[o] [PQ] [SE] cucurbita maxima

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

Having grown up in the Hollowed Grounds, Poppy is well versed in vampire gourds. They'd been a favorite subject when she was a girl, their seasonal appearance raising endless questions within the naturalist's curious mind. Where do they spring from? And to whence do they return? Is it the shift in temperature which grants them animation, or the particular position of the sun?

Or is it something as simple as magic, life sparked by an elevated concentration of wayward souls desperately seeking for a vessel to house them, even for a limited time?

And why, this year, have they changed?

It's certainly unclear enough to warrant further study, and if there's one thing Persephone relishes, it's the study of the world. She'd put up a few notices, in case like-minded individuals might be interested in answering these questions as well.

Mourn had seemed like an appropriate place to commence the investigation, and she waits now on a tree-shaded bench. She's dressed for the field in boots and cargo pants and a light coat with far too many pockets, her field bag slung over her shoulder, messy bun of auburn hair reflecting the colors of the changing leaves. With her nose deep in a book of notes she hardly registers anyone approaching - not the most auspicious behavior for an expedition leader, but it is her first time recruiting anyone to aid in her research.

---

Open PQ for to study vampire gourds, including the new spooky variant! Will take 2-3 others.

1. Persephone
2. open
3. open
4? open

persephone

code by sky

But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time

Rhiannon had never been to the Hollowed Grounds, but this was the season she'd decided to expand her horizons beyond Halo. It was rare for her to have enough time to make the trip to other regions, but she'd asked for some days off and they'd been granted, so off she'd gone. She wasn't sure why the Grounds were her first stop, but here she was. And when she'd seen the notice posted looking for volunteers, she'd thought, well, why not? She was here to learn more about the other regions, after all, so even if she wasn't much of a researcher, she thought it was worth a shot.

She arrived in Mourn at the allotted day and time, her hair in its typical braids and tied back away from her face. She'd dressed comfortably in leggings and an oversized sweatshirt, and she carried a bag with various essentials with her. For a moment she simply looked around, attempting to identify who she was supposed to be meeting. Seeing only one other person, she approached. "Excuse me," she said to the redhead. "Are you Persephone?"

---

Rhi arrives!

Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time

RHIANNON

Vesper ain't seen any notices, but that didn't mean he didn't know what was goin' on. Thanks to an ability inherited from dear old dad—or maybe Safrin, they both could do it—as soon as the demigod crested the little bit of a hill that Persephone was sat upon with Rhiannon at her side, he was able to glean from their minds all he needed to know about what it was they planned to do.

The only question was whether it was interestin' enough to stick around for.

Today Vesper's hair was dark, and not unlike Rhiannon, he was dressed in an oversized sweater the colour of the sea (which in fact had been tailored to hang attractively off of his tall frame), and a pair of dark brown pants. Looking a touch windswept for the colour on his cheeks and the way his hair ruffled across his forehead, as he neared, the demigod coaxed a smile onto his lips before raising a hand. "Gourds?" He asked with a grin, raising his dark brows as if he wasn't entirely positive as to why both women were here.

I'm pedal to the metal make no mistake, this is my pity party, pity party
& I'm living out of time, eternal heatstroke

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Vampire gourds. What were they? Eternum wasn’t quite sure, but he knew that there was only one way to find out – to study them. He had travelled far and wide looking for answers until finally coming upon King’s End.

He saw a woman with her nose buried in a book in the location a notice had said to meet up at. He saw some others approaching as well… did they all have the same interests?

“Hi everyone!” Eternum said with a confident smile as he decided to approach. “Let’s learn about some gourds! Anyone have any leads?” He didn’t know how his presence would be received, but then again his interest in learning overpowered his social anxiety.

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

Caught up in her thoughts as she is, Persephone does not register the woman until she's hovering above her, voice cutting through the focused haze. "Oh!" she replies with bright surprise, pausing in her furious scribbles to look up at the stranger who now stands nearby. Truly, a part of her hadn't expected anyone to answer her hasty call; now that there is an assistant available, she finds she isn't fully prepared. Scrambling to a standing position, she extends a charcoal-stained hand. "Persephone - Poppy. Are you here for...?"

'Gourds?'

