festivals and mur--ahem, investigations 🎊🔍

[beleos]

COMMUNION WITH YIMA

After given some time for recovery and for Yima to hear reports of what transpired at the Tree of Life last month, a Communion message gently flows through the minds of each Shard-Bearer. They will have to choose to accept this message, and once they do, they will be greeted by Yima’s voice resonating pleasantly in their heads. She first apologizes for their harrowing experience with the Dryad, and that she hadn’t anticipated such a violent reaction from the Tree; she believes that their experiences point to an imbalance within the Tree itself, most likely brought about by the soon-to-come arrival of the Oracles.

She has spoken with Cyrus, and they have jointly decided that an investigation into the matter - and potentially the destruction of the Dryad - may be required to purge its influence from the Tree. Yima requests that any who would willingly seek out the Dryad volunteer to do so and will be outfitted with a ward against any tampering to prevent them from falling into the creature’s clutches a second time. It will take her a bit to fashion enough of these wards - but she anticipates being ready toward the end of the month.

She concludes her message with another heartfelt apology for your suffering, that she would not have sent any into such a situation she believed were truly dangerous. That being said, she takes responsibility for your ordeal and asks that if there is anything she can do in recompense, you have but to ask.

Yima will be available for Communion chatter here!

FESTIVAL OF REMEMBRANCE - HIGHSTORM

Takiltu is a month cycle the natives of Kenos regard with some amount of reverence and a hearty helping of excitement: the first part of the month (November) is spent reflecting on and celebrating the differing cultures and worlds each Kenosian represents. The second part of the month (December) is spent celebrating unity and togetherness, to come together with friends and family, to be kind to others and share in one’s wealth - whether that comes in the form of knowledge, monetary gains, or the exchange of gifts and one’s time.

Each city celebrates differently, the flavor of their festivals a reflection of their people.

In Highstorm, the first thirty days of Takiltu are spent in Remembrance. The city is decorated with string lights, paper lanterns, candles, and torches to illuminate the streets in beautiful colors and shimmering magical illusory shapes. The focal point of the festival takes place in The Court, where the reflecting pool has been especially decorated with arrangements of flowers and lights. Festival stands erected around the Courtyard peddle paper lanterns as well as refreshments, fanciful decorative items, and enchanted jewelry that is said to make one’s recollections of the past temporarily clearer.

The pool itself is the main attraction, here; citizens who approach its waters and gaze into its depths will find its normal abilities to reflect memories enhanced. The images are surreal for their clarity, vivid - and normally, one is requested to look into the eyes of those most precious to them whose souls remain lost, to pay homage to their memory and sacrifices, and to wish them rebirth in the new world to come. A purchased lantern is then lit and sent skyward where it floats into the moonlight, joining the others hovering above.

But this year, there is an addition to the usual fanfare. Emet-Selch has been asked to assist with the festival; as long as he is given permission, he can recreate the memory displayed in the reflecting pool. Yima has granted him a temporary blessing which enhances his natural creation abilities - a gift for their people she is grateful for. Your character can choose what it is they see in the water - whether it’s a place, a person, or the feelings of a certain point and time, he will temporarily recreate it around you. Everyone will be able to see this conjuring and interact with it while it is functional. It will last between 15 to 30 minutes before dissolving into beads of light that slowly trickle skyward before disappearing. You’ll be told to light a lantern, send it adrift, and that this will give peace to the part of you and your Shard that surely aches. But does it…?

Elsewhere in Highstorm, the High Theater has been painstakingly decorated and aglow with magical floating motes of light; the interior has been transformed into something of an Art Gallery. The pieces within are dedications to parts of worlds long gone, as well as the people in them; some are beautifully painted landscapes of exquisite, far-away places beyond the imagination. Some are more mundane and familiar snapshots of life in a home world not too different from your own. There are portraits of families, loved ones, and those the Zenites long for most. This is their time to mourn, to grieve, and to appreciate their pasts - the pasts that will lead them to a brighter future, one day. They must move on into the future, but treasuring that which came before is equally important to them.

Should you touch any of the motes of light that are around the art pieces decorating the Gallery, you will find yourself able to feel, hear, see, and taste a piece of the world the piece represents. Some of these are warm gatherings over a dinner table with family; others are heart-wrenching expressions of loss and bitterness and pain. Be cautious which you choose. Oh, and do be careful not to stand too closely with someone else when you touch one, or one accidentally touches you - the experience is absolutely contagious through Communion.

