The Liberation of Leaves

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 12:55 PM

Shanoa casually strolled through the castle courtyard, content to enjoy the gentle breeze in the air and the birds singing in the trees. Such a beautiful day... I should enjoy it as much as I can. After all, I likely won't be able to take it this slow after our mission truly gets underway. After all- Ooh! Could that be...? A small plant growing underneath a larger bush catches her eye, and in a second she's crouched next to it.

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 1:03 PM

The courtyard was relaxing, and Delphine had a few notes she wanted to take about her trip here that she hadn't had time to yet -- nothing serious, just a little image of what travelling through Damonia as it prepared for war was like. And other things -- the courtyard was full of rare plants, being the garden of royalty. And these should, while the window was available, be enjoyed; so thought Delphine, sauntering through the garden with a carefree expression. She picked up the pace when she noticed someone crouching next to a bush. She couldn't see them clearly, but it wasn't really clear to her what they were doing -- only that they had a great hat. Propelled by curiosity, she was just as quickly crouched just a little behind her. Her head leaned left and right, trying to see the little plant that held the witch's interest so intently. "So, what's so exciting about this?"(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 1:17 PM

"Waaaaa-oooph!" So engrossed was Shanoa in her find that she failed to realize the other woman's approach. She stood up quickly, and smacked her head on the bottom of the bush. As her hat was knocked from her head, she stumbled backwards and landed on her rear. She gave an embarrassed grin at the other woman. Underneath the bush, her hat gave off an angry chattering noise that was rarely heard from headpieces. "Hey there. Didn't see you creeping up on me." The nonplussed witch gestured at the small plant. "But to answer your question, it's just a small sprig of Artemisia. Nothing too rare, but it definitely is unusual to find in this region."(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 1:26 PM

Delphine tried not to laugh, especially at the chattering hat. It was a rather losing battle, a clear smile on her face, and trying to hold that was not easy. She shook her head and offered a hand to the witch, to try and get her back on her feet. "Sorry, sorry. I've been told I need a bell." She'd been told that a lot. Her voice was bright and cheerful. She eyed the hat again, a bit longer, as it chattered under the bush. "Is your hat OK?" If it was, she wanted to know the whole story. Though the plant got her attention again. It was just a sprig, hidden in the shade of the bush. She tilted her head, piecing together some things about the layout of the courtyard's garden and applying the needs of such a garden to the plant... And wondering what good it would do. It didn't look like it'd be in-place according to plan, which gave her smile a slightly sly element, looking at it. It wasn't her forte, but she had helped the gardeners back home. "I wonder what it's doing here. It's not groundcover, and there's already a bush. Does it flower?"(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 1:39 PM

Shanoa stuffed the hat back on her head, which immediately quieted it. "Yeah, he just gets upset easily. Pay him no heed." The witch crawled back over to the plant and chewed at her lip. "I was wondering the same thing. I'd assume it's not meant to be here. However, its location isn't altogether too surprising. Artemisia likes to grow in the shade." She reached out and rubbed a leaf with her forefingers. "It doesn't flower, unfortunately. In fact, it will always look as unremarkable as it does presently. The leaves are quite useful, though. And this plant seems to have reached maturity." "Oh! But where are my manners!" She stood up hastily and wiped her dirt-covered hands on her ornate black dress, before offering a hand to Delphine. "My name's Shanoa. Witch, Herbalist, and Fire Mage, at your service."

