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agentlelog2019-03-19 07:00 pm
thestewards) wrote in agentlelog2019-03-19 07:00 pm
event: a gentle festival
We wander 'round in circles and we talk in squares
► The OOC plotting post for this event can be found here.
► Direct all questions to the mods at this link.
► All NPCs except for Queen Fayura can be met at this event. Use their top-levels in the plotting post if you'd like a thread with them for this event. For your convenience, you can reach out here: Allairavar, Verim, Loren, Niall, Grejor, and Raya. They may choose to wander into your threads should you not plan anything out with them, too.
► Direct all questions to the mods at this link.
► All NPCs except for Queen Fayura can be met at this event. Use their top-levels in the plotting post if you'd like a thread with them for this event. For your convenience, you can reach out here: Allairavar, Verim, Loren, Niall, Grejor, and Raya. They may choose to wander into your threads should you not plan anything out with them, too.
PARTY PLANNING
Dawn arrives and brings with it another group of Strangers. Unlike the first group, you wake to a comfortable bed and cheery birdsong. Unlike the second group, you are expected. As you rise, a vase with spring flowers appears on the table beside your bed. Tucked beneath the vase, you find a message of welcome inviting you to join the Queen and her residence for breakfast.
Following directions given by footmen throughout the residence’s winding halls, you make your way toward breakfast, only to find that breakfast is a beautiful disaster.
Maids and footmen rush around you, choreographed by a red haired witch standing on a chair in the middle of the entry hall. She wears an apron and a look of fierce concentration. Beside her, a list floats in the air. Pinned to her hair, her Tiger Eye Jewel flashes and swirls with power. You suspect you should just sneak out, but she’s too observant.
“You there!”
You freeze. Maybe you had a mother with eyes in the back of her head who always knew where you were. Maybe that was a teacher or some other kind of mentor. Regardless, you know this voice. You know this tone. This is a person harried and pressed, and she probably doesn’t care that you haven’t eaten breakfast yet.
“Yes, you! Stranger!”
You turn toward her and abruptly find your arms full of banners. Closer inspection will reveal each flag sewn to the cord bears a different symbol: one for the Guilds (a hexagon with circles at each joint), the Ebon Council (a pair of Jewels side by side), and Fayura’s Court (a strange, spiraling spear against a mountain peak); a sun and a moon; a cloud flush with rain and lightning; and a sprouting plant.
“Make sure those get hung on the eaves outsi—no, I haven’t seen the Lady, Carlisle, but if you—”
A Blood male has distracted her, but you’re left with the distinct impression that if you don’t hang these banners, the Head Housekeeper will hunt you down (you would be correct). Not to worry: you’re not the only Stranger living in the residence, and it takes you little time to locate someone else with an equally bomb-blasted look on their face to help you help the residence prepare for the spring festival! There are flags to be hung, simple breads to be baked, stalls to be built in the Bazaar, and so much more. Your hands work, and so you work.
HOPE BLOOMS ETERNAL
At sundown, the festival begins in earnest: people take to the streets in every section of the city, pouring into the Old Town Bazaar with rosy cheeks and broad smiles. The spring festival will last for the next six days. Three days to celebrate, and three days to work.
All around the city, banners hang from and between homes and businesses. Some fluttering banners bear flags emblazoned with only the Guilds’ symbol or the Council’s or the Court’s, and there are far more Guild banners than any other—a result of the Strangers’ providing support to the Guilds no doubt. But mixed among them are flags bearing both the Queen’s mountain, too, just not as many, and the only place the Council’s flags hang are over Blood homes.
As you make your way through the Bazaar, you hear…
A young landen man: I’ve heard the Queen is going to honor the Earth Mother and Father Sky during planting in a few days, and—
His companion, an older woman: The Blood honor only death and their Darkness. What does she care for our beliefs?
A Blood farmer: …kind of gift. Don’t quite know what to make of a Queen giving anything.
A landen farmer: Anything to help the crops grow. The Guilds mean well, but the land is overworked.
An excited little girl: —ride the unicorn, mommy! There’s a unicorn and a dragon and a centaur and a—
Near the pavilion at the heart of the Bazaar, the landen Guilds have erected technological wonders. A carousel of glittering bronze and metal lights up the night with rainbow colors. Music spills out of it, cheerful and bright as its three rings turn in lazy revolutions. Unicorns and dragons and centaurs and mermaids stand as mounts for the young and old. Nearby, the Elektriline Guild prepares a light show, projecting fantastical shapes in dazzling colors on the sides of buildings and into the night sky itself. Around the park to the south of the Bazaar, the Transport Guild has set up a racing track for unicycles and tricycles.
Booths with games line the streets. Knock down the glass bottles! Throw the ring around the spoke! Win prizes to dazzle your loved ones and delight your children!
