OPEN ↠ HARING EVENT

[faderifting]

WHO: All
WHAT: WINTER IS HERE
WHEN: Haring 15-Wintermarch 1
WHERE: The Gallows, Kirkwall
NOTES: You can use this post as an event-style mingle log, or just use it as background information for your RP elsewhere!

It's been a chilly month already, but in mid-Haring the temperature suddenly plummets. One day it's merely cold, and the next morning the Inquisition wakes to frost on the inside of the window panes and an icy draft whistling through every crack in the tower's masonry. Downstairs, the pipes that feed the bathing chambers and the kitchens creak in the walls, loud enough to be heard even out in the courtyard, where they run beneath the stones, and around midday, when the sun has failed to raise the temperature above freezing, a blocked pipe finally gives, cracking open to spill water across the central court and send it running down side passages. The whole area floods several inches deep and almost immediately begins to freeze, presenting at first a gigantic, treacherous slush puddle and, after a few hours, a sheet of sheer ice.

Melting a safe path from door to door and laying down sand or wood to keep it from becoming slick again is a simple enough undertaking, but before the entire courtyard can be thawed, someone appears with ice skates—and that’s a better idea, surely, for at least a few days. Anyone who complains about the frivolity can be assured it’s good exercise, not to mention good training for a force that may have to travel or fight on ice in the future.

Temperatures remain cold enough that even some parts of the harbor begin to freeze, first just at the calmest edges of the shoreline, and then the more protected nooks and crannies of the bay, inlets and the spaces between piers and beneath docks. It snows most days--not real storms, just a couple inches here and there--little enough for the window to blow most of it off the icy plain of the courtyard and other wide open, paved spaces, accumulating on branches and in alleyways, and creating growing drifts in corners and against walls.

After a week or so actual chunks of floating ice begin to fill the narrow channels of the harbor, threatening smaller and less-sturdy vessels, and the situation in the poorer parts of the city begins to grow dire. With the Viscount's blessing, Inquisition teams (particularly mages) are called in to help. Some are assigned to the docks, to clear ice that makes landing and unloading treacherous, others to help escort ships into harbor by melting a path ahead. Others are sent into Lowtown to clear ice and snow and to provide warmth and medical attention where needed. At least one mage is sent with each team, and while many neighborhoods are pleasantly surprised and grateful for the quick work fire glyphs make of cold hearths and frozen streets, a few are unable to overcome their distrust, and refuse the teams entry, determined to take care of their own without the help of dangerous outsiders.

In the last week of the year, a true blizzard strikes, snow falling steadily for more than a day, blanketing the city at least three feet deep. Digging out the Gallows will be a group effort, and most non-essential trips outside the base will be cancelled for a few days until travel is less difficult, while those who reside in the city or elsewhere may be encouraged to stay a night or two in the fortress so they might continue to work without traveling through the storm. But on the first day of Wintermarch the First Day feast goes on as planned, with modest but plentiful food and ale served in the Gallows' dining hall for anyone who wishes to celebrate the new year.

Comments

[hallabackdir]

He can't help but smile against her lips and whisper into them as he gathered her closer by winding his arms around her shoulders.

"Nor I. Although I can't say I am unhappy with this developement." He tilted her lips back up to his, deepening the kiss and content just to hold her. He very much enjoyed holding her. And kissing her. And just being with her. He kissed down her neck, and then moved up to nibble her earlobe.

[serannas]

"I can't say that either." It's an easy admission to make, as she's happy to encourage him further now that he's aware of it. Her toes curl in her socks and she releases a breathy sigh as he finds a sensitive spot with his lips. Fingers grasp onto his armor, holding on for dear life as her knees knock together.

"H-How do you know how to do that if you've never kissed anyone before?"

[hallabackdir]

He felt her legs quake, which gave him a swell of confidence he had never experienced before. He held her closer, keeping her upright as he kept kissing and nibbling his way up the shell of her ear. At her question, his ego swelled again, and he let out a soft chuckle.

"I have keen eyes and even keener ears. I stumbled upon many lover's in my time protecting Lorien. This particular area seemed to generate adequate results across the board. I took a risk, and hoped for the best. And," he nuzzled his nose into the hollow of her neck, leaving soft kisses along the way. "Hearing you. Feeling you. Tasting you, is the best experience I ever could have hoped for. You shine, Ellana. Like a beacon, like a star. I am lucky to bask in your light."

[serannas]

"I suppose I should be thankful that those lovers were giving you a show," she says, tilting her head so he can have better access to her neck. Otherwise he wouldn't have the education he does now.

"Mm, I know what a compliment that is. The elves of Arda love the stars." When she and Galadriel had first met, they sat under the stars of Thedas and Ellana showed her their constellations. It was then she learned of how the elves of Middle-earth adored them and their pale, twinkling light. It makes sense that she would be compared to one instead of the sun, when the person making the comparison is an elf.

