OTA Purple Team Meeting!

[blitzcheer]

Who: Anyone interested in Purple Team, being nosy, whatevs.
Where: Sports gymnasium
When: 2 Llama
What: So you’re in Purple Team. What now?
Warnings: TBA.

[ An ICP call is made out towards the end of breakfast, announcing that the meeting will be in half an hour for Purple Team, and they should use the SCA’s countdown timer to know what that is; this’ll be a particularly good meeting for any newbies. Half of the sports gymnasium has been reserved for this simple gathering, a collection of the double-chairs from the music carriage unbolted and borrowed, and a few people already stand waiting for the meeting to begin.

A table has been set out with some cups and a jug of water, and some sheets of the Purple census. Also, let's be real: someone brought snacks. Kitty is sitting on the table near the front of the room, her feet swinging lightly. Once things quiet down a bit, she hops off the table and faces out to address everyone with a friendly smile. ]

Hey, guys! My name’s Kitty. Welcome to the meeting for Purple Team. For those of you who are new, I know things might be a little confusing or overwhelming right now, but that’s what we’re here for! This meeting is just to give everyone a bit of information based on what we’ve learned from our time here on the train, and if you have any questions about anything, don’t be afraid to reach out to someone. I can’t promise we can give you answers for everything, but we’ll do what we can to help out.

And if you have something you’d like to share, feel free to speak up! These meetings also let us exchange information, so if there’s something you think should be discussed that we haven’t talked about, definitely let us know.

[ Roland stands in quiet contemplation beside Kitty for the most part, laying low and keeping his head tilted down as he reads something from his notebook settled on the table. The only time he brings attention to himself is when he feels the slight dip and pause in the flow of conversation after she speaks. A gentle pivot from one heel leads him to face the gathering crowd with practiced ease, arms crossed over his chest, and a determined expression he seems to wear rather well. ]

On that note, please do consider attending our Purple debriefings before we’re deployed off the train. This is where we assess the information sent over our SCA’s, figuring out who’s better off helping another team, and who will be staying with our group. Any showcase of powers that might be relevant to the task at hand will also be welcome information, so we can support you come game time. [ A beat. Then, a hand gesture. ] That is, if you’re comfortable enough to share it.

[ He glances briefly behind him. ]

Before I forget, there are a couple of things left to discuss...ah, but what am I saying? [ Roland’s lips crack a small, controlled smile, though not lacking in genuine mirth. ] We’ve got plenty of liaisons ready to assist you for any and all questions you might have. [ His memory is stoked, and before retreating behind the table again, he says one last thing in no particular rush. ] For those I have yet to make acquaintances with, my name is Roland Crane. Rest assured that I’ll be doing my utmost to assist this team to the best of my abilities.

[ He shows his back and nods confidently at the said point persons and Kitty herself before he takes his small gathering of notes in his arms. ]

Floor’s still yours, Kitty. Everyone. Please, mingle away.

( ooc: Welcome to the Purple Meeting! Kitty will speak about missions, Roland about Purple roles, Cassie about inventory and team supplies, and Tidus and Inigo about available equipment and training. Soldat will be mentioned as helping with food prep, along with Mami, and anyone willing to help them are asked to approach them one on one.

New or old, if your character wants to speak about anything, give their own advice, ask questions, do so! People will be encouraged to share their skills, and also to offer any training - combat or otherwise - they're willing to teach. )

Comments

[crimsonsnow]

The question catches Jade off-guard, a spark of surprise hitting the emotion bleed, followed by gentle bafflement. He takes this to mean Roland is from a universe that has soulmates. Subsequently he wonders if Roland's world has a concept of it that isn't the fiction-approved romantic connotations - but, it must. It really must, for him to be asking like this.

Jade thinks briefly about Kratos and Anna, then discards it. Whatever they have going on is an outlier, not the norm. If soulmates truly existed in their world - and what an incredulous thought, that! - then it would not be limited to one man and woman.

"No," Jade says, blunt with the honesty. "The idea that there's such a thing outside of fiction is completely foreign to me."

[oncedriven]

Asch, with a better idea of why Roland is asking, still looks equally baffled. The idea of soulmates blindsides, and as much as his brother might be seen as a soulmate in the 'one person split into two' way (seeing as for Asch and his world's version of Luke, it's true in a very literal sense), there's nothing of the kind of deep connection the word 'soulmate' brings to mind. If anything, they might be two people fated to keep missing each other.

"I was being extremely literal," he says, after a moment of blank staring and then shaking it off with a toss of his head. He reaches up and pushes his bangs out of his face, apparently a nervous gesture. "In our world - " The way he glances at Jade is inclusive. " - Luke and I are twins. In the world of the Luke who is on the train, we're... Something close, anyway." He's not sure he fully understands the whole 'replica' thing, certainly not enough to feel confident explaining it to Roland.

"It's something out of a storybook, for us. And if soulmates did exist, my brother wouldn't be mine." A pause, and then he glances at Jade with a look of mischief. "Though I think I could nominate a candidate for this asshole here, if they did."

[adregem]

Roland listens intently, calmly, like a statue stuck in the moment. Even the banter is taken with practiced silence; the cogs turning as if you could hear their creaking gears.

He wonders if he should continue his line of questioning, if they've ever heard of wizards and spells and kingmakers that once roamed the earth before the four great nations were formed from the settling dust. Since riding on the Voidtrecker, he's come to understand the great breadth of The Conductor's words; that alternate universes exist, peppering existence with versions of events happening and not happening all at once. They could be a part of that world he's come to call home too.

It's something out of a storybook, for us.

Or...or he's reaching. And this is nothing but coincidence, which, if he were to be honest with himself anyway, was to be expected.

