bellelurette | Mesdames et Messieurs, Voilà, C'est Vous

Mesdames et Messieurs, Voilà, C'est Vous

Bievenue

You're wrapped in a soothing, all-encompassing darkness.

Well, perhaps not perfectly all-encompassing -- you can see some slivers of light here and there, just enough to realize that your current space is literally wrapped in something, and that you are a highly customized burrito at the mercy of an entirely too fluffy bed and set of blankets. Moreover: you are definitely not alone.

Depending upon the contents of your bed (two of you, waking up dressed exactly in what you wore last you remember back where each of you came from, in the exact same state as those last moments no matter how illogical or disjointed), it may not be comfortable or feasible to stay cocooned up for much longer. There's a low, muted GONG, GONGG coming from not far away, your bed creaks like a beleaguered ship in an unannounced storm, and it is joined by even more noises of movement beyond the bed canopy as you try to take stock of where you are.

Eventually, you either fall out of bed or drag yourself into this world: your new and strangely crowded personal rooms, the clock insistently sounding out the hour, and the halls and heraldry of the venerable Château Ambregris -- a lavishly decorated and fully furnished version of a more-or-less authentic French castle (assuming you know what France or a castle are).

Left to your own devices for the moment, you may find it helpful to explore the castle for your own purposes, check out the suspicious statues and personalized plaques in the Promenade of Reflexion, or perhaps to try to get to the bottom of the mysterious and frankly alarming amount of bread piled up in front of the place settings in the Banquet Hall. (Were you thinking of escaping? Any attempts to leave the property will be met with no forward progress at all, treadmill style). There's just about every kind of loaf, roll, boule, baguette, croissant or even animal-shaped bread you can think of stacked in baskets. There's absolutely nothing else save for plain bread, but at least you won't starve.

[OOC: Welcome to Château Ambregris, a perfectly normal castle receiving perfectly normal guests. Feel free to ask any questions in discord! The NPC Meet & Greet will be later today, March 8 at 6 PM EST/3 PM PST.]

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Oh? I've never seen one quite so man-like as you.

[ Even the dragons back home are more... well, dragon-y. ]

( hehe )

What do you think of this body? Nice, right?

( He preens, tossing back a whole thing of hair over his shoulder for dramatic effect. )

I can't speak for all of us, but most of us are pretty prideful about being what we are and looking how we look. But a wizard came around one day and poofed me into a person, and I thought it was pretty interesting. So I got someone to teach me how to do it myself.

( He bites off what remains of the breadcat's head, swallowing it in one go. )

Like, I'd never be able to bite off just the head of this while I was a dragon. I'd never get to pinch its little ears and tail, either. And my taste buds aren't as delicate. It's fun seeing how different you can experience the world depending on something as arbitrary as form, you know?

Edited 2025-03-12 03:47 (UTC)

[ ........He's going to pretend he didn't hear that question about his body. ]

I do see the merit in it, though I've never had the opportunity to do anything of that sort myself. Do you spend more time in this form, or in your original form?

[ Imagine if he'd been in his original form when transported here... how many fancy objects would he have broken? ]

( get ur mind out of the gutter catboy he's a work of art )

Hmmm... 70:30, I'd say? I'm usually out in the ocean or in the sky, and it's much more fun to slither about, if you know what I mean. But if you approach someone like that, they get kinda spooked and run away, try to kill you . . . So I'll take up this look and bring along some mermaids when I'm playing on the shore.

[ wow he's a pure innocent maiden that has never even conceived of gutters!! ]

It sounds as if you spend most of your time splashing in the waves.

[ Which is kind of cute, honestly??? He wishes he could see the sight of the dragons back home doing that. ]

Uh-huh! I swim from one end of the sea to the other . . . from top to bottom . . . I play with the fish and the serpents and the mermaids and the kelpies . . .

( guy who can live forever uses it to just chill )

The landscape is always changing underwater, ( or maybe it just feels that way because he can lose track of decades easy, ) so there's always something new to see. The seas off the shores of different countries are all a little different, too - the spirits within each lend the waters a striking character. I'd love to take you on a tour, if I could... or maybe visit your seas and wyrms? That's a nice thought.

( He seems to mean it, too! Alas... )

I'd quite like that.

[ It's fun to think about, an adventure where he gets to see the different characteristics of the water and Hwylyrn gets to learn of the dragons on another star. ]

The dragons on my star live in a different environment than what you seem to be accustomed to. They've taken up residence in the cold, nestled amongst icy ruins.

Oh! They really are like me!

( he seems delighted by this discovery??? just like me fr....... )

I used to live in the North, where it's all snow. I recently ( "recently" ) moved down somewhere more tropical, though. Are they born into the snow? Or do they choose it? I just happened to be born there, but...

