The Banquet

[modsoflight]

Word of the defeat of the Archons and the salvation of Muenier and Tranmere spread quickly across the two nations. The black rumors and fear gave way to jubilation - the mysterious enemies could be beaten! And it was upon this backdrop that the citizenry flocked to the Rose Garden to celebrate the heroes who had saved the towns. For the moment, both nations were unified, and there was truly a cause to celebrate.

Although there was much jubilation, that was not the only purpose of this. Lord Commander Sinbad worked hard to bring the two rulers together so they could discuss and determine their next moves. But for the others, revelry was to be had. And, ideally, not of the violent international warfare variety.

Comments

Open Banquet

[modsoflight]

A massive, sprawling harvest was laid before the commonfolk, who flitted excitedly between tables chatting and conversing. Nestled amongst the roses, it was beautiful, but still projecting an air of commonality and ease. Both nations flowed together with little issue - what was king and country to a farmer, after all? The air was jovial and relieved, and already the sounds of drunken singing could be heard echoing throughout the hall.

[dwellsinthedetails]

Now this is Yusuke's kind of party, and one where he's considerably more at ease than the nobility's idea of a good time. The rules here are the ones he grew up with: eat, drink, be merry, and celebrate a job well done.

Which isn't to say he isn't on the lookout for trouble, of course. It's open mingling between the two nations, and he was the first to voice his reservations on the point of needing to work together to deal with these incursions. But trouble's far less likely at this level of the party, and more likely, if it does occur, to be the kind of trouble he can handle by breaking up a fight. Better to leave the nobility to those who speak Insinuation and Veiled Threat.

When he's not actively mingling or raiding a food table, he can occasionally be found off to one side of the gathering, drawing in that quickly-becoming-ever-present blank book of his.

[blastiaobsessieanonymous]

Towards one particular side of the gathering, there would happen to be one particular red-headed cat who had joined the battle in Dalvarus, munching on what looked to be solely desserts from a plate she'd gotten to. And trying, and at this point, failing to avoid anyone's attention.

She glanced towards Yusuke as he coincidentally moved to the same side. "... Hi?"

[zetahatsudo]

Really, Cameron was starting to think going for a food run this late into it was a mistake. People were starting to get drunk, which meant a loss of motor control, and they were crowding the buffets, which meant he'd have to navigate his way through a sea of drunks flailing their limbs about.

"This is why I hate crowds..." he said aloud to no one in particular. Still, needs must, and he needed to eat eventually. Breathing in deeply, he waded into the crowd.

[blastiaobsessieanonymous]

... Where Cameron promptly slid against a red tail.

Whose owner immediately noticed, turning around with a bit of a glare.

"Hey, careful!", C'Rita Mihen declared with some annoyance.

[wasshi]

When Cameron returned from his food run gauntlet, someone was waiting for him at the fringes of the crowd. They'd met one time before.

"I never got to thank you back in Muenier."

Noble Banquet

[modsoflight]

A stark contract to the common banquet, the Noble’s Banquet was in a remote terrace high above the roses. The tables were covered in fine linen and exotic delectables that were all but untouched as the nobility exchanged frosty glances and barbed words, mingling to the barest minimum of social propriety and searching for excuses to depart as soon as possible.

[von_uberwolf]

Angua (Just Angua. She had so far managed to avoid using her full name anywhere since she had joined the Crimson Rose.) had not wanted to come here. She generally didn't like nobles. BUT, she was also one of the heroes of Tranmere and so had been "requested" to make an appearance.

She was glad that her station meant she could eschew a gown, but she still had had to make an extra effort towards cleaning up her appearance, and the results were difficult to ignore. The buttons on her Crimson Rose uniform, which did an excellent job at showing just how hard it was to fit a woman with such a, er, full figure into a military uniform, and her long ash blond hair made her stand out no matter where she stood.

Angua didn't exactly look awkward or out of place. She was fully familiar with interacting with the upper crust, and she definitely wasn't committing any faux pas as she explained to a small crowd of politely interested aristocrats about her role in driving off the mysterious invaders. She didn't look like she was out of her depth, but she definitely gave the impression that she'd rather be doing something that left her feeling less dirty. Like mucking out a latrine.

She finished up her tale of the battle. "And after that, they all just...faded away. You'd almost imagine the whole thing had been a bad dream if not for all the burning buildings and people screaming."

[wasshi]

A young noble had been listening in rapt silence throughout Angua's tale. The priority for this banquet was, of course, political networking, but this drew her attention enough to set that aside for a minute.

When Angua finished her story, she stepped forward. "Mercia, of House Tabrea. I was present for the other attack, in Muenier. It sounds like our experiences were fairly similar."

Re: Noble Banquet

[greatcleavage]

In open contrast to other nobles, Roy attempted to legitimately mingle with words that, if not ALWAYS kind, at least stayed resolutely neutral at the worst.

Some days, almost all days in fact, Roy felt like he could never rest, like he couldn't have one moment of peace. If he wasn't out in some sort of battle, he was playing politics. Trying to keep the peace, trying to build the peace up to the point where it would keep itself.

But internal exhaustion notwithstanding, anyone at the banquet would inevitably be approached by the Lord of the House of Greenhilt, for a polite smile and an inquiry about their well-being.

Nationalistic Disorder

[modsoflight]

Inevitably, in these situations, fights break out. Inevitably, they involve alcohol and members of two nations with longstanding bloodshed and hatred being brought together. Inevitably, the Crimson Rose always seems to forget this and invite disaster. And thus, there were brawls. Again.

