isleofavalon | september catch-all

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september catch-all

🧙 WHO: Jade & anyone!
⚔️️ WHAT: Quests, other open prompts.
🕒 WHEN: Early September.
🗺️ WHERE: Various
⚠️ WARNINGS: Sexual themes/content involved in the Hot Knights quest.

i. hot knights

a. undercover
[There had never been any question as to whether or not Jade would take this job. The description alone brought back countless too-vivid memories, the bright reds and golds of the casino at Octagonia still burned deep into her memory, along with the cries of those who had been captured to become food or playthings for monsters— or, in many cases, monsters themselves. Indeed, there is no question about what needs to be done for these Celliwig knights, and while the predicament she had found herself in upon storming Octagonia on her own should give her pause, it doesn’t. Instead, it only fuels her further, driving her to make use of her experiences in that place to get in and get out undetected.

She opts to go undercover. At last, that costume some power had seen fit to have accompany her to Camelot as some kind of cosmic joke will finally be put to good use.

It’s mildly unsettling how quick the establishment is to take on new talent, but Jade has already decided that this is the best way to gather the information necessary to free the captured knights without causing more ruckus than she absolutely has to. And, should things fall apart and the situation ends up requiring a more direct, violent approach— well, win-win for her. She’ll take that, too.

Of course, being undercover means actually having to do the job, though as a new ‘employee,’ she’s fortunate enough to end up waiting tables. She approaches the table she’d been pointed towards by the bartender with a tray of glasses, collecting herself and letting her lips curl into a sly smile as she does so.]

Hey, there. First timer?

[Regular patron, fellow would-be knight-rescuer, familiar face, or some combination of the above? You decide.]

b. rescue
[Once she has the opportunity to break away from the main floor of the club, Jade spends every free moment she has trying to figure out the layout of the building, mapping out escape routes in her head. None of her breaks are long enough for her to make as much progress as she would like, but once her shift is over in the early morning hours, she quickly sets to finding where the Celliwig knights are being kept. Whether the owner of this place means to use them as talent or keep them as pets, it doesn’t matter— she intends to see each and every one of them set free, and any other unwilling souls who have found themselves trapped here, besides.

Why, of all things, must places like this be constants between worlds?

Once the captives are located, she starts making quick work of the bonds holding one particularly despondent-looking knight— he shies away from her when she first approaches, assuming her to be in league with their captor, but she quickly shakes her head as she frees his wrists.]

Keep it down! I’m getting you out of here!

[Here to help out, or maybe a captive yourself? Whichever the case, better get out quick before drawing too much attention.]

c. wildcard
[Maybe you, too, have chosen to go undercover. Maybe you’re among those friends Jade has informed of her whereabouts— just to be safe— and want to make sure she’s not getting in over her head. Perhaps you’ve found yourself in a compromising position in trying to take this job on for yourself, maybe even caught the eye of this establishment’s monster madame while trying to help the captured knights? Whatever it is that’s brought you to this monster-run strip club, it probably won’t be easy to get out alone and unscathed. Time to join forces!]

ii. shear determination

[Jade hadn’t fully appreciated how tall a single foot wasn’t until she saw these sheep in person. Even aside from their fire-breathing abilities, she can see why even experienced sheep-shearers might have trouble with these— a cautious approach was going to be necessary.

She exhales as she collects herself, folding her arms in front of her as she gamely looks to her partner for this particular quest. No time like the present!]

Well, then. Any thoughts on our plan of attack?

[Caution should definitely be at the forefront of their minds, she thinks. If they do well here, it will be well worth it— the pay being offered is nothing to sneeze at.]

iii. national mushroom month

[Normally, Jade is inclined to take the more active sort of odd jobs that pop up throughout Camelot— typically those that require a rather physical solution in the interest of playing to her strengths, but the simplicity of gathering mushrooms for National Mushroom Month had appealed to her in a way she couldn’t quite explain. As a result, she now finds herself at the edge of the Dusklight Woods with whoever else has seen fit to volunteer for this particular task, gathering and sorting mushrooms depending on what’s fit to eat and what’s better off being sent to the apothecary.

She pauses to give one an experimental sniff after picking, looking thoughtful for a moment.]

This one is safe.

[Into the growing basket of edible mushrooms it goes. Something about foraging reminds her of some of the warmer moments in her childhood; there hadn’t been many, to be sure, but she and Rab had spent so much time on the road fending for themselves that there had certainly been many instances in which the only thing they had to eat was whatever they could find for themselves in the wild. A faint smile pulls at one side of her mouth as she approaches the next cluster of mushrooms; when she had been small, she’d always hated chores like these, but Rab had managed to spin things by turning foraging into a sort of game, knowing that speaking to her competitive nature always put the princess in better spirits.

Fond memories are interrupted as she investigates the next bunch, recoiling and wrinkling her nose as the scent marks them as clearly not safe to eat.]

