I'm just a few thoughts, fragments of memory (open)

[puzzlingly]

Who: Atem and you (open, mostly)
What: Catch up log for all your needs!
Where: Places.
When: Backdated to the start of November to somewhere around the middle.
Warnings: Annoying card games references maybe! Will match format.


around | early November | open

People were gone, Gowther was gone and everything Atem used to remember of this place, gone as well. Not that Atem actually ever noticed that Gowther had never been in this place before the influx of people.

Now, that might an exaggeration, he remembers people, but not all of them, he's not sure who knows him or not anymore. It turns out it was probably not the so called gods messing with his head, but it probably didn't matter now, did it? It's like Kaiba would say, 'Just ignore it and crush it under the weight of your future', literally... He spent so much time trying to get his memories before coming here, it sure doesn't feel like something he wants to do here as well. He knows himself, he knows Kaiba, and others, and they know him. That should be enough.

He cannot help but wonder, who else did he forget? So far he hadn't found many who claimed to know him, maybe he shouldn't worry that much.

But as much as he wants to move on, he finds himself staring at people's faces, wondering if he's met them before or not. Either you may feel someone watching from where you're sitting down at the Speakeasy, and when you turn at the counter, there he is, this scrawny young man you might or not talked to before looking at your face as if it had something on it. Maybe you're just passing by as he's sitting down at the sidewalk or just as he passes by you, stealing glances from under his umbrella—were it a rainy day—or just as you're trying to find a new pair of pants at the stores, there is this pair of amaranthine bright eyes staring curiously, maybe a little worriedly even..

What do?

( ooc: A gentle reminder Atem was given a hard reset during the fourth wall event, which means he's forgotten most of the people he's met in Hadriel. Send me a PM if you wanna plot around that, otherwise please assume a clean start with your character. )

the orchard | open

「After how things went down with the first tree he grew, Atem has been taking things a little more calmly, after all, he doesn't want to pass out again from using too much energy to turn a little seed into a full grown tree, if anything he's trying to make them grow to his knee or so. And that's what he's doing at the moment, flattening the dirt around a recently planted seed, as much as he possibly can. Then he can be seen drawing some circles and markings around it, it's not that easy to make the glyphs as perfect as he wished he could, but he keeps on trying. 」

There must be an easier way...

「He mutters under his breath.」

carlisle's garden | idk the muffin man

「Just as Carlisle had cut the communication, Atem hurried down to the piers, jumped on a goddamned boat and hurried towards the North Island as fast as the winds allowed him to. It was amazing how good he had become at this sailing thing after a while, still, dreaded it—the sea was not his element, it was so wet—but not even this time he cared to get his shoes and pants wet if it meant to get to his mentor as soon as possible.

Finally, he knocks on that familiar door, perhaps a bit more obnoxiously than he should.」

Carlisle! It's me! Open up!

「He sounds really excited at least!」

butterflies also like living in pretty houses | sal

「Atem did promise he'd help beautify whatever little house Sal decided to build for his little new friend. He's been practicing in fact! Trying to build something more spacious and fireproof for his fiery salamander. Meanwhile, he waits for his friend to arrive as he writes some notes in his notebook, anything that comes to his mind that could potentially help with creating new things, or just transmuting them into something else.」

the sewing shop | margie

「Still a little unsure of what the future will bring them, Atem decides to act on it anyway, he could use a new jacket, the one he's got, even if it's from home, has seen better days. He remembers being at the sewing shop before, but everything aside of that comes as a blur to him, he pokes his head into it, expecting some kind of magic to happen and suddenly remembering everything.

He doesn't.」

Hello?

「Is anyone there?」

wildcard

( You know the drill! PM me if you want a starter for your character or just hit me up with anything you want. )

Comments

[tongueamok]

[There's half a second where Carlisle almost regrets inviting Atem over, if only because the lad's exuberance is enough to last him a *lifetime* -- or two now, considering his renewed form. He pushes that near-regret out of mind, swallows his nerves for his sudden change in appearance, and unlocks the door to the cottage, opening it so that his student may enter.]

