snake eater -- invitation

[Warringkingdoms]

  [font=trebuchet ms]Last time she'd been here, it had been to investigate a murder. She supposed she was grateful that this particular visit was for a much less violent reason.

  Glancing over her shoulder at Playerone to make sure she was alright- Play had been healing well, but it was still a long walk- Rin lifted her scarf to her nose and mouth with one paw, and inhaled deeply. The swamp air was... slightly more toxic than she'd remembered. Maybe she was just getting older, her respiratory system less capable of handling foreign contaminants, but it worried her nonetheless. At least her scarf made a passable makeshift filter for the moment, especially now that she'd mended it with Winston.

  Speaking of Winston, that was probably best to get out of the way now. Turning back towards the swamp, Rin called out, "Hey, we're here from Elysium. First of all, I think we found one of yours at our border- Winston, he said his name was. I've treated him, he's resting in our camp while recovering from his travels." If in fact he was a relative of Selby's, hopefully that would put Selby at some ease.

  Ducking to draw another deep breath through the fabric of her scarf, she then lifted her head and continued, "Secondly, we came to deliver an invitation- to our Stellar Collision Festival. After opening on the first night, there'll be three more nights of events, then a closing on the fifth night." Pausing to inhale another filtered breath, she internally ran through the rest of the details. With a nod, she went on, "Food will be provided, and there'll be bonfires, a storytelling contest, nightwatching, the like. We're inviting you, the Typhoon, and the Halls of Hiraeth."

  Pulling her scarf up until it covered her nose and mouth completely, she then sat down and waited for someone to arrive.

  [member=2426]Playerone Kennedy[/member]
  /gonna go ahead and link the event here

[wormwood.]

☆ HUNG PICTURES OF PATRON SAINTS UP ON MY WALL TO REMIND ME THAT I AM A FOOL. TELL ME WHERE I CAME FROM, WHAT I WILL ALWAYS BE: JUST A SPOILED LITTLE KID WHO WENT TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL —

The first to arrive to Rin and Playerone's visit was none other than Aurum, the proxy having been out for his daily patrol when the scent of Elysium and Rin's voice alerted him to their presence. Raising his head, the angel froze when he heard Rin speak about Winston being found in Elysium. Thank fuck, that meant that his nephew was alive, and safe. It still wasn't ideal, since it also meant that Winston had left Tanglewood for Elysium for some reason, but at least the child wasn't dead somewhere, far away from where any of them could reach him. Upon hearing that news, Aurum quickly began to jog over, crossing through the swamp so that he was standing in front of the two Elysites, dipping his head to both of them in turn. He had met Rin before in the past, but Playerone was a new face, and he shot a smile in her direction, wanting to make a good first impression. Although Tanglewood and Elysium were not strictly allies, they also weren't exactly enemies, either, so it wasn't a bad idea to try and be friendly.

Focusing his attention on Rin for now, Aurum said simply, "Thank you, for both taking care of Winston and telling us about him. We were all very worried when he ran off..." He didn't say anything more on that for now, figuring that it would ultimately be Selby and Moth's decision on the next course of action – although he was already planning on perhaps going to visit the boy. Shaking his mind from thoughts of Winston for now, Aurum mulled over the invitation they had been given, tilting his head to one side. A Stellar Collision Festival, huh? It sounded fun enough, and Aurum doubted anyone would have issue with them going. They'd had some issues with the Halls in the past, but it seemed as though things had cooled down on that front, or at least, the angel thought they had. With this in mind, the proxy rumbled in response, "This festival sounds as though it could be fun, and I think all of us could use a break around here... I don't think Leroy would have an issue with me accepting your invitation." Besides, if the general did have an issue with it, Aurum had no doubt his opinion would be voiced.

[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px #1B1B2F; font-size: 24px;"][color=#44437F]— AURUM

#psychosocial.

[toboggan]

"That I do not, my staunch Proxy," Leroy states, ostentatiously signifying his presence in a noble tone of voice. Aurum, quick as ever, arrived to greet the Elysite's figurehead with cordiality. A little jaunt over to the mountains was not a gesture that the wolfhound felt bothered by. Though not consistent allies, Elysium proved themselves to be more than trustworthy through history, for they gladly took up arms against the Jervis's Pitt alongside the swampfolk. And that was something that Leroy would not forget easily.

Stellar Collision Festival. Via picking apart the social gathering's title, one could notice the theme of astral business. The canine had thought that the affinity towards stars had died with the Ascendants, so it came as a surprise to learn that this was not the case. Personally, the general couldn't grasp what the big deal was about celestial bodies. He was of the understanding that some people believed the stars could predict one's future, both those folk were nothing but ninnies. As long as the Stellar Collision Festival involved not the male receiving a horoscope, Leroy felt no qualms in attending the shindig.

"I like bonfires," he haphazardly continues, "and I looove food, so it sounds like it'll be my type of party."

[selby roux !]

[align=center][div style="width: 51%; text-align: justify; font-size: 10pt; letter-spacing: -1px; font-family: georgia;"]Winston’s disappearance weighed heavily on his shoulders. The sawbones could think of little else. Scenarios of what could have happened to him ran through his mind relentlessly, each more horrific than the last. It never stopped. He couldn’t sleep.

