your family? Do they celebrate Thanksmas, or is it just you?"

[Morty]

[Electra & Olvisin]

"Mostly just me," Olvisin says, shrugging a little. "We don't have any celebration like that back home, so my parents and three siblings who stayed don't know it. And the three siblings who came here with me aren't interested. But it's their loss. Besides, I need to go out and meet non-goblins sometimes."

[Elfmas]

"I bought her a pair of fencing gloves," Wenomir says, understanding that it's best to move on from the topic. "A very nice pair, in fact. I'd given her a sword I used to own and she took to learning how to use it quite eagerly."

[Santa's Throne]

Brinika once again reaches into the bag and produces a want. It's likewise well-suited to small dragon claws, but it's black and blue.

"Another wand, coming up! You can make something cool or pretty out of shadows."

[Arkhosia]

Mags and Blanche and Anika - NanoMagchines, Son

Anika is left scratching her head as Magtok backs off so quickly. He sounded really angry before just... deflating.
"Uh, so what was that about?" Anika whispers even more quietly than before once Magtok has left. She wanted to make sure he didn't hear her this time.

Meow'Dorei - Family Maggers

Blanche watches him leave warily, though not entirely hostilely. "Well, er, there's... kind of a lot of bad blood between Magtok and my biological father," she explains hesitantly.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Electra & Olvisin]

"Ah, I see." Electra says, as her glass is refilled. She takes another sip, before speaking again. "Have you not met a lot of non-goblins since you came to the Nexus? I mean, MERC is a good way to meet people, so I'm just surprised to hear you say that."

[Morty]

[Electra & Olvisin]

Olvisin waves her mug in an expansive gesture.

"Yes and no. Until now, I haven't met that many non-goblins. That's what I'm trying to change. It is true that it's easy to meet people in MERC, but... well, we goblins have a tendency to stick together wherever we go. Just form up little goblin mobs. A mob is a natural multiple of goblins."

[Gullara]

[SWORDGIRL ULTIMATE THANKSMAS SHOWDOWN]

"Thank you Commander Mithar!" Lapis echoes as she goes running out the back door. "Come on we've gotta start by making the snowballs! They have to be BIG!"

Of course they have to be big it would be a pretty lousy snowball melting contest if they weren't. The back deck is absolutely covered in fresh, pristine snow and rolling up some large snowballs really shouldn't be that difficult. Lapis gets right to the task. Lapis' outfit is warm but she isn't anywhere near as bundled up as Cora is. She isn't even wearing mittens or snow gloves!

Stooping down in the snow, she makes a little snowballs, plops it into the drifts, and begins rolling it.

She'll have a big snowball in no time!

"What should we do after the contest?" Lapis asks. "Maybe we could ask Santa for something? I was talking with some people at VIGIL and they said I should ask Santa for a sword I think that would be a good idea since I haven't got any real swords just a thing that's kind of like a sword."

All it knows how to do is cut.

It's useless for practicing swords with people.

[SWORDGIRL ULTIMATE THANKSMAS SHOWDOWN]

Cessie had no idea if it was appropriate for Lapis to call her "commander Mithar" but the fact she was a child serving in VIGIL was so bizarre that she wasn't going to raise the subject. Couldn't Zee at least have made her look older? Having a literal child serving them was just uncomfortable.

"Have fun, girls." Is instead what Cessie tells them as they go. Garn of course tagging along.

He is going to keep an close eye on them as they start rolling snowballs. But surely they would need a judge for this competition?

[SWORDGIRL ULTIMATE THANKSMAS SHOWDOWN]

Cora wastes no time in rolling her own ball. The snow's just perfect for this! "Yeah, I wanna go see Santa. I got lots of things I want." Mommy said she can only ask for one, though. Hard choices... "I wanna ask Santa for a sword." She agrees immediately. "Buuuut, Wenomir says I'll get a sword when I'm ready." Which is apparently not now for some reason.

Meanwhile, the door opens behind Garn. Bastion pokes his head out to see what they're up to.

