2017-04-20: Fairgrounds Encounter
- Log: 2017-04-20 Fairgrounds Meeting
- Cast: Rose, Sorey
- Where: Adlehyde - Fairgrounds
- Date: April 20th 2017
- Summary: Sorey runs into Rose and the Sparrowfeathers at the Adlehyde Fairgrounds. Plans are made for a great meal, a berry harvest, and other things!
===========================<* Adlehyde - Fairgrounds *>=========================== Located in the northeast quadrant of Adlehyde, the Fairgrounds are situated on a large open space traditionally used to train soldiers in march and maneuver. As a result of the Ancient Culture Exhibition, however, a large number of tents and other temporary buildings have been set up to showcase the latest in ARM discovery and advancement. Paths between the tents and buildings have been set up more or less at random in the area, making it a bit difficult to navigate, particularly with hawkers and visitors clogging the arteries. The central focus of the Fairgrounds is a large plaza set up for demonstrations, as far away from anything flammable as practicable. A raised platform occupies the centre of the demonstration area, with a (probably not scale) model of Adlehyde's Golems - Diablo, Lolithia, and Barbados - occupying three corners. The fourth corner is taken up by a similarly-scaled model of a gender-neutral individual with an expression of dull surprise, holding a model torch in an upraised hand. A plaque at the bottom of the statue helpfully explains that this is meant to symbolize the concept of INNOVATION; it is accompanied by a smaller plaque that explains innovation means coming up with new things or ideas. Onlookers generally remark that it's nice that the sculptor tries hard, anyway. BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MQRL7xws7w
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
Amidst the many tents and exhibits of the Fairgrounds today is a familiar couple of caravans to people from Glenwood. Laid out in a V shape with a tent of their own inbetween, the Sparrowfeathers have set up shop in the nice heat of the mid-day. There's a lot on display on the table, from a wide selection of herbs and spices to sharpening stones and tools used for ARMs maintenance. Know how to target your audience, right?
People occasionally stop to check their wares as well as buy and sell items. It seems like a pretty busy day with the demonstrations too, and luckily for anyone looking to chat the Sparrowfeathers up it's when another round of loud, explosive demonstrations start that business dries up a bit, as the crowd heads closer to whoever's swinging a dangerous invention around.
Rose doesn't make herself especially hard to spot. She's standing on one of the two caravans, using a hand to shield her eyes from the sun while she shamelessly watches from afar as someone demonstrates the wonders of using explosions to rocket jump around. Presumably their product pitch is "you might blow up, but these boots won't!". Seems to need a lot of work still though.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
Someone who's talking about boots that allow you to fly is an interesting display, and Sorey himself had stopped during his exploration of the fair in order to watch the pitch. His own limited knowledge of ARMs, on the other hand, suggested that this wasn't going to work all that well - or at least that they wouldn't really add anything useful to his repertoire. It was, at least, worth listening to the pitch.
But as he turns around, Sorey pauses for a moment as he spots something that seems... oddly familiar. "That caravan... you don't think it's...?"
"I think it is - unless my eyes deceive me," Sorey's invsibile companion states. Mikleo crosses his arms, and then nods. "Hard to believe they got brought here too. They'd probably appreciate knowing you're here - and they may have news from back home."
"Right!" Sorey grins, and makes his way towards the wagons at a quick pace. "Heeeeeey!" he calls out. "You're the Sparrowfeathers, right? Is Rose with you?" He had... well 'good' isn't perhaps the best word, but striking memories of the young woman and her eagerness to help him... followed by attempting to fleece him immediately afterwards. But he remembered Rose's sharp wit and level headed view of the world. If she was brought here...
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
The person manning the the shop is, surprising no one, Eguille. The taller, older man than basically everyone he surrounds himself with turns his head away from the direction of all the noise to Sorey, whom he gives a nice, welcoming smile to, in good shopkeep manners. "Oh, the Shepherd! Yes, Rose is -"
"Right here!" comes her voice, from atop the caravan. She twirls, poses, and then handily leaps off the fabric that makes the caravan's roof, at least over the wood, to land in Sorey's personal space without skipping a beat. Hand over shoulder and all, because they've met like, three times, and that makes them best friends already.