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 2:16 PM

So the hat was a him? Interesting. A lady's hat being a gentleman. "Well, we'll have to keep it our little secret, then, lest someone dig it up." Delphine said, eying the hardy little plant as it shrugged into the bush. She was tempted to offer to replant it, but given the circumstances, where would she put it? Although... She tapped a finger against her chin. "Though I guess if you have a place for it, we could abduct it like thieves. What sort of things could you use it for?" It wouldn't be her first time being a plant thief, though the stakes here were higher. Still, enough charm could smooth over a lot of very strange things with people, she'd found; Maybe the staff would even consider helping out, given they'd be getting rid of a weed -- from a certain perspective. She shifted the book she was carrying to hold it under her arm, accepted the woman's hand readily and gave it a quick little two-shakes, her grip warm and her hands a little smooth. "I'm Delphine -- I'm here with the Floribian contingent."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 2:34 PM

"It wouldn't be stealing so much as... liberating. And it has a variety of unique and powerful effects when utilized." She held up a few fingers and began counting off. "Let's see... it can be used to treat parasites. When crushed into powder, it effects the skin and causes rashes. If applied to the eyes, even lightly, it causes temporary blindness. In greater quantities? The blindness is less temporary. Oh, and my favorite: in overdoses it causes convulsions and internal bleeding." Her smile quickly slipped off her face and she waved her hands frantically in front of her. "Not that it's okay to use or anything! It's just... you know. Cool." Shanoa gladly shook the other woman's hand. "A pleasure to meet you. Does that mean you're serving under Finn as well?"

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 2:56 PM

"Like heroes. If we even asked, I bet they'd be thrilled to have it taken out of their way," Delphine said, sort of leaning into her suggestion that no, no, it wasn't... Totally illicit. Even if the mischief of it made her eyes sparkle with a bit of glee. She blinked a little at the list of terrible, painful effects of the plant, but by the end of it, she'd gotten something of a grip on the discussion. It was messy, and wrong, but Shanoa was right -- she could hear how interesting it was, a little world where internal bleeding was curious and exciting, a sign of the beauty and power of the world. "That's pretty impressive, for such an unassuming-looking plant. Nature really is something, isn't it? What we manage with steel, a plant can do within its own heart." Delphine nodded, hoping that a bit of metaphor wouldn't deter the plant-loving mage. To the latter statement, she shrugged, but with a sort of wry smile that said she knew her number was had. "We're working towards mutually-agreeable ends. But it kind of amounts to the same thing, yeah. I'm following Finny's lead... And I'm glad that he is."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 3:07 PM

"'Finny'? So you know him on a nickname basis..." For the first time, Shanoa seemed to take stock of the high quality of Delphine's garmets. She's not a noble, is she? Shanoa snapped her fist into an open palm, and her bright eyes flared up with determination. "That decides it!" she declared. "We'll save this plant from the courtyard before some unassuming gardener chances upon it and uproots it himself. It's for the best." She pulled her wide-brimmed hat off her head and shook it determinedly. A small trowel fell to the ground, which she eagerly scooped up and held up proudly. "So, Lady Delphine! Will you be my partner-in-crime in rescuing this dear plant from the garden?"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 4:01 PM

"You can know anyone on a nickname basis if you nickname them -- even Finn's just a nickname, but I suspect it's how he'll be 'styled' if all goes well for him." She rolled her eyes at the mention of royal styling -- as if you weren't just choosing your name like everybody else. But there, it's on coins. What high things indeed. As for Delphine... Her clothes had a practical cut, made for running about, in bright colors that contrasted nicely with the floral blues of her hair -- not ornamental, and yet the fabrics were fine and sturdy. The trowel appearing from the hat seemed to move this activity out of the space of flowers filched in the dead of night when a man would have torn down a wild rose, and into something magical and strange. She had no doubt the witch had some method of replanting it -- or rather, somewhere to plant it; in the hat, if she must. Delphine bounced on the heels of her shoes and grinned, energy shining from her blue-green eyes; her eyes were the surface of a shallow sea in full sunlight, her smile, the curve of a rose in bloom. With the swish, swish, swish of her braid like a metronome, in tune with her little bounce, she nodded. "Let's away with it, then! From the cruel confines of this sterile and ornamental world, where one is pinned to their nature and their duty, without a thought of use! You have my aid, Shanoa!" Delphine declared dramatically.

