OOS 102

Korrinoth 17, as the party travels back to Wolis from Eddelton by way of Corcis’ carriage. It occurred during session 45.  
== Transcript ==
Ephemera: 
They've been going for a short time when halberd!Ephemera requests a moment of Lei's time. 
Lei: 
lei accepts and touches the halberd 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera gives a bit of a frustrated sigh. "I'm not... entirely certain how to go about explaining this. I... have noticed that you're putting in a fair bit of effort to explain your reasoning? for asking questions?" 
"It's a good thing," she explains hastily, wanting to make sure that is clear before making things worse. 
Lei: 
lei started to assume the worst and then—oh. okay she’s not going to get yelled at again? 
Ephemera: 
"I think perhaps... you are explaining too much? Some questions are... asked for obvious reasons." 
Lei: 
“um? yeah, after kiono said i was s—uh, got mad at me, teer recommended i try explaining my...um, establishing questions, he called it.” 
Ephemera: 
"I see." 
Lei: 
“im really trying,” lei think-says quietly. “i don’t always know when it’s rude, or intrusive, or stupid. i’m sorry.” 
Ephemera: 
"I... I think it's a good thing. It is helpful to understand why you are asking some of your more... unclear questions. I appreciate your efforts." 
She chuckles. "But you don't have to explain that you asked 'what do you mean?' because you don't understand what they mean." 
"I think there's a balance that you need to find." She seems a hair amused, trying to help, not condemning. 
Lei: 
lei sighs. 
“i suppose there is.” 
“there’s so many things i want to get information about, all the time. sometimes i think...i get caught up in it.” 
Ephemera: 
"Seeking knowledge isn't a bad thing. I'm glad you're learning how to gain it without, ah, hurting others. There is still a balance to be found. You'll get there." 
Lei: 
“i want to know more about varren’s helmet. i want to know how barovia is faring. i want to know how people make trees into wood slabs for fences. how the ipad gets power. what ice cream is made of. why changelings were created. how the atmosphere was created.” 
“there’s so many things.” sighs 
Ephemera: 
"Have you ever considered being a wizard?" Ephemera chuckles. 
Lei: 
“i got yelled at a lot by my home tutors for asking questions, too.” lei sticks her tongue out. “they almost never would give a satisfying ans—what?” 
Ephemera: 
"Wizards' magic comes through study and learning. Curiosity is generally considered a trademark of a wizard," she explains. 
"Ultimately it isn't a serious question. You do quite well with your magic now." 
"Though I suppose it wouldn't hurt to research the common spells that exist... What others like you do with their magic..." she says in a somewhat off-hand way. A suggestion, not an instruction. Maybe she is considering it for herself. 
Lei: 
lei blushes ever so slightly. “that would be nice.” 
“i mean, i’ve tried to do some reading on things like, um, polymorph and certain schools of magic, and edger showed me some things, but i....well, i’m not...” 
“usually i do something and then figure out what it was that i did.” 
Ephemera: 
"Such as the key incident?" 
She definitely doesn't say Shadowfell. Renn can infer that on her own. 
Lei: 
nods “i’m sorry, um, i—i wasn’t trying to do anything, um... i just had some thoughts i wanted to test.” 
“i didn’t mean to, um, cause any problems—“ 
Ephemera: 
"Lei, it was dangerous, using an item without knowing what it did. We had time—" Ephemera says seriously, then mentally wincing at the irony of her word choice. A bit more gently she continues, "We had time to figure out what it did." 
Lei: 
lei looks down at her hands and bites her lip. 
“i’ll....try to be more careful.” 
“but i’m not goo....” a pause “it’s hard,” she admits. 
Ephemera: 
"We only have the one of you," she replies earnestly. "It'd be a shame to lose you." 
Lei: 
lei responds with a light smile, probably not entirely convincing. 
then quickly does a topic swap. “um, i’ll try to think about....when to explain questions better.” 
“i...could probably use...help though.” 
Ephemera: 
"Why do you think we're talking about it now?" Ephemera chuckles. 
Lei: 
nods 
“did i ever tell you the story about how i caught one of my tutors’ wigs on fire?” 
tone lightens a lot suddenly 
Ephemera: 
"Decidedly not," Ephemera says, somewhat startled, but content to allow the conversation drift in this new and unexpected direction. 
Lei: 
“madam hershberger”—lei says her name with a combination of contempt and delight—“was my tutor just before edger. she said my questions were stupid, too, but she would prattle on and on with the most borish lessons.” 
“she forbade me from dessert and going outside until i memorized 200 dates on what are arguably the most mundane events throughout wolis’ history.” 
