seasonsrpg | may quests

Entry tags:

may quests

WHO: reiner braun & YOU
WHAT: may quests
WHEN: it's gotta be may
WHERE: all over
WARNINGS: check subject lines
NOTES: i will match prose or brackets!

Nightwake — I Heard This Was A Jamjar, But…

[ There is no way to stay clean while cleaning up the jam. So Reiner gets in there with a "jam shovel" (much like a snow shovel) and a pair of long gloves, shifting and shoveling the stuff into a wheelbarrow. ]

Seems like a shame to waste all this.

[ Although admittedly, he has no idea what to do with the sticky stuff. ]

Winter — Maiden the Shade

[ It isn't a maiden that Reiner sees while investigating the Forest of Lost Souls. It is (the illusion of) a tall, dark-haired young man with stunning green eyes. ]

Uh.

[ Reiner stares at them with wide eyes and parted lips, temporarily ignoring his teammate (you) as he takes an unconscious step forward. Evidently drawn toward the remarkably attractive man. ]

Hey… What're you doing out here?

Spring — End of the Rainbow

There!

[ Reiner exclaims telepathically, having transformed his body into a palomino draft horse. He throws his head in excitement, letting out an eager whinny. ]

Climb on. We'll get to the end in no time.

[ Does his teammate (you) even know how to ride? If not, might wanna learn fast! ]

Summer — Who Made This Big Mess?

Who the hell left all this crap?

[ So says Reiner as he picks up a thong swimsuit bottom, making a face before tossing it into a garbage bag. ]

The bottles and stuff I kinda understand. But some of this is hard to just misplace, you know?

Autumn — Fruit Salad

[ Monsters who regenerate when they take damage? Yeah, that's nothing new to Reiner. He zips around using his ODM gear, slicing chunks from peach monsters. Then, when their core is exposed—

POW!

He slams their pit with heavy rocks using his Autumn powers.

So far, it seems to be working well! But there are always those cherries to worry about… ]

Wildcard

( ooc: come at me with another quest! if you'd like to plot, hmu by pm,

bicepsbrigade, or @ me in the game discord )

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[This isn't Jean's first time fighting peaches. He tackled the same kind of quest with Levi when it was last relevant. Of course back then there were only peaches, now they had to keep an eye out for more fruit (who keeps tossing fruit out of the barrier).

Teaming up with Reiner is nice and easy. Mostly he's been burning peaches to make them weaker and expose the pits. Getting close enough he could also cause them to rot. And because he trusts Reiner he doesn't need to watch what he's doing. They'd have each others' backs.

The problems actually start when Jean does have a view of what Reiner is doing. He makes a full stop to stare at the rocks flying at the pits of the peaches.

Instead of the peaches, soldiers stand in the horizon. Soldiers who were marching towards the titan shifters. The rocks hit the soldiers, breaking them apart just as easily as peach flesh gets torn apart.

It's not Reiner throwing the rocks either. It's Jean.

Jean is lost in the mental image from his nightmare that he shared with Reiner. He doesn't move, gripping the handles of his gear tight enough to make his knuckles go pale.

He doesn't even notice the cherries approaching from behind him.]

[ There are certain things that come with fighting side-by-side for years. One of those things is an awareness of the other person, an instinctual grasp of where they are in relation to oneself. When Jean suddenly stops out of nowhere, it immediately grabs Reiner's attention. ]

Jean? What—

[ Reiner cuts himself off, seeing Jean's face. The rigid posture. The pale knuckles. The wide eyes.

Wherever Jean is, it isn't here.

Exhaling a quiet curse under his breath, Reiner changes direction in midair, an extra burst of gas propelling him into range of the cherries. He whips around them and slices deep, possibly damaging his blades in the process. A mistake made in haste, but not one from which he can't recover.

More rocks rise, ramming into the cherry pits, cracking them open. Then Reiner zips to Jean's side, coming to a rest beside him. ]

Jean! Hey, what's going on?

[Jean doesn't really register what's going on around him for a moment, haunted by the visions of the nightmare. It's hard to break out, even if he tries to remind himself it's not real. That it was just a nightmare.