CELEBRATION OF CHERISHMENT - SPRINGSTAR

While Highstorm’s Festival of Remembrance is a more demure and reflective time, Springstar takes a much different approach to the season. In true Meri nature, the Celebration of Cherishment encapsulates celebrating life in all forms - and that means parties! The Psychagogía is the main hub of excitement considering, but festivities can be found in almost every single district of Springstar. Wherever you go, something is happening and someone is trying to rope you into having a good time.

The city has been decorated with bright and colorful multi-purpose magical ivy-like vines that sprouts buds that bloom over the course of the month into gorgeous flowers. These flowers are considered sacred, and their blooming is a momentous time of joy and good fortune. Each flower is left intact; disturbing one is tantamount to a war crime by the natives, so don’t get observed if you try to pluck one!

The Psychagogía is incredibly lively, teeming with people and events; almost every venue is peddling some kind of ‘Cherishment’ celebratory sale or discount. The first portion of the month includes what the locals call “the meri-ment” (and seem quite chuffed about that pun), in which Kenosians are encouraged to go bar hopping and taste the wide variety of specialty ales and liquor unkegged only around this time of year. Participants are highly encouraged to share stories of their worlds and cultures, to tell those they mingle with tales of the worlds they will one day return to and why they’re special, unique - to celebrate their one-day return.

Alongside this comes a great deal of outdoor grilling, fresh meats and vegetables sending tantalizing scents everywhere you go once the evening hours arrive. Some of these food and drinks can cause… interesting… effects if you consume them in excess, especially at the Emotional Damage - so try to show restraint. It would be a bit embarrassing to find yourself strangely infatuated with the first person you lay eyes on after your fifth night out on the town, or feeling compelled to express warm feelings aloud you wouldn’t normally commit to another. Luckily, it only lasts a short period of time - but beware the wicked hangover afterward. Strangely enough, if you’re suffering, you feel oddly compelled to seek out a little TLC from someone else - someone with whom you might have some unresolved feelings toward, positive or negative. Is it longing? Anger? Jealousy? Unspoken affections? Love? Whatever it is, you're more likely to seek them out for some care.

At the Coliseum, nightly brawls between Meris take place and the usual assortment of monsters are temporarily taken out of offer. This part of the festivities is one where each Kenosian is encouraged to settle any differences or misgivings with others and to get it out of their system, cleansing them of bad mojo - “leave it in the ring,” as it were. Despite beating each other bloody at times, most combatants willingly stop before it gets too serious and fighting to the death is not permitted. You must embrace your adversary before you leave, and your ‘bad blood’ will be considered purged and settled so you can start anew.

The Empório district is celebrating consumerism, because of course it is! All the usual goods are on a considerable discount, and for a brief time, gardening tools and supplies are free! The reason for this is that Springstar’s citizens are encouraged to plant one seedling in the gardens in Katoikitikós once the flowers lining the city have gone into full bloom. It is said this honors gods across cultures and time as well as invites good fortune. You are encouraged to plant a seedling in a group or pairing, as space is limited - and there are superstitions regarding this togetherness resulting in more favorable results. Should you plant a seedling with someone else, you might indeed find that something is beginning to blossom between you… Based on your Aspects, you might find yourselves feeling closer and more connected - or repulsed depending on your compatibility. This effect will last through the month after planting. Should you check on the seedling later, its health will be reflected in the state of your relationship. Friends will find the little plant thriving; enemies will find it is sickly and dying.

For those Shard-Bearers who have already harmonized with the Meridian or who have quarters in Heliopolis, you will find the communal meals much more lavish and indulgent than usual. There may even be a taste of home waiting for you among the spreads on offer, or some comfort food you haven’t had in a while. It is encouraged to share anything to your taste - or even to share why it is meaningful to you via Communion. Or you can just eat. You do you, man.

Once the flowers have bloomed and the festivities reach their peak, one might find the city loud and boisterous and sleep a little more difficult to come by. Springstar is absolutely thriving and alive - and you, too, feel more invigorated and energetic despite any lack of zzz’s. Should you leave the city, however, this effect will vanish and you might find yourself unnaturally fatigued and in need of more rest than is customary. Returning to Springstar will slowly build up your stamina again. This effect lasts until the end of the month.

THE MYSTERY OF ALENROUX

Once celebrations are in full-swing in the cities, some characters (i.e., any characters that choose to participate in this prompt) will be contacted by Cyrus or Yima, depending on their faction or whichever they feel a stronger inclination towards if they are currently Unharmonized. Both will explain that there’s something that they’d like you to investigate, but also to prepare and be careful, since this request doesn’t come without danger… A Shard has been lost in Alenroux, and they both hope you’ll be able to retrieve it.