[bc56]

Thanksmas Throne

As the second little dragon is leaving, the fox on the throne beckons to the hatted woman. "And what do you want for Thanksmas? My 'elves' and I probably have it in our sack!" She gestures to her helpers, neither of which are elves, with her tail.

[5a Violista]

[Thanksmas Throne]

The hatted Venus walks up to the throne and tries to sit down on the throne (while obviously avoiding sitting on the fox's tail and the rest of the fox).

"Um, I was talking with someone, and decided...ice skates are what I want." Then, realizing they might accidentally give her a hockey skate or speed skate, she adds, "Specifically, figure skates."

"Thanks," she adds.

[Purple Eagle]

[Zaabi - Secluded Corner]

D-37 stares back at Abi, expressionless. "Yes. Yes it is, for your sake." Then she turns to the side and rolls her eyes, scoffing. "Yours too, sis."

She listens attentively, her legs folded as she pays attention to Abi's words. "I see..." She stares at the half-elf for too long, before she resumes speaking. "You know, Zara and I are very different. She inherited some things from me, this body for example, or our tenacity. Her sexuality isn't from me, you can call me all-o-sexual. Plus, I don't like to be tied down, preferring to 'sow my oats' everywhere, so to speak. Lots of fun with many different people, what's not to like?"

It seems they also share catchphrases.

[COLOR=saddlebrown]"So, yes, I would rather not be tied down to one person. So, if you both broke up tomorrow, I wouldn't care too much. I won't hurt you if it's inevitable, even if it hurts her."[/ D-37 suddenly scoffs, waving her hand dismissively. COLOR]"Quit complaining, little sister. I'm getting to that part! As I was saying, Abigail: Zara really, really likes you, it seems. You know how she is: optimistic to a fault, and brings 200% effort to everything, with the smiling and the skipping and the enthusiasm, and everything. Adorable, really."

She pauses to eye Abi up and down, once again, smirking like she's actually starting to consider Abi. "I don't suppose you'd appreciate it if I went around sleeping with anyone that isn't you, considering Zara and I share this body, so I'll give you a chance to show me what she likes about you. Let's continue the rest of the evening together for a while, you treat me like I'm Zara." She sounds a little like she's toying with Abi. "I don't bite... much." She suddenly snaps her teeth at Abi, then grins widely.

[Darker Corner]

Zara chooses for Sasha, then, and wraps her own container of ice cream in new wrapping paper, much more quickly this time. Won't do to have the recipient receive a gift covered in rough paper, and perhaps she and Sasha can share the box ice cream.

She wraps the container and elongates her hand to replace the gift. "There, your gift! You and Zara can share this ice cream in the box." Her rubber hand fetches a spoon before returning back to normal size.

So, she shakes her head no, meaning she isn't afraid. What was that reaction, then? Perhaps she likes her father, just like Zara herself has fond memories of her own Daddy? She was never maltreated to the degree that she'd heard Sasha was, however! "Ice cream to make you feel better?" She suddenly says, offering Sasha most (or all) of it.

"Zara wishes you could talk, she wants to hear all about your father from your point-of-view. Hmm..." She thinks for a moment, then has an idea! "Can you write, Sasha? Write it out with your shadow, like when you told Zara your name. Meanwhile, Zara will sit here and draw you on paper." She pulls out her sketchpad and a pencil, tools of an artist's trade which she always carries with her.

[Earl of Purple]

Zaabi

"I've never had a girlfriend before Zara. I... don't really know what I like, exactly." She's interested in figuring it out, and has some ideas. But she could still be blindsided by something.

She smiles at the description of Zara, finding it apt. "I know, that's what I like about her. And, uh, sure. We can do that, I guess." She's not entirely sure how, but doesn't flinch even when D-37 bites at her, though her eyes briefly flash yellow in panic. She's able to control the reaction, however.

[Zefir]

[Near the Food Table]

Venus stands on her toes to get a better look at the Thanksmas Throne.