Ah— apothecary, for these. [She makes sure to put it in with the appropriate findings, then looks to whoever is gathering alongside her.] I think it’s been an even split so far. Find anything particularly interesting?

iv. shining karaoke

[Jade’s work at Shining Karaoke typically keeps her in the kitchen, but tonight the establishment’s public bar had been a bit short-handed, and with the security portion of her job being typically light given the nature of the business, she had been quick to offer her help. It was good for her to keep busy, especially lately, and over the last few months she’s found herself quite at ease with the bar’s general ambience.

She smiles and approaches any newly-arrived patrons who may head towards the bar, leaning against it with one arm as she inclines her head to greet them.]

Looking to make use of a room, or just here for a drink?

[Either way, she’s happy to help.]

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[Marianne, too, is reminded of happier childhood days as she and Jade forage together. When her parents still lived, her father would take her out to the woods near their home to forage mushrooms and enjoy the cool autumn air together every year. In those moments, it was easier to feel free and breathe easily without fear of other people. It felt less like her and her father against the world, and more like simply being father and daughter.

Having a friend as dear as Jade has become makes these warm feelings that much more pronounced, even if she doesn't share the competitive spirit. Their light-hearted bet on who owes the other dinner after they finish gathering is not looking good for Marianne right now. Her own baskets are less full.]

I've noticed that as well. I suppose that's for the best, since we'll have both food and medicine from our haul.

Edited (I found a tense fuckup) 2021-09-06 19:13 (UTC)

Glad to know that whatever we bring back will be put to good use either way, too.

[She doesn't know that she's ever come across a city that celebrated mushrooms before, but the idea of it isn't at all unlike many of the festivals or smaller celebrations she's come across in her travels over the years. She offers Marianne an easy smile as she tucks the apothecary-bound mushrooms into the appropriate basket, brushing her hands off against one another before bracing them against her hips and scanning the immediate area.]

I think we could probably move on to the next clearing before too long. I have to say, we've been making short work of this place— you forage like an expert, Marianne.

[Marianne looks down and brushes a bit of dirt off her skirt, a bit pink in the cheeks but smiling from the compliment.]

Thank you. My father used to take me foraging in the woods near our home when I was a little girl. I wouldn't say I'm an expert, but I'm experienced.

[That's about as close as Marianne can get to accepting a compliment gracefully.]

You're very good at foraging, yourself.

[She nods, her smile softening a touch as Marianne shares that memory with her— she hopes it's a fond one, not knowing how some of the struggles Marianne dealt with back home may or may not play into such outings.]

It's similar for me. I've spent most of my life on the road with Rab, and we had to fend for ourselves much of the time. We hunted and gathered a great deal and stretched our coin as far as we could when we were between towns. You learn what's safe to eat in the wild very quickly once you get sick off of some innocent-looking berries.

[She had been eager and impulsive as a child... those traits haven't entirely faded, either, but she has learned to take more care with things.]

[Marianne listens with fond interest, hoping that Jade's recollections are gentle ones. The last bit, with the clear implication that Jade poisoned herself, takes her by enough surprise to elicit a gasp.]

Oh dear!

[It couldn't have been that bad, if Jade can talk about it so easiliy. And given that she's not dead. So at least there's that.]

For us, it was more recreational. We weren't a major noble family by any stretch, but we had means. It was a nice life, until... [She pauses, pressing her mouth into a thin line and shaking her head. This isn't the time or place for her to get depressing about herself. Jade doesn't deserve that kind of negative energy.]

I haven't had the chance to do this in years. I find it relaxing, even all these years later.

[She remembers having landed herself with a severely upset stomach, but thankfully, nothing more serious than that— or, if it had been, Rab's healing had made quick work of it. Either way, it had been very important and memorable life lesson for a very young Jade, and her smile turns a touch sheepish at Marianne's exclamation.]

I learned to listen to Rab's instructions very carefully, after that.

[She'd been a willful child, and remained a willful adult. She's sure she caused her guardian no end of trouble during their earliest months on the road.

Her expression softens as Marianne expands on her own situation, and she nods to encourage her friend to continue even as she beckons for Marianne to follow her to the next little clearing.]

It sounds like those were nice, peaceful outings.

[Those sorts of memories are worth more than many may give them credit for.]

It is nice— it's familiar, almost comforting in a way? It may sound silly, but small as this task is, it makes me feel more at home than I have in a long while.

I'm sure you did. Sometimes, that's the only way we learn.

[Especially for someone as spirited as Jade. Marianne has always been a largely obedient person, even as a child, but she has enough experience raising and caring for animals that the 'do it and suffer the consequences' method of education is sometimes the most effective.

She follows her friend to the next clearing, taking a moment to stretch her limbs as much as carrying baskets and walking will allow.]

I don't believe that's a silly sentiment at all. If anything, I know what you mean. Familiar rituals like this help to ground us, I think.