MERIDIAN

“I’ve gotten word that a Zenith Shard-Bearer was sent to Alenroux a little bit before you arrived, and they haven’t come back yet. Normally, none of our business, but based on what some of the farmers have been saying, I think they’ve gotten hit by Discord. If it gets high enough, well… You don’t really have your mind anymore. We can help them through Purification. Even if it’s just for long enough to calm them down, it’s better than them being trapped in madness. It might be easier to dissipate them first, though, then Purify their Shard. They were last seen heading to the Northern forests. Let me know what I can give you to help, and make sure to help each other. Good luck.”

ZENITH

"Please heed my request, though I do not ask this of you lightly... One of the Zenith's children has been lost among the fields of Alenroux come nightfall and I fear the worst has befallen them. There are dangerous elements attracted to the presence of a soul, and the likelihood our brethren has been lost... it is great. Seek out the Shard - and if you are able to retrieve it, please do so. If it has suffered corruption too great to be saved or would place you in too great a danger to take back, then... I trust you to make the merciful choice. I place this in your hands and will give you whatever you require to see it through. Look out for your fellow Zenith and work together, as I do not want to lose more of you. Be well."

Both factions will offer their recruits access to standard weaponry and armor/protective clothing. If a character asks for more, they’ll be given a weapon or a piece of armor with minor magical properties which would normally cost 1 AC token to purchase. Magical weapons are on loan however. If your character takes these and/or chooses to keep it, please note this in your Committed Actions! If they choose to keep standard weaponry, Cyrus/Yima will just be disappointed in your dishonesty. :(

When you arrive during the day cycle, you’ll also find horses and magic hoverboards to use (they go the same speed tbh), because heading North to the forests is a bit of a trek, and you might not make it there in time on foot! As the sun starts to set, you’ll see the people in Alenroux start to leave, going clearly your opposite direction. Once night falls (Nov. 9th OOC), it doesn’t take long for things to change.

There’s just a sliver of a crescent moon in the sky, which makes the rolling hills and forests much more ominous than they were during the day. And as the stories say, it only takes an hour or two before you start to run into strange creatures. Closer to the Cornerstone, there are indeed strange creatures, and while they may not all look scary, they might present different kinds of dangers such as…

• A light in the dark looks like a fairy, but stare at it too long and you’ll find yourself hypnotized by a ghastly fish will lead you to a body of water to drown you.
• An innocuous puddle may form up into a mass of corrosive goo, complete with the bones and items of the last person it came across. When you slice it, it simply creates a copy of itself, so hopefully you realize this before you’re surrounded.
• A strange straw poppet (sans pins, of course) that possesses you once you touch it and will use your body to try and fight anyone else while your consciousness is trapped inside the doll. To be freed, you only have to destroy the doll, but you’ll feel the pain of how its destroyed even if you don’t bear any injuries from it.

However, as you get closer to the Northern forests, they become significantly more fearsome…

• With a roar, a massive, multiheaded beast descends, and each of its mouths is perfectly capable of taking a bite out of you. Watch out for the snake’s head in particular, since its venom will cause you to hallucinate your worst fears.
• As you come face to face with an odd creature, bioluminescence lights up on its skin, and the spins on its back quiver with a sound like a rattlesnake’s. As the spines quiver, you find it exceptionally difficult to take your eyes off them and move as it stalks closer slowly. You can fight blind, right?
• Diving in and out of larger shadows like its water is a slimy beast that’s incredibly fast. Its teeth may be small, but its tail is a razor-sharp whip that could remove a limb if you’re not careful.

These are just examples, however. There are many creatures lurking the wilds of Alenroux, so feel free to create your own monsters with unique effects.

It's a difficult trek North, and you may be tired from hours of running, fighting, or both… But eventually, a few people do find what they were looking for. They might have even missed it, if not for how their Shards suddenly felt like they were burning. From the shadows, a twisted creature of roots and lights which what looks like many crystals in a glowing mass appears and one of its eyes locks on you. It looks like now is your chance.

NOTES

Weather summary for the first 30 days of Takiltu (NOV & DEC):

Highstorm is in late fall, early winter season. Some flurries may occasionally fall and it is getting considerably cold out there! Bundle up!

Springstar is in the throes of early summer; the weather is climate and pleasantly warm for outdoor celebrations (but not sweltering). There are occasional afternoon showers, but they don’t last very long.

Notable city changes:

If you wander the Markets in Highstorm, you might notice some of the peddlers seem a bit wary of you. Hm, guess something happened around here! Probably totally unrelated, but Silco and Vander (or anyone with them) will be treated with nervous suspicion.

