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 Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:37 pm
You find yourself standing in a precisely manicured field, pristine green grass stretching out in front of you for what seems like miles. A gaggle of large flightless birds stand in the shape of a horseshoe, a few of them already engaged by other Amityville students. A horseman of Conquest approaches you, her deep olive hair serving to help camouflage her in the surrounding foliage.
"Greetings. You may call me Rucha. Today you will be working with the adara." She sweeps an arm toward the birds, her long sleeves trailing through the grass at her feet. "On the whole, members of this species have a lot in common with humans as far as temperament and intelligence are concerned, so you should have no trouble getting them to tolerate you." She frowns and looks you up and down. "In theory." Rucha moves to one side, allowing you to step past her.
"Take this," She hands you a list of instructions. "Choose a bird, and make an effort to earn its trust."Instruction One First, you must bow to the adara to show it you mean no harm. Try to at least act sincere.Roll 1d4.1: Your bow is suitably impressive. The adara inclines its head and drops a feather. Perhaps it will be of some use later. 2: The bird screams in terror and pushes you to the ground before running away. You fail. 3: You don't make proper eye contact at first, but soon your adara is nuzzling up to you anyway. It seems you have a natural affinity for dealing with the beasts. A future as a DETH representative might be in the cards. You also obtain one feather. 4: You bow, but it's kind of a weak attempt. Still, your bird responds. It doesn't seem terribly enthusiastic about the whole situation though. You pass. Instruction Two Next you should offer the adara a refreshing drink of water or a salted cracker.Roll 1d6.1: The adara nibbles at your cracker, then turns away and starts to graze on the leaves near its feet. You pass, but not by much. 2: After you've fed your bird its snack, the adara puffs up and begins to gag. You've failed the challenge, but you do obtain a feather as a result of its misery! 3: Your adara drinks its water daintily, then allows you to pet it. You pass and you get a feather! 4: Sadly, after your bird eats your cracker, it quickly moves on to the next student, letting them pet it and collect one of its feathers. The two timer! You pass. Eventually your adara wanders back. 5: The adara in front of you ignores your cracker, but another animal wanders over to eat it instead, giving you one of its feathers in thanks! You pass. 6: You drop your water and crackers, watching in dismay as a passing bird tramples them. You fail. Instruction Three Ask the adara something about itself, listening attentively when it answers, even though you can't understand a word of its reply.Roll 1d6.1: You ask the bird to tell you where it was born and it responds with a happy trill and a long, drawn out bird story. After a while, you begin to get bored. The adara stops mid-chirp, gets up, and waddles away. You fail. 2: The adara looks on in confusion and dismay as you try to stutter out an interesting question. You fail. 3: Your bird is pleased by your question. It sits down and shares a tweety tale of intrigue that you manage to remain bright-eyed and alert for. You pass. 4: Your question frightens the adara and it leaves your vicinity with a shiver. Its shaking causes one of its feathers to fall nearby. You fail. 5: In an effort to seem like you care, you ask your adara a very personal question that it refuses to answer. You fail. 6: You've coincidentally hit on your adara's favorite topic of all time, and even if you can't understand what it's saying, it's still pretty entertaining. You listen as attentively as you can, and are awarded with a feather for your trouble. You pass. Instruction Four Lastly, tell the adara a secret. These animals love to think they're up on the latest gossip.Roll 1d4.1, 2: Your secret is a sad, boring one that nobody cares about. You fail. 3: The adara listens, rapt, as you tell it a little-known tale of intrigue and madness. When you're done, it drops a feather at your feet. You pass. 4: Everybody knows that secret! The adara shakes its head, accidentally dislodging a feather for you to keep. You fail. Horsemen Points For each feather you have (up to three) at the end of this test you may claim a Horsemen Point. ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯ ⋯⋯
[ ETIQUETTE TRAINING : WEEK ONE. ]
Fallow, Mea, Dev, Bon. "Hmm."