Another! Persephone blinks her surprise, warmth casting a rosy bloom upon her pale cheeks. "Yes!" she responds enthusiastically, ochre eyes alight as she takes in the man. Another one follows, and now Poppy is beginning to wonder if she hasn't inadvertently created some sort of assembly; this is entirely more people than she'd prepared to meet. Rocking from her toes to her heels, she glances swiftly from notes to faces and back, bird-like and skittish as she attempts to compose tumbling thoughts.

"Sorry - yes. Gourds. Vampire gourds, specifically." Inhale. Exhale. Focus on the study. "They've been a Leafchange hallmark, but their behavior remains mysterious. What animates them? Where do they return to? What drives them to acts of mischief? Some speculate that during this time of year, when the veil between the natural world and Mort's Halls are thinnest, the spiritual remnants uncollected by Ludo seek to reunite with their past humanity. Gourds have long been used as an indicator of the changing season, brought into home and displayed as evidence of a bountiful harvest; there is speculation that spirits remember this, thus their decision to animate these empty vessels."

Now in her element, the Naturalist ploughs on. "This hypothesis seems especially true this year, as there have been reported changes in the nature of the Gourds. Heightened violence and discontent is noted, along with unusual levels of magical ability. There is an intentionality suggesting enhanced sentience. I would like to test this theory.

"Two disparate gardens have been noted in this area- one South, one East." She gestures in either direction. "I propose we divide into groups to study these herds, and determine their natures. Specifically we are seeking the evolved form - you will know them by their aggression, enhanced animation, and levitation." Poppy passes sketches to her three compatriots, each containing a meticulously drawn possessed gourd and description. "In an hour we can reconvene. Maintain distance - we do not want to agitate the specimens. Once we've identified the possessed gourds, we can attempt to capture one for closer observation."

Her unasked for spiel complete, the enthusiastic Naturalist claps her hands, gaze warm and glittering eagerly as she looks among the team. "Any questions?"

---

Round one! Divide into teams to observe the groups of gourds to the South and East!

East:
1.
2.

South:
1.
2.

persephone

code by sky

But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time

Poppy stuck out a charcoal-stained hand, and Rhiannon took it. "Rhiannon," she said by way of introduction, surreptitiously wiping charcoal off her hand as others began to arrive. The first was a young man who appeared to be perhaps a little younger than her with a star-shaped marking beneath his left eye. The second was another young man, making their party an even split between men and women. Rhiannon nodded to the men as they arrived, crossing her arms and waiting for their tasks to be laid out.

She tried to listen to Poppy's spiel - she really did - but rapidly lost interest as the young woman continued to talk, and talk, and talk, until she finally revealed their first task. Snapping out of the reverie that she'd been in, Rhiannon said, "I'll head east." Presumably, one of the others would join her, and she quirked a brow at the group, waiting for a partner before taking off to look for the gourds.

---

Rhi waits for a partner, then heads east!

Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time

RHIANNON

With an easy smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, Vesper glances between Rhi and Poppy. "Name's Vesper." Said between Poppy's excited stammering, as another appears, the demigod takes a step back, popping a toothpick of peppermint bark into the corner of his mouth and then pushing his hands into his pockets.

Trying to keep his eyes from growing too wide as Poppy's words were accompanied by a veritable jungle of thoughts, Vesper cleared his throat and let his gaze shift out toward the horizon in order to try and focus on the words she was saying rather than the complex array of images that sprouted and grew behind her eyes. With a glance toward Rhi whose thoughts were a good deal more sparse and orderly, the demigod opted for the less sporadic sheen of her mind instead. "See ya'll in an hour, then." Waving his fingers toward Poppy and the other man, Vesper turned towards Rhiannon with his eyebrows casually raised. 

"That one sure is a talker." He chuckles under his breath, before heading east as instructed. "Y'ever see these things before now?" Vesper wonders conversationally as they stroll along. 

---

Vesper goes with Rhiannon!

I'm pedal to the metal make no mistake, this is my pity party, pity party
& I'm living out of time, eternal heatstroke

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

With an easy smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, Vesper glances between Rhi and Poppy. "Name's Vesper." Said between Poppy's excited stammering, as another appears, the demigod takes a step back, popping a toothpick of peppermint bark into the corner of his mouth and then pushing his hands into his pockets.

