01. video

[firekiss]

[The video starts with a practiced sort of flourish, Guinaifen giving the camera a smile that's very...practiced? It feels authentic enough, probably, it's definitely not a customer service smile and feels warm and inviting (or it damned well tries to), but one might get the sense that Guinaifen's done this plenty of times before.]

Hey, fam! Li- [She catches herself, just for a half-second, but when you're in a new world, you learn how to interact with the locals in their language. Right?] Gui here! Guinaifen, if we haven't met yet.

[She's outside. She's in a quieter part of the city center, in a nice garden that's...nice? It's not too nice, though, just nice enough that it serves as a good backdrop. She might have spent a few minutes trying to find the right place for this.]

I'm still trying to get my feet under me, and I know I'm not the only one. I wanted to get to know some of you! But this place is pretty big, and there's all sorts of stuff going on, so I thought the network would be the best way of breaking the ice. So...

[So...]

Tell me a story? Of wherever you come from, or just something you did today. Doesn't matter how big or how small it is. If you ate a really good waffle or want to tell me a legend from your home, I'd love to hear about it.

Comments

[audio] also linked cuz the story is too damn long for one comment

[cursegod]

A legend, huh? I know one from a certain family...

Long ago, there were two small villages on two small mountains. An enormous snake god resided in the valley between them...

[still video, kind of]

[firekiss]

[So, she sets aside the device, because the speaker doesn't need to watch her face as they talk, whomever they are. It points to a very scenic bit of sky and some trees, and then Guinaifen makes a face as she realizes that it's pointing to the sky and some trees, and is sky + trees really that much better?

So she leans over for a second, as the speaker tells their story, and decides, no, it would be weird to turn it off now, and then settles back to listen. So more trees, more sky, and the occasional bit of orange-red hair fluttering in view.

And Guinaifen? She tries really fucking hard to listen. It's not like it's not a bad story. It's just...a lot. And it reminds her of home, and she starts to think about home, and then she wonders what Sushang and Huohuo are doing, if they think she's fine or if they're looking for her and she wants to go have tea with them. Again. One more time. It would be nice if-

And then she realizes, oh shit, oh fuck, the story is done.

...what was the last thing said?]

...

[After an awkward, awkward pause (at least to her, it feels awkward to her) she says the only thing she can.]

That had a gruesome end. [Death was involved, right...?

...right.] But some stories are like that.

[cursegod]

[At least Dara is fine with silence. It's more comfortable for her after going on for awhile. And since she's not privy to Guinaifen's internal wistfulness, Dara simply thinks she needs time to process...Although her interpretation is somewhat perplexing.]

Is it really a gruesome end if the villagers finally found peace?

[Sounds fine to her, ultimate end goal even if it's missing a lot from the true narrative.]

[firekiss]

Sure, but the way I see it, isn't there easier ways of finally finding peace which doesn't involve...you know. [All That.] I've heard plenty of stories of blood grudges and curses - I've told more than a few, actually - but what always got me about them is that it always seemed like there would be easier ways of accomplishing your goal? But I guess it wouldn't be a story if people took the easy way out.