"Soreeeeey! And here everyone thought mister Shepherd had vanished! Did you come to auntie Rose looking for another loan? This one'll have a higher interest rate, you know? We might be friends but I've got to turn up a profit at the end of the day!"
She's an extremely trustworthy loan shark.
Alas, she cannot see Mikleo. It's probably better that way.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
Sorey is a little surprised at just how forward Rose is, but it's more just due to the fact that someone leaping that close looks almost like they are coming down on top of you! He rocks back a step, and laughs once he realizes that Rose isn't going to accidently knock him over.
"Rose! I'm glad to see that you're alright!" the Shepherd states, and he laughs, sounding a little embarrassed. "And landed on your feet, if you've already got your business up and running again." He wasn't sure how long she'd been here, but stories about his being missing meant that it must be more recently than he and Alisha.
"I'm afraid you're a little late on the loan - if you'd asked a couple months ago after that weird portal brought us here, I'd probably have had to take you up on it." Sorey grins, and digs into his belt. It takes him a moment, but he holds up his Adventurers' Guild card. "While being the Shepherd doesn't exactly pay the bills, apparently exploring the ruins around here does, so Alisha and I have been doing pretty well so far."
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"I always land on my feet! I must've had a cat in my ancestry, it's where I get my good looks from too!" Rose explains, cheerfully, not skipping the occasion to puff her chest up and act like she's important. It might be because it's in her nature... or just the fact she knows Sorey will probably believe anything at face value. "Let's say I'm lucky that no matter what world you go to merchants are always in demand and their job doesn't change, huh?"
That much was the truth. It's easier to learn a new map than a new job. Sorey shows off his Adventurers' Guild card and Rose swipes it, as if inspecting it to make sure it isn't a fake. "Moving up in the world aren't you? I hire them sometimes, it's something else Filgaia does right! It's never been easier to find someone willing to escort your caravan from town to town for a bit of money. Probably a good thing too, the roads are a lot less safe around here than back in Glenwood." Though she's never run into bandits back home. Must be luck, and surely has nothing to do with guardian ghosts. Then again, she IS the bandit by some definitions.
"So the princess is with you too? Oh dear! Her father'll be happy to hear she's alive! You might even get a king's ransom for bringing her back! You'll remember your good friend Rose when you do, won't you~?"
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
"Ah - hey!" Sorey watches as Rose just plucks his hard earned card out of his fingers and gives it the once over. He worked hard to earn that, it's not nice if you just wave it around!
But as Rose speaks, Sorey grins a little more broadly, even as he slips out from under the fiery haired young woman's arm so he can talk to her a bit more easily. It's a little hard when you're in a half headlock with your good friend laughing at you behind your back, after all. "I'm glad to hear that things have been working well. There have been... other people who were brought here who haven't fared as well. Some of them are just getting by, or ran afoul the locals."
A pause, and then, "Of course, knowing you I'm sure you found a great way to sell everything you had as novelties and then just restocked again." It was Rose, and her eye for business was something that had always impressed Sorey. But as she mentions Alisha, Sorey's eyes fall slightly.
"Yeah, Alisha's with me, although she's off running an errand. I'm sure she's as worried about Hyland and her father as they are about her..." That's kind of a lie, Soreys' reasonably sure Alisha's worry far exceeds that of at least some members of her government. They're probably celebrating that she's gone.
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"You'd be surprised how much rich people are willing to pay for items from another world. Prickleboar leather's just leather, but you find someone who wants to buy Lunar leather and suddenly you've got something! We've run through most of our stocks, yeah, but that's alright, it let us get established here pretty fast. Hopefully no other trade caravans get sucked in to nose in on our territory!" If nothing else she certainly took the silver lining of the situation and ran a marathon with it. In that respect Rose isn't too different from Sorey.
