| Logs |
2025 February 25
| Goblin Town |
| Realms |
Retired
| Reality Fault |
General Info
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| Realms: Goblin Town Logs |
The Very Nerves of State
The next day, Cinnamon and Shane's morning is interrupted by a cheerful Tre. His taxi business has also turned partially messenger business, out of sheer reasonableness. If he's going to be taking a fare two miles toward one end of the street, it just makes sense that if someone happens to need a message taken about that same distance, that he could do that as well! He's smiling cheerfully as he knocks on the cottage door. Cinnamon opens the door at his knock, beaming, "Good morning, Tre! Would you like to come in for a bite to eat, or would you rather have something to go?" Having had to learn this for herself, since she has to trek up and down the street on a daily basis, Cinnamon's quite happy to feed family and friends on the go as well!
Tre beams, "I should take it to go if you have something yummy I can hold and eat while I'm trotting -- it's a busy morning! Market day tomorrow, so people are doing a bunch of last-minute preparations." He shifts a little, smiling as his hoof-bells jingle cheerfully, "I have a letter for you! Well, actually it's for Spice, but she wasn't at Josie's and I haven't seen either of them and if they aren't around, they're usually here, so I thought I'd bring it here for you to pass on!"
Cinnamon nods quickly, "Sure! Let me pack up some muffins for you, and I'm happy to pass Spicy's letter on to her." Shane wanders to the door to say hello to Tre, not having yet bothered to put on a shirt. He often doesn't until he's ready to leave and start his day. He exchanges greetings with Tre and the two young men chat while Cinnamon gets the muffins ready. She darts off into her kitchen, swiftly packing four of her honey-oat muffins into a paper twist that Tre can easily tuck into his messenger bag, and comes trotting back, "Here you go -- enjoy them! I'll give Spice the letter as soon as I see her, okay?" Tre almost whickers with happiness at the muffins, and even gives Cinnamon a quick hug before he trots back off to his cab and heads on about his day. Cinnamon laughs and happily returns the hug -- she loves seeing friends and family thriving! She glances at the letter after closing the door.
The envelope he handed off is thick, rich, cream-colored vellum addressed in beautiful calligraphy. The wax holding it closed is sealed with Caradog's crest. Shane smiles, "For some reason, seeing the name Spice in that handwriting is a little bit amusing. New-fashioned name, old-fashioned penmanship."
Cinnamon grins at Shane, nodding happily, "Right?! Plus, I bet this is her thank you for the money -- isn't that awesome of Caradog?"
Shane's brows draw together, "But... you're the one that allocated all the money. I mean, Spice did a lot of the hacking... but you're the one that knew the kinds of places to look for it. Her job was unlocking the doors."
Cinnamon smiles and shakes her head, "I wasn't the one that did all the hard work, though, Shaney -- that was Spicy and Sparrow and Kestrel and... oh, and Elias and Jaeger, you know?" She sets the letter carefully on the little odds and ends shelf she has by her door, then heads back into her little cottage to finish breakfast with her [eeeeeee deliciously half-dressed!] sweetheart, "Those folks all deserve to be thanked bunches for their hard work and efforts!" As she slides back into her seat and has another drink of orange juice, she cheerfully adds, "I just pointed at things, you know? Like... like on the butte in the desert. It was you and Sparrow that caught that guy!"
Shane sits down across from the little dragon, wincing slightly before his face goes serious, "No. It was all three of us that caught that guy. If you'll remember, you're the one that literally caught him -- you didn't just point at things. Neither Sparrow nor I would have gotten to him in time." He's holding his tea cup in both hands and looking gravely across the table.
Cinnamon giggles and blushes as she looks down at her glass, "I just -- I... I didn't even realize it was a person! Or... or, er, w-what he was, um..." She has a hasty gulp of orange juice again -- she's still mortified that she effectively dropped on a man who was pee-... er, relieving himself!
Shane is still quietly solemn, "But you caught him. Do you realize that you actually told just a tiiiny white lie there, acushla -- that you just pointed at things? You completely negated everything else you did. Yes, Sparrow and I also played a part. All three of us did. Why do you erase yourself like that?"
Cinnamon blinks confusedly at Shane, "What? I didn't lie! I wouldn't deliberately hurt you like that!"
