feast & after-party ♔ empty my heart | i've got to make room for this feeling

[wynn]

♬ Can't Take It In - Imogen Heap

WHO || Wynn, the new Squires, any and all Knights
WHAT || Squiring Ceremony Feast & Afterparty
WHERE || Knights Headquarters, the Dining Hall & Ballroom
WHEN || February 9th, 2012, 7:00PM / 9:00 PM
HOW || Prose OR Actionspam

While every dinner served in the Knights' exceptionally large Dining Hall manages to have a sense of occasion, given the sheer quantity of food necessary to serve the hundreds who take their meals there, the 'feast' Wynn's ordered for after this squiring party outdoes the norm. It's not a problem to produce so much food at the drop of the hat when mages can magically summon up entire banquets, and so the room teems over with the smells and spices of hundreds of unique dishes. Centerpieces built with peacock feathers and sweet smelling flowers dot the table at intervals. A silver cage in the very middle of the table includes several live birds, their feet and tufts each appearing to be silver as well. A banner hangs from the top of the cage, with the Knight's symbol of a black dragon on a silver field.

The food has a distinctly medieval flair to it today, which several of the older Shadowkind Knights express their boisterous appreciation for as they dive in. The first course consists of a civet of hare, a quarter of salted stag, a stuffed chicken and a loin of veal, the latter two covered with a German sauce with gilt sugar-plums and pomegranate seeds. At each end of the table is an enormous pie, surmounted with smaller pies, which form a crown. The crust of the large ones is silvered all round and gilt at the top; each contains a whole roe-deer, a gosling, three capons, six chickens, ten pigeons, and one young rabbit. Serving as seasoning or stuffing, a minced loin of veal, two pounds of fat, and twenty-six hard-boiled eggs, covered with saffron and flavoured with cloves.

A second course follows: aroe-deer, a pig, a sturgeon cooked in parsley and vinegar, and covered with powdered ginger; a kid, two goslings, twelve chickens, as many pigeons, six young rabbits, two herons, a leveret, a fat capon stuffed, four chickens covered with yolks of eggs and sprinkled with spiced powder de Duc, and even a wild boar.

Next came wafers and stars; a jelly, part white and part blue. A fourth course of cream with Duc powder, covered with fennel seeds preserved in sugar; a white cream, cheese in slices, and strawberries; and, lastly, plums stewed in rose-water.

Besides these four courses, there's a fifth, entirely composed of wines, and of preserves, which consist of fruits and various sweet pastries in the shapes of dragons.

---------------------------

Following this, assuming anyone is still capable of moving at all is the after-party: a black-tie affair in the lavish, opulent ballroom, every new Knight's chance to mingle and meet some of their new brothers in arms. Per usual, a couple hours are provided following the feast for everyone to change, do hair and makeup, and choose from the vast array of formal attire in the closets of the balcony "dressing rooms" located at the top of spiraled staircases on either side of the ballroom. A separate dressing room exists for men and women, and they include full bathrooms (with, thankfully, very modern plumbing).

The squires are usually among the last to arrive, and the ballroom is full to the brim with a fancy array of people, of all shapes, sizes and species.

Hope none of you are shy. They're all here to meet you. 

All open feast threads should be made under the FEAST heading below. Any other threads below will be for the after-party. Feel free to make your own open threads for people to come congratulate your newly pledged knight.

Comments

nooooooo I do not mind at all :D stalk away :p

[befree]

[It's the woman from earlier, she notes.

She keeps a cool and indifferent attitude about her, glancing over at her briefly before turning her attention back out to the people around them. She doesn't relax enough to remove her arms from being crossed over her chest.]

Hello.

[She shifts, tugging anxiously at the bodice of her dress.]

Do parties like this happen all that often?

[Oh please say no. Please, please.]

[socialgraces]

Only once or twice a year, usually. Maybe not even that much. [She gives her a reassuring smile, one of understanding, not sympathy.] And you don't always have to attend. You'll be busy with other things most of the time anyway. Missions, assignments, travel. This is such a small part of Knighthood, I promise.

[She changes topics fluidly, her tone remaining even and comforting.] I heard you're good with a bow. [And she turns to Katniss, showing honest interest in her.]

[befree]

A lot of people have heard that, thanks to the news.

[She turns a little, enough to be properly looking in Francesca's direction.]

What are you good with? I haven't heard anything about you.

[This probably sounds like she's trying to size up the competition or something, when Katniss is simply honestly curious. Her tone isn't menacing or harsh, and as she realizes that she probably is coming across as blunt and rude, she relaxes her pose and moves her arms down from over her chest.

it's awkward for her, and she has no idea what to do with her hands, so she fumbles and reaches back with one hand to lay her palm flat against the wall.]