She changes topic, handing Sorey his precious card back. "I'm sure you'll find a way back eventually! Reason states if something could suck us here, there has to be something that can suck us back there too, right? I've asked around and nobody seems to know a thing though. You might have the right idea diving straight for the ruins, it's probably safer than going to those big militaries and asking if they'll build you a rocket or something." This was probably Rose's weakest point at the moment: she just doesn't have a good grasp of the political lay of the land yet. She still had the healthy reflex to avoid getting caught into any sort of war, especially where massive machines are involved.
"So what brings you to Adlehyde? Is there some big paying job in the area I should know about?" Her eyes lit up expectantly.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
"Yeah, unusual goods would definitely fetch a good price," Sorey agrees. He's hunted Prickleboars himself, and their leather has an unusual quality and texture that is different from what comes from the local beasts. Rose probably made a decent amount off that stock. "Thankfully we didn't have to sell too much before we got settled in here - given how much people seem to enjoy unusual artifacts, we'd probably never have been able to buy anything back!"
But as Sorey accepts the card back, he nods once at Rose's rather accurate assessment of the situation. "The main reason I'm in Adelhyde is that the Royal Library has a lot of tomes about their history and the ruins that I'm using for information. Still no luck with finding a way back home - I don't think anyone even considered the possibility of traveling from here to Lunar."
He laughs, and sounds a little embarrassed. "There's even a bunch of people who say that the idea of anyone living on what they call the Silver Star is just ridiculous. I've even had a few people claim I must have been in the sun too long or hit my head!"
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Wweeeeeeell..." Rose starts, wondering how best to put it. She goes with being spontaneous. "You do come across that way. First time I met you it was like you didn't even know what money was! Now add going around claiming you're from another world and you might get those kinds of stares!" At least she's honest?
The light fades from her eyes as Sorey reveals he was after books, not some interesting tales of nearby jobs and ruins. And here she thought she might get to stretch her legs! "Reading's so boring! I didn't take you for someone who does his homework before jumping straight into danger. Dreadful! My perfect track record of reading people like open books, ironically defeated by a bookworm!" She is being maybe a nudge too theatrical, not that she seems bothered by the fact. It's all in good fun.
"Patience'll pay off! For now you should make sure to cheer the princess up, right? Can't be easy being so far away from home. You seem more like an explorer but a princess like her, she's got to be homesick by now. Keep your king's ransom safe, Sorey! Or you'll have me to answer to."
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
"Hey!" Sorey's own protest at Rose's assessment of his weirdness sounds... a little weak because he can't really deny that she's right, all things considered. "I'm a fast learner, and you caught me at a very odd time back then. And I was in a hurry too!"
"Just admit that you didn't have a clue what money was back then."" Mikleo's voice is rather amused and Sorey just gives him a Look. He'll get you back at some point, so just you wait!
But Rose's desire for a good job is hardly something that Sorey can help with, not when his mission is to try and protect people. "Hey, who says that you won't be the one to find something first? People talk to merchants all the time, and you might hear word of some swirling vortex somewhere that leads back home! Of course you'd probably put up a gate and charge a toll to everyone who wanted to go through!"
"And don't worry - since its... kind of my fault that Alisha is here, I'm going to make sure I get her back home." Sorey's countenance is a little troubled at that thought - he knows that Alisha is bothered by the fact that she's effectively abandoned her kingdom. Especially with what that Assassin Who Was Totally Not Rose had said. But Sorey grins, and adds, "How about I just mention the heroic merchants who helped us out on our quest, and then you can talk to the king about a reward?"
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"What you call charging people to go through I'd call entrepeneurship. My rates would be perfectly reasonable, besides!" Rose protests, as it's apparently her turn to be jabbed at by Sorey. Which is honestly very fair!
Then another jab! How cruel, Shepherd.
"Please! If you sit down to think about it, without me you wouldn't have become the Shepherd! I'm like... your sponsor! It wouldn't kill you to wear Sparrowfeathers colors now and again, hmm~?" That's how she gets even! Or rather, ensures she's in the lead. "But sure, sure! If something comes up you'll be the fiiiii - second person I tell. Probably can't skip telling Eguille first," she says, jerking a thumb back towards the temporary store. Eguille has not been following the conversation at all and defaults to giving a thumb up before going back to sorting the contents of a crate.
