We The Lost - Mailbox

[termineur]

1087 Rocky Road

There is a mail slot on the top, as well as instructions to freely borrow or place books in the box.

Comments

Points Tracker

[termineur]

For anyone curious, Gabriel's Thread and Points Tracker is here.

BOOKS IN THE MAILBOX

[termineur]

[termineur]

Food: What the Heck Should I Eat? - Nutrition
Pillars of the Earth - Historical Fiction
The Escape Artist - Political Thriller
The Cafe by the Sea - Murder Mystery
Dog Myths: What You Think You Know About Dogs Will Come Back to Bite You - Pets
The Wild Irish - Historical Romance
A Wrinkle in Time - Science fiction/fantasy

==

[ Please note if you're taking/leaving a book! Thank you! ]

March 31

[voiceinthephone]

[On this day, Gabriel will get a small red box with a white ribbon, telltale sign that this was the magic cupcake he signed up for. Inside is a spicy chocolate cupcake with Fox Ears and a tail sticking in the back, both made of fondant and chocolate. The note reads:]

To Gabriel,

Happy April Fool's Day!

This cupcake was made specially in celebration of a fun day! And with that comes special rules, especially with this being your first spellcake:

1. Before consuming this cupcake you must be in a comfortable spot, one you're familiar with.

2. You might experience something called instinct overload, as your new animal instincts and senses will take a few moments to adjust. Since you have a predator animal, you might experience some instincts to hunt prey. Take a moment to ease those thoughts and center yourself. As well as any urges to steal shiny stuff or my pies.

3. You will experience no discomfort in your transformation though I suggest accommodating your clothes for the tail. It's no joke.

4. This spell will last 3 days, so enjoy!

- PG

Mid August

[advanced]

[He's debated over this note for a while, but he can vaguely remember that Gabriel had been kind and had promised to check in on John and attempt to mitigate his imprisonment with Zephyr.

Perhaps it didn't have anything to do with his freedom not long after that, but he still owes the man a thanks, so he's going to knock on the door a bit awkwardly.]

[termineur]

[ Gabriel's in the midst of baking at the moment, so he's nearby the door. When he opens it, the smell of baked sweets and peaches wafts out.

He's pleasantly surprised to see Bucky, even if the guy does only have one arm now. ]

Hey, you're out. Good. You want any pie?

Octoberish (repost to fix a time error!)

[obeir]

Mr. Gabriel Gray,

This is regarding our bulletin board exchange in August, when you discussed your museum proposal and I offered to acquire photographs for you. I stopped by the museum recently. It may be a work in progress but it's already impressive, you've done a good job with it from what I can tell.

Enclosed are a few of the preliminary photographs that I've taken. Per our agreement, I hope you'll share your opinion of them so that I might improve with future attempts. If you'd like anything specific photographed please tell me. And given the mercurial nature of the Meadous landscape, you may consider this an ongoing arrangement.

Regards,
-KD6-3.7

[ The printed, high-resolution photos in question feature a wide array of wildlife and biomes, as well as a few scenes of daily life in the village. The colours are vivid and the focus is sharp.

They aren't really what could be considered 'artful' shots, but K does have a good eye for framing, and knows how to adjust the lens to provide a decent depth of field. Each photo has quite a few frames of animation, which translates to roughly a half minute of movement, making them something akin to mini-movies — sunlight glittering on the sea as the clouds slowly roll by and sea birds drift on the breeze, a panning shot of the herd of wild horses in full gallop, several Meadous residents partaking of the food trees... The movement loops indefinitely.

K's serial number is printed in a microfont at the bottom of every photo, not out of vanity but rather because of replicant laws of his world requiring such identification. It's small enough it can easily be trimmed off if desired. ]

[termineur]

KD6-3.7,

These are fantastic. Better than I expected- although I admit, I wasn't thinking forward to what would be capable in the future. There's a lot more that can be done with moving photographs.

Please continue taking these. Would you like any sort of compensation for them? I do tend to hunt frequently and often have leftover meat, if you'd want some of that in exchange for doing this.

