once upon a time

[onlyaduck]

🧙 WHO: Ahiru and YOU
⚔️️ WHAT: Her first month in Avalon/continued from TDM and new prompts!
🕒 WHEN: April Catch-all
🗺️ WHERE: Around
⚠️ WARNINGS: C for cute.



Exploring Red Spring

[While Ahiru was scared and timid when she first came in, after meeting some nice people and staying with Yona, she wakes up the next day feeling much better and energetic again. She excitedly scrambles down the steps, almost falling in the process so tumbling a little, and her bright red hair is newly braided since it was all over the place the night before. Her raven is back to nesting right on top of her head, something they've decided to agree to.

Ahiru can be found in a much better mood in the inn, her bright eyes looking at everyone coming in and chomping down on some food that she was given. She eats it frantically like she hasn't had real food in awhile (she hasn't).]

This is so good!

[She mumbles happily around said meal to the nearest person, beaming at them. Later on, since she's told they won't be leaving quite yet, she decides to go exploring this town, bigger than any town she's ever seen. She skips around and ends up trying to come close to the spring, curious.

It doesn't look red though. Is that just a name?

[She asks the nearest person, too nervous to go to the water itself. She's trying to avoid reasons to be duck-ish, and falling into the spring would be that.]


Various Camelot Options

A. First Arrival

[Ahiru spent the journey from the water to Red Springs amazed at what was outside of the carriage, but this became twice as much as Camelot came into view. She leans too far out of the carriage, her mouth dropped open. She's never seen anything this big in her entire (short) life. ]

Look! Oh my god! Have you ever seen anything this amazing?

[ She says maybe a little too loudly for any person in the carriage with her, and then she hops/almost falls out of the carriage once it comes to a stop. Ahiru scrambles out and her eyes look so big, unblinking, as she swings around to take everything in. She takes off without hesitation and runs around the streets for awhile. If someone felt responsible for the girl, they could follow, she's fast but in a pretty straight line.

She's clumsy so she ends up bumping into people frequently, always saying sorry as sincerely as possible before whirling off. She might run right into someone else there, her raven getting annoying and flapping its wings at her. Ahiru goes to the castle because it's the biggest place and of course she doesn't try to get in, but she stands outside of it looking up, gaping like the tiny town duckling she is.]

Wow!


B. Exploring the town

[Ahiru does manage to get to her hotel room, which is ah-may-zing, and she constantly misses the breakfast because it's too early, which means she's often hungry. But she tries to save her coin while she figures out what next to do, so she only eats when she's really starving. She might be seen forlornly looking into restaurants, deciding whether to go in or not. She has no real concept of money so it's hard to tell what she should or should not get.

She walks the streets of Camelot until her feet hurt, checking out the museums, the theaters, all the buildings she's never heard of or seen herself. Each time she looks as impressed and wide-eyed as the last building. Ahiru often looks like she's longing to go into them, and yet seems to stop herself from doing so, always on the outskirts, too hesitant to join in.

She sometimes gets distracted by her little magic box, trying to understand the messages on it and failing, which means she definitely crashes right into multiple people while focused on it. She trips, she maybe knocks some things over, all the while cringing.]

Sorrrrrryyyyyyyyyy.


C. Dancing at night

[Ahiru is terrible at getting up in the morning but she has a hard time sleeping too. Her room is so nice, nicer than anything she's had, but her head doesn't stop burning hard. She thinks about Fakir, about their world in danger. What can she do? She saw a nice little indoor pond nearby the hotel that seemed like a good quiet secluded place to go, especially late at night. She doesn't think about whether it's smart to be alone anywhere.

There she plays some classical music on her little magic box, one of the few things she's learned, and in the quiet Ahiru dances ballet. She's not Tutu anymore, she doesn't have her advanced skills, but as she learned as a duck, she can dance even as an amateur and enjoy it. Her form is not great, but there is a genuine passion for it. It's calming.]


School Time!


[When Ahiru is told that people can go to school instead of work, she eagerly begged to do just that. She doesn't know how to do anything helpful, and she's told she gets money for it. For just going to school! It's so exciting! She always loved ballet school but hasn't ever learned anything else. She's nervous though, once she finally gets there. At one point you might find her looking too nervous to talk to others, hovering in the corner caught in her thoughts about being a stupid duck, not a human student.

