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glacial_queenInvitations had gone out, letting people know that Karla was planning to take a trip back to Kaeleer. Nothing special, just a short day-long trip, complete with picnic.
Of course, that was nothing special if you didn't know about the kind of picnic Mrs. Beale was capable of putting together with a bit of notice. Or if you weren't impressed with visiting unicorns all day. Whichever.
The portal opened up at the Hall, where the staff was packing up a single Coach with all of the supplies a group that size might need: sweetfeed, sugar cubes, apples, carrots--and provender for the picnickers, too. Guests would find themselves ushered into other Coaches; large wheeled conveyances that were powered by Craft and could be drawn by horses on roads or powered by Craft to travel over the Winds. Karla, Jaenelle, and Lucivar were not there to greet the Fandom folks; the latter two had gone ahead to ready everything on Sceval's end, and the former had vanished that morning, offering apologies and deliberately vague explanations of an errand that needed running.
Not that anyone at the Hall was going to let her absence slow down their timetable any. As soon as the last person was seated and comfortable and the last basket stowed, the Coaches took off, catching the nearby Opal Wind to speed them along.
The ride was on the longish side, lasting about an hour--apologies had been made, but Sceval was a closed Territory and portals were not permitted--but soon enough they were touching down again. This time, there was no extended hike through the woods, the Coaches landed in a large open meadow, next to a cheerful brook. Large blankets were already laid out, and the coachmen clambered down to open the doors and then begin unpacking the mountains of food they'd brought.
There were two people waiting for everyone when they climbed out. One was Karla, the other was a solemn dark-haired girl who looked about eight or nine. She gave the assembled group a tremulous smile and clutched Karla's hand tightly. Karla gave her a fond smile before looking up at her assembled friends.
"Welcome to Sceval," she said, waving with her free hand. "Lucivar and Jaenelle are already out visiting the herd, which you're welcome to do. There's food to eat if you're hungry and plenty of places to explore if you get restless. I didn't, uhh, plan any activities, so hopefully there's enough here to keep you entertained!"
[NFB for off-islandness]
Of course, that was nothing special if you didn't know about the kind of picnic Mrs. Beale was capable of putting together with a bit of notice. Or if you weren't impressed with visiting unicorns all day. Whichever.
The portal opened up at the Hall, where the staff was packing up a single Coach with all of the supplies a group that size might need: sweetfeed, sugar cubes, apples, carrots--and provender for the picnickers, too. Guests would find themselves ushered into other Coaches; large wheeled conveyances that were powered by Craft and could be drawn by horses on roads or powered by Craft to travel over the Winds. Karla, Jaenelle, and Lucivar were not there to greet the Fandom folks; the latter two had gone ahead to ready everything on Sceval's end, and the former had vanished that morning, offering apologies and deliberately vague explanations of an errand that needed running.
Not that anyone at the Hall was going to let her absence slow down their timetable any. As soon as the last person was seated and comfortable and the last basket stowed, the Coaches took off, catching the nearby Opal Wind to speed them along.
The ride was on the longish side, lasting about an hour--apologies had been made, but Sceval was a closed Territory and portals were not permitted--but soon enough they were touching down again. This time, there was no extended hike through the woods, the Coaches landed in a large open meadow, next to a cheerful brook. Large blankets were already laid out, and the coachmen clambered down to open the doors and then begin unpacking the mountains of food they'd brought.
There were two people waiting for everyone when they climbed out. One was Karla, the other was a solemn dark-haired girl who looked about eight or nine. She gave the assembled group a tremulous smile and clutched Karla's hand tightly. Karla gave her a fond smile before looking up at her assembled friends.
"Welcome to Sceval," she said, waving with her free hand. "Lucivar and Jaenelle are already out visiting the herd, which you're welcome to do. There's food to eat if you're hungry and plenty of places to explore if you get restless. I didn't, uhh, plan any activities, so hopefully there's enough here to keep you entertained!"
[NFB for off-islandness]
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-12 02:21 pm (UTC)That stung. That stung a little more than Warren was willing to admit to the little Landen girl that he wanted to just take under his wing and read stories to. Hiding away together while the grownups took care of all the serious problems.
Or, rather, the Blood.
He bit his lip, and then smiled, maybe a bit shakily.
"I'll always come back," he murmured, finally. "Promise."
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-18 11:45 am (UTC)"That's an awful big promise," she said quietly. "'Specially if you don't have Craft."
Because couldn't Craft do anything?
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-18 01:06 pm (UTC)"I don't need Craft in order to keep that promise," he said softly. "The world can be a big, scary, dangerous place, yeah. And I've seen some of the worst of it. I don't have Craft, but I'm still here, aren't I?"
It wasn't entirely fair to say to a child. Especially not one who already understood mortality as thoroughly as she did after what had happened in that Landen village near Agio. But it was as close to the truth as he had the heart to go.
"So long as I'm still alive, I'll come back," he said, after another moment. "And I can be pretty stubborn when it comes to staying alive."
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-19 10:11 am (UTC)Concerns about her mama, who still was pale and weak and sometimes made Lady Karla look worried and shake her head and speak in a low voice that wasn't meant to carry.
But Cora was only nine and didn't have the vocabulary necessary to talk about those things. So she just clung to Warren a little instead. "Because you can fly very fast?" she asked. "Like my bird? And you have sharp claws, now, too."
Rather than being afraid or repulsed by them, Cora looked comforted. He didn't have Craft to keep him safe, but he had something. That meant a lot.
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-19 01:53 pm (UTC)Pop. Pop. Pop.
But it hadn't had nearly as much of an impact on his life as it had on hers.
"Because I can fly very fast, and because I have claws," he agreed. "And I'm learning how to fight if I need to. And I'm careful. You don't have to be Blood to be careful. That's something that anyone can do."
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-02-28 09:03 am (UTC)Like important people or strong people or people with a lot of friends. The kind of people who got to do whatever they wanted and no one said anything.
"If you're not Blood, then does that mean you'll live in a little village, instead of Lady Karla's big, fancy town?" she asked.
...And maybe wondering if that meant he could come live in their village. That would be fun!
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-01 10:36 am (UTC)"No," he said softly. "I might visit the little villages often, but I'll live with Karla. In Glacia. I can't protect and serve from miles and miles away, after all." A beat. "And it's not easy to be with somebody when you're so far apart."
It wasn't like Kaeleer had the internet, or anything.
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-01 10:37 pm (UTC)Forgive her for sounding disappointed, Warren. But it would have been really fun if you'd lived near her! You could have been neighbors and visited each other!
"You love her a lot, don't you. Like the princes in the stories you tell me." A little part of Cora wanted to ask if Lady Karla loved him that much too, but of course she did. He was a landen and she knew. "Will you live happily ever after?"
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-01 11:27 pm (UTC)Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:10 am (UTC)Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:16 am (UTC)He reached out and gave her hair a playful little ruffle. It helped him keep his mind off of the class dynamic that was driving him half crazy the more they spoke.
"Maybe by then, I'll know even more stories."
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:23 am (UTC)Okay, so mostly he sang to his little strawberry toy they'd gotten for him at the same time, but Cora liked to pretend he was singing to her.
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:27 am (UTC)"Does he, now? And do you sing with him, sometimes?"
Singing to birds who sang to strawberries was totally legit.
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:30 am (UTC)Which was a lot of the time, really.
"Sometimes we go outside to sing instead."
Re: Arrive and Mingle in Sceval
Date: 2012-03-02 12:42 am (UTC)Warren, at least, wasn't prone to doing that. But he could guess at how uncomfortable life in a birdcage would be.
From experience, of course.