[Haven] What does love do?

[Balthazar Black]

100 Ashan 722

The wedding continued to unfold before the eyes of the audience but Balthazar remained transfixed in his place at the altar. He continued to focus on the only thing that really mattered to him at the moment, Elisabeth. The time came to exchange gifts and Balthazar gestured for his friend to bring up the gift he'd given him for safekeeping. Robin came up from the crowd to present Balthazar with the carved wooden dagger he'd bought for Elisabeth. One hand made things a little more difficult but it was a challenge Balthazar accepted gladly. He was exactly where he wanted to be and for one of the first times, happy to be bound. He took the wooden dagger in his free hand and held it silently while Robin returned to his seat. He was unsure if it was inappropriate to have his friend bring up the gift, but it was his wedding. He'd do as he pleased.

Elisabeth retrieved her gift from a small pouch with the aid of Darius. A silver chain with two charms hanging from it that Balthazar knew the significance of as soon as he saw them. He listened to his bride as she explained the importance of the snowflake and the flame to the audience, but more importantly to him. Whatever assumption he could make when he saw it, he wanted to hear it from her. She had a beautiful way with words- even when he teased her about how she often chose to use so many. If he disagreed with how she categorized fire, he most certainly didn't show it. He was like a child in a classroom, listening with wonder as the woman he loved told him what the charms meant.

And then it was his turn. He held the wooden dagger out to her by the 'blade'. "When thinking about what I wanted to give you, I had a lot of different ideas. You know I'm not good at giving gifts." Balthazar said in a soft voice to Elisabeth, "I decided on this. A wooden dagger for one of the bravest women I know. I felt that it represented us well. In terms of who we are and how we met. It is symbolic of the things I want for us. The ability to practice and improve, together. To learn new things, together. To grow, together. The wood symbolizes us, to me. It isn't perfect. I know I'm far from it. Wood can be broken, it can wither, it might even rot one trial... but isn't beautiful because it's perfect. It is the chips and the splinters which tell the story worth being told. So, for you, a dagger with which we can learn to face whatever lies ahead. It is my honor, my privilege, to get to go forward in this life with you."

He was never going to be a verbose as Elisabeth, but he didn't mind. The more he stood there, the less he was concerned about the others in the audience- even if he had heard them calling out in response to Darius. Darius guided the couple to the vase where they were to begin mixing the sand and Balthazar squeezed Elisabeth's hand. It was almost over. They were so close. Together they began pouring the sand at their officiate's command.

When Darius lit the parchment containing their vows on fire, Balthazar took a notable step back to avoid the flames reaching for him and burning Darius. Since he was bound to her, he dragged Elisabeth back a little with him and squeezed her hand again. He wasn't even sure he could hear the words being spoken anymore. The anticipation was too much. He heard a new name spoke, Elisabeth Black, and while he did not cry, his eyes certainly grew a little misty.

Elisabeth turned to him and Balthazar kissed his wife.

[Pegasus]

You are cordially invited......

Darius' thoughts on alternative ways that this wedding could have gone notwithstanding, the wedding continued and the couple poured sand and exchanged gifts. Their hands were tied together and would remain so for the rest of the trial, according to tradition.

The guests - or most of them, anyhow - cheered along and answered the call to be part of the wedding. And so, the ceremony ended with a kiss and the cheer went up. They were married and the feeling of joy and happiness was shared by all there present.

Once again, bright light poured in and bathed Balthazar and, by virtue of her closeness to him, Elisabeth. The feeling he got was as before, one of his patron Immortal being pleased with him, happy that he had done as asked. And as the couple kissed they were indeed bathed in the light which Vri gave them and the lights from above fell once more - on all the people this time. Again, the brightness of the light was more than a mortal eye could bear without blinking or closing and, when they did, they would find that the glass chapel - in fact the whole chapel itself - had gone.

They stood in the open air with the sun shining on them. Darius, Elisabeth and Balthazar stood on a raised plinth, crafted from white wood. It was a hexagon-shape, the plinth, with three steps leading up to it on each of the six sides. At each corner of the hexagonal plinth grows one of the trees which had appeared when Chamadarst created the chapel for them to be wed in. Before their eyes, those trees grew and bent towards each other until they joined together to form a canopy of blossom as the roof. From those trees hung tiny glass ornaments, each one the symbol of an Immortal.

