TDM #10 - Wither and Bloom [First Edition]

[pumpkinhollow]

Pumpkin Hollow Gazette: Spring Issue

We ask that all toplevels include the age of the character (or at least a rough estimate) for TDM posts, to ensure that players both old and new can quickly make informed decisions about how to interact with a given character. We also ask that if someone lists a prompt as having an age preference, that it be respected. This is specifically for TDMs unless otherwise stated. Thank you!

Pumpkin Hollow Gazette

12/13/24 | TDM #10 - Wither and Bloom [First Edition]
Spring Pokémon Types - Grass, Fairy, Ground, Bug, Normal

WELCOME TO PUMPKIN HOLLOW

By Yorick Aberdeen

The crop for which the town is named.

Greetings, Hollowites, old and new! We are pleased to bring you yet another riveting issue of the Pumpkin Hollow Gazette. Or perhaps this is your very first one?

For nearly two years now, the mysterious ferryman has brought new and interesting faces across seas and stars and dimensional planes to reach our fair island. Since then, our community has grown larger and infinitely more interesting--- and we’re glad you’re joining us! Just in time for the weather to be just lovely.

This time of year tends to be a bit lighter on town-wide events due to this being a vitally busy time for our local agriculture industry, but we urge you to get involved with planting season and spend some time in nature. Who knows? You might even catch sight of our goddess of Land and Spring if you spend enough time among plants! Just don’t look into the trees--- they look back.

We invite you, as with all those who came before you, to enjoy your stay at the Oak & Iron tavern inn while you settle in. Please stop by Town Hall to discuss opportunities for work and more permanent housing! All newcomers get 100 Brass in their pocket upon arrival as well, so we encourage you to take advantage of this as well. Reach out to your neighbors for help if you need it, and don’t forget to pick up your copy of the Pumpkin Hollow Gazette whenever you need the local news!

SPRING WEATHER REPORT

By Phil Connors

The breeze will make your clothes smell great!

Start dusting those homes and beating those blankets! The days are getting longer, and with it, the winds are getting warmer. Spring is here! We’ll see some days that are still chilly and windy, but the more warm and temperate phases will get more common later in the season. We’re also entering the rainy period, meaning flowers are springing out of the ground and we’ll be seeing some very beautiful sunrises on misty mornings. Color is coming back to the isle, the frogs are in the rivers, and the insects and lambs are in the fields. It’s a good season to be outside.

Which means it’s also a good season to do laundry! Join us for our Community Laundry Day, where we all do our much-needed chores together and hang-dry our laundry in the warm and breezy weather! Join us on the green for some team washing. Water provided. Bring your own tubs, soap, and of course, clothes!

COMMUNITY EVENTS KEEP TOWN LIVELY ALL SPRING

By Timothy Stoker

The gazebo in town square, beside the festival green, is the place to be this season.

Legend has it that this time last year, a packed ferry arrived with a mass influx of offworlders, and an emergency potluck dinner was held to welcome the crowd. Now, this reporter wasn’t here just yet when that happened, but stories tell of a gathering of epic culinary proportions that heralded a new age of prosperity for Pumpkin Hollow. Sounds like something worth celebrating! Now that the weather has turned lovely once more (as elaborated on above by our own Phil Connors), the town has decided to celebrate the anniversary of the newly dubbed “Harbor Day” by revisiting that potluck idea. Drop by the Temple of Sacred Roots every other Friday from now until June to sample the cuisine of your new neighbors and local businesses. New residents need only bring themselves!

Also, in the spirit of spring cleaning, residents will also be selling or giving away their old items every weekend, weather permitting, in a series of mass yard sales. Some of our more modern residents supplied the term “yard crawl” for the event, which was deemed to be fitting. So come out on Saturday and Sunday mornings and afternoons to see what useful used items you can take off your neighbors’ hands! It’s a great way for new residents to decorate their new homes cheaply and get some new clothes.

And finally, on Wednesday evenings the Festival Green will be hosting “Swift Social” events (to be held in the Oak & Iron in the event of rain). A reimagining of last year’s popular charity speed dating event, this new Swift Social is expanded to include individuals seeking platonic relationships as well--- though that doesn’t mean romance is off the menu! The 10 Brass will be used to support the town’s medical community and the Autumn Leaves Dormitory House for Young Residents. So come out and make a friend or meet someone cute--- it’s for charity!