Shane shakes his head softly, "You did... just a little, a ghrį. 'All I did was point at things. You and Sparrow actually caught the guy.' I know it wasn't deliberate... not all untruths are."
Cinnamon frowns thoughtfully, replaying the (mortifying, eeek!) incident in her head... then gives Shane a puzzled look, "Umm... well, okay, I pointed out the tent even though I didn't know what it was, and Sparrow yelled at me to change and get down there, so I did... but... that's all I did, really? It was Sparrow who grabbed him, not me."
Shane nods, "And you're completely erasing yourself from the gifts to Caradog and the trod in Chicago and what you're doing to help the vampire's dependents... my sweet little love... I know not everyone is as transparent as me, but why don't you want them to know?"
Cinnamon tilts her head at Shane, a bemused smile on her lips, "But, umm... I don't think I do? I mean, I want to see the folks who deserve credit to get it!" She considers for a bit before hesitantly adding, "Plus I... I've seen managers and bosses basically, um... steal credit for stuff that folks working for them have done, and... and I hate that! So... so I don't ever want to be like that, you know?"
Shane reaches across the table and laces his fingers with Cinnamon's, voice gentle, "There's a difference between 'our team did this' and 'these people did this, pay no attention to the dragon behind the curtain'."
Cinnamon blinks at Shane... then giggles in spite of herself as she pushes her glasses up with her free hand, "Okay, I know I'm not the Great and Powerful Ozzamon!"
Shane laughs, "No. Everything's not green, for one thing... and you'd live in the Ruby City, not the Emerald one. But you know what I mean. You try to erase yourself. There's a middle path between taking all the credit, and taking none of the credit."
Cinnamon opens her mouth to reflexively deny... but then pauses. Okay, hold on... she knows Shane doesn't lie. He's saying she tries to erase herself... instead of what she thought she was doing, which was making sure credit went to where it belonged. So... should she have told everyone she did this? She winces at that thought -- yikes, no! Everyone would have been staring at her! She frowns again, though this time it's more bemused, "But wait, how can you... take credit without being... well... proud? Er... proud-sounding, at least?"
Shane arches one dark brow, "Acushla, pride is a good thing. Arrogance is what's bad." He leans back a little, and then a slow smile comes across his face, "Think of it this way: most of the month Fraser is proud of the work he does as First Mate and Bo's'un. He keeps the Valkyrie running smoothly, as Arvin's second-in-command. Around the full moon, though, he's an arrogant bastard that most of his shipmates would like to slap, if it weren't for the fact that he's stronger and scarier than all of them."
Cinnamon grins wryly and gets a bit pink at remembering a few smacks she's administered around those times! "Okay, but... but still, how do you, um... how do you take credit without... without stealing all the attention?"
Shane replies, "You say something like, 'our team made this possible,' and then you give credit to each person for the role they played -- including your own role without completely underplaying it! 'Pointing at things' was important in catching that guy, because you're the only one that could see him. You're the one that knew what sorts of places to look for hidden funds -- Spice unlocked them. Kestrel, sadly, is the one that made it possible for us to realize there was something going on. Sparrow and I made the actual capture."
Cinnamon considers that for a long, slow moment. She has a couple of absent sips of her orange juice as she does so. Finally, though, she sighs softly, then glances up sideways at Shane, her voice soft, "S-sorry?"
Shane shakes his head and squeezes her hand, "Don't apologize. There's no need. Just... know that you're worth more than you think you are -- and you are not the bosses that steamrolled you and stole your thunder. You are amazing." Cinnamon smiles a bit uncertainly as she gently squeezes back. She's going to take Shane's words to heart, and try to not... not... hm. Not hand off all the credit? -- but... still. She's... really unsure about herself being actually amazing. After all, she's just herself, right?
As the two are smiling across the table at one another, there's another knock on the door. Shane laughs, "Busy morning!"
Cinnamon giggles as she slips from the table and patters for the door, obscurely relieved to have a moment away from Shane's sometimes too-knowing gaze. Does she really... erase herself? At the door she calls, "Who is it?"
It's a familiar and perhaps surprising voice, "It's Marcus. May I come in? I know it's early. I brought some of chef's pastries!"
Cinnamon looks a bit surprised, but opens the door and smiles, "Hi, Marcus! Come on in." As he steps through the door, her confusion blurts unexpectedly out of her, "Hey, um, M-Marcus? Do I... erase myself?"