And for those who were touched by an Immortal, who bore their blessing anyone of adored or higher in an Immortal mark knew that they stood on holy ground. Holy to them all, not just to Vri, for Balthazar had completed his task.

Birds circled overhead - and both Darius and Devin had sent birds (or "bird" in Darius' case) up there. Devin's Tarouz familiar fitted in and circled and was fine. But Darius' diri did not and she saw that the birds kept a distance. They circled and they watched but .... it was like they were outside a glass window, looking in (Devin's familiar didn't feel that way at all). As the blossoms of the trees merged and formed the roof of the new chapel in Haven, and all the birds flew closer and whatever it was Darius' diri had seen was gone. Devin felt the closeness of his patron Immortal. But so too did Oram, Gennadiya, all those who knew they stood on holy ground felt that.

Woe moved over to speak to Gennadiya. As he did, he felt a slight weight in his pocket, a tiny touch. Nothing else. Should he put his hand in, it was a small, delicate glass feather.

And now, traditionally, the bride and groom would go and see the gifts which had been left for them - those sat on the table, still. Guests would mingle and then, there would be a party. A reception.

OOC:
Okie Dokie!

Overview

Ok everyone, The wedding section is done! Please note the following:

• Only PCs who are invited may post in this thread.
• Darius is officiating the ceremony. ( Scalvoris Wedding Traditions for info)
• I'm going to ask you all to identify up to 3 knowledge per post using the new [knowledge tags. Same for this round. I'm happy to help anyone who needs it - but if you don't identify it, I won't be identifying it for you

• This is where I step away. I will review the thread when requested and I will answer any questions needed. But you guys can mingle now, and you don't need me for that.
• Each player is required to post at least once more - to say what they're doing post-ceremony. You may post more than once if you wish, but a) please be mindful / considerate of others and don't spam the thread and b) you may only post a second time after everyone has posted once (so we keep going in rounds, but with less people).
• The key to the points above is communication. If you plan on posting in a second round - let people know. If you don't - also let people know.
• Praetorum -your sensory overload continues, although it gets a little better. You will have an overstepping penalty which will be that Prae will suffer from synesthesia for the next cycle. He will experience each type of synesthesia throughout the cycle, sometimes alone, sometimes together. This is deeply inconvenient but, I hope, a lot of fun to play. Whenever he uses magic, it will get worse for the next three trials.
• Have fun!

Gifts

There are currently the following gifts:

• Honeydrops, made by Winston
• Wine and glasses in a beautiful box, from Devin
• Whiskey (purple), a decanter and glasses, from Woe
• Mead, made by Tiggy
• Glass wind chime, from Oram
• Daggers, made by Prae
• A hand-carved box with 12 draws in it; each draw has a different tea, made by Jacien
• A set of silver cutlery from Haven Farm
• A silver and glass bowl from Munny Farm
• A set of silver tableware (salt, pepper, napkin rings, etc) with delicate engraving on it from Horatio B Thunderbussel.)
• A small glass coin, without a label.
• A snowcrystal carefully wraped in a box - from Eckman
• A small glass flower, a pretty ornament - from Stan at the Glass Temple
• Two pure white feather quills, without a label.
• A luxury box of chocolates and some nice crystal glass bowls, from Bao Bao
• A pair of whistles (one in silver, encrusted with gems of Peanut Wood, for Elisabeth, and one in gold, encrusted with onyx, for Balthazar.) and and a serving bell (golden and silver) from Kisaik
• Genna's gift will get given to them - but the day after / when they're next seen. One of the Haven settlers has taken it and is keeping it away from the wedding, cos of the whole "warding off evil" stuff.
• A beautiful mirror, exquisitely crafted, for hanging on a wall. No label.

My next post will be the review, when you guys are finished. The events in this thread are not canon until it's reviewed.

