July 2025 IC Mingle

[folkie]

July 2025 IC Mingle

Introduction

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This IC Mingle is open to all.
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly IC Mingle! Please feel free to post with any characters regardless of whether they joined this month.

All IC Mingles are game canon and work like "mini mini-events". They're a great way to gain new CR and immediately jump into the setting.

IC Mingle threads can be used for spoon spending at any time.

Current players are always encouraged to tag new players on the IC Mingle!

[ Prompt]

Meet Me in My Dreams. ★

Content Warnings: Dreamscape/Dream Logic, Potential Violence, Potential Memory Sharing, Potential Mind/Power/Etc Swap

In most of Folkmore, it's impossible to tell how deep the cracks go, their black void and nature to swallow whatever enters them evading the answer. On Never Fade, an island in the sky, one crack breaks through the bottom of the island. It devours the space it occupies and grows little by little by little. When it reaches a foot wide and crosses a third the island, Lavender declares enough is enough! Whatever Star Children decide for the rest of Folkmore, this threat must be stopped. Lavender sends chickadee spirits in dreams and reality to invite Star Children to join them.

Star Children can ease the process by coming to Never Fade with someone who matters significantly to them. People need to space themselves out on either side of the divide and connect. Star Children with bonds—soul mates, Familiar/Unfamiliar bonds, adoption, etc—are asked to go into the tunnels. They must use their bonds to find each other in a dreamscape, which will thin the void until they can see each other again. Star Children with emotional connections—non-formal bonds—are asked to face each other on the surface. There they will knit the energy of Folkmore together with yarn. They can toss the yarn back and forth to each other or even exchange yarn with someone next to them, to tighten the weave. Lavender goes hazy but walks above the crack on the woven yarn. The void fades until its blackness is gone.

The space remains empty, a chasm across Never Fade. No one will disappear from Folkmore should they fall down it, but if they cannot fly, teleport, or otherwise recover themselves from a fall, it's a long way down to go. Mildly problematic when it traverses so much of the island. Lavender asks for Star Children to come up with ideas for how to solve it. Either, Star Children will fix the problems in the process, or it can generate enough Lore for Lavender to heal the island.

Lavender creates a lucid dreamspace around the crack. The dreamscape allows Star Children to use any of their abilities, native or Role or something completely different, and to physically manifest challenges to build the Lore needed to succeed at this healing. It requires both physical and relational (Lore) elements. The greater the differences between Star Children, the more effective their challenges are at healing Never Fade. Differences include amount of time spent in Folkmore, Roles, regions they live in, worlds they are from, species, etc. The greater the gap(s) between Star Children, the bigger the impact.

The challenges manifest themselves based on the approach pairs of Star Children take to solve the issue. They follow dream logic. Success depends on both material means and emotional success.

• Add material to fill the gap > find common ground. Examples: walk across a rope bridge toward each other, with each slat requiring saying something you have in common; fighting an enemy together with teamwork.
• Pull/push the island together > understand a significant difference. Examples: complete a maze/obstacle course that requires skills of both people; walking through a memory that shows why the other person is the way they are.
• Magically connect the sides > switch places and succeed. Examples: complete a challenge with a power swap, body swap, or Role swap; fight an enemy in a mech where one person controls each side or each set of limbs.

• A crack in Never Fade gets so big, Lavender decides to banish it.
• Lavender invites Star Children to help:
• Star Children with bonds (in-game or from canon) go into the tunnels on opposite sides and focus on their bonds to thin the void.
• Star Children with strong relationships face each other atop the island and toss magical yarn back and forth, weaving it together. Toss it to your neighbors too!
• Once the void is vanished, the empty gap remains. Lavender creates a lucid dreamscape where Star Children can face different challenges based on their solution so close the gap:
• Fill the gap with material > challenges to find common ground.
• Pull/push island together > challenges to understand significant differences.
• Magically connect the sides > challenges to switch places and succeed.
• Wildcard (got another idea?) > ask below!
• The effects/impact of successful challenges are bigger, the more differences there are between partners: time in Folkmore, Roles, regions they live in, worlds, species, etc. The challenges are just as hard.

Comments

[apuckalypse]

It's not your fault. It isn't!

[Maybe- maybe if he keeps talking, it'll drown out some of those wretched noises. He just wants it to be over.]

You saved so many people. What you did here- they had to stop attacking for a while to do repairs, we even gained some ground! A whole new area we could scout and get supplies... a-and we were able to recover after that fight...

[And have a tiny bit of time to grieve, a luxury they rarely could afford.]

[notapancake]

No... not, not that.

[Although hearing that helps a little, he was told that what he did gave them time, but it's not that, that he's apologizing for.]

None of you should know about... this.

[apuckalypse]

[Oh... oh.

Casey doesn't know what to say to that, for a bit. He swallows hard, fingers curling in Donatello's clothes, and when he finds his voice it's muffled.]

Not your fault, either. Trials... sometimes make us face the worst... b-but usually we don't have to face it alone. That's why I'm here.

[It sucks. It sucks! He hates it. But he'd feel worse if Uncle Tello had to go through this alone, again. If he can support his family, no matter what the price or the experience, he won't hesitate.]

[notapancake]

[Oh... How to even tell Casey that he has been facing this alone, he's had some restless nights where instead of just sleep he's relived this moment in his own head. And not like this, but actually going through it once more.

... he won't.]

You shouldn't be here though.

[He wouldn't wish this information even on someone he disliked, let alone a kid like Casey. But it... does seem like the noise has ceased? But he's not letting go of Casey.]

[apuckalypse]

Lots of things happen in this world... that shouldn't.

