[PQ] [seasonal event] kindness keep a lonely company

AMALIA Team Crafts! As Lily and Rexanna approach the chorus bees they begin to shift and stir, their song growing louder and quicker. Rexanna reaches them first. Her attempts to grab the cloths are met with an increase of volume- clearly, the bees are displeased! However, Lily's singing soothes them somewhat. The bees leave Rexanna and begin to swarm around the redhead, though the angry lilt of their buzzing is decreased. Indeed, they seem to be humming along, the whole cloud of them dancing on the summer breeze. After four bars they pull away, moving as one to some new location and letting Lily and Rexanna retrieve the linen in peace. Phoebe, meanwhile, is one lucky duck. The big flower appears to be sleeping at the moment, though as she reaches toward it a strange growl like shivering trees can be heard. Maybe it's best to leave it alone and go back inside...? It is a beautiful flower, though... I tend to avoid getting emotional I'm not shutting you out It's just the way I'm born But I see myself next to you until we're old

The flower...growled? Phoebe froze in place for a moment, gaping at the oversized bloom in total shock. Had she actually heard that? Surely not...flowers didn't growl. But...then again...this was Caido. If gods existed...certainly growling flowers could too? Nervously she pulled her hand back, not really sure what to do. It was a very pretty flower and would make their dolls and banners very pretty too but... She should ask. She was going to ask. Phoebe quickly went to the door and poked her head in. "Uhm...Amalia?? Is there a reason some of your flowers growled at me?" she asked, concerned by what had happened. Phoebe shine like gold, buzz like a bee, oh you make me smile

KIADA

Her sharp eyes skate over Jigano as the flour attack sits within the folds of his clothes and drifts from him as he moves and speaks to Amalia — a gesture of which she offers her leopardess friend a sickly sweet smile of innocence. As though she’s saying “Who, me? Never!” before she launches into finishing her bread and cleaning them off deftly before grabbing a rag to clean the countertops of the mischievous bouts of flour sprinkled everywhere. A small grin crosses her face as Jigano sweeps up flour near her and coats her pant legs, and a pun is sent her way. “Ack, that was terrible!” She groans with a quiet laugh, ignoring Deimos for the time being — finding it interesting the way Amalia’s eyes linger on the Reaper.

Her eyes scan Jigano again briefly with a small shrug and smirk as she gets all the flour in one pile at the end of the counter top and slips it over the edge, aiming for the bards feet while he continues to sweep — effectively ignoring Deimos and letting him win said prize, if only to see how Amalia may respond to the act. A roguish wink is sent Jigano’s way, lips curling in a small wolffish smirk before she disposes of the rest of the flour and finishes cleaning the counter tops, standing over the edge where they’ve disposed of all the flour, brushing off the flecks of white and waiting to see what Amalia has to say.

REXANNA

paint my spirit gold

It was like magic, as Lily and Rexanna roam toward the cloth for the banners. It’s an interesting sound, one that intrigued her in a way that kept her still, as if one wrong move would send everything to hell. But thank god for Lily and her beautiful voice, enough to calm the bees slightly and avoid any stinging on her end. Rexanna has no idea how she’d react in the event that it would happen. But the bees leave her before she can find out, and she exhales a sigh of relief, her eyes moving toward Lily as the bees move in rhythm toward her and buzz about her.

Then, suddenly, they disperse and leave them be. “You are amazing!” She said with a wide grin, turning toward Lily and grabbing one of the banner cloths and allowing Lily to grab the other should she want to. “I knew your voice was wonderful, but that was incredible!” She cheered, leaning toward the red head with a small elbow of affection and playfulness. That was when she noticed that Phoebe hadn’t come out with them in the place the banners were, and they likely needed to at least get started on them. Hoping that Lily followed, Rexanna grabbed onto her own bundle of cloth before sprinting back inside toward the crafting table with a wide grin and breath of relief.

