[EVENT] Moon and Mirrors (Welcome Mingle Log)

[khuimods]

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.

Comments

festival!

[afoolsgold]

The Fool does not blend into the crowd.

The festival is a brightly coloured affair that transpires around him, and he stands in the middle of it with a look of wide-eyed, appreciative wonder lighting up his expression. He makes his way from vendor to vendor, slipping into stores to admire brightly coloured baubles and elegant silks; despite not looking like one who came to this world with much material wealth, the peculiar man with his tawny skin and golden hair has quite the shrewd eye for finery, for quality.

He pauses near a collection of carved pieces of wooden animals and picks one up to examine it. It's a simple, unadorned wolf.

After taking a moment to examine the wood grain, the pays for the trinket and slips it into one of the pockets of his lengthy cloak.

[colonelnope]

Eve's business at the festival is mostly clothes.

She's shown up in this world with nothing but the dress she was wearing, and that's from 1611 England, and frankly she hadn't thought she was going to be wearing it this long. She's trying to sort out what's overpriced because festival and what's just paying good money for quality as she goes, and not having a whole lot of success.

This particular man draws her eye for standing out a bit; Eve's always found it a good practice to keep an eye on the people who do that. It either means they want to stand out or that they're not local, or that they themselves draw local attention for standing out... there's a host of reasons.

Also, she likes his cloak. Eve takes a chance and leans around him, peering first at the wooden animals, then at the man. "Did you get your cloak here, or is it from your world?"

[afoolsgold]

Perhaps the Fool enjoys a bit of spectacle. He certainly doesn't seem to mind the way eyes find and linger on him.

When he hears a voice beside him, he turns to peer at Eve with inquisitive amber eyes. His smile comes a moment later, and its as friendly as it is whimsical. "It came with me," he explains, "though very little else did." He extends it before her in a minor flourish. "Jamaillian silk," he explains, "comfortable in warm and cool weather."

[colonelnope]

It's hard not to return a smile like that, so she does so, an easy flash of a greeting smile. "Can't say I've ever heard of it." But it does look nice, in that way that usually says if you have to ask you can't afford it.

Eve sighs, very faintly wistful. "And it has pockets," she says, having seen what he did with the trinket earlier. "Don't suppose you've seen anyone selling good practical clothes? There was a fashion show somewhere around here, but that's a bit... sparkly."

[afoolsgold]

To be fair, not even the Fool could afford his own clothes, were he required to purchase them now.

He tips his head in a decidedly deer-like fashion at her inquiry, looking curious. "Practical clothes?" he repeats, then takes a step back to admire what she wears, only to make a light 'ah' sound. "Yes, I think I understand. And no, I haven't seen a vendor selling such things, but I imagine there must be one about." Here he gestures around them elegantly, then smiles again. In a rather odd display of gallantly considering he seems anything but, he offers her one slender arm. "Shall I be your escort?" he inquires, then taps a gloved finger against his cheekbone, winking. "I assure you, I have a discerning eye for these things."

[colonelnope]

Eve considers the offered arm for a moment or two. Well, there’s no harm in keeping company, and there are certainly far worse things than a shopping trip with someone of discerning taste. With a cheerful smile and a light hand, she takes his arm.

“All right, then, let’s have a look.” She surveys the rest of the currently available street, considering which way might be most profitable. A little belatedly: “Do you have a name?”

She assumes he does. Most people do.

[afoolsgold]

"I am called the Fool," he replies, followed by an impish sort of look, as though he anticipates her disbelief. "It will do, as far as names are concerned. What shall I call you?"

Ahead of them down the street, the Fool glimpses a break in the crowd and through it another selection of stalls selling all manner of practical clothing. The fashions are, of course, entirely foreign to him, but he has always been a traveler. "What do you think of those?" he suggests to her, pointing towards the fabrics and textiles on display.

[colonelnope]

"Eve Baird," she says, automatically defaulting to her full name; there's a brief pause while she calculates whether or not this man is the sort of literalist who will proceed to use her full name constantly. "Pick one. Just the Fool? If I yell 'Fool' into a crowd, you'll turn around?"

It seems a bit strange, but she's definitely heard weirder. No judging.

So: crowds, and the festival. Eve keeps her eyes peeled, but the crowd draws her attention more; her companion points out the likely stall first. "Have to get a closer look," she says thoughtfully. "Looks promising." Color, nice. Trousers would be best. "Shall we?"