[open]

[hymnals]

Who: Adrasteius; perhaps you
When: 3/5 - 3/15
Where: Throughout Caissa
What: Working hard for the money; inciting the youth; picking pretty flowers
Rating: None



meet & greet; a

[ Sadly, Adrasteius is not the one with the arms. He does have a cascade of thick, lovely hair, though, and the children of this particular school cluster around him, petting him as though he's some kind of cat. But because they're nearly half his already meager height, and because they literally do not know any better, Adra doesn't feel his usual threatened agitation. He's not exactly enjoying himself, but he'll tolerate it. So long as their stubby fingers keep away from his ears. ]

--my people live in a city full of magic, just like yours. There are grand, cream and gold spires everywhere, decorated with enormous rubies that reflect so well it'll dazzle your eyes right out of your head if you look at them directly. Animated brooms sweep our streets, and the lanes of the city are dotted with huge, potted ferns that float. You can find anything you like in the central bazaar--not just armor and weapons, but food spiced with spells, rare books, and potions that'll turn you into things you can't even imagine. We cast magic with every breath. It's as much a part of our bodies as, say, our eyes.

[ He gestures to his own--glowing bright, pupils barely visible. ]

Or yours.

[ It's a rosy picture he's painting. Many things about Silvermoon are not so enchanting as he's describing. He doesn't mention the constructs that patrol the city, barking propaganda ('Happiness is mandatory, citizen.'). The guards who drag people from their beds to harass them on the street. The dens of demonic magic. The brainwashing, done out in the open, sanctioned by their absent prince. Adra's wise enough to know that such things are not for children's ears. So he smiles as he talks, genuine, but undercut with sorrow.

Not that he has time to dwell. The kids just keep piling on, fascinated by his unique physiology, and he might be starting to panic. ]

Not the ears, please!

meet & greet; b

[ Of course, he can't resist deviating from the script just a bit. When it comes time to talk about the pseudo-mana potion, Adra segues into it as best he knows how. ]

--now, not everything in my world is perfect. We do have some bad men running around, doing all kinds of bad things. And they get away with it! Can you imagine?

[ He taps his right earlobe. ]

Now, I hear you have a similar problem, children. Bad men trying to sell you a lie. You can't let them. You have to question everything put to you, okay? It doesn't matter if it's an adult, or what kind of title that adult claims to have. You have the right to think. You have the right to decide for yourself--and you should never bow to outside pressure. Not from a shady salesman, not from us 'heroes', not even your teachers. Understand?

[ A tiny chorus of 'yeahs!' comes in response. The supervising teacher might look a little worried. Maybe someone should step in and soften up the rhetoric? ]


herbing;

[ You'd best believe that Adrasteius spent some of his colle on gardening tools. Just a few things: a small hand spade, a little knife for cutting stems, as well as twine and burlap for carrying specimens. True, he lives in a cramped room with a bunch of other people and an obvious zero-lot line, but he's hoping he can claim a patch of earth for himself, someday. In the meantime, he's happy for the opportunity to familiarize himself with the local flora. He'd spent yesterday reading, observing, and making drawings; now, this morning, he's ready to go.

Back in Azeroth, Adrasteius collected herbs of every kind, and then milled them to make brilliant inks. Twilight purple, carmine, shimmering emerald. Colors infused with actual magic, pressed into the pages of handcrafted spellbooks.

Potions were a secondary concern, but in either case, he understands the importance of a properly handled plant. Gathering itself wasn't the problem. The problem is that Adrasteius remains hilariously frail of constitution, and he simply doesn't have the stamina to carry back what he's digging up.

He realizes this as he sits among a particular patch of herbs, his hair already damp with sweat from digging, his hands dark with soil. ]

Damn it. I'm going to have to start lifting things while standing in place like an idiot.

[ He paws at the soil, agitated. ]

Eating protein. Running.

[ Life is terrible. ]

Comments

herbing;

[probending]

[Who needs gardening tools when you're the Avatar? She's been yanking out plants rather roughly, and uh... slipping out as quietly as possible. She hasn't been caught yet.

That is, until she runs into the glowing noodle from the festival. She's got a smaller bag full of herbs slung across her shoulder and she's ready to pick more. He, on the other hand, seems to be having trouble.]

Hey.

[She smiles and sets her bag down.]

Why don't we work together?

[hymnals]

[ He squints at her bag, and then squints beyond her, towards the direction she was coming from. ]

Where were you, just now?