Marcus doesn't precisely stumble, but he does stop rather abruptly at the question, pale brows going up, "Erase yourself?" He glances around the room as if that will give him an answer to the question, and his eyes fall on a half-dressed Shane. He clears his throat, "How do you mean erase yourself?"
Cinnamon frowns bemusedly as she closes the door, then turns to follow Marcus back into the cottage's little kitchen/eating area, "Like, umm... like not... take credit when it's due?" She's trying to remember a time when Marcus was there with them, so she can mention that, but it's not coming immediately to mind... and so she misses the elf's slight tension.
Marcus mms thoughtfully and holds up something in his hand, "You mean like this trod that seems to think that the entirety of the bequest they received came from Vater?" That makes Shane snort a quiet laugh.
Cinnamon blinks distractedly up at Marcus, then glances at the object he's holding, "What? Uh, sorry, I mean... um, explain, please?"
The thing Marcus is holding is another thick envelope with a wax seal, this one broken open. His blue eyes twinkle slightly, "The trod that you helped endow with a million dollars... a million dollars they seem to think came exclusively from my father. He was slightly puzzled by that, since he knows it was a group effort."
Cinnamon gasps, her eyes widening in horror, "Oh, no! Who did I forget to credit?!" Marcus looks at her with an expression much like the one Shane wore before: one elegant brow arched and a wry smile on his face, as if he's waiting for her to catch up. It actually takes about three or four seconds of silence... and then the little dragon blushes hotly and facepalms. A moment later she mumbles, "Oh, crabcakes... just... can we just forget I ever said that?!" She's incredibly embarrassed, and feeling quite self-conscious! -so she reacts predictably: she nearly darts into the little kitchen, "Wow I'm a dope here you are just standing and waiting I'm so sorry Marcus come have a seat would you like some eggs and bacon and toast and here's some orange juice okay?!"
Shane murmurs with a gentle smile in his voice, "No, I don't think we ever will, acushla. Not until you start realizing you're doing it. Group. Effort."
Marcus nods, "Vater is rather amused by it, actually. He sent me to tell you that he's going to very politely let them know there was an entire cadre of people involved." He settles in one of the chairs, then discreetly looks Shane up and down.
Cinnamon sighs exasperatedly at herself while she's facing away from both [incredibly beautiful why oh why do I keep coming out like such a doof around them both?!] men, and spooning food onto a plate. She has her 'please forget I'm such a moron and don't tease me about it' smile on her face as she turns around and sets the plate and utensils in front of Marcus, "There you go -- oh! Also, thank you so much for the pastries, too. Um, that... that's fine, about your dad?"
Marcus sets the pastries down in the middle of the table. They're flaky, warm, and filled with some sort of jam that smells sweet and rich. "I'm glad, because I know him, and he'd have done it anyway." His smile gentles, "So yes, you erase yourself. You shouldn't, you know. You have a shine that you should let be seen... what is the saying?" He looks at Shane, "'Don't hide your candle under a bucket'?"
Shane actually laughs warmly, "'Don't hide your light under a bushel' -- but you got close."
Cinnamon sighs as she sits back down, absently pulling two of the delicious-smelling pastries over onto her plate as she replies, "I guess... but... I dunno. I mean... I don't really feel like I am? But Shaney says I do, and now you are too, and..." She sighs again and has a big bite of one of the pastries as she thinks... but then blinks and chews more slowly as her eyes widen. Only once she's swallowed does she add with awe, "Wowsers, Marcus! These pastries are fantastic!"
Marcus nods and beams, "They are, aren't they? They're chef's specialty. It's lingonberry jam." He looks at Shane, "What have you been telling her?"
Shane smiles, "That it's okay to be proud as long as you aren't arrogant... and that you can take credit and still give credit to others at the same time. That tooting your own horn doesn't mean you're stealing the spotlight all the time."
Marcus nods and looks at Cinnamon, trying not to think what it means that Shane is only half-dressed. He's been trying not to think about how far along their relationship might have moved -- physically, as it were -- but having Shane in essentially just his kilt makes it difficult. "An army is made up of soldiers and officers. Good officers know how to delegate and how to shine a light on their troops while still taking the correct share of the credit. Vater taught me that."