AMALIA Amalia misses the last of their antics, fails to spot conspiratorial looks and smirks, though an amused groan is audible from the back of the room when Jigano lets loose a pun. She busies herself with cleaning the pans, sorting and sifting in the back of the shop in an attempt to maintain some semblance of order. Part of her cannot help but be sure she will have to manage the front, too, unsure of the level of faith she can have in her assistants. Returning from the depths of the bakery's interior, Amalia is pleasantly surprised to find the place nearly immaculate. With little to do but wait, the busy girl takes a break to lean against a wall, watching contentedly as Jigano sweeps and Deimos and Kiada clean the counters. It is not apathy which stills her, or sloth: instead it is a strange thing, something beginning to fill into the pit of her soul. Arms crossed over her chest, the lonely girl takes a moment to enjoy the tranquility of the scene, basking in the glow of friendship, hard work, and an oven full of fresh bread. Though as seriously as they are taking their cleaning, it is nothing compared to the lengths they've gone to prevent one another from remaining unfloured. Stepping forward, Amalia arches an eyebrow in resigned surprise, hardly able to keep the laughter from her lips. Ghosts, the lot of them, covered in white, their clothes and skin and hair speckled with dust. Her grandmother's rule had been put in place to prevent just this sort of thing, but it had never worked then- and the girl doesn't know why she expected adulthood would cause people to take it seriously now. She will have to think of something other than her grandmother's traditional reward: a great hug, a kiss on the cheek, and the wooden Spoon of Cleanliness seem a little improper, here. At last the requisite time has passed, and Amalia begins to withdraw the bread. Loaf after loaf emerges, each one golden and beautifully decorated, if not perfectly round. Birds, moons, snowflakes- and, of course, her four seasonal treats. Smiling up at the trio of bakers, Amalia extends her arms to show off their work, a proud and delighted smile illuminating every inch of her face. "Thank you all so much. They're beautiful, you did so wonderfully- if anyone is looking for a bakery job after this, you're hired!" Her tone is half-teasing, half-sincere. She would happily have their help, and their company, whenever it is offered. Looking them over with a critical eye, Amalia seems to fall deep into thought. "It's hard to really say who's cleanest," she muses, mischief pulling at her lips. "But, if we were to give a prize for least dirty, I suppose the winner would have to be..." She lets the moment stretch, that last syllable a wavering note as she peers at each one. Amalia is beginning to regret this, because the rewards her grandmother would give are, perhaps, not quite adequate here. The silly spoon, maybe, but the hug and kiss... Raising her face up to Deimos, Amalia cannot help the flush which creeps across her cheeks. That the behemoth managed to keep himself so clean is unexpected, but not wholly unwelcome. For a brief moment a wild part of her entertains the idea of sliding around the counter and against his chest, letting his arms wrap around her waist and pressing her lips to the skin of his cheek--- Tearing her eyes from him abruptly, Amalia clears her throat. "Deimos!" she announces, half-turned away, pretending to hunt for something as an excuse to hide her crimson cheeks. "And for your reward: bragging rights, and you may choose one loaf to sample and take home." Standing back up with a knife in hand, she lays it across her palms in dramatic presentation, extending it toward the glacial man. "It is up to you, o clean one, to decide if your compatriots are worthy of a taste." Deimos Kiada Jigano Congratulations! You have finished baking some lovely bread. Feel free to post again to wrap up, or to keep going as long as you like. Our winner of the flour fight by dice roll, Deimos, may select one loaf to cut into. He may also decide if he feels like sharing~ ;D I tend to avoid getting emotional I'm not shutting you out It's just the way I'm born But I see myself next to you until we're old

Lily sing me a song of a lass that is gone A flush spreads through her cheeks when Rexanna enthusiastically compliments her. “Oh, it’s nothing!” she responds, a tad flustered, though on the inside her heart is simply elated. Not only did her plan work, but the bees actually seemed to like her! Grabbing the other end of the cloth, she pulls the large banner off the drying string and hurries with the other woman back to the safety of the bakery, though she does spare a glance behind her for one last hopeful glimpse at the singing bees. Maybe they would come back….? Alas, they’re gone. Disappearing inside, she forces her thoughts to turn to the project ahead of them, looking at the length in her hands. It’s quite large. “Should we use the whole thing or cut it in two? Maybe a nice flower field? Spring in Caido?” She’s up to put anything on there, as long as it’s pretty! merry of soul, she sailed on a day over the sea to Skye