[Woe]

Woe had watched the rest of the ceremony, mostly absentmindedly, eager to get over to the gift section as soon as possible and find Gennadiya. She'd given the couple a textile. Perhaps Woe had a fit of superstition, it wasn't unheard of for him to act paranoid at times. But superstitious? This was a new look for him. Yet Iago had drilled into him that it was very bad luck to bring a cloth item as a gift to the wedding.

So he assumed the worst, and took up by Gennadiya's side, grateful that she didn't turn him away but took his hand, thus joining his company for the time being. Therefore, anyone who had a grudge or specific hostile intent would turn their sight away from her, and him as it were.

He only upheld the Pass Unnoticed blessing for as long as he was sure that the danger was not real, or had already passed. Eventually the skies cleared, the chapel turned back to normal, or as normal as could be expected. An overhang of trees was rising over the Chapel, which was fairly pretty. It was a nice wedding, on the whole, the arrogance of the couple (in Woe's opinion) notwithstanding. He wanted to leave soon, but first he had an obligation to keep Gennadiya company until she decided to leave his side.

So he turned to her, and shrugged up at the birds. "I don't know." He said. He thought perhaps Labrae had something to do with them, but then, he always thought of Labrae first when he saw birds. "But you know, there's a tradition. You were the first to arrive weren't you?" Woe said with a small smile to Gennadiya.

"That means you're entitled to a gift from the happy couple." So saying, Woe led Gennadiya up toward Elisabeth and Balthazar, when they were ready to receive their guests and done having their moment together.

While he waited for them to be free to greet anyone, Woe turned to converse with Gennadiya. "What did you think of the ceremony?"

[Elisabeth Black]

100 Ashan, Arc 722

Haven Settlement/Faldrass

As Balthazar handed her the wooden knife, Elisabeth listened carefully to what he said. To some, Balthazar would always seem to be a man of few words, and it was true most of the time. However, his mind was always alive with ideas, thoughts, and puzzles, and she knew that. Whatever he said to her came from a place pure and true.

As she took the knife, Elisabeth gently squeezed his hand, gazing into his eyes as he told her what it symbolized to him. Of course, Balthazar used far fewer words to explain, but each one was full of sentiment, commitment, and love. That little wood knife became something incredibly precious to her from that moment forward.

After the sand, the traditional burning of the vows. Balthazar started to move back, and instinctively, Elisabeth did as well, knowing fire's regard for him. The ritual meant the end of the ceremony, and there was only one thing left – the proclamation.

Balthazar and Elisabeth Black. Finally. As they kissed, she heard the roar of their friends and family, and it was a moment she would never forget.

Light in the glass chapel dazzled in a display of wonderment, and when it subsided, they found things transformed again. No longer a chapel of glass, but now something equally beautiful to Elisabeth. She, Darius, and Balthazar stood on a wood rise, surrounded by trees and flowers – a cathedral of nature. It was perfect.

The kiss ended, and even though she should have been curious about exactly what was going on, it was simply too much. All she could manage, at the moment, was to react and try to savor every moment of pure happiness.

Glancing up at her now-husband, Elisabeth beamed, whispering gently. "It was perfect. Thank you for...everything." She wanted to say more, but her heart was just too full, and besides, words pretty much summed it up.

Turning to Darius, the young woman gently gave him a kiss on the cheek. They could never repay the honor he had bestowed upon the pair, and for the moment, words were all she had. "Darius, I'm honored to call you my friend. Thank you for being a part of this beautiful trial."

A few of the women of Haven had told Elisabeth that weddings had a way of making a couple lose track of everything. She had assured them that it would be fine and that she would remember what to do when, but nope. Her mind was a blissfully happy ball of mush.

Luckily, said women hadn't listened to her and began ushering the newlyweds towards the gift table to receive their guests.

But, there was one thing to be done first - in honor of those that looked down upon them from the little glass ornaments tinkling in the gentle coastal breezes. For those whose symbols danced above their heads.

Balthazar was bound to her, so she briefly let him in on her plan, squeezing his hand and smiling. "Can you help me with something for one moment? It's important."

Guiding him over to where the large arrangements of tempest lilies were, Elisabeth carefully picked up the arrangements and placed them in the center of the plinth, organizing them so. There, they would remain, lighting up the dusk that soon would be upon them all.

