"The Stained Dress" Log Date: 11/24/00 Log Cast: Woodlock, Door, Zora Log Intro: In Sorrow's End, Woodlock tries with spectacular lack of success to help Door with a stain on her dress. Zora to the rescue. [Editors comment: I think there was some background plot around this time about seeds being collected and experimented with from other parts of the world. Thus the nameless plant.] Garden of Shade and Sweet Water Nestled in the rocky canyon, this area has been turned into an oasis. Rows of herbs and flowers, blooming bright blue and white, dance in the breeze. Mature sticker-plants are bursting with yellow and red blossoms. A row of woody shrubs lines the the stone path. They blaze with orange-pink blooms. Clustered back near the rock walls several short, gnarled trees provide shade for the benches below: most are covered in puffy pink flowers, but one sports round,orange fruit peeking out from beneath its glossy leaves. You can hear the gentle burble of water. The sun is high in the chill winter skies. The explosion of colors is fading as plants dry up and go dormant, waiting for the next rainfall. Smaller than it once was after the ravages of the invading humans, the village is otherwise restored to its normal state. Three new, large buildings have replaced several smaller ones that were destroyed. Contents: Door Stone Basin Shaded Stone Benches Obvious exits: Newstar's Hut Dancing Square Woodlock returns to the garden, carrying a glazed bowl that is currently empty. A miniature shovel and a small, sharp knife are tucked into his belt, and there is a small orange stain on his nose. Door is, for a glider, in a rather stealthy mode at the moment, easy to overlook at first simply by the fact that she's not moving. Your average sunfolk might catch a glimpse of her out of the corner of thier eye and assume someone added a new statue to the garden and not pay it any more mind than that. Of course a wolfrider's senses are keener. Door sits amid the greenery, delicate hands folded upon her lap, her eyes cast downward at the ground before her, it takes a good deal of attention to notice that she is indeed breathing, and her eyes just rarely blink. Woodlock starts down towards a partially cleared patch of garden, then pauses. What is... Ah. He smiles a little wryly, shakes his head, then alters is course to approach the silent glider. When he is within a few steps, he stops again. With a thinness that draws to mind thoughts of malnourishment Malene stands upon the ground with all the surety of a dandilion puff, ready to be caught up by the slightest breeze, gray eyes wide and watchful. Soft blonde hair is imprisoned in a complex arrangement of thin braids and small blue stone beads. The elaborate gray gown she wears only draws attention to her frailty and for a moment she holds so utterly still it is easy to think this is a delicate statue, some work of glass and stone wrought by artist's hand instead of living elf, but then the statue blinks, and she smiles and it is as if she were never still. A few years in the desert have wrought thier change on her alabaster skin, bronzing it evenly. Door does not notice you approach, her attention being focused elsewhere... she frowns, just slightly, eyebrows drawing nearer each other in concentration as her eyes remained downturned, focused on nothing visible. Magic sense might tingle a bit once you are close... or maybe that was just an odd breeze? Woodlock's sensitivity to matters magical are more akin to the sunfolk than the wolfriders, but that stance is certainly familiar. Redlance would sit like that, when he was first learning his plantcontrolling powers. Curiously, he puts down his bowl and walks closer, peering at the ground. Nothing special there. Nor is there any indication that anything magical is going on, long quiet moments pass... the shaper holding still, staring through the same small patch of soil... after a while a crawling insect meanders its way past her field of vision with no notice.... You might start pondering just turning back and wandering home when Door finally moves, a blink and then a sigh and she shifts her weight slightly, coming back to the realm of the hear and now... indeed it's fortunate she does this in so safe an environment... one wonders how long she'd last in the wild with habits like that. She blinks in startlement seeing someone is here ** oh! I'm sorry I didn't notice you approach... good day. ** Woodlock smiles, shifting to the now somewhat unfamiliar sending. ** And a good day to you. At least I wasn't the one surprised today. What were you doing? ** Door brushes a hand across her eyes ** Goodness... I don't supose you know how long it's been? ** shakes her head and peers past you up at the sky with a slight frown ** Nevermind... Oh, I was just... looking. The stones here are quite different from those in the Mountain you know. ** Woodlock looks down at the ground again. That's definitely soil, there. ** Stone looks like stone to me, though apparently some of them contain metal and some do not. I have not been here long, in any case.