D e i m o s

Send a heartbeat to the void that cries through you
Relive the pictures that have come to pass

The ambrosial scents of their baking bread filled the air and left his stomach rumbling; he ignored it for the moment, content to clean and idle away in silence after the churn of mischief. There were several moments where he thought he could easily wring out the towel over either head of Jigano or Kiada for pure, sadistic amusement, but it would destroy the effects of the sudden serenity and repose, and he wasn’t going to be the one to disturb it this time. He kept his head down, unaware of the other conspiracies and ruses navigating their way around the room, biding away the seconds until the promise of food would ring its lively tune and they could see just what they’d ended up orchestrating and creating. It’s an odd sort of sensation, to cultivate and generate rather than destroy; but he’d enjoyed it nonetheless, and gave no further thought to it as Amalia spoke again, voice curling into the silence, a word, a whim, he seemed to follow with little hesitation. He left the towel on the counter, and maneuvered beside it, arms folded over his floured chest, Kiada’s palms becoming an eerie, poignant, ghostly sanction on his shirt, staining along his beard and cheeks, some flicking on and off the top of his head occasionally, as if they had naught better to do. He smiled anyway, regardless of the outcome, fully expecting to be hastened and chastised into the bottom of the barrel, though as his stare wandered from the bard to the harpy and back again, he was overtly suspicious that perhaps he was not the most injured, maimed, or scarred, which was utterly bizarre…he could’ve sworn – As the announcement lingered, up in the air, his gaze rested back on Amalia, awaiting the verdict. He arched his brow upward only once more as her cheeks appeared to take on a rosy hue, but didn’t question it, didn’t inquire, entirely fixated on the blend of colors on her face. When she tore her stare away from him, elsewhere, elsewhere, elsewhere, it took him several seconds to realize it was his name she’d proclaimed as victor, the triumphant, gallant winner of the flour contest. He must have looked utterly stupefied for several seconds, eyes widening, glancing back at the others in disbelief, before setting it back into a rather devil-may-care look, as if it would be that way all along: fortune favoring the bold. He mockingly bowed before Kiada and Jigano, but remained the humble champion and conqueror thereafter, breathing in the aromas of the spoils, laughing at how odd, how jubilant, how fervent the prize had made him (because there’d been very few things in his life ever truly won and not taken away, down into the doldrums and throngs). “I could not have done it without them,” and the cheeky grin set itself along his mouth, as he struggled to decide which bread to pick, which freshly baked concoction awaited his mouth and stomach. In the end, he pointed to one of Kiada’s birds, waiting to take flight. “Shall we all try?” Skilled with the knife, he grabbed hold of its sanction, and divided a portion of the bread equally, with great finesse and relish, each one quartered to perfection and swift, keen notches (a blade was a blade, no matter the edges). Then he extended a portion to the other three, all of them victors in some form. For now we stand alone, the world is lost and blown And we are flesh and blood disintegrate with no more to hate

”Terribly clever, you mean,” Jigano corrected Kiada with a wink and a wicked grin. He watched her push the flour over the edge and dodged back just a second too late – returning her smirk as his legs and foot took on a ghostly pallor. He did knock the flour from himself as well as he was able, but only enough that he wouldn’t continue to spread it around the areas they had already cleaned as he herded the fine white powder into a neat pile he could scoop into a pan and dispose of into a dry bucket. Between the sweeping and the wiping of the counters they soon had the kitchen back in good order.