[probending]

[A flash of guilt.]

... Some guy's backyard?

[hymnals]

[ Adra's all for breaking laws if they're unjust, but he can't quite see the moral backing for ripping up a guy's herb garden. ]

By that look on your face, I'm guessing you didn't ask to be there?

plants-ing!

[long_live_the_queen]

[It surprised Kaede how many plants she had dismissed as scruffy, generic weedy things by the canals turned out to be on the list. Especially in shadier places, where the water kept the air substantially cooler than elsewhere. Others had had the same idea as herself, though, and finding patches of plants that hadn't been picked over required some legwork.

The horned woman had been taking her time with picking each one, too, easing the plants out of the ground like she was weeding the garden at Maple House again. There was dirt under her nails, and only tool she'd managed to borrow was a gardening fork that had seen better days many, many years ago. That, a small bag of already-collected plants. and a small stick, though the stick wasn't for digging.

Kaede tossed it idly without paying much attention to its direction, and the brown and white spotted dog that was her Carrier went tearing off after it like a furry torpedo, barking cheerfully.

...the stick might be flying at Adrasteius, oops.]

[hymnals]

[ Said stick whacks him right in the neck, and he crumples, clutching at the rising welt and groaning. He's fallen over sideways, scattering the herbs he's so carefully collected and laid out. Twitching, he stares at the offending stick, and then scowls up at the sky. ]

Who the hell threw that?

[long_live_the_queen]

[...whoops. That wasn't supposed to happen. Naoki seems undeterred, still barking after the stick and jumps over the humanoid obstacle to grab the stick in his mouth.

His owner seems...not really sorry. Well, a little. She hurries her steps more out of concern for the dog than she just clonked someone over. She supposed she could poke him with her toe...?]

I did.

meet and greet A

[topkong]

Not gonna lie, Addie. That sounds great and all, but I can't imagine magic food tastes any better than the freshly prepared, hand-made kind. Not to mention it can't possibly be good for the digestive system.

[ Strolling into the room, Wukong had been listening to the story that the elf had been telling. It sounded wonderful, but he's always had a healthy skepticism of the most ideal places--- and when it comes to magic, even more cynicism. Much like any power, it can be easily corrupted!

Though, let's not talk about Wukong's origins. Natural magic is totally purer than arcane magics.

He does enter at the right time, specifically when Adra basically tells Wukong his weak point, something that would have taken him a longer time to figure out if it wasn't exclaimed at the children. So now? He has a mission.

A mission to touch them ears. ]

[hymnals]

[ Adra's semi-distracted as he gently pushes at about five pairs of curious child hands, trying to prevent them from overwhelming him completely. He speaks to them, 'I can't tell you any more stories if you won't sit quietly--' and then breaks off, frowning a little at Wukong's sudden sassy appearance. ]

I'll have you know that I'm an expert at both, and I can still accomplish at least one style of cooking in this Light-forsaken place.

[ The supervising teacher winces. Adra just groans. To the kids, again: "What I mean to say is that I'd love to help cook your lunch some time."

For their part, the kids are hardly listening. They are just pulling his hair. ]

[topkong]

Show me sometime, hm?

[ Wukong, the Sassy Monkey King. He'll take it and wear that title with pride. Then again, don't give him ideas.

Still, watching the kids use Adra as an elven jungle gym? That's hard to watch, because what he's seeing is definitely not safe for work. Actually, it's not really safe for anywhere, because he knows what it's like to have hair tugged on and that's not okay.

Looks like Wukong will be taking one for the team... ]

Hey, kids! Come over here, look at this tail.

[ And he successfully lures a few children over, who immediately start tugging at the monkey's precious prehensile limb and he grits his teeth. Okay, maybe he could have just laughed at Adra's misfortune instead... he made a mistake. ]

So--- hey, be careful --- why'd you take this assignment, anyway?

m&g a!

[sunderings]

Pray tell, why not the ears?

[ —echoes a voice from somewhere amid the sea of children, its owner none other than the Hero King, Sion Astal, who has done a superb job of blending in with the young ones until now! He sits lotus-legged upon the classroom floor, one of the quieter tots settled upon his lap (and the little lass seems to be rather taken with the thick plait of his silver hair...! or rather, dismantling it, beginning first with the tie before loosening the lowermost sections of the braid), his golden eyes mischievous and alight.

For he'd heard it where the children did not, the melancholy which would always lace so beautiful an illustration, so pretty a picture: nothing so bright, in this or any realm, is without its shades of darkness, after all.

