#ch219

⚠️ longer post than originally intended ⚠️

Fairchild has the bellhop wheel in a contraption under a white sheet. It turns out to be a wheel with a dial, like the kind you might spin for prizes.

"The sources of the tales" is an odd way to put it, but a "spring" or "fountain" is also a "source", like a spring of fresh water, the fountain of youth, or a fountain of knowledge. Even these Nectar Springs. Speaking of which, the logo on his hat and bell also makes an appearance on the 20 of the wheel. It does look like a fountain ⛲️ encircled in a crest or something. It could be the Fairchild family crest, perhaps also on a jeweled ring for his family and/or a signet ring for the barony. We might be dealing with a fountain of youth sort of quest, alongside whatever they are doing with "tales".

Anyway, "tales of your past and future" sounds too much like cinematic records holding memories and "episodes" or "future memories". So, I still see this as a way to somehow mess up people's memories of events, perhaps even plant false accounts that lead to false accusations.

Sebastian sees this as an opportunity to get info out of Modri, whom he truly seems to not remember or recognize.

And our earl might expect to hear something hilarious, something the demon would possibly find embarrassing.

But I'm worried that our earl's memories could get altered to believe his contracted demon has been deceiving him/lying to him, despite the terms of their contract. Our earl has questioned Sebastian about his loyalty and his "aesthetics" on a few occasions. This could end up being an S2 parallel, with "Ciel" thinking Sebastian has broken the contract... and then telling him to get out of his sight.

This so-far unnamed man interrupts them to say he'd like to join the game, partly because the duo turned so many heads at dinner, and partly because Irina is pretty.

Then this young man interjects to join as well. He's also taken in by Irina's beauty, but he wishes to learn "the rules of polite society" from the guys. The young woman with him is wearing a bindi, yes? I assume she's unmarried (maybe a black bindi to ward off evil and to symbolize intuition and wisdom?), perhaps a servant for the young man. She might even be a caretaker or ayah.

A.I. info on bindis:

A.I. info on ayahs:

Given her appearance (dark skin but light hair), she could be a member of Agni's family, a member of the Brahmin caste within India. They were allowed to take jobs as priests, teachers, counselors, etc. She might be employed by his family as a tutor of some sort for him.

So, perhaps this young guy is touring around England with his caretaker/tutor, despite the fact he should be old enough to travel on his own. This reminds me of something (I mentioned it in Discord, too) about the author who wrote fictional histories about a "Fairchild family". The same author, Mary Martha Sherwood, also wrote stories to warn Nabobs and such about the "dangers" of letting their children learn too much from their Indian caretakers or ayahs, also sometimes called bearers or dhayes.

Well, I was typing all that up. Then my bubble got burst when someone here said the young blond guy and the young Indian woman are actors from that production of "The Tempest" that our duo caught a bit of while checking out the pier and Royal Pavilion. That would definitely explain what he means by touring Great Britain... and why he would be accompanied by a young Indian woman (when he should be too old to need a nanny). Still, I'm leaving in all the stuff about ayahs and Sherman; it's still interesting, isn't it?

Back to Fairchild. He's overly excited about whatever's about to happen, as the guests there tell their stories. Another reference to springs as a source. The drinks are being poured, and the cigars have been brought out.

Now he invites everyone to move over and sit at what looks like a large dinner table; he's calling it a center table. Drinks and... ashtrays?... already there.

Here we go!

Fairchild enters the smoking room behind them and welcomes them to the room.

Being the hotel's "pride and joy", this can't be good. But we figured that already. It's stocked with fine luxury smokes and drinks, but I don't think that's why Fairchild considers it the pride and joy.

Modri steps up to confront Sebastian again, and Sebastian tries to deescalate the situation, but Modri either wants to fight or cut himself again.

This is neither coincidence nor fate (or maybe it IS fate?), but I think it's definitely a setup from Fairchild. He wants them to interact, particularly if he can get them to share stories.

Then Fairchild does THIS to stop the fight before it can start. I knew it seemed familiar, but someone on Discord beat me to it: Fairchild has snuck in a "The Phoenix!" pose.

Actually, it's more than just the pose. Even his words allude to their catch phrase. Here's where Sebastian and our earl recite the words and strike the pose with the Viscount of Druitt:

Then he just lets Modri smolder... as he emphasizes that this room is for smoking, not whatever Modri was about to do.

Fairchild then repeats what he'd said last time Modri confronted Sebastian. This weird idea of guests' tales becoming entwined.

I'd like to take note of the cigars, cognac, and port he mentions, because I want to do research on why those specifically. Also, the symbol on the band of his hat seems to match the symbol on his bell, and I'm not sure if it's just the hotel's logo or if it's something else.

I titled this post as such because there's a continuity issue. The title page shows Sebastian having finished his food, as the empty plates are being taken away.

But then our earl says he's never seen Sebastian sit down to a meal before. Doesn't Sebastian have a meal on the train on their way to Brighton? Even if that was only tea for him on the train, he has definitely sat down to a meal (and drinks) at the circus, after he turns the hacked up potatoes into fried "chips" (French fries for us 'muricans). And hasn't our earl asked him before about how human foods taste to him? Definitely during the curry arc.... And we saw our earl watch Sebastian forced to eat overly sweet porridge or whatever while wearing a nightgown and sleeping bonnet (the extra chapter accompanying the Book of Atlantic movie, showing his day for recovery after being injured on the ship).

Anyway, it does serve as a reminder to readers how different Sebastian's senses of smell and taste are to those of a human. It also lets the demon tell us how he knows the food must be top notch: the ingredients are fresh, and the human contractor has eaten extra, showing he really enjoys it.

I'd also like to mention the Charlotte Russe that our ear has before him. The Charlotte first appeared in England, but a French chef upscaled it with the addition of lady fingers and Bavarian cream. Others liked to call this new version the Charlotte Russe, even though the French chef didn't name it that. Perhaps they liked to harken back to his time working for Czar Alexander I? I have a feeling that Yana-san has chosen that dessert and that name specifically because of the two Slavic (potentially Russian) characters we've recently been introduced to.

So, the smoking room isn't always ready, and people only have access to it once it's prepared in the evenings. Finally, they are allowed to attend.

And they are greeted by the two characters foreshadowed by that dessert: Modri Vladis and Irina Petrovna.