Fearsome Fae Antics Cause Town-Wide Trouble

By Melanie King

Up to no good, probably.

Things have been getting tricksy around town as, apparently, the fae population are staging the prank war to end all prank wars—or so local experts are telling us. If, like this reporter, you thought you were just having terrible luck with forgetting where you put things down or waking up with horrible bedhead, surprise! You've actually been caught in the crossfire of the fairies' games and may be entitled to financial compensation. (Not really. That's a joke.)

It looks like their antics are escalating significantly over time from harmless inconveniences to active dangers, so beware of any unusual sounds, behaviours or visual phenomenon you may encounter. Alluring or pleading voices from the woods, ghostly lights, critters acting oddly—if it's out of the ordinary, think twice. Or it might be the last time you think at all (at least, until tomorrow morning).

Fiendish Floral Figures Take Root Around Town

By Yorick Aberdeen

How eerie!

Spring is a time of year characterized by new life and by fresh floral blooms. It’s said that the land is Serranai’s canvas, and flowers are her paint. There is no debating that watching the Spring goddess’s artistry come to life in her season of power is an activity beloved by all! However, the Department of Supernatural Affairs is currently investigating some strangely behaved plant life.

While sightings have been somewhat rare, locals have been reporting eerie structures made out of flowering vines or woven flower stems that take the shape of hollowed out humanoid silhouettes. The poses seem to indicate motion and appear capable of springing to life at any moment, but the strange figures never seem to actually move --- at least, not that anyone has actually seen. However, many have cited that upon looking away from the figures and looking back, they appear to be closer. Those who have had direct contact with these floral armatures of people are also reporting some kind of ongoing allergic reaction from the encounter. Symptoms include severe shortness of breath, unpleasant itching that feels like it is coming from beneath the skin, and intense bouts of emotion which vary from person to person.

The Pumpkin Hollow Board of Safety is currently investigating long-term effects of contact with these beings and advises residents to avoid them. They seem highly resilient to fire, impact, and tearing, and while cutting with a sharp implement seems to have some success, it’s inadvisable to get close enough to the things to use such tools in the first place. Local alchemist Aeryn Sallek and local non-magical chemist Sally Boyle are currently working together to develop an herbicidal blend that is safe for human skin contact and potentially consumption to try and deal with the flowery menaces, which the Board of Safety has begun calling “Hanahilators”. But don’t let the name frighten you--- steering clear of these freaky floral followers should be a more than sufficient safety measure until the threat can be dealt with. Probably, anyway!

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Further Details...

Yard Crawl

Participate in the Yard Crawl as either a buyer, a seller, or both! When you take on a job in Pumpkin Hollow, you are supplied with permanent housing outside the Oak & Iron as part of your start-up kit, and most of them are full of old and worn furniture and clothes left behind when they were abandoned. Get rid of some of it or find something new at the Spring Yard Crawl! Plus, some of the native residents will also be selling or giving away their own old things.

Here’s how the Brass shakes out:

• Buyers can spend 50 Brass and get a haul of their choice of used or free clothing, furniture, or small decorative items. All of it will be of decent to low quality and relatively unremarkable design, so nothing extravagant. (Although a lone exciting knick knack could be considered passable!) Reminder that newcomers are given their first stipend of 100B upon arrival, so new characters are welcome to participate--- you’ll just need to mark that on your ledger if/when you app in. Ask for help if you have questions about this!


• Sellers can make 50B off of their participation but must make a toplevel. Only apped-in characters that are not Laggards can participate as a Seller.


• Those who are both buying and selling end up with a net zero of Brass, but all the aforementioned rules apply!


• Transactions related to the Yard Crawl can be applied to a character’s ledger three times --- once per month for the duration of this TDM!

Swift Social

Under the Swift Social toplevel posted from the mod account, join the fun by posting a starter with the provided code to create a profile card! Then comment on someone else’s starter with one of the following icebreaker questions to get started:

Which would be more surprising to see on your doorstep, a unicorn or a walrus?
If you could commit any crime with no consequences, what would it be?
If you were caught in a trap and the only way to escape from it with your life was to do something genuinely impressive, what would be your approach?
If you had to live on only one food for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
If you were held at knife point and instructed by your assailant that you must call someone on their sending stone, and if they do not answer, you die, who would you call?
Which would be most frightening to encounter in a dark alley: a ghost, an alien, or a horse?
If you could have any wish granted for you, no matter how big or small, what would it be? (Cannot ask for more wishes, that’s cheating!)
What’s a subject that you could confidently teach an hour-long class on with no preparation?
If you could instantly become an expert in any skill, what would you choose?
Make your own!

