callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

III. The Empress

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2016-12-22 12:18 am (UTC)(link)
The scene is a tea garden, an eclectic but elegant mixture of English and Chinese. English roses line the space's walls, just barely in bloom with gorgeous, large flowers in many shades. There is a neat walking path lined with bird fountains where sparrows will occasionally drink and cool down before flying away.

The path leads to a crystal-clear lake, where lily pads cluster in groups of three, and the banks are carefully shaded with weeping willows in full bloom. Koi fish in many different patterns and colors swim around lazily, enjoying the crisp, cool water and occasionally nibbling on the lily pads. There is a delicate path of stepping stones that cut across the lake, spaced just wide enough for the average person's step.

Inside an open-walled pagoda just past the lake's stepping stones is a beautiful woman, dressed in pink silks and wearing a jeweled headpiece that shifts the light in the room to delicate rainbows on the ceiling. She smiles at your approach, and begins to pour you tea. There is a very comfortable cushion on the floor waiting for you by the low tea table, across from the mystery woman.
Edited 2017-02-06 14:53 (UTC)
reallymean: (lost)

[personal profile] reallymean 2017-04-01 03:47 pm (UTC)(link)
The shift from strange pastel nowhere that bleeds like watercolors left in the rain to actual concrete space is a jarring one, and Allura's staff is in her hand before her surroundings have a chance to properly register. It's the scent of the flowers that sink in first, entirely alien, but calming nonetheless. She turns a slow circle, evaluating her surroundings, the graceful beauty of the garden and the bright song of the birds. It feels peaceful, a place of rest and comfort, and after a moment spent carefully weighing her options, she secures the staff back in its harness.

It's still there if she needs it - she's nowhere near certain this place is as peaceful as it appears - but carrying it openly seems an unnecessary escalation when she hasn't been offered any actual threat.

She makes her way along the path and across the lake, making her way from stone to stone with the unhesitating ease of someone well aware of her own body, the length of her stride and the uncertainty of her balance. By the time the pagoda comes into view, she's started to wonder at the emptiness of the garden - surely such a place is meant to be enjoyed - but one look at the woman in the pagoda's center banishes those questions. She may be entirely unfamiliar with the woman's mode of dress, but she'd been raised amongst royalty, and she knows the bearing when she sees it.

She inclines her head in a gesture of respect, and searches the corners for guards in her peripheral vision. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting."
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-04-04 02:44 am (UTC)(link)
There are no guards. In fact there are no other beings save for themselves and the chirping birds and the happy fish.

The woman smiles fondly as Allura comes into view of the pagoda. She inclines her head respectfully to the Altean princess, in the way only royalty can address each other. "You did not. You are right on time, Princess. Please, sit and enjoy some tea." She reaches for the delicate porcelain teapot and carefully pours a cup opposite herself. "This is usually the part where questions are asked, but I find tea helps clear the mind of all but the most important ones."
reallymean: (Default)

I thought I replied to this ages ago, but apparently not orz

[personal profile] reallymean 2017-05-14 04:45 pm (UTC)(link)
Allura lowers herself to kneel on the cushion opposite the woman, old training keeping her movements graceful and her expression serenely pleasant despite her disorientation and the fact that she's dressed for combat in her flightsuit rather than in royal finery. She would be a poor representative of Altea, after all, if she wasn't able to adapt.

"Thank you," she says. "--Your garden is beautiful. Do you tend it all yourself?"
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-06-27 02:24 am (UTC)(link)
She is definitely not a poor representative of Altea, if the smile on the pretty woman's face says anything. Her head bows delicately toward her guest, her headdress jingling merrily at the movement.

"I do tend to it myself," she answers, "And I enjoy every minute of it, Princess Allura. This garden is... my own space, my shelter in times of need. But it is also a fine place to relax," she says with a slight hint of amusement.

The tea in front of Allura smells wonderful. It is steaming hot, visibly, but the liquid inside is the perfect drinking temperature. And it seems to be a bit more... Nutritious than your average tea.
glampuss: (Upset 4)

[personal profile] glampuss 2017-10-02 09:01 am (UTC)(link)
This place wasn't a dream.

Even if Gil hadn't proven it, by making her pinch her arm...she'd been here too long. She'd kept waiting, hoping that she'd wake, that this would all be over and she'd be back home, with her mother and her father. Even with her snooty sister Tiffany and her annoying little brother Jason. She'd never thought that she could miss them so much.

And now, everything had changed once again. But she still hadn't woken up. Instead, she'd gone from crying into the pillow of that room in that 'Workshop', to this strange, unfamiliar garden.

She yelps at the sudden change, stumbling for a moment before finding her feet. She sniffs, and tries to wipe the tears from her eyes.

She hopes no one sees her. She hates crying in public. It's too embarrassing.
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-10-05 04:59 pm (UTC)(link)
No one seems to have seen her - yet.

A woman's voice is humming a wistful melody that seems to be coming further down the path she finds herself on. The sounds of birds chirping and water slowly lapping against a shore can also be heard, but this woman's voice seems to permeate the air a little more than the other sounds.
glampuss: (Upset 4)

[personal profile] glampuss 2017-10-05 10:43 pm (UTC)(link)
Richelle sniffs, and blinks. Is there a concert going on? Although for any kind of music she likes. Even if, she had to admit, the singer was very good.