I can hear you just fine, you know.

[One would have to be utterly blind to miss his sudden shift in appearance. His skin, though ever pale, has a far warmer quality to it than it has in years; his eyes continue to glow a faint blue behind his glasses, but their pervasive light isn't so strong that it consumes his own eyes, hiding even his pupils from sight. Perhaps most notable of all is that his hair has shifted back from a dull grey toward the faded brown it was before the incident with the cliff, and then further still: the strands atop his head are now a vibrant cinnamon, the shorn section closer to mahogany as it forms his sideburns.

He tries to be fairly benign about it, but needless to say, he's feeling better.]

[puzzlingly]

「Carlisle opens up the door and Atem can only stare. It is true that his mentor's deterioration had been obvious, but it had been gradual, the more time he spent with him it was less evident, or maybe he had chosen to overlook it or even, had become accustomed to it. The man before him looks younger than before, healthier, more human.

The surprise transforms into a gentle smile.」

You look good.

[tongueamok]

[Carlisle returns Atem's smile with one of his own.]

I feel good. And that is certainly something.

[He steps aside, allowing his student passage.]

It seems you'll have to endure me as your teacher for a while longer.

[puzzlingly]

Oh no, does that mean I'm getting more homework?

「He goes in, all smiles, but he's too eager to wait or sit before he asks:」

So... what happened?

[tongueamok]

[He closes the door, and remains facing it; his student can likely see the shame weighing on the back of his neck, tilting his head downward.]

It's... complicated. But it matters not for the time being, I suppose.

[By the time he turns to face Atem, he's got a lopsided grin on, one betrayed only by the furrow in his brow.]

What matters is that there is work to be done.

[puzzlingly]

「He will not tell him? It is not his story to tell he supposes but it shouldn't matter... It only makes him a bit more curious as he gives Carlisle a confused stare. They truly don't know much about the other, maybe Atem was overstepping in a territory he's really never been part of.

Just a moment later he regains his smile. What matters is that he's better now.」

What do you need?

[tongueamok]

[Carlisle is admittedly relieved that Atem doesn't press him further -- he'll have to tell his student one day, but he's still trying to reconcile his miraculous recovery himself.]

We are said to be moving soon, perhaps to a tundra and perhaps to a [shudder] jungle. My plants will suffer either way. I have devised a method that may protect them, but I will need help with the glyphwork. It is more than one man can do in so short a time.

[puzzlingly]

「The little shudder doesn't go unnoticed, making Atem curious—what horrible memories does he hold from jungles? He knows they can be rough either way.」

Of course, I'll help in anything you need. Actually... I've been working on something ever since Hope announced the move. A way to keep a person isolated from the elements. It needs some perfecting too since, huh, I kinda set on fire my last shirt...

「He gives him a bit of a sheepish smile. Admitting his mistakes to his mentor is actually still weird, but he trusts Carlisle will not mock him, at least.」

But, tell me where to start and I'll do it.

[tongueamok]

Isolating something from the elements is exactly what I am looking to do.

[He steps over to the table, picking up a piece of paper and handing it to Atem; drawn upon it is what looks like a rough approximation of his garden, but with some kind of dome over it.]

A sizable abjuration ward, conjured and sustained by multiple, smaller glyphs. The glyph themselves were less complicated than anticipated, but my method of construction is time-consuming.

[He taps the bottom of the page, where another glyph drawn -- something about transfiguration.]

Did you see that pile of rocks when you approached? My intent is to meld them together one by one, making a continuous, permanent piece onto which to etch the glyphs. Help me to shape the stones, and then we will see about your garments?

[puzzlingly]

Hmm, 「He gives the sketch some thorough examination. If this could be done in a larger scale... He has to see how it'd work first.」

Alright, let's get started.

「It is Carlisle who is giving him the instructions, but it always seems it's him ordering around instead. It's a thing he cannot turn off.」