While food has certainly been scarce, the bakeries and charcuteries have brought out their best fare at surprisingly reasonable prices. This is a time to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring, and celebrate the city will.
While the Blood dress in nice clothes, the landens bring out costumes. As is tradition, some dress as Father Sky, wearing crowns of gold and flowing robes of white. Others cloak themselves in the vestments of Mother Earth: wearing costumes of green and brown, painting vines over their faces to disguise themselves and crowning themselves in garlands of crocuses and tulips. Whispers through the Bazaar say the Queen is among them, disguised as Mother Earth.
SOWING THE FUTURE
The fourth morning of the festival, the entire city rises with the dawn. Over the past three days, a strange rumor wound its way through Draega: Fayura will join the planting to give a gift unique to the Queens of the Blood.
Members of the Ebon Council and the Guilds organize groups, directing the bodies of the entire city to go to this farm or that as they step out from behind Draega’s tall, protective walls. But before you are dismissed to help till the land or plant grain seeds, you join a larger crowd at a nearby farm. The Blood airwalk, standing above the landen crowds to gain a better view.
At the head of a recently tilled field, Queen Fayura stands with a landen farmer. He grasps his hat, wringing it fiercely in his hands as her Steward, Master of the Guard, and Consort stand guard behind her. Dressed in greens and browns, crowned in a garland of crocuses that drips dried stalks of wheat down her hair, she kneels before a bucket. She calls in a knife. When she speaks, she doesn’t raise her voice, but Craft projects it across the assembled onlookers. “Blood sings to blood. This is a gift: freely offered,” she says. “Freely given.” Bright red blood blooms across her palm as she drags the blade through skin. Vanishing the knife, she closes her fist and squeezes, allowing the blood to fall into the bucket of water and mix with it.
Her Consort heals her wound when she holds out her hand, and then he steps back. She rises, picking up the bucket and taking hold of the ladle on the ground beside it. Her voice lifts in song. Though the language is unrecognizable, the melody is beautiful and full of the vibrant hope of spring. She sings as she walks along the furrows, sprinkling bloodied water on the land. Blood and Strangers alike feel the pull of magic as something in the earth itself unfurls, shuddering awake at the call of the Queen’s blood.
For the next three days, nearly every man, woman, and child in Draega assists with the planting. Children do small, simple tasks, and the older children watch over the younger ones. The adults drag plows through the warming land and spread seeds in the furrows the plows create. Queen Fayura visits each field in turn, and planting doesn’t begin until she’s sprinkled her water over the earth. Throughout the day, her vibrant song echoes around the city, and a few Blood girls, too young to yet wear a Jewel, take up the song and hum along with it.
You would do well to help the farmers. You may not have a strong arm or strong back, but there’s planting to be done and people to organize, feed, and care for.
AIR TIME
Whether you catch the news on a Far-caster in the city or you’re spinning the dial on your own device, you’ll hear…
etiquette with evandra and aren
[Evandra's voice is a little bit rough and a little bit husky, the kind of voice that gives bad ideas to young men and headaches to fathers.] …do we make of a Warlord Prince’s reaction to his Queen’s blood?
[Aren, whose voice is typically chipper and bright, sounds today much more seriously than usual.] It’s a dangerous thing. Elemental, you might say. Like a storm. Every Prince is dangerous when his Lady’s blood spills.
[Evandra:] So, are we in danger when the Queen does whatever ritual she’s doing?
[Aren:] No. The Blood put great importance on, well, blood. It’s the memory’s river. Power sings in blood. It carries strength and Craft. I’ve never seen a Queen do anything like this before, but her Princes—and her court—treat it like ceremony. And it probably is.
the weather
[A soft-spoken man’s voice rumbles out of the Far-caster. He’s pleasant to listen to, with a soothing cadence to his voice.] …continued rains with intermittent sunshine over the next few days as the days grow steadily warmer. Remember that rains coming out of Askavi are dangerous to your health, and salves for lesions from exposure can be purchased from the Medicos at…
the news
[Garret speaks at his brisk pace, hurried and harried as though he has too much to say and not enough time to say it.] A new development in the story of the young landen man who shot and killed Councilwoman Vera last month: the Strangers have influenced the Queen to bring together a Tribunal not of other Queens—
[Wilt, as usual, is put upon and nasally.] As though there are many of those to go around.
[Garret, continuing as though Wilt didn’t interrupt him:] —but of the landen man’s peers, both landen and Blood.
[Wilt, sighing:] That’s correct, Garret. It seems this Tribunal of three landens and three Blood will listen to the young man’s account, as well as the stories of other witnesses, and determine a suitable punishment. This will be presented to the Queen, and she will carry out the sentence.
[Garret:] Looking now to the warming weather and what that means for trade with the mercenary settlements outside of Draega—
no subject
[Mordred's not even sure how she missed it, but sure enough, she hasn't tried that one yet. Might've been obscured from her vision earlier when she was wolfing down meat pies at one of the other stalls close to it.]