Similarly, if you're traveling with Set (or you're Set) in Springstar, you might occasionally find yourself getting strange looks. Ask Set why.

Faction updates:

There are no explicit changes in faction behavior at this time. This will be a staple in all future event write-ups to catalogue the fluidity of the conflict as it progresses, though, so we're including it here for posterity!

Event Notes:

The Reflecting Pool in the Courts of Highstorm can be observed normally with no addtional effects or can bring your memory to vivid life thanks to the help of Emet-Selch (and Yima). If you grant him permission (which can be handwaved), he will breathe life into whichever memory you have chosen to view! If this includes any NPC’s or interactive elements, you will be responsible for playing them out in any tags until they disappear. Please see Emet’s toplevel for any interactions you’d like to thread out with him as a part of this.

For the Gallery in Highstorm, the art depicted in and scenes experienced through the pieces are up to you to create! Feel free to go wild with any associated NPC's in the scene and worldbuild as you see fit. Highstorm holds a variety of citizens from across the multiverse, so you could feasibly go fantastical places, or experience something distinctly profound and beyond your imagination...

The drinks and refreshments in Springstar can be enchanted in just about any way you’d like, including bringing upon minor physical changes of the cute, fun, and flirty variety! Feel free to get creative (as long as you get permission from your thread partner), the Meris would also merrily insist growing extra fluffy, scaly, etc bits during the celebration will only help you party harder! 🥳

As reminders for Alenroux, once night falls, a character is not able to leave until sunrise, which is 24 hours later. If your character is dissipated, you can have a PC retrieve their Shard or the respective Faction they're allied with will send out a search party to find it. Remember to report character deaths!

CODING

Comments

[baltimores]

[ The trick is to just not give a fuck. Someone's standoffish? Irrelevant. Someone doesn't know how to make smalltalk? Welcome to the club; it's kinda dumb anyway. Just go ahead and do whatever it is you're gonna do, because who's gonna stop you?

So there's a slight tilt to Amos' head at Hayame's first statement, because he already knows he makes a good point. That's why he said it. But there's the accompanying hint of a smile as well, though whether it's towards Hayame for accepting or just for the fact that he's gonna get to eat soon, who knows. Both could be perfectly applicable.

Typically this would be the part where he'd pat her on the shoulder or something, but she's significantly taller than he is. Not that Amos is particularly short, but he's not that tall, either, and he's not going to be touching that equine half anytime soon — those legs look powerful. Besides, she's already on her way, and honestly? Respect. Relatable. He's already catching right up to her, then matching her pace right beside her.

His eyes flick up towards hers as they make their way to the nearest cornerstone. ]

You got anything in mind? I can barely keep up with all the food they got over there. Can't stop thinking about the meat this one place had turning on a spit though. Guy sliced it off, stuck it in a pita and added this sweet sauce. Called it a donair? I feel like I gotta go back there for another round.

[warmare]

[Hayame, for better or worse… has spent her entire life caring. Not about things other people cared about, most likely… but she cared. Mostly about being acknowledged as a warrior so that she wouldn’t be sold as a broodmare, mount, or “companion”, but. When that was your focus, there was very little room to care about anything else… and it spilled into everything. She’d had to care about how she appeared to others, how they perceived her, what they said about her, how she conducted herself, and then…

And now…

She doesn’t clip her pace to a more human-friendly stride, but she does not trot. He is gigantic for a human, his legs can keep up.]

I do not know this… “donair”.

[She pronounces it a bit odd, but-]

If it is meat, I will eat it.

[Accepting another person’s suggestion is far easier for her than coming up with her own when it came to mundane activities like eating or… “leisure”, which was apparently something people just… did when they didn’t care or worry about their own survival constantly.]

You may lead.

[… Well, he has to, but she makes it sound like she’s allowing it.]

[baltimores]

[ The ability to care simply got beaten out of him. He'd get it, though. Reputation's important; being able to back it up even more so — and since Hayame seems like she could back anything she says up, if not with words then with fists (hooves??), she's got his respect. He stays pleasantly amiable towards her, increasing his pace so he can, indeed, keep up. It's like a brisk walk is all. ]

Yeah, sure thing.

[ He picks up the pace a little; at least the cornerstone isn't too far away. ]

It's meat alright. The one I had was beef, but I think they'll make it out of anything available. Pretty sure there are kinds of meat here I've never even heard of before.

[ It's a whole new weird world, made up of the corpses of all kinds of other weird dead worlds.

He carries on ahead, keeping up conversation as he does. ]

You a carnivore or something?

