World Tree MUSH

Upon one of the many worlds of the World Tree lay the City of Voaluri, a quiet, out of the way place that hosted a modest population in the 20,000. Plenty of regular conveniences and the like, and what felt like a mishmash between the modern and the classic: while you wouldn't see a log cabin here, nor would you see a so-called SMART home or the like. 

Much of the city's population was spread out over a 3 mile stretch of land, with beautiful forests in between well-maintained roads, where one part would see plenty of vehicles, another would see a combination between horses and other modes of transportation due to the ranches that covered the area. What lay at the center was where most people got their groceries and other shopping, or as some might say, 'coming in to town', the micropolitan center of Voaluri which resembled a sized down section of most inner cities.

Minus the issues that sometime lay with a true 'metropolitan' urban core, it bore some resemblance to standard suburban cities in this regard. If anything, this size afforded Voaluri's businesses and residences alike to collaborate in decoration -- minus some of the gaudier, excessively lit aspects of it. Actual depictions are few and far between, for example.

The Festival of Veils -- a time for celebration as the longest night of the year gives way to the dawn, is being hosted at the massive sprawl of park, trees and more decorated with warm lights and other fixtures, representative of death and rebirth in varying fashions line the paths towards the center of the park itself. A park that, as night falls is cast well against the snowy white that blanketed during the day, but had ebbed off as evening fell. A veritable winter wonderland, thanks to the lighting that both flame and electricity brought.

Quite perfect for the he longest night of the year--the Winter Solstice.

There were plenty of places for people to mingle, to talk, to catch up with one another, bundled up in various degrees of warmer clothing, some more festive than most. The laughter and squeals of children chasing and the beginnings of snowball fights could be heard, but people mingled--why did they mingle? Because the 'opening ceremony' was due to begin shortly--the mayor of the city, Stefan Rusu spoke with some of his constituents near a makeshift podium that was none too far from an as yet unlit bonfire, constructed not unlike a circular hearth all its own. There were traditional holiday trees at cardinal points not too far away, the whole layout giving people of all stripes many options from where to mingle, including secondary places where meat was being roasted and served up as well.

And speaking of mingling, among the various visitors from other worlds enjoying the ambiance, the chatter of tale telling and embellishing legends is one vampire huntress in her typical hooded cloak, though this one is a bit more furred around the shoulders and back, though it's not long before she's drawn her hood back in order to enjoy some hot mulled cider as she gives a kind, if polite smile to the offering festival vendor after an exchange of local currency.

Definitely some enjoyable ambiance here. 

>> SUMMARY[Sonia Belmont] >> TL;DR -- country-style village with a holiday festival minus some of the more garish elements to it. People can be coming or going, people chatting and sharing how their year went or sharing stories they've heard. Bonfire is about to be lit to signal the 'beginning' of the festivities as it were!

At Sonia's side is a man in a Victorian-style suit. Lots of layers -- shirt, cravat, vest, breeches, waistcoat, and cloak -- as is the fashion, and most of it black. But at least it helps with keeping him warm. He needs a bit of help there, since his body temperature is so low. The darkness of his attire contrasts with his hair and complexion, since both of those are super-pale. It's Alucard, yes.

He has a cup in hand as well, mostly-full of something that steams slightly. He too regards the vendor with a polite nod of his head. For those that have seen him before, he seems a bit less gloomy here, though he isn't visibly 'all-smiles' or anything. Just that strange, almost oppressive air that often hangs around him seems lighter somehow. Whether that's the atmosphere or the company is anybody's guess, though.

Seems Luke found his way there!. The young boy is bundled in thick clothing, the top layer being a pink and black hoodie with white 'ears' on the head. One doesn't have to wonder what hte inspiration for htat particular piece of clothing was, since he was flanked by a seven foot tall... bear?, sharing the same color scheme, the Bewear wearing a christmas themed necklace, nothing special, just a star, but otherwise, not much else!. The boy remains quite close to his pokemon, considering bringing his fire bear out, but deciding against it... no point freaking out everyone!. He did allow his another small pokemon with him, this one a black cat perched on his shoulders. The boy seems busy trying to explain something about pokemon, or maybe telling about some of his adventures, while the cat strained to see in the direction of the meat cooking, streetching as far as it can, without leaving the boy's side.

