september catch-all

[feisticuffs]

🧙 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.]

Comments

ii. shear determination

[standvastig]

Deceptively dangerous little creatures, are they not?

[Hendrik reads over the description for the request again, rather amazed that the sheep are in fact that small. If not for the warning, he would have wandered right up, startled the tiny things, and ended up barbecued.]

Considering their size, I imagine they will not take well to overhead shadows. We should approach from their blind spot while they face the sun.

[They should at least be very easy to scoop up.]

If things get out of hand, the others will undoubtedly scatter. We should know where we plan to shear the sheep.

[feisticuffs]

[Stealth and delicacy are hardly among his natural talents, are they? This, she thinks, is a task that will certainly take the both of them to solve. Hendrik may not have experienced how well they've come to work as a team back in Erdrea, but she certainly remembers.]

Their blind spot would be...

[She takes a moment to thoughtfully use her hands to sort out the right angle, studying one of the minute sheep from a safe distance. Right.]

Perfect. That should work nicely. I have to ask— have you shorn sheep before?

[So many of her childhood memories of him are as a young knight, but she knows that wasn't always his path.]

[standvastig]

[Hendrik watches as Jade studies the tiny sheep, considering how he will be able to assist when the little things will undoubtedly scamper away from him before he's even crouched low enough to grab them. Her question snaps him out of his thoughts, and he blinks a few times in surprise.]

Ah... In much different circumstances, yes. Assisted.

[Namely, he was much, much smaller and the sheep were ... normal-sized.]

Should it prove useful, I can call upon that old experience and what of it is comparable.

[feisticuffs]

I was mostly just asking out of curiosity.

[She gives him a warm smile in response, though it's good to know he does have some experience in this field should they need it. Still, given the relative size of the sheep compared to the two of them... she really should be the one to approach them with the shears.]

Never too late to learn something new about the Hero of Heliodor, yes? Anyway, this should be simple enough, so long as we're careful with our approach. We'll have that wool bagged and ready to be delivered in no time.

[standvastig]

I see.

[His brows knit together at the thought that Jade had asked her question simply to understand him a little better, and he nods slowly before pocketing his phone. It's odd feeling like he's been complimented simply for having that attention.

The shears they were given for the job are a little smaller than the ones he remembered as a child that were too big to comfortably fit in his hand, probably because the sheep here are so small. He slides them against his belt before speaking.]

Shall we see how it goes with one first? The request has me wondering just how common it is for these sheep to ... er, set themselves on fire.

[feisticuffs]

[Her smile hitches just a touch wider, curious— it's still strange for him, she's sure, for them to be companionable at all, but even if they don't share the same memories, she's intent on making sure he knows that she appreciates him as a person, rather than a knight. They are both more than their titles.

She nods at his suggestion, taking her own surprisingly small set of shears in hand.]

Right. Depending on what happens, we can adjust accordingly.

[Sheep Shearing Strategies are slightly more daunting than she would have thought. Carefully closing her fingers around the closed blades of the shears, she steadily begins to venture forward, footsteps quiet and deliberate as she attempts to approach the nearest sheep, ducking down in the process in an attempt to make herself smaller, less threatening.]

Let's see...

[standvastig]

[As he watches Jade creep up on the nearest sheep, Hendrik's thoughts churn with old knowledge that is probably not all that useful in these circumstances. After all, the sheep are so small that it would be awkward to try shearing them while they sit on their hinds. Perhaps he's overthinking all of this.

While the sheep are just as tame as those back in Erdrea, they also show the herd mentality of grouping together to keep an eye on a possible predator. It's why knowing blind spots and the natural way that sheep move around predators was important. ...Not that he got much of a chance to actually practice techniques along those lines.

The sheep are, for now, relaxed and not paying them much mind. That will undoubtedly change once they start swooping in for individuals. He has to stand much further back to remain in the blind spot of the sheep closest to him.]

A sleeping hibiscus would be very helpful right about now.

[feisticuffs]

No kidding...

[She silently chides herself for not thinking to find something to induce similar effects in this world. Well, perhaps next time— she could always ask Claude if he knew of any potions or reagents that would do the trick.

She draws in a sharp breath to steady herself, remaining crouched as she does her best to remain in the nearest sheep's blindspot. As Hendrik had noted, they're starting to cluster together, but she pays it no mind, determined to press forward.

Just a bit further, and—]

Ow!

[Her plans are derailed by one of the miniscule sheep bucking at her, back hooves colliding with her knee and knocking her off-balance before it sprints away. The pain is minimal, honestly— it was more surprising than anything.]

Well, I suppose I can't blame her. At least she didn't try to singe me.

[Yet.]

[standvastig]

Princess!

[Hendrik cannot help but exclaim in alarm when he hears her in (what seems like) pain, distracted away from approaching another of the sheep as he looks over to her in concern. He hesitates upon seeing she isn't aflame or something worse before firming his jaw.]

The way I recall seeing sheep controlled was by hooking an arm around its neck and lifting so it is off-balance.

[Easier said than done when sneaking up may be the toughest part of this endeavor. He tries to return his focus to catching a sheep for himself, only to find the closest one has already scampered off in the commotion.]

[feisticuffs]

[She holds up a hand in response to his sudden distress as she rights herself— it's still touching, in a way, that he worries even though he does not share her memories of them fighting alongside one another as adults, but she supposes that with or without that experience, Hendrik will always be Hendrik.]

I'm fine, I promise— and really, you can call me by name, at this point.

[She wishes he would. The title means nothing to her here, and she would rather be "Jade" than "Princess" to those she considers close friends.

His advice, however, is quite sound. She smiles as she spots the sheep currently scampering in the opposite direction; they had made a good bit of noise, hadn't they?]

That seems like a sound approach. I've never seen that before. They're so small, I worry that they might wiggle free, but regardless of size, I suppose sheep are still sheep?

[And anything that might help them get the job done is worth trying.]

[standvastig]

[While Hendrik doesn't grimace outright at the idea of calling Jade so plainly by her name, he does make a reluctant sound at the back of his throat. This hierarchy and etiquette were both driven into him for the majority of his life, and the very idea of treating the princess disrespectfully breeds conflict inside him.

So, for now, though he nods at Jade, he knows it is with the thought that he will end up falling back into royal titles before long.]

If not for the threat of fire, I would be tempted to try ensnaring one in the grass. I ... do not think I will have much luck with normal means of catching one out here.

[As if mocking him for even thinking otherwise, two of the tiny sheep scuttle by him before slowing to an amble several feel away.]

Were we in a pen, this would be much easier.

[Or, you know, much more fraught with panicked sheep. One or the other.]

[feisticuffs]

[That reluctant sound, faint as it is, is about what she expects. She's heard it countless times before, even if he doesn't remember. Always a work in progress, this one— she doesn't think she'll ever break him of the habit of using titles completely, but she'll take even modest progress at this time.]

No, I think you're quite right. Standard means are out the window, though I don't know that I would call ensnaring one standard.

[The fire could certainly burn through grass, but...]

It may be worth a try, regardless? So long as you're gentle, I don't think they would be too startled, and your magic would be of more use here than mine.

[Dark magic has its uses, but let's be real. She's not going to be charming any sheep with this world's version of a Puff-Puff. Out of the question.]