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Roleplay!

AuthorMessage
Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
The other girls came to look at the pebble in Emma's hand. It looked and felt like a normal river pebble, a very pretty one of a rose pink color.

[But... who ends up carrying the pebble on their person? Anyone in the party can carry it, except for Anne, which wouldn't be fair, as I know what it is!]

The grove of trees was near the top of the ridge. Anne climbed a little further up, and beckoned to the others. There, up the next slope were the ruins of the ancient castle. And despite that the locals shunned the place as sacred, haunted, or both, the reputation of Hirayama and its mountain had not stopped someone from coming in and building new fortifications, a wood palisade, and buildings within the shelter of the ruins. A bare slope led up to the castle and its new additions, patrolled by ninja pigs while samoorai archers gazed out warily on guard atop the ramparts. Anne felt a sick feeling in her stomach as the occasional bright glint of metal revealed that some of the patrol in the distance were clockworks as well.

The only reasonable way into the fortifications (unless one waited for the cover of night) was a well-trodden dirt path that led up to an open gate guarded on each side by samoorai warriors. On the path was a intermittent procession of ox-drawn carts, each bearing several Goat and Sheep people laborers. Anne sat down on the ground to watch from her vantage point. As she watched, a cart approached the gates. One of the samoorai took the papers and cursorily examined the laborers, while the other ran his hand over the top of the cargo -- loose, fresh tea leaves as far as one could guess from the distance -- and looked briefly under the cart. They were waved inside the fortifications. The next cart met the same routine.

After a long moment, Anne smiled, her eyes dancing. "I know how we can get in there. Mind if you all contribute a gold piece to the cause?" she asked, pulling a gold piece out herself.

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Highlander Fox of ... on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
OOC: I hate to admit this, but I've never actually read or seen the books/movies of Percy Jackson. Of course, I can easily blame it on the satyrs. Those beasts are out to get my soul.... (I'm lookin' at you, George!) And when my cousins tried to get me to watch the movie, as I didn't want to, I started screaming the same random phrase over and over when the satyr came on screen... "SQUINTY NERGAL INK!"
OOC: LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!! Don't worry, Grover's nice. And although the movies are so far awesome, they don't usually stick to the book's storyline. For example, in the first Percy Jackson movie, Annabeth had brown hair and blue eyes. As beautiful as I think that combination is, and how I wish my eyes were that color, in the book she has blonde hair and silvery colored eyes, which they corrected in the second movie. Too bad in the second movie they didn't turn Percy into a guinea pig, that was one of my favorite parts of the book! Oh well. I'll have to live with it. Lol I (personally) know some Percy Jackson fans that will stop at nothing to make the whole planet love Percy Jackson, but no need to worry, I'm not one of those. You wouldn't believe how much nagging it took my friends before I read the series, and then I called them up once I was done around a week later and said "How come you never told me about this before? It's awesome!!" So, although I do wish you would read the series (great source of writing inspiration, as I recently demonstrated) I won't force you to. At least not yet.
~
Lizzy took a sharp intake of breath when she saw the cherry blossom tree, once again, as always, amazed by the beauty that the tree held, despite the fact that it wasn't at its prime. The tree was gorgeous in her eyes all the same, and therefore she didn't notice the rose quartz on the ground.

Petty Officer
Nov 06, 2012
56
Highlander Fox of ... on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
OOC: So... Scarlet, Lizzy, and Anne are hanging back and chatting about soda beverages while Emma is following a small fox into a strange area? Seems legit!
Oh, and to poke in a response to the soda thing, my favorite is Dr. Pepper! Drink one everyday. Helps insomnia issues in the mornings.

Emma, thoroughly concentrated by this fox, paused a moment as the fox turned its head to give someone one of those LOOKs the blonde happened to receive from others when she brought up something strange or supernatural in nature. Hey, who could blame the blonde for that one incident with the tavern roof being broken open? That was the Yum's fault! ...Or more like it had been Amy chucking Yum bottles everywhere and eventually breaching the ceiling.

But the blonde noted the LOOK was not directed toward her, but instead to Lizzy, who was trailing closely behind with Anne and Scarlet. The blonde just nodded wordlessly and walked on, desperate to know where the fox was leading her. Soon, a beautiful landscape came into sight- with a cherry tree holding onto a few pale fuchsia blossoms, the inner magenta of them blending with the blossoms. Emma watched the fox circle the tree, then disappear. Had this been for nothing...?

