awashlogs | DECEMBER CATCH-ALL LOG

[Quest info here!]

[Who else was he going to tag for this particular quest? He needed someone with strength, someone with courage, and...you know...someone yellow. Izuku seemed like the best choice to chop down a tree and haul it back into the center of town, but there's one thing about the quest that he finds a little unusual. He waits for Izuku to arrive, hands in his pockets and eyeing the trees skeptically. They probably won't have to go that far.]

Hey. [It's said as Izuku approaches.] Do you think we're supposed to decorate a tree and then take it to the spiders as an offering or what?

[Quest info here!]

[Usually when he ventures into the forest he likes to take the time to think and be alone. On the other hand, lately he's gone into the woods with Valvatorez more than most people, so it made sense to contact him and ask for his accompaniment in this particular task. It's only when they're already walking in the woods that Percy asks the question that's on his mind.]

So you've never carved a pumpkin before Chroma, I know that, but what about Christmas? Do you guys do Christmas at all?

[Quest info here!]

[It's been a long time since he's really seen Maya. In a way, he's sort of ashamed of himself for not being great at following up, but at the same time he thinks about the fact that there's been a lot happening that's kept his attention in a certain direction.

On the other hand, he knows it's an excuse and he thinks a lot about what his mirror self said before he'd punched it and shattered the glass. His hand's healed now, but his eyes are stripped of their natural color and he's already hoping to avoid that particular conversation.

As it is, he texts Maya and arrangements are made for the two of them to venture into the woods and find a bell. It's the promise of a wish that has his attention and he's bouncing on the balls of his feet by the time Maya arrives to the edge of the woods. He doesn't turn his head very much, just enough to confirm it's her before he grins slightly.]

Ready for a hike?

[Val just sincerely likes being around people. So if somebody asks him to come along, he will certainly show up. Unless he's out with other people and he doesn't have his laptop. Those fussy things.]

Why would we celebrate Christmas?

[What the hell is Christmas.]

[Izuku, number one hero hopeful, and helpful muscle on call at your service. Even with the new immunity to cold, Izuku still has a coat on, though he's left his scarf behind this time.]

Decorating a tree's part of the Christmas tradition, isn't it? We should take the tree back to one of our houses. Maybe the spiders will come to the tree once we're done decorating it.

[FFS.]

Because Christmas is pretty universal, I think. You didn't have any kind of celebration where you guys decorated and exchanged presents and stuff? [Come on, Val. It's easy to walk and talk at the same time, at least.]

[???

That's the only emotion that's registering on Val.]

Why would demons ever do something like that? Demons tend to keep to themselves. [Which is what Val does not do, actually. But usually the more powerful the demon the fewer others stay around them.

Actually, now that he's stuck with Fuuka in the Netherworld, she might demand Christmas.]

It is where we're from. I don't know how it works where you guys are from. [He kind of misses home once again because even in their apartment Sally always made the holidays a little better even when things were miserable. They'd decorate a tree and she'd bring home Christmas candy and he'd fail at wrapping presents but he'd try anyway.

...Chroma sucks, text it. The cold immunity is nice and he's in his swim team hoodie, the walk keeping him warm enough that he isn't too fussed. Gray eyes examine the area around him and he shrugs in reply.]

Anyway wouldn't that just be inviting the spiders back into town? [There's a slight grin, but he's also kind of serious here.]

I have a really hard time believing you have ever kept to yourself, but okay, sure. [SOUNDS! FAKE! But he isn't too terribly surprised.]

But Christmas is pretty important to a lot of people. It's like...religious or whatever, but the more common celebrations usually involve exchanging presents, being with people you care about, and decorating Christmas trees which is exactly what we're doing here. My mom used to put all kinds of lights and glass ornaments on ours.

[...Val doesn't know about Christmas, and for a moment Percy pauses before he grins just a little.] Then again, Christmas is also when Santa Claus visits.

Just because I wanted company doesn't mean there were people who wanted mine.

[That's just how it was as a tyrant.

He listens as the walk forward and- why does he never get to hear about the good parts of humanity. He likes that. He wants that. Maybe not all of it, but being with the people he cares about sounds great right now.

