⇨ HEARTSTONE MANOR

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 170 - Day ???
Where: Heartstone Manor
What: The carnival arrives at the Heartstone Manor. Do your best to play along, and try not to get too far ahead of the schedule with threading if you can avoid it, in case something that would affect your character happens early on.
Warnings: Individually marked! Could be a lot of things.

BEAUTIES AND THE BEAST↴ When the carnival arrives at the Manor, everyone will be taken into the Throne Room to greet the Prince for the first time. He will be lounging on his throne, and will take a look at the guests that the Ringmaster has brought before eventually dismissing everyone so that he can talk to her alone. After that, they will be given a brief tour of the Manor by some of the servants, and then brought to their rooms to start picking out clothes for tomorrow. On the first night they will be permitted to wear regular clothes, but starting the next morning the dress code will be enforced. There will be a number of servants helping guests with clothing, and making alterations to suit the non-humanoid features they may have. The tailors work with fabric by hand, but their stitching is impossibly quick and accurate, with changes being made to complex clothing at unbelievable speed. Some guests may note while working with them that one of the seamstresses has wooden mannequin-esque hands instead of human ones, and another has two sets of arms. The arms are one of the most obviously inhuman traits that they'll see while first touring the building. Come the morning of Day 171, the daily routine will begin. ⇨ THE DAILY SCHEDULE ⇦ ► FIVE MEALS A DAY: Between breakfast, lunch, tea, supper, and evening drinks, the meals you are required to attend are frequent and long. Each meal (except drinks and tea) will have multiple rounds, and use all of the fancy cutlery. It will be difficult to keep up for those that are untrained. The food will vary greatly, but will generally to be palatable to those that are into whatever kind of food it might be. Some of them are odd delicacies that are very much an acquired taste, however. People who cannot eat will be given a pass once the Ringmaster explains it, but will be looked down on for it. ► DAILY ACTIVITIES: There are scheduled activities for every morning and afternoon, and everyone is required to attend. Descriptions of each activity are provided on the "Event Descriptions" tab of the spreadsheet linked up above. There is only one hour of free time scheduled per day, after supper, and beyond that the servants will almost constantly have you on the go. The Prince and Ringmaster will not be present for most of the activities, but they will be there for every meal. If you character refuses to follow the schedule or makes a huge mess out of proceedings, make sure to report it here. ► AFTER CURFEW: At 11PM, everyone is expected to return to their quarters and spend the rest of the night there. Wandering after curfew is unacceptable by the Prince's rules, and if you do it there will be the chance of discover. Based on your character's stealth abilities, there will be dice rolling to determine if they are discovered or not, and by whom. Make sure you report any after curfew activity to the mod post here. This can also take place as an investigation if they are actually looking for something instead of just farting around. ► ROOM AND BOARD: The servants will remain upbeat for most of the time the guests are here, unless something is done to provoke them. They will be present at every activity, and there will be a variety of different individuals. One frequently spotted character will be the butler, a man with dark hair and small, sharp horns. He seems to be the main organizer of things. ► ODDITIES: Even beyond the obvious, there is something off about the Manor. Doors, windows, and other household objects will sometimes move seemingly without cause, and other times there will be banging sounds in the walls, or mysterious voices heard at a distance. It feels like you're being haunted. If you have a moment to wander the corridors, then you'll sometimes see open doors abruptly slam shut the moment you lay eyes on them, and wall sconces turn off or on. It's weird, man. ► THE HUNT: The Hunt activity will have its own event post, and some sign ups for those that will participate meaningfully. There will be some dice rolling to determine who hunts the most impressive game, and rewards handed out accordingly. Before that post goes up, however, you can do some investigations for the start of the event, if your character is interested in looking into the specifics of the contest and overall context. MAKE SURE THAT ALL DECORUM VIOLATIONS ARE REPORTED HERE.

Comments

[kingsroads]

Presences? Strange is a little confused by that, but he manages to figure out what Scout's talking about fairly easy. So, she can sense when people are nearby and, oddly enough, keeps doing so.

"I would say that it would be the servants but if they don't move...that's the worrying part." Because Strange has plenty of ideas as to what could have happened to someone who's there but can't move and none of them are any good—and he imagines Scout has just as many slightly macabre ideas.

