[MU] - DECEMBER STORYTELLING / MEMORY SHARE

[lifeaftr_mods]

Something is wrong.

This may not very well be obvious, at first. The Storyteller is not present to put forth yet another diatribe, informative or apologetic, and the backdrop of guttering flame and sandy campfire is as present as ever...albeit briefly.



Those who tell their stories will start to notice something...odd taking place. Indeed, no matter how they intend to begin their tale, the land of Mu will immediately start to warp to accommodate it, or something utterly unlike it, until storytellers and listeners alike may find themselves in an exact recreation of a seemingly random memory, in the most stark and painstaking of detail. There is no altering the memory, nor is there any preventing it once it's begun to play - you will simply have to witness memories that are not your own this go around.

Furthermore, stories that take place in worlds other than LifeAftr will be, frankly, inevitable. Those memories, too, will be recreated, to be relived by the teller and lived by the listener.

---

It is time, once more, for you to tell a story...with a slight twist! This is, in fact, our first player plot, as provided by Dragon! The initial setting will be familiar for oldcomers, and newcomers will recognize it from the introduction they received in their dreams.

Yet for this Storytelling only, people can imagine whatever stories they wish, from both their homes and their time on LifeAftr, as long as they don't mind the fact that others will be reliving those stories in the form of an impromptu memory share.

Even those who prefer not to voice their stories aloud are not safe this time around. If the memory is recalled in essence, Mu will shift to accommodate it in full.

There is, however, a benefit to this: those who venture memories to be relived will receive both a befuddled apology from the Storyteller, who will assert that this was most definitely not meant to happen (they're the Storyteller, not the Rememberer!), as well as a tired promise that the relived memories will be worth two offerings each, as if in compensation.

Not that it counts for much, probably.

Comments

[prettypurpleparlor]

[She returns her cheerful expression in kind, glad to see there's at least one happier memory making an appearance tonight. It's nice to see that Maka's found a way to talk to people more easily, too.]

Monster souls aren't as varied in color as humans- we all come in shades of white. By nature, we're made of hope, love, and compassion, but with enough practice and effort a monster can learn to use any color. ...Although most of us don't have the time and energy to put all that effort into working with colors we aren't particularly good with.

I suppose it's a fair balance, in a way- humans are stronger, but we're more versatile. That said...

[Her tone is playful, light and teasing.]

I do have a particular favorite, as virtues go. Can you guess what color it is?

[the_word_is]

What are the virtues? [Maka’s world has a sense of morality tuned to the laws of a god, where living a good life means following his laws and breaking his laws is sin.]

Yours is purple, right?

[prettypurpleparlor]

Very clever, dearie- you've guessed correctly.

[Muffet giggles, knowing her pale lavender skin makes the association an easy one, and counts off the seven soul colors on her fingers as she answers.]

Purple for perseverance. Orange for bravery, of course, and cyan for patience. Then there's gold for justice, green for kindness, red for determination, and blue for integrity.

[the_word_is]

[Maka glances around the fire, trying to put colors to faces. She... she doesn’t know these people well enough for that. She doesn’t have enough friends here. Back home, it would have been easy.

Her smile falls, but her curiosity doesn’t.]

Are those all the virtues?

[prettypurpleparlor]

[Muffet is concerned at Maka's sudden drop in mood, but doesn't comment on it.]

As far as I'm aware, yes. I admit it's not my field of study- running a bakery involves relatively little advanced metaphysical theory- but I've only heard of human souls ever coming in those seven colors. Not that the color of your soul is the only virtue you can have, of course, people are always going to be more complex than a single trait. It's more the one that's strongest in you, the one that guides you in life the most.

[the_word_is]

That would make things easier. It takes a lot of study to understand someone's soul in my world. [Maka's working on it, and she's got the basics, but she's not quite at the level of someone like Professor Stein.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

To be fair, the color of a soul is hardly the only important thing about them, just one of the more obvious parts. I'm afraid you'd have to ask someone who actually studies that sort of thing for more detail on that, though.

What are souls like in your world?

[the_word_is]

[Maka holds up a hand ("wait a second") and steps back. A breath, eyes closed to focus, and her soul starts glowing. She's assuming Muffet can see it, but even someone without soul perception could feel the energy rippling off Maka, see the way the sand moves like a strong breeze just rose up with her as the center.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

[Muffet watches in quiet amazement, genuinely touched that Maka feels comfortable enough around her to show her this. Granted, it's possible she considers it to be less important, since she's not as vulnerable as a monster might be, but still.]

[The color isn't what she expected, closer to cyan than the orange she'd have guessed if they were going by her own world's rules, but the soul looks powerful and healthy to her.]

Ah, how lovely- the shape is different from how ours look, too.

[In a way, the winged circle reminds her a bit of a Delta Rune.]

Would you... like to see?

[Muffet gestures vaguely over her own chest, making it clear she's offering to show Maka her own soul in return. Normally she'd be a little more cautious, but it seems unlikely that they'd come to serious harm in this strange shared dreamworld of the storytelling, and it feels right to balance things out.]

[the_word_is]

[Maka nods, the wings of her soul furling slightly, the glow fading but not vanishing completely. She kind of wants to see both of their souls at once.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

[Muffet closes her eyes for a moment and takes a deep breath, spreading open one pair of hands just in front of her chest.]

[There's a brief, soft glow... and then something in the shape of an upside-down heart is floating between her hands.]

[The little white heart shape in front of her looks like moonlight made solid somehow, shining with a pale, gentle light.]

[the_word_is]

[Oh, that's pretty.

Maka's surprise and amazement show on her face, and she reaches out. She pauses, of course, before she gets more than half-way, and looks up at Muffet. Can she touch? Just a little, just a careful brush of contact.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

[Muffet blinks briefly, looking a bit flustered, and shakes her head gently.]

Ah, I... I'm not certain that's the best idea. Monster souls tend to be rather fragile, compared to humans.

[She's not sure if it would cause problems, for Maka to just touch briefly, but she doesn't really want to take the risk. Or, worse, what if she absorbed it somehow? Definitely not something that seems safe to take chances with.]

[the_word_is]

[Her eyes go wide in shock, and she takes a step back, waving her hands around in a very clear "oh no, I didn't mean to!!!" sort of motion.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

[Muffet smiles reassuringly at her, showing that she's not offended.]

It's all right, dearie, I know you were just being curious. We generally aren't too delicate to cope, but it seems better not to take the risk in this case.

[the_word_is]

[Maka nods, firmly agreeing. That absolutely isn't a risk she wants to take.]

[prettypurpleparlor]

[She tilts her head, curious, and asks:]

Do people bring out their souls often, where you come from? I suppose if it's less of a risk for you, there wouldn't be any particular reason not to do it more than we tend to.