Apparently not, Emma soon speculated upon noticing the rose quartz resting where the cherryblossom had breezed downward. Emma had heard Anne whisper something about a kami- which, if her skills with Mooshuese were accurate- meant a god of sorts, or an Immortal by Aquilan terms. But to simplify it, Emma just passed the word off as meaning a fairly significant spirit. Emma kneeled over and not only carefully but slowly picked up and examined the smooth quartz pebble- with it's pale magenta color to it. Emma stared at it warily.
OOC: Mind if I join in the roleplay?

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
The other girls came to look at the pebble in Emma's hand. It looked and felt like a normal river pebble, a very pretty one of a rose pink color.

[But... who ends up carrying the pebble on their person? Anyone in the party can carry it, except for Anne, which wouldn't be fair, as I know what it is!]

The grove of trees was near the top of the ridge. Anne climbed a little further up, and beckoned to the others. There, up the next slope were the ruins of the ancient castle. And despite that the locals shunned the place as sacred, haunted, or both, the reputation of Hirayama and its mountain had not stopped someone from coming in and building new fortifications, a wood palisade, and buildings within the shelter of the ruins. A bare slope led up to the castle and its new additions, patrolled by ninja pigs while samoorai archers gazed out warily on guard atop the ramparts. Anne felt a sick feeling in her stomach as the occasional bright glint of metal revealed that some of the patrol in the distance were clockworks as well.

The only reasonable way into the fortifications (unless one waited for the cover of night) was a well-trodden dirt path that led up to an open gate guarded on each side by samoorai warriors. On the path was a intermittent procession of ox-drawn carts, each bearing several Goat and Sheep people laborers. Anne sat down on the ground to watch from her vantage point. As she watched, a cart approached the gates. One of the samoorai took the papers and cursorily examined the laborers, while the other ran his hand over the top of the cargo -- loose, fresh tea leaves as far as one could guess from the distance -- and looked briefly under the cart. They were waved inside the fortifications. The next cart met the same routine.

After a long moment, Anne smiled, her eyes dancing. "I know how we can get in there. Mind if you all contribute a gold piece to the cause?" she asked, pulling a gold piece out herself.
Lizzy, extremely curious to see what Anne had in mind, took a single gold coin out of her bag and handed it to Anne. "I've got a feeling this is going to be fun." She said with a grin.

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
CaptainJack74011 on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
OOC: Mind if I join in the roleplay?
OOC: Sure, Captain Jack. We should be near the end of the story, but come on in anyway, hopefully the final sequence will be fun. Let's see... how about you and your companions were fighting some Amber Horde, and the leader got away and you and several of your companions chased him. However, eventually you lost the trail, and found that you had become separated from your companions, and lost besides. Deciding to get a better vantage, you climb up to a tall hill -- where you see the small grove with the cherry tree and some pirate girls standing around it. Will that work?

Commodore
Sep 20, 2009
989
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
The other girls came to look at the pebble in Emma's hand. It looked and felt like a normal river pebble, a very pretty one of a rose pink color.

[But... who ends up carrying the pebble on their person? Anyone in the party can carry it, except for Anne, which wouldn't be fair, as I know what it is!]

The grove of trees was near the top of the ridge. Anne climbed a little further up, and beckoned to the others. There, up the next slope were the ruins of the ancient castle. And despite that the locals shunned the place as sacred, haunted, or both, the reputation of Hirayama and its mountain had not stopped someone from coming in and building new fortifications, a wood palisade, and buildings within the shelter of the ruins. A bare slope led up to the castle and its new additions, patrolled by ninja pigs while samoorai archers gazed out warily on guard atop the ramparts. Anne felt a sick feeling in her stomach as the occasional bright glint of metal revealed that some of the patrol in the distance were clockworks as well.

The only reasonable way into the fortifications (unless one waited for the cover of night) was a well-trodden dirt path that led up to an open gate guarded on each side by samoorai warriors. On the path was a intermittent procession of ox-drawn carts, each bearing several Goat and Sheep people laborers. Anne sat down on the ground to watch from her vantage point. As she watched, a cart approached the gates. One of the samoorai took the papers and cursorily examined the laborers, while the other ran his hand over the top of the cargo -- loose, fresh tea leaves as far as one could guess from the distance -- and looked briefly under the cart. They were waved inside the fortifications. The next cart met the same routine.

After a long moment, Anne smiled, her eyes dancing. "I know how we can get in there. Mind if you all contribute a gold piece to the cause?" she asked, pulling a gold piece out herself.
"I think I know what you're planning." Scarlet said as she handed Anne two gold pieces. "It will only take a more zealous guard to find us though. We may want a back up plan or a distraction. Besides we don't know what we're going to do once we inside yet do we?"