But like her quick and ever-changing personality, some days she's enormously friendly and outgoing, chattering or introducing herself to new people. While Ahiru tries to pay close attention in school ... well, sometimes she does get distracted, not being the best person at focusing. She might get in trouble for that a few times, lost in her thoughts and daydreams.

When it comes to magic, she has no idea how to use that. Even after a few days of school, Ahiru seems to be struggling to use her magic, frustratedly looking at her hands and pulling at her hair sometimes.]

Why won't you wooooork?



Wildcard

[ooc: hit me with anything! ask on plurk if you want, waftingcurtains]

Comments

TDM Threads Continued!

[onlyaduck]

Della Duck from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

[ Ahiru's been feeling bad about letting herself get distracted in the carriage, because she's not stupid or oblivious most of the time, she just lets her head get in the clouds sometimes. And this whole situation is begging to send her distracted constantly. Reassurance from Della that it's normal to react to a new world like this makes her feel loads better! ]

This place is so big. I saw all the countryside too, it's amazing. I've never really been outside of my little town.

[ She went from her tiny pond to the town nearby which seemed so big in comparison. But eventually, she went back to her pond and that was that. ]

It's exciting and scary at the same time.

[ She confesses. ]

You mean ... earn money? [ Uh oh. ] I don't ... really know how to do anything useful.

[sos_pilot]

Hey, nobody said you had to earn it right this second! You just got here! There's plenty of time to figure out what you can do and who needs your help. Right now? You focus on you.

[ And she'll accompany that with finger guns. Everyone's reassured by finger guns, right? ]

Everything's going to be okay. I promise.

Bakugou Katsuki from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

If you were better at prioritizing you wouldn't be being a jerk at a stranger for no reason. Ugh, you are----

[ Whatever she was about to say is cut off because fire bursts from his hands and she draws back, shocked and mildly afraid at first. Not really because she thinks she's in danger of him, otherwise he would've been intentionally scary from the get go, but because she's never seen anyone do that before. Her eyes are giant as she stares at him and then she blinks, snapping out of it. ]

Oh my god, put those out. You're going to set someone on fire by accident, or this building on fire! You can't just whip that around!

[apshot]

Haaa? I'm the jerk for actually listening when someone's telling me important shit? Is that what you're saying!?

[ Yeah no. Those flames aren't going out. If anything they grow larger. Brighter. ]

Are you saying you should get a free pass for being airheaded!?

Geralt from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

[ The raven at first scared the beejeesus out of her, considering her greatest enemy was the Raven King, so she panicked a whole bunch. Then eventually it decided to perch in her hair and she's just given up on it. It's better than on her shoulder and since she jumped every time it flew around her, this is the safest best. She kind of thinks the familiar knew that, she doesn't know too much about how this all works, but it doesn't act like a normal raven.

Ahiru's experienced some magic before. She technically is magic. The pendant around her neck is made of pure magic, from Mytho's heart shard. It's not to the level this place is though, where magic seems to be everywhere and to levels she would normally think impossible.

She's a little surprised he's taking what she said at face value and not pointing out that she's wrong or anything like that, like a lot of adults do. Ahiru wonders if that makes her correct or correct-adjacent, and if so, how exciting! ]

Mmhmm. He used to freeze time to mess with me. One time he kidnapped me to another, um, realm or something? And turned me into a puppet, like with strings and everything? He could do a lot of magic even while dead.

[ No one wants that trickster with the level of power that creates this situation. All he'd do is play cruel tricks on people as he did to her. She talks about him very matter-of-factly. It's hard to hate someone about as much as you're grateful to them, because he did give her the life she had, even briefly, with Mytho and Rue and Fakir. ]

I thought that meant this was him again, but you're right, there's no way one person can do all of this. The carriage person said we're supposed to go on quests to save magic and that'll save our worlds!

[gynvael]

[ Her casual explanation is more concerning than the events themselves. Geralt frowns at her. Maybe her cheerful disposition is more reactionary than he's assumed.

Not that he's going to ask. Whoever that man is in her past, it seems that's where he remains. Far be it from him to dig that up. ]

So he did. [ Yeah. They've all been subjected to that scripted speech. Geralt's not anywhere near ready to trust it, but either way, he needs to get paid. If there are contracts, he'll take one, whether it's under the guise of saving magic or not. (Magic doesn't need to be saved, as far as he knows. It just is. Like the wind.)