Also, I have to admit that I don't have much in the way of criticism. I think you're farther along than me, artistically, and wide shots like these are perfect for the museum. If you want to continue developing your talent, maybe try strange angles when putting together the shot? Sometimes long shadows or looking at something from below can get a new perspective on what you're taking a picture of.

And hey, if you want a particular project, it'd be helpful for the museum if you took pictures of each type of flora and fauna. Sort of cataloging them, right? You could get a lot of practice with closer photos that way.

I'm glad you like the museum so far. With your help here, it'll be much easier to make it feel like a proper museum. I appreciate it.

-Gabriel

[devoutish]

[Knock knock on your front door, Gabriel. Are you up for a visit?]

[termineur]

[ Gabriel doesn't get visitors all that often- unexpected ones that actually knock on the door? Even less. When he opens it, he gives Alfie a slightly surprised smile. ]

Alfie, hey. Would you like some tea? I just heated some up.

[ He's been drinking tea a lot lately. ]

[bywolves]

[ Royce isn't an idiot - he knows Alfie invited Gabriel over for dinner because he wants Royce to remember he has friends. Gabriel has only ever been a good friend to him, honestly, and Royce isn't looking to offend him or hurt his feelings, so he goes along with the dinner.

And after, he takes two glasses and a bottle of Montemorcey with him to the living room, glancing at Gabriel. ]

Come outside with me.

[termineur]

[ Gabriel hasn't let on the reason for his visit, or that he and Alfie talked earlier that day. He's pretty good at pretending nothing's wrong, and honestly? It's not hard when this feels like such a family dinner, this small get-together.

As Royce invites him outside, Gabriel realizes he hasn't even had a chance to talk to him alone yet- understanding flickers across his face and he gets up. The addition of Montemorcey doesn't hurt. ]

Sure.

[ He heads outside, glancing at the autumn wonderland they have before them. ]

I've been getting outside a lot lately. Gonna miss it when the season changes.

[bywolves]

[ A small package arrives in Gabriel's mailbox a few days after Christmas. Inside is a pocket watch, and a note: ]

I know that time and clocks themselves can be a touchy subject for you. But it takes time to grow and take root, to steady yourself and find your place. I hope this reminds you of that process.

- Royce

[aigue]

[Merry Christmas, Gabriel! On the 25th a package will be left on his doorstep containing a clock. The tag attached has a very foxy paw print, and reads 'It's broken. I thought you might appreciate that more than a working one.']

[clowngirl]

[Gabriel receives a homemade card on December 25th from Harley Quinn. The front has a doodle of a gingerbread man on it wearing a watch and the inside says "Happy Holidays, Timex! - HQ"]

post-ish tombs and taverns

[bywolves]

[ It's nearing the end of January, and Royce, who has been sick and holed up in his house, appears one morning in front of Gabriel's house. He knocks, and if Gabriel answers, he'll find a small, pale and still recovering Royce standing on his doorstep, wrapped up in his cloak and like two jackets. ]

... Are you busy? [ Hey, buddy. ]

[termineur]

[ Gabriel's look of concern is followed up immediately with him opening the door wider. ]

You look terrible. Come in, come in, sit down. I'll get you some tea- or hot chocolate if you'd like that better. You've been sick, huh?

[ If Royce doesn't come in on his own, he'll be practically bundled into the house and pulled towards an easy chair. Gabriel will help with the jackets, of course, and make sure a warm blanket is available if Royce wants it. It's warm and smells of baked goods throughout the house. ]

[obeir]

[ Gabriel will find the usual bundle in his mailbox: a collection of more photos K has taken for the museum. Included are copies of Gabriel's portraits as well, all versions of them, so he can choose which he likes best to display in the museum (or in his Meadous home). There's also a shot of K and Gabriel together that we'll assume K asked for because he would've, he likes Gabe.

Perhaps most interestingly, K was able to photograph the virtual world within Eefri's Run through the wonders of futuristic technology — in case Gabriel decides to set up an exhibit for it. There are a few neatly handwritten notes about what the character creation entailed, what races and classes were available, what their abilities were, observations about the NPCs and gameplay, and a more in-depth look at the questing portion of the game courtesy of the group K joined.