    It wasn't often Dante got invited to a party WITHOUT some kind of ulterior motive. He wasn't exactly sure if there was even going to be some kind of horrible event he'd have to stop. In any case, he's wearing a fine suit with a red jacket and black slacks, his pistols holstered at his hips and Rebellion tucked in a guitar case somewhere The man looks -dashing- right now, as he's currently got tunes going. How? He has Nevan to play, rocking out with intense heavy metal playing for all the bewildered townsfolk.

    God help us, he's just invented death metal for this world.

     There is one person here who isn't quite used to all this festivity and such, and she is a small girl in heavy armor carrying a hammer three times her size on her back. Yes, it's Poppy, wandering around as she is wont to do, having just sort of /found/ her way here and decided to stay because it looked kinda neat. With a drumstick in one hand and a mug of cocoa in the other, she grimaces at Dante as she passes by. "Eugh. Sounds like something they'd play in Zaun. Weird music for weird people, I guess."

Serrah came here to stay one step ahead of Vincent's clutches, which is the same reason she goes anywhere. Religious holidays tend not to be slightly uncomfortable for the vampires of her world, but not enough that they'd grinch it up indoors, so this sort of festival seemed like the ideal place to hang out. To her disappointment, she didn't even feel that level of discomfort, so she's just decided to enjoy the place instead. You can't stay on the run constantly, after all. (Nor is Vincent constantly searching for her 24/7).

She stands near the crowd around Dante, bundled up in a gray winter coat which is calculated to look exactly characteristic of the clothing of this world, and which mostly hides her features. She's ... trying not to headbang along with the music. She's doing her best not to react particularly differently from the natives of this world. But this is, quite literally, music to her ears.

"It is nice, isn't it?" Sonia muses almost absentmindedly as her crystal blue eyes watch the comings and goings of the people so far; some who are very obvious 'tourists', some she recognizes, among them Luke, who gets a wave along with Dante, who gets... the beginnings of a stare, given the music accompaniment they're working on. Oh dear.

Well, it is a festival, and there's worse things to bring than music; the residents and visitors aren't remotely detracted by it so music as a universal language'll probably work! ... probably. Still, Luke finds it pretty easy to get some tasty-smelling meat from just about anywhere -- big ol' hunks you'd chew off the bone to selections of sausage and the like that are a bit more managably sized. Are some of these designed for Vikings or more warrior-centered cultures??

Still, Serrah is spied amidst them all as well, and it will do well, she muses, to mingle that way shortly, though those thoughts are interrupted thanks to what happens next--

One may hope that the music Dante is providing can be brought to a duller sense of roar for at least a few moments, as it's not too long before the good mayor; a man of stout shape and an awesome white beard, taps a microphone to send his voice over the festival grounds as he clears his throat.

"Welcome, visitors, welcome guests, to Voaluri's Festival of Veils. To mark the beginning of the Festival in full in mere moments will be the lighting of the Dawnflame bonfire as you see behind me. But I wanted to take the time to thank everyone here for their hard work and their kind presence here, for without you, there would be no Festival of Veils." There's a warm tinkling of laughter as a few raise their mugs (or glasses) with a 'Hear hear!'

As the laughter and clapping subdue, the man's chest swells with pride, giving a short nod. "Well then, let us light the flame!" he announces with grandeur, sweeping his hand towards the bonfire hearth--which, on cue, begins to roar to life as fires are begun at the base, in a circle from the back, to the front as supervised by a half-dozen men and and women, the flames dancing and rushing upwards before bringing a new source of warmth and light to those present. 

"Let the Festival of Veils begin! Spread your stories, spread your cheer, of all things good and ill, as the long nights come to a close this eve, as we look towards the growing dawn with the lessons learned this year!"

A mixture of cheering, of chanting and the like from the veritable melting pot of people rises to the flame, before breaking up again, as music and chatter are given to the festival's beginning--some people actually entering something of a makeshift bit of dancing. Some storytellers are taking the opportunity to gather the attention of children to regale them with stories of eld and new alike.

Alucard gives an affirmative sound in response to Sonia's words. He's near enough, and with his hearing, it was unlikely he didn't hear her. It's unusual for him to just... BE at these things, to just take in everything that's happening. Normally he'd be hiding, like he was allergic to happiness or something. He also looks over the people who have come here, recognizing some, yes -- Dante in particular, since he's rather making a spectacle of himself.