[ It's a friendly, colloquial jab — he doesn't think she actually is one, or that she literally only eats meat — but who knows how well that translates. ]

[warmare]

[No need for beatings when you're taken from your mother at birth and raised by the race enslaving yours so that you ~understand your place in the world early. Smart.

He asks her about her diet, though, and Hayame answers plainly, not even moving her head to look at him as she speaks.]

I eat anything humans eat.

[... Which is going to be her famous last words if she's ever introduced to foods here in Kenos that don't exist in her country, which hasn't discovered chocolate yet. But then, how to explain her accidentally-overly-specific comment... Her eyes narrow, resisting the urge to let her hand drift to her ice cold shard.]

I simply... have been craving meat. Recently.

[Since the dryad had invaded her dreams, and seen fit to sickly punish her for sinking her teeth into that demon's throat.

... Hayame does not... seem to understand "jabs". But at least they're almost at the Cornerstone?]

[baltimores]

[ Nor when day after day when you're taught that there's no light at the end of the tunnel — until the day you finally reach it because you grew too old, too big, too broken to do anything with it.

But discussing traumas? Out loud? Who does that??

Amos blinks at Hayame's first statement — okay, she looks like she's part human, so that makes sense at least. Kind of a weird way to put it though — before shrugging it off. ]

You come from a world without a lot of it too? I mean, I know it was readily available on Horos, but before then, place I was from it was pretty much impossible to get real meat. Don't think I'll ever get over how much is just here. It's great.

[ No reason for him to think there's anything weird about her craving meat! Who doesn't get cravings sometimes.

But they've reached the cornerstone, and, well, since there's no point in milling around he just goes ahead and activates it, expecting her to be right behind him. She did say he could lead, after all; he figures she'll just answer him in a moment, when they're both in Springstar. ]

[warmare]

[Tunnels can have lights?

Right now, Hayame is more concerned with the cornerstone than tunnels, though. Her new companion simply touches it and goes as if it's as easy as breathing, but she... despises them. Anyone who had been with her in the Pleroma of Horos would know. She had never used the teleportation devices or spells, even traveling over land over a week to return to Greentruth from Verona... but in Kenos, the islands float amongst the stars. She has to make use of them if she wants to move-

But every time, she steels herself as if she might die before she touches the stone. To a woman from a time most would consider medieval, devoid of "magic" or much "science"... there is no faith she will not simply vanish and never reappear.

She appears in Springstar a full minute after Amos, slightly paler than she'd been in Highstorm. But determined not to have that weakness perceived-]

The Buddhists do not eat it.

[She spits out a belated response to his comment on the availability of meat.]

Game is scarce in the winter.

[Forcing her legs to not be shaky as she clears the cornerstone area miles away from where they'd been instants ago, Hayame just says whatever she can think about meat, trying not to leave any space for potential questions about the delay.]

There was livestock during exhibitions and Auction Day... but that was for the banquet attendees.

[She's had rabbit, quail, and pheasant, an occasional deer or boar, but. Not cow, not pig, not sheep. And here it (or something like it) was just... everywhere.]

[baltimores]

[ He'd just been standing there, waiting for Hayame to follow him. Okay, so it was taking her a little bit... kinda weird... and oh, there she is. He looks up at her expectantly, but since she opts to just continue their conversation like normal, shrugs it off. So she's a little paler, so her steps aren't quite as sure. Maybe some people just get teleportation sickness? The way some people got disoriented when they were on a spacewalk and looked up at the sheer nothing all around them. Fair enough; he's content to keep leading their way to the festival — he remembers exactly where that little hole-in-the-wall with the donairs was. ]

Huh, really? [ He's only like... half-listening, because as far as he knows, she's started spouting a bunch of unconnected phrases. ] No banquets where I was from. Didn't do a whole lot of hunting, either. In space you'd have to grow it in a vat. It works, but it's nowhere near as good as the real thing.

[ Because that will definitely make sense to Hayame — but it's all just idle conversation to him as the streets start getting more and more crowded, anyway... ]

[warmare]

[She'd like to call it teleportation sickness. As it was, he does not ask, and he does not even cast much of a judgemental look the likes of which would trigger her easy-to-offend nature, and so... Strangely enough, Hayame just keeps walking. Eventually, her skin returns to its normal tone, her legs quickly regain their strength once she's stepping on solid ground.

Not realizing that most of what she'd said might not have made sense (still constantly defaulting to the reality she had lived her whole life, that certain things simply didn't need explanations, because everyone would just know), Hayame tries to make sense of what he says. "Space", that must be where he is from... but-

"Grow" it?]

You "raise it", you mean.