"Hm. Sorry about that, then. I didn't mean to imply anything untoward by accident." His smile is genuine. He'll take it for what it means - which as Asch and Jade both point out, are literal. In almost the exact manner does Roland mean the same thing too - that soulmates for him are never romantic anymore, but precisely how they are advertised. Half of a half of the same soul, separated only by worlds.

"Guess it just sounded familiar enough to tickle a memory...Anyway. I'll keep an eye out for Luke too, in the off-chance he's in need of aid." He's back to business, both census sheets tucked away for safe keeping along with the rest. "Is there anything else I can help you both with today?" A light chuckle follows. "Have you sampled any of our many train citizen's baked treats yet?"

[crimsonsnow]

"I suppose it's only inevitable when dealing with multiple worlds and cultures," Jade says, which is an oblique way of saying he doesn't mind. (It's not his sibling, but nonetheless he appreciates Roland offering to keep an eye out for Luke.)

As for questions... Jade has several, but perhaps more than it is worth getting into today. Besides, they got distracted from a question Asch asked, earlier.

"I think that's all I wanted for now, but I believe Asch still had a question?" He looks to Asch, letting him lead from here.

okay sorry for the delay here

[oncedriven]

Asch nods as Jade looks to him - he's not holding it against Roland, exactly, but only because the way the man was suddenly put off-balance doesn't read as faked to him. "I was asking about people who go outside of the organization system you have going on here," he says. "And how you handle that."

If he did think it was intentional, then the way Roland had dodged the question would have been an answer in itself, and he wouldn't have bothered to ask again. The fact that he's willing to ask again is, hopefully, enough of a cue to Jade on that front, especially coupled with the emotional bleed. Still, he's not forward enough to ask 'how do you deal with dissent' so directly.

Being around politicians makes him act like a politician, unfortuantely.

all good!

[adregem]

"Ah. That."

Roland isn't someone who answers without thinking before he speaks, regardless of the question presented. But he's never had to answer this particular type of question before. Not this upfront. He looks around the room and sees faces both new and old, chatting, laughing, stuck in deep discussions of their own. Oh, he's probably known how to answer this question long before Asch ever had to ask it of him.

"You know, the first mistake I ever made was to assume the Voidtrecker was exactly like how it would be to run a country. I used to think to myself, hey. That's something I can do." He pauses again, eyes roaming but not quite meeting their mark, wherever it is he's looking towards. Here, or there, or another place far, far away. "Then I realized that's pretty much the worst thing when you've got no banner to unite under, and no one is here of their own free will. It was just easier for my head to wrap around."

Not to make things long-winded, he continues on. "In fact, the only thing we've all got going for us, no matter what world or universe we come from, is that we have places to be. Stories to see to their ends. Loved ones to save. Kidnappers to hold accountable." The steel in his eyes is unmistakable. "Truth be told, I'm aware that whatever you call this - " Roland gestures to himself with a smooth flick of his wrist. "- is imagined. I have no true hold or power to discipline, police, or otherwise restrain passengers who want to go against the grain. Nobody does. I can only hope to work for earned trust and respect so we can progress."

His arms cross back over his chest.

"That said. People who opt out of initiatives can do as they please. Operate as they please. Offer themselves as they like. We've all got our roles to play, and I'm not one to stifle diversity where it can flourish. They have unconditional support, regardless. If there's something here that isn't to your liking or agreement, then by all means. Propose something else. Something better. Something to add to our shared goal of finding answers. Complain. Don't. That's your right." But, there is always a but. "All I ask is that people remain aware of others around them, especially the children onboard this voidcraft. That we're the closest thing to community, because this train is not on our side. That actions...have their consequences. And more often than not, consequences affect innocent lives, despite intentions. That, I can't tolerate."

A beat.

"As Roland Crane won't tolerate. Team Lead or not."

[crimsonsnow]

Jade listens to Roland say his piece, and has to admit to himself that he has unfairly assumed something of Roland that is untrue. Of course he had no reason not to, given he still knows so little about the train and how it really works. It makes him take a step back and reassess; none of them have any significant power over each other on this train, authority a convenience for coordination rather than something that holds any weight. It's a relief to hear, but... Jade pushes the shame in his core aside without considering it. Sometimes you have to crack a few eggs to make a cake, so to speak. Having the information now is all that matters.

He slides his hands in his pockets, shoulders back.

"It's good to hear that we won't be beholden to any particular obligations. And I believe we are both quite capable of playing nice." That's all Roland's really asking of them - (Mythra would probably boil it down to 'don't be a dick') - though Roland's reasoning makes the parts of Jade's core still attuned to justice sing in appreciation. People should be held accountable for their actions. People, and trains.

Speaking of, because he's curious: "You don't think it's as drastic as us against the train, do you?"

Not that he really thinks it's on their side, either, but he'd be interested in hearing Roland elaborate, whether now or some other time.

shimmies this in late too

[oncedriven]

(Asch would boil it down about the same way. It's less a justice blade thing so much as a them thing, though. Probably.)

Asch remains quiet throughout Roland's answer, his expression considering but revealing little until he nods, apparently suddenly, at the end. (It's perhaps only half about what Roland actually said, and half if Asch's gut believes it. But there's no sickening roil of warning, so that's good enough for him.)

"Sometimes it's even other people's idea of nice," he contributes on the tail end of Jade's comment, though, the teasing clearly intended for his driver more than Roland. It's with good humor, and a subtle sign that it's safe to relax. Roland at least believes in what he's saying. "I'm not sure how well he does around children, though."

As for the rest... "Thus far, we've gotten a lot of mixed opinions about her," Asch says. "Aside from the initial arrival - I haven't run into anyone who isn't at least a bit annoyed with that - " And in some cases that's a severe understatement. " - But people who think that the train's interests are pointedly different from ours are a bit further between."