He turns his attention to the man with the impressive white beard when he starts to talk, though. He keeps quiet and sips whatever it is that he's drinking while he listens. The bonfire will be appreciated soon, once the warmth reaches him -- it's a big enough fire that it probably will soon enough.

    It's when the mayor, or someone looking awfully mayory, shows up, that Dante begins to cut off the music. Sadly, the musical talents of Cannibal Corpse will have to wait as he pays attention. Slinging the guitar over his shoulder, he gets back to playing. "Alright, everyone, give it up for...that mayor guy! You know him better than I do, that's for sure! Anyway, this next tune goes out to you guys. A little tune about Merry Gentlemen..." He begins to strum the opening bars to God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, as what sounds like a full band backing him up begins to play. How is there bloody bass and drums? We have no idea, it's magic.

     Poppy turns to listen to the mayor, raising her mug of cocoa along with the other people around just so she doesn't stand out too much, and steps back a bit as the fire suddenly roars to life. "Whoa! Haven't seen a bonfire that big since... uh... Well it's warm, at least!"

She does have to give Dante credit for somehow having full instrumental backing despite only having one instrument, but it's definitely not her cup of tea. So, instead, she moves on towards... some weird overdressed guy with platinum blond hair and really pale skin, like he hasn't seen the sun in years. Some kind of noble, mingling with the commonfolk? Something smells a bit odd about him though, not in that literal sort of way but rather the tingling in the back of one's mind.

Approaching the half-vampire, Poppy peers up at his face a moment before asking, perhaps a bit rudely, "Do you know a guy named Vladimir?"

Luke Gray pauses on his friendly storytelling to wave towards Sonya! that was a familiar person... and of course, Dante is hard to miss!, waving happily, while the cat perched on him seems to nod in time with the music, a bell at the end of it's tail chiming in time with the song, the cat has a good sense of rythm!. Luke provides a snack for hte predator, while hte Bewear politely plays with any kids curious about it, goign as far as lifting one or two a bit! Of couse, the attention of the boy and pokemon is drawn by the short speech, and they all shift closer to the fire, even the very flammable pink bear. After warming up, they begin to slip closer to Dante, given he was a familiar face!.

Serrah makes sure a sufficiently-large sample of the crowd around her is turning to listen to the mayor, and then also turns to listen as well, lifting her hood to get a better look. A shock of black hair with a single red streak is briefly visible.

She can't resist a chortle at Dante's choice of music, and this time she completely misses one way she possibly stands out: the fact that she isn't the least bit surprised by his choice of extra music. Magic is just that commonplace where she's from.

She looks around. Oh, there's Bewear approaching. Which probably means ... yep, there's Luke. She waves to him and takes a single step in his direction, when she suddenly feels the hairs raising on the back of her neck, like she senses a predator in her vicinity -- one much more lethal than the Duke who merely wishes to command her.

She turns, and yep there's Sonia. Oh, and Alucard. And ... someone she doesn't recognize.

Indeed, how is there bass and drums? Actually, at some point not too long into it, Dante might notice something that wasn't there before, as would some others--that there are, strangely, some people who've brought out some extra instruments from seemingly nowhere. Probably other likeminded metalheads who heard Dante start, and made their way over. "Fuckin' rock it brother!" one of the longhaired guys says as he throws some horns and picks up on the beat to compliment it well.

A little grin given how the kids and the like are around Luke as they were. Some of them are grinning wider than anything ever given the strangeness and 'cool' factor of the 'mons. Sonia will probably get over there eventually and the World Tree hoppers will inevitably get there, but there's a goodly crowd that's seeming to soak in the presence of the new people--while bewilderment may be there for some, it's new experiences, and the people here do enjoy new experiences!

"Definitely better than most holiday celebrations I've seen so far at least." Sonia remarks with some mirth to Alucard's assent as snow crunches beneath her boots and she adjusts her cloak around her shoulders. She's warm with the fur lining, but no reason to not make sure it's not going to fall off or not need an adjustment here and there. Really, she's finding herself more of a people watcher as it were, which means the person coming up to them is... wait what? 

Poppy's appearence, to Sonia's senses almost immediately feels off and her paranoia briefly spikes with that predatory aspect of hers that probably gets to Serrah just a little more without realizing it before she reigns it in as much as possible. It's not about what she, Poppy, actually looks like, but picking up on a glamour was enough to briefly steer her off of her warmth and sentiment. She composes herself quickly enough because frankly, the way the whole place felt was... strangely ephemeral, in some regards. "Ah, Alucard, do you two... know each other?" she wonders between Poppy and Alucard.