It was on another search of the territory when he caught the scent of an Elysite, and he quickly came forward to investigate. Any lead was worth looking into. And it seemed this one especially was. His exhausted body sagged in relief at the mention of his son. He was okay. Choking back tears, he listened to the rest of the speech.

“Oh, thank God,” he sighed, coming forward. “Thank you so much for keeping him safe. How can I repay you? You said you treated him; was he hurt? Was it bad? Do you know what happened?” The barrage of questions fell from his mouth faster than he could stop them, not that he cared to. He needed to know.

[Hope Arcanium]

While she let Rin do all the talking, she observed those that came by to give thanks and accept their invitation. She saw their genuine thankfulness to them for keeping Winston safe, and she gave a smile in return, along with a nod. She memorized their appearances in her head for safekeeping, and really did hope that they showed up for the Stellar Collision Festival.

“Hopefully we all can let loose and have some fun for a time. Things have been hard on a lot of folks lately.” The god commented, smile still present on her features. Though, it did seem like an opportunity for the pantheon to attack them, hopefully the other groups attending would keep them at bay for now.

Regardless, she wished for everyone to have a good time at the Festival. She knew they all could use it right now.

[Warringkingdoms]

  [font=trebuchet ms]There was Aurum; good to see that Tanglewood reception was still quick to arrive, compared to some groups Rin had visited in the past. Looking over at him, Rin dipped her head in greeting. Listening in to his words, she nodded. Leroy seemed the patient type- certainly, he wasn't the type to strangle unsuspecting visitors, unlike some Tanglewood leaders.

  As Leroy himself arrived, Rin dismissed the thought, and turned her attention to the general. He liked bonfires, and loved food- well, that was perfect. She couldn't think of many who didn't enjoy either of those. "I look forward to seeing all of you there, then," she said, twitching her ears.

  Turning to glance at Selby, noticing the emotion in his voice and expression, Rin felt her brows knit together. His questions, offers of repayment, overwhelming relief... she knew this demeanor to be that of a parent, a good parent. One that would rip the stars themselves out of the sky if doing so would ensure their child's safety. Uncomfortable warmth built up behind her eyes, stinging at every blink.

  Swallowing, Rin shook her head. "I don't need repayment," she said, looking back up at Selby. "I... I know what it's like." He could fill in the "it" with whatever he liked, whether it was "losing a child," "being a lost child," or anything else.

  Clearing her throat, she straightened up, adopting a more neutral expression. "Just the wear and tear of traveling- I didn't find anything other than a few minor cuts and bruises. He seems fine now that he's had food and water, and slept." Luckily, the festival would provide plenty of time to visit, although Selby would've been welcome to visit Winston anytime regardless. Rin wasn't going to police such a situation.

[Ivan]

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pixel by tricky

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[div style="width: 300px; max-height: 100px; height: overflow; overflow: scroll; padding-bottom: 5px; margin-top: -5px; font-family: georgia; font-size: 8pt; color: #152232; letter-spacing: 0px; text-align: justify;"]He kept fancying that Ivan was absorbed in something — something inward and important — that he was striving toward some goal, perhaps very hard to attain.

— Бра́тья Карама́зовы

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Weeks had passed since the incident with the giant multi-eyed monster and while the trauma had not exactly worn off all the way, Ivan was making an attempt to brave the outer reaches of the territory again. He usually stayed a distance away from Selby in which he could scent him and still feel safe without having to reveal himself to his father. Things hadn’t gone better since Winston’s disappearance and Ivan coped by desperately forcing himself to carve out a relationship with his bird. It was going well, though he couldn’t rush something like that.

The wind suddenly shifted and Ivan could no longer sense Selby. His mouth parting and nostrils flaring, Ivan tried to calm his wildly beating heart as he struggled to find either his father or his way back home. He always relied on his scent, he just couldn’t see very well. He was baffled to have a foreign scent invade his nose. The young cat had smelled Pitt and Typhoon before, but Elysium was a new one and much more comforting than the other two.

Ivan picked up his pace and immediately lurched for Selby, standing a tail-length away from him as he angled his head to look at the Elysites. He caught the bits of conversation and he was interested for two reason. The first obviously being his brother’s whereabouts being known and the other was about their star festival. He had almost felt to berate his brother for leaving, but holy shit. Was there really a group dedicated to the stars like he was?

”Star Collision?” An uneasy pause. ”Is he — is he coming back?

[Orion]

Upon arriving, Raymond caught the butt end of the conversation. A smile met his lips. Any invitation was a welcome one during these times. The devastation of Feza's death, Winston's disappearance, and the tirade of meteors within their ally's territory brought uncertain times into Tanglewood. Hopefully a party would bring their spirits up, especially a five day event. And hell, who could hate food? Or a bonfire? Besides Jervis of course.

The news of Winston, one of the Selby and Moth kitten's merely made him sigh. They were still small. Despite that, he didn't push. Winston was not his child, nor was any of this his business. Other than that, he kept quiet. His plans to attend were definite.