Cinnamon rests her chin in one small hand as she sighs again, "But I -- but... I don't, er, really want an army? -and -- and I'm really not sure I... wanna be a manager either? Considering what they're usually like, I mean?" She scowls at the pastry in her other hand, almost as if it is at fault in this emotional conundrum for her... then almost defiantly eats it in big, savoring bites.
Shane murmurs, "Metaphors, acushla. You're already the head of a family. There's a reason Spice calls you Bosslady. You're a Councilor. You've already led several things for the council... all the things with Nusantara. You. Are. A. Leader." Each word is said gently but with emphasis.
Cinnamon sighs once the distraction of the pastry is gone, reflexively hiding her face in her hands, "But I don't... I don't feel like one!"
Shane smiles, "Ah, there we go. The imposter syndrome is strong with this one."
Cinnamon grumbles grumpily into her hands, then sighs... then finally peeks over her fingers at the two men, her voice a bit grouchy, "I didn't ask to be a leader, you know!" She thinks about that for a moment... then sighs again as she starts the second pastry, "Okay, that was... silly. But still. How do you... umm... do the 'good leader giving credit right' thingie... you know?"
Marcus replies thoughtfully, "Well, you can lay out what each person did, including yourself. An officer will often be responsible for strategy."
Shane nods, "Or for logistics. Logistics are more important than you might think they are."
Marcus nods in return, "Talk in 'we' and 'us' and 'our' terms. Speak as a group."
Cinnamon nods slowly, starting to feel a bit better as it looks like she's not going to have to either be the center of attention... or steal all the glory from folks she feels worked harder than she did. She has another pastry as she listens and thinks... then finally gives a tiny smile, "Okay, I... think maybe I get it? Or at least... I'll try?"
Shane beams and leans over to give her a quick kiss, "You'll be amazing."
Marcus watches the easy affection and feels a little twist of jealousy... or no: envy. It's not a venomous emotion; it's a longing. He takes a deep breath before murmuring, "I'm sorry; may I use the restroom?" He's got something for Cinnamon while he's here, after all.
Cinnamon grins with shy happiness at the kiss... then beams as she nods to Marcus, "Sure! Help yourself."
Marcus slips into the restroom and leaves a note tucked into the mirror: "You gleam like rubies in the sun" Afterwards, he visits with the couple for a few more minutes before excusing himself to start the rest of his day. Later, when Cinnamon uses the bathroom just before heading out for the day, she makes a slightly startled/delighted squeak at finding the note! She comes pattering out a few moments later, beaming, "Lookie, asthore! Isn't this nice of Marcus? Rubies, wow... they're so pretty, too!"
Shane mms and smiles a bit, "Very nice of him..." [-and getting more and more obvious just how he feels about my a ghrį all the time.]
The next day a grinning Shane shows up at Cinnamon's office, "Elias is having a small dinner gathering, apparently. He's sent me out with invites for you, Thorn, and Sparrow. I didn't even realize Sparrow was on the street today, but then I went to where he usually stays, and boom -- Sparrow and Kestrel."
Cinnamon brightens, "Oh! Fantastic -- I wanted to ask them if they wanted to speak with Jiajun when he arrives with Tao!" She grins happily as she hugs Shane, adding, "Sure, I'd love to attend! What's it about, do you know?" She adds thoughtfully a moment later, "Actually... I wanna ask Elias something too -- I want to know how to make the anniversary celebration at my place fun and tasty for him too!"
Shane smiles and shrugs, "I have no idea. I think it's likely just Elias wanting to have people over. He's social for a vampire, and it's been a while since he's been able to fuss over those of us he considers his chicks. Oh. That's right -- invites for Josie and Spice, too."
Cinnamon grins at that, "Cool! Tonight?"
Shane nods, "Yup. Short notice, I know."
Cinnamon looks a bit puzzled, wondering what caused Elias to decide so abruptly on a dinner party... but then just smiles and mentally shrugs. If it's important, she'll find out tonight! Elias' invitations aren't very formal, aside from the fact that he writes in calligraphy the way some people write in cursive -- it's just his default penmanship. The invites basically say he misses having people come over, and he would love if they could come visit and have dinner at his apartment. The wording is perhaps odd, as most people would have asked if you could come have dinner with them. Cinnamon giggles at the invite, grinning at Shane after he's handed it to her, "He must be so tired of the 'are we the dinner?' joke!"