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
CdeWinter on Sep 3, 2013 wrote:
"I think I know what you're planning." Scarlet said as she handed Anne two gold pieces. "It will only take a more zealous guard to find us though. We may want a back up plan or a distraction. Besides we don't know what we're going to do once we inside yet do we?"
Anne's happy assurance in her own cleverness faded a bit. "Um, no. I don't know how we will cover ourselves within... I thought we would work out what we would do once we got inside," she admitted sheepishly.

"But this is my plan. If a gold coin happens to be on the path in the scrub tree area before the clearing on the mountain of Hirayama, and the glitter of another shows itself a bit in the grass beyond, the drivers of the wagons will surely be unable to resist stopping and searching about in hope of finding all the coin that might have been dropped. While they are distracted, we sneak over to the wagon, hide ourselves under the tea leaves, and wait. Once the laborers decide they have found all the coins, they will continue up towards the fortress. The guards will see nothing ontoward, because we got in the wagon before their range of sight, and their inspection will be the same cursory one they give all the wagons. Then, what should happen is the laborers bring their loads to the area the tea is ordinarily unloaded. There were wagons before, and others coming after, so we should have enough time to slip out of the wagon and get on our way within the complex before anyone can see anything amiss."

Anne frowned. "On the other hand, Scarlet, I can see that if something goes wrong, we all are discovered and in the same pickle. Should we have one or two persons remain behind in case there is trouble? But there is surely no way a person could approach the fortress without being seen in the daylight, and who knows what sort of sentries they will have out at dark? I don't know. But in the meantime, we should probably distribute the gelignite Emma brought among all our packs so any of us can use it if we get separated and find the place where the poison is made or applied."

Commodore
Feb 29, 2012
892
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 1, 2013 wrote:
The other girls came to look at the pebble in Emma's hand. It looked and felt like a normal river pebble, a very pretty one of a rose pink color.

[But... who ends up carrying the pebble on their person? Anyone in the party can carry it, except for Anne, which wouldn't be fair, as I know what it is!]

The grove of trees was near the top of the ridge. Anne climbed a little further up, and beckoned to the others. There, up the next slope were the ruins of the ancient castle. And despite that the locals shunned the place as sacred, haunted, or both, the reputation of Hirayama and its mountain had not stopped someone from coming in and building new fortifications, a wood palisade, and buildings within the shelter of the ruins. A bare slope led up to the castle and its new additions, patrolled by ninja pigs while samoorai archers gazed out warily on guard atop the ramparts. Anne felt a sick feeling in her stomach as the occasional bright glint of metal revealed that some of the patrol in the distance were clockworks as well.

The only reasonable way into the fortifications (unless one waited for the cover of night) was a well-trodden dirt path that led up to an open gate guarded on each side by samoorai warriors. On the path was a intermittent procession of ox-drawn carts, each bearing several Goat and Sheep people laborers. Anne sat down on the ground to watch from her vantage point. As she watched, a cart approached the gates. One of the samoorai took the papers and cursorily examined the laborers, while the other ran his hand over the top of the cargo -- loose, fresh tea leaves as far as one could guess from the distance -- and looked briefly under the cart. They were waved inside the fortifications. The next cart met the same routine.

After a long moment, Anne smiled, her eyes dancing. "I know how we can get in there. Mind if you all contribute a gold piece to the cause?" she asked, pulling a gold piece out herself.
Emma nodded and smiled. She whipped out a very heavy bag, practically overflowing with gold pieces, and she handed Anne five of them, cerulean eyes shining. The pebble remained in Emma's grasp, and she was quite curious as to what it was.

"What do y'all think this is anyway?" Emma inquired curiously. The rosy pebble caught the rays from the sun, and leaves parted the sunlight, seeming to dapple the pink stone with golden rays of illumination. Emma soon caught notice of the Goat and Sheep people with their carts, and she smiled understandingly at Anne. "I see what this plan is, then." The blonde grinned widely and adjusted her Stetson.

Petty Officer
Nov 06, 2012
56
Highlander Fox of ... on Sep 3, 2013 wrote:
Emma nodded and smiled. She whipped out a very heavy bag, practically overflowing with gold pieces, and she handed Anne five of them, cerulean eyes shining. The pebble remained in Emma's grasp, and she was quite curious as to what it was.

"What do y'all think this is anyway?" Emma inquired curiously. The rosy pebble caught the rays from the sun, and leaves parted the sunlight, seeming to dapple the pink stone with golden rays of illumination. Emma soon caught notice of the Goat and Sheep people with their carts, and she smiled understandingly at Anne. "I see what this plan is, then." The blonde grinned widely and adjusted her Stetson.
Jack: Lets see if I can spot my crew from here. *Sees some girls by a cherry tree* Are they friend or foe? Lets find out.