Her fingers move along his back, brushing against his hair. She's never been intimate with anyone who had hair as long as hers, and she takes a moment to draw her fingers through it.

[hallabackdir]

At her combing, he let out a hum. It had been a long while since anyone had wound their fingers through his hair, and he found the sensation was most enjoyable.

"I speak only as I find, Ellana. You are unlike any I have ever met before." With a smile, he lifted her up, bracing her against him by curling his arms under her thighs, so her head was level his. He wanted to look into her eyes fully, not looking down at her. He wanted to memorize every part of her face. The sweep of her nose, the tiny flecks of amber in oceans of green that were her eyes, the curve of her lips every freckle. He would commit her to memory.

He smiled up at her, rubbing his nose to hers. "I find myself quite captivated."

[serannas]

Being hoisted up gets a tiny squeal of excitement out of her, and she wraps her arms around his neck to hold on. This whole day has felt like some sort of dream, and if it is then she never wants to wake up.

"I can say the same thing about you." A warrior, but shy. A person who could be polite, yet playful. He's a mix of contradictions and she wants to learn each and every one until she knows him like the back of her hand.

Her eyelids drop partway and she brushes her nose against his in return. "If this is how we'll always say goodbye for the night, I worry it may take hours. We might have to start the goodbyes from the moment we meet up."

[hallabackdir]

He was overcome with emotion at her statement. He was always one to feel deeply, but this was all so very new to him. To have someone seek out his company, to ask nothing more from him but to be himself, it is so novel, so foreign that he cannot help laugh like a fool. His heart, lighter than it has been in centuries, feels too small to contain his happiness in this moment.

"If I am permitted to kiss you during such times, I see no problem with it." He plants a few more kisses on her soft lips for good measure. "But, if you truely wish for me to leave, please tell me. For I am more than a little reluctant to leave you and your welcoming home in exchange for the stables, and fear if it is left to me I would not let you go."

[serannas]

"You can kiss me whenever you'd like." Though her gaze lifts in thought and she feels the need to amend her statement only seconds later. "Unless I'm talking. Or eating. Or I have a cold and can only breath through my mouth. But any other time, you can." That should be sufficient enough for him.

"I don't want to chase you out, but I had some things I wanted to get done around the tower before night falls. And we'll see each other tomorrow." She gives him an apologetic smile, knowing far too well how hard it can be to let someone go. Yet experience has taught her to not cling so tightly and to not love someone so much that it feels like it could consume you whole. When a person gets that way, as she once did, they're willing to head down dark paths for the one they love, and it's hard to see reason or sense. She thinks a little distance will be good for the both of them.

[hallabackdir]

He nods, still smiling at her. He can't seem to stop. He thinks about just staying on the rooftop until morning, but decides that he should give her the space she has asked for. He slowly slides her down to the floor and cups her cheek.

"We shall indeed. Is there a time that works best? I do not wish to hinder you from any plans."

[serannas]

"Oh, anytime after mid-morning? I'll have had breakfast by then." And until this ice goes away, she really has no pressing duties to attend to at the Gallows.

Ellana's hands slide down to rest lightly against his chest. Her expression is fond, and she leans her cheek into his hand. "Until then?"

[hallabackdir]

He lets his hand skirt from her cheek to her chin, bringing her in for one more passionate kiss. He pours all of his enotions into it, but finally withdraws. He rests his forehead on hers again, nuzzling just a bit. "Until tomorrow, tinu."

[serannas]

The kiss leaves her dizzy, and she's glad to rest for a moment skin to skin.

"Tinu?" she murmurs in question, not knowing that word.

[hallabackdir]

He smiles at her. Always so curious, this one.

"Spark, or small star. It has two meanings, both of which I feel are appropriate. You have a spark in you I admire most ferventliy. I hope to watch that spark catch and light the world." He pauses, and then continues. "But, there a softness that reminds me of the stars at home. It seems a star was waiting for me here in this world instead of Arda." He blushes, embarrased by his own sentimentality.

[serannas]

It appears Haldir isn't the only one who seems to be a mix of contradictions. The way he describes her has Ellana's cheeks flushing with delight, matching his own blush.

"Then I'm happy we found each other." Reaching down, she takes his hand in hers and gives it a squeeze. "I'll be your star; your tinu." At the moment, she isn't creative enough to think up a name for him in return. It's something she'll have to think on.

"So... tomorrow, then. Dareth shiral."

[hallabackdir]

"I am most fortunate then. For most, their stars are beyound reach. I do not know why such grace was given to me, but I will cherrish it all the same. Goodnight."

He kissed the tip of her nose, and retreated to the window. He scooped up the flute, secured it to his pouch, and opened the window. Turning to look at her one last time, he waved, and then scampered up out the window.