come_sailaway | JUNE EVENT: CAMP

JUNE EVENT: CAMP

early on June 10th, Friday's morning announcements end with a request for everyone going on the latest excursion to meet her in the atrium. she seems in noticeably better spirits than she had been last time, and she leads them cheerfully to the tender. once they are all aboard, and the door is securely shut, the interior fills with gas, and, perhaps, their last thought before they slip into unconsciousness is "oh shit, not again."

passengers wake up on a rickety old school bus, driving down a dirt road surrounded by woods. what is it that they notice first? that, no matter what they were wearing before, they are now wearing a camp t-shirt and legitimately horrifyingly short shorts? the overstuffed backpack between their knees? the words "take one down and pass it around" dying on their lips? the fact that Friday is absolutely driving the bus?

or, maybe the fact that it's already slowing down, pulling up in front of a massive wooden sign, saying:

CAMP AION

when they get out of the bus, Friday is the one to divide them up into their cabin groups, and she is the one to give the counselors their very official-looking clipboards and whistles. she explains that they are in charge, and that she will be back to pick them up in a week, and... very little else. she responds to nothing outside of whatever is on her unseen little script, and she gets back on the bus shortly after, leaving them there.

welcome to camp. let's make some summer memories!

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(she does trust him and that, honestly, is a big problem because she shouldn't. after all, they are enemies. well... suppose to be but being trapped here on this boat is really blurring whether they should continue on? but jinx follows his lead and she rests a hand to his shoulder.

after a few steps and slow sways, she begins to catch on -- now linking her arms around his neck since it seems that's how it's suppose to go. looking over to him and with the song being the way it is, her heart does its pesky swelling notion and it causes her cheeks to heat up just a bit. )

Eh heh heh, yeaaah. L-Looks like it.

(despite her nervous smile, she is screaming internally. this whole moment shifted into love. not sexual. love. where did the sex part of this go?! but perhaps she's reading way too much into it. because why would the boy savior feel that? although he did...ask her on this date. but there's no true meaning behind it, right? after all, it's almost required to have a date to this thing. and she is... glad he did ask her.

ah.

the more her mind is racing, the brighter her eyes seem to be -- that is until she blinks away her gaze from him; head ducking down a bit as they dance.)

(He just grins seeing the color that creeps into her cheeks, though the brightness in her eyes is new. But he liked it, just another way to read the mood and gauge how she was doing. He knew tonight was a lot, and it was about all that he was able to handle as well, but it was worth it to be here, with her, doing this. Her arms linked around his neck during a slow song like this wasn't something he'd have ever imagined.)

Thanks for giving me the shot. This is a lot better than what I was planning for, given what people kept saying about the last day.

It's... not a big deal.

(she is telling herself that more than ekko, really. if she just informs herself over and over in her mind that this is just a dance and nothing more, maybe things will run more smoothly for her? still, she keeps her head low but idly letting her thumb brush along the back of his neck. jinx appears she wants to say something but is definitely refraining from doing so.

this dance is definitely a big contrast to her dance with venti but she is still nervous it'll end the same way. well, as long as she keeps her lips to herself -- maybe nothing tragic will happen.)

Maybe not for you, but it means a lot to me that you said yes.

(Ekko knew a little more about the things that had happened before, and about the reason that she might be a bit hesitant and confused. More than just the hints that she'd dropped in the rants when he arrived, but he wasn't going to bring any of that up. It wasn't his fight.

So while he would have loved to end the dance with a big finish and a kiss, he settled for a twirl and then pulled her back close.)

Wonder how many points that one was worth?

('shut up, shut up!' she is screaming at him mentally -- if only he can hear her telepathically. jinx doesn't get it, honestly. he knows where this particular path will lead them, right? surely, he can't be an idiot or is love really making a person blind as they always say? not that he loves her. maybe he's just flattered and realizing how better she is than him?

that has to be it or if not, maybe if she just...ignores this part, he'll lose interest in her in that aspect? the spin he gives her naturally catches her by surprise due to her mind being on a whirlwind -- but maybe it's something that needed to happen to keep her head from splitting into two.)

(she blinks rapidly but then snorts.)

Gee, I dunno. Maaaaaybe a solid five?

I'll take it, it's five points the other side didn't score.

(Though Ekko didn't think that that was actually anyone keeping score for this color war, and he was beginning to wonder if the whole thing was just a red herring and set to trigger the experiences of those who had been on the last event. Any competition had been pretty much reinforced by their own actions more than anything.)

Means we're in the lead.

Not like that is a surprise. They oughta know not to go up against with the Zaunities. — We don't roll over for anyone.

