[SWE] Festival of Lights - 313 PC

chaele

worship like a dog

At first they do not realize they are being addressed, sucking idly on the hard candy as they peruse the growing collection of lanterns and the drooping branches between them. Theirs is for a man who should have been given an homage a long time ago, but the twisted trials of grief and survival prevented it until this opportunity presented itself. Valeri was better with children than Chaele is.

They step out of the way of his little reaching hand, content to let Mateo ruin the cake and his face with it. There is a short pause as they peer down at the small child through the irregular eye holes of said mask. “Thank you,” they reply flatly, awkwardly, and with a glimpse upward to check if any adults were prepared to rescue him. “One day you will kill a quarry of your own, and you can make a similar mask for yourself.”

at the shrine of my lies

Code blatantly stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.

Maeve was unsure if she was going to come or not, but she did make a lantern for Adam and she can't imagine not hanging it for him. Even if the idea of doing so is painful. Her head dips towards Amun as he leaves, Remi, Ronin, and anyone else she comes across. Her smile wane as she approaches one of the branches, rising up on tip toes to hang the lantern from the boughs, watching as the faint light catches the pieces of colored glass that sway on chains from the bottom. It's an almost garish thing. Dark and bright all at once. Incredibly fitting for the person it's made for.

The Queen takes a breath, stepping back and letting jade eyes scan the crowd, finding Sah at one of the tables. She doesn't say anything as she takes a seat beside him, hand finding his under the table, giving it a gentle squeeze as she plucks a cookie of her own making from the tabletop. "Glad you're getting to try these. I don't think any of them made it back to you in Halo."

Maeve

Alexander

He wasn't sure why he decided to come here. Not when there were plenty of people here who would be willing to kill him. Still, he felt the need to come. To honor his siblings that had fallen. It's a simple lantern that he hangs. One for Sam, Adam, and Bastien. Each panel having something for them. The Ascended hung it near the one that Amun made, catching him an Maea as they began to slip out of the festival once more. He planned to follow suit. He lingered on the outskirts, watching those come an go, knowing very few of the people here and wanting to keep it that way.

For what it's worth, no one seems too concerned with him, but Alexander doesn't want to take a risk. Having done what he came to do, the blacksmith slips away from the crowd again, back into the swamp and towards home.

Mount Everest ain't got shit on me
'cause I'm on top of the world, on top of the world

Cordelia

Cordelia follows along with Noah, staying close to his side, not daring to let him out of her sight. She understands his unease, feels it herself too, but does her best to keep from adding to it. Her own lantern is clutched tightly, grip white knuckled even as she hands hers next to the one for Korbin, swallowing thickly as the flame flickers behind the flower pressed paper. "They look nice, Noah..." She takes a deep breath, holding onto Noah's arm even as his fingers hook into the sleeve of her blouse, bunching it up in his grasp. Giving his arm a squeeze in silent encouragement, Cordelia finds herself sinking down next to him.

Her sweetbread resting on the table before them, making her lips curl into a slight smile. She dips her head to Lena in greeting, but doesn't recognize her outside of her animal form. "Yes, I'm glad to see you're okay."

---

Cordelia hangs her lantern for Aino.

Present all your pretty feelings
May they comfort you tonight

Wessex will not skirt the party like a furtive shadow, skulking and afraid of conflict; she’s paid her penance after all. The candle within her lantern sits behind a grim prison of bones. There’s nothing attractive about this piece at all, just the macabre reminder of death. Very specific deaths for her. And who knows, perhaps the picture of her striding boldly forward with this handmade skeletal lantern is a calculated effort to add to her image. Hanging it from the branch of a low tree, she tries to keep the occasional eye on her siblings, lest something happen and one of them needs a quick exit. ------------------ Wessex made a lantern for all the dead Ascended <3 WESSEX come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts unsex me here

this lighthouse I built to guide my feet has burned out and I forgot where I'm going

The Feverlands was easily accessible by boat - and her conversation with Melita got Raza thinkin’ a bit. She ain’t the real explorin’ type, but there is a world outside Torchline. She could live her whole life there, or she could try and see a bit ‘a the world before war tears it to bits.

At least it ain’t cold here. Well, not terribly. The proprietress is still wrapped up in a a full layer as she wanders around the swamp, takin’ liberal swigs from a flask and idly munchin’ her way through some of the feasts’ treats. Though she has no lantern this year, she still pays homage to those that hang, walkin’ quietly by an’ admirin’ the handiwork - or lack thereof in some cases.

RAZA

We're all just ticking time bombs

It’s pretty stupid of him to be here, unforgiving land that it is. But even a cripple gets the urge to go places, and he’s always said that fresh air and change of scenery does a body and mind well. Phi catches on to the edge of his pain and anxiety, however, and never scampers too far away. She has a tender heart, bringing Falke all sorts of sweets that she swipes from the table. And the Fixer, to his credit, eats every last one that she brings.

He leans heavily on his cane, however, picking his way slowly over what looks like the most solid, promising bits of ground, until he can find a seat that is not a mushroom or crab. There are many in his head and heart tonight, causing the Stormbreaker to have an uncharatistically melancholy air about him. Well, that and a bit of a mad professor look due to his unkempt beard.