“i only memorized 100—and got caught sneaking dessert—and received a hefty lecture for it. madam hershberger told me i was a dis—well, she was really unbearable. so i firebolted her wig.” 
“i never even told—cecily—this, but it was entirely an accident.” 
“but still. she quit on the spot, and it was decided that i was to receive magic tutoring lessons from edger after that.” 
tone gets somewhat embarrassed “it, um....it means a lot that i am able to...leave the estate and learn things in new ways. and...have people who, um, help instead of just lecturing me or never being around.” 
“it also prevents me from catching people’s wigs on fire.” giggles 
Ephemera: 
"Kiono pretty consistently tried to sneak food into her lessons with Enooto. I don't know if she got better at it or if Enooto eventually just gave up," Ephemera says somewhat tangentially. She didn't have lessons herself; she only has the lessons of the various Chosen Ones to relate to. 
"I am glad you aren't catching people's wigs on fire, though. That would be rather difficult to explain to people." 
"'Oh yes, our teenager does that entirely on accident on occasion. She's new to magic. What do you mean, "You just said she helped you slay a dragon"? She's a novice going on her first dragon slaying. No big deal,'" she intones, enacting some imaginary scenario. 
Lei: 
giggles “i am a bit in over my head, yes.” 
Ephemera: 
"Everyone is." 
"But you're skilled. Other than the occasional ill-advised, impromptu magical experiment, you're doing quite well." 
Lei: 
lei’s face goes blank as she is unable to process. calibrating....calibrating...... 
and then her face turns into a very red mess 
“um....im really not—thanks.” 
Ephemera: 
"Of course," Ephemera says, audibly grinning. Because this is a thing I have decided she can do I guess. Maybe it's just smiling emoji in the text chat. 
Lei: 
“oh my gosh,” lei says in the middle of her embarrassment. 
“all these memories reminded me of when i advised edger to call me ‘lady renn the amazing.’ why did i do that. how embarrassing. oh my goooosh.” 
she covers her face. 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera is silent a moment as she processes, and then she begins to laugh. 
"Teenagers are required to make the most embarrassing mistakes they can at all times," she advises. 
Lei: 
“ack, was that really only six months ago? what was i thinking? oh my gosh, and i showed him the fanfic cecily and i wrote about a tortle and a human. oh gosh. oh gosh.” 
“bury me in the ground, right now, ephemera.” 
in a very dramatic, silly, very embarrassed tone 
Ephemera: 
"I'll get right on that," Ephemera chuckles, entirely unable to do that. 
Lei: 
“thank you. i am truly fortunate to have you as a friend.” still with the dramatics, her hands still covering her face 
Ephemera: 
Still somewhat amused, Ephemera allows the girl a moment to be embarrassed, then says, "He was a teenager once, too. You should ask him about some of the embarrassing things he did." 
Lei: 
“hahaha, i didnt think about that. i definitely want to know now.” 
a pause. “wait—what about you?” 
Ephemera: 
Another pause. "I was, ah... I didn't have quite the same experiences of... mortals." 
Awkward pause. 
"Which isn't to say I didn't do some incredibly embarrassing things in my time." 
"You never quite grow out of it, I suppose." 
Lei: 
waits with anticipation 
Ephemera: 
Oh goodness, she wants an example. I don't have memories to share. That's my whole deal. Frick. 
"I mean, you saw what I was like when I first met the group," she says, trying to answer the question without negating her whole point by admitting she doesn't actually have an example. 
Lei: 
pouty face “that’s not what i mean.” 
“it’s okay, though, if you don’t want to share.” 
Ephemera: 
"At the risk of sounding like I was just... making things up, I don't... exactly have any examples from... before." 
"It is embarrassing to me now that I used to be indifferent toward people. I didn't... understand what the Light and the Dark saw in the activities on the planet, thought it was a ridiculous thing to fight over." 
Lei: 
“....oh.” cocks her head “do you remember what changed that?” 
“asking because.....do i need to explain this question??” 
Ephemera: 
She chuckles. "I don't think you do, no." 
"I don't remember a... specific thing that caused it. Perhaps it was just—" she chuckles again. "—time that changed my mind. Or perhaps my interactions with... someone who did care." 
Lei: 
“someone who did care?” 
“do i need to—?” 
“no. you probably wouldn’t have mentioned it if you didn’t expect me to ask?” 
Ephemera: 
"You don't have to for that, I think. Yes, my good friend. I've... explained who she— Ah, no, you were avoiding me at the time," she says. 
Lei: 
waits 
Ephemera: 
"Lysaro's predecessor was my best friend. I don't... remember much about her, so perhaps the topic isn't especially beneficial." 