No matter the odds, or what the challenge is we'll find a way to finish on top.

(Though with how close they were, and how their first dance had gone that could be taken a number of different ways.)

You know what we need? A motto. Like how the Top-siders call themselves the "City Of Progress" when really they're not? We oughta have somethin' like that. Except not as long like yours.

(Ekko scoffed. They prided themselves on that but they didn't really do anything anymore. There were no risks, no rewards, no challenge for them to make progress. They didn't want it.)

"City of Progress" Heh Nothing has changed there in years, they're too busy admiring themselves to actually anything is done. But yeah a slogan would be nice, something quick simple, shows what we're about.

We could always say the obvious. "Zaun: Don't fuck with us."

(a snort and a giggle as she starting to feel just a bit more comfortable with this slow dance; swaying smoothly with him. her thumb every so once in awhile brush along the back of his head.)

'Cuz y'know our people would go straight to that immediately.

Sounds more like a challenge than a motto. Does fit the spirit though.

(Always throwing the first punch. And having to deal with others looking down their nose.)

Zaun: Free to Live

(she lets that muse over for a moment. and thinking it over, her face softens but there's some sorrow, too. although it's so long ago but the memories of the enforcers casually marching in their city whenever they felt they were out of line or to "check" on things. it's still so clear to her. how they needed to stand there, act accordingly, keep their mouth shut unless spoken to. even sometimes being wrongfully accuse of something then being shoved against fences for a pat down.

jinx remembers how sometimes they acted so disgusted with their way of living when really it was their own doing to why zaun was the way it was. if they would just listen to what they had to say or offered something so simple like better food, it would had been some help.)

... I like that.

Edited 2022-06-28 13:55 (UTC)

(Being looked down on because of where they were born, where they lived, treated as if they were less than the top siders. Ekko remembered the times that they'd caused trouble as kids, and the times they narrowly got away with it. Things hadn't improved much as they grew up, if anything the instigation became worse.

Having to live by strict rules set in place by someone who didn't know anything about the streets, it wasn't the way Zaun was supposed to be. The idea of living free from their control, and free from the fear, that was his ideal. Something a bit closer to this.)

Sounds good, but if only it was that easy.

('it could be if you would just follow silco's plan.' that's what is dancing along her tongue but refrains for obvious reasons. if he and his firelights could just surrender and comply to silco's vision, then they can have the independence they both wanted. sure, it would mean more deaths but he can't expect for them to reach that goal unscathed.)

Yeah...

(she will just response with a single word and nothing else. again, fighting desperately to add more to that but this isn't the time nor the place. honestly, does it even matter? because in truth, she... doesn't want to go back to zaun or their realm. she would go back to silco but beyond that, what's else is waiting for her there? she's hated by so many and many wish to have her captive or dead.

and what she hadn't told ekko nor anyone else that when she did "return home" briefly to be "up to speed", jinx had no memory of her time on the boat or any of the crewmates. she tossed up the idea that maybe she was just far too busy with what was going on with zaun, the gemstone, and everything else to think of it. but... with how important fio is to her and venti, at the time, she would had thought of them at least once.)

(but she didn't. which got her thinking if they do somehow return home, would it be as if this whole experience would had never happen? everything they've been through, the friendships, the relationships...it wouldn't matter.)

(jinx stops dancing which it is good timing because the song ended too with something very upbeat. and the loudness of the song did snap her a little out of her spiraling thoughts of anguish. she lifts her head over to the boombox and then over to ekko. ah, ... what now?)

(It would mean living in fear of the monsters that he saw that night, only every night, and every alley crawling with them. Shimmer Junkies weren't free, their lives had been destroyed. But Ekko doesn't want to ruin the mood either, the dance had been fun, and they were having a good time, so that was the thing to focus on. Finding the common ground where all could thrive.)

Think the punch has been spiked yet?

(He was offering her an out if she wanted it, so that they wouldn't become too much of the center of attention by remaining on the floor. Not that he was done with showing off his moves just yet.)

(she blinks rapidly over to him as it gives her a few seconds to register what he was asking. but then she grins and even chuckles at that -- letting go of him but to quickly replace that with a shoulder bump.)

Sheesh, I TOTALLY hope so! I haven't had a drink since my party. I kinda miss havin' my head feeling tingly.

(except what jinx doesn't know is friday forbid her from having alcohol ever again since during her party, she was suppose to keep an eye on any minors from having a drink and failed that responsibility. she will soon learn that discovery way in the future whenever they return back on the boat. for now though, she does a twirl -- braids following suit -- as she makes her way to the punch bowl.)

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JUNE EVENT: CAMP

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