[open] december catch-all | u better watch out

[manlet]

1 | COLD WEATHER, WARM COMPANY
[When it comes to his artistry, Andersen enjoys drawing attention. He's a natural at being obnoxious and persistent, both traits that've helped him get his foot in the door when he'd still been alive. But for the smaller, mundane things - like say, helping a soup kitchen - Andersen prefers to keep quiet. Art is meant to be shown off. The little joys of life are best enjoyed as they come.

He helps distribute soup and in cleaning up. He's dressed in plainclothes versus his usual flashy attire, complete with a hat to better disguise his features. But as he moves onto the next table, he finds himself in a bit of a pickle. His cart's broken down. How's he supposed to haul all these dirty dishes away? Andersen puts his hands on his hips and sighs.]

... God still thumbs his nose at me, I see.

[Oh, Andersen. Dramatic as always.]

2 | OUT OF THE CITY
[Andersen can offer two things: medical aid and entertainment.

(a) His medical knowledge is limited to magical means and the most he can do is to heal surface wounds and to ease pain. Anything more serious will have to go to better-versed healers. He's a fussy practitioner, one who grumbles as he handles his patients with attentive care:]

How long have you been hobbling on this? With the way it looks, I'm surprised it hasn't been worn into a stump! Do you think you can power through illness? Moron.

[For all his bark, Andersen is ultimately kind. He demonstrates this when a child in line begins to tear up at the thought of getting a shot. It isn't his problem - hell, he isn't even going to see the kid, that's for whoever's giving out the shot - but he speaks to her in a warm and gentle way.]

That's it now, wipe those tears away. When it's done, come show me your bandage and I'll reward your bravery.

[(b) His entertainment is storytelling, of course. He spins tales about giants and trolls; about peasant children who discover their inner potential; the tragedies of common household objects. Andersen is in his element, especially with the old spinters, who enjoy trading stories with him. It's quite a sight to see what looks like a chubby-cheeked 10-year-old being fawned by a gaggle of grandmothers. When he's done, he retires with his own little bottle of scotch.

But every now and then, he'll sing. He does it when he thinks no one is listening, his voice clear and sweet:]

Jeg hørte orgelets brusen
og vidste min ven var nær.
Først nu forstod jeg rigtig,
hvad kærlighed er værd.

Men knapt et år derefter
drog vennen bort fra mig.
Jeg så ham aldrig siden,
thi søbølgen blev hans grav.

3 | GOOD TIDINGS WE BRING
[When the night is at its darkest, Andersen goes out for a walk. His breath trails from his mouth like mist, and he seems rather pensive. He soon arrives at the grand Bright Wall, its presence a shimmering white stroke. Its light illuminates some of the crouching forest beyond, throwing the greenery into sharp relief like a Baroque painting.

Andersen takes out a pack of cigarettes, courtesy of Dantes, and lights one up. It's only when he's breathed out the smoke that he notices he has company.]

Hey, have you heard of Årsgång? [With the cigarette tucked between two fingers, he gestures at the dark foliage.] They say that if you take a walk in the woods at night, you can risk your life to see the future. A fair gamble, don't you think?

Comments

for enkidu.

[manlet]

[Andersen doesn't fancy himself a bleeding heart. He's a man who's long become numb to despair and suffering - that's what he tells himself, at least - but his true disposition is revealed when he hears of the refugees. There isn't much he can do but he's willing to spare a few hours to make their lives a little more comfortable.

Which is how he happens to be with Enkidu, lugging supplies in a wagon he salvaged from the back of the theater he lived in. It's much easier than carrying them on hand.]

Good grief. It's depressing around here.

[Which is to say: it reminds him a little too much of his own childhood home. But he won't say that aloud.]

7000 years later, a tag appears

[enkidoh]

[Enkidu watches the refugees with a plain, neutral look on their face. Not that they aren't a depressing sight, absolutely, it is obvious that these humans are suffering.]

Hmm...it would be truly odd if they were leaping with joy. [They glance at Andersen for a short time before something else draws their attention.] Ah!

[Now Enkidu's face turns into a more worried one.]

Wait here.

[That cat over there is horribly cold and Enkidu takes their time to fuss over it and finally scoop it up in their arms.]

im just as late ... grips ur hands.

[manlet]

[To tell the truth, he isn't surprised Enkidu peeled away to help an animal in need. They have a connection to the earth in a way very different from humans - and that's made all the more apparent in Andersen's eyes by how openly worried the other Servant is for the cat. He follows after them so he can peer at their newfound companion, eyebrows raised.