"Looks like there's a..." It's hard to see who exactly is there because of their height. "A...hm...a fox, and a...and a dragon!" Wow! An actual dragon! That's so cool! "Should probably wait until they're finished there, I think." Don't want to bother a dragon, after all.

[Near the Food Table]

"As you wish." he says and waits as he sees her heading off to the throne.

[FLOOFbegon!]

"Well, they're someone really pretty," Lucas says as he begins moving toward one of the nearby rafters. "And they're smart, kind, and really talented. Someone who I've never been able to beat at Guilty Gear."

He stops and points up.

They're standing directly under the mistletoe.

"I was hoping to see you here, Gara," he says, leaning forward to offer a kiss.

D'aaww...

FLOOFbegone!

Wait he's going somewhere with this. Who is he-
Oh.
Gara presses her hands together and gives Lucas a quick, nervous, but definitely real smooch.
"Yeah. Um. Well. I'm glad you came. Because I was hoping to see you, too." she stammers.

FLOOFbegone!

Mia feels like she is out of place now and will leave them some space.

[Present Done Walking?]


"Of course." Cleo nods to Mr. C.
"Well, as I've heard, this song is from a land where they didn't have any part of Thanksmas. But maybe part of the magic is that it carries the holiday spirit even there."

[Present Done Walking?]

"Sounds intressting." Mr.C replies. "I can't detect magic so it's free to guess. Maybe both things are right and we got a mx here. Kinda like The magic is real magic."

[Reinholdt]

[Darker Corner]

Feel... better? About what? Sasha's starting to find Zara incomprehensible. A gift given to a person makes it that other person's right? Wouldn't it be wrong to eat your own gift to someone else? Well at this point, that just seems to be what Zara wants so Sasha will share the ice cream to make Zara happy. Adults were weird.

Sasha shakes her head again. Writing her own name is really about as far as she's gotten. She knows how to read some, but writing was a different story. She was the type of girl who would tug your skirt and point if she needed something said. Or well, saying it, but she avoids saying things because it hurts people and everyone here looks like they were having so much fun. She doesn't want that to stop, especially not over someone as unimportant as her.

[Lord Magtok]

Mags and Blanche and Anika

Magtok's almost gone and done and out of this scene for good, but something prompts him to glance at his wrist just before he can completely vanish. The numbers on his internal clock are substantially worse than he was anticipating. Goddamn, it's that late in the Thanksmas season already? We were supposed to have more time than this. In a week or maybe a month, we used to be able to accomplish the sort of thing that takes a full year to achieve now. Better make this fast, then. Just get this over with as quickly as we can, and then we can go back to our usual Magtok nonsense somewhere else.

"Actually, Blanche, I forgot one last thing. I was going to attach some elaborate trick or scheme or act of bribery to your Thanksmas present, but I'm running behind schedule and I have better things to do than force you to work at MagMart for the sake of some silly gag. Here you go, it's your present," the tin man and step-dad insists, pulling from his robe's interdimensional storage to hand over what looks to be a gift-wrapped guitar inside a guitar case...or maybe something other than a guitar hidden inside a gift-wrapped guitar case? Some kind of gun or questionable contraband or fireworks set to go off the moment Blanche unwraps her present? A pile of money and gift cards because he didn't know what to get her? It's too soon to say.

Speaking of too soon, Magtok doesn't linger to watch her tear through the wrapping paper, warming up his telewarp system again as soon as the guitar case is out of his hands. He's...he's got to be up to something, doesn't he? Nobody would just hand over a present and immediately try to leave unless there was some trickery involved, right?

[Rebonack]

[SWORDGIRL ULTIMATE THANKSMAS SHOWDOWN]

Obviously Zee couldn't make Lapis a grownup because she's a child.

That seems pretty clear.

Lapis continues rolling up her snowball, feeling pretty confident of it once its about three feet across. She briefly considers whether or not she should to making it more like a snowman but it's already pretty big. "I can't really think of any other things I want. I REALLY want to be able to practice with people with a real sword instead of the wood ones."