She does catch the sight of Serrah as well out of the corner of her eye, giving a friendly wave before taking a sip of her mulled cider. Mm, hot and tasty.

Alucard blinks as he's suddenly approached and asked a strange question by what looks like a slightly shorter human -- Poppy's glamour seems to work here; Alucard has no reason to suspect there's anything strange about her, and Fairy isn't out right now to possibly see through it. He raises a brow at the question. "...No," he replies. And then asks, "...Why do you ask?" 'Vladimir'... it's close to his father's name, but... not quite. So she's probably not talking about him. And he's never been one to volunteer information.

He smirks a bit to Sonia's mention of the celebration. "Far less artificial cinnamon and evergreen scent," he comments with a wry tone to his voice. As for if he knows Poppy? He shakes his head. "Not yet." Since he assumes she's going to introduce herself. But he figures he just looks like someone the girl knows. Which he can hardly fault her for asking after. The World Tree is weird like that -- if there's a doppelganger in each world, multiple worlds must have multiple doppelgangers.

    Luke is quite happy about being approached by kids and strangers, and does his best to offer simple, interesting tales of pokemon, he even has his Bewear do a bit of a show, displaying it's strength and some harmless maneouvers from his black cat, now that it was pacified by snacks, and oddly, heavy metal music!. All in all, he seems good at keeping them entertained!.

Serrah shudders, and grimaces briefly in Sonia's direction, before she just decides to head on over to Bewear. She pulls back her hood; now, her unhealthy-looking skin and red eyes are visible, although she still looks attractive in an anemic sort of way. "Hey, Luke," she says, coming to a sudden stop before she gets too close to a vendor selling hot food which happens to have garlic in it. "How's it going?" ... She hasn't noticed just how much her mood has just tanked, so she doesn't realize that her tone of voice is now entirely devoid of enthusiasm.

     Poppy glances at Sonia for a moment. "Huh? No, I've never met this guy before. Who are you?" she asks, before suddenly blushing as she realizes how rude she's been. After a brief facepalm with her heavy steel gauntlet, she shakes her head and says, "Sorry, uh, my name's Poppy, I'm new around here. Wandered into town earlier today. I think it was one of those Vine things that brought me here."

Returning to the original question with another peer at Alucard's face, she explains, "I dunno, you just kinda give me a similar vibe. He's this weird nobleman from Noxus- er, that's a kingdom back in my world- who keeps popping up every century or so. I don't know how he does it, since I /think/ he's human, but I've heard some stories about him drinking blood or something? Sounds kinda gross, but I guess if it works for him..."

"Hey you!" a voice calls out from Serrah's side, a raven-haired woman who might well have noticed that plummet of enthusiasm in the vampire's demeanor. "You should come dance with us once you're done here with a storyteller or two~! It'll pick you right up." Indeed, she points out a section of the festival grounds where there's some more music being played, accompanied by people clapping to the rhythm as men and women dance--some with style and skill, some not, but above all, having fun. 

Adults entertaining children and the like that might make one think almost of how weddings and family reunions go. Then again, Luke's presence with Bewear and their 'mon has been a pretty nice hit so far, that even some of the parents are passively nearby listening and talking up how strange and neat those creatures are. Occasionally one might be noticing how some are wearing more 'classic' clothes, like from the '20s versus those wearing more modern fashion, but that's probably just a sign of how there's travelers from a variety of places here for the festival. 

"Well, that makes sense. I'd heard of this Festival not too long ago. Voaluri though..." A faint 'hmm' comes from her as she glances between Poppy and Alucard for a brief moment, shaking her head to dismiss the thought she had, or rather, was about to comment on, especially given the blood drinking talk. 'Vladimir' wasn't far from Alucard's father, namewards. She'll keep mum on that connection at least. 

"Well, it does work for vampires, though there are other... beings that drink blood that aren't necessarily vampires either..." Artfully dodging that *other* potential similarity about a castle showing up every similarity. Another careful little ~sip~ from her mug as she turns her attention towards Dante and his band that showed up. 