Having Reiner ask him what was going on could have acted as a negative factor, considering how the dream went, but instead it does snap him out of his shock enough to react to his presence. He looks at Reiner, eyes still wide. Then he looks down, avoiding eye contact.]

I uh ... I was just reminded. Of that nightmare.

[He'd say he's fine, but he'd be lying.]

[ That nightmare…

Reiner doesn't have to ask which one Jean means. Not when Reiner has been zipping around killing creatures using rocks. Not when that nightmare has haunted Reiner, too, even though he's been loathe to address it.

What could he say? How could he say anything at all, when Jean saw Reiner's justifications firsthand?

But now, there's no shying away from things. Reiner sets his jaw. ]

Come on. Let's retreat and take a breather.

[ And talk. ]

[Reiner hasn't been the only one avoiding thinking or talking about it, but the fact is that he couldn't just forget. How could he forget something like that?

Jean almost feels like insisting they can continue, just to drown himself into the violence and not think about it more. But he knows it's better to rest for a bit. Besides, he might freeze again.]

Yeah.

[At least there aren't any sentient fruit nearby so they can retreat easily and find a safe spot to rest.

Not that Jean was looking forward to talking. Mostly because it dealt with remembering the dream more vividly again. But he's pretty sure it was finally time to do so.]

[ Once they find a safe place in the boughs of a sturdy tree, Reiner kneels on a tree limb and checks his gear. There's a nick in one of his blades. Making a face, he uses his Autumn powers to start manipulating the metal, repairing the damage. ]

That last strike was sloppy, [ he admits. ] It's been a while since I've used my gear like this.

[ It's half-idle conversation. Trying to ease some of the tension before digging into the real issue. ]

[Jean also checks his gear. So far there's just a little dulling on the blades he's used. Nothing major. And they were sticky due to peach residue, which he wipes off with a sleeve.]

Are they the blades I gave you or the original ones? If I made them, I'll make a note to make them even sturdier.

[Blacksmith pride of delivering high quality or something.

Not that he sounds very enthusiastic, it's more of an automatic answer machine tone.]

They're the original ones. I think they're my last set of those.

[ The damage mended, Reiner checks the blade's edge. ]

It's weird how few blades I've gone through. Just haven't had to use them like we did back in our world.

We have plenty of other methods of fighting here, so it's at least not surprising we use these less.

[There had been no titans to fight either, which was the main source of their blades breaking. Though Jean did go through quite a few when he fought the werewolves.

He finally decides to lean on the tree trunk and ends up sitting on the branch, it's luckily wide enough for that.]

... sorry, though. I made a mess of the quest.

[ Reiner makes himself comfortable as well, moving from kneeling to sitting. Buying himself a few seconds as he says, ]

This world isn't gonna end if those things get a little break.

[ He meets Jean's eyes, trying to be steady. Trying not to let his guilt take hold. ]

… Was it the rocks?

Edited 2025-05-08 15:50 (UTC)

[Jean is definitely tempted to avert his gaze, but he keeps looking at Reiner instead as he nods awkwardly.]

I didn't think it would become a problem. At first it wasn't, but as things went on my mind just... blanked.

[It's the easiest way he can describe how he felt without going into details of all of the other feelings he was going through.]

[ It's Reiner who is the first to break eye contact, nodding as his gaze drops to the tree limb. He's quiet for a second, lips pressing together. Debating what to say.

What can he say…? Maybe it would be better to keep staying silent. Keep pretending that it was just a meaningless dream.

But he can't do that for long. ]

… I'm sorry. For what I did in that dream.

['I'm sorry'. Such a simple phrase. A hard phrase to say. In a way Jean expected it, especially since this is Reiner they're talking about, but it does also come as a surprise.

After a long silence, he shakes his head.]

We were both immersed in the dream and you just... did what you were supposed to.

[Jean could blame Reiner but that wouldn't help. He was as into the dream as Reiner was, doing what he thought he was supposed to.]

I'm sorry you got dragged into my nightmare.