FALKE

Thank you, P. I would like that, Hadama said politely to their feathered countrybird through the shapeshifter's bond, green eyes gleaming with quiet amusement behind his stoic expression. Which ones would you recommend? Though they were at the mercy of whatever confections people could be convinced to bring over.

The merman moved slowly along the shore's edge while he waited for P to make her choices, admiring the lanterns hung near the water and puzzling over the construction of some, the magic of others, and the symbology of so many different shapes and colors and patterns. His lantern was simple; a reflection on those lost rather than a personalized work of art like those crafted by the drylanders. Now his sharp eyes lingered on structures and materials, memorizing what he saw to bring back to his mother's underwater forge.

Pihu

Pihu

Circling above Hadama 's head, Pihu let out a croak. All of 'em! Dipping a bit lower, she tipped a wing so it just brushed against the mermanta's hair. I'll be right back. That wasn't quite true: she took her time savoring the treats she'd selected for herself.

Eventually, though, she hopped off the table she'd been sitting on. Grabbing a handful of snack and sweets, she made her way back to the water's edge. Putting her fingers in her mouth, she whistled. "Oi! Ye still want this or nah?" Plopping down, she stuffed a whole cookie in her mouth, chewing in a way that managed to spray crumbs everywhere.

They say these are the golden years
But I wish I could disappear

DEIMOS

Several others joined his flock of lanterns – an additional one for Bastien, beside Rexanna, another for Samuel, despite years between them. There were probably more to arrange; something hardened and burdened for eternity, or those like Kiada’s, left back at home because she’d found a way to survive – and his eyes flickered back over to Darkeye’s. “They suit them,” and he nodded his head in the direction of the matching figures – before lifting it in Ru’s direction. The Valkyrie received a small smile, but he left her to her own devices, understanding the nuances of their grief were not the same.

i'm in the mood to dissolve in the sky

Lena

and sweetest in the gale is heard
and sore must be the storm

Many came and many more were to arrive, so her fingers traced Sera’s lantern lightly, before finding, striving, to grasp at a branch firm enough to hold the lacquered elements. It took more than a few instances for her shaking digits to tie it along a bough, willing the stalwart prowess to last more than a meager breath, when another’s voice reached her.

Turning sharply, she was relieved to recognize the vocals and the man, Noah, though not the woman at his side. “Thank you.” She bent her head to both of them, inclining it in a small nod, not giving away the notions of her lantern. With a gentle grin, she made a quiet inquiry. “Did you make it back to your mountains?”

And, lifting her head, spying Falke, she gave a small wave, with a thousand other things to say that were left for another time, another place.

that could abash the little bird
that kept so many warm

Melita

yes, yes, I am wild
I am the wind that makes breathing hard

The youth and her companions managed to sequester their way into the Feverlands again, beckoned by the notions of spirits, by the quandaries of festivals, by habitual layers of years gone by. Her hands grasped her sister and mother’s lanterns, a given at every interval and year, and those of other lost companions.

Strolling by the table, with Sila on her shoulder and Fangorn bobbling around her ankles, she snagged a few morsels for herself and them, stuffing a candy into her mouth, while contemplating where best to snag and put her adornments. Her eyes went to her uncle, some distance away, but avoided the notions before they could even truly begin, not willing to swarm into open hostility amongst a world already brimming and brewing with it.

So, the three of them ambled over to a tree not yet occupied, and she began to fix the lanterns to the branches one by one, tenderly touching over each – in fond memories.

I am the ocean and the battered shore
I will be the passion of thunder, a howl of fury

yet my blood renders me a King

Sah can't help the small smile that stretches across his face when Maeve approaches. He startles slightly when she grabs his hand, but happily returns the gentle squeeze. The Abandoned tries to ignore the slight flush to his ears and focus on her words. Their past encounter is clear in his mind, and he doubts it'll go away anytime soon. Not that he wants it to. It's a fantastic memory.

He reaches over and grabs one of the cookies, "You made these?" Sah takes a bite, and his eyes widen. "These are delicious. No wonder they were gone before I saw them." The twins seem to share his sweet tooth and love of cookies. He can't blame them for hogging ones these tasty.

Sah

Hadama accepted the wing-touch calmly and then watched the raven land on the tables, curious as to what treats she'd chose.

Instead he was treated to the sight of her transforming, and the mermanta tilted his head in fascination as feathers became skin and clothes. He finally had a face and not just a beak to put with her name. While she scavenged, he turned his attention back to the lanterns, but upon her return he swam over to her and accepted a handful of fruit tarts.

He examined them carefully, admiring the craftsmanship, before popping one with a strawberry on it into his mouth. His stoic expression lightened to one of bliss for a moment, at least until he swallowed the mouthful. And then it was time to contemplate the next - this one yellow, with a little curl of lemon peel on top. "Thank you, P," he said solemnly, but with eyes gleaming bright with good humor. "Which ones are your favorites?"

Pihu