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 4:23 PM

"Oh? Then perhaps I'll come up with a nickname for you, Delphine. It feels improper to do so shortly after we've become acquainted, however. I'll let your full name stew a bit longer in my brain before coming up with something." she mused as she bent down to observe the plant. Shanoa patted the spot next to her as if signaling Delphine to join her. "Have you ever transplanted anything, Lady Delphine? It's quite simple, really." We won't need to water the plant beforehand or cut away excess mass. This job should be a piece of cake... Shanoa held out the trowel for the other woman to take, before pulling a small pot out of her hat. She then began to mix up the earth at the bottom of the pot. "We'll just attempt to extract the artemisia without damaging its roots. If unsure where the roots end, simply dig as far away from the plant as possible."(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 4:36 PM

"I like Delphi, personally, but I'm sure you'll think of something good, Shans," Delphine said with a wink at the end. She went to the appointed spot and crouched down beside the plant, looking down at the dirt. "I've helped a little in the past with transplanting, actually; Some of it was business." She tried to size up where the roots might be -- some disruption was likely unavoidable, but the main root ball could be preserved pretty easily, and from there... She glared down at it for a moment, before taking a tenative stab at the earth, and deeper once she found she hadn't hit anything. "The other was... Sort of like this. Except without the magic hat. Or it being a palace garden -- so, you know, only like this in its enduring spirit of justice and respect for the beauties of nature."

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 4:46 PM

"Shans, huh? I think I can roll with that." She flipped a stray lock of hair out her eyes as she watched Delphine carefully extract the plant. "Hey, gimme a sec; I'll be right back." The witch snagged the pot as she stood up and ran off across the courtyard. When she returned a few minutes later, the earth in the pot was lightly damp. "To aid in transplanting. As I'm sure you know. What kind of business would you engage in that would involve digging up plants?" she inquired curiously. "And if it makes you feel better, this is my first time gardening in a palace garden with a magical hat as well!"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 4:55 PM

"Oh, it was someone else's business. I was helping Edmund, Castle Amarana's gardener with some of his work, while I had the time to spare," Delphine explained, recalling those days with a smile. Maurice had been furious in place of her father. Her mother had wrinkled up her nose at the girl. Delphine's braid shifted forward, falling over her shoulder as she worked. Eventually, the plant's roots were out of the ground and on the trowel. "Oh, yeah? Well, the palace garden thing, understandable. But you have a magic hat and you don't garden with it? Is it new?" Delphine sounded frankly incredulous. She looked over her shoulder in case someone was coming, but for this moment, the path was clear.

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 5:04 PM

"Yep! My hat is brand new!" she said proudly. "It was a going-away gift from my older sister. Apparently she enchanted it herself. Not that she bothered to tell me that. All I was told was that it had 'additional functionality'. The little thing nearly scared me out of my wits the first time it started moving several hours into my journey." She let out a musical laugh at the thought of the experience. "I still don't know the extent of its abilities." Shanoa used her fingers to pry away the dirt in the pot to make room for the small plant. After taking the plant from Delphine, she placed it in the spot and smoothed out the earth around it, while careful not to compact it too tight. "Ta-da! All done!" She leaned over and gave the pot a small kiss. "Now all that's left is to smuggle it out of here. I don't suppose you've ever had to do that as well?"

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 5:32 PM

"Well, let me know -- I've never seen anything like it myself! Your sister must be amazing," Delphine said, admiring the hat -- which besides a certain amount of gauranteed stylishness that was inherent to all witch hats, had a certain flair and apparenly literal magic. The possibilities seemed exciting -- definitely worth paying some attention to along the way. "Fine work! As for that... Well, not exactly, but smuggling stuff through a castle? Now that is a field of my expertise!" As practiced primarily with cakes, vulgar books (as her mother of Maurice would define them), small animals that followed her home... That sort of thing. A potted plant was... Different. "Step 1, act like this is perfectly normal. We are, in fact, plant-movers. We move plants all the time." Delphine stood up, brushed off her hands on her surcoat, and began to stroll through the courtyard at a normal pace -- which, for her, was slightly leisurely. "Where are we obviously supposed to be taking our little friend here?"