[ Reiner shakes his head, pulling a knee up toward his chest. ]

If I hadn't been there, it wouldn't have gotten so bad. If I hadn't been encouraging you…

[ He shakes his head, looking away. ]

… I didn't know who you were in it. I mean, I knew you were you—but I thought you were a Warrior.

[Jean looks down, at his shoes or something other than Reiner.]

... I thought I was a Warrior too. Nothing else came across my mind. Just the dread of needing to kill my enemies.

[That feeling wasn't just easily forgotten. He slowly wraps his arms around himself for some comfort. Suddenly he feels kind of cold, but he doesn't bother using his powers to up the temperature.]

I get it now. The pain you were all in when you had to fight us. When you knew you had to one day kill all of us. I felt it. It probably wasn't even a portion of what you went through. Hell, I don't think I could handle any more than what the dream gave me.

[If he had been 'on the other side' he wouldn't have had a choice but to handle all of it somehow. He understands the fear of not being able to do that now, too.]

Your life has been hell.

[ Reiner's lips part as Jean speaks, gold eyes wide and vulnerable. He listens, though he can't quite believe what he's hearing. Listens, and feels tears welling in his eyes, unbidden and uncontrollable. ]

Jean…

[ His voice breaks. ]

[Somehow, Jean isn't surprised Reiner would cry about it. He's just mentally exhausted enough to not scoot over to hug him this time. It was also very different from the holiday party, where he saw Reiner cry last time. This was all different from that.

So instead he just keeps talking. He's good at talking.]

I won't say I'm glad I experienced that nightmare, because I'm not. But I am glad... that I can finally understand. Even if just a little bit.

[Perhaps he's talking too much, but he should probably get these things off his chest now that he has a chance.]

You know I will never forgive you for Marco, but I know now. The amount of pain you must have been back then and after. Even now, seeing him here probably brings the pain up sometimes. I know it does, because it happens to me, too, for different reasons.

[Majority of him was glad to see Marco. He was always glad to see him and that would never change. But sometimes he was hit with the cruel reminder that if they all someday went back home, Marco wouldn't be there.

Jean takes a deep breathe and wipes a stray tear that appeared in the corner of his eye. As if that would help prevent more of them.]

[ As soon as Marco's name is spoken, Reiner flinches. He looks away, blinking the tears from his eyes. Listening, but also struggling to compose himself.

He has no right to cry about this. He's familiar with the pain. It's Jean for whom it is fresh. ]

It hurts, [ Reiner acknowledges. ] But that doesn't excuse anything. I still…

[ He shakes his head. Swallows. ]

You didn't actually kill those soldiers, Jean. I know how it felt, but that wasn't really you.

[Quietly, Jean wonders if it was right or fair to bring up Marco, but at the same time it felt like something he needed to say.

It would always be a sour subject between them. Which is why Jean never really brought it up. Now he did because emotions his were vulnerable and he felt the need to be heard.

Jean was selfish. It wasn't fair on Reiner. But there was really no reversing the damage.

As the subject steers back to the dream, Jean closes his eyes.]

It's hard to shake the feeling. Even if it was a dream, it felt like I was really living in the moment.

[Even if he logically knows he didn't do any of it. That he was just an actor in place of the real deal.]

You noticed that my titan resembled a wolf, right?

Yeah, I noticed.

[ Reiner thinks of the wolflike traits that affect Jean each month. Thinks of the wolves Jean encountered years ago—the ones who caused his death. ]

What did that mean to you?

[He opens his eyes again, but keeps his gaze somewhere further away, past Reiner.]

I think it's connected to what happened in December - when I couldn't control my wolf form. I guess I'm scared that I'll completely lose the ability to control it. That I wake up after fullmoon having done things I didn't mean to.

[Most likely those he deemed 'pack' would be safe, but what about other people? Does he really need to start locking himself up if that happens? It's a sad thought.]

Edited (I mixed up my months) 2025-05-16 19:07 (UTC)

[ Reiner considers that for a few moments. ]

Did you ever figure out what caused it? That loss of control?

The only thing different that time was my rib injury. So I guess it happens when I'm injured enough.