He glances over at her. She looks about as soaked as he feels. Up ahead, he can see a cart along the road. He'd normally not bother—no one's going to let someone like him hitch a ride with their wares—but Ahiru is a girl with the sort of wide-eyed expression that can guilt even the most hardened of men.

Besides, as energetic as she is, he has a feeling she's not going to make the long trek. And with his leg fucked up, he can't exactly carry her on his shoulders. He needs to get her off the streets before dark. ]

Think we should see how generous the merchants are in this place?

Uraraka Ochako from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

[ Ahiru smiles hesitantly. She does react really well to people's enthusiasm being on the same level as she usually is, and it only takes a short time before it's the sort of mood that catches on. ]

I kind of know how to dance? [ She admits. ] But ballet. I'm not even good at it. And it's not this kind of dancing!

[ She was okay at ballet though, especially with a partner, and Mr. Cat would've thrown her out of class (or married her) if he thought she was completely hopeless. Ahiru can tell the girl is really nice and positive and not someone who would laugh at her or anything. Not that a lot of humans have, it's just a consistent concern. She reminds her of Lilie and Pike. ]

I will definitely hurt myself if I try a really hard one.

[ She says that though with a giggle, her mood already taking a turn for the better. ]

Sooooo easy?

[floatsaway]

[There's a soft "oooh" at the mention of ballet, and Ochako regards this nice girl with a bit more awe in her gaze. Ballet is supposed to be hard, isn't it? All precise moves, slow and intricate curving of the waist and back, long strides and leaps...most on the tips of your toes. The fact this girl knows any ballet at all is impressive.]

Wow...that's so cool. I only know how to dance a little bit from when a friend taught me, then I started looking up tutorials and practicing on my own, or when we hung out on our off days, because it was a lot of fun. I'm not exactly perfect either, so...ehehe, easy it is!!

[Ochako waves the girl over to the second player spot, beginning to go through the machine to pick a nice, simple song for them to dance to with a fun beat to it. There actually were quite a few remixed versions of popular orchestral songs from well known composers like Beethoven and even Tchaikovsky, so Ochako points to those ones and lets the songs loop for a few seconds for her friend to get a feel for the beat.]

What about something like this? I doubt it'll be the same sort of steps, but maybe something familiar will help? And it's only one foo--...ah, the other one is two, so it's a little harder than the first... Which one do you like more?

Mako from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

[ She starts to respond until Mako puts up a hand and then pauses, pulling on her long braid and wringing out what water she can from it. She considers, since honestly, the secret's always just been a thing. Sometimes she was ashamed of it, like she didn't want Mytho to know she was something so unimportant, but that was then. ]

I'm actually a duck. This is a fake human body made from the magic in the amulet.

[ She taps the necklace, feeling strangely freed by facing the truth. ]

I'm not sure how I got it again. The man who gave it to me in the first place was a bad guy but I thought he was done with me and our story.

[roseeclair]

[A few blinks.]

Huh. That is something. Welcome back, I guess? [Assuming the girl likes being human?] Why did he want to turn you into a human?

Lizzie from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here.]
Oh dear, I don't know what I'd do with many Fakirs. One is enough.

[ That sounds more like a bunch of Autors, and that she definitely wouldn't want, because not everyone has a heart of gold like Fakir secretly does. Which he also wouldn't want her to spread around, except he's not here and he's in danger back home and she wishes she could ask him what she should do. She'll just have to guess.

There's a relief in her eyes when Lizzie say she's still trying to figure it out too. Ahiru thought maybe she just wasn't as smart as everyone else so she was missing out on an easy explanation. She is just a duck after all. But if other people are confused that means it's a big picture problem. ]

I want to help, but I don't know what my magic is yet or how to use it. And he's always taken care of me, so it's my time to take care of him, but ... it's hard when I don't know how.

[warbun]

It isn't easy, if what you tell me of him is true.

[The statement is given with humor, but there's certainly truth in it. It's the sort of attitude that can get people killed in certain circumstances. She's seen it happen.]

And I would recommend you worry less about the how. The people here are helpful and more than willing to teach you. All you need to do is ask. It took me a little while to figure out my own magic.