"Oh, but there iiiis something you could help me with, mister Shepherd. I'm kind of out of healing items. They sell faster than I can find them! Supposedly there's some cave in the region where these berries grow, maybe you could get some of your Adventurers' Guild friends together and run the errand for me? I'll pay, of course! Probably come along too, I just can't stand staying still so long."
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
It was more that Sorey didn't really put money as a first, or really even a second (or third) concern, so he doesn't think about it like Rose does. So if she wants to try and claim some sort of reward for his work on Lunar, that's fine!
Here on Filgaia, however, it's not like Sorey can find food and shelter quite as easily. He's well aware that they need to perform odd jobs and ruins explorations to get by.
"Yeah, I've actually been there before," Sorey muses, thinking back to the last time he, Alisha, and Edna had challenged that place. "The Berry Cave is an interesting place - we tried to get to the ruins that are rumored to be deep inside, but there was a particularly nasty monster in there that we didn't want to tangle with given how worn out we were."
The Shepherd smiles, especially at Rose noting that she wants to come along. "I think we can probably take that job for you - and having you along might even mean that we can find some of the higher quality berries. It's a little hard when there's only a few people in the group and you have to keep an eye out for hazards."
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
Rose just likes money, okay?
Don't judge!
Running a secret ring of assassins isn't cheap you know?
"Is that so? Good, good! You'll know the way in then, that'll make it much better! Bring some big bags because I'm expecting you to carry your weight in berries."
She has to be kidding, right?
With a clap of her hands, she announces: "Glad that's settled!" She whirls on her feet, facing Eguille again, momentarily exposing her back to Sorey. "So, anything yours truly can help with while you're here? Maybe you'd like a new backpack? New shoes? Authentic Lunar leather and wood?" To her credit it's actually authentic and not mislabeled leather and wood from Filgaia, which some merchants no doubt profit from doing. "A real sword? Say, whatever did you do with the Sacred Blade? Shouldn't you be wearing that like a status symbol, because if not I bet it's worth a looooot."
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
Rose? Kidding? Sorey will be shocked when she kids when it comes to money. It's just not like her.
Still, Rose's question if he has anything that he would like goes make Sorey ponder for a moment. "I'm not sure - I actually think what would be appreciated is something that reminds folks of home." He is sure that Alisha is feeling homesick, and there are a few others who likely are feeling the same way.
Yes, that settles it. "Yeah, I think what would be best is if you had the materials to make some sweets from back on Lunar - have them delivered to the Starfall Saloon and say they are for Sorey. I know a bunch of people who would probably appreciate them." Talise, Sephie, among others. And probably a few curious Filgaians who would be interested in what snacks from Lunar tasted like.
He does ignore the quip about his sword - it works perfectly well, thank you very much - but he can understand (some) of Rose's concern about the Sacred Blade. "Actually the Lady of the Lake has the Sacred Blade right now - she carries it as a symbol of the pact we made when I became the Shepherd." Sorey edges a little closer, and adds, "It's hard to have it be a status symbol or something because it's invisible now. People might mistake it floating around for a ghost or something."
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"I hope you're not expecting actual food items from Lunar because a lot of that's gone bad by now, if it hasn't been eaten! That's what we made sure to sell as fast as we could. If you're just talking recipes though..." Rose disappears for a moment, leaping over the small table, past a startled Eguille, and into one of the two caravans. After a few moments of crate-searching she shouts: "GOT IT!"
And then emerges again... empty-handed, but smiling wide.
"Weeee need to go pick up a shipment of meat, tofu and sauce. Guess what that means! Guess, guess, come on!" She doesn't let him guess, which isn't very fair. "Mabo curry buns! If that doesn't cheer your princess up and blow the crowd away I don't know what will!"
Then Sorey starts talking about Seraphim, which makes Rose shiver. "C-Come on, that's not funny, Sorey. Geez if you just lost the Sacred Blade you can just say so you know? I'm not going to judge you! ... much."