Shane laughs and nods, "He said he'd heard that one so many times that he started asking people if they asked because they wanted to be." That makes Cinnamon giggle again! Also, before they leave that evening, Shane tells Cinnamon that he's going to give Elias a little blood. Sidhe blood, even half-sidhe blood, is pretty nutrient packed, so something of a delicacy for vampires. The young man plans on using one of his blades to create a small cut so he can get some blood into a glass or cup of some sort -- an ounce or two, tops. Cinnamon blushes slightly at that information, feeling a bit foolishly embarrassed even as she nods to Shane. She's been telling herself for... wow, several months now? -that she was going to give Elias some blood for Solstice -- yet here she is, still sans test tubes from Iason! She firmly tells herself that enough is enough: she is not going to be intimidated by needles and blood-taking any more, and she is going to see Iason tomorrow!
That night, when people arrive after dark as requested on the invites, Elias answers the door with his broad, happy smile. Everyone there knows him, after all, and no one is a person that's frightened by his mouthful of fangs. Cinnamon waves happily from behind Shane and Thorn, "Elias! Hi, how are you?!" Shane moves in to hug Elias, and murmurs in his ear. The expression Elias gives him in return is avuncular, and the vampire looks very touched.
Cinnamon has brought some of her muffins as a hosting gift, so after hugging Elias tightly, she beams and shyly offers the little basket to him. Tucked in between the muffins are a few jars of somewhat rare kitchen herbs. Elias takes the basket with just as much happiness as at Shane's murmur, and exclaims with pleasure. He picks up the jars and examines them to see what else he's been given, inhaling happily at the herbaceous scents. Thorn smiles, "Some not-so-common kitchen herbs. I sneaked... well, no -- Iason knows, of course. We have some growing in the herb gardens to spruce up some of the food. Good, tasty food can be almost as important as the right medicine for someone healing."
Elias beams at Thorn, "Thank you! Iason is unfairly burdened with talents. Having a green thumb amongst all the others is just one more."
Cinnamon smiles as Elias thanks them all... and then, as they all walk into the house, she curiously adds, "So what's the occasion, Elias?"
As he heads toward the kitchen, the vampire replies, "I haven't had anyone over in quite a while and I wanted to chat with everyone about a few things." Shane doesn't wince, so Elias is apparently telling the truth. The ancient man pauses at the kitchen door, adding, "The two of you may want to stay here for a few minutes."
Thorn blinks and nods, "Oh, of course!"
Cinnamon too nods hastily, "No problem!" She turns into the living room, glancing around to see who's there already. It turns out that the only people there are... them. She and Thorn are left in the combined living and dining area while Elias and Shane disappear into the kitchen. Then again, Sparrow is not known for his punctuality... and they may have arrived slightly early.
Thorn blinks again, "Uh... huh."
Cinnamon glances around thoughtfully, checking to see if there's anything she can do to help make things nicer... are there enough chairs or sitting spots for everyone? Is there some sort of flat spot near the chairs for things like glasses or mugs? She'll shift things around a bit to ensure everyone will be able to see everyone else, once they've all arrived. She straightens a moment later, dusting her hands off, "There we go! That should be enough for everyone. Does that look nice and cozy and inviting to you, Thorn?"
"Oh, definitely yes," Thorn replies, having helped as requested by Cinnamon. He muses, [I wonder what Elias and Shane are discussing?] It's not like he can eavesdrop, though.
Shane and Elias return just at the end of Cinnamon's futzing about. Shane is rolling down his sleeve as the two men speak quietly. Elias looks... considerably less pale than normal -- enough so that he looks almost normally human. Even the veins that are normally extremely visible beneath his skin are almost invisible. Thorn doesn't raise an eyebrow, except mentally. Elias looks healthier, like he just had a nip (so to speak) or nibble of something. It's not Thorn's business, but he thinks Shane just donated a bit of blood to Elias. Which... Thorn likes Elias and Shane both, so he's glad Elias is getting some nutrition, and Shane is utterly trustworthy. Just as they're returning, there's another knock at the door. Cinnamon starts to glance over towards the two men -- but then beams at the knock, "I'll get it!" She patters happily over to the door, "Who is it?"