Wood swords aren't nearly as cool as real metal swords.

"What were the other things you were wanting?" Lapis asks, curious about what could potentially compete with a desire to a sword. "How do you know whether you're ready for a sword or not?"

Oh hey there's Bastion!

Maybe he can help judge the contest, too?

"Hi Baston! We're making big snowballs for a snowball melting contest. You should watch you'll love it!"


[FLOOFbegone]

Kiss!

Lucas' head is feeling a little swimmy that actually worked. It was... was!

Oh is Gara saying something?

"Oh, you were wanting to see me, too?"

[Shadowcaller]

Mags and Blanche and Anika

Anika blinks as Magtok apparches them again. She sure hadn't expect him to return, and even les to give Blanche a gift considering how little he and her father seemed to like one another. But then again, that was the spirit the season, wasn't it? But before she could consider this any further, Magtok was already gone.
"...cool." Is her only comment as he leaves, though her gaze still lingers on his back as he walks away. What a curious dude.

[SWORDGIRL ULTIMATE THANKSMAS SHOWDOWN]

Garn frowns as 'snowball melting' is mentioned by Lapis, she was even encouraging others in such dangerous activities. He makes note to observe the girls activities closely to determine if they were doing something forbidden.

[Purple Eagle]

[Zaabi - Secluded Corner]

"I'll help you, then. It'll be our own little adventure." D-37 responds, liking the idea more and more. A bit of fun between missions. "I like my partners adventurous and down for anything.."

The panicked look, D-37 seems to find quite enjoyable. However, she does look rather impressed at Abi not flinching. "Hmm... maybe I could like you, too." She suddenly pulls Abi closer, chair and all, while chuckling. "Don't worry, Abigail, I might be an assassin who enjoys her work, but you're safe with me. Even if I strangled you a little, for instance, it wouldn't be to death." She shrugs with a smile. "Hey, some people like it."

She winks at the fourth wall, which to Abi, might seem like she's winking at nothing.

"So, I know all about you, you know a lot about Zara... got any questions for me? Some differences between us, my past, future plans etc?" She reaches into the box of cookies and eats one.

[Darker Corner]

Hmm, so she can't write, even though she can write her own name. No problem! "Zara will teach you to write! She's good at teaching kids stuff. It'll be fun! But first..." There's a pause as Zara finishes the rough sketch she'd started on, and shows it to Sasha. The sketch is of her, and a really good one, considering the time she took to sketch it.

The fact that she looks so shadowy helps!

"Okay! If you can write your name, then you can read at least a little. It'll be easier to learn if you can read." And then she starts teaching Sasha how to write, making sure she at least gets the basics of making letters. At the same time, she'll try and gauge how easy it is for the girl to pick this up.

[Earl of Purple]

Zaabi- Secluded Corner

Abi starts to smile and the yellow fades from her eyes as D-37 talks, before it flashes back at the talk of strangling.

She takes a moment to think of a question to ask. "Err... Yes, I would like to know your plans for the future, since I know Zara's. I... would also be interested in learning how you differ from Zara, in opinions and tastes. Are there any foods you like that Zara doesn't, and vice versa? What about music? Your past... I know Zara's, and how it came to diverge from your own, and... I don't think I'd like many of the answers if I pried to far into that." Abi is far less OK with killing than Zara is, and there's a lot of death in D-37's past.

[Recaiden]

The one dragon chases after the other to show off her present, and they quickly get into a contest of trying to outdo each others' magic tricks.

[Present Done Walking?]

"Sounds intressting." Mr.C replies. "I can't detect magic so it's free to guess. Maybe both things are right and we got a mx here. Kinda like The magic is real magic."

"It really is. Here in the Nexus you can see how the same pattern played out across different worlds."
Cleo agrees.
"Can I bring you anywhere now that the present's delivered? It must be difficult getting around places made for people so much bigger."

[Felandria]

Santa

Felandria has arrived for Thanksmas, and is in line for Santa.