But, as to his information, Strange pauses before he starts talking. "I peered in on the negotiations between the Ringmaster and the Prince last night. They...aren't going as well as either of them would hope."

[stillwinningthehardway]

"Even in places where there aren't any servants, there are... those. People, maybe." Maybe they aren't people, or not anymore. Her ability to pick up on these things is really limited, and that's frustrating. When she first joined the Carnival at fourteen she'd contracted for a power that could transmute certain energies used against her into greater strength for herself, but even if she got to use that here she's not sure how much she'd be able to pick up. Sensory abilities aren't the same as brute force. "They may have something to do with the weird noises and the doors slamming like they're doing. I'm not sure."

She clasps her hands together before her on the little covered table and vaguely wishes her dæmon were here, so she could stroke his head. "It figures. Is there any way either of them can find out you're doing that? Is it dangerous?"

There are Force-equivalents to scrying, but she doesn't know anything about them beyond that they're difficult to control and well outside of her ability. The most she'd ever get is a feeling, a hunch. Not for the first time she bets to herself that if someone stronger and more useful had survived and reach this place, things would be completely different here.

[kingsroads]

"Oh, undoubtedly it's dangerous. That's why I've been focusing my scrying on the Ringmaster, not the Prince. He'd be able to sense me in an instant." Casting magic that targeted a true fae in their realm? That'd be like staring directly at somebody and expecting them not to notice—assuming that the Prince hasn't cast anti-scrying spells around himself already.

"But as for the Ringmaster? I've no idea if she can trace my magic here in the first place. If she can, I doubt she'll be happy, but it's been around a month since I last disappointed her. I'm afraid I'm overdue."

Strange is trying to keep his tone light and joking, but he's a little bit bitter about it. His last instance of fucking things up wasn't even under his own power. If he had his memories back, Portland would have gone differently. Of course, if wishes were horses....

[stillwinningthehardway]

"You don't need me telling you how that's gone so far." Strange is trouble, that's for sure. He's that all too familiar combination of powerful and careless with it, exactly the kind of thing that bothers her and seems to be everywhere here. If she wasn't so weak, she'd probably be the same.

"But we don't have a lot going for us. We're stuck waiting and reacting, and no one's being forthright with us." Scout starts to worry at her lower lip but stops herself. She doesn't need to pick up a nervous habit. "There's the whole thing going on with balancing knowing anything with dubious, really dubious safety. I guess it'd be riskier to scry on the head butler or the other servants... When are you doing this, by the way?"

[kingsroads]

"At night, when everyone's supposed to be in their rooms—tell me if you have a suspicion someone's sneaking out, by the way, and I'll check to see if they are or aren't." After all, what's the use of scrying if you can't be an absolute narc while doing so? Strange has absolutely no shame and zero compunctions with regards to creeping on other people.

As for Scout's question though, he frowns. "I suppose I could scry on the butler or the servants, but as they're most likely under this realm's protection, it would be harder. Besides, as long as we don't know what's happening, I'd rather focus my efforts on the Ringmaster."

[stillwinningthehardway]

"Syrlya, but he works the same job as us." Scout makes a little flicking gesture with her hand. She's ambivalent about Nightrunners going out. Better them than the host of impatient teenagers - no, Scout doesn't consider herself in that category - and some have skillsets made for that, but she doesn't feel she can join them. Can't see in the dark, her cloak of shadows is a fae spell with no guarantee to work on fae, and her claw-hooves sound on the floor. She could wrap those up, but then her footing won't be as sure, and again, it's dark out there. She will need a good reason to take that risk. "I'd appreciate if you could check on him, though."

She makes a face, which in turn makes a servant across the room disapprove. "Yeah. For now, anyway."

[kingsroads]

"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on him," Strange remarks, with a little smile. One more person to add to his roster of people to look after, it's okay, he can do this, he's been through much worse in the peninsula, after all. At least nobody was shooting at them here.

He catches the servant's disapproving look and Strange can't help but smile slightly. It really would be a miracle if they managed to survive the next few days, wouldn't it.

"I think someone thought you were being a bit unladylike," Strange teases, nodding slightly at the scowling servant, straight up throwing the poor dude under the bus. "Though, considering that we're from a literal carnival, you'd think that would be expected."