Going to have to try them now though. See if they're better than the ones over there.
[She'll point out another nearby stand and apparently the person running it definitely remembers her, judging from the momentary look of panic on their face when Mordred points their booth out.]
no subject
she almost wants to ask mordred to take her to this other booth, to see what would happen if the owner would react. then she realises she really as been hanging out with penelope and undyne far too much and squashes the urge. ]
Excellent. I can recommend you some of my favourites from it. [ in fact- hang on- zita begins to look through her bag, in search of something now. ] I think I still have some of their goods on me. Do you want to try one and see if it'll be to your liking?
no subject
Yeah sure.
[Wait, there's something else she should say, right?]
If you don't mind, anyways.
[Saying tank you still hasn't really become a habit with her. Sometimes sure, but she hasn't gotten to the point where it's a normal thing.]
no subject
unlike some shifters she knows whenever supper is being shared in the dining hall. but she digresses- ) ]
Of course not. I don't mind at all. [ she made the offer and is sincere in it. since spending more time with mordred (that's outside of perilous and dangerous situations), zita has found herself becoming more comfortable with her.
and zita finally finds the sweet bread piece she had gotten from the booth she visited earlier, now offering it to mordred with a smile. ] I hope you enjoy it!
no subject
Anyways, she'll take what's offered and takes a bite, her face breaking out into a smile while she chews it.]
Hey, this is really good!
[Remember that thing about questionable manners? Because she still has food in her mouth while saying that.]
no subject
(though she does lean away. just a bit. in order to avoid food splattering on her hard-earned clothes.) ]
Would you like to get more? It'll be on me. [ over the last few months here in the city, zita has made it a point to save the allowance she's been given and do extra chores around the residence in exchange of some money. she thinks she can indulge her and others for the festival.
(the keyword here is 'thinks.' ]
no subject
[Zita, this might be a mistake.]
no subject
Not a problem at all. Let's go get you some food then.
[ and zita happily takes mordred to where the booth is, gesturing for her to begin ordering what she wants.
rip zita's budget for the festival. rip the poor booth owner as they ready their products, looking at the two ladies with polite interest to see what will be asked for. ]
no subject
But as far as the booth owner goes, they're doomed, as Mordred starts ordering anything that looks or sounds good, which is probably most of their stock.]
no subject
both the booth owner and zita share a confused and slightly frightened look with one another, wondering if mordred is being serious or not.
... but no. she's seriously. she's really serious.
zita takes a deep breath and commits to her promise. when the booth owner tilts their head in question, she nods and does her best to smile at their even more shocked face. it'll pretty much cause a big dent in her spendings for the festival - and her spendings for anything miscellaneous, period - but zita prides herself in keeping promises so.
the person manning the booth begins getting the orders ready, stumbling about almost as if in a daze all the while.
... will that be all, ma'am?, asks the booth owner, who is clearly hoping for a yes because they don't think they have enough stock to last them the entire festival if this keeps up. ]
no subject
[Actually wait, she'll think about this for a second before looking over at Zita.]
Hey wait...
[For a second, it might seem like she's realized she's over ordered, but only for a second.]
Almost forgot to ask, but did you want me to order for you too?
no subject
nonsense- maybe it's a trick of the light or, perhaps, the way she quickly throws her hands up and shakes her head vigorously. ]
N-No thank you! [ she adds, to explain herself, ] I'm- I'm not a big eater, so I've already had my fill by now. Please, enjoy yourself. It's the least I can do for you.
[ the booth owner, still gathering up the produces, barely holds back their sigh of relief. they're certain they're going to get eaten out of their booth before the day's end. ]
no subject
Still, she can't shake the feeling something's amiss here even if she's not really sure what.]
All right then. Yeah, that's good for now.
[Who knows how much she would've ordered otherwise?]
no subject
and also for what it's worth- knowing mordred would enjoy the food is enough for zita. she's happy someone is going to truly enjoy it, since zita herself doesn't have much of an appetite to fully appreciate the offerings of the festival.
discount, the vendor owner says out of the blue, for buying... mass bulk, ladies. ]
Of course- Thank you. [ zita, while feeling bad for the vendor's guilt-ridden generosity, isn't going to let this pass by. ] Ah.... Do you need help in carrying all of those things?
[ it'll either take up both of her arms or one of her arms, if mordred is feeling particularly ambitious. ]
no subject
[Because it's not Mordred if she doesn't try to bit off more than she can chew. Possibly literally today given all the food purchased.]
But you can help if you want. If you don't mind, I figure we'll leave a couple of them at the Residence. Would be nice to have a decent breakfast for once.
[She can and would eat it all herself, but she figures she can maybe leave a couple of packages for some other people.]