And again... he's thrown.]

What is Santa Claus? [It sounds foreign to him.]

...I guess. [Haha. He...gets that sentiment and he doesn't comment. Sometimes that kind of thing is distressing.]

Santa Claus though...that guy would be great company. Santa Claus is this jolly old man who lives in the north pole, and he spends most of the year making a list of all of the good and bad kids in the world. Good kids get presents, bad kids get coal or they get nothing at all. And then once his list is finished and he has all of the presents he needs, he flies out on Christmas Eve delivering gifts for kids to open up on Christmas morning. People write letters to him all the time and everything to tell him how they've been good that year.

[He's too old to believe in Santa but...he's maybe thinking about a baby sister that's on the way who's going to learn about all of this someday. May as well share with someone else unfamiliar.]

[At the very least Val is quiet when somebody else has a monologue that they want to go through. Unlike some other, ruder people he knows. Santa Claus seems like a strange old man but then Percy gets toe the very end.]

I've never heard of anyone doing that. But he seems to work on a belief system. The more people believe in him the more powerful he gets. Because so many children believe in him he's able to do this work.

He's just an angel, lad.

[That shouldn't be delivered with such surety, but here he is.]

[He raises an eyebrow.] What? No, dude, angels are a totally different thing. I haven't met many of them or anything but I've heard about some of them. Do angels only exist if people believe in them?

Angels exist either way. They are powered by humanity's belief and prayers. When humans don't believe in them, then angels are much weaker than they could be. That energy is called awe energy.

Demons use fear energy generated from when we scare humans. [ He's pretty sure he's talked about the demon version with Percy. Monster Inc. ] It's much less stable than eating sardines.

Absolutely!

[ Maya's as chipper as always, lightly bouncing from foot to foot as well. She'd had a good time hunting down a Sphinx last month; nothing's going to stop her from tackling a bell in some woods now. ]

Sorry to keep you waiting, Percy.

[He has. He just didn't think about the fact that there could be something in reverse for the less-demonic versions in Val's world.]

And I thought you just liked sardines in general. [He's teasing but that makes a lot of sense.] Can angels and demons feed energy off of each other? [At least their path in the woods is clear as they venture further in. He's determined to find the perfect tree.]

Are you kidding? This was nothing. [It's good-natured and light and he turns forward to begin walking into the forest.] I just got here myself, so you're right on time. It's just good to see you again. Thanks for agreeing to come with me.

I do.

[He likes them, actually. They're delicious and full of useful nutrients. If he can't drink human blood he can eat and drink sardine's.

His instinct is to say no, but honestly...]

Yes. Once my party, which was made up of mostly demons, prayed to an angel to power her robot to save the moon. That worked out nicely, though Fenrich did complain about praying.

[He doesn't mean to, but yeah, he laughs.]

If anyone else had ever said that sentence to me I don't know if I'd believe it. What was wrong with the moon?

Nothing was wrong with the moon. The aliens wanted to use it to crash it into the Earth to destroy it.

[Terrible. If "God" was asking them than Val is going to fight "God" again.]

Right. That makes total sense. [He's just going to leave it at that because that's fair.]

So anyway. What we need to do here is pick the best tree possible, cut it down, and take it back to decorate it. I have no idea what kind of spiders we're dealing with here but that's the best plan I've got.

[How much do you really want to know about Disgaea. It probably isn't that much.]

What are we decorating it with? Baubles?

Of course! This seems more like a tradition for the town than anything I'm familiar with, so I'm really interested in seeing what happens with it.

[ Maya's curiosity never actually sleeps. But she falls into step right beside him. ]

I got the same impression. [Into the woods they go. He's on guard as usual, but he keeps his stance relaxed enough to not look like he's going to bolt.] The other quests this month are all pretty Christmas-y but this one's new. I've never heard of wishing bells before. Think they'll actually come true?

I think you can decorate trees with whatever you want. I've seen people pick baubles and beads and berries and other kinds of ornaments. We'll have to work with what we have here.

DECEMBER CATCH-ALL LOG

IZUKU, QUEST 38

VAL, QUEST 38

MAYA, QUEST 39

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