It's Josie and Spice. Josie is wagging like mad, and launches herself at Cinnamon for a hug. Cinnamon squeaks startledly as she's almost engulfed in happy-fluffy Josie, then giggles as she hugs back warmly. Her voice is a little muffled from the enthusiastic wolf spirit's furriness, "Hi, JoJo! Hi, Spicy! I mean, I can't see you, but you must be there too!"
Spice oofs as she gets tailwhacked in the process, then laughs and steps around her sweetie and her friend, holding up two bottles of wine, "One for everyone to drink, one that I've been told is fuckin' amazing in French cookin'. Hey, Bosslady!" Elias chuckles and moves to hug her, and Spice blinks, "Dude! You're like... all fuckin' glowy and shit!" She waves at Elias' face, "Like, I can barely see the veins and shit...?"
Elias looks amused, "Ah. Yes. None of you have seen me immediately after having, ah... refreshed myself."
Spice's eyes go wide, "No shit? That's what it looks like when you've just had a hematocrit cocktail? Fuckin' cool."
Shane puts a hand over his face and mutters, "Real discreet." At the same time, Thorn unconsciously thinks the exact same thing Shane says!
Of course, that's when there's another knock on the door. Cinnamon giggles into Josie's fur, then cheerfully calls, "Who iiiis it?!"
Elias moves to answer the door, and smiles, "Ah. Sparrow, Kestrel. We're all here." Shane bites his tongue before he makes a comment about Mr. Boddy. Sparrow does a back-clasp hug-handshake with Elias, and Kestrel just hugs... then hands off some kind of sweet-smelling braided herbs to Elias, as the vampire gestures them on in. The apartment smells like something deliciously savory is in the kitchen, as Elias moves around to find somewhere for the braids of herbs.
When Josie moves to hug Shane and Thorn, Cinnamon laughs and hugs Spice, then turns to greet Sparrow and Kestrel as well, "Hi there, you two! Hey, do you want to talk to Tao's friend Jiajun about hydroponics, when they return here? I know the elders of the Akoesdi and the Svnoyi are really interested, after all?"
Kestrel looks quite interested, "That would be wonderful. Some of the water-gathering solutions have been very successful, and parts of the rezzes are doing much better. We'd do good with using some of it in hydroponics."
Sparrow wraps his arms around Kestrel from behind. He was actually wearing shoes when they arrives, but he took them off at the door, "Hell, yeah! Whatever we can do to feed our people better."
Cinnamon beams hugely, almost bouncing on her toes with excitement, "Oh my gosh the water suggestions are working already?! That is so awesome I'm so pleased to hear that yay!" She laughs and impulsively hugs them both again, "Awesomesauce news -- I'm so happy for you all -- oh! How's the credit union thingie going, too?! Is it helping, is it taking off for folks, can I help at all more?!"
Before they can answer, Elias claps his hands lightly, "It's so good to have everyone here! It's been too long. Everyone have a seat and I'll start getting food ready!" Shane offers to help with that, since he knows Cinnamon would if she weren't chatting.
Almost everyone has been there multiple times before, so they end up largely in familiar seats, with both Josie and Sparrow sitting on the floor in front of their partners' chairs. Kestrel removes their long coat before seating themself, revealing a long, flowing skirt and a peasant blouse, and beams, "It's been going so well! We may ask your help when tax time rolls around, but for now, people are trusting it so much more than a whi... than a bank off-rez."
Cinnamon squeaks excitedly, almost bouncing on the loveseat near Kestrel's armchair, "Oh, yay! Oh, wow this is so exciting I'm so happy for everyone that both the water and the credit union is flourishing and yeah totally happy to help at tax time just let me know okay oh!" She pauses just long enough to take a breath, then beams excitedly again, "So hey I was wondering, Sparrow and Josie: would you two be interested maybe in taking on the arctic indigenous North American folks from me? I don't know how you'd like to split that up but I was thinking of inviting Josie maybe to come to Greenland with me to meet the really nice folks there that I was able to help what do you both think?!"
Sparrow and Josie look at one another and it's like there's a brief, wordless conversation before they both shrug and nod, and Sparrow replies, "I figure we'd do it like we already do -- split it along the longitudinal lines. So Josie'd have the ones on her half of the globe and above the equator and I'd have the others."
