[Closed]

[belligerentwarrior]

WHO: Freya and Penelope
WHERE: Pen's place
WHEN: 6/13
WHAT: Real weapons and a tomato monster and maybe magic. What could go wrong?
WARNINGS: None yet.

[Most friends go visit each other for a shared hobby, or to catch up about their week. Most friends did normal things, like get lunch or watch a movie or some stuff. Most friends did not go "Hey, check out this cool spear!" and mess with a mutant tomato-man-thing that lived in a magic rock.]

[Things have gotten weird since Retrospec happened.]

[Freya only gives two raps of a courtesy knock on the door of Pen's apartment before entering, since Pen knew she was on her way. She did, however, enter quietly, in case miss-fancy-youtube-star was still recording or some such like that.]

Comments

[mincingminuet]

[Pen had basically written off her life as "in the realm of the weird" several months ago when this all started. The spear, the tomato, even the weird memories were as much a part of life now as YouTube and classes.

What was, was.

She turned at the sound of the door opening, spinning her computer chair around to face the door, fingers pressed together in her best Bond Villain impersonation. Her place is...predictably pretty geeky, but it's very, very clean. Books, TVs, computers, with the only mess being a pile of fabric and newspaper sitting on a table. Costume stuff.]

Hey. You got here quick.

[belligerentwarrior]

[Freya grinned when Pen wheeled around, shaking her head once at her friend's villainous pose. Nerd.]

Not much else to do. If I was working, I wouldn't be sitting around on the internet all day making threats to would-be arsonists.

[She leaned back against the edge of the table, casually crossing her arms.] Besides, you promised to show me a cool, probably illegal weapon. Who wouldn't come runnin' to that call?

[mincingminuet]

[You like it, shut up.]

It's not illegal. It's just a spear, and it'd only be illegal if I went like, spear-fishing with it. Which I still don't understand the reasons behind but anyway.

[Hopping up, she walks over to a closet and pulls down a small metal cylinder, about a foot long.]

Let's head outside. This thing is...actually really long.

[belligerentwarrior]

[She kind of did. Pen's nerdiness was amusing and different from Freya's friend circle, and sometimes adorable.]

[Freya shrugs lightly and stands, following her friend and giving the cylinder a curious look.]

That's it?

[mincingminuet]

That's it.

[Pen twirls it around and starts towards the back door, pulling open a screen and stepping out onto a large deck overlooking a yard, complete with a grill. One of the nicer things about her place.]

It collapses, somehow.

[Because it doesn't have a model for being carried in game. Ssshhh.]

This might be what makes it illegal, if it is.

[belligerentwarrior]

Sounds like fun.

[Freya let out a low whistle as she follows Pen out onto the deck. ]

You have this place all to yourself?

[mincingminuet]

For the moment, yeah. My roommate went home when school closed. Not sure she'll be back this week. She does that.

[She hasn't apped yet...]

I keep debating hosting a party or something. I'm just bad with grilling.

[belligerentwarrior]

[Freya steps up to the railing, looking out over the yard appreciatively.]

Just give it a go. Someone you know's gotta be good at grilling. If not, I can give a hand at it. Can't be that hard to learn.

[mincingminuet]

We'll see. Maybe over July 4th or something. That could be fun.

[Let's be real, Freya's going to have to do the cooking but Pen will provide all of it and more.]

Anyway. Spear. Ready?

[belligerentwarrior]

[As long as Pen monitors the salt's location at all times.]

Go on. I'm waiting to be impressed.

[mincingminuet]

Well alright.

[Pen twists the cylinder and it clicks, shifting rapidly into an enormous spear. It's about six feet long, with a shaft made of some sort of silvery material. White runes cover it in a language that's clearly old...and it glows softly.]

This is my spear. I'm...not sure where it came from, but it's definitely mine.

[belligerentwarrior]

[It's incredible, in every sense of the word, to watch it shift into a weapon taller than Freya was. She blinks once, observing it and it's glowing runes.]

Well, look at that. It's a beauty.

[mincingminuet]

[Pen gives it a twirl, a rather precise, controlled one at that. It whips through the air, slicing with a whistling sound a few times...]

It's certainly that. I...also got some memories of learning to fight with it.