(seems as if he's not, actually, going to wait like he's supposed to.)]

Don't tell me we're going to bring it along.

here's my new years tag

[enkidoh]

Yes, we are going to bring it along. It suffers from the cold.

[They are carrying the small animal in their arms now, trying to keep it warm as best as they could. It is the least they can do, really.]

Let me put it inside my coat so I can help carrying the supplies. [So yes, Enkidu is taking their time to make sure the cold, wet cat is comfortable inside their coat. After a while they look up again.] It seems to have settled. How many boxes are left?

[manlet]

[A being of clay with a soft heart - that's poetic in its own way. Andersen clicks his tongue but doesn't argue about the kitten tagging along. He knows Enkidu will take full responsibility for the creature, and if it chooses to cause trouble... well, it's not his problem.]

Two. Most of them are non-essentials. Books. Toys. Small luxuries, such as mirrors. [He seems thoughtful for a moment.] Though, I can speak from experience. The soul cannot survive upon food and drink alone. There must be something extra to make a miserable existence tolerable.

[enkidoh]

[If it causes trouble, they fully expect you to help at least a little, Andersen.]

Books are quite essential. [Mirrors...not so much. When suffering from the cold they cannot imagine that the humans wish to look at their frosty faces through a mirror.] Are you sure you wish to give all of these books to them? Can I keep some for myself?

[They haven't picked up the box yet, no, they've crouched down and are actively rummaging through the books.]

Ah, this one is about animals.

1

[eluci]

[Being attention-seeking at a soup kitchen would be a really bad idea or just plain weird, depending on what it is you're attempting to accomplish. Apparently Anderson's decided to go the weird route anyway, at least from Noctis' perspective, and seems to be dramatically complaining at his dishes.]

What are you talking about?

[He's been carrying dishes in a wash pan, which is currently about a quarter full.]

[manlet]

[Noctis' reaction is valid. After all, who says stuff like that while doing menial chores? (Andersen. That's who.)

The question is a signal to Andersen that he can go ahead and be his dramatic self. He heaves another sigh and gestures at the cart.]

Do you see this? Like an old crone, it's squeaked its last and has fallen apart on me! Look at me. Am I not weak? Am I not puny? How am I to bring all this - [here, he spreads out his arms to exaggerate the load he has] - back to the kitchen?

[eluci]

[In all fairness, Anderson appears to be a kid, and kids are pretty good at being overdramatic by nature.

Even if kids Anderson's apparent age don't...really speak like that normally.]

Probably not by overacting. Frequent trips?

[He could offer to help, but he's a little less altruistic than that.]

[manlet]

[In the city of Aefenglom, you can find all sorts of things. Including pint-sized kids who monologue long into the day. He snorts through his nose.]

I suppose it can't be helped.

[His attempt to fish for help was killed on sight. Ah, well. He hoists as many plates as he can grab before he turns on his heel to face the kid.]

You're a merciless one, making a boy slave away like this.

3

[firewalled]

[Rich doesn't exactly mean to stare, but the sight of who he still assumes to be a kid lighting up a cigarette is a very bizarre one to him. Not to mention, the smell of the smoke sets him a little on edge. It's a smell he's still not used to, despite his own fire-breathing, so when Andersen turns towards him, he wrinkles his nose slightly.]

That's a fair gamble to you? Nah, no thanks. I'd rather make my own future.

[If he saw his future, he might get wrapped up in trying to change it, or feel it's inevitable and just give up.]

Have you heard that cigarettes cause lung cancer? Pretty sure every time you light one you're taking seven minutes off your life. Fair gamble, right?

[It's a bad joke, but really, Rich can't help but find it bizarre that someone's letting a kid do that.]

[manlet]

[All answers are valid in Andersen's eyes. It's part of meeting different characters, from his perspective. But the joke - he simply inhales deeply and exhales another cloud of smoke into the frigid night air out of spite.]

It is. Maybe if I smoke enough, I'll shorten my time here.

[He shouldn't say that so cheerfully...........]

You've no interest in magical fortunes, Rich? No nagging questions about what lies ahead?

[firewalled]

[Well, if Andersen isn't that worried about it, Rich probably shouldn't push him. He just tries to ignore the smell, offering a soft snort at Andersen's own comment.]

If that's what you're aiming for, I can get why you're doing it then.

[The question just makes him shrug.]

I've had enough of fortune telling. In my world, we had a computer that could predict possible futures, and that was bad enough.