Oh, just so you know, she's a drow/dark elf. I always forget to mention that...

[socialgraces]

[Francesca is more than acquainted with blunt and rude. No worries there. And she's not afraid of sharing-time either.] Well, I do a lot of work with people, diplomatic relations and negotiations. But when words aren't enough, I tend to lean more towards ballistics than bows. Although I am quite skilled with a crossbow. [She says this all as if it were a normal conversation to be having at a party in an elegant ballroom.

She pauses with slightly raised eyebrows, as if asking the girl if there's anything else she'd like to know.]

eeeep, okay!

[befree]

[Diplomacy. A skill she definitely doesn't have, so she lets out a soft snort, her current version of a good humored chuckle. She almost addresses that particular topic, when something registers with her and she looks genuinely interested.]

Crossbow?

[Congratulations, Francesca, you are now useful and interesting to Katniss.]

[socialgraces]

Yes, it's probably best described as a mechanical bow. It's basically just the prod of a hand bow attached to a crosspiece, and you use a lever to draw and hold the string, allowing more power behind the shot than a string drawn and held by hand. They're better for sniper work than in actual combat, though, as they have a slow reload rate in comparison to the hand bow. [She makes some small gestures with her hands as she speaks, but nothing too overzealous.] There's also a device called a hand crossbow, which straps to your wrist and shoots much smaller bolts. However, it can still be quite deadly if your aim is right.

You should ask Christos to show you some examples, for curiosity's sake, if nothing else. [She encourages with a pleasant smile.]

[befree]

I definitely will.

[And now she's smiling, just a little, and in her mind Francesca shifts from someones he has to tolerate because they're an acquaintance of Christos to someone she views as interesting and a potential ally. Someone she might be able to trust for information someday.]

But if you know more than he does about them, I think I'd rather have you do it.

[A very large part of her wants to ask if they can now, if they can up and leave this party and go look at weapons instead. But she knows that would be wrong, and she needs to be here for appearance's sake, so she bites at her lip and fidgets. Weapons can come later, being here is almost like part of her duty, so she has to see it through to the end of the night.]

[socialgraces]

[Francesca tries to keep her own smile contained, but this girl stirs feelings in her that she can't quite explain. It's probably the closest to a maternal instinct that she's ever experienced. But, as it's definitely not something she's familiar with, she doesn't think of it as such. She just wants to help her, with whatever she may need. She wants to make her feel comfortable, and safe.

She tries to hide all this, of course, to save herself from looking like a crazy person (with a bluff check of 30) and simply says:] I'd love to. [as she allows her smile to spread a little farther.]

[befree]

You would?

[For some reason, this takes her by surprise. It's not that she doesn't believe she would offer, it's that she doesn't believe anyone would sincerely want to spend any more time with her than needed.

But she's grateful, and her smile grows in response.]

Thank you.

[socialgraces]

Anytime. [She says it with more weight than is usually put on the common response. She wants to ask the girl more questions but is trying to be very careful not to scare her off.]

We'll probably be seeing quite a bit of each other. So really, if you need help with anything, please don't hesitate to ask. [Her tone is fairly even and comforting. She sounds eager to help, without being pushy. She doesn't want to overwhelm her (Diplomacy check of a 48).]

[befree]

How often do you think?

[She's caught off guard and almost horrified at the thought of someone being so nice, so eager to be around her. She gets the feeling that she can trust Francesca, but the fact still remains that Katniss doesn't view herself as a very good person. She doesn't like being around herself most of the time, why would a stranger want so badly to help her?

That, and being around someone a lot leads to connections that might be difficult to sever if circumstances force her to. She isn't sure she wants to be seeing a lot of anyone at this point.]

[socialgraces]

I was merely referring to the fact that you're squired to Christos and he and I tend to work together quite often. [She'll try not to stalk you too much...]

He and I are also good friends, so he knows how to get a hold of me if you did require my assistance with anything.

[befree]

[Oh. Yes, of course that. She nods in understanding, allowing herself to look a little sheepish for having asked.]

I didn't mean to be rude, I was just curious. But I...

[Oh God, this is hard for her to say these words.]

... thank you for your offer. It's appreciated.

[Even if the idea of being in debt to someone for their assistance doesn't quite sit right with her.]

[socialgraces]

[She scoffs lightly at her meekness.] You weren't being rude. I wouldn't think you were taking my offer seriously if you didn't question it.

And you don't need to thank me, ever. But I appreciate the gesture, all the same. [She gives her one last kind smile, before adjusting her stance to make it obvious she's going to move on.]

I'll see you later.

[befree]

[And now she's relieved, nodding almost eagerly. She waves her hand in a rigid gesture to say goodbye, before turning to lean back up against the wall.]