Well. This had to be some sort of fascinating. He wasn't quite sure how yet though. The birds - adara's, he reminded himself uselessly - stood a few paces from him, and Fallow fidgeted, remembering just where he was. The perfectly manicured field only seemed to heighten the sense of tranquility and nobleness of the Conquest Isle. And that was, ah, the complete opposite of what he was used to back home.
Listening with a faint quiver to the horsewoman's explanation and glancing down at the instructions now in his hands, the Púca danced nervously in place for a moment, excitement filling his bones with chill and hunger for fun making him pursue his way over to the first available bird. He couldn't quite remember spotting any of his herd when he'd come here, but he was silently craving their presence in the back of his mind, and it took plenty of his willpower not to turn his head over his shoulder and look for them before beginning.
But, ah, he wanted to start this training already so very badly, and with a quirk of his tail, he turned his neon eyes back to the bird - adara - and cleared his throat.
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Honeybii rolled 1 4-sided dice:
1
Total: 1 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:50 pm
Oh gods. Birds. Bongani suppressed a distasteful shudder as he accepted his instructions from the horsewoman. He unrolled the crinkly pieces of parchment to look things over, the furrow in his brow deepening. He looked up at the group of birds once, looked back to the parchment, and then at the birds again to see Fallow already making a noble effort to start his training. Well, if Fallow could do it then certainly he, Bongani, could do it also. Maybe.
Stuffing the instructions into his pocket, Bongani lifted his chin and boldly followed after the puca. He tried to draw tranquility from his surroundings and urged himself to focus on the cool feel on grass on his bare feet and the warm sun on his skin. He could do this, he could SO do this.
Stepping up beside Fallow, Bongani glanced at him, though said nothing, not wanting to disturb him if he was concentrating. So, Bon merely nodded to the puca before returning his focus to the adara in front of him. Welp, here went nothing.prompt 1: Your bow is suitably impressive. The adara inclines its head and drops a feather. Perhaps it will be of some use later.
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Syusaki rolled 1 4-sided dice:
3
Total: 3 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:54 pm
Dev’s tail flicked eagerly when the quartet made their way into a field of grass. She took a deep breath, nostrils flaring as she inhaled the familiar scent of greenery. It was unsurprising that the cu sith enjoyed the green setting. Green was a calming color. Green was the color of her hair and eyes. Green was her favorite. The field was more prim than she would have preferred it, but the ghoul could live with that. She politely bowed her head toward the female horseman. A simple greeting of acknowledgement before she stepped forward to receive the instructions. She scanned the words before glancing up at Fallow, revealing canine teeth. “Ye lookin’ abit edgy, dun ye think?” she remarked playfully before returning her attention back to the parchment. Hmm. Birds, huh? Etiquette. She could do etiquette. At least she hoped so.
She folded the paper and slid it into her pockets before she approached one of the birds. Dev leaned forward in a small bow, one arm across her stomach while the other was spread out. Too bad she had failed to make proper eye contact. At least the bird had taken a natural liking to her. A startled Dev found the adara nuzzling up to her, the beak rubbing against her neck. She raised an eyebrow at the rest. “Whit…?”
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kuumeii rolled 1 4-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:55 pm
[ week one :: day one :: etiquette training ]
The other three had already disappeared but Mea managed to find her way to the clear field nonetheless. It was vast and bright, but so very quiet. Pursing her lips she found herself brushing along side of Fallow and hanging over the horseman's words. How elegant she seemed, but with a twinge of annoyance. Rubbing her fingers against the parchment of the instructions Mea moved towards a pudgier bird near the edge.
"So they have to like you because you have manners?" She questioned to no one in particular in a rhetorical sense. Her eyes flicked to Fallow and now to Bon, who had seemed to do pretty well. Birds weren't precisely her friends unless they had been cooked into a tasty stew.
Moving her feet apart she made the motions of a bow and blinked as her bird seemed to react ever so slightly. Mea grumbled at the lack of excitement but nodded her approval regardless. Swinging her eyes over she noticed Bon and gave him a thumbs up. It wasn't spectacular, but her bird had responded.
Taking apart her instructions again she glanced on them. What was next on the agenda?