Be advised that you must post a comment with your profile card so that any Swift Social partners you have can reference it for your age and preferences.

Fae Pranks

It’s a fairy prank war! A few of the local fae courts are using Marrow Isle as their battle ground, since the demons made it trendy. They’re mostly out to prank each other--- but they’re also happy to practice their tricks on you! And fairies have some very odd ideas about boundaries when it comes to pranks. Here’s a few examples of some of the tricks you might encounter, ranging from silly to genuinely dangerous:

• A truly outrageous amounts of butterflies


• Sightings of Edwin the Headless Postman, a Dullahan (this is a played character that a mod will tag out with, please leave an OOC note if you’d like to opt out)


• Will-o-wisps that lead you in circles or into danger


• Fae dance parties that will have you dancing yourself to death!


• Missing objects


• Mysteriously spoiled milk


• Your hair got braided or extra tangled while you were asleep


• Weird sounds in Prague Mill after dark. Is it haunted?


• Strange women crying in the forest or by the Bluffs, but when you approach them to try and help, you find yourself suddenly in life-threatening danger!


• Create your own! Have fun with it, get spooky or goofy as you see fit.

Floral Fiends [cw: body horror, death]

Loosely inspired by the Hanahaki disease and the film Annihilation, Hanahilators are uncanny figures made out of flowers that move when they are not being watched. If they catch you, they will grab you, but seemingly have no interest in harming you as they will relent as soon as they’ve touched you.

However, once you have pollen on you, the effects begin to take hold, and flowers begin growing within your body, first in your lungs and then pushing into the rest of you. These parasitic blooms feed off of your strong emotions and are influenced by the emotions which define you. (Feel free to use the Victorian flower language to determine what kinds of flowers you get!) Once strong enough, the vines begin feeding on your body, destroying it and leaving behind a brand new Hanahilator. But don’t worry, you’ll be back to your old self tomorrow, so enjoy the opportunity to explore the island as a ghost! Apped in characters should remember to fill out a Death Certificate! It’s a relatively rare encounter, so don’t worry about running into one if you don’t want to.

Pokémon

Each season, new types of Pokémon can be found in nature around the island! They cannot be captured as the technology does not exist on Marrow Isle, but they can be befriended and kept as pets. Since there is no PC, each person can have no more than six. You can befriend any Pokémon whose primary type matches the list at the top of the newspaper. (Eevee can be caught in any season.) Legendaries are off limits for obvious reasons, and mythicals can be encountered for fun but not kept! Evolutionary stones can be found in Paradesium, the magical subterranean jungle beneath the mountain to the North. Every type will be available at some point throughout the year, so if you don’t have access to your fave yet, check back next season!

Comments

[misbegottendreamer]

"I rely on you for flight, actually. I've never managed to work out a method of flight for myself. I imagine tonal magic could allow that, but it isn't something I've ever mastered."

[checkyourmath]

"I, ah, I would not consider that to be a form of flight, per se, being generated neither by buoyancy nor aerodynamic lift. I suppose a closer reference point would be found in electrohydrodynamics, which is still only roughly analogous. Your confusion is quite understandable, given the, ah, lack of public research regarding the phenomenon."

Was that rude? Perhaps the woman was using the word colloquially? She was almost certainly using the word colloquially, and now she's probably irritated.

"R-really, 'flight' is fine, I just... do not want to give the impression that I am, ah, some sort of bird?" Siebren adds awkwardly. "But of course, you are already aware that I am not a bird."

[misbegottendreamer]

She laughs again, but deeper down, something isn’t sitting easy with her. The cadence of his words is wrong. The rhythm, the syllabic choice, all of it plays like someone sight-reading a song perfectly when they’ve never heard it before. Everything he says and does could be characteristic of Siebren de Kuiper, but the tempo is wrong.

But it has to be him. No one could fake that melody.

Has Moira’s tampering just altered him that fundamentally?

