#forteissimo

Spear in hand, Clorica made her way through town looking for the only person she could trust in her current situation.  There had been a sudden influx of monsters in the forests surrounding Selphia, and though this was often something that the prince or princess would insist on taking care of, the butler wanted to be of some assistance as well.  She wanted to be able to protect them better than she was currently able to.

Upon finding Forte, Clorica bowed to the young woman before speaking up a greeting.  “Good afternoon!  Are you particularly busy today, Forte ♪?”

     With temporary freedom granted from her duties at the bath, Xiao Pai wanders the town. Not aimlessly, mind you, but with an objective, one that will become clear as she approaches the knight.

     “Hello, Forte!” A moment’s quiet.

forteissimo [ Stares at the assortment of cookies with awe and hunger. ]

[ Looks around quickly as she ponders on what to do. Upon noticing a women inside the tent, she clears her throat. ]

Erm, excuse me? How much for the cookies…?

[Is too lost in her book to really notice the woman walk in. She takes a sip of her 'special lemonade,' setting the cup down just as the other woman spoke]

     “Forte...! Hello!”

     Approaching the knight stationed in Selphia Square was Nancy, most known for her unbridled husbandry and nursing skills at Little Bandage Clinic. A dainty hand waves through the air to catch the other’s attention with a smile awaiting as greeting.

    However as the distance between them decreases, so does Nancy’s cheerful expression. It doesn’t diminish, per say, but rather melts into one more curious. A hand raises, finger outstretched and pointing at a piece of Forte’s armor.

    “My, that’s quite a big stain there! Forte, have you just not noticed it...?” Brows knit with concern as she glances to the knight’s face.

[[ oh no, sorry to hear about that! D: hopefully some of that stuff can be saved ;; wishing you luck you can get it fixed soon! ]]

If there was one way to get an experienced, well-known weather forecaster stressed, it would be weather abnormalities. And normally, Lillie was equipped to emotionally deal with these abnormalities by learning from them. She would analyze what set the situation apart from the norm, under what circumstances it could happen again. And most importantly, she would come out from the situation with a better idea of how the weather worked (as hard of a goal as that could be at times.)

But this was something else.

Winter was fading to spring. That was a fact. The transitions of seasons was always gradual and this year was no exception. Except...for where Lillie was standing. Specifically, not for the gate of Selphia. She noticed it immediately after wandering outside of the gates by accident. The temperature increased rapidly as she wandered away from the town--in a way that just didn’t make sense. A microclimate? Maybe there was a heater somewhere nearby, for whatever strange reason that would cause you to put a heater outside.

-Seeing as Dolly had bedded down for a nap, maladies of the month zapping her energy to the point where Pico would gladly dissipate if it meant the difference between helping her lady sit up in bed to comfortably thumb through the latest mystery novel on the shelf, the phantom’s footsteps pitter-pattered after Nancy as the nurse prepped her modest kitchen for a batch of cookies that would certainly banish her lady’s lethargy.

Oh my, out of sugar again. 

Pico perked out of her role as the woman’s shadow. No sugar meant no cookies, and no cookies simply wouldn't do when Dolly was so sick!

You still have to prep the kitchen, right? I’ll float around and see if anyone can spare a cup! 

There was a certain troubled expression at first, but pleased with her willingness to help out, Nancy agreed and bid her off as Red Riding Hood’s mother might, sick grannies aside.

Just stay near the clinic, would you?

If only she’d known that around the clinic was practically deserted. The last house she floated through confirmed the phantom’s dread.- What is this, a ghost town! -Frustration soon flitted to a whimsical smile as she drifted towards the shelves on the far side of the house. If no one was around, she’d have to get the sugar to Nancy herself! It wasn't impossible per say, and it wasn't like the inhabitants of Selphia would prove so stingy as to deny the woman who healed their illnesses a chump’s change in bakery terms.

With an ethereal, rune-powered strength, she began to coax each cabinet open. As she tipped a bag of sugar towards a mid-air cup, the sound of a door slamming behind her was all it took to spill the sweet granules at her feet.- Oh, sheesh! -Folding herself into a startled invisibility, she scooted back to tuck herself between a lamp and the fridge, unaware of the jester-sized footprints she left behind her.-

"Ah, hello Miss Frey."

       The sudden voice of the princess forces Forte to stop her walk and turns to face

       her. Before she could ask what it was that she had wanted from her, Frey held her

       hands out. As she looks down at the small box resting on top of them, the knight

       blinks in curiosity at what lies within. She reached out to take the box in her own

       hands, her face showing gratitude at the fact the princess thought to buy, of all

       people her, a gift. Sliding her gloved thumb through a loose flap, the tape ripped off as

       her thumb passed through, allowing her an opening through the wrappings.

                              "Oh, Miss Frey, I appreciate the thought— truly I do.

                                                                       But you really didn’t need to get me…”

       Her voice dies down as she finishes taking the wrapping off the box and lifts the lid

       off the box, her eye catching a small glimmer from inside. Lifting the small object

       out, she stared at the brooch in awe. It would have been a lie to say Forte didn’t have

       any interest in phoenix’s— no, she knew the symbolism related to them— and the

       shine the gold gave was very pretty. She loved it.

                                                   "Wow, it’s so beautiful…"

       As much as she wanted to wear the brooch at this very moment, she was still

       working and it was a new, potentially somewhat fragile, gift. Not wanting to risk

       breaking or dirtying it, Forte reached behind her to slide the brooch into her waist

       bag. Looking back at Frey, the knight smiled brightly.

                        "Thank you so much for the gift, Miss Frey. I’ll be sure to wear it 

                             when situations call for it. But here! I have a small gift for you as well.”

       Her hand still in her bag, she pulled out a small white box, containing chocolates

       inside, and held it out to Frey.

                           "My gift isn’t much as well, but I still hope you enjoy them.

                                                       Merry Christmas.”

Frey laughs as Forte thanks her for the gift, mirroring the smile on the knight's face. She waves a hand as if it were no big deal, her eyes bright with holiday mirth. "Of course! I'm glad to hear that you like it. And I'm sure itll look really nice on you.~"

She pauses when Forte mentions that she has a gift for her as well, peering curiously at the small white box that she eventually pulls out of her bag. When she offers the box to her, Frey graciously accepts.

"Wow, thank you!" she says tapping a finger against the side of the box. "I hope you wont mind if I open it right here?"

But her hands are already lifting the lid open, and before Forte can even respond Frey is oogling at the chocolates in front of her.

"Oh," she gasps, almost sure that she was drooling. "I'll definitely enjoy them -- and more sooner than later."