And so he would continue on, words lilting with a light-of-heart tease: ]

Inquiring minds have a mighty need to know...!

[hymnals]

[ Indeed, Adra's been so besieged with tiny hands and chirped demands that he did not at all notice Sion's presence. He's initially startled to hear an adult voice not his own, and those long ears twitch slightly, perking forward at the sound. ]

Because!

[ One of the children makes a grab, and Adra catches her handily--but gently--by the waist, setting her back down beside him. ]

Because it's impolite to grab at strangers. Isn't it, little ducklings?

[ They nod, but seem totally undeterred.

(He has also, he feels, successfully evaded the specific question.) ]

[sunderings]

[ Were he a child himself (and truth be told, at times he does act the part!), Sion might have been satisfied with the answer given, but alas, he is very much a (thousands of years old and twenty years young) member of adult society, and while he is (undoubtedly!) impressed with the maneuver, he...! ]

Surely, though, that cannot be the only reason why! [ Well clearly, he won't let it slide. What's more a small chorus of yeahs! follows suit, coupled with too many eagerly nodding heads. What's this secret that the other Hero is keeping? It must be unearthed! ] I wonder...

[ What in all the realms is this too-dangerous, nearly lethal pause??? Why is it coupled with an angelic smile??? What could possibly be in store here??? ]

Might they be ticklish?

[ Giggling, one child reaches to find out, and another tugs lightly upon that sun-spun cascade of golden hair as though bidding Adra to bow his head, allowing them to discover this new, strange thing for themselves! ]

Or perhaps touching them might prove to be a boon, bringing one good health and good fortune?

[ Why, Sion could go on, and likely will, unless the truth so happens to be revealed...! ]

option a!

[digophelia]

[ The new job was easy and Alice took to it well. She was going to make a point to be on a first name basis with these children. Out of any given tasks given out, caring and entertaining the children had to be her favorite.

It made her feel better about herself and, more importantly, it helped ease the guilt that she harbored for the children she left behind. Compared to the children in London, they seemed happier, more alive.

Though, they weren't suffering and their minds weren't being erased by someone. Alice was in good spirits; she had been with them for several hours, playing games and telling them stories to them. When she heard his voice, Alice came over, a slight smile touching her lips. ]

What is all this? Are you some sort of cat, now?

[ Followed by childish giggles, Alice started to give a shooing gesture to some of them, in hopes to get them off. But children don't always listen. ]

Ah, come on, now, leave him be -- what's wrong with your ears?

Re: option a!

[hymnals]

[ Truth be told, Adra's always been some kind of cat. His ears fold on either side of his head at the remark, though, and the children giggle. A few pay Alice mind, but several more keep clinging to Adra, pawing happily at his hair. ]


There's nothing wrong with them--

[ He catches a tiny, grasping hand, and gently pushes it back down to the child's side. ]

--I just don't want them touched.

[digophelia]

[ The giggling of the children is enough to earn a small, soft smile from Alice. It's gone as quick as it comes, as Alice circles around Adra, before stopping in front of him. This is precious, the combination of the children pawing his hair and the way his ears fold back, just like a cat. ]

Why, it's something they haven't seen before. Isn't that right? I certainly haven't.

[ She's teasing him, just a little. It's the happy response of the children is what Alice is after most of all, even if it's at the expense of another. ]

Though, that's enough, now, he doesn't like it.

[ Alice leans down to their level, gently chiding the children to get them to ease off of him. Children don't listen right away, so it may take a bit more than gently talking them out of leaving him alone. ]

Didn't you want him to finish his story? It sounded very interesting! If you keep touching him like that, he'll never finish.

herbs! (before expo)

[quaria]

[ Not far from the elf Hero, Setsuna is quietly working on collecting his own bundle of herbs. Unused to this kind of labor, it's visible that he's kind of clumsy with certain movements. There are times wherein he takes a pause to figure out how to pull a certain root, but overall he seems to be doing fine. He's treating each plant with extreme care, not wanting to damage any of them...

He did overhear the elf's mumbling, but he minds his own business politely. He did notice that they're both Heroes, so to be fair he thought the other Hero was talking about his training routine. It's best not to intrude on someone else's personal schedule. Eventually, he manages enough herbs to fit in his plant bag. He closes it, then stands up as he hauls the very heavy-looking bag with a mere single arm. ]

[hymnals]

[ Like the hypersensitive cat he is, Adra picks up on the sound and movement of someone working nearby and pauses. His ears perk forward, fixed on the sound, and he scans the area until he spots a young man gathering herbs. He's about to call out directly, but he pauses as Setsuna lifts his entire collection up with apparently minimal effort. ]

Hey. Hey, you! Bring that arm over here.