I would say that it is a mix of both. They are born into it and they choose it, as dragons have lived there for thousands of years... and would likely be met with some degree of ire elsewhere, as unfortunate as that is.

( ????? )

Ire? What do you mean?

I wouldn't want to bore you with the details of it, but dragons have a poor reputation on my star.

[ He crosses his arms. ]

Though this particular issue is beginning to repair itself, it is still a rather delicate thing.

( huh! he seems quite surprised by this... like, he guesses he can see it, but? )

Well, I guess I've had my share of being worshipped and feared... ( often at the same time, ) but it's not like it's ever been something that'd stop me from doing something I wanted to do. In fact, I'd think it'd be pretty difficult for mortals to stop me if I wanted to move somewhere!

( Not to humblebrag or anything (ok maybe a little) )

Indeed, it is difficult. Yet mortals have learned methods of snuffing out a dragon's life over the course of several centuries.

[ Their worlds are quite different, aren't they? ]

'Tis a shame I do not have the tale of the end of the Dragonsong War on hand. I think your interest would be piqued by the establishment of peace.

Humans killing dragons...?

( Maybe not... impossible... but the dragon would have to basically be a willing party in it, considering... Boggling! Fascinating??? Really sad! )

Hmm. Well, I'd be curious to hear it all the same . . . but I hope it has a happy ending, if you know that much?

[ He nods. Not even he could recommend something like that if it had no happy ending. ]

It does. 'Tis a relief to know that this phenomenon has not occurred on other stars.

... Dragons are too few and strong where I'm from to be involved in such things, but...

( ... )

... Are there many dragons in your home? I wonder if these things are borne of there being many of anything.

( magical beings are so lonely but they're also spared of things like these conflicts and war... much to think about )

There are quite a few, yes. Dragons outnumber the great wyrms by a significant amount, however.

[ He falls quiet for a moment, thoughtful. ]

Greater numbers result in higher chances of conflict, but the blame also lays squarely on the shoulders of mortals as well. Their decisions can shape the way that we all interact with one another.

That's really humble of you to say, as a mortal. What was their role in this argument?

They betrayed the trust of the dragons and killed one of the members of the first brood, partaking in her eyes, seeking power.

[ He looks up at Hwylryn. ]

You mention that magical beings are solitary on your star. 'Tis quite the opposite when it comes to the dragons and great wyrms. They care deeply for one another, and thus did mortals earn their distrust and ire.

( bro... this Is chisme caliente......

He seems really sad to hear this, though... )

... I'm glad this has a happy ending. But... that must have been really hard for the dragons, until then.

( ... )

I've envied human communities, but... I've never thought of attacking them because of it. I don't think the other creatures I know would, either. Though...

( Hmm... He really doesn't get himself involved in human communities beyond the casual, so this didn't occur to him earlier, but... )

... I have heard that humans where I'm from started hunting down wizards. Though, I think they do that on and off anyway. I wonder if this sort of thing is a part of human nature, sometimes.

It was. I know that when your years extend beyond the typical years of a mortal, time bends and feelings linger much, much longer. 'Twas as difficult for them as it was for the mortals impacted by the war.

[ That kind of pain... he can't imagine it. ]

I would like to believe 'tis not human nature, as cruelty exists in every form. I think any being with the capacity to be cruel will have those that make the choice to be so.

( His lips purse slightly when G'raha says that first bit - it's a pain he won't let leave his lips. The pain he felt from Gwawlyn's death is as fresh now as it was when it happened - a thousand thousand years ago. Perhaps it's his grief, as much as his longevity, that makes the centuries pass that much quicker. )

... Is goodness a given - something to be expected, then? Or is it still admirable, because it is a choice?

[ He notices, and he wonders if that pain is the same for Hwylryn. It must be. ]

Could I say both? I believe that it should be expected, but that it should also be rewarded. Is it not admirable when an individual goes far out of their way to do good?

I'd say so. They don't have to, and, in fact, I'd say there isn't even often a punishment for failing to be kind... but they do.

( It isn't a necessary quality (in the slightest) for Hwy to like someone, but it is one he admires. )

I met a kind human just before coming here, myself. He gave me some delicious pastry, and didn't ask for anything I offered to trade him. He just let me have it, because there was none left being sold that day. I think that made more of an impression on me than most of his friends, who were more conservative.

( Like, normally so. Who lets a random guy just have their food, )

In an ideal world, that would be how we all conduct ourselves.

[ Kindness just to make someone else's day and nothing more. The sentiment reminds him of somewhere far, far away. ]

I hope that you have more experiences of that sort, here and when you return home.

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