⇨ THE HUNT

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 173, the Afternoon
Where: Heartstone Manor Courtyard
What: Everyone goes into the forest with arrows, swords, and horses and is told to hunt and the kill the biggest beast they can find. Best kills win a prize! Or, if you'd rather not, you can wander around the forest and pretend to hunt instead.
Warnings: Violence and ethical quandaries.

BEASTS OF BURDEN↴ Come the day of the Hunt, everyone will be brought to the courtyard forest and provided with arrows, bows, and blades as requested. Magic and other weaponry can be used to hunt, but it is suggested by the Prince that the best kill is the one done in a gentlemanly manner, which probably means he will be most impressed by those using the tools provided. The "Best Kill" will be determined from a mixture or whatever beast the Prince decides is best, and the method in which it was killed. The less damage done to the body the better - tearing the body apart will receive poor grades. The corpses are not yours to eat or keep, and all must be returned to the Prince at the end of the day for judgment. The servants are especially nervous, tense, and solemn today, and unless they have no choice, most of them will be trying to give the courtyard a wide berth. Those that have to serve will have stony expressions, or at best will be trying to put on a cheerful face. If casually asked why they are upset, most of them will say something vague about the Hunt making them nervous, and how dangerous it is to participate. OOC: Those who make top levels will have a chance to be randomly selected for a couple particular plot events, so be prepared for that.

Comments

[atouts]

"We aren't..." Assuming she means everything the Prince apparently is, that much Childermass can say they certainly are not, but more importantly, "He's going to kill us?"

[ringleaders]

"There... There was a child, and a bird... That the Ringmaster brought, but he took them from the stable," she manages, the words tangled in her panic. "And the animals out there... They're people! They're servants like me. Please, please help me find them, don't let this happen..."

[atouts]

Reira and Julien, then, but no mention of Tyki. Interesting, but he'll dwell on that later. There's a tougher choice to think about here and now, so his missing conman will have to wait. Helping invites trouble directly onto himself... but abandoning her closes a completely different set of doors, doesn't it?

"So I was right," he murmurs, looking around them, at the forest looming about, then back to her again. "I don't know how much I'll be able to do, but I will try. Who are you looking for?"

[ringleaders]

"He had antlers and hooves before - I'm not sure what he looks like now. Maybe a stag?"

She looks around, still trying to steady her breath.

"I was trying to find him, but... there are others here, too, and all of them... he does this as punishment."

[atouts]

"But why...?"

Childermass would really like to know, but he also knows people like the Prince all too well. Servants have always been easy targets for imagined insult or even for the crimes of others (such as the missing carnival workers). So, no matter, he moves on, letting go of her arm and taking a small step back.

"Not that the reason matters all that much. What is his name? And yours? Do you have anything of his?"

[ringleaders]

She trips over the 'but why' also, because... why not? She's never seen much reason in it to begin with. Though, she hesitates at his next question as well.

"We don't... We don't really use names, but... I guess we would call him Hoof sometimes..." She starts rifling through her black servant uniform, though there doesn't seem to be much in the way of pockets. Eventually, she'll pull a bit of chord off from around her neck. It's a necklace, with a few pieces of smooth colored glass serving as its jewels.

"It's not his, but he made this."

[atouts]

Not using names is curious. Do they do it to avoid revealing true names? Or has the Prince taken them away? More questions he won't get an answer to if she's that reluctant to share, so he doesn't bother asking. He doesn't take the necklace just yet, but reaches again for the Pokeball clipped to his belt and hidden behind the long tails of the fine hunting coat he's wearing at the moment.

"That may make it difficult," Childermass admits. "It will smell mostly like you and not Hoof. Now, don't move. I assure you he is friendly."

Because guess who's back? That's right. One flash of red later, Baker is out again, a six foot and then some tall dog. His ears perk, attention immediately snapping to the girl. He rears back to give a bark but stops short of it when Childermass raises his hand in front of his mouth.

"Hold it out to him. If it really does smell too much like you, we may want to consider hiding you for the time being."

[ringleaders]

She will startle at the sight of Baker, but given her inclination to cooperate, she won't give into it for long. Holding it out gingerly, she will allow Baker to give it a smell.

"Hide me where...?" she asks, flinching. "I... I don't have anywhere to go. I can't go back now... they'll know what I did." She puts a hand to her face. "I don't know what I'm doing.'

[atouts]

"In my shadow," Childermass answers rather mysteriously, though since this is Childermass, he won't let that linger. "Literally. It may not be the best option if you're afraid of the dark, but it's not harmful save for the lack of light."

Because literally, a shadow. The problem is, he has no idea how long he can keep someone stuck in a shadow or if he'd be able to hide more than one in any one shadow at a time if they did manage to find the girl's friends. Well, time will tell.

Besides that, Baker is sniffing at the necklace and the magician refocuses on him instead.

"Well? We're looking for a man, not the girl."