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keiifuu rolled 1 4-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:55 pm
True, it was a rather weak attempt seeing as the Púca was more adept at prancing and racing than he was at bowing, but at least he'd passed. Watching the bird respond to him, the Púca's tail swished to and fro behind him, glowing neon and dark colors and nearly swatting Bongani who had come up just beside him. An ear swiveling to the witch doctor, Fallow giggled softly and whispered, "Hello, Bon." And then Mea was whispering too, and he turned his head to her, rumbling in reply.
"I suspect - ah - manners are rather likable here hmm." Which was odd.
Carefully, he glanced down at the instructions, looking for the next step to follow and hopefully, ah, do well at too.
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Honeybii rolled 1 6-sided dice:
6
Total: 6 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:20 pm
"Greetings, Fallow," Bongani whispered in a equally hushed tone, though it was almost teasing the way he said it. Glancing at Mae, he greeted her as well. "It seems you've got the knack of it, Mae." Bon was appalled at himself for sounding so encouraging. It was hard not to though. The birds were a little intimidating and Bongani was right there with Mae in the dislike department.
Well, time for the next step. Instead of pulling his own directions free, he helped himself to Fallow's, glancing down at the parchment in the puca's hands. Okay, he could do that. Bongani looked up, seeing Dev, and nearly chuckling at the way the adara had snuggled up to her.prompt 6: You drop your water and crackers, watching in dismay as a passing bird tramples them. You fail.
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kuumeii rolled 1 6-sided dice:
3
Total: 3 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:23 pm
Mea blinked and stifled a laugh, though it was interesting to see how the others were fairing. It seemed they had at least passed through, even if her bird and Fallow's appeared to be lacking in the same enthusiasm they each had. Reading over the paper and stuffing it down into a pocket. Reaching for a small pile of crackers she took a hold of one and went back.
Her adara was the pudgiest of the ones she could see, surely it would like a cracker to add to it's tummy. Sniffing at the cracker she blinked. It smelled fine enough. Slowly she moved to a small pool of water, taking one of the decorated cups. It was adorned, elegant, beautiful. Just like everything around here. She thought, moving back to her bird with some trepidation. Would it even want the cracker? Or would it fly away?
Blinking back at the others she moved to it, holding the cup and cracker out towards it. "Come on, it's good." She whispered towards it. To her surprise it seemed to take it very well, moving to her hand and sipping gently. With a small toss she gave the cracker, happy to see that the adara was finally warming up to her.
Delicately and slowly she began to stroke the soft feathers with a bright smile - the feeling even enough to quiet the inner voice telling her to feed on the animal rather than feed it. Glancing at the others she smiled, content to be near them and together in this. Moving back from her adara with another nod she again took to the paper, burying her nose into it.
So far two for two, but Mea was never the kind to stay lucky in any situation. Turning away from the dropped feather, she moved to do her next task.
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keiifuu rolled 1 6-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:24 pm
Training 4: Sadly, after your bird eats your cracker, it quickly moves on to the next student, letting them pet it and collect one of its feathers. The two timer! You pass. Eventually your adara wanders back.
"Hmm, yes. Hello. Your bird is nicer than mine." He whispered as well as he could, which was to say, not at all. The Púca's ears twisted upwards as he fumbled for food to give to his own adara, which seemed rather patient with the impatient horse. Of course, just as he was about to try feeding the silly thing, a sound of alarm and anger made him jump.
"Ah, Bon!" Another failed-whisper. It seemed that the witch doctor's bird had trampled the crackers and ran off. How rude. How - ah - cute. Oops, wait, what was that about loyalty again? Fallow chewed his lip and turned back to his own adara.
"Here, here." He rumbled, "this is good, yes, yum. Good hmm." Thankfully, the adara ate it! Beaming, Fallow turned to point out his cute bird to Mea, or maybe Bon - who's bird had unfortunately left him for good - only to turn back and realize that his bird had... left.
It was eating someone else's crackers.
"Hey!"