Ensign
May 02, 2013
3
Aww this is near the end? Man I was hoping to join up

Ah well, give me a shout when the next one is.

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Highlander Fox of ... on Sep 3, 2013 wrote:
Emma nodded and smiled. She whipped out a very heavy bag, practically overflowing with gold pieces, and she handed Anne five of them, cerulean eyes shining. The pebble remained in Emma's grasp, and she was quite curious as to what it was.

"What do y'all think this is anyway?" Emma inquired curiously. The rosy pebble caught the rays from the sun, and leaves parted the sunlight, seeming to dapple the pink stone with golden rays of illumination. Emma soon caught notice of the Goat and Sheep people with their carts, and she smiled understandingly at Anne. "I see what this plan is, then." The blonde grinned widely and adjusted her Stetson.
OOC: I have the worst memory in the world, so I don't know if I already made a post or not, so I'll just go.
~
Lizzy leaned over Emma's shoulder to look down at the pink stone, its rays reflecting in her eyes. "I think it's pretty." Lizzy said with a smile. But why Rose Quartz? One of the most breakable stones of the all of the gems.

The blonde turned to face Anne sharply when she was asking about volunteers for hiding in the tea leaves. "I'll stay here," she began, "I don't know what's poisoned or not." Lizzy gave a nervous glance to the rose quartz

Commodore
Sep 20, 2009
989
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 3, 2013 wrote:
Anne's happy assurance in her own cleverness faded a bit. "Um, no. I don't know how we will cover ourselves within... I thought we would work out what we would do once we got inside," she admitted sheepishly.

"But this is my plan. If a gold coin happens to be on the path in the scrub tree area before the clearing on the mountain of Hirayama, and the glitter of another shows itself a bit in the grass beyond, the drivers of the wagons will surely be unable to resist stopping and searching about in hope of finding all the coin that might have been dropped. While they are distracted, we sneak over to the wagon, hide ourselves under the tea leaves, and wait. Once the laborers decide they have found all the coins, they will continue up towards the fortress. The guards will see nothing ontoward, because we got in the wagon before their range of sight, and their inspection will be the same cursory one they give all the wagons. Then, what should happen is the laborers bring their loads to the area the tea is ordinarily unloaded. There were wagons before, and others coming after, so we should have enough time to slip out of the wagon and get on our way within the complex before anyone can see anything amiss."

Anne frowned. "On the other hand, Scarlet, I can see that if something goes wrong, we all are discovered and in the same pickle. Should we have one or two persons remain behind in case there is trouble? But there is surely no way a person could approach the fortress without being seen in the daylight, and who knows what sort of sentries they will have out at dark? I don't know. But in the meantime, we should probably distribute the gelignite Emma brought among all our packs so any of us can use it if we get separated and find the place where the poison is made or applied."
"Don't worry, Anne, there's always a way to move without being seen. You just have to watch the local animals for a bit sometimes. Besides, tea leaves sometimes make me sneeze so I had better stay behind with Lizzie." Scarlet said studying the forest that lay around them and the tea plantation.

She had already noticed how the small fox had appeared dappled and mottled with the green forest light, and was making a small pile of different coloured plant material.

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
CdeWinter on Sep 5, 2013 wrote:
"Don't worry, Anne, there's always a way to move without being seen. You just have to watch the local animals for a bit sometimes. Besides, tea leaves sometimes make me sneeze so I had better stay behind with Lizzie." Scarlet said studying the forest that lay around them and the tea plantation.

She had already noticed how the small fox had appeared dappled and mottled with the green forest light, and was making a small pile of different coloured plant material.
OOC: Yes, it's near the end - Kai (? yes), but you can still join in if you like. Perhaps you had been wandering around on the mountain and met up with Captain Jack?

~

Anne nodded. "Alright, Emma. Shall we go off together then? Scarlet and Elizabeth will be our backup." As Anne shouldered her package of gelignite, she cast a last look around her, and stiffened. Coming towards them was a young man. But he was walking easily, with no weapons in his hands, and he wore an expression of curiosity rather than hostility. She nodded to the others. "Someone's coming, but I don't think he's unfriendly." Anne returned her gaze to the stranger and gave him a tentative smile of welcome.

Commodore
Feb 29, 2012
892
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 6, 2013 wrote:
OOC: Yes, it's near the end - Kai (? yes), but you can still join in if you like. Perhaps you had been wandering around on the mountain and met up with Captain Jack?