[stillwinningthehardway]

No one's shooting at him yet. Who knows what the future will bring.

Scout rolls her eyes and sets her face into the blank, masklike expression that's her best bet for not giving anything away. Instead it clearly gives away that she's trying to keep a still face, admittedly. "They and I just have a different perception of the rules. I think it's permissible to be familiar with a friendly associate, they do not. And so there is conflict."

[kingsroads]

"I wonder how many friendly associates the Prince has in the first place." Because honestly? Considering all this? Strange thinks it's safe to assume that the Prince doesn't really have many friendly associates. Perhaps this is simply the result of someone who doesn't know how to deal with people suddenly having to deal with a lot of people.

"The servants probably aren't used to the Prince having company."

[stillwinningthehardway]

"Not many. I'm sure he's touchy about people with something close to his influence. Equals are more of a threat." She drums her brass nails on the tablecloth. "I get the impression the Ringmaster really doesn't like him, but that doesn't mean anything, she's her." Erratic.

"What do you suppose they do most of the time?" This is far, far too many servants to support one person. It's the opposite of the Summerlands this way. "Take turns being the served and the servers?"

[kingsroads]

"If they were anything like my servants back home, they'd do what everybody else would: flirt, chit-chat, get into arguments, and gossip about their master," Strange can't help but tease. He knew his servants talked about him. They worked under one of the greatest magicians of the age, of course they would talk about him. It was only to be expected!

Though, that is assuming they had people outside the household to talk to in the first place. Which it's looking like the Prince doesn't have.

"I'm honestly surprised they aren't more chatty with us. We might be 'guests' but we're hardly above their station. After all, are we not servants of the Ringmaster?"

[stillwinningthehardway]

"Yeah, but wouldn't they be idle during that? This place is huge and the Prince probably needs a lot of attendants but they can't just spend all their time cleaning and polishing. Can they?" Scout's not inclined to notice a dearth of either unless it's extreme.

"You'd think so. Even if they were forbidden... well, I guess it'd depend on if he told them not to mingle, and they were afraid of him." She presses her lips together. "They seem happy."

[kingsroads]

"Servants have breaks as well," Strange explains, with a little shrug. Whether it's taking a pause from their duties, chatting with someone while running errands, there should be times when the servants could pause and talk with each other.

As for Scout's other question, he sighs. "It's a damn pity we can't simply ask one. Every time I've tried to start conversation, I've been shut down."

[stillwinningthehardway]

Maybe the Prince goes as far as having his servants grow and slaughter food and render it into the intermediary forms that they then make into fine dining. Seed plants to milled flour to bread to croutons. Maybe he has them make things so sell at some mysterious faire. Scout struggles to see what most of these people do when there's not several dozen guests to watch and shepherd and arrange for.

In the Temple there was a large staff of droids, in the last several years. Before that, before the war, there had been fewer and people handled a lot of things themselves. Padawans might have chores, but it kept Knights and Masters humble, if they cooked for everyone sometimes and mended their own robes. Scout has trouble imagining having this kind of authority over people.

She starts to make a face but visibly stops herself. "I know! They're so reserved! Universally reserved. I think - I'm not sure, but I think a lot of the ones moving around at night are different. Maybe they're more talkative, but I can't just ask." The risk is too great, and her sometimes gift for anticipation doesn't stretch out that far.

[kingsroads]

"I can't ask either," Strange responds, with a little shrug. It's no great secret that he's completely awful at subterfuge. There's no way he can find one of those servants, ask them, and get back to his room without getting caught. Besides, the Ringmaster said not to break curfew and, at least at that part, Strange is definitely going to listen.

"It's a pity that he isn't well-known enough to have the obligatory social climber and hanger-on. They're usually a wonderful source of gossip."

From Strange's tone of voice, he's definitely thinking of one person in particular. For all his faults, Christopher Drawlight had an annoying way of finding out information.

[stillwinningthehardway]

Scout leans back in her chair, dissatisfied and unable to take it out on anyone.

"As far as I know he keeps to here and to himself," she says, flicking at the tablecloth in a not-that-I-know-much way. "If he had a proper court, with a bunch of people closer in status to him, we'd have to worry about them, too. But absolutely we'd hear more."