The Púca's ears pulled back, affronted, and like an angry stallion, he stomped the ground and waved his arms at the stupid bird, just about ready to run after the dumb thing and drag it back to where it belonged with him when it turned and waddled back after a few moments of gorging on some lesser creatures gross crackers ( granted, they were the same crackers as Fallows, but he wasn't about to say anything about that. )
When it finally returned to him, fat and happy and staring with beady eyes, Fallow simmered into a hurt and deflated droop, rumbling in obvious displeasure.
"Two timer."
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Syusaki rolled 1 6-sided dice:
6
Total: 6 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:25 pm
Carefully, Dev reached for the instructions to read the next stage. Now it was time to feed the adara water and crackers. She shrugged and pocketed the parchment once more. Sounded simple enough. What could go wrong? Unfortunately, before she could grab some snacks she attempted to coax the bird off of her, but it stubbornly refused to let go. Dev spent another few moments gently trying to pull away the adara, but it only made chirping sounds and nuzzled her even more. She sighed, shoulders slumping. Maybe she could just reach out for some water and crackers with one hand. That would hopefully work, right?
Unfortunately, once she grabbed it, the bird’s nuzzling distracted her. In fact, its beak had accidentally pecked her in the collarbone. She yelped, immediately dropping her goods. Dismayed, Dev stared at the toppled items. “Whit…” she muttered again, this time looking crestfallen as the bird hastily flew away from her, leaving her forever alone. She glumly turned toward her companions and was relieved to find that she had not been the only one to drop her water and crackers. “Whit luck, huh?”
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Honeybii rolled 1 6-sided dice:
5
Total: 5 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:43 pm
Panting unhappily, Bongani furiously pulled the directions out of his pocket again. Okay, he could do this. Damn bird, he'd show him what was what. Glancing at his companions, Bon groaned to see Mae handle her adara perfectly and jealously flared. He had to do well this time, just had to.
So, tentatively, he approached the grumpy adara again, offering an apology and a bit of gossip for it. Hopefully it would appease the bird.prompt 5: In an effort to seem like you care, you ask your adara a very personal question that it refuses to answer. You fail. FOR TOMORROW? /so bad
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keiifuu rolled 1 6-sided dice:
3
Total: 3 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:44 pm
Training 3: Your bird is pleased by your question. It sits down and shares a tweety tale of intrigue that you manage to remain bright-eyed and alert for. You pass.
Still simmering from the recent insult, Fallow settled for staring with wounded pride at the bird, his tail and ears ruffled and standing straight and erect. "Thank you for coming back." He rumbled, if only because the training was for etiquette. "Don't leave again or I will make a cape out of you and give it to Bon to wear."
The bird simply stared back at him, beady eyes expectant. Fallow's lips thinned. Fine, fine, he could play this game too. His parents had tried to shovel enough manners down his throat as a kid after all. Back snapping into a straighter position, the Púca adopted a cold and formal stare, the only thing still moving his tail. Narrowing his eyes, he cleared his throat and gestured with his hands.
"Tell me, curiously fickle little bird, why do you spend your time out here teaching etiquette lessons all day?" Fallow's eyes glowed a vibrant color, trying desperately to stay vaguely formal instead of desperately curious.
Apparently the question was enough for the bird, and it ruffled its feathers, settling itself down with a regal air and beginning its tale. In, ah, a language that Fallow did not know. Sadly, however, his cold demeanor wore away under the story that he couldn't make out, tail twitching from side to side as his anger dissolved under a layer of distraction. The bird was still going on by the time his stance had degraded into slouching again.
Well. Okay.
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kuumeii rolled 1 6-sided dice:
2
Total: 2 (1-6)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:51 pm
Mea blinked at the paper and put it back into her pocket, looking down at her bird. So far it had been a coy little thing. At first lacking in enthusiasm and now the adara had allowed her to pet it. To ask it a question now... how was she even certain that it would understand anything she would say? Taking a moment to stare at it's feathers she pursed her lips again.
"S-so. That is um. To say. Do you... Are you..." The rabbit stopped, shaking her head and hitting it as the bird tilted its head, staring at her in confusion to which she reflected the same look. "I assume you get every question all the time, huh?" She muttered with a shake of her head.