When the bread emerged it smelled heavenly, and the bard took a deep breath of the homey, delicious scents of their various recipes. ”Would the position of ‘official bakery taste-tester’ be open?” he teased his friend shamelessly, but the contest was about to have a winner declared and he fell silent to let Amalia make her decision.

A decision he had helped along just a teensy bit by focusing his last antics on Kiada – and vice versa – and he grinned slyly at his ‘assistant’ in mischief as Amalia let the moment stretch with anticipation. He didn’t miss the way his dear friend’s cheeks grew warm as she contemplated Deimos, and he had to fight to silence the hum of satisfaction that threatened to give him away as he turned his gaze innocently towards the banner makers, hard at work on the other end of the shop.

The declaration of the winner had him laughing at last, bowing to Deimos and then to Kiada, playful rather than mocking as he straightened to see which loaf the big man would choose. A bird in the hand it was, and blue eyes lit up with surprise at the invitation to join the victor in his spoils. ”My thanks, white knight of the flour wars,” he teased, watching eagerly as the loaf was divvied between them. Biting into his own portion he found himself sighing in contentment, chewing and swallowing before giving Kiada another wink. ”Positively divine!” He reached out to dab the flour from Amalia’s nose with a smile for her as well. ”We couldn’t have had a better teacher!”

AMALIA As Phoebe returns back inside, Amalia raises her head to greet her but is stopped by the midwife's words. "Oh no... I thought I got them all. Are you hurt?" Looking worriedly over the younger girl, she is relieved to see no visible sign of trauma, no evidence that Phoebe fell prey to the hungry bloom. "Sometimes the flowers get... ah, hungry. Best to avoid any that look too large. Or like they might move." Rexanna and Lily appear shortly after, and Amalia breathes a sigh of relief, still embarrassed at having forgotten such an important part of the craft. "You should have enough to get started! I'll come check on the banners when the bread is in the oven." A bit too preoccupied by dodging fistfuls of flour to leave her post, she has faith in the three women's ability to construct some decorations, now that they have finished gathering supplies. Phoebe, Lily, Rexanna Team crafts! Please assemble your decorations! As a reminder, your supplies are: 5 small bottles of paint: red, blue, black, indigo, yellow A spool of thin orange silk ribbon Two needles and thread A pile of smooth sticks and twine Moss Glue Fresh flowers Lots of linen cloths Snacks and tea Amalia will come check on you once she finishes with the baking team and their shenanigans. This is the last mandatory round of this PQ I tend to avoid getting emotional I'm not shutting you out It's just the way I'm born But I see myself next to you until we're old

Lily sing me a song of a lass that is gone Leave it to the women to be the mature ones around her - minus Kiada, apparently - getting shit done without Amalia’s supervision. Helping Rexanna to stretch the banner and place it on the table, she takes a look at the options they have before them: paint, glue, flowers… her features scrunch into something resembling her ‘thoughtful face’ as she looks to the other women. “What do you think about a pastoral background with, um, some real flowers glued on in key places?” She points to the pots of paint. “We can make green with these, and a sort of brown, too…” Her eyes then drift to the orange silk ribbon. “And there could be some silly sort of ‘Welcome Spring!’ thing on the other half?” She offers a shrug to the other two, but assuming no one vetoes her idea (though they are more than welcome to!) Lily begins mixing  some of the blue and yellow paint together to make a lovely bright green, and then starts to create an idyllic field on the canvas. merry of soul, she sailed on a day over the sea to Skye

AMALIA The three remaining craftswomen complete their task with finesse, led on by Lily's artistic vision. As the hewa loaves bake Amalia comes to investigate, smiling fondly at the women, delighted and awed by their willingness to contribute to the work of a veritable stranger. As they finish Amalia beams, barely able to keep from clapping in delight. "It looks wonderful! Do you mind if I hang it on the bakery stall?" She would love to have it above her head, a vibrant reminder of new friendships forged in a day of merriment and mirth. Congratulations! You have all completed this PQ ;D I tend to avoid getting emotional I'm not shutting you out It's just the way I'm born But I see myself next to you until we're old