[She's not terribly surprised they're of the same mind on that point, but it's nice to hear all the same, and she nods once more in agreement.]

Mm— they help us to feel not so adrift.

[She's been feeling a lot of that, lately.]

To be honest, it's difficult to imagine not out of place here. I don't think I've ever stayed in one place this long, not since I was very small.

[Marianne takes a moment to clear a space to sit and set the baskets down before she responds. She lowers herself in a graceful kneel, brushing her skirts out of a habit that she doesn't even realize she has. Provincial as she may be, she still was brought up with a noble's manners.]

Was it a difficult life, traveling so often?

[The question is asked conversationally. Jade has referenced her nomadic childhood more than once in their conversation, so it's probably safe to ask. But still, she quickly follows her question with a qualifier.]

Of course, you don't have to answer that if it's uncomfortable for you. It's just that it's so different from my own experience...

[Jade is quick to shake her head, dismissing Marianne's concerns about whether or not she might want to share— there are some parts about her past that are difficult to talk about, but this certainly isn't one of them. It's such a large part of who she is, shaped her into the young woman she'd become, certainly a very different Jade from the one she would have been if she had grown up in a palace as intended.]

It's alright, I don't mind in the least.

[Her response is warm, reassuring, and she sits down beside Marianne cross-legged, letting her duster rest beneath her to protect the bare parts of her legs from all of the prickly bits.]

It was difficult, sometimes, but not always. When I was very young, I struggled to understand why things had to be that way— I missed home, and my father, and didn't fully grasp that 'home' was no longer a safe place to be, after the kingdom had been taken by monsters. But I was always in good company. Rab was a very kind and loving guardian— not my grandfather by blood, but I don't think blood matters for much.

[Marianne sets her hands in her lap as she listens to Jade talk about her past. It seems that her friend's history is just as tragic as her own, even if the details differ. And yet, she's so strong and resiliant despite it all. Marianne is a bit in awe of her for that.

The bit about blood not mattering for much strikes a chord in her. Marianne wishes that could be true, probably moreso than most of her peers at the Academy and in the war. In Jade's world, it probably is. But in Fódlan, at least for now, blood matters more than anything. With Claude and the Professor's New Dawn, hopefully that won't be true of her children.]

I'm glad that you had Rab to take care of you. It makes such a difference. I wonder how I might have fared, if my adoptive father were more of a father.

[Marianne and the Margrave Edmund have more or less come to an understanding, and she's grown to realize that he cares in his own way, but he's not exactly a fatherly person by any stretch of the imagination.]

Of course, you were probably much younger when you had to leave your home. I was fourteen when my parents disappeared.

You weren't close with him, I take it?

[She inclines her head slightly as she studies Marianne's face, the question itself asked as delicately as she can manage— the implication that Marianne needn't expand upon things if she doesn't want to, but she already knows full well that neither one of them had an easy time growing up.]

I was...

[She pauses for a moment to consider, thinking back. It was so long ago that the life she'd led before leaving Heliodor seemed like a distant dream.]

Eight, I think. But I don't know that fourteen is any better— I'm sorry that you lost your parents. No matter what age you are... it's never easy.

[Marianne shakes her head slightly.]

We weren't. And aren't. My adoptive father is a distant relative who more a politician than anything else. I'm grateful that he took me in when I had nowhere else to go, but... I suppose it was what it was.

[Not very long ago, Marianne would be speaking of this with a great deal more sadness and anger. But she's grown as a person, as much as one can during a war, and she's working harder to make peace with the circumstances of her adolescence and young adulthood so far.]

We're learning to understand each other now. So I have that, at least.

[She pauses after Jade offers her condolences. Really, the other woman's strength of spirit and character despite what must have been a difficult life is nothing short of amazing.]

Thank you. And I'm sorry you had to run from yours, whatever the reasons were.

[Jade gives a solemn nod of understanding as she listens closely, watching her friend's face for any particular tells. Was the relationship actually contentious, she wonders, or just cold and distant? But it seems that in learning to understand one another, there's room to move forward— for things to change.

It would never be the same as having her own parents, she's sure, but she's glad to see that Marianne seems focused on the present and future, rather than the past.]

I wish you the best, when you see him again.

[And when Marianne offers her own condolences in turn, she pauses for a moment, wondering how much she should say— how much she wants to say. Eleven is gone now, as is Dimitri as she'd known him, and she and Hendrik don't share the close friendship that they had under different circumstances. Otherwise, they would all have been obvious choices to share these sorts of thoughts with, but as it stands...

She doesn't wish to burden Marianne, but she does want to be honest with her.]

... when I was very young, a neighboring kingdom was invaded by monsters— creatures of darkness, acting as a single army. The kingdom fell, and the influence of those monsters as well as their leader spread. The kingdom I'm from— it fell under that influence. My mother had already been gone for some years, but my father— the king— had his mind taken from him by the Dark Lord.

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september catch-all

Mushrooms! 🍄

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