** He gestures to the partially empty space. ** I was collecting the seeds from plants some of our other visitors brought us for the Festival. ** And as an afterthought, he adds. ** Are you hungry or thirsty? It is rather warm to stay outside long, at least for your kind. ** Door nods ** I am a bit thirsty at that... ** frowns slightly and then gets awkwardly to her feet in a great rustle of skirts and protest of foliage. ** Well just about every plant or seed looks the same to me, so in that we are alike, hmm? It takes understanding to really see any object. ** Woodlock studies Doors dress, which seems somewhat on the impractical side even for the village. ** There is truth to your observation. Here, let me introduce you to one of our plants. I still haven't found a good name for it. Noprickle isn't really good enough. ** With visible enthusiasm he strides over to the patch of ground, searching briefly through tangled leafy vines to extract a small, brown pumpkin-like object which he cuts free with his knife. Walking back to Door, he cuts through the thick skin with some effort, and offers her half. The interior is a vivid orange, dotted with small black seeds and dripping an equally vivid juice. Door gingerly accepts teh strange gourd ** You see, I would never have noticed it even had fruit... um... is it edible?** Woodlock laughs, then bites into his own half with apparent relish. ** Very much so. The only disadvantage of it is that it requires more water than most of our crops, but then again eating one will quench thirst as well as hunger. ** The rim of the fruit (or possibly vegetable) touches the top of his nose, leaving another orange stain. Door steps over to one of the benches and settles down frowning thoughtfully at the fruit before taking a delicate little bite of the very edge, then flushing as she spills juice on herself ** Oh goodness... ** Woodlock says "Oh! Sorry, I should have warned you. They do that, if you're not used to.. Um, I think you'd better rinse that off quickly, before it sets. Rainsong swears there's no wait to get the stains out beyond dyeing, otherwise." Door grimaces, looks left and then right then sets the gourd down delicately upon the bench beside herself ** goodness... ** water, need water... Woodlock says "Er, I could get some, but maybe it's better just to go to the well. We could rinse you right off there." Door nods ** lets... I should hate to have to tell Ietro I ruined yet another dress! ** stands up, a frown at the orange stain, and another as she tries to remember which way it was to the well.. Woodlock smiles at the glider. All that time here, and she still can't tell.. then again, she did spend most of it working on the wall. ** Here, this way. ** You leave the peace of the garden for the bustle of the dancing square. (They walk to...) Crossroad by the Wall The paved pathway widens here and the circular paving blocks are set into the sandy soil in a seemingly random pattern. You can go into the nearby Visitors' Court for a temporary home, or go South to the Dancing Square. To the West the paved pathway wanders towards caves in the nearby hills. To the North the path leads past the well and out onto the desert. Just north of the crossroad, a mightly wall is in the process of being built - or rather shaped, the organic shapes of elfin magic unmistakeable. A portal has been set into the wall, currently open. Contents: The Well Obvious exits: Dennah's House New House Portal Dancing Square Boundary Path Visitors' Courtyard Door follows along with a frown down at her dress ** It takes me a while to become used to a place ** she explains ** Why I can walk the halls of the Mountain with my eyes closed but here... well... it's so odd how everything is open. ** Woodlock glances up at the sky, and nods, reverting to speaking without really noticing. "I remember that feeling. When we left the forest, it was the same. Such a defenseless feeling, without cover overhead." He works the well, withdrawing a bucket of cold water and then giving the dress a dubious look. Door looks at the bucket, looks at you, looks at the bucket... sighs, oh the indignity ** Should I remove the dress? or are you just going to splash that on me? ** she makes a face that's rather comicly childish on one so ancient. Woodlock leans the bucket on the edge of the well, so that he can scratch his neck. Well known remedy for stalled thinking, that. "I suppose it would be best if you took it off, unless you'd rather not. I could try to just... pour carefully." Door makes a face ** No, I rather don't like the