[She isn't exactly in position to judge another's education, considering she'd received... none, herself, illiterate as most jinba were, but. She has met a number of people who came from worlds removed from nature to the point that they didn't know how to get or make food. Apparently he did, too.

Fine, she can help him understand how livestock worked. (What was... "not real" meat? She's ignoring that part.)]

[baltimores]

[ The way she regains her footing, yeah, he's pretty sure it was just a bout of teleportation sickness. That's fair.

He doesn't even blink at her objection; for as much as Amos would prefer to continue going through life without having to explain things that are obvious to him, he'd already experienced one major culture shock from his original universe. He knows they're likely to come up, but if he can get away with it, he'll just talk like the other person will automatically know what he means.

And elaborate once he's given no choice. ]

Nope, grow it. People and animals aren't meant to live in space; it's an inhospitable environment. That means you gotta make sacrifices and be smart about your resources when you're up there, 'cause there's only so much you can work with. So, no large animals. Don't got the space or the nutrients or probably a whole lot of other stuff for 'em. So you gotta culture their cells, grow your own meat. It works, but quality varies. Versus getting the real thing? Shit, I'll take that any time.

[ He pauses, scanning through the crowds, and... maybe?

Amos actually does look up at Hayame for this, pointing westward and not missing a beat. ]

Hey, can you see it over there? Green sign. Should be thereabouts, but you're taller than me, you got a better view over this crowd than I do.

[warmare]

[She might not know it, but Hayame and Amos have something in common- at its core, if not the way they react to it. She hates being reminded that the things she considered common knowledge simply... weren't, to so many people from so many different worlds. She didn't appreciate at all when others asked her what she meant, when she said something she considered obvious, and she disliked greatly having to explain them, especially if they were things that she thought the realities of her life or world might summon pity or shock.

But she has apparently now become that person. This is what happens when you talk to people-

You also get even more confused. Hayame doesn't actually know what space is. She certainly doesn't consider the night sky to be somewhere where humans can live... Let alone understand what it means to "culture cells" or "grow" meat. Another addition of emotion she does not like- embarrassment over her lack of knowledge, over finding herself unexpectedly in the position of "weakness". So she will have to simple take from it what she can puzzle out. Wherever he is from, it is hard to raise cattle there. Whatever "not real" meat is, he would prefer the "real" meat.

There. That much, she can emit a vague sound over that could be mistaken for agreement or understanding... and then take the next chance she has to reverse her failed attempt. A green sign to the west? He is right, she has a much better vantage point, considering she is over seven feet tall. Where is the restaurant he is looking for?]

It is about fifty yards away, on the left side of the street.

[He receives the answer after a moment of looking. She might only have one eye now... but that one eye still worked well enough to find a sign.]

[baltimores]

[ He does indeed take her vague sound as understanding, just figuring she'd go along with it, that his explanation made perfect sense. In hindsight, could somebody like Hayame live in space? Not in the space he knew. But she's also strong and independent, so she'd probably find a way — to live up there, to understand him, whatever.

She's cool; he likes her. ]

Fifty yards, huh? Awesome.

[ He accepts her answer without question, merely pausing for a second to stand on his tiptoes to gauge the direction they should go in, and... right there. Satisfied, he settles more into walking alongside her rather than outright leading the way — nobody needs to lead anybody between them at this point. ]

You like meat, you're gonna love this. Couldn't believe it the first time I tried it. The sweet sauce they use with it is amazing.

[ And they'll be there momentarily. Sure, being outside the reflecting pool can be kinda awkward, but today's already quickly shaping up to be pretty good. ]

i had to go get a kebab in nagoya bc of this gd thread

[warmare]

[... Is that "awesome"? Hayame puzzles over that for more than three seconds, which she views as a somewhat unacceptable amount of time, but. ... She is in a foreign world full of foreign people. Perhaps in this land of Space it is... awesome. It will be real meat, after all. Theoretically.

It smells like beef anyway. Jinba have sharp noses- not comparable to a bloodhound, by any means, but better than a human's. And perhaps it is the sauce he speaks of, that spike of sweet scent that came along with it. Whatever it was... it makes one of her stomachs rumble in discontent over its emptiness.

And sure, someone in the crowds they maneuver through bumps into her equine shoulder and doesn't apologize, and Hayame has to take a moment to snarl at them to watch themselves, but they're back on track once the Springstar citizen is cowed by a flash of fangs far too sharp to belong to someone who looked half-horse and half-woman. Upon reaching the restaurant, which seems to her more like a window in a wall hiding a busy kitchen...