She begins speaking somewhat fondly, and ends oddly matter-of-fact about the matter. 
Lei: 
“do you, um, remember how you two stopped being friends?” 
awkward, trying to be delicate about it 
“i’m asking because i, um, am curious, given....” it hurts to put it into words. 
Ephemera: 
"Not necessary," Ephemera says, sort of distracted. She sighs and intones, "She left. Lysaro took her place. I don't remember the specifics." 
Lei: 
“do you miss her?” 
“don’t, um—don’t answer if you don’t feel comfortable with it—“ 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera is silent for a long time. "I... probably would if I was whole," she says at length. "As it stands, I only know that her presence made me happy." 
Lei: 
“guess we’ll just have to find out.” grins 
Ephemera: 
"I suppose so," Ephemera says gently, humoring the girl. 
Lei: 
"what do you think you're going to want to do, once you're whole again?" 
"i'm asking because...well, i know some things squire and teer might do after all of this, but not you." 
"and i don't exactly understand what gods do with their time." 
Ephemera: 
Another pause. "Becoming as I was will take a fair amount of time. I... had followers... The whole of time to establish myself. It's a lot to recover. I don't even know what will happen." 
Lei: 
lei imitates ephemera's voice. "okay, but what do you want to do?" 
she sticks her tongue out playfully 
Ephemera: 
"Somehow, I still don't know the answer to that. At the moment I would simply like to stop being in pieces. Whatever comes after that will be informed by... all of my emotions, hopefully..." 
Lei: 
nods 
"well, when you decide, i hope you'll let us know, and, um, i know i wouldn't really be able to do anything, but..." 
snorts 
"who am i kidding, you're a god." 
Ephemera: 
"Perhaps," she chuckles. "Or maybe I'll just be an incredible buff and powerful woman." 
Lei: 
giggles 
a little bit of time passes, and the lei addresses the group out loud. (she has been obviously silently giggling and getting flustered and such while talking to ephemera, btw.) 
"um, i'm debating...since we're going back to wolis.....if you think i should--um--if you think there's anything i can do for...cecily." nervous, tentative 
Plosi: 
“What?” 
Teer: 
Teer folds his arms, and tilts his head from side to side. 
"Hm..." 
"I think that perhaps that's something you should ask her." 
Lei: 
fidgets with her hands nervously "just, um....go to the estate and say, hi cecily, i'm really sorry, is there--is there anything i can do for you?" 
Ephemera: 
"Why not?" asks Ephemera. 
Lei: 
"i--what if...what if i make it worse?" 
Teer: 
"Hm. Maybe.... You should reach out, but also...." 
"You have to respect that Cecily may not be ready yet. Maybe it would be best to extend the offer to meet and talk, but not push the issue." 
Lei: 
nods "yeah, otherwise it may just end up like...like last time..." 
Teer: 
"That way, hopefully Cecily will know you want to make an effort for her, but are still... giving her the choice, when and if she wants it." 
"I'm sorry for encouraging you to speak with her so quickly last time," Teer says more quietly. "I'll admit I've never experienced something like this before." 
Lei: 
lei shakes her head, and releases her tight grip on her hand to reach for teer to take his hand "it's, um, it's okay. it was my fault." 
Teer: 
"I don't think it was, but, what happened, happened," says Teer. 
"I hope that things go better next time." 
Ephemera: 
"There would be no reason to apologize if she was entirely fault free. I don't have any idea how that conversation went down, of course." 
Teer: 
"I'm specifically referring to the second time, where I intervened. But I suppose it's true that you were the only one who spoke to Cecily, Lei. You will know this situation better than us." 
Lei: 
"she left me a....a book." 
"one of the pre-releases of her first novel. dedicated to....me. i--" 
"it was almost midnight when teer accompanied me to try to talk to her. she...turned me away at the door." 
"...so i left." 
she's definitely struggling to share. 
Plosi: 
“...I’m sorry.” 
Lei: 
shakes her head "i deserve it." 
her hand is rescinded from teer, back to fidgeting 
Teer: 
"No, you don't." Teer grabs her hand back. "You are allowed to make mistakes, Lei. You never meant to hurt Cecily." 
Lei: 
surprised by teer's abrupt motion "i..." 
"i really didn't want to hurt her..." very quiet, pained 
Teer: 
"Sometimes I think even when we have the best of intentions, we cause other people harm. But you two have been friends for so long. There must be a way to make it right." 
Lei: 
gripping teer's hand tight "really long," she affirms quietly. "since i was eleven." 
"did i ever tell you how we met?" 
Teer: 
"I don't believe so." 
Lei: 
"The Cardews had just moved to Wolis. I got to have dinner at their estate, and Adrienne prompted me to become friends with the head of the house's grand-niece." 
