returnjourneylogs | BACKSTORY: ANOTHER BORDER

BACKSTORY: ANOTHER BORDER

"Slowly, painfully, I realized what I had been reading from the very first words of his journal. My husband had had an inner life that went beyond his gregarious exterior, and if I had known enough to let him inside my guard, I might have understood this fact. Except I hadn't, of course. I had let tidal pools and fungi that could devour plastic inside my guard, but not him. Of all the aspects of the journal, this ate at me the most. He had created his share of our problems―by pushing me too hard, by wanting too much, by trying to see something in me that didn’t exist. But I could have met him partway and retained my sovereignty. And now it was too late."
― Jeff VanderMeer, Annihilation

Introduction

March 23rd – March 31st, 2022
Welcome to the backstory log for the "Another Border" simulation! Here, we play out big moments in our characters' AU histories. We've included a list of ideas below; feel free to experiment and figure out what feels right for your character's past and motivations. Consider what specific moments might have prompted them to venture into Area X!

This log is set before a simulation begins, to give players a head start on ironing out the specifics of their AUs. During this time, Peregrine life will continue as normal.

If you have any questions about the event, please ask here. You can familiarize yourself with simulation basics on our events page.

Ideas

Your first meeting with an important or influential person.
Doing something important for someone.
A time you really screwed someone else over.
A personal loss in your life.
An injury, illness, or similar struggle.
Domestic events: falling in love, getting married, building a home, having a child, navigating a change in a relationship, divorce.
Getting a new job or a promotion.
Discovering a passion.
An important religious or philosophical moment, a moral challenge.
An event that changed how you see the world for the better.
An event that changed how you see the world for the worse.
A sight you saw or place you visited that made you consider your place in the world.
A dark night of the soul.
Learning about the discovery of Area X.
Getting your Area X assignment.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The bell over the coffee shop door rings the same way it always does when she pushes it open-- too cheery, too bright for so early in the morning, as if mocking her for her pathetic addiction to sugar-blasted coffee. But Grace barely takes notice anymore. Too many days' sleeping-in time replaced with early coffee runs before heading to the dreary soul-sucking office that occupied far too much of her life lately. It kept her away from the things she used to prioritize; hobbies, friends, family. Now it's just work, playing a lot of phone tag with increasingly disinterested college friends... and coffee.

"Seriously, Jason, call me back," she tells her phone as she hustles into the ever-lengthening queue in front of the barista with the poorly bleached hair and exhausted expression. "I know you're avoiding me. I'm not mad, I just want to talk about this. Please." She sighs down the line. "I have time after work today. Just... call me, okay? Before you do something you can't take back."

She hangs up her phone and chucks it into her bag, as if burying it underneath the piles of nonsense cluttering it will end up pushing the frustrations away. It doesn't. Grace sighs again, a huff of exasperation let loose. Maybe coffee will do it. Another order taken, another step forward in line. How much longer is this going to take?

How much longer does she have?

There's already routine in the act, popping by on his way over to where he's been assigned when his eyes are feeling heavier than usual. The last thing he needs is zoning out during brief, and despite what his CO thinks, the coffee machine they share with the other support staff on site does in fact only make coffee that tastes like dirt. If he had more wherewithal, he'd get a team to prove the theory for him, but being stationed at the perimeter of Area X means he's nowhere near the makeshift labs anyway.

He's already exhausted the moment he sees the line, but when he's filed himself neatly behind the last occupant, he realizes it's her and can't help the faint flutter the thought brings. She's always tried to hide the way she stares, but after a point, he couldn't help but look and smile back.

She digs through her bag for. Nothing, it looks like. Habit? No, she seems rather down, actually. A shame, when seeing her usually manages to cheer his own dull life up. Should he make a joke? Say hi, at least?

Thankfully the line buys him some time to decide. When she reaches the front, he steps alongside her, catching the attendant's eyes before grinning. "I'll get hers with mine," he explains, lifting his card. Looking to her, then, "What do you want?"

She startles, hearing his voice-- her reaction times dulled by the exhaustion of the morning as well as the sheer unexpectedness. It's him, of course, the guy from the coffee shop. Of course it is, she's in the coffee shop, who else would it be, but it's the guy. The one who's almost always there at the same time she is in the morning, the one she couldn't stop staring at. The one who eventually caught her staring, and instead of being understandably awkward or uncomfortable just kind of smiled and nodded hello. The one she'd wave to, nod back, pretend she wasn't staring at all, definitely continue to stare. The only thing, besides the coffee, she had to look forward to when she got up most mornings.

Which was extremely sad, because she'd never exchanged a single word with him before. Until, apparently, now. There's maybe a full minute of rapid-fire blinking before she realizes she's supposed to order.

"...ah-- venti iced caramel latte?" That is a very abbreviated version of her normal order, which he's probably heard hundreds of times. She knows his by heart, too-- his name, though, not so much.

BACKSTORY: ANOTHER BORDER

for Bucky

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