    Dante throws up the horns as he keeps playing, shredding away with more heavy metal covers of classic Christmas carols. The fact he's got a lot of knowledge of those songs is fairly shocking, knowing Dante's proclivities. Maybe he's just a festive guy in general. Anything to bring some Holiday Cheer this Solstice to the village. He strums bars from Carol of the Bells, screaming out the lyrics in a Lemmy-esque growl that -really- contrasts with his usual speaking voice.

    "Hark how they sound, sweet silver bells, all seem to say, throw cares away!"

Poppy's explanation of this 'nobleman' who 'keeps popping up every century or so', and may or may not drink blood, draws a bit of a surprised look -- it would be more, but Alucard doesn't exactly emote deeply under most circumstances. That really sounds like his father. But he's never heard of a 'Noxus'...

...Just the World Tree being weird again, he figures.

However, Poppy does offer her name, and he offers a nod. Now, at a function like this, giving his name as 'basically Dracula in reverse' is liable to garner too much attention. Besides that, the statement isn't needed here. So he offers instead, "Pleasure to meet you. My name is Adrian."

He also offers, in response to Sonia's words, "Vampires are said to no longer age, and to drink blood to keep themselves strong." He's keeping the explanation mostly to the realm of possibility rather than absolutes. He nods to Sonia, a silent gesture that says 'it could very well be'. A vampire, that is. It's very likely not his father; Dracula would probably not bother with a disguise.

"Ah! And you can call me Sonia," Sonia offers as way of introduction albeit after the fact that one thinks of, because in no way was there a moment where that kind of thing forgotten for any reason, and realizing she might've gone too far to *say* Alucard moments prior. Well, that can hopefully be glossed over in the din of festivities and the like. 

     Poppy glances between Sonia and Alucard, quietly wondering what all the awkward silence is about. However, they do eventually provide some form of explanation, and she nods along as if she understands what any of it means. "I see, a vampire. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Totally." She bites off a strip of meat from her drumstick then, mulling that over. "Anyway, nice to meetcha, Sonia and Adrian. Heh, kinda sounds like Sona. She's a famous musician where I come from, see..."

And there she goes, rambling on about magical mute flying ladies with weird harp things called Etwahls, which leads into more rambling about other stuff...

Luke Gray is just happy to be here, eavesdropping around, while his cat jumps from his shoulder and begins to approach Dante's stage, it looks almost like it is banging it's head to the music, tail swishing around as thebell on the end chimes pleasantly in time with the music, the cat certainly makes for an interesting (perhaps season appropiate, given bells) company to the music!. The boy and Bewear are happy, and as Serrah gets closer, he smiles, "I'm glad to see you again, how are you..." he begins and tilts his head to oen side, "Are you ok?" he asks, moving closer to her, and thankfully, away from the garlic. At least he didn't eat any of that!. The Bewear is eating some kind of fruitcake he got from someone else, after Luke made sure it was safe to eat, holding a kid on each shoulder.

Serrah jumps slightly, startled by the attention from the woman, and just barely manages to keep herself from stopping time in surprise. "Oh, uh ... yeah? I'm just ... heading over to talk to my friend over here ..."

She smiles at Luke, and then notices she is in fact forcing it. "I ... am not sure, actually," she says. "It's just kind of ..." She looks over towards Sonia and Alucard, who seem engrossed in their conversation with the stranger. "Oh right." She tries to remember if Luke was present when Alucard explained why Sonia was ... like that about Serrah's involuntary transformation. "Eh, long story, I don't want to, y'know, bring down the festivities." She turns back to the woman, and shoots her a lopsided grin. "So, uh, put me down as a 'maybe', I guess," she says, before nodding back to Luke. "How've you been?"

A mute musician is ... one heck of an irony when you think about it. But then again, music can convey so much. As it's been conveying here in general, thanks to Dante and an assortment of various musical inclinations. One could say it's infectious in that regard at least!

The fire that was started has finally reached the full warmth and heat it can put out; for those who spare it a glance, it's quite a sight. Some people who are taking the most somber approach to the festival have broken off into smaller groups nearby, a little sway to their standing partially from the music, and others well. It's a cold night, but it's a way to stay lively and warm all the while. 

The woman who was seeking Serrah's attention blinks a little, then nods! "Oh, I'm so sorry!" before realizing her own little gaffe of letting energy and enthusiasm get to her before retreating to head back towards where people are dancing, clapping and sometimes singing. Or... did she? Should Serrah look back in that direction, she might think she alone was hallucinating for a moment of her presence there--there's not enough of a crowd for the ravenhaired woman to disappear into, to be fair. 