Underneath the bundle of photos and notes is a sealed container of well-seasoned pancetta wrapped pork tenderloin (vegetable garnishes included, eat your veggies Gabe), made from the cuts of meat that Gabriel had recently shared with him. A note's tied to it wishing him a happy holiday season. ]

cw: animal death

[fuckingwolverine]

[Gabriel is one of the lucky ("lucky") few who will be discovering a lovely present left on his doorstep - a freshly-killed rabbit with its neck snapped. Lilly might not be able to read maps or names on mailboxes, but she's long since figured out that people have their own claimed houses here, and this is the one she's seen Gabriel coming and going from most often. If he comes out at just the right time, he might be able to catch her before she hops away, but if not, he'll just have to guess at who left him this delectable meal. Enjoy!

(He also might notice that a couple of the books have been pulled out of his mailbox, and some of them are missing pages now. Sorry, bro.) ]

[termineur]

[ He catches sight of her just as she hops out of view, and it takes a moment before he realizes what's just happened. He picks up the rabbit carefully and smiles down at it. It's not exactly the normal type of present, but it probably represented a lot of work for her.

He's unsure if she's out of earshot now, but he waves in the general direction she disappeared into and speaks: ]

Thanks, Lilly. Looks tasty.

Around Christmas

[bywolves]

[ A box appears on Gabriel's porch - it is very poorly wrapped, but it... has heart. Inside of it are the following things:

A big, microplush black blanket with a design of a misty mountain in silver, a bottle of Montemorcey wine, and a CD with recordings of all the songs the Zephyr Fan Club have played during their meetings. This includes the songs K wrote for Zephyr specifically and the ones that they all sang together that had been written by other people. A note accompanies these gifts. ]

Thank you for being here. You do not know how important you are to me.

I hope you like these. Happy Wintertide, Gabriel.

- Royce

Backdated to Christmastime

[obeir]

[ The wrapped package that's been left on Gabriel's doorstep contains a hand-carved wooden puzzle box featuring a gear motif, with a twist: it's lacking the gears needed to open it. Instead there's instructions specifying Gabriel will need to make the gears himself, figure out the correct placement, and slot them in. Once he's completed the puzzle box and figured out how to open it, inside he'll find an even smaller hand-carved wooden puzzle box. But that's the extent of K's trolling, because inside of that is a portrait of Al in his Meadous home, taken all that time ago when K had been trying to get portraits of Meadous residents. After their last chat about Al, he thought Gabriel might like to have the picture.

Beneath the puzzle box is sheet music for a song that was written for Gabriel, with a note stating K will be happy to play it in person at Gabriel's convenience, or at the next Zephyr's club meeting.

(Of course, with the advent of the Meadous network a few weeks later, Gabriel can also expect to be sent a recording of K performing it at some point, just in case he'd like a permanent copy.) ]

[termineur]

[ It's a few days until a reply comes through. Gabriel had a tough time wording it. ]

K,

You don't know how much this means to me. I miss him a lot. Even though it's not what he wanted, I still hope that he comes back sometimes.

Anyway, thanks. The puzzle boxes are beautiful and I'm guessing the song is as well. Your compositions are always lovely.

Gabriel

[ Upon hearing the song, he declares it his favorite of K's pieces. The level to which it 'fits' him as he is now- well, he doesn't even try to describe it. You did good, K. ]

backdated to before the event

[fuckingwolverine]

[It's not uncommon for Lilly to drop by Gabriel's place and leave him little gifts. Usually it's something like a dead animal or a small pile of bugs, but sometimes he'll get a cool rock or an interestingly-shaped leaf, too. It's how she shows she cares.

Unlike most days, though, today she doesn't take off immediately after leaving her bounty. She slams her open palm to his door just once - this is how people knock, right? - and then scoots back a couple feet, staring hard at the door in anticipation of an answer. If he doesn't happen to be home, she'll wait; he'll return to find her sitting on the roof, legs dangling over the edge.]

[termineur]

[ Oh? What's this? Lilly catches Gabriel while he's at home this time. He comes out to check and see what little trinket or dead thing has been left for him today.

But it looks like it's time for him to see her in person this time. He smiles when she comes into view. ]

Hi, Lilly.