“You are much too solid to be any bird that I have seen. And you smell much too nice to be a Cliff Strider,” she jokes, not wanting there to be too much dead air between them while she thinks.

[checkyourmath]

Any bird she's seen? Perhaps it is only a quirk of the Emeran translation, but that strikes Siebren as an unexpected turn of phrase given what else he has managed to discern about the woman.

"Are cliff striders a variety of bird, in your homeland? From the name, I would suspect that they nest along rocky outcroppings. There are quite a few birds in my world which behave similarly! I am especially fond of puffins, if you've heard of them."

cw: emeto

[misbegottendreamer]

“Cliff Striders and Cliff Racers are now extinct on the Vvardenfell mainland, and even in my youth, Cliff Striders were a rare things to see. Both species were known as terrors for the unprepared traveler, always eager to snatch up an easy meal, always reeking of their guano-covered nests and the half-digested fish they would spit up as a distraction. Yet despite this, they were something of a matter of begrudging national pride.”

Is this really what they want to discuss over tea? Really? Apparently so.

[checkyourmath]

"Primarily fish-eating, then? The same is true of most cliff-dwelling birds on my end of things, at least from what I recall," Siebren notes, quietly tapping the rim of his teacup. "That particular defense mechanism is more characteristic of carrion birds such as vultures where I come from, but it isn't unheard of."

[misbegottendreamer]

“They’ll eat just about anything they can get, but they definitely have a fondness for fish. I’m not sure why. Perhaps the fish have certain minerals that are beneficial to the cliffbeasts, or perhaps it is simply easy for them to scavenged beached slaughterfish when the sloughs fall low.”

She pauses, thinking.

“Perhaps they are not so fond of fish, and I am under this impression because I grew up in a place where water was plentiful. The cliffbeasts inland wouldn’t have had easy access to the sloughs, but they are most plentiful amidst the rocky crags…”

[checkyourmath]

"Opportunistic carnivores, perhaps? I would imagine there are plenty of animals further inland in absence of fish. How large do cliffbeasts grow?"

[misbegottendreamer]

“Cliff racers are about two meters head to tail, while Cliff striders are supposed to be at least twice that size. I don’t know if they hunt or scavenge more, but they will absolutely swarm travelers.”

[checkyourmath]

Siebren's eyes widen, having anticipated a much smaller animal. "That is very impressive! Quite imposing, certainly. I don't believe we have any flighted birds of quite that size in my world, though there are flightless birds significantly taller than I am. I wouldn't mind getting a look at one, albeit from a safe distance," he chuckles.

[misbegottendreamer]

“You’re unlikely to find one around here, I’m afraid. Though, there is a chance all of us might be able to leave here someday. We’ve discussed the idea of your visiting my world before, although those plans became complicated when you underwent your demonic metamorphosis…”

[checkyourmath]

Demonic... metamorphosis? Siebren strongly suspects he misheard something, but the masked woman has made several mentions of a demon court without any elaboration upon what that actually entails. Perhaps 'demons' are simply an ominously-named position within the local judiciary, though something more overtly supernatural isn't out of the question either.

"Apologies, but... I am a demon, then? That is among the reasons you are concerned for my well-being, from what I've noted. Is 'being a demon' disallowed by your homeworld?"

[misbegottendreamer]

“It isn’t disallowed, no, but we had concerns that you were metaphysically bound to this place. Though… I suppose your being able to leave is evidence that those fears were unfounded.”

“You were becoming something called the Baron of Blank- the master of memories, both real and imagined. It was the result of you, uh… eating the previous Baron.”

[checkyourmath]

"I am becoming a master of... memories," Siebren repeats, contemplatively. "That is an ironic thing to have forgotten. Do you believe that the access to my history has been improved by that, ah, demonic status? Excluding the current fault, of course."

[misbegottendreamer]

“I think so, though it didn’t always stop you from talking to people who weren’t there. We had those days figured out, though, and I have ways of Malin going sure you know you’re not in any danger.”

She tugs at her sleeve a little.

“I will admit, it was hard to accept when I realized my memories of you could be entirely false ones. But… I know you wouldn’t do that to me.”

[checkyourmath]

"I wouldn't do that to anyone!" he declares, clearly disturbed by the thought of it. His plate and teacup are equally scandalized by the idea, skittering a few inches along the table surface as though retreating from the masked woman. Siebren sighs, reflexively sliding the ceramics back into place with a gesture.