Just pay attention to the network and don't be afraid to reach out, and you'll be just fine.

Drake Mallard from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here]

[ She does feel a little bad, but then she smiles because she actually does understand what he means. ]

I have a friend who always gets things fast, she always seems to be good at everything right away. She's a princess, so I guess it makes sense.

[ Ahiru speaks fondly of Rue. They had a checkered path, being enemies at one point, but she always knew Rue was good at her core. And she was right. Somewhere Rue and Mytho are being perfect in their own kingdom and she misses them. If they're right that all worlds are at peril, then their kingdom is too. Ahiru doesn't know what to make of that.

She focuses on what he's saying instead of angsting over the fact she's playing games instead of figuring out how to save everyone's world, furrowing her eyebrows. ]

No we don't have anything like this. It's called a smart phone? [ She'll have to stop calling it a magic box now. ] It must have a lot of magic in it if it can do all of that when it's this small!

[ So is her pendant, to be fair, but all it can do is turn her human. ]

Izuku from TDM

[onlyaduck]

[Continued from here.]

[ Ahiru's the opposite where she's better at the beat than the arrows, because she mostly has the music down but she doesn't know where to put her feet. She mismatches them sometimes, that's the hardest part. She is doing her best and looks over when he speaks, a little more off than she is, and she stumbles a half-step before laughing too. If he can laugh at himself, so can she! ]

It's okay you have no idea how much more stressful a dance class is!

[ There's no Mister Cat there to howl at her which is very helpful. She's pretty sure he's a good instructor but that he stresses people out more than he should. Or he did, when he was still human-ish. She muddles through as best as she can, letting the music sink into her. She does love dancing, even awkward types. ]

My instructor used to threaten to marry us if we didn't perform well.

C. Dancing at night

[lunarchain]

[ Mona cannot help but watch, she felt as if she were watching a grand show. In her time in Fontaine, the only sorts of people who danced were entertainers. Or those who had higher upstanding - rich folk. The way the other danced however, it was fluid and a bit messy. It reminded her well of how water works and flows, so for a moment she is a bit mesmerized. Interested... Shy.... Every part of her as a scientist, wishes to learn how to do something like that - because to her this was different.

Unable to say anything, the woman awkwardly watches. With a tiny bit of yearning - wishful thinking. Feeling inspired and with want to learn how to dance too. ]

[onlyaduck]

[ Ahiru dances much better when she doens't know people are watching her. She's a very self-conscious person so she's almost graceful in her pirouettes, feeling at peace. She remembers dancing with her friends, the good parts and the bad, and it makes her miss them a lot more. But this is all to save them, in the end. This whole place and situation.

She realizes someone's watching her about halfway through a La Sylphide routine and she is balancing rather well on her toes when she looks over and sees Mona. Her eyes widen and she flails her arms as she feels herself start to tip over, only managing to lean back onto her heel by an instinctive reaction. She stumbles a little but mercifully doesn't fall. ]

Ummmmm hi!

[ Oh no, how bad was she? ]

Exploring the town

[doctorintern]

[ While Fenton has mostly still just been earning money through odd jobs here and there, those along with a quest here and there means that he is no longer broke. He still has to save a lot to buy things for the lab he wants to set up someday, so he's usually on a tight budget, but with the free lodgings at the hotel it does mean that he has some money to spend occasionally.

He had been heading to a cafe to grab a quick breakfast when he notices her standing at the window staring in. With a small frown, he diverts his path and approaches her. ]

...Excuse me? You okay?

[onlyaduck]

[ It's just like Ahiru to always be late to the important things, like eating! Her sad eyes did not work at the hotel. It's hard to try and understand money, it's not like she was ever given a lesson in it, she just watched her friends use it sometimes. Math? Not something a duck who lives in a pond is required to know about! She puts her arms on her stomach, hungry, and glances up when she hears someone talking.

Blue eyes widen slightly but she's met Miss Della so she isn't as shocked to see a duck-person as she was the first time. It's still amazing every time she does, like seeing her dreams made flesh while knowing it's not something she can have. As per usual, she almost immediately feels warm toward him, as if there's some kind of duck connection she can't resist. ]

Oh, ummmm.

[ She nibbles on her lip, looking inside and then back at him. ]

I don't know about buying things?