There is a slight problem. She already knew she would not be able to ea her fill, but the smell has stimulated her dryad-cursed appetite in a way that does not match the meager coins she has earned disgracing herself as a packhorse on the fringes of Springstar and Highstorm, and just before they are called to order-]

How much do they charge for these "donairs"?

[... There are about five different signs plastered all over the stall and area announcing the pricing information for the various menu items, and she'd definitely looked at the text, but. ... Just answer the question.]

this thread has brought us both such joy

[baltimores]

[ It's awesome.

He pays no mind to the way Hayame looks like she wants to bite someone's head off for bumping her; sure, gotta assert yourself in places like this, makes perfect sense to him. He's already never seen someone who looks like her, so why wouldn't she have fangs, too? He has fangs sometimes.

Where he does shoot her an odd look is at her question. She... saw the signs... does she not...

Understanding hits him. Not like he'd had a conventional childhood; the fact that he'd learned how to read at about the age he should have was nothing short of the miracle of having a dedicated guardian looking after him. It sure as shit wasn't common, so maybe she'd just been unlucky in that sense.

Fair enough; that blip of hesitation aside, he goes about actually answering her question. ]

It's about 10 for a small, 12 for a medium, 15 for a large, and 17 for what they call supreme. [ Based on her size and how hungry she sounds, he's guessing that's the one she wants; that's not quite what he's after, though, even if he is getting hungrier now that they're so close. ] Thinking I'm just gonna go with a small. They'll stuff these things so much they might as well explode.

🍖🍗🥩🥓🍔🍕🌭🥪🌮🌯🥙🧆

[warmare]

[She saw the signs. She knows enough to parse out numbers, she sees "10", "15"... but she cannot link them to the item listed beside it, whose characters to her are just... shapes, not letters.

In her own world, she had never felt embarrassed for not knowing how to read. No jinba she knew was able to. Most of the human grooms couldn't either. In her master's breeding stable, only the master and his more trusted aides were literate, so what shame was there in it? She also... had never had to say it out loud. People would be more shocked if she could read. All she'd been taught were a few basic characters for use passing orders in battle, and she recognized certain words based on their shape just from seeing them so often, things like "rice", "tea", or the shape of her own name as it was carved on her stall's wooden nameplate...

She doesn't know "donair", or any of the other offerings here. But even though everyone she's met here seemed able to read somehow, though she had been embarrassed by shock or questions multiple times since she arrived in Horos, he didn't- He just answered, so. ... Good.

Hayame looks into her pouch for her coins. She is so hungry. She has been so hungry since the dryad cursed her. Even if she weren't cursed she has to eat so much more than a human did to maintain her body mass and strength, but right now...]

I will order a large, then.

[Normally, it would likely take more than one Supreme to sate her, but. For now... This is what she will do.

What she does, putting down her coin and coming away from the window with... something very strange and foreign and criminally good-smelling in her hands.]

[baltimores]

[ He nods up at her; alright, misjudged that one a little, but it's no big. Amos is content to catch up with her as he collects his own order, leaving the busy counter behind them — back out into the crowds, with everything they need in their hands.

He unwraps the top of his, inhaling everything for a second, meat and sweet sauce combining together into something heavenly before taking a bite, breaking it open. There's already a bit of sauce in his beard; he'll have to see to everything that gets caught in there when he's done.

But for now, this is just pure happiness. A couple bites in, he manages to get out, ] We should do this again sometime, [ and then he's digging right back in.

Why not, right? Simple, straightforward, and with something good at the end — it's a good start to any day. ]

[warmare]

[This "donair" smells... good. Very, very, good. Not just the meat, which promised to at least temporarily stop her cursed stomach from eating itself inside out... There are vegetable bits in it, sure, but more importantly, that... sauce? slathered all over it? Hayame finds it somewhat lowbrow, but she cannot help but pull the food towards her face so that she can sniff it more closely.

She wants to bite in, but... How in the world was she supposed to eat this without spilling it all over herself? It's practically spilling out of the bread thing already???]

Do what again?

[She almost misses his comment in her intent observation over how he's holding his donair, only belatedly responding. Was that really the right way? He's getting sauce in his barbaric beard...]

Eat meat together- ?

[She's too hungry, she has to try it. Carefully, Hayame tries to mimic how he holds the food, opening her mouth wide to try and get as large and as clean a bite as she can, and once she does-

Something happens. Her tail jerks straight up in surprise, lashing out in a whip of ink black hair, her eyes dilate, and she just. Stands there, with her cheeks full, too shocked to even finish chewing.

... Maybe donairs are a bit mind-blowing for a woman from medieval Japan circa 1590 who had been raised on white rice, boiled mountain vegetables, and salted meats.]