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 5:46 PM

Shanoa blinked. "To tell you the truth, I didn't think that far ahead. I guess... we could bring it back up the guest quarters with us? And just set it on a windowsill or something. As long as it's not directly under the sun." She placed her hat back on and stood up with the pot. "Under normal circumstances, I'd just hide it in my hat, but I'm afraid to place anything living in it. No idea how the enchantment works. For example, we wouldn't want the poor thing to suffocate from lack of air. "Okay. Act natural, huh? You might be better suited to that than me. In comparison to you, I stick out like a sore thumb." She held out the potted plant for Delphine. "If somebody sees the witch with the massive black hat and evil-looking runes walking around with an everyday plant, they'll think I'm plotting something." "I'll just follow alongside you."

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 6:08 PM

Delphine shook her head forlornly -- she didn't know! She was thinking Shanoa knew! Well, time to roll up her sleeves and make a good plan. "That sounds like it'd work. I mean, you mentioned Finny -- so you're coming with us, too, right? Travelling with a plant would be hard, so we'd... What? Just have to leave it somewhere?" The rules about hats were tricky ones -- how did you go about scientifically testing whether a magic hat had air? How did you do it humanely, anyway? Delphine considered the hat thoughtfully, trying to work out an experimental procedure like ones she'd read about... And then shook her head again, more sharply, shrugging off the thought for now. "Evil-looking runes?" She asked, taking the pot in both hands, peeking around at Shanoa, trying to catch a glimpse of an evil-looking rune. Lucky for her, she wasn't successful, and just kept walking, swinging one foot in front of another casually, creating the most unexciting walk imaginable: the walk of a person who was absolutely not second-guessing where she was going with this plant. "...The witch thing might be a bit distracting to people -- but that can be pretty useful if the first and best defense fails!"

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 6:58 PM

The young Fire Mage glanced at the pot and tried to get an estimate of its size. "I was thinking I could use it to make a poultice tonight, or before we leave at the very least. That would be much easier to transport." When Delphine mentioned the her runes, Shanoa blanched. Shoot, I did not mean to say that aloud... "Runes? Uhh, forget I said anything about those..." I'm still not used to people not knowing about them, and I'd rather it stayed that way... She circled around the woman as she walked, taking note of her relatively casual step. "I think you're doing fine... ish. I mean, I've seen zombies with more spring in their step, but I guess that's kinda the look you're going for." It'll still be tricky for her not to turn heads with her looks, though. "And you're right. At the first sign of trouble, I'll run around cackling and draw all the attention to myself!" And if worse comes to worst, I guess I can always set somebody's hair on fire?(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 7:30 PM

"I suppose," Delphine said, with a sort of soft-hearted fondness for the plant as a living thing. Well, misfortune came to everything -- the plant would not be gone forever, but instead would turn into... A way to cause internal bleeding. Or something. She was distracted by the matter of the runes though. Her eyebrow raised, but she was willing not to press it right now. She could wait. "It's good not to hurry. You want spring, I can do spring, but the idea is that we're not worried. And I'm especially not worried," Frankly, it wasn't a slow step -- just a relaxed one, bringing them surely over to the guest quarters, now a turn away. There was a guard nearby. Delphine hefted the plant into one hand and waved at him. "Not with what I'm sure are your first-rate cackling skills," Delphine added as they turned the corner.(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 7:43 PM

The young woman giggled. "To tell you the truth, I've never cackled in my life. Never came up before. I'm confident in my ability to rise to the occasion, though." Shanoa made note of the resigned tone in her voice when she conceded to making the poultice. "What's that? Do I sense you're a bit hesitant to grind up our little friend here?" She hopped in front of Delphine and began walking backwards, in step with her movements. A playful grin covered her features. "You're not telling me you grew attached to it, are you? Maybe it would help if we gave it a name? How about 'Artemis the Artemisia'?. It has a nice ring to it."(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 8:18 PM