[ She confesses, looking down. ]

B

[shiliu]

[ He sees that look as she gazes longingly into the restaurant. Hungry children are a constant across worlds, it seems. Sighing inwardly, he drifts past her, and says off-handedly: ]

If you’re deciding whether or not to go in, don’t bother. There’s a much better place up the street.

[ He casually inclines his head. ]

I’m going over there, come along if you like.

[onlyaduck]

[ Ahiru is fairly certain whatever food they serve in the morning must be worth getting up for, but she just can't. She's tried! It's so early, even earlier than her ballet practices sometimes were, and she was always late for those. She knows the bare basics of numbers, but not enough to have an easy time of this.

Her head turns toward the man who approaches her, big eyes widening even more. ]

Better than this? But this looks so fancy.

[ It is not, of course, fancy in the least. It's definitely the type of place a youth who doesn't know any better would think of though. Because you can sit down! She thinks, though she hasn't been in there yet. She's been to one restaurant really where the owner kept trying to stuff them full of food to death so. Her experiences are limited. ]

I don't have a lot of money.

Exploring Town

[angelolatry]

[Well. If there's one thing Colette is used to? It's tripping, being clumsy. Though usually it's her. Not someone else doing it. Still, it gives her enough experience with it in that she easily reaches to at least catch the girl herself to avoid Ahiru falling over, in holding to her wrist.]

It's okay. Are you alright? Ah, nothing broke when it dropped, did it?

[She hopes not! The important thing is that she is okay and not hurt, but still. Hopefully nothing broke when it fell to the ground.]

[onlyaduck]

[ Ahiru is so clumsy. It's these human legs. As a duck she's not as clumsy, but she also has little legs and wings. She can't tumble over the same way as these long stick legs. She's only 4'10 but most of that height is solely stick leg. She squeaks when she almost falls and is caught, and luckily she did not quack, because that could so easily go the wrong way.

She did, however, drop her magic box and she gasps, immediately reaching down to snag it up. It would be just like her to break the one thing that is so fancy and cool and new to her. Luckily, it's a lot more durable than she is! No cracks that she can see. ]

Not yet, but this is the third time I've dropped it. [ She makes a face. ] I need to find a way to tie it to me or something.

C: Night Dancing

[blushing_beauty]

[Apparently Ahiru isn't the only person who thought it was a nice, quiet, secluded place for dancing at night where no one would see her. Olivia who was quite a bit more professional but quite a bit less confident had scrambled for cover when she heard someone coming. She had the advantage that she'd been practicing her dancing without music so she could hear and hide when someone was coming, and was ducked behind a sofa, hoping whoever it was would just go away.

...

And then she did hear the music, and peeked her head out in curiosity only to marvel at the young girl dancing! It reminded her so much of herself when she was first learning to dance, but the style was a bit different than anything she'd seen before, and she kind of wanted to try it too. The only problem was that if she did she might reveal herself and she didn't want to interrupt! Then again... she'd been interrupted in the first place? Maybe they could just dance side by side, live and let live?

Well... Olivia certainly felt a bit embarrassed by the idea of being seen by the young girl dancing, but she'd inadvertently spied on Ahiru's dancing, so she didn't have room to complain right? Okay... you can do this Olivia.]

I really like your dancing!

[Oh no... that's not what she meant to say at all... please don't freak out Ahiru, please don't freak out, she'll die on the spot if this girl freaks out at being spotted by the older dancer.]

[onlyaduck]

[ Ahiru's mind is so frantic these days, full of nerves and anxieties, but dancing just manages to calm it. Briefly. She focuses on the music and the slow moves, the stretch of her body and the careful footing. She's definitely not an expert level, but there is grace in it, a promise that with more time and confidence, she could be better. Her lack of skill though makes her very shy, but she is used to dancing in front of people. Not only as Tutu, but in class they did have to openly dance so Mr. Cat could see how they were doing.

It's only for that reason she doesn't immediately squawk and flip out when she hears Olivia speak. Ahiru is startled for certain and she waves her hands wildly for a moment, trying to keep herself balanced so she doesn't end up crashing down. It works! Instead she comes down from her toes to her heels and settles, but her heart is pounding and she looks at this new woman with very wide eyes. ]

Oh ... really?

[ She shyly smiles, shrugging and shaking her head. ]

I'm really not very good, I was still in the beginner's class back home.