"Cecily spent the entire dinner enthusing about Star Walk and theater productions. I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about." 
"But her excitement was...infectious." 
she starts out quiet and hesitant, but by the end, she's smiling a bit. 
Teer: 
Teer nods. 
"Cecily seems a very passionate person." 
Lei: 
"yes, she is. i've always admired that about her." 
lei gets quiet, contemplative, her mind absorbed in some memories. 
and then after a bit her face and hair get beet red. 
"oh my gosh, we really did write that.....and show it to edger....." she mumbles 
Teer: 
"Write what?" 
Lei: 
"a fanfic about a tortle and a human going on a blind date in outer space," lei laments, her one free hand definitely covering her face, and her knees pulled up to her chest. 
"goooooosh." 
Plosi: 
“Ah, youth.” 
Ephemera: 
"That's what I said," Ephemera muses, amused. 
Plosi: 
“Really? I— I’m not sure how to take that.” 
Ephemera: 
"I think it means you're probably right, or we're both horribly wrong." 
Plosi: 
“Hm.” 
Plosi frowns at the floor with thoughtful concern. 
Teer: 
"I don't get it." 
Plosi: 
“Oh, um— it’s like nostalgia.” 
Teer: 
"Did you also write stories as a young goblin?" Teer asks curiously. 
Lei: 
lei's face, previously buried in her knees, perks up. 
he probably won't remember, but there have been little inklings, so maybe! 
Plosi: 
Plosi flashes a smile with teeth. “I can’t prove I didn’t.” 
Lei: 
giggles lightly 
"when we go to the dragonlands to find your clan, maybe we'll uncover a lot of your fanfictions!" 
Plosi: 
“Oh, yes, if memory serves, I stuck them all in an impenetrable treasure box inside a cave for safekeeping.” Plosi says breezily. 
Lei: 
"hehehe, the finest treasure. we definitely need to excavate that." 
Plosi: 
“Some things are better left buried.” 
Teer: 
"I am beginning to get the sense that people associate fanfiction with some sort of shame," Teer puts a hand to his chin. "Why is that?" 
Lei: 
lei snorts 
Plosi: 
Plosi raises his eyebrows at Lei. 
Lei: 
"it's like....um.....well, some fanfictions are....really embarrassing." 
"because you're.....putting things on paper that mean a lot to you, that you really want or really enjoy." 
Teer: 
Head tilt. "Why is that embarrassing?" 
Plosi: 
“It’s like keeping a diary.” Plosi suggests. 
Lei: 
"you end up...imagining scenarios that aren't true. to...escape from reality, pretend things are cooler or better than they actually are." 
"a lot of times the fanfics end up entirely ridiculous and silly and shameless." 
"although...." 
"i used to write stories about going on adventures and traveling the world and meeting dragons." 
"so i guess they're not always completely ridiculous." 
laughs 
Plosi: 
“I can’t wait for your outer space blind date.” 
Lei: 
lei's eyes get wide and she turns into a tomato. "plo-plosi, please....i beg of you....spare me....." 
dramatic embarrassment 
Teer: 
Teer appears deep in thought. "Hm... We've been to the moon, I suppose. But I don't know if there are any people living there who would be suitable for that sort of thing." 
Lei: 
lei groans in complete embarrassment "ephemera, save meeee." 
Plosi: 
“Take back what you said about plumbing my secret trove, and maybe we’ll talk.” Plosi snickers. 
Ephemera: 
Ephemera is grinning, but says nothing. 
Lei: 
"i take it back, i take it all baaaack." lei dramatically claps her hands together in prayer. 
she is, notably, grinning. 
Plosi: 
“Don’t make me regret letting you live.” Plosi growls. He’s grinning too, with a mouthful of pointed teeth. 
Teer: 
Teer texts Ephemera. 'What is happening.' 
Ephemera: 
To Teer, "Lei is realizing that people do things that they regret later. Unless you mean the two of them. Sometimes friends are jokingly violent with each other. It is decidedly one of the many strange things people do." 
Teer: 
"Alright, thank you." Teer says, still not understanding but at this point being too afraid to continue to ask. 
Ephemera: 
"I know. People are silly." 
Teer: 
"They are a mystery to me. I don't know how you all roped me into being one." 
Ephemera: 
"Trickery and shenanigans, probably," Ephemera deadpans. 
Akaros: 
"Flipped a switch." Akaros offers. 
Teer: 
"Wait, what?" 
Akaros: 
"Joking :D" 
Teer: 
"That's terrifying, how are you doing that with your mouth?" 
Akaros: 
"I have many powers."