Elisabeth then lowered into a graceful curtsy, head bowed in respect.



Delilah, the farmer's daughter, brought forward a small velvet bag Elisabeth recognized, pushing it into her hand. "For the first guest. It was the young woman with the beautiful blond hair." The girl gestured gently toward who she meant, and Elisabeth smiled – Gennadiya. She knew her friend would be coming, but it was so lovely to see her once again. There was so much to catch up on.

Accompanying Genna was Woe, whom Elisabeth was also happy to see. She didn't realize the two knew each other, so that was a surprise. Woe seemed to be guiding Genna to them, and Elisabeth realized people were waiting for her and Balthazar to indicate they were ready. Greeting the pair, she smiled brightly, giving the young woman a somewhat awkward, one-armed hug, trying not to pull Balthazar into it.

"Genna! I'm so glad to see you! It's been so long. Before I forget, however, this is for you...."

Handing Genna the velvet pouch, Elisabeth explained what was inside. "This is an Ignis clam shell. We found a rare fire pearl within it, which I had cleaned and polished. This is our giftOne jewelry-quality fire pearl, nestled in material within an Ignis shell and tied with lovely ribbon to you as our first guest."

Turning to Woe, Elisabeth inclined her head gently, smiling. "I'm glad you are here, Woe. I hope you will stay for the festivities after."

Haven settlers were busy engaging the guests in conversation, talking about the turn of events during the wedding and showing them the path to take to where the reception would take place. When they were ready to depart, of course.

The bonfire on the beach was lit, and people would already hear laughter coming from the direction of the Hollow Sea.

As for Elisabeth, she was simply happy to be at Balthazar's side, waiting to greet the remained of their guests.

Thank you Visna for the beautiful wedding template!

[Devin]

When the ceremony ended, brought light poured in once more and bathed Balthazar, and Elisabeth who was so very close to him. There was in fact so much light, that Devin couldn’t help but close his eyes, even though he didn’t want to – it was more than his mostly mortal eyes could bear, for more than a moment. When he finally opened his eyes again, the whole chapel was …

… gone?

Devin blinked a couple of times and rubbed his eyes as he wondered if he was just imagining things. He pinched himself. As it hurt, he came to the conclusion that he was probably not dreaming, or hallucinating, or hallucinating in a dream if such a thing was possible.

They really were in some sort of tree-chapel now. Devin looked around open-mouthed for a moment before he inclined his head. It was obvious that they all stood on holy ground, and he prayed once more as a consequence, to his patron Delroth who felt so very close now.

Before long, he raised his head again though and watched the birds circle overhead, with a smile on his face. He had been worried that some of the Immortals - those that hadn’t been invited, to be exact - might be grumpy, and he was relieved that this was not the case, after all.

Everything was beautiful and wonderful.

Devin remained where he was a little longer before he finally rose to his feet, approached the newlywed couple and told them with a radiant smile on his face, “I’d like to congratulate the two of you and wish you the best of luck for the future. This was a wonderful ceremony.”

Having said that, he bowed his head and smiled again before he departed so that Elisabeth and Balthazar could greet the rest of the guests and interact with them as well.

For the remainder of the time, he would enjoy the reception, watch how Elisabeth and Balthazar examined their gifts and were so happy together, admire the chapel, socialize with the other guests and talk to them about the most extraordinary events that they had all witnessed.

[Gennadiya Lyosha]

“I have been and still am
a seeker, but I have ceased to
question stars and books;
I have begun to listen to
the teaching my blood
whispers to me.”
― Hermann Hesse

What Does Love do
100 Ashan 722

Genna watched as the wedding wrapped up, she felt a prickling in her eyes as she watched the happiness of the couple standing before the crowd. She listened to the vows and followed along as best she could with the participation in the calls and the chants. If she had been a local Genna would have been more aware and practiced but she kept up as best she could. Her sapphire eyes watch the couples and felt such an interesting compilation of emotions. Pride for the couple, and a love for her friend Elisabeth and happiness that she was happy. There was also the Immortal side, which she was becoming sure more and more that was the other worldly effect. Genna was positive that this was a holy place, but somehow some of the immortals weren’t connect, but Genna couldn’t have said why. She felt Ymiden and Ziel as she looked at the windows, but Daia and Moseke were distant.