Could it even understand her, even if she had anything to say? Trivial, that's what it was, though she attempted again. "So then do you..." Again she was halted as it begun to shake it's head, turning it's attention back to some bits of cracker that had eluded it previously.
"Normally I eat things like you." She said under her breath before straightening up and wiping her hands clean on her shirt. Growling slightly she turned back to her pocket. Though she had clearly failed, she would have more time, someday. She looked back at it hopefully before putting it back in her pocket and moving from the training field. "Maybe..."
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keiifuu rolled 1 4-sided dice:
4
Total: 4 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:58 pm
Training 4: Everybody knows that secret! The adara shakes its head, accidentally dislodging a feather for you to keep. You fail.
Rattling off the first secret he knew, as per the instructions, Fallow gestured with his hands to emphasize the story, only to stop and stare at the adara shaking his head, Snorting, the Púca shook his in return with a low rumble of displeasure. This etiquette thing was a lot harder than it was made out to be! And why did people even care for it anyways? It was so... ah, boring.
Realizing that was the last on his list of things to do, Fallow huffed, catching the feather that had dislodged from the creatures neck. Well, it was a step in the right direction at least. But now the bird was wandering away for the next trainee to come, ever the two timer.
"Hmph."
The Púca turned his head from side to side, surveying his friends and then his one feather.
Well. At least he'd come away with something, and gotten to the end. And reflecting on it... that was kinda fun. "Hee. Stupid birds."
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kuumeii rolled 1 4-sided dice:
2
Total: 2 (1-4)
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 9:05 pm
tbe~ ANGRY BIRDS AAAAH~
waiting to fill this out until q is answered ; U;
I UNDERSTAND NOW, IGNORE THIS ONE
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 9:02 pm
Those who had taken Week 1 of the Clan of Conquest's class might recognize the female seated on the chair in the room; in front of her was a Guzheng. Standing on her left was a horsewoman who was dressed like a servant ghoul holding a Pipa, and on her right stood a horsewoman who looked like she was of the same age as the servant ghoul, but was dressed in clothing that looked more colorful and decorative.
"Welcome. I am Zhang Liulian, but you may address me as Professor Zhang. Traditionally, dancing is an art form reserved for females, but in recent years, even males had taken up this art," She explained, giving you a small smile, "It requires flexibility, a quick reflex... It is not as easy as you think it might be. In fact, it requires years of practice to get dancing down. Here, let my disciple show you." She turned to the ghoul on her right and gave her a nod; immediately, the young ghoul brightened up, moving to the space in front. When Professor Zhang started to play the Guzheng, accompanied by her servant's Pipa, the young ghoul performed a dance so entrancing, it probably kept you captivated.
"Same say that dancing may even lift your spirits and heal your soul... Why don't you find that out for yourself, child?"Quote: Time to dance!-> Roll these in separate posts and RP it out! -> It's more fun with friends. >_> Step 1: Costume : Just describe/post/draw it!-> Keep it CHINESE. -> Not Asian... CHINESE. >| Google it! -> It can be from the Huns as well. As long as CHINA. Step 2: Picking a prop from a "blind box" : 1d41 : Paper fan 2 : Streamers 3 : Nothing 4 : A long strip of thin fabric...? -> Remember to use what you got with the prompt below! Step 3: Now you dance : 1d201 - 6 : You tripped over your costume/foot/flat ground/etc and failed. 7 - 11 : You were a little out of pace with the music, but at least you tried! (1 Horsemen Point!) 12 - 15 : You were one with the music, but... Your dance wasn't exactly that graceful or captivating. In fact, are the Horsewomen giggling at you?! (2 Horsemen Points!) 16 - 20 : You did well for a beginner! It seemed like you had earned a genuine smile from the Horsewomen! (You obtain 3 Horsemen Points!) Horsemen Points - You win 3 horsemen points for completing step 3/ rolling 16 - 20 (after finishing all other steps fully)!
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