| At The Alasce Market |
| Summary: | Valeria, Elian, and Jordan meet briefly in the market. |
| Date: | 2019-07-17 |
| Related: | The Reclaiming of Alasce Castle |
| NPCs: | None |
| Players: |
   |
| Aequor - Alasce - Marketplace |
| Alasce is not a big city— it hardly qualifies as such actually, though it is growing all the time—- but its marketplace is healthy enough and boasts a goodly amount of trade, much of it transplanted from Four Corners to the south. The local delicacies are clay-bakes, with fish from the river and sea baked with herbs and seasonings in shells of red clay and served with small hammers alongside roasted vegetables and bounteous pilafs. Since the clay here is so plentiful and good, the potters of Alasce are wold-famous, and craftsmen display plates and cups and pitchers and so on of surpassing fineness and beauty in shop windows and on wooden shelves along the cobbled streets. |
| 1875-07-17 |
It had been well on nearly two weeks, since the forces of al'Morena had reclaimed Alasce and the area surrounding it. The battle had been hard fought and the forces of White Hall had not retreated easily. The city and the surround had paid for it, and so, much of the work during the span of days had been in repairing and rebuilding the damage and returning the people to their city.
Valeria, when her duties had allowed, had lent her hands and her back to the work, and today, she worked with a group of commonfolk and soldiers alike as they took stock of the marketplace and worked at setting to to rights. Shop windows were being replaced and awnings lifted. Just at the moment, the smell of fresh fish and seasonal herbs filled the market as those who had been working through the day began to take their supper in shifts.
-
Elian walks confidently through the market in search of one particular market stall where they serve baked fish without to many harsh looks. Although he is wearing most of his armor - for isnt that the aequorian fashion these days? - he's without helm and his hair keeps getting picked up by the sea-wind and tossed around. This it seems is not something that the northern lord much appreciates if the annoyed sweep of his hand and arm up to clear his face, yet again, is any sort of indication. He halts in his route when he spots Valeria, shifting path so that he ends up alongside her. "Looks nice."
-
Jordan has made his way out to the market as well he's dressed in his armor because yes it's the current fashion. Over his shoulder is the blue cloak marking him as one of the Blue Cavaliers. Although he's wearing armor his bow is nowhere to be seen just a sword resting at his hip. Spotting Valeria and then Elian Jordan makes his way over towards them looking around at the various stages of work everything's in. "Everything is starting to look a lot better." Looking at the two, "Thank you for your hard work you two."
-
Valeria was in her armor, but then, Valeria was always in her armor. It had been many weeks since she had had the luxury to dispense with it. Such halcyon days, the respite she had had in d'Picot. Now, she was helping to serve the meals, and she did not seem terribly put out by that. It served a purpose, after all. It saw to the respite of those who had been working all day, and it also served as a declaration that the newly returned Duke wished to work with the people, rather than to lord over them. Or perhaps that was only Valeria's take. "Elian." Valeria handed off the work as she stepped to the side, noting the Lord's annoyance, and reaching into one of her bags, retrieving a braided string of sturdy leather and offering it over. "it has not been easy, but we are making progress." Her eyes flitted from Elian to the approaching blue cloak, a hint of surprise there. She had not actually seen Jordan in his Cavalier's cloak before, "Your Grace. We are happy to do what is required. And the people are glad to be home."
-
Elian raises his eyebrow a touch as he accepts the braided leather before smiling in mild amusement. "Not my doing Your Grace." he says to Jordan. His eyes go to Valeria "I suspect this is all Valeria's doing." He lifts the braid for emphasis and asks Valeria "You just happen to have a handful of these in your bag?"
-
Jordan shakes his head a bit as Elian doesn't take credit, "I don't mean this…" He motions towards the rebuilding, "I meant the retaking of the capital. I couldn't have done it without the two of you supporting me." He sighs a bit and looks around then glances over at his cloak and chuckles enjoying the look of surprise on Valeria's face, "Oh I don't wear it often during the wars but well… I was inducted into the order may as well sport it now that hostilities are supposed to be drawing to a close."
-
"I do, actually. The last thing that I need is my hair falling down and getting into my face, or becoming something that an enemy can use against me. They are also useful for making makeshift loops to hold additional weapons and gear on the fly." Valeria was nothing if not a woman capable of making due with what she had, which, until she had come into Jordan's service been…not much. "The people are glad to be home, but they also need direction. It is a difficult thing, to begin." She did not, as it happened, also offer a braid to Jordan, for he still sported his preferred short hair. "I was happy to serve. I am only sorry I could not kill that Jarl twice." Beat, "The colour suits you." She knew little of the cavaliers, so she stuck with what she knew.