Eventually the wedding came to an end and the building changed to a tree pavilion. Genna smiled broadly as it ended and she walked with Woe. He wasn’t aware of what was going on with the birds, Genna smiled and accepted that answer since there were plenty of odd events going on that this wasn’t all that odd. He then explained about the tradition of the first guest getting a gift and her eyes opened wide in surprise. “I wasn’t aware of that.” She thought and then said. “You are right I believe I was the first one in.” She stayed with Woe as they came towards the couple. They held back until the couple were ready.

Woe asked her thoughts about the wedding. She glanced side ways at him, aware that her friend wouldn’t ask that because he was bored. “I found the ceremony very beautiful, Darius did well leading the ceremony, and the vows were heartfelt and lovely.” She said, “the spectacle of the building was interesting, and was a work of art.” Genna then spoke in a whisper just for Woe’s ear. “Something is going on with the Immortals.” She looked meaningful at him, but her face returned it smile, she didn’t want to upset anyone. “I could sense Ymiden, and Ziell, but Daia and Moseke I felt an absents.” She didn’t really get a chance to say more as they were ushered forward, and she gentle squeezed Woe’s arm indicating she was open for more of a conversation later.

Genna’s smile turned into a grin as Elisabeth approached with her new husband. A happy and almost giddy Genna enfolded the bride in a huge even as she got a one armed hug back. Pulling back from the hug she stepped back and as Elisabeth expressed her appreciation for Genna coming, and handed Genna the clam shell and explained what it was. The young woman smile in appreciation for the gift. “Thank you,” she said to the two of them, and then glanced inside of the shell. It was a beautiful pearl, Genna hadn't ever actually seen one of these Fire Pearls before. “Thank you for inviting me. It was a beautiful wedding, and I am so happy for both of you.” She said to both of them. “I would love to talk more but you have a lot of guests.” Genna said noticing the crowd behind them. The young woman felt herself chocking up with happiness for them but managed to keep control. It was their day and if Elisabeth had time later she would love to talk but she wasn’t about to take the bride away from the man who made her happy.

She gave Elisabeth another huge before taking Woe’s arm again, and would join him as they went to the reception.

[/quote]

[Winston]

The Ceremony Ends

The ceremony ended, but the rituals continued as a gift was given to the first guest to have arrived. Winston cheered, clapped and generally speaking joined in with the entire affair. "Me knor peeeple seh dat their wedding will be maagical... Bot dis is anada level, innet?" He said in jovial wonderment to the woman that had very kindly lent him her shoulder.

Once the ceremony looked like it was coming to a close and they had a moment to mingle a little. Winston gave his more sincere thanks to the woman. He had introduced himself, but was ashamed to realize he had not caught her name in return. "Dat was amazing. Me neva bin to anything like dis before. Tank yuh so much fa 'elpin' me out. Me neva gut ya name?..." He would hop down and give a little bow.. "Me hop ta see yuh at the recepshun." He said brightly. "If ya eva in Sweetwine, yuh gat a free ride on me... Figeratively speekin'." He chuckled. "Me must goo und check on me good friend Tiggeh! He's a little shy and me wan make sure dems get 'ome al'reet."

Winston made his way over to Tiggy, if he was still around and would make sure that they were OK and happy. "Me gonna stay fa da party Tigs. Yuh wanna join meh? He made a waving motion of encouragement with his had, but should Tiggy decide better of prolonging their social torture, Winston would not persist. In fact, he'd be very happy to just exchanged a few howdi-doos as they both left the chapel and make sure Tiggy made it out in one piece. He knew that parties and crowds were not everyone's cup of tea, even if they were his and Tiggy would find nothing but support in the tiny, little, fury person in-front of them.

Lets get the party STARTED!