[baltimores]

[ Give him a second — he's gotta swallow what's already in his mouth; gotta glance back at that sudden movement from her tail. Gotta look up at that somewhat comical expression on her face. Not that he minded her when all she was was straight to the point, but it's kinda funny.

Alright, alright; he swallows, still carefully holding his donair so he doesn't spill anything on the ground. He paid for it; he's gonna eat all of it, damnit. Still, with a grin, ] Yeah, sure. Why not? I like it. Looks like you like it. Only makes sense.

[ And with that, he's taking another bite from his. He really does like it though. ]

[warmare]

[She almost spits the food out in confusion.

It is so... flavorful? There is so much happening in her mouth? So many textures, so many different colors all at once, so much... something. It takes her a moment to overcome that first random desire and actually start chewing, finally swallowing...

And staring down at her bitten donair in shock. She uses her fingers (how crude) to poke into the "pocket" of meat, coming back with sauce on her skin to sniff, only then remembering... Right, he'd said something-]

... It is a sensible proposition.

[Eight million myriad of gods, she had sauce all over her finger still, how is she supposed to speak to this man like this... Awkwardly, she wipes it on the "wrapping" around the meat, before... Right. There was something else.]

I will require your name.

[... to contact him again. He might be a fool who followed that woman Yima and thought that worlds could just up and die, but. He apparently knew good places to eat. It will take her some time to earn swallow her pride enough to earn coin again, but. Once that time comes...

Her lower stomach rumbles again, and she breaks her culture's strict manner protocol to bite into the meat-filled pocket again.]

[baltimores]

[ He's bemused every time he looks up at her, sees her reaction to her donair. Yeah, it's good, but what she thinks of it is beyond what he would've expected from anyone. Still, he doesn't comment on it, much more interested in his own food than to point out how enthused she seems to be by it.

He chews, swallows before answering. ]

Amos. You?

[ Tit for that. He figures he'll probably recognize her whenever he sees her again — almost seems like an inevitability that he will at some point — but hey, fair point on her end. She isn't so lost in the (donair) sauce that she can't bring up a good query.

Amos likes her. Sure, she's a little weird — both in body and attitude — but hey, so is he. At worst, they got a couple of things in common already, and that's rare for him. Might as well stick around by her for a bit. ]

[warmare]

[Amos... What a strange name. Even in this foreign world, her mind automatically tries to think... "Ei" would be... "shadow"? "Mo"... "Mosu"... Not "Mozu"? A butcher bird would be a good namesake... But she is saved from figuring out what his name means by the reminder that comes with her next bite of donair that this isn't her world. Of course the pale, hairy folk of other worlds did not have meaning in their names as she was accustomed. It would be just Amos, then.]

Hayame.

[She swallows, quickly wiping a bit of sauce from the corner of her mouth. This meal is so messy? But so mindblowingly delicious...]

Written with the characters for-

[... Right. The form of contact here wasn't even by proper letter or missive. He would not need to look at the wooden nameplate on her stall to find her. She takes another bite, recovering in the quick time it takes her to ravenously devour the food to circle back to,]

My name is Hayame.

[baltimores]

[ He tilts his head. Characters, huh? That explains a little bit as to what kind of world she came from — with space being a whole lot of cultures mashed together in a lethal environment, it was always smart to pick up a lot of languages, even if it was only words like warning or exit — but considering how half of her body looks like that of a horse, not a whole lot.

Amos takes a moment to chew thoughtfully, swallow, before proceeding. ]

Hey, Hayame. We should do this again sometime.

[ Just to reaffirm that point, now that they've made proper introductions. Hayame's the cool horse lady who doesn't fuck around and doesn't take shit. He'll remember that, no problem. ]

wraps up maybe?!

[warmare]

[Hayame is not accustomed to mixing foods. Rice or soup was served in a bowl, meat was ripped from the fire, pickles were placed on small plate, greens or fruit was plucked from the earth... She is not a cook, nor is she accustomed to eating well-cooked meals. Even in Horos... She had not had the dining options of a Kenoma. She had been a Pleroma, and perhaps more damning, a Pleroma who shunned and was shunned by many of her own "kind" for how hardline her stance was towards so much of their life there. So this-

This is insanity. It's almost too flavorful to process, but. She is hungry, and she keeps going. He isn't likely to get much decent conversation out of her until the meat is gone (or maybe ever?), but before she loses herself to another mouthful-]

I accept your proposition.

[- Hopefully she'll have more coin next time. Even if she doesn't want to think about what she may need to do to get it.]