~

Anne nodded. "Alright, Emma. Shall we go off together then? Scarlet and Elizabeth will be our backup." As Anne shouldered her package of gelignite, she cast a last look around her, and stiffened. Coming towards them was a young man. But he was walking easily, with no weapons in his hands, and he wore an expression of curiosity rather than hostility. She nodded to the others. "Someone's coming, but I don't think he's unfriendly." Anne returned her gaze to the stranger and gave him a tentative smile of welcome.
"Oh yea, best we do." Emma nodded in agreement, suddenly sensible and serious. Her eyes flickered in a mixture of excitement, and a faint trace of worry. The blonde glanced down at the package of explosives in her hand and she just moved it under her arm. The crunch of leaves being stepped on sounded behind the Musketeer, and she briefly glanced back to note a young man sauntering toward them. Emma's free hand moved to grab one of her pistols, but then she paused herself, realizing that he seemed friendly and not a weapon was in sight. She kept her hand over her pistol, but she grinned a sassy smile to the newcomer.

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 6, 2013 wrote:
OOC: Yes, it's near the end - Kai (? yes), but you can still join in if you like. Perhaps you had been wandering around on the mountain and met up with Captain Jack?

~

Anne nodded. "Alright, Emma. Shall we go off together then? Scarlet and Elizabeth will be our backup." As Anne shouldered her package of gelignite, she cast a last look around her, and stiffened. Coming towards them was a young man. But he was walking easily, with no weapons in his hands, and he wore an expression of curiosity rather than hostility. She nodded to the others. "Someone's coming, but I don't think he's unfriendly." Anne returned her gaze to the stranger and gave him a tentative smile of welcome.
Lizzy giggled. "Nice one, Anne. Double negative." She smiled wide in a welcoming manner, her hand tingling in case she needed to reach for her rapier...

Commodore
Sep 20, 2009
989
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 6, 2013 wrote:
OOC: Yes, it's near the end - Kai (? yes), but you can still join in if you like. Perhaps you had been wandering around on the mountain and met up with Captain Jack?

~

Anne nodded. "Alright, Emma. Shall we go off together then? Scarlet and Elizabeth will be our backup." As Anne shouldered her package of gelignite, she cast a last look around her, and stiffened. Coming towards them was a young man. But he was walking easily, with no weapons in his hands, and he wore an expression of curiosity rather than hostility. She nodded to the others. "Someone's coming, but I don't think he's unfriendly." Anne returned her gaze to the stranger and gave him a tentative smile of welcome.
Scarlet too heard the approach of the young man. Although seeing only one person, and that Anne, Emma, and Lizzy were well aware of the new person. Scarlet quietly went on with her work of weaving the various grasses and leaves she had gathered together. She did however move her hand slightly closer towards the dagger she had been using to cut vines.

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
Just Add Bacon on Sep 6, 2013 wrote:
Lizzy giggled. "Nice one, Anne. Double negative." She smiled wide in a welcoming manner, her hand tingling in case she needed to reach for her rapier...
Anne's eyes danced merrily with a sidelong glance at Lizzy for her impish comment. Her cheeks puffed as she tried to hold the laughter in, but to no avail. A moment later, Anne was giggling into her hand, trying to muffle the sound of her laughter.

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 7, 2013 wrote:
Anne's eyes danced merrily with a sidelong glance at Lizzy for her impish comment. Her cheeks puffed as she tried to hold the laughter in, but to no avail. A moment later, Anne was giggling into her hand, trying to muffle the sound of her laughter.
Lizzy couldn't help it either. It started as a simple sound that came from her nose, resembling a snicker -- but then she burst with laughter and giggled like a school girl, tears coming to her eyes as she tried to stop laughing but quite simply couldn't. There was nothing she could do about, and she didn't really know why she was laughing so hard in the first place. Double negatives are awesome and all, but are they really big enough to make her guffaw like this?

"Apparently so!" She snickered some more, trying to cover her face with her hands.

And then she looked toward the young man striding towards them. This was all she needed, making her instantly stop laughing but still wearing an impish expression. She smiled tentatively at him. "Hi." She nodded to him.

Commodore
Feb 29, 2012
892
Just Add Bacon on Sep 8, 2013 wrote:
Lizzy couldn't help it either. It started as a simple sound that came from her nose, resembling a snicker -- but then she burst with laughter and giggled like a school girl, tears coming to her eyes as she tried to stop laughing but quite simply couldn't. There was nothing she could do about, and she didn't really know why she was laughing so hard in the first place. Double negatives are awesome and all, but are they really big enough to make her guffaw like this?