At the party, he made an effort not to make a complete fool of himself. He wanted to thank Blthazar and Elizibeth again for inviting him. He decided that the tradition, like most he suspected, must have had some origins in something and that something on this occasion was connection. Connection with new things, new people, for the new life the two of them were embarking on perhaps? Well, he was determined not to go back to being a stranger. I mean aside from anything else, it was Balthazar freekin' Black. Winston was determined not to act like a total goofball, but honestly, that was more or less not something within his power to control.

He timed it meticulously. The two of them had nothing to really talk about, not yet, so he needed to have a 'time limited event' to create an artificially natural 'window' of time for him to say thanks and then move on, before he fumbled over himself too much... DRINKS! The man had to drink right. That way, he could walk up, at the same time, both grab a drink, Winston could say thanks, compliment his fingernails and then toast and leave. Easy, natural, simple.

Winston approached Balthazar. 'Shart an sweet Winstaaaan. Yuh can doo eet.' He though to himself.

"'Ello!" He shouted, perhaps a little louder then was necessary, in an effort not to end up in that awkward situation of not having been noticed at all. "Gud eeevenin' Mr Black. Me just wanted to wish yuh, persinally, da very best a luck, love and 'appyness in yuh future with yuh bootiful wife." Winston almost certainly looked a little less then comfortable in the presence of Balthazar. Truth was, he was just about holding in an interrogation on the plethora of adventures the man had been on.

He waited for Balthasar to reply, holding in the wave of unmitigated exuberance he was feeling, but something in the little ferret snapped! "Oooooooh my IMMOOOOORTALS, Mun! Me gadda say it! Its NO gud mun! Itsa gadda be said!" The first few words were spoken as if he had been holding his breath and not just his tongue. If there was a stool, wall, table, anything next to Balthazar, he'd leap up onto it and grab Balthazar's hand and begin shaking it, holding his finger with both of his own tiny little paws and waggling it up and down furiously as he continued. "Dat wus de single most fantastic ting me eva see de udda side of Saiori's own smile mun! Yuh mun can invite me ta a party ANY time! Me be dar! Da magic. Da lights. Yuh 'ave been smiled uppon by Saiori 'erself mun and DAT is an hanna me 'old in da 'ighest regard me mun. Thank yuh. Thank yuh fram de buttum of me 'eart. Yuh eva in Sweetwine. Yuh look up Winstaaan Milla, un me be dair fa yuh." Winston stopped shaking his hand now (well, his finger), as if he'd forgotten he was even still doing it... which he had.

Winston would raise a glass in a toast to Balthazar to conclude the encounter when it was appropriate and then hop back down to the floor.

'NU-AI-LED IIIIIT!' He yelled internally as he walked away and did a discreet list fist pump. 'OH! Me faaargut to campliment 'is' fingernails... Me goo... No. No-mun. Don't be a weirdo Winstaaan... Just keeeeep an walkin. Ys don gud.'

While he was not doing this, he would spend the evening talking, dancing (if that was a thing that happened) and generally speaking enjouying himself. He would look for Elisabeth and offer he a similar but less explosive farewell, finding her to be a little less intimidating all round. He'd leave before the party died completely, so's not to overstay his welcome and to give the people here that actually knew one another to have the lingering night sky and quite of the post-party air to share alone.

[Oram Mednix]

I always scowl at weddings.

A lovely ceremony, a kiss, and then…blinding white light followed by another change of surroundings. They were no longer in the temple, nor indeed in any interior. The wedding party stood atop a dais, ringed by trees that, even as they watched, grew and bent together to form an arch. [knowledge Looking about, Oram got the impression they were still in Haven, and that it was just the chapel that had changed, or rather vanished completely. And he could sense that Immortals were involved in this.

The mustelid cadouri, at least, seemed delighted by the whole thing. Oram wasn’t. His experiences with Immortals’ interventions were quite mixed. To be fair, these had been favorable to him far more often than not; however, the ‘nots’ had nearly killed him more than once, and the hunter still didn’t like the disruptive randomness of it all. He supposed that he should be thankful that none of the Immortals were currently trying to off him, and after a couple bits he slowly decided that this was one of those times where the unpredictable beings were doing something good.