Trying to keep his eyes from growing too wide as Poppy's words were accompanied by a veritable jungle of thoughts, Vesper cleared his throat and let his gaze shift out toward the horizon in order to try and focus on the words she was saying rather than the complex array of images that sprouted and grew behind her eyes. With a glance toward Rhi whose thoughts were a good deal more sparse and orderly, the demigod opted for the less sporadic sheen of her mind instead. "See ya'll in an hour, then." Waving his fingers toward Poppy and the other man, Vesper turned towards Rhiannon with his eyebrows casually raised. 

"That one sure is a talker." He chuckles under his breath, before heading east as instructed. "Y'ever see these things before now?" Vesper wonders conversationally as they stroll along. 

---

Vesper goes with Rhiannon!

I'm pedal to the metal make no mistake, this is my pity party, pity party
& I'm living out of time, eternal heatstroke

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Eternum

Eternum Grinned, happy that he’d found the right place.

“Wow, it looks like you’ve given them a lot more thought than I have! I knew they were a little odd, but beyond their aesthetics… I haven’t discovered much - yet” he admitted at Persephone’s summary. “I don’t have any questions, no. I’m just excited to get started!”

“I suppose I’ll go south, then,” he continued after a couple others picked their path. Did that mean that he would be going with Persephone? Or was there another they were waiting on? Eternum wasn’t quite sure. He thought it would be nice to tag along with someone who actually knew what they were doing.

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To the divine, mischievous spark in you

Blissfully oblivious to the negative effects of her rambling on, Poppy is pleased to see her acolytes eagerly breaking into pairs. "Great!" she chirps as Vesper and Rhi split off toward the east. "Remember to document any abnormalities, but try not to agitate them too much!" With a cheerful wave she turns toward Eternum, rocking up onto her toes and back to barren heels. "Shall we? Do you need some note paper?"

It's a ten minute trek to the southern patch, the smaller of the two. Tucked within a copse of trees, a gaggle of gourds chatter and roll, their bumpy bodies blending into the blanket of autumn leaves. There's four in total: a large smooth orange one, a green-white bumpy one, a squat orange-yellow one, and a misshapen orange-white one. "Look," Persephone murmurs, pointing toward a patch of leaves that seems to be throwing itself into the air without any help, "There must be a possessed one doing that, but which is it?" She glances at Eternum, not wanting to voice her own theory as to the culprit and thus bias his findings.

Meanwhile, Vesper and Rhiannon will quickly find their southern prey. A whole patch of gourds has taken over the base of the hill, eight of them in various sizes dotting the green expanse. And they're... not moving at all? Asleep? Bored? Are they even vampire gourds, or have the pair of you stumbled upon genuinely mundane pumpkin patch, waiting to be carved?

How do you intend to find out?

---

Poppy and Eternum have found a patch of four vampire gourds, but which one is possessed? Feel free to describe characteristics that back up your guess - you have full creative freedom!

Vesper and Rhi have found a patch of eight... normal gourds? That doesn't seem right. Better investigate!

persephone

code by sky

But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time

Thankfully, one of the men elected to join her, so she didn't have to listen to Poppy's incessant rambling. "I'm Rhiannon," she said, offering a hand to Vesper to shake. "Nice to meet you." They walked south for a ways, and Rhi snorted at Vesper's observation. "Tell me about it. She's pretty excited about these gourds, huh?" Rhi supposed that it was helpful to have those kinds of individuals about - the kind that would study things until they keeled over - but she was more of a doer. If she sat about talking about things all day, she'd never get anything done.

"We have some in Halo," she said as they strolled along. "The possessed ones are freaking people out. Some of our citizens are thinking they're Void-touched, even though there's no proof of that." It was why she'd decided to come along on this adventure in the first place. Maybe there was something she could learn and take back home.

They came upon a patch of what appeared to be normal gourds, lying in a field without moving. Rhi raised an eyebrow, hesitating to get too close lest they awaken and attack. "Well, this is interesting," she said, gesturing towards the gourds. "You reckon they're alive, or just... vegetables?"

Well, they couldn't go back empty-handed, so there had to be some way to check and see. Rhi bent to scoop up a rather large rock. "Maybe if I throw this into the patch, they'll wake up."