"Apparently so!" She snickered some more, trying to cover her face with her hands.

And then she looked toward the young man striding towards them. This was all she needed, making her instantly stop laughing but still wearing an impish expression. She smiled tentatively at him. "Hi." She nodded to him.
"What the heck is so funny?" Emma asked, confused. Why were Anne and Lizzy cracking up? It made no sense to her! "Y'all are laughing as hard as I do whenever I attempt to dance! Uh, unless you want to permanently blind yourself from the horror of how bad I dance, don't ask me to try." The blonde shrugged and crossed her arms in the sassy way.

Commodore
Sep 20, 2009
989
Just Add Bacon on Sep 8, 2013 wrote:
Lizzy couldn't help it either. It started as a simple sound that came from her nose, resembling a snicker -- but then she burst with laughter and giggled like a school girl, tears coming to her eyes as she tried to stop laughing but quite simply couldn't. There was nothing she could do about, and she didn't really know why she was laughing so hard in the first place. Double negatives are awesome and all, but are they really big enough to make her guffaw like this?

"Apparently so!" She snickered some more, trying to cover her face with her hands.

And then she looked toward the young man striding towards them. This was all she needed, making her instantly stop laughing but still wearing an impish expression. She smiled tentatively at him. "Hi." She nodded to him.
Scarlet rolled her eyes and gave Lizzy a slight dissaproving look, "When you are done laughing your head off, would you please try this on?" Scarlet said as she handed Lizzie a fine mesh fishing net that had been modified into a sleeved cloak.

"It shouldn't be too snug, but it also shouldn't hinder you're walking about." Scarlet added as she began weaving the leaves, grass and twigs she had collected into a second similar looking net cloak.

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
Just Add Bacon on Sep 8, 2013 wrote:
Lizzy couldn't help it either. It started as a simple sound that came from her nose, resembling a snicker -- but then she burst with laughter and giggled like a school girl, tears coming to her eyes as she tried to stop laughing but quite simply couldn't. There was nothing she could do about, and she didn't really know why she was laughing so hard in the first place. Double negatives are awesome and all, but are they really big enough to make her guffaw like this?

"Apparently so!" She snickered some more, trying to cover her face with her hands.

And then she looked toward the young man striding towards them. This was all she needed, making her instantly stop laughing but still wearing an impish expression. She smiled tentatively at him. "Hi." She nodded to him.
[OOC: Ok, Jack and Kai, if you are joining us, you can be with group 1 (under the tea leaves) or group 2 (the backup). Just let us know, as where you are is important once the action hits]

~

Anne gave final cheerful wave, then she and Emma carefully made their way down the mountainside. After a while they got near the road where the occasional wagon made its lumbering way up the bare hill to the new fortress built within the ruins of the ancient castle. Anne snuck out onto the track and artfully scattered gold in a wide arc, then went back to hide next to Emma.

The ploy worked perfectly. "Hey, Jiro, I see something!" the Goat driver said to his confederate on the wagon bench, pulling up on the reins to stop the patient oxen.

"What? Rocks? Leaves?" his Sheep partner commented sardonically, but all but flew from the wagon when the Goat held up a shining piece of gold. As the two of them combed the ground with excited intent, Emma and Anne slipped from their hiding place and snuggled carefully under the tea leaves. It was but the work of a few minutes, and they had to wait considerably longer under the fragrant leaves until the laborers were done searching and the wagon made its way forward again.

"It's a small fortune!" the girls heard the Goat exclaim happily as he led the oxen forward.

"Yes, you proved the meaning of your name, Bao," the Sheep, Jiro, gently teased, as 'bao' meant treasure.

"You know what this means," Bao continued. "I can go home again. I can rebuild our family's house, buy seed, and help my family get back on their feet again. I could never do that on the small wages they pay us here, but I needed a job. But now, I can help my family's future."

"I am so happy for you," Jiro replied warmly, but his voice was tinged with sadness. They rode in silence for a long moment.

"Jiro," Bao opened tentatively. "I know you have no family left after the raids. Why...why don't you come home with me? We have been like brothers together here, have we not? You can come home with me and have a new family."

Jiro was silent another long moment. "I think I would like that. And, my gold can be used to help rebuild your home. We can do it together. But, no hugging," Jiro teased. "You know I can't stand that."