This sort of unadventurous attitude would probably disappoint Cassion, he realized. Speaking of which, the Sojourn could feel his patron’s presence once more. There you are, he thought sourly. Did you like the wedding, Old Dust? Not waiting for any sort of answer, he went to congratulate the bride and groom, as well as Darius.

Oram kept his congratulations to Balthazar and Elisabeth short and sweet; they had scores of guests to receive and other things on their minds. When he got a chance to talk to Darius, he clapped the man on the shoulder and said: ”That was a…memorable ceremony. Well done. I don’t know if I could have stood before all these people and done that, especially with all the other stuff going on.” He paused to gesture meaningfully towards the structure that now stood where the chapel had been not long ago. He managed a brief smile before turning a bit more earnest again. He bent towards the sailor: ”If you don’t mind my asking: Did you know that any of that was going to happen beforehand?” The hunter wasn’t one for small talk, and he would not have asked the question if he weren’t genuinely interested in the answer.

Regardless of what that answer was, he would not belabor the point. There was food to eat, interminable toasts to make, and probably dancing, as well.

[Tiggy]

Tiggy remained ready to revert to the safety of his ball while watching the end of the ceremony from his corner. He watched as everyone cheered, it seemed to be the end of the service. Suddenly, Tiggy was blinded by bright lights and had to close his eyes, tight. A few deep breaths and Tiggy somehow managed to stay uncurled. Wait, where did the chapel go? Where did the tree lined podium come from? Hang on, were those trees actually growing? Tiggy squeezed his little glass turtle until it hurt his hand and wondered when he could leave. He heard a tinkling in the breeze and saw lots of tiny glass figures dangling above the happy couple, making a beautiful sound as they knocked together gently.

From nowhere Winston appeared, he seemed to be checking up on Tiggy's welfare. "I...I'm alright, th...th...thank you. I think I need to leave. Quietly. As soon as it's not rude to do so." Maybe Winston could help with this actually. "C...c...could you come with me to greet the bride and groom? That seems to be what everyone else is doing. And then help me get out of here, p...p...please?" Though Winston was not large in stature he most certainly WAS large in personality and would hopefully serve to shield Tiggy from the very many chatty and well meaning fellow wedding guests. Once the expected niceties were done Tiggy could leave without guilt, and return to his accommodation, and the reassuring presence of granny. This had all been far too much with far too many strangers far too soon after Tiggy's arrival in Scalvoris. He would need at least thirty trials of solitude and quiet to have any chance of recovering.

[Praetorum]

Praetorum’s vision was only just starting to clear up when a bright light began to shine all around them. For a moment, he was alarmed, worried that he was seeing things—then the light passed, and Prae realized that no, something else was happening. His suspicion spark twisted in his chest anxiously, but like him, it had been blinded, and besides. Prae had learned his lesson about using attunement so carelessly.

Instead, he simply blinked, and found when his eyes opened again that the chapel that had given him such a headache was gone, replaced with a canopy of trees that Prae knew, somehow, was blessed. Holy.

There was that, at least. Whatever it was that had had his patrons feeling uneasy, this place was still sacred to them—chances were good, nothing major would go wrong here on this trial.

Probably.

Around him, people were beginning to talk, some of them approaching the newlyweds, others mingling among themselves. Prae let the noise wash over him as he once more grounded himself. The sound of conversation was not deafening, exactly, but it was loud in his ears, and very purple.

Wait, what?

Prae blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision. Nope. Still purple, and pulsing as the conversation ebbed and flowed around him. Fates, this was. Something.

Something to worry about later, he decided. For now, he had friends to greet. Gingerly making his way through the crowd, he hovered as unobtrusively as he could until the couple had a moment free.

“Congratulations, you two.” Praetorum beamed, his tail coiling around to squeeze each of their shoulders affectionately. He was mindful of their joined hands, remembering something about it being unlucky if they were separated or something like that. “I should have expected that the two of you together would never have an ordinary wedding,” he teased lightly.

He tried not to let on how distracting the noise around them all was, but he didn’t hold out much hope. These were two of the most perceptive people he knew, and Prae was not one who hid things well—he could only hope they wouldn’t worry.