It's much easier to believe Sorey would lose the blade of legend than it is to believe it became a ghost sword. "On second thought, maybe I don't want to know more about your Shepherd business, merchants should be merchants and Shepherds should be Shepherds!"
Too late though, she's already uneasy.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
Sorey smiles sympathetically and pats Rose on the shoulder. "Well, it is a Shepherd thing, so I don't think you need to worry too much. Don't worry though, I'm sure you'll see the Sacred Blade again." Plus the Sacred Bow, and whatever rock crushing gauntlets that Edna uses...
Well, let's just say that Rose will probably have her eyes opened at some point. Sorey has heard this song and dance a few too many times already, with people thinking he's crazy for talking to his friends and all. And then Edna ate a whole bowl of stew in front of most of the saloon which made a lot of people freak out...
...hasn't Edna been looking for some mapo food? That should be... interesting, at least.
"I think the buns would be great, Rose! I really appreciate it." Sorey digs around, and pulls out a small pouch that he counts some coins into. "If you can make sure they get delivered to the Starfall sometime this weekend, I think that would be great. I'm sure that the Princess would also love to hear any news that you have about back home."
Sorey pauses, and then adds, "Although I know things weren't great, regarding the war and all. So..." Pause. And the Shepherd sighs. "No, she has a right to know, even if things aren't going well for Hyland."
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Oh, don't worry, this one's on me! We'll just take it out of your share on the berries if it's too much, alright?" Rose, denying money? Truth is she felt kind of bad about the whole... you know... trying to kill Alisha thing. The least she could do is set up a nice evening for her to have good food and relax.
As for news, Rose gets a bit serious for a moment. "You sure you want to hear it? Truth is since the Shepherd disappeared things haven't been looking so great, so toss in the princess disappearing and... well, I've been here a couple of weeks now, but it was pretty bad. War hasn't... HADN'T... broken out yet, for what it's worth. But the rumors circulating about you two, they're not good ones. Everyone has a different version of what happened. Most of them aren't great. When you get back you're going to have a lot of explaining to do to a lot of people."
Now she feels bad for dumping THAT onto Sorey, too.
"So, you sure she should hear it?"
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.
"Oh wow, I appreciate it Rose. Thanks!" Sorey replies, putting his money away. He's rather touched by the gesture, especially from someone who is as fond of the sound of two coins rubbing together as Rose is. That's very nice of her. Hopefully everyone will enjoy the snacks.
But the Shepherd can't pretend that he is surprised to hear any of this. "I was afraid of that, when we were brought here. But with the Lord of Calamity being here on Filgaia... this is where I need to be, I think." He pauses, and sighs slightly. Sorey turns, looking at something off to the side that... isn't there if Rose turns her head to see what he's looking at.
"But I'm willing to explain whatever is needed. As for Alisha... she is a princess, if she asks I'd tell her what is going on. If she doesn't though... well, I'm sure she can guess. But I'd not force it on her if she's trying not to think about it." That was the kindest thing Sorey could do for her, at this point.
"Again, I appreciate it Rose! I look forward to seeing how those buns come out!" Sorey grins, and starts to turn away. "I've got a few books to pick up from a friend - I'm hoping I might find a hint about another set of local ruins from them, and maybe a way home from there."
<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"I can be the one to tell her if you want. But you're right, if she manages to not think about it, you might want to leave her in the dark. It'll ruin the good meal if she starts thinking about a home she can't go back to for now." Funny how days ago Rose was perfectly happy telling Alisha she was a terrible princess. In her defense, that wasa slightly better assumption then that it is now. Slightly.
"BUT! Yes! I'll make sure nobody leaves with a grumbling stomach. You can trust your best friend Rose, master of the culinary arts!" That's... a statement. Certainly. Depending on what you ask her to cook it's even a relatively true statement!
Then Sorey announces he has to go, and Rose nods. "Sure, sure! You take care until then. And if you come across any valuables you want to pawn off I'll give you a better price than most of the merchants in the area!" That's something else the Adventurers' Guild made easy. Getting your hands on valuable ancient artifacts! Adventurers just love selling those for a quick buck, then it's just a matter of finding the right art collector or museum curator.