Delphine giggles in response. When confronted with the matter of having hoped, a little, that the plant would survive, she shrugged, her expression a little softer. "Maybe a little," she admitted. "Being ground up for a poultice is a more useful fate than being dug up and tossed out, but it's hardly 'liberation.' It's really thievery -- maybe even banditry. Your leaves and your life!" She said dramatically, wobbling the pot so the plant quaked in fear of its imaginary assailant. "Laugh all you want -- I'm a big goopy softy." The suggestion of the name made her laugh, picturing Lorenzo's pale sister glowering at her from within a pot. "... But not Artemis. I know an Artemis. I think she's here -- I haven't seen her, but I've seen her brother, and it doesn't sound like she was left behind in Floribar to die, so she's probably also serving here."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 8:29 PM

Shanoa laughed at her dramatics. "I've never really thought of plants as living beings. They don't move, they don't feel, it's just so much easier to just think of them as tools. But I can assure you, if I had to chop up and grind up squirrels or something in order to make herbs, I wouldn't want to be an herbalist for a second." "And as for your friend Artemis, we can only hope she doesn't share the same fate as her similarly-named counterpart. Because I'm looking forward to meeting her and the rest of the team!"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 8:52 PM

"Yeah, I can see where that approach makes it all workable -- and less bloody than grinding up animals," Delphine replied with a skeptical smile. She saw a certain striving of plants as admirable -- then again, this was why she could use a staff and nothing else. But if that weren't the case... Well, no, nothing would be different at all. She paused in the hallway of the guest quarters, where individual rooms were laid out, with some varying levels of importance and formality. "I'll try and keep her from being a fine red paste; we've got to look out for each other, right? Which one's yours?"

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 9:31 PM

Shanoa pointed to a room that would have been very familiar to Delphine. "I believe it's that one. Don't quote me on it, though. I just got here earlier today, and I'm not the best at memorizing locations..."

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 9:57 PM

"Well, would you look at that." It was one of the nicer rooms -- Delphine may not have wanted to make a fuss, but she was visiting nobility. There had been, at her instistance, another bed moved in there, so she at least wasn't getting a fancy room for super bullshit reasons all alone. "You landed my room! Nice work." She opened the door to a fairly plush interior, a large bed and a smaller one that'd been set-up, with a wardrobe and a vanity, a carpet on the floor, fireplace on the wall, and a tapestry of a flower above. And a window.

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 10:19 PM

Shanoa hopped on her bed and landed on it, extremities splayed. "I've gotta say, it's quite a nice place you have here, even for a castle." She squinted at her roommate in an accusatory fashion. "Fancy even in comparison to the other rooms of our teammates. I don't suppose you know why that is?" The witch tossed her hat on a bed knob and hopped off to open the wardrobe. "I already unpacked and everything!" A series of identical black dresses are hanging in the corner. "Got all my lifelong possessions with me. I can finally travel the world with no regrets!" Shanoa ran over to Delphine, grabbed her hands, and hopped in place excitedly. "I've never had a roommate before! This is gonna be so fun!"

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 10:35 PM

Delphine set the pot down by a window. "It's a dumb noble thing. I thought you figured that out. Of course, under the circumstances, it really is meaningless," She said, sitting down on the edge of the bed a dry shrug. After all, under the circumstances, she really didn't have anything worthy of consideration. She reffered back to 'Lady' Delphine from before. Delphine smiled at her excitmenent of having everything laid out, and laughed warmly when her hands were clasped. "Well, let's enjoy it then! Glad to have you, roommate!"

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 10:42 PM

So she is nobility after all... "Huh. Not only do I get to room with somebody else, but they also happen to be nobility." I wonder why I got thrown in with her. This bed is clearly dropped in here as a last minute addition. Perhaps they never intended to have somebody room with her? But then I showed up a few weeks later, and they figured they'd put me in here instead of bothering to set up a new room? Shanoa flashed her brightest grin. "I have no doubt this is going to be the best year of my life!"

===END RP===