[Casey's no stranger to nightmares, to reliving the horrors. He's seen plenty in his young life. He didn't see this before, and thank goodness because he's more mentally equipped to endure it at this age than he'd have been at thirteen, but he's got a decade's worth of trauma, he's seen so many die, Master Michelangelo, sensei-

Their deaths were quick. It wasn't... this. But the pain of loss and their suffering isn't nothing. In the end, they all did this for their family. Uncle Tello did this for them.]

I'm okay. [An obvious lie, perhaps. He tries again, more honest, his voice more determined:] I'll be okay. You don't... have to worry about me. Let me be here for you.

[notapancake]

No.

[The word is out of his mouth as soon as Casey finishes saying that Donnie shouldn't worry about him, taking it as if Casey wants his problems put upon him. And like hell is he going to do that.]

It's not your problem to deal with, Junior.

[apuckalypse]

[Casey exhales a breath, both grieving and a sliver of exasperation seeping through. Of course he's like this...]

If it's my family's problem, it's my problem! You can't stop me from worrying, whether I'm close, or in the know, or what.

[notapancake]

[Mmm, he's going to start chewing on his bottom lip. A stress response when he can't do others that he has, since he's got armful of nephew right now.]

I know I can't stop you from worrying, that's an impossible ask but... I can do what I can to make it so you don't have as much to worry about.

[apuckalypse]

You think that hasn't been my whole life? As far back as I can remember, I was always waiting, worrying, left behind while everyone else deals with the real problems! It's why I wanted to get stronger, to fight, so I could help and protect you all... and it still wasn't enough.

[Everyone died. Everyone left him behind. He was the only one who got to live, at the cost of all the people he ever loved.

It's not about him. He knows. But- but isn't that proof enough that he can endure it? He's already seen so much. They can't protect him from terrible things when the worst is already memories that he'll never forget.]

I hate it... being left in the dark, being helpless. I hate it!

[notapancake]

[He could lie and say that he and his brothers never meant to leave Casey out, but... they kind of purposely did that. Also he's never lied to this kid his whole life, why start now?]

The point was never to make you feel helpless, Junior. But... To make it so you could see and live in a better world, no matter what.

[Also just trying to side step the whole emotional minefield here.]

[apuckalypse]

Well- I'm in a better world, now. I'm living. [Any world would be better, really, but this one's been pretty great to him overall.] You all made it happen. I've had a long time now to adapt and get better. Isn't the point of growing up that I get to step up, too? Let me help...

[notapancake]

Thing is, you shouldn't have to step up for us.

[Like, at least in his case? Coming back from the dead wasn't exactly something planned, sure maybe he could have hung around as a Hamato Spirit and maybe his brothers could have used his research to do what was done to Raph with him. But yeah... Casey moving on is fine? By him.]

[apuckalypse]

You keep saying "shouldn't" like it's supposed to mean anything. It doesn't. Stuff happens whether it should or not. We deal with it like we always do.

[He's so tired of that word. It should go right into the trash pile, right beside "deserve".]

[notapancake]

Of course it means something, words have meanings, Junior. [Is he being obtuse on purpose? Maybe.]

And maybe you just can't be dealing with this.

[apuckalypse]

[This infuriating turtle man.]

I have before, I can, and I will! It's not like I can unsee what I saw. Or- or what I heard. You went through all of that... I'm sorry your secret's out against your will. But I know now... I can't just forget.

[notapancake]

[This is your fam, Junior.]

... I. I'm not expecting you to forget it, I know that's an impossible ask.

But it's my problem, not yours.

[apuckalypse]

It's our problem.

[He won't budge on that.]

Don't make me pull the line on you, Uncle Tello.

[notapancake]

Which line, we Hamatos have a few of them.

[Like Hope being the greatest weapon, Where there is a Hamato there is Hope, Anatawa Hitorijanai, It's not about you... Really, there's a few to choose!]

[apuckalypse]

[Ugh, okay, he has an annoyingly good point there. Casey huffs a breath.]

The relevant one. Anata wa hitori ja nai. Quit trying to do everything yourself!

[notapancake]

[He always has an annoyingly good point, Junior.

And he's about to say something but stops himself, clicking his teeth together and his lips pressing into a frown.]

If I do that then everything goes to hell.

[apuckalypse]

That's not even close to being true.

[He'd done pretty much everything alone when it came to the infection, even right up to going alone to the Technodrome and having this happen. Would things really have been worse if he'd asked for help?]

[notapancake]

Really? How long after I... left did Raph get into such disrepair? How well was the directions I left for you all followed before that was discarded?

[He knows it was a few years before everything failed, but how much of the little things went to hell first?]

[apuckalypse]

[Casey can't help flinching at that. Inwardly he knows he can't take responsibility for it, he wasn't Uncle Tello, could never be Uncle Tello, and it was all too much for one person. He doesn't know how this person in front of him managed for so long. But still- it was their duty to look after the rest of the family, and he was the closest thing Uncle Tello had to an apprentice. He should've done more.]

We tried... all of us tried! But- things kept going wrong, over and over. We didn't have the supplies to fix things, sensei's arm malfunctioned, there weren't enough parts. I-I can't just- make things appear with ninpo like you! And the Krang found our bases, we didn't have enough power- we-

[He takes a step backwards, hands gripped together. It's the reality of their situation, but it all feels like excuses for failure.]

...we tried... without you, we...

[notapancake]

... And that's my fault, not any of yours.

[Said flatly and plainly, as if it's a fact that can't be changed. He should have done more to prepare them for everything that could have happened, but he didn't. That's on him, no one else.

Yes, he will blame himself for things that happened after he was gone.]

[apuckalypse]

[Casey stomps a foot, still distressed but stubborn too, fighting back. Is it childish? Sure. But he's so tired of them all blaming themselves, or even how he blames himself-!]

Not you! The Krang!