[Luckily, Rich doesn't think the SQUIP will be doing any quantum predictions for quite a while now.]

[manlet]

A future-telling machine? Many would consider such an artificial prophet to be a boon. If you don't like what it tells you-- [he makes a gesture with his hand, the smoke whirling with the movement] --could you not simply turn it off?

[Easier said than done in some cases. God does he know that. But he won't assume that the computer Rich speaks of is anything like the Moon Cell.]

[firewalled]

That would be a great idea if it wasn't kind of evil with a tendency to mind control people when it didn't get its way.

[Basically, Rich and Hans may have more in common than they may have previously assumed.]

3

[loadme]

I'm actually really comfortable with the way my life is right now. So I don't think I'd be interested in something like that.

But I can see how someone else might be more tempted.

[If it's even true to begin with.]

[manlet]

Oh? Are you one of the Mirrorbound who enjoys her life here?

[Even if his prompt didn't earn an expected bite, Andersen is still someone who likes to sniff out people's characters. Whoever lands in front of him is material ripe for the picking.]

[loadme]

What I have here is more than I could've ever found for myself in my old life. So to answer your question...

Yes, absolutely.

[With a confidence to match her statement, even.]

[manlet]

Hm. Good! You say that with resolution. I like that.

[Andersen waves a hand, smoke whirling about with the motion. He seems rather cheered up by her response.]

There's a fascinating cast of characters in Aefenglom, with some taking your side and others desperately wishing to return home. As an author, it'll be great entertainment o see which path everyone heads down. This is an excellent isekai setting, in other words!

[loadme]

[Isekai? Monika's pretty trope-aware, but that one escapes her.]

I hope that those that want to return to their home are able to do that, one day.

[She wants to stay here. That much she knows, but would it be selfish of her to wish that those important to her also stay?]

Which one are you? Do you want to stay, or go back?

1

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ As a lot of this was being run by Newt, or the Phoenix Tear for those who knew his clinic more, Judar was helping out with the soup kitchen to earn his keep. Well, in a sense. There's plenty that he couldn't really do, given some apparent issues, if the bandages around his knees (on the outside of his pants) were any indication.

Why yes, he did do that on his own. He did the ones on his ankles too, but at least those were under the proper layers. ]

Someone with the chance to learn whatever magic they could need or want, and they're complaining about being snubbed. 'God' doesn't have such a direct will.

[ He was serving soup, but mostly Judar was doing what he could while sitting. Which often meant a little bit of music, a little bit of this wrapping stuff. Other things to help lift spirits when he couldn't help fill bellies.

Though now that he's made his presence a little more obvious, it's like a subtle jab that a faun was giving Andersen magic 'lessons' back in that other month. ]

[manlet]

[Indeed, one would think that a Servant with the title of Caster would be the superior magician between them - but titles are just that, and in this world, magic plays by entirely different rules. Andersen recognizes Judar's voice immediately and looks over at him, hands on his hips.]

I beg to differ. I ought to give you a biography of my past life. That'll change your mind quickly.

[Though... those bandages...]

What happened to you?

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ It had hardly anything to do with the titles of their old worlds, so much as how they were placed in this one. Especially with the way Judar was fine with telling him... Though now it made sense why Judar was instructing instead of fixing any magic himself. ]

People mix up the way fate flows with some god's will all the time.

[ Though, despite saying that, Judar knows it'd be ridiculous to accept. It doesn't matter if he met the medium/thing that creates universes. People were the way they were. ]

... Apparently turning into a faun means that there's a point where you run the risk of your legs not staying stable. Even more so around ice.

[ Well. That part's more because he was a deer-type faun. That scene in Bambi was more inspired by real life than some may think. ]

[manlet]

[The mental image of Judar skittering across ice is enough to elicit a chuckle from Andersen. He can't help it - he's always been terrible at hiding his emotions.]

Well, is that so! You should take a look at some shoes, Judar. Surely they tailor for fauns. It wouldn't do for my teacher to slip and slide like some laughable lamb.

[kuroi_taiyo]

There's nothing wrong with my shoes.

[ Yet. While the image will remain alive for as long as Judar's a faun, there's still a little bit of time until he needs shoes adjusted for fauns and their feet. The guy's still plantigrade. ]

Sometimes when using certain muscles, they... spasm, and don't exactly work for a bit. Which is more likely when you hit those ice patches and keep braced for balance.

[ Surprise, he's actually quite body-aware and knowledgeable for a mage. ... Wait. Did Andersen call him his teacher? ]