[onlyakiller]

While there's rules against directly fighting, there's nothing against breaking them up - or so Viper states, given his size and training, he kicked behind the knee of the Liciaen Hume, causing him to stumble in shock, and while the Dalvarian Au Ra looked to take advantage of it - the Lalafell repeated the action, sending both on the ground.

"That's enough out of you two. If a tiny little thing like me can knock you over, you're in no shape to have it out." He calls out, using public humiliation as a deterrent.

The Au Ra surprisingly half-crawled off, then stumbled away to lick his wounded ego, the Hume was about ready to lunge at Viper, only to faceplant due to her own intoxication, before a friend picks her up to carry away.

"Ai, ai ai..." The lalafell groans loudly in exasperation. "This is why I am a teetotaler." He exclaims.

[dwellsinthedetails]

"I just never acquired a taste for alcohol."

True, seeing how often drinking starts fights is an excellent deterrent, but Yusuke figures 'don't like it to begin with' covers a lot of ground on its own.

International Card Tournament

[modsoflight]

Although both nations play different card games, the burning spirit is shared between them. Triple Triad and Tetra Master halls are open for play and ready-made decks are prepared for international competition. In some ways, the battles here are more ferocious than they are in other areas.

[dwellsinthedetails]

Yusuke's never had the knack for card games, but that doesn't make them any less entertaining to watch. If it happens to be good drawing fodder, well, that's secondary. (At least, he thinks it's secondary. There's something... right-feeling about all these people-watching opportunities, and he can't quite put his finger on it.)

In any case, at least the cards are a socially acceptable means for people to vent their tensions; he's keeping an eye out for anything boiling over into actual fisticuffs, of course, but so far, so good.

Re: International Card Tournament

[zetahatsudo]

Cameron never cared for big gatherings like this. His time with House Greenhilt had required he appear before the lords on occasion to show off whatever piece of equipment had caught their eye, but it usually ended with some lord or another getting into pitched arguments and debates with another lord over the necessity and/or practicality of such things. Needless to say, it made for a rather tiresome headache that he was always glad to be rid of.

So when he heard that people were playing Triple Triad AND Tetra Master far away from the dithering of nobles and senators, he hauled his tailed ass to the tables, offering to take all comers, regardless of their game of choice.

[dwellsinthedetails]

There is one spectator who seems to want nothing to do with the card games themselves. He's watching with interest, yes, but seems more focused on the people playing than the precise flow of the games.

Whether that's simply the habit of a Crimson Rose member, given their aim to break up trouble, or for some other reason is unclear, as Yusuke doesn't have his sketchbook out at the moment. Still, his interest in the proceedings could perhaps be mistaken as desire to participate.

[wasshi]

Mercia's first reason for coming to this event was the political networking. Her second reason was right here.

"You've left your southern border wide open. Garuda! Allow him no quarter with which to recover from this mistake! This battle has already been won!"

Her... emphatic play style drew a fair amount of attention, not all of it positive, but the fact was that she handily won her first four matches, showing advanced proficiency at both games. Between hands, she retired to the sidelies to arrange several rows of Triple Triad and Tetra Master cards on the table, pondering whether or not her current decks would be able to carry her through the rest of the tournament.

Chocobo Races

[modsoflight]

The chocobo races are particularly intense today. With the best breeders and racers present and international pride on the line, the races are heated and with the overworked and not especially experienced, the rules aren’t especially applicable at the races today.

The Dunk Tank

[modsoflight]

One of the stipulations for the Empress of Dalvarus’s attendance was that Lord Commander Sinbad present himself for two hours at a “dunk tank”, a strange contraption where commonfolk tossed balls at a target that would submerge the tank’s occupant in water. While Sinbad had been assured a net would be provided to protect him from balls thrown awry, it seemed the Dalvarans had “forgotten” that particular piece of equipment. With the drink flowing freely and hordes of commonfolk lining up for the entertainment, the Lord Commander was not especially drenched but he was certainly bruised all over.

Re: The Dunk Tank

[blastiaobsessieanonymous]

... As C'Rita saw the line of people gathered for the entertainment, she glanced at what was going on...

Oh, wow, was that the leader of the Crimson Rose on that board? And people throwing balls at a target. Or, more often, just at Sinbad. At least they weren't that nasty-looking, but he still had some bruises going.

It was times like this that the Miqo'te was rather glad she didn't drink much. And, naturally, she lined up to see if she could actually sink Sinbad.

She wondered if using black magic to aim the ball would count as cheating... Though, on second thought, what black magic spell would be useful for that?

Perhaps someone would hear her mutter something about "Well that's an interesting question I'd need to study..."

[von_uberwolf]

After the two hours were up, Angua presented Sinbad with a towel. She didn't say anything, but her look of distaste said it all. She understood the politics behind the decision, but they had enough trouble getting people to take them seriously. This wasn't going to do their reputation any good at all.

Ruler Discussion (Locked to Rulers and their Adjuncts)

[modsoflight]

Finally, Sinbad could get the rulers together. He was not wasting this opportunity. Bruised, soaking, and irritated, he sat at the head of the conference table.

"So."

He gave both rulers a very meaningful look.

[bejustorbedead]

Cai'a took a seat at the right-hand side of the Lord Commander, ears perking up in surprise at the man's wet, bruised state.

"I suppose it's important enough you didn't take the moment to towel off."

[opofthesevenseas]

"I thought it important that her Imperial Majesty see for her own eyes that her requirements were fulfilled."