[quaria]

[ After being addressed like that, Setsuna stops in place before he walks away. He follows the direction where the voice came from, which naturally is from the earlier person he overheard. He looks at him curiously, wondering what could be the matter.

He approaches, minding each step since he doesn't want to crush a plant. Once he's at a decent distance between them, he waits for the other Hero to explain why he called him over. ]

m&g b

[seventhgen]

[Aigis has mostly been helping shepherd the children; she's covered from head to toe so it's not easy to tell that she's a machine, but some of the kids have discovered that if not mechanical, her body is either armored... or just very hard. Still, that was a brief curiosity, and for the most part it's uneventful. She listens to the strange man speak for a while. He's rather charismatic, she thinks.

And what he says is true, as well. She thinks of Ikutsuki, of how all of SEES was fooled by his duplicity. Of how he almost made her kill her comrades.

But he does seem to be a little over the top...] Surely their teachers are only meaning to educate them! They can be trusted, can't they?

[hymnals]

[ Well, this was someone new. Adra shifts focus to her, temporarily, his glowing eyes fixing on her, examining, appraising. He takes a step towards her. ]

So--trusting someone means you blindly accept everything they have to say? Is that what you're going with?

[seventhgen]

One should always think about the meanings behind what they're being told and why... but at this age, don't teachers only mean to instill good habits? You shouldn't question things like "it's good to eat your vegetables" or "please brush your teeth regularly."

herbing

[flirtations]

[ Unlike Adra, who had done his homework and was going about this job in an entirely methodical fashion, Jae-had had decided to just wing it. How much more different could the plants in this place be? He's observed Yoon a few times now, felt that he knew enough of the basics to be able to pick some decent herbs, and was going to rely on those instincts.

Quantity, rather than quality, was his approach. With his high jump, he could cover vast distances in short amounts of time, and though he might not be able the find the most rare herbs, surely he could find enough to fill his bag.

He hasn't gotten too far on this task when he spots Adra from high up in the air. He remembers the man from earlier, in Palamede-- the healer. A beautiful man, with enough knowledge to keep them alive during the commotion, so he had much to be grateful for. He's struggling; even from up here, Jae-ha can see that much, and that alone would be enough to descend and offer him a hand.

But, he's struck with an idea.

He descends quickly, landing in a crouch a few feet in front of Adra (and thankfully, not smashing any of the herb patch). He rises, giving Adra a small, friendly wave. ]

It must be fate that I found you here so soon after our ordeal in Palamède, Sir... Adrasteius? [ Well look, he didn't butcher it completely. ] I have a proposition for you.

[hymnals]

[ Oh, right. This guy. That pitched battle at the expo had been a blur of healing and exhaustion, but he remembers Jae-ha, sure as he remembers everyone he fought with that day. They hadn't spoken much--things were a little busy--so Adra hasn't yet formed much of an opinion.

He's smiley, though, isn't he? But at least he's making a good faith effort with Adra's name. ]

Fate, or a relatively small population of people out doing this town's grunt work. Either, or.

[ Adra folds up one of his herbs, swaddling the thing like a baby. He keeps an eye on Jae-ha as he does so, considering. ]

Go on, then.

[flirtations]

[ He doesn't comment on the "fate" thing any further, especially since he's actually someone opposed to the very idea of it. Jae-ha leans down to inspect the patch of herbs further. They're completely unfamiliar to him, but with the level of care Adra is showing them, they must be precious. ]

You seem to have a keen eye for finding these herbs. I, on the other hand, know next to nothing. [ And he has no shame in admitting it, even though he probably should. ]

But I think we could benefit from teaming up, again. I'm willing to do whatever physical work you don't want to do yourself.

[ Already, he's beginning to dig, careful to leave the roots intact, because he's aware that sometimes, the roots are the most important. Even if Adra rejects his proposal, he'll do him this favor and dig up this patch for him. He looks up at him again. ]

Plus, I can help you cover more ground, much more quickly.

Or should I say... sky? [ There's no need to explain what he means by that, hopefully, given that Adra's already seen his right leg in action. C'mon Adra, you know you want a piggyback ride. ]