He arches an inquiring brow, and Josie nods, "That'd give me Greenland and you'd get, like, the Aleuts and all, right?"
Sparrow nods and grins, "I've met a few Greenlanders. I think Josie'd love 'em."
Cinnamon nodnods cheerfully, "Okay! I don't want to rush them, and I want everyone to be happy with the transition, so it may take a bit... but yeah, JoJo, let's go visit Greenland when we have some time, okay?"
Josie beams, and her tail starts its attempts at wagging -- though it can't hurt anyone since it's trapped against Spice's chair, "That would be amazing!" Just then Elias and Shane start bringing out bowls of a thick, savory beef stew with loaves of homemade sourdough bread.
Cinnamon is beaming almost as much as Josie is wagging -- things are going absolutely splendidly, she thinks! She thanks Shane for the food, sniffing happily at it as she waits for everyone to be served before starting, "Wow, this smells absolutely fantastic, Elias!"
Thorn hops up to help with serving, adding, "It does -- it smells fantastic!"
Elias nods and settles, holding but not drinking from a mug of tea -- he likes the various aromas teas have, "Thank you! It's an old recipe and I haven't pulled it out in quite a while... and my sourdough starter was going to riot if I didn't actually bake something with it at some point soon." Cinnamon giggles at that! The vampire leans back in his chair and smiles, "Incidentally, my dear... I received a very grateful thank you letter about the money donation. I did not disabuse them of their erroneous notion that it was 100% my doing, as I assumed you wished to stay anonymous for some reason."
Cinnamon blushes hotly, at first staring intently at her bowl... but then she remembers Marcus and Shane gently chiding her about hiding. She takes a very deep breath, then slowly raises her head and tries to reply with calm confidence. Her voice only shakes a little -- which she hopes no one notices -- as she says, "I, I am-m-m... sorry? B-but I... I w-was, ummm..." She darts a quick, furtive glance at Shane -- whew, he's smiling at her! -- then continues with a smidge more confidence, "I, umm... sh-should have said it was a group effort I'm sorry I er I s-sometimes f-forget to, t-to mention... m-myself?" She winces as once again her sentence ends with a nervous squeak!
Thorn smiles quietly as Cinnamon explains what happened and why... and Elias nods, "That's a good thing to realize." His eyes are kind as he smiles his slightly-terrifying smile... though even Kestrel is used to it at this point. After all, in their animal form they too have a mouthful of very sharp teeth.
Sparrow chuckles and nods, "Oh yeah. The rezzes that got money from us..." he makes a motion between himself and Kestrel, "were told that it was a group effort and we were just the nominal donors because the rest just wished to remain anonymous."
Shane would have just settled in the floor as well, but since Cinnamon sat on a loveseat, he took the other side. He leans in and nuzzles into her hair, murmuring, "Proud of you." Cinnamon blushes hotly again at the nuzzle, though her nervous squeak is a little softer than usual... mostly because she turns and hides her heated face against Shane's shoulder! Shane slides an arm around Cinnamon and smiles, though he doesn't explain the gentle, loving lecture he and Marcus gave her. Cinnamon gets a bit limp as she relaxes into Shane's hug, and sighs gustily -- that was surprisingly hard to do! It feels like Shane approved, though, thank goodness... and oooh, the stew still smells awesome! She takes a deep breath, then slowly straightens enough to nervously face the room again. Her smile is a little shaky, but no one seems disapproving... whew! Thank goodness again. She'll start eating her stew along with everyone else.
Sparrow is rubbing a hand up and down one of Kestrel's calves. He looks around the room as he asks, "So... we votin' Aoi out or what?"
Cinnamon sighs at that, feeling bad for poor Aoi... even if the beautiful phoenix truly is deeply in the wrong, as far as caring for her people. "I... wish... that I, I... d-didn't feel that... like that would be the ethical thing to do? Though... I guess it really mostly depends on Tao, doesn't it? If he feels he can't or doesn't want the job, then... umm..." She glances worriedly at her friends, "W-what do, er... all of you think?" She adds wryly, "She's in New York right now -- did you know? Something about being able to better defend herself, or something? Which... is not... I mean, it kind of sounds almost... threatening?"