She didn't want to go near the concert while she was still crying. But she also like, didn't want to just stand here in the middle of this garden, all alone. So she hurriedly tries to wipe the tears away from her eyes, straightens her back, and tries to walk towards the singing as if everything was perfectly fine, and she wasn't upset at all.

Turns out, though, that there's no concert. There's just a beautiful woman - a really, really beautiful woman - in a pagoda.

"Um," she says. "Hello?"
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-10-19 05:15 pm (UTC)(link)
The final verse of her song is done by the time Richelle makes her way across the pond, and for a moment she sits staring out the window into her garden. That is when Richelle breaks the silence.

The woman's eyes glance over at her, before she answers in a smooth and melodious voice, "Hello, and welcome." She bows her head, a smile forming on her ruby-red lips. "It is an honor, lady Richelle. Would you like some tea, or something to eat?"
glampuss: (Neutral 5)

[personal profile] glampuss 2017-10-26 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Richelle looks at her, for a moment. She tries to keep her composure, she really does. But then her bottom lip trembles dangerously, before she bursts into tears.

"I want to go home," she sobs.
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-10-27 05:09 am (UTC)(link)
The woman suddenly looks very concerned, and more important than that, pained - as if Richelle's tears are physically affecting her. She quickly rises and moves elegantly to the young woman, putting her arms around the crying girl in a smooth and motherly motion.

"I know, my dear, I know. And I want to bring you home, to your family and friends. But I do not yet possess the power to send you back."
Edited 2017-10-27 05:09 (UTC)
glampuss: (Upset 1)

[personal profile] glampuss 2017-10-27 05:16 am (UTC)(link)
“Well why not? Richelle says, sniffling, and she clings back. She’s only just met this bedautiful and glamorous woman, and yet she doesn’t seem to have any problem with accepting this kind of attention from her. “I don’t see why I should have to stay here! Where it’s all weird and there’s all these mean people and I don’t even have any of my clothes! I’ve had to wear the same thing for days!

And at that last statement, she sobs harder. That point as, it appears, been particularly difficult.
callmemeibe: Played by Fan Bingbing (Ⅲ. Empress)

[personal profile] callmemeibe 2017-11-03 04:02 am (UTC)(link)
This glamorous woman seems to have no trouble giving this kind of attention, nor receiving clinging and crying from Richelle.

"Oh, Richelle... there there, darling... let it all out." She gently rubs soothing circles on Richelle's back, letting her sob for a few moments into her beautiful garment. It is only after Richelle's weeping has subsided a little that Empress tilts up Richelle's chin with a slender finger and brushes her tears away with the edge of her long silk sleeve.

"I promise I will get you home as soon as I'm able. The other Travelers will warm up to you soon, my love, just keep at it. You don't have to stay in your same clothes; you can learn to make whatever clothes you want with a thought. Maybe one day soon, you will be able to make other people outfits, as well. If you will it, this skill will come to you in time."
glampuss: (Upset 4)

[personal profile] glampuss 2017-11-11 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
"It's not fair," Richelle sobs, still clinging to Mei. So many of the other people she's met have been mean, and annoying. But this woman's not like that. This woman understands. She can tell that Richelle's a sensitive soul.

Then she lifts her head, sniffs, and gives Mei a slightly dubious look through the tears. "You...want me to learn how to sew?" Richelle likes clothes, of course, but she's never really had the patience for making them. (Besides, she's seen how that goes with Liz. Liz might be her friend, but urgh, she absolutely doesn't understand fashion, and the awful clothes she makes for herself are proof of that.)
tillweseethesunlight: (i'm gonna hit the city)

[personal profile] tillweseethesunlight 2018-03-05 01:44 am (UTC)(link)
The garden is beautiful enough, and Dru'sil certainly appreciates the aesthetic, but she's not inclined to blindly follow the path so clearly laid out for her. She's not entirely sure what's happening, but she suspects a meeting with one of the maybe-divinities the Travelers call the Arcana is in store.

Dru doesn't particularly want to spend much time with a probably-god, especially one she finds distasteful by default. She declines, strongly, to be claimed by anyone as their game piece. That this has already happened does not sit well with her.

She takes her own sweet time walking down the path, though the repeating view of roses and bird fountains quickly grows boring. She is very good at acting absorbed in each new bloom she pauses to sniff, admire, and pick to pieces. Once Dru reaches the lake edge she pauses, surveying the banks to see if there's room for her to step off the path. Perhaps a meander around the lake or beyond should be next.
powersthatare: (Mystery Woman)

[personal profile] powersthatare 2018-04-29 08:30 pm (UTC)(link)
There's room. There is also, ahead of her on the shore, where there was not before, a picnic blanket with several cushions atop of it, and a bejeweled woman with a painted face seated on one of the cushions, smiling a helpful, hopeful smile.
tillweseethesunlight: (cause they hear we got swagger)

[personal profile] tillweseethesunlight 2018-05-06 09:01 pm (UTC)(link)
The desire to spitefully turn around and head in the opposite direction is very strong. So very, very strong.

But if this woman can have moved from the pavilion to the shore without a whisper of effort then she can probably do the same to wherever Dru tries to go next, so maybe she ought to just get this over with.

Eventually -- after taking another few minutes to carefully ignore the woman in favor of surveying the lake, because not spiting her own face doesn't mean she won't be petty -- Dru ambles over to the picnic blanket. She drops onto a cushion with careless grace and waits for the other woman to speak.