"See, plenty of things to talk and hear about," Sonia wryly remarks with regards to what Poppy's sharing. Not too far from where she, Poppy and Alucard are is a man who looks like he came straight down from the mountains telling an enraptured group about the hunting and dealing with a deadly mountain lion that had been stalking animals from nearby ranches. 

Elsewhere still are little stories and things that flit through the ears, musical tales and the like. While many chatter amidst themselves, many more still find themselves paying attention, be it Dante's music or around other things such as Luke's pokemon, some children alternating who gets a shoulder and who doesn't. 

... there is a strangely larger number of people than there were at the start, or maybe it's not that strange and just people are a bit more noticeable. 

>> SUMMARY[Sonia Belmont] >> The festivities continue apace, with a bit more people than before. Probably nothing strange, not with some people looking like they came from fifty years ago.

Alucard listens to Poppy ramble, without interrupting her. There is some benefit to it -- learning. He can get information about nearly anything from listening to talkative folks... well, talk at length about things. It comes easier than trying to ask people about various things in the World Tree. There's so many things that he could ask about, so much stuff to find out, that if he were to try to ask about it, he'd be here most of an eternity. Not that he doesn't have it to spare, but... well. There's vampires to vanquish, demons to exorcise, humans to save -- all that.

Alucard takes this in with surprise -- there are more people here than he remembered. Well, perhaps it was too early to start festivities for some, and they've come now that things have gotten a bit further on into the evening. And the weird 'miasma' feel that he's feeling suddenly, that doesn't help. Like there was fog forming around him and he couldn't figure out where it came from, or where it was going...

He reaches into his cloak and pulls out a card -- upon it is depicted a green-clad female sprite with white wings like a dragonfly. There is a small magical 'pop' as he focuses a bit of magic into the card, and the card disappears from his fingers with a small flash of light.

Belatedly, he notes to Poppy, by way of apology, "...Pardon me... I did not wish to disturb you. Please, continue." As he speaks, a green-clad Fairy flutters down from somewhere above. And after a moment, she begins to flutter around Poppy curiously. Her being the nearest source of unfamiliar magic, after all.

     Poppy keeps on rambling, right up until she suddenly notices the oddly increased number of partygoers. "Huh, were there always this many people here? Feels kinda... crowded." And not just because of the people either, she mentally notes. Straaaaange, but maybe they were just attracted from out of town by the fire. Yeah, that makes sense!

And then Alucard summons a fairy from a card, and while the small creature flits around her head, the yordle remarks, "Huh, a fairy? You know, there's this friend of mine who lives in the forest named Lulu, and she has a fairy companion called Pix. I don't hang out with them much, 'cause I mean, they're kinda... you know." She twirls a finger by the side of her head while making cuckoo sounds. "Sorcerors, just a bunch of nuts, am I right?"

Serrah takes half a step away from the fire. Then she realizes she doesn't feel the kind of repulsion she'd get from a religious symbol, and takes half a step closer again.

She glances back in the direction the woman had wandered off to, and frowns. Her subconscious is telling her that something is off. "What in ..." Her eyes narrow as she realizes what it is. "... the world? One sec." An instant later, as abruptly as a video that skipped ahead, she's several feet to the left.

Sonia, of course, would see the ripple of light, and the pause button on the village as everything turns purplish gray -- as would anyone else with time-stopping powers of their own, or anyone who might be magically connected to Serrah in some way. They might also observe Serrah rising off the ground and into the air in open defiance of gravity, staring with a frown at the crowd beneath her for several (subjective) seconds, before she settles back down at not quite the same spot, and resumes time. "... huh ..."

Luke Gray does not seem enterily convinced by Serrah's explanation, btu he is not going to push further, instead he just keeps company to his friend, since the others were busy talking with eachother. He considered bothering Dante, but he certainly does not want to distract from the music!, is amused his cat likes the way he plays enough to join him on the stage. For now he simply watches Bewear play with the kids, and talkes about his other pokemon!, he even brings out Dynamo out, a large, very... round tiger(ish) looking pokemon, quite safe to approach, and encouraged kids to pet and ride on it's back, all in all, he is having fun.