-
"Ah." Elian says to Valeria. "Well I have no doubt you are well versed in that." He reaches back and tugs his hair into a ponytail. "I suppose I should have known the sea would make life inconvenient." He obviously pays attention to what Jordan is saying "You must be irritated to have to offer peace now."
-
Elian's comment seemed to draw something of Valeria's ire, but with Jordan present, she seemed to think better of commenting. Instead, Valeria glanced between the two, before she offered her own thoughts, "We are in need of the respite. We have reclaimed the capital at great cost, and pushing further into Bitruland might well exhaust all of our resources. Best to rest and recuperate our forces, before we begin again."
-
Jordan chuckles and motions towards his hair, "Which is why I keep mine short. It helped to keep it out of the way when I'm shooting my bow." He looks off towards the sea and takes a deep breath, "It smells wonderful. The sea that is. I must say it's odd to call here home." Then he shakes his head a bit, "Having to offer peace irritates me but Aequor doesn't have the resources to keep fighting along multiple fronts."
-
Elian almost certainly notices that he seems to have annoyed Valeria yet again given the way his gaze settles on her face for a moment before he looks away. "I'm sure it will feel like home soon enough. They do claim that home is where the heart is afterall."
-
Whatever irritation Valeria might have felt was a passing thing, and clearly not something she was intent on focusing on, "Somehow, I do not think such sort hair would suit me." She glanced towards where meals were being handed off, "Have either of your eaten yet?" Elian's comment drew a glance, before she looked away to the city, "I had never been to the city properly, until the day we took it."
-
Jordan looks around, "It's been years since I was here last. And yes I'm sure it'll feel like home soon enough." He looks back towards the food and shakes his head, "I haven't eaten yet. I suppose I should no use passing out from lack of food."
-
Elian smiles at the joke. "It would be good for gossip if nothing else." He nods to Valeria. "I've only been here briefly myself. There was never much of a reason to visit." he looks at Jordan "Are you planning to maintain the disdain for knights?"
-
Valeria laughed, holding up a hand in a 'just a moment' gesture, before she stepped back to the serving area, speaking softly, before she selected three of the baked fish casseroles as well as some fresh bread, offering them over to Jordan first and then Elian. It was clearly all serve yourself at the moment. "I did not realize there was such a disdain for knights." With a tip of her head, she indicated a table by one of the stalls that had a few seats free.
-
Jordan looks to Elian and shakes his head a bit, "no I don't plan on maintaining the old disdain for knights." He looks over at Valeria, "The old Duke's family had a disdain of Knights and honor. Although from what I've heard some of their duties were a bit more nefarious than I'd known about when I was younger."
-
Elian gives a little shrug at Valeria's comments. "It might just have been more apparent to me, as an al'callenta, than it was to others." he gives Jordan a serious nod. "Its going to be a hard task to rout that out. Assuming you even want to."
-
"How difficult can it be, when the greatest portion of the al'Morena blood lived within the Duke?" Trust it to Valeria to be blunt about it, "I mean no disrespect to the dead, Your Grace, but this is not the House of those years and months ago. But underhanded dealings do have their place, though perhaps under better control than what might have previously existed."
-
"How difficult can it be, when the greatest portion of the al'Morena blood lived within the Duke?" Trust it to Valeria to be blunt about it, "I mean no disrespect to the dead, Your Grace, but this is not the House of those years and months ago. But underhanded dealings do have their place, though perhaps under better control than what might have previously existed."
-
Jordan motions towards the people, "There's an entire spy network out there run by my family… It'll be difficult to get rid of some of those thoughts. Although I'm not entirely sure I want to. They had a lot of information that was useful to the crown and I'd like to continue those contributions although I may need somebody a bit less honorable and a bit more devious to head that up for me."
-
Theres a twitch of disagreement at Valeria's statement but it seems Elian would rather say nothing. "Your right." he says to Jordan's comment instead. "Of course. Getting rid of an asset like that seems foolish."
-
Valeria made her way to the table, settling there, as she was not currently in the mood to eat standing up, "I fear I know little of whatever network existed within the House, and so I will leave such discussions for you both."
-
Jordan glances over at the page that popped up to tug on Jordan's sleeve. Leaning down a bit he listens to what the young boy says before he frowns, "Duty calls. You two enjoy your meal." And on that note the Duke heads off towards the keep proper.
-
"I don't know all that much either." Elian tells Valeria. "All I know is the reputation. Well. It seems crass to discuss it. Like you said, they are dead now." He lifts his food. "Thank you for this and the tie." he looks at Jordan, advising him just before he leaves. "I'm going to head back to water steep now I've healed." and back to Valeria. "I should make sure my horse is ready."
"Bothersome things, pages," was Valeria's humoured comment, as she offered a bow of her head in farewell to Jordan. That Elian was departing as well seemed, well, not surprising. "Of course, Elian. If you have need, send word. I will come if I can."