[He doesn't exactly want to test the theory since that would mean injuring himself for Full Moon.]

But the curse keeps changing... evolving I gues.

[ Reiner nearly says, "Then don't get injured." But he bites it back. He knows that Jean can't heal like he can. ]

Have you ever tried to get it removed?

[Rinku makes a face, but can't help but giggle.]

I guess they just lost it, but you'd think they would look for it.

[She uses telekinesis to pick up empty cans and put them in a bag.]

[ Tragically, Reiner's own seasonal powers aren't too handy in cleaning up. (Not unless he wants to lift sections of earth and flip it over.) But at least he has a sturdy pair of gloves! ]

You would think. How'd they even get home like that?

[ Swimsuit bottom-less, he means. ]

Uh... Animal form? Teleport? Spare pants?

[Rinku psychically lifts some coffee cup lids out of the seaweed.]

Why don't people use the recycle?

… You know, when you list all those options, it makes going home pants-less sound more reasonable.

[ He jokes with a smile. ]

I don't know. It's hard for me to imagine not cleaning up after myself.

[ Unless it's, y'know. War and whatnot.

He holds out a bag for Rinku to deposit the coffee cup lids. ]

[Rinku puts the lids in the bag and smiles back.]

I was just thinking 'cause remember that quest where we didn't wanna scare the Bread Dinos? Hijikata-san and I both turned into snakes to get close to them, since they were running away from clothes flapping in the wind, and snakes don't even wear clothes!

That was really clever. I wouldn't have thought to turn into an animal.

[ A Titan, maybe, but not an animal. ]

You think so? It was just the first thing that came to mind!

[Happy noises as she keeps looking for garbage.]

But I bet you've figured stuff out on quests all the time.

[ Reiner hums. ]

Well, a lot of these missions can be solved by turning into a Titan. But that sometimes feels a little like cheating.

I dunno, a power is a power. And you can't fix everything with the same tool, right? Being a Titan probably doesn't help with cleaning the lake! So it's okay if you use it for what it's good at, anyway.

True enough. Although, it'd be nice if it was good for cleaning the lake. None of my Autumn powers are much use right now.

[ Certainly not as useful as her telekinesis. ]

Hm... Autumn can ask animals to do stuff, right? Do you have any fish friends who could help?

[ Reiner hums, considering. ]

I can give it a shot. Let me go ask.

[ He walks to the edge of the shoreline, waves lapping at his boots, and pulls something from his bag: a necklace. As soon as he puts it on, his form changes, turning from human to merman. ]

Be right back.

[ Then off he goes into the lake! ]

[Rinku waves! She gets back to piling garbage into the bags. Occasionally she'll shift into a fish and go pick something up in her mouth... yes, she also has a Mermaid Necklace, but this doesn't require getting items out!]

[ A few minutes later, Reiner reemerges from the lake. He runs his hands through his hair to try and get rid of some of the water, looking like he just stepped off of some merman magazine shoot.

Too bad the effect is spoiled by a few things caught on his fins. ]

I found some fish, [ he announces. ] They're gonna spread the word and start putting things in piles.

[Rinku shifts back to human and giggles, wringing water out of her hair.]

That's great! Oh, should I go merperson too so we can get all the stuff from down there?

That's not a bad idea, [ he says with a smile. ] Not everyone could clean the bottom like we can.

Great! Then let's go!

[Rinku rummages in her bag for a Mermaid Necklace and snaps it on. Her mermaid form and her fish form are night and day -- literally, actually, given the fish looks something like the night sky and her mermaid tail has the same gold-to-orange gradient as her hair. She smiles and dives in to start gathering trash.]

I feel bad for everyone who lives out here and gets all this garbage.

Yeah, [ Reiner agrees as they swim, heading for where garbage has accumulated among the plant life. ] I don't know why people don't clean up after themselves. Or how they make so much trash in the first place.

I dunno either. Maybe they just don't think about it. I know I get distracted a lot, so maybe they just all list their trash!

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may quests

Right in front of his fruit salad | cw/tw: murder related trauma

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Who Made This Big Mess?

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