Reginald is also there, in his little Santa hat, sniffing around.

[Reinholdt]

[Darker Corner]

Sasha shakes her head no. She can't learn to write from Zara! Karasu is already teaching her how to read and write! That would be like... having two math teachers! It's cheating. Or at the very least, she can't imagine Karasu would want to share their special time with Zara. Well also because writing is waaaaaay harder than reading. There's a fine amount of dexterity there which seems all but unobtainable with her shadow tendrils. It took forever to get her name down and she doesn't want to spend forever on more. Not today.

No child in their right mind wants to work on Thanksmas. Even those not in their right mind who don't really understand the spirit of Thanksmas!

The sketch is good! It takes a moment before Sasha realizes it's her though. She pretty much never uses a mirror. But there was nothing else in the room as dark and shadowy, not even Raven Ebondark. If it is offered to her, she will take it, paper crumpling a good bit in the heavy handed grasp of a shadow tendril as she stares intently at it.

[Zefir]

The one dragon chases after the other to show off her present, and they quickly get into a contest of trying to outdo each others' magic tricks.

[Present Done Walking?]


"It really is. Here in the Nexus you can see how the same pattern played out across different worlds."
Cleo agrees.
"Can I bring you anywhere now that the present's delivered? It must be difficult getting around places made for people so much bigger."

[Present Done Walking?]

Mr. C thinks for a moment.
" To be honest. I didn t plan this far. My planning was getting the present in place and then get home since that will be all i can do in this short time." He shrugs what is rather strange having no shoulders.
"I might look for some people i know, maybe i can chat with them. Like that woman in line who just came."
He points at Felindra.

[Felandria]

[Present Done Walking?]

Mr. C thinks for a moment.
" To be honest. I didn t plan this far. My planning was getting the present in place and then get home since that will be all i can do in this short time." He shrugs what is rather strange having no shoulders.
"I might look for some people i know, maybe i can chat with them. Like that woman in line who just came."
He points at Felindra.

While she waits for Santa, Fel looks around and spots Mr. C, she waves merrily.

Hi, Mr. C!

[Arkhosia]

Mags and Blanche and Anika

Magtok's almost gone and done and out of this scene for good, but something prompts him to glance at his wrist just before he can completely vanish. The numbers on his internal clock are substantially worse than he was anticipating. Goddamn, it's that late in the Thanksmas season already? We were supposed to have more time than this. In a week or maybe a month, we used to be able to accomplish the sort of thing that takes a full year to achieve now. Better make this fast, then. Just get this over with as quickly as we can, and then we can go back to our usual Magtok nonsense somewhere else.

"Actually, Blanche, I forgot one last thing. I was going to attach some elaborate trick or scheme or act of bribery to your Thanksmas present, but I'm running behind schedule and I have better things to do than force you to work at MagMart for the sake of some silly gag. Here you go, it's your present," the tin man and step-dad insists, pulling from his robe's interdimensional storage to hand over what looks to be a gift-wrapped guitar inside a guitar case...or maybe something other than a guitar hidden inside a gift-wrapped guitar case? Some kind of gun or questionable contraband or fireworks set to go off the moment Blanche unwraps her present? A pile of money and gift cards because he didn't know what to get her? It's too soon to say.

Speaking of too soon, Magtok doesn't linger to watch her tear through the wrapping paper, warming up his telewarp system again as soon as the guitar case is out of his hands. He's...he's got to be up to something, doesn't he? Nobody would just hand over a present and immediately try to leave unless there was some trickery involved, right?

Mags and Blanche and Anika

Anika blinks as Magtok apparches them again. She sure hadn't expect him to return, and even les to give Blanche a gift considering how little he and her father seemed to like one another. But then again, that was the spirit the season, wasn't it? But before she could consider this any further, Magtok was already gone.
"...cool." Is her only comment as he leaves, though her gaze still lingers on his back as he walks away. What a curious dude.