"Is... is it possible the missing records are because of this, and unrelated to my near-death experience?" Siebren asks, speaking more quietly now. "Was there a near-death experience, or is it possible the records I have retained are falsified in some manner?"

[misbegottendreamer]

“We were all brought here by some sort of near-death experience. But yours was not recent, or it should not have been. If you’ve forgotten everything that happened here after the incident that brought you here, however… I suppose it would feel recent.”

“So yes, I believe your missing records were unrelated, unless you somehow had a second near-death experience that scrambled your memories.”

[checkyourmath]

"That does seem unlikely," Siebren agrees. While he's likely suffered more frequent near-death experiences than the average physicist, a possibly-demonic alteration to his internal systems is somehow the simplest explaination on hand.

"You know me quite well, from what you've explained. Do you believe it is possible I intended for this to happen? I can't think of anything that could be gained by destroying my own records, but there are so many unknown values now. There will inevitably be factors I have overlooked."

[misbegottendreamer]

“I do not doubt this could be part of a plan. You are a brilliant man, yi aldahira, and you’ve taken your new nature in stride. I cannot say with any certainty that this was a plan, and if it was, I have been told nothing of it. But perhaps there is something to that- to allow something to be forgotten, utterly, is a terrible and powerful act.”

(Something something referencing the Daedric Prince Ithelia something)

[checkyourmath]

"If that is the case, my friend, I am very sorry to have left you in this position without forewarning. If our intended journey into the hills does not bring about any revelation, then... well, we shall start from the beginning, if that does not offend your patience. Perhaps you could tell me a bit more about yourself, in the meantime?"

[misbegottendreamer]

It does not offend her patience. It’s just heart-wrenching.

“I suppose that would be helpful, wouldn’t it? My name is Drelasa Veloth, and I am a Dunmer, born on the volcanic island of Vvardenfell. I am a keeper of stories, and a mourner of the dead. I am devoted to ensuring that ghosts are given their rest, and making certain that the lessons of our ancestors are not forgotten. I am also something of a healer and a musician- I practice tonal casting, a technique where sound is used to shape and structure magic. I am blind, as a result of a blight long ago, but the blight also enhanced my hearing, and I see just as well with my ears. In this place, I am a blacksmith, and sometimes I share home and baked goods with my friends and neighbors.”

[checkyourmath]

Siebren watches her mask intently as she speaks, embedding as many of her words into his systems as he can manage. Drelasa Veloth. Storyteller, musician, healer, blacksmith, friend.

"I am glad to be counted among those friends and neighbors, Miss Veloth. Drelasa," he corrects, noting that they seem to be on a given-name basis. "Do I visit you often? If my life here resembles what I recall from my own world, I tend towards more solitary pursuits, but I very much enjoy this sort of conversation!"

[misbegottendreamer]

“We had breakfast together fairly often, before you left.”

It was convenient, after all, to break our fast together when we would wake up side by side, she thinks, but she doesn’t let those words slip out. If he really must start from the beginning, it would be wrong to put ideas into his head that are no longer his.

If you love him, set him free. If he returns, it was meant to be.

“You seem to be quite a fan of my cooking. The womer you have to thank for that is Tanusea Veloth- no relation,” she adds.

“She made quite a point of making sure that the girls who would come into the city for temple days had their act together. She was a strict but caring matron, Tanusea.”

[checkyourmath]

"I see. I was living close by, then, prior to leaving town two months ago?"

Friends. Friends and neighbors. A part of him is disappointed by the explanation; he clasps his hands into his lap, running the pad of his thumb over the opposite palm. Back in the market she had taken his hand, and he was struck by the casual warmth of the gesture.

In retrospect, Siebren was reading too much into the matter. He wasn't comfortable initiating that sort of contact with an acquaintance, but clearly Drelasa was.

"Tanusea. I, ah, I will have to thank her for the recipe, should we ever cross paths," he smiles.

[misbegottendreamer]

There’s a measurable pause, yet again.

“Kena… if you have forgotten your life here before, I do not know if it is my place to put the expectations of what once were upon you again. There is so much I want to tell you, but I cannot tell if doing so would be a kindness or a cruelty.”