"Hrnnnn... could you not?" The good mayor, Stefan Rusu is the first to really address a certain vampire's aspects. It's not until she's settled back in place, the man with the white beard and kindly twinkly eyes now that one has a chance to actually regard him. "There is nothing foul afoot, though I suspect you and others here who are special are keen to sense something... strange." A gloved hand passes through that white beard of his as he regards the rest of the merrymakers. 

Indeed, it is as Stefan mentions. While there is nothing truly malevolent happening--indeed, there's an odder sense of *peace* than any thing else--there is still something strange afoot. Some people look remarkably out of place in terms of their attire. But the real kicker is something that takes a great deal more focus to notice. At least a half dozen sets of people--more than should be in any one place, look remarkably similar. 

Brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, there's a strange similarity between those who were here from the start and those who have joined still. Dante's drummer for instance, is actually being cheered on by someone who looks to be his spittin' image, as it were. 

"Nnh. I know that doesn't affect as much as it should but..." Sonia murmurs to herself as her own Wind Soul informs her as to Serrah's temporal displacement, brief though it is. She frowns a little all the same before tuning her own senses into what it is she's picking up on--and well... it begins to dawn on her, little by little. But instead of worry, there's comes the realization of why it felt so nice here, but also why they can't stay here. 

Something, she thinks she needs to tell the others of. But at the same time, it's... actually awe-inspiring if it is as she thinks it is. "... now it makes a bit more sense. Solstice was once observed since the longest night of the year... it was seen as an aspect of death, in a sense, as death begets life. Plants and the like die, trees lose their leaves, but after the longest night..." 

Dawning cognition of what it is, with those old and new sharing story and merriment alike. Luke's willingness to keep along with everything seems to be particularly well received; he might well be one of the most popular experiences for those here, rides a-plenty, and with Dante shifting into some of that traditional music with a metal slant... it's a sense of 'let the party go on' impressed by the residents of Voaluri, at least the ones seemingly in the know. 

Sonia ends up smiling quietly, looking to both Poppy and Alucard, her eyes having briefly fallen upon that card, and that fairy that joins them both, though it's Poppy's remark about it that prompts a short laugh. "Sometimes. Better I suppose that than something else more fearful, when it comes to Sorcerors and their like." 

Alucard can't help but smirk at Poppy's comment about sorcerers and their penchant for losing their grip on reality. It's a grim smirk, one that has a bitter edge to it. "...'Tis not altogether unusual, given the esoteric things many choose to study," he comments. "Much of what they must pay close attention to is beyond the eyes of people who have not seen it." He doesn't say the 'beyond the eyes' comment with contempt, to note.

Sonia's recognition of what's going on -- Alucard looks to her as she speaks, and recognition dawns in him as well. "...Comes the dawn." He's kind of halfway finishing Sonia's sentence there. He nods. "...That would explain the familiar feeling..." he notes. With Death literally serving his father for most of Alucard's developing years, he's come to learn the feel of spirits and the dead. Of course, he's never experienced them truly AT PEACE -- while Death may generally only take those whose time it is, even under his father's command, souls snatched away by Death are generally panicked and upset. He's never felt truly peaceful dead before.

Serrah does a double-take at the mayor. "You could see ...!?" She stares at him for several seconds, then shrugs. She looks around for a moment; she doesn't really have any specialized senses for this sort of thing, but she's close enough to that sort of thing herself that she's starting to understand what's going on. "Eh. In that case, I'm probably the foulest thing afoot here, anyway," she says -- trying to play it off as a wisecrack, but a note of bitterness rings clear in her voice.

She gives Luke a quick wave, and drifts a bit closer to Sonia, Alucard, and Poppy. "Hey guys," she says, trying to keep her voice low enough not to draw attention from the crowd, but not too low that they can't hear her. "Is it me, or am I not the only dead person here?"

>> SUMMARY[Serrah Delany] >> She is not one of the peaceful dead.

     Poppy still doesn't get it, just tilting her head awkwardly as she tries to follow along. "Well yeah, that's how it works. Sun goes down, sun goes up. People invented clockwork to keep track of it. Yeesh, I think you guys need to ease up on the drinks." She rolls her eyes, taking a sip from her mug.

Only to immediately spray it out all over the grass (and possibly anyone too close to her). "/What/!?" she splutters, snapping her head around to look at Serrah, her other hand dropping the drumstick and reaching for her hammer. "I coulda swore I didn't see any Black Mist though! How- where- when!? S-stay behind me, Sonia and Adrian! I'll protect you!"