It seems that Anika wasn't alone in not expecting Magtok to return, as Blanche seems a bit unprepared for it. She blinks as he pushes a present into her arms, barely managing to utter a surprised "Oh, er, thanks," before the cyborg disappears. She looks at it a little curiously, not expecting foul play but a tad unsure what to make of it.

"Well, er, I guess I should probably see what this is," she comments, moving to unwrap it and then Anika's. "Sorry I didn't bring anything with me to give you, I didn't really expect to bump into you here."

[Purple Eagle]

[Darker Corner]

Zara looks momentarily sad when she's denied, though the smile never leaves her lips. It doesn't last for more than a couple seconds, and she shrugs. "Okay then! Can Zara at least teach you sign language... though Zara's not sure if you could, as they say, 'pull it off' with your shadows."

Oh my, it seems Sasha's become very interested in the drawing, indeed! She rips off the paper and offers it to her so she can stare at it more. "You like? It's you, it's Sasha!" She beams, proud of herself. "Do you not know what you look like? Zara can draw a more detailed one, if you want."

[Zaabi - Secluded Corner]

"One question at a time." D-37 warns sternly, while not yelling. "My future plans: to make use of my exceptional skill at - and love for - killing, as a means to make money. Monster-hunting, bandit-hunting, and the like. I think VIGIL'd accept me, or MERC." SHe smiles at Abi, tilting her head to one side. "Don't worry, Zara'll be safe. I'm very good at what I do. Speaking of Zara, her own future plans are to stay at GLoG and do social work there. Now I'm here, she's leaving the adventuring to me. Mostly, to make you happy."

She takes another cookie, and eats it. "So, Zara says you want to go into the field of medicine. That's interesting, tell me more, while I think of your second question."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Electra & Olvisin]

Electra smiles distantly for a moment, lost in a memory, before she takes a sip of her now-refilled drink.

"Sounds like my family. But it's good to meet others. Sometimes they even come kicking and screaming outside." She chuckles to herself. "My sister and I often had to do that to our brothers. And once or twice, they did it to me."

[Earl of Purple]

Zaabi

"You'd better make sure she's OK. If you get cocky and wind up losing something, Zara's lost it too. Please remember that." Abi is still a little nervous around D-37, but there's some steel in her voice for that bit. "Because I want to help people. Because when I was younger, I broke my leg. Stupid, really. It was my birthday, my ninth, and I was carrying some presents upstairs to my room when I overbalanced on the stairs and fell over. Tumbled down and broke... I think my ankle. It hurt a lot, and I'd like to help children in that pain so they don't feel it for long." Though she'd rather be a nurse than a doctor, at least at the moment. Maybe she can train as a doctor once she's a nurse, if she changes her mind.

[Morty]

[Electra & Olvisin]

Olvisin nods. She remembers Electra telling her that her brother is dead. Are her other siblings still alive? She's not sure.

"That's what siblings do. No one better than a sibling to give us a good kick if we're being silly." She takes a drink. "When we left, our mother told us to stick together and not to get involved with non-goblins too much. Bah. As if we were kids. And as if I left home only to keep seeing goblin faces every day."

[bc56]

Thanksmas Throne

"Figure skates it is," the Thanksmas Fox replies. When the "elves" retrieve the skates from the bag, they'll find not one, but two sets. One pair is relatively normal. The other is a set of four, clearly designed for someone with four legs and hooves. "In case you want to skate a little differently," the fox explains.

[5a Violista]

[Thanksmas Throne]

Venus is a little curious about how so many people know, but . . . chalks it up to how her hat was knocked off earlier. "Um. Okay! Thanks," she says. "I'll make sure to....use them both."
She never considered skating while having deer legs, and it's definitely something that she'd have to practice a lot, but it should be fine. Having two different sets is nice, too, for other reasons.

She'll also have to find a skate bag. A couple skate bags, maybe.

She grabs the skates by the laces so that they can hang down, and - noticing that other people are now lining up - stands out of the chair to let the Thanksmas Throne only have the fox and be available for the next person to sit.

"Um! Bye."
Venus leaves that area.