[belligerentwarrior]

[That piques Freya's attention, and she moves her gaze from the shining weapon to Pen.]

Yeah? Fighting what?

[mincingminuet]

Some...sort of weird dog thing. It wasn't like, any ordinary dog. Big, bulky. Almost like one of those temple dog statues you see outside a Chinese restaurant came to life.

A man was yelling at me, and I knew for some reason he was a knight.

[belligerentwarrior]

Huh. [Freya shakes her head a little.] Makes you wonder why memories like that are so common. Lotta people remember using fancy, medieval weapons fighting nasty kinds of monsters.

[Freya had emphasized 'fancy' with a sarcastic shake of her hands.] Myself included, actually. I think I remember a spear, too.

[mincingminuet]

I've gotten that sense too. Fighting...monsters seems to be a common theme. Like in some video game.

[She twirls the weapon again before holding it out towards Freya at an angle.]

You remember a spear too? Well, give this a try. See if it jogs your memory more.

[belligerentwarrior]

[She tilts her head a little, thinking, before reaching up to take it.] Alright.

[Freya steps back to a safe distance, getting a feel for the spear's balance. She shakes her head.] The one I saw before was different. Had two heads, I think.

[She flips it around in her grip, staring at the butt of the spear.] And it was red.

[Freya whirls it about and into an experimental stab out over the balcony.] Doesn't feel familiar.

[mincingminuet]

[The weapon she's got is probably lighter than anything she's held too, almost too light. The Occurian metal is a little peculiar, and even though Pen has no idea what it's made out of she knows it's too light.]

Two heads? Like a blade on each end? That seems excessive. But red suits you.

[She keeps clear, just in case.]

Looks natural in your hands though.

[belligerentwarrior]

Yeah, one on each end.

[Freya frowns at the spear in her hands, straightening up again.] Not like I don't know how to fight. Just don't know—or remember—anything special about spears.

[She turns to Pen, smiling, and holds out the weapon.] Why don't you show me, monster-slayer squire princess?

[mincingminuet]

Fine...

[Pen rolls her eyes dramatically and takes the spear in both hands.  And then proceeds to leap off of the deck with it into the yard, like she's going over the side of a trench or something.  She does actually manage to put on a show, a martial routine she'd seen this old knight go through in her visions, just practicing.  Thrusts, twists, jabs, footwork and all, she makes a reasonably convincing routine of it.

As it comes to a close, she sticks the butt of the weapon into the soft ground, rolls her shoulders, and gives Freya a much more serious smile than normal.]

I wasn't joking. I...really remember how to use this.

[belligerentwarrior]

[It's impressive. They're simple motions by themselves, but Pen weaves them together without hesitation of what came next. She knew what she was doing, unlike how Freya had simply mimicked things she'd seen before.]

[Freya meets her smile from where she's leaning against the deck railing.] Didn't doubt you. Everything so far's seemed real enough. Why would this be different? [She nods a little towards the weapon.] Handled that pretty well.

[mincingminuet]

[With one last twirl, Pen spins the weapon around and closes it into it's normal shape with a click. Just...like it was never there at all.

Bobbing her head, she smiles warmly and climbs back up the steps.]

Thanks. It's nice to hear that. And better from someone who doesn't think I'm crazy.

[Flopping down onto a deck chair, she looks up at Freya, amused but at the same time genuinely glad to hear that. Compliments felt rare coming from her, and compliments honestly rarely came Pen's way, so it was like a double whammy.]

Starting to wonder, after today especially, if I'm some sort of...I don't know...adventurer? In that other life.

[belligerentwarrior]

How could anyone dare think you're crazy? [Her tone's light and playful, and a little sarcastic. The last few months have been a hell of a ride, and Freya's still not entirely convinced the lot of them aren't all going insane at the same time. Her parents' inability to notice anything strange haven't been helping her doubts.]

[But she grins and shrugs.] Who knows? Made that squire comment on the fly, but you said that guy was a knight, yeah? Maybe it's got some truth.

[mincingminuet]

[Playful as it might be, it's not like Penelope wants to think of herself as crazy. It's just been hard, with Vaan and her roommate gaslighting her and all.]

Maybe, though the impression I get is definitely less "knight and squire" and more something else.  I also keep seeing myself using magic, here and there.  Which doesn't feel too knightly to me.