------

Rhi suggests throwing rocks at the gourds.

Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time

RHIANNON

Glancing over his shoulder, Vesper pushes out his lower lip thoughtfully before offering the shoulder a shrug. "People sure have been gettin' worked up about all the void-touched shit though, huh?" Lifting his dark brows, the demigod gives his head a small shake. "I mean, is it really any more dangerous than everythin' else roamin' over Caido?" Sure the Family was, but the shit they brought with them? Eh, Vesper wasn't so sure.

As for the maybe it is, maybe it isn't pumpkin patch they'd stumbled upon, Vesper folds his arms comfortably over his chest as he eyes the sleeping/normal/pretending gourds below. "Y'know, I can't say that I like the idea of a vegetable bein' able to pull one over on me." Switching the toothpick in his mouth from one side to the other, he glances at Rhi and grins. "I'll do you one better."

Bouncing his eyebrows, Vesper suddenly teleports into the midst of the gourds. Giving one a hard kick (as hard as a level 1 can kick, anyway), he quickly teleports back to Rhi's side waiting to see what, if anything, would happen.

---

Vesper teleports into the midst of the gourds, gives one a kick, and teleports back!

Magic: Misty Step | Can teleport up to 15ft away
Type: Light | Rank: Basic

I'm pedal to the metal make no mistake, this is my pity party, pity party
& I'm living out of time, eternal heatstroke

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Eternum

“Erm, yes I do need some notepaper,” he said, realizing that he hadn’t brought any. He did have a pencil, however, which he hadn’t noticed until he dug around in his pockets.

They continued down the path to the southern patch and Eternum started to get a queasy feeling. He had no business being here aside from sating his own curiosity… but there was something especially creepy about being around these gourds. When she mentioned something about possession – that made him shiver.

“I agree,” he’d comment, “there does seem to be something quite peculiar about the leaves’ behavior. A playful spirit or ghost might be a good explanation.”

Assuming he’d been given some paper he would jot down what he saw and also do a rough sketch of the leaves. He was no artist, but he did think highly of his own drawing ability.

“I wonder what will happen if I do… this!” he said, taking a small rock and lobbing it into the middle of the leaves. He didn’t know what he expected to happen but whatever it was – he was ready to jot it down.

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To the divine, mischievous spark in you

Is violence truly the answer, Vesper? in this case, no - because while the kick does manage to send one gourd rolling, it doesn't show any real sign of intelligence or life. But if Rhiannon is watching closely, she may notice some suspicious rustling and the suggestion of movement among the patch. Let's say, for argument's sake, it's as though half of the scattered gourds might be vampiric. It's hard to pinpoint which ones, exactly, but investigation could yield clues. Maybe their shapes are different? Varying levels of dirt? Maybe you want to try and follow the vine patters to try and establish which, if any, are anchored down?

Or maybe the answer is, indeed, to throw rocks.

Speaking of rock throwing - our heroes to the south have similarly chosen to resort to violence, though without the aid of teleportation they must do this manually. Poppy listens to Eternum's musings with rapt attention, quickly jotting down some notes within her little book (after giving him a leaf of paper and pencil, of course). "Do you mean separate from the gourds, acting independently? Or do you think it's spirits that have caused the change in behavior?" She's still musing when the man throws his rock, though she does snap her head up in time to see it fall among the leaves and ---

--- all four gourds go still.

The shift from playful noise to silent watching is eerily unsettling; even Poppy feels a chill raise the hairs upon her neck. Not taking her eyes off the quartet of pumpkins, she leans toward Eternum and murmurs, sotto voce: "I think they know we're here." And while further observation will likely yield the answers they're seeking, it may also result in the pain being spotted and, subsequently, hunted down. Which leaves the question: do they stay still? Try to distract them? Or simply high-tail it out of there, before the gourds catch on?

---

The gourd Vesper kicked is not a vampire, but there definitely are some in the patch! Will you investigate further? Do more violence? Shrug it off and call it a day?

Eternum's rock has startled the gourds! They're not doing anything yet, but seem ready to pounce. Do you want to stay still and see what happens, try to distract them away, or run?

persephone

code by sky