sound of 'pouring carefully'** a sigh and she tries to remember how her dress fastens... ah, lacings, why is it always lacings? ** one moment... um... how long does it take for your skin to be hurt by the sun? ** Woodlock says "Mine, a long time. But for you... Perhaps you should leave the dress here and find some shade, then I'll bring it to you as soon as I get the stain off?" Zora approaches from the south. Zora comes flitting through, butterfly bright. Door struggles with her dress, turning in a small circle as she tries to see what she's doing, she yanks at the lacings and finaly gets them loose enough to slip the elaborate thing off over her head. Thankfully at least she has a separate underskirt... though certainly it's a bit uncomfortably warm to wear layerd skirts here in the desert. A final tug and she has the pile of fabric off, hair frizzing out from the static, she pulls her arms free of the sleeves ** Alright... goodness I'd hate to be running to the healer again for my poor skin. ** She holds the garment out to Woodlock ** You can get the stain out? ** Woodlock wields his bucket with determination. "If I use enough water and quickly enough, I think it should work. Unless the material of your dress is very different from what we use. Oh, um, hello Zora." The latter as he dumps a bucket full of water on Doors dress. Zora stops short, quite curious as to what is transpiring. She dips into a quick curtsey. Door folds her arms infront of herself with a slight frown watching the dress get treated, she shakes her head ** Ietro's going to stop making me new clothes one of these days... ** Zora blinks "Then you'd be naked the rest of your life. That would be... odd." Woodlock hauls another bucket of water, and settles for dunking the orange-stained part of the dress into it, this time. Yes, that seems to work better. "You're about Savah's size. Perhaps she could lend you a dress until this one is dry. Oops..." Zora reaches for Door's hand, "We can find you a cloak. They fit anybody." Door nods to the child ** That would be helpful, yes... I should hate to get another burn... and I'm sure he wouldn't let me go naked, just my new clothes would likely look an awful lot like what we give the human servants to wear or something else that would have me wanting to be nude instead. ** Woodlock retrieves a third bucket, (repeat and rinse), then holds the resulting soggy cloth up to the light to peer at it. Zora wrinkles her nose. "Ew. Humans." Door nods emphatically ** Precisely! I should rather have a few sunburns than to dress like they do...** then turns a thoughful eye upon Woodlock's industrious activity ** Is it working? ** Woodlock says "Well, yes... I think the stain is gone. The cloth was somewhat more fragile than I thought, I'm afraid I tore it just a little." He offers the soggy dress to the glider, looking rueful. "Sorry about that. I could ask Rainsong to mend it." Door almost drops the dress when you hand it to her, suprized at how much heavier it has become with the soaking ** oh my.. ** she strains to hold it up and peer at the new rip with a frown ** Oh goodness, this just won't do... tsk. And I've kept it in such good condition up until now... ** Woodlock says "It is perhaps more suited to being inside a Mountain. We should have a new one made for you. Something sturdier and less volumnious." He looks a the grey dress. "And more colorful. What do you think, Zora?" Zora nods soberly "It's boring." Door frowns down at the child and corrects her ** It's dignified. Grey is a very good color for an elder of my standing. ** Zora hmfs "I would rather be dead than dignified" Woodlock laughs, and wipes his face with the back of his hand. Then peers at the hand curiously. Oh, not again. He salvages some remnant of water from the bucket and rubs away an orange stain from his nose. Door tsks at the girl-child ** You make it sound as if dignity were a painful thing, it's not child. It's very important for one to be dignified, if you are responsible, if others look to you it's your duty to be serious. ** Zora tosses her head proudly "No, it is only my duty to be beautiful and to entertain." Woodlock looks at the contrasting couple with a smile, then offers to Door. "I can take that down to Rainsong now, and Zora can help you find something suitable to wear until it is mended." Door shakes her frizzy fluffy haired head at the girl ** Of course you don't have many duties, you're just a child. But I am the lead shaper of all the Mountain, that's an important position.** shakes her head again and then acknowledges Woodlock with a little nod, handing the dress back to him ** Yes, thank you... I shall probably be in the chamber... I mean hut, such an odd word, the hut leant to me when it is finished.** Woodlock retrieves the dress and heads down the path. [End log]