So, that raven-haired woman Serrah was trying to find again? You might say she died of embarrassment.

Again.

No, really. Completely, one hundred percent went back into hiding that's owed to the fact that the dead are mingling with the living right now. Why, might you wonder, is that happening?

For a time, the town of Voaluri is not a town with an estimated population in the twenty thousand. No, it is a city where the fabric between the living and the dead becomes so blurred, that those who have gone on have a chance to come back for a time. To hear and see and enjoy, as death and rebirth give way to the coming dawn.

After all, when those move on here, it is not always possible for them to see what has happened. Even those who have perished elsewhere find themselves drawn here, drawn away from whatever emptiness there might be. From the wonders of new music, to the strange creatures and other things like trainers, dhampirs, vampires, demons, even yordles and their like, the warmth, the interaction, the memories will serve well for those who have passed on until the next Winter Solstice.

Indeed, Alucard manages to, through his own deduction as well piece things together, earns a nod from Sonia before Serrah drifts over, mercifully. "Mmn. You're not, though that's because..." Sonia's eyes shimmer for a scant few seconds as she looks over the vampire, then by chance and random at some others, though doing so in a somewhat more discrete fashion--or tries to, but Poppy has a more violent reaction than most. 

"Stop." she gently, but firmly implores Poppy. "Though I well appreciate your willingness to defend, were she such a being that she needed to be put down for merely existing, she would not have been given leave to approach us." It's an assurance for Serrah as much as the yordle in disguise. "Violence here... is not a good idea besides, I sense." Only once she's gotten a chance to relatively assure Poppy that there's no need (and besides, she'll dust Serrah as a free service besides), will she continue speaking.

"Voaluri. Voal..." Sonia's accent becomes a little more deliberate in her actual native language with speaking Romanian. "Veil, or in this case, Veils." Sonia exhales a little bit, before shaking her head slightly. "I couldn't see it before, because there were so many. The boundary between the living and the dead is practically nonexistent. That bonfire is what's keeping it from becoming something worse..." As Sonia speaks, there is a certain hint of wonder in her voice. An appreciation for what it is.

"Though that plays well to stories. To reflections of what was, and what is. For the dead to genuflect as much as the living. For memory..." 

And it's at that point, the good mayor is looking over at Serrah, at Alucard, at Sonia, at Poppy, with a wry little grin as if to say, 'got it in one', before resuming his own personal mingling. He had no issue with Serrah's curiosity and truly could not blame her for it. 

Perhaps that ravenhaired beauty might come back later once she's over her personal mortification. Which, come to think of it, was an amusing sentiment--ghostly mortification.

Poppy is springing to their defense due to Serrah, it seems. Alucard reaches a hand out to carefully pat Poppy on the shoulder. "'Tis fine. She means no harm," he notes of Serrah. Though he does offer as a qualifier, "This time." It's not his place to explain what's going on with Serrah. That's for her to either explain or not.

Sonia's assessment of the situation gets a nod. "I had thought as much. They seem harmless enough. But without that bonfire..." He too sends a look in the direction of the fire. He doesn't bother finishing the sentence, though -- there's no need, all he has for it is speculation, and it seems harmless enough here. No sense worrying over what might not be.

A pained expression crosses Serrah's face at Poppy's outburst, an even mix of anger, frustration, bitterness, exhaustion, and despair. "Fuck's sake, I was turned against my will," she says automatically, in the flat tone of someone who has had to say this multiple times before. She turns so that she can dramatically storm away, before Sonia and Alucard step in.

She does grimace at Alucard's 'this time', however. "Yeah, uh. Let's just say that I'm sometimes ..." She brushes aside the hair covering her forehead, revealing a dark heart-shaped mark. "... under someone else's control."

She takes a few deep breaths to steady herself, as Sonia and Alucard clarify the details on the town they're in. "... Wow," she says, managing an uncomfortable lopsided smile. "Heh. That's ... that's kind of amazing. Don't have anything like that where I'm from." Her amazement is clearly tempered, however -- both by her rattled mood and by the fact that, well, it's not exactly out-of-this-world where she's from, either.

     Poppy blinks, then removes her hand from the handle of her oversized hammer as the explanations are given. "Oh... sorry, I thought the Black Mist had... anyway, uh..." She blushes again in embarrassment, mumbling as she looks down at the now-dirty drumstick. "Darn, dropped my food..."