There followed some good natured guy teasing, which tapered off as they neared the top of the hill and approached the gates. As Anne had observed, the laborers were briefly questioned. The girls felt a hand riffle the top of the tea leaves lying like a thick blanket above them, and a moment later the wagon lumbered into the courtyard. The wagon stopped without incident. The young pirates could feel the oxen being unhitched. The girls shifted carefully and dared to peek up over the leaves. Laborers were bustling back and forth, but they were busy with the content of previous wagons, and wagons that were being bundled up with finished tea leaves to leave. They slipped out of the wagon. No one noticed.

So far, so good.

Commodore
Feb 29, 2012
892
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 10, 2013 wrote:
[OOC: Ok, Jack and Kai, if you are joining us, you can be with group 1 (under the tea leaves) or group 2 (the backup). Just let us know, as where you are is important once the action hits]

~

Anne gave final cheerful wave, then she and Emma carefully made their way down the mountainside. After a while they got near the road where the occasional wagon made its lumbering way up the bare hill to the new fortress built within the ruins of the ancient castle. Anne snuck out onto the track and artfully scattered gold in a wide arc, then went back to hide next to Emma.

The ploy worked perfectly. "Hey, Jiro, I see something!" the Goat driver said to his confederate on the wagon bench, pulling up on the reins to stop the patient oxen.

"What? Rocks? Leaves?" his Sheep partner commented sardonically, but all but flew from the wagon when the Goat held up a shining piece of gold. As the two of them combed the ground with excited intent, Emma and Anne slipped from their hiding place and snuggled carefully under the tea leaves. It was but the work of a few minutes, and they had to wait considerably longer under the fragrant leaves until the laborers were done searching and the wagon made its way forward again.

"It's a small fortune!" the girls heard the Goat exclaim happily as he led the oxen forward.

"Yes, you proved the meaning of your name, Bao," the Sheep, Jiro, gently teased, as 'bao' meant treasure.

"You know what this means," Bao continued. "I can go home again. I can rebuild our family's house, buy seed, and help my family get back on their feet again. I could never do that on the small wages they pay us here, but I needed a job. But now, I can help my family's future."

"I am so happy for you," Jiro replied warmly, but his voice was tinged with sadness. They rode in silence for a long moment.

"Jiro," Bao opened tentatively. "I know you have no family left after the raids. Why...why don't you come home with me? We have been like brothers together here, have we not? You can come home with me and have a new family."

Jiro was silent another long moment. "I think I would like that. And, my gold can be used to help rebuild your home. We can do it together. But, no hugging," Jiro teased. "You know I can't stand that."

There followed some good natured guy teasing, which tapered off as they neared the top of the hill and approached the gates. As Anne had observed, the laborers were briefly questioned. The girls felt a hand riffle the top of the tea leaves lying like a thick blanket above them, and a moment later the wagon lumbered into the courtyard. The wagon stopped without incident. The young pirates could feel the oxen being unhitched. The girls shifted carefully and dared to peek up over the leaves. Laborers were bustling back and forth, but they were busy with the content of previous wagons, and wagons that were being bundled up with finished tea leaves to leave. They slipped out of the wagon. No one noticed.

So far, so good.
A low whisper escaped from Emma's mouth. "So far, so good... Now to find the source of the posion!" Her voice was so quiet that it was hard enough for even Anne, who was right next to her, to hear. The blonde started crawling off in the direction she believed this posion was, and she ducked behind a collection of barrels firsthand. She grabbed her rifle, loaded it, and aimed it as if to fire.... She intended on distracting the laborers with a brief cluster of sparks, but she needed Anne's sayso.

Captain
Mar 09, 2011
709
Are Jack and Kai still going to be apart of this roleplay? They don't seem to be participating...

Admiral
Jul 27, 2012
1196
Highlander Fox of ... on Sep 12, 2013 wrote:
A low whisper escaped from Emma's mouth. "So far, so good... Now to find the source of the posion!" Her voice was so quiet that it was hard enough for even Anne, who was right next to her, to hear. The blonde started crawling off in the direction she believed this posion was, and she ducked behind a collection of barrels firsthand. She grabbed her rifle, loaded it, and aimed it as if to fire.... She intended on distracting the laborers with a brief cluster of sparks, but she needed Anne's sayso.
Anne shook her head. "I don't think we need a distraction yet, but keep that rifle handy. A spark blast would attract the guards, and the ones I see look pretty bored right now. Best keep them that way if we can."

The guards did look bored, although well armed. There were few looking towards the inside of the compound where Emma and Anne were now, as most looked outwards looking for intruders. The laborers were intent on their own work, and certainly were not expecting anything interesting to happen. It would take something fairly obviously out of place to attract their attention. They were unlikely to get that from Anne, raised by ninja pigs in the art of stealth, and Emma... well, Emma wasn't called 'Sneaky Emma' for nothing.

