ioduanlogs | [EVENT] Moon and Mirrors (Welcome Mingle Log)

[EVENT] Moon and Mirrors (Welcome Mingle Log)

Characters: ALL
Date: January 15
Location: At the Dreaming Bridge and all over Aifaran!
Situation: A large influx of Dreamfolk arrive in time for one of the Lunar Festivals, and they're all invited!
Warnings/Rating: N/A

A surprising amount of Dreamfolk have arrived within a short time frame - a peculiarity remarked upon by a number of Aifaran's residents. It is unusual in that it coincides with a lunar festival, one which only happens every fifty or so years.

Newcomers will find the streets packed with all sorts of people, stalls of fried and sugared foods, carnivalesque games and rides, and all other manner of things to do. Merchants are very keen to get their wares out there, and the stipend given may just burn a hole in your pocket when you see what's for sale.

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That response makes Padparadscha laugh, as does the staring. "Ah, I suppose it's true, isn't it? We call ourselves Gems, but maybe that's a confusing name here."

They recall passing at least one store displaying what appeared to be cut, inclusion-less gems, and the name is essentially all the same here. Gems as a species don't seem to exist, even if gemstones do. The thought is a little sobering, but Padparadscha's composure only becomes slightly more serious as they go on.

"Is it rare for soft ones to have wings like that, or is it yet another species?"

Considering there's only one species of animal-like humanoid in Padparadscha's world, since Lunarians don't really count, they're getting rather curious about this abundance of variety.

It does take some effort, but he's at least trying to look at their face now, rather than everything else. Naesala was never one to let his composure crack for very long. "Perhaps not all that confusing. I can't imagine that many could say they've seen gemstones up and walking around."

Then again, he doesn't know what sort of quirks this place might have. Naesala is still fairly certain he would have noticed if anyone in the festival crowd had hair so unique as that. Such a sparkle stood out, even with the unremarkable eyesight he had.

"It is not as rare as all that where I come from. My people are called laguz, and I'm a part of the raven clan. Naesala is my name." He gives them a little half-bow, his wings spreading a bit with the movement.

"'Laguz'..."

Padparadscha says it slowly, as if testing the word or committing it to memory. They're a little hard-pressed not to laugh at the bow, though, especially the way his wings move with it. It's kept to something small and soft, though.

"Ah, how polite. I'm Padparadscha. It's not often that I meet new people, so I'm sure today will be a new record."

It's a little premature to say it's a pleasure to meet any of them, but there's certainly been nothing wrong so far, so they're keeping it quite relaxed for the moment.

"Hah! That's the bare minimum of politeness as it is," he comments as he stands up straight once more, a hand resting on his hip. Hmm. Their name was a mouthful, but Naesala was confident enough that he at least avoid mangling it.

"It seems to me that being here sets new records for all of us." Naesala turned towards the nearby street, sweeping his arm out to indicate the pedestrians on the sidewalk, and the festival not too far beyond that. "I have never seen people like this before. I spotted a few that do look human, but I have to wonder if they're anything like the humans I know."

"Then we Gems must be an impolite lot. Ah, but it's probably true."

The laugh they give this time is deeper and more resonant, a hearty thing that's much less reserved. At the very least, it's not surprising to hear more about humans now, since one of their roommates already warned them about that particular fact.

"Are there that many different kinds of humans, then? I'd never seen one before coming to this world."

Hearing of them through whispered myth is different, but it's also something they're keeping to themselves for now.

"Ah, don't worry yourself about being polite. Who knows if bowing is even the custom here?"

Naesala pondered their question for a moment, tapping his chin as he considered what to say on that topic. "Most humans like to think of themselves as being from their country or region first, and that they're actually human second, if it ever occurs to them at all. They take their customs from where they live more than based on what they are. ... I realize that might seem confusing, but once you interact with humans more, you'll see what I'm talking about."

"Ah, that's a good question. But the only people my senior aren't even here..."

Gem society is a very equal one, so there's only one person Padparadscha would even really consider bowing to, and that person isn't here. They listen closely to his further explanation, though, and their expression brightens briefly like they just understood something.

"I think I already have. A child I met earlier told me they were an 'Egyptian girl'. I wasn't sure what the little one meant, but the first word sounded like it referred to a place, so I asked about that."

"Hmm. I haven't heard of an 'Egyptian' before myself, but if it is indeed a place then it illustrates my point."

It does mildly bother Naesala that there were so many people here from unfamiliar places. Not knowing anything about them or how they might work could leave him at a disadvantage, if not in some sort of danger. But on the other hand... it was probably better that none of them know just who he is. It was something of a blessing to be free of the people who had been howling for his blood.

Naesala then gives Padparadscha a small, humorless smile. "Let me give you some advice. Don't freely trust any of them... or the peoples on this world, for that matter. I'll grant that some humans are decent folk, but there are plenty that aren't so noble. Best to keep that sword of yours close to you until you're completely sure of their intentions."

"They did say it was a place once I questioned it more," Padparadscha confirms, leaning a little on their sword at this point. It's about as large as they are, so it's no small maneuver, but they do it as if it's familiar.

Naesala's warning gets the smallest of smiles from them, though. They've already been entertaining a certain level of distrust here, despite their outward appearance, so the warning feels a little like preaching to the choir, but they shrug a little.

"Well, in a world as unfamiliar as this one, I'd be an idiot not to keep my sword alongside me whatever the circumstances, huh? It's not just humans who have more intentions than the good ones."

"Yes, you're absolutely right. I'm simply not familiar with the people here yet to know what they might have in store for us."

Of course, he wasn't excluded. If Padparadscha hadn't been an intelligent being, he might have even tried chipping off a bit of their hair to see what price he could get for it. As it was, Naesala didn't think it was worth tangling with a being that could carry around a sword that large. It meant that they had to be very good at using it to go to all that trouble.

"Well, if you have any other questions about humans, I can tell you what I know. Or you could always go ask a friendly-looking one."

"Something like that only unfolds with time, doesn't it?" they remark, seemingly musing on it much more than they actually are. One day is no amount of time to be judging anything by, much less an entire new world.

Since it seems like this one isn't a typical human regardless, Padparadscha just shrugs a little at the offer. "I won't trouble you for it unless you want to tell me. I think I'll have to ask some people for more later anyway."

"Very well then, I'll leave it to you. I hope you'll find it an entertaining experience." Instead of a terrible one, that is. Naesala can't help but be a pessimist in that regard, considering the turbulent history between laguz and humans. It was odd to find himself in a place where he would have to describe something as basic as that history to other people.

"I do have a question for you. If you haven't ever seen humans or laguz before, what is your world like? Do all the other Gems have stunning hair like you do?"

"Oh, I'm sure I will." Padparadscha mostly seems amused by the prospect, however daunting the idea of having to get to know an entire new world's worth of new species might be. This city is almost as large as the entire land they knew before coming here, but that just means there's more of interest here.

Padparadscha quickly considers how thoroughly to answer that question, clouding it with a lazy, lopsided smile. "We're all made of the stone we're named for, but I think I'm still the one with the most hair. Small mercies, huh? But there's not much to my world. Gems are the only sentient species on our land."

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[EVENT] Moon and Mirrors (Welcome Mingle Log)

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