The environment helped their cause. The new buildings were makeshift affairs, thrown up inside the ruins of the old castle. Old rubble and new building materials scattered about made it easy to sneak from one cluttered area to another. After a bit of scouting about to get their bearings, the girls realized that they were in an outer courtyard, and in the traditional fashion, opened to the vast inner courtyard by three gates. With care, the young pirates were able to slip into the inner courtyard. This area was much less cluttered, however, the large open space that had once been the grand inner courtyard of the castle was mostly filled by one large, squat building. It was a bit trickier getting into this building, but the windows were of oiled paper. A knife carefully slicing into a back window and a careful peek within allowed the girls to clamber silently into the building. Their luck still held: no one had yet noticed anything.

They found that they had entered the tea storage area, a dark back room, and peering through the cracks in the unfinished walls and around the door, they saw the contents of the main room beyond. The walls on two sides (and possibly the wall the storeroom was attached to; it was hard to tell) were faced with shelves containing bottles, baskets, and strings of various materials. In front of the shelves, perhaps a dozen people, mostly Goat, but some Sheep and Cow people, labored quietly at cauldrons steaming on coal boxes or tables in front of them.

Further away from the storeroom, in the middle-upper part of the room, stood a vast platform supported by four narrow pillars, that looked to have some sort of carving. The top of each pillar sported what seemed to be a plain glass ball.

At the very end of the room, facing the rest of the room, was a vast chair that seemed to be made of jade. Reclining in this chair was a beautiful young human woman, her blonde hair flowing over her shoulders like a shower of gold. She was dressed sumptuously in Mooshuese fashion, in several silk tunics that flowed to her feet, revealing a succession of colors: amber, pink, blue, green. Gold embroidery on the upper tunic glittered in the light. She was the very picture of a princess.

Petty Officer
Nov 06, 2012
56
Anne Radcliffe on Sep 10, 2013 wrote:
[OOC: Ok, Jack and Kai, if you are joining us, you can be with group 1 (under the tea leaves) or group 2 (the backup). Just let us know, as where you are is important once the action hits]

~

Anne gave final cheerful wave, then she and Emma carefully made their way down the mountainside. After a while they got near the road where the occasional wagon made its lumbering way up the bare hill to the new fortress built within the ruins of the ancient castle. Anne snuck out onto the track and artfully scattered gold in a wide arc, then went back to hide next to Emma.

The ploy worked perfectly. "Hey, Jiro, I see something!" the Goat driver said to his confederate on the wagon bench, pulling up on the reins to stop the patient oxen.

"What? Rocks? Leaves?" his Sheep partner commented sardonically, but all but flew from the wagon when the Goat held up a shining piece of gold. As the two of them combed the ground with excited intent, Emma and Anne slipped from their hiding place and snuggled carefully under the tea leaves. It was but the work of a few minutes, and they had to wait considerably longer under the fragrant leaves until the laborers were done searching and the wagon made its way forward again.

"It's a small fortune!" the girls heard the Goat exclaim happily as he led the oxen forward.

"Yes, you proved the meaning of your name, Bao," the Sheep, Jiro, gently teased, as 'bao' meant treasure.

"You know what this means," Bao continued. "I can go home again. I can rebuild our family's house, buy seed, and help my family get back on their feet again. I could never do that on the small wages they pay us here, but I needed a job. But now, I can help my family's future."

"I am so happy for you," Jiro replied warmly, but his voice was tinged with sadness. They rode in silence for a long moment.

"Jiro," Bao opened tentatively. "I know you have no family left after the raids. Why...why don't you come home with me? We have been like brothers together here, have we not? You can come home with me and have a new family."

Jiro was silent another long moment. "I think I would like that. And, my gold can be used to help rebuild your home. We can do it together. But, no hugging," Jiro teased. "You know I can't stand that."

There followed some good natured guy teasing, which tapered off as they neared the top of the hill and approached the gates. As Anne had observed, the laborers were briefly questioned. The girls felt a hand riffle the top of the tea leaves lying like a thick blanket above them, and a moment later the wagon lumbered into the courtyard. The wagon stopped without incident. The young pirates could feel the oxen being unhitched. The girls shifted carefully and dared to peek up over the leaves. Laborers were bustling back and forth, but they were busy with the content of previous wagons, and wagons that were being bundled up with finished tea leaves to leave. They slipped out of the wagon. No one noticed.

So far, so good.
OCC: Under the tea leaves.