Spice snorts and kicks a foot at Sparrow, proving that everyone knows he wouldn't hurt anyone over something so unserious, "Way to put everyone on the fuckin' spot, you old shit-disturber." Cinnamon smiles at that, obscurely relieved at Spice abruptly lessening the tension in the room. The little dragon has some more stew as she waits for others to share their thoughts as well.
Sparrow arches a brow and grins at Spice, "Chiquita, it's my goddamned job to put people on the spot." Spice looks down to see... somehow, she's now wearing an elf-shoe! She frowns perplexedly at it, wondering where her Doc Martens went. Sparrow winks at her before turning to the room with a sigh, "She's retreated to a space that's got a bigger, more populous Chinatown is what it sounds like. It's also got a small enclave there that Jarek could walk into and come out with somethin' like a small army -- and don't let's get started on the number of Dominicans and Puerto Ricans and such that Nasteexo could rally. It's not solely a stronghold for Her. I think she's sensing her grip slipping."
Elias looks somewhat sad, but nods, "I think... we may have to. I respect her, but she is not doing her job correctly. I once worried that Marcus might have to be voted out, but he's turning out to be an excellent councilor now that he's... ah..."
Sparrow smirks, "Got his head out of his ass?"
Elias nods at that and chuckles quietly. Cinnamon too nods in agreement with Sparrow's comment, though she's unwittingly taking it more seriously than he. A moment later she somewhat confusedly asks, "Though, um... what does it matter that it's not just a stronghold for her, please? I mean... I kinda assumed she just wanted to get more energy for the next council meeting? So... are you saying it's something else?"
Elias smiles at Cinnamon, "What he's saying is that it's nothing to worry about. You said something about it sounding dangerous, I think?"
Cinnamon shakes her head, "No, more that it sounded vaguely threatening. Like... does she really think we're going to attack..." Her voice trails off as she thinks a bit... and then she murmurs thoughtfully, "Ooh, that's right -- she didn't see anything of what happened at the meeting where Qadan had us attacked... so she doesn't know we all worked together on that. So... she might actually not be sure she won't be ganged up on physically -- and I bet she'll feel ganged up on at least emotionally, if folks try to vote her out."
Sparrow nods slowly, "Ah. I see. She's seeking refuge and wants to have some power in reserve when she comes to the meeting. But that's only a temporary placeholder."
Josie nods solemnly, "She's letting her people be hurt and go without." She frowns, "I've actually gone home and helped chop firewood when it's gotten really bad on some of the rezzes!"
Sparrow nods, "Exactly, Jo. But you an' me? We're fuckin' savages, in her eyes."
Cinnamon sighs again at that, glumly wishing she could tell them both they're wrong. Unfortunately... she suspects her saying that would make Shane wince. "I'm so sorry. I wish I had a better answer... but all I've got is Tao as an answer, you know?"
Sparrow smiles wryly and nods, "Tao is a good answer -- an excellent answer, even. He is, after all, The Way." He grins broadly for a second... but then his face goes serious, "He knows about this, right? We won't be springing this shit on him out of nowhere, right?"
Cinnamon shakes her head, "I think he came up with the idea, actu- wait, no. Shane angrily mentioned it, and Tao just nodded like he'd already realized it. Umm... did you know..." She pauses, trying to figure out how to politely say, 'She lied to him about me and Nusantara!' The little dragon doesn't want to sound whiny, after all.
Elias leans forward, brows furrowed, "Know what, draga?"
Shane scowls, "Aoi lied to Tao about Nusantara and my acushla! Caused him to get all irritated and come storming into the office at Currier's."
Cinnamon blushes with embarrassment... but sheepishly nods, "He had Jaw-long with him too, so he knew we were telling him the truth... even if he didn't trust Shane, which would be stupid... and honestly, I think he did?"
Sparrow looks livid, "That's a new low...!"
Josie frowns, looking unwontedly serious, "She... she thought that she could get away with that? Yeah. We gotta get someone on the Council who cares more about her people than saving face."
Elias sighs, standing, "I'm going to get the muffins for dessert. I think those of us on the Council here have made a decision."
Cinnamon nods silently, a bit wide-eyed at a livid Sparrow! "I, umm... think Marcus may agree with us too... considering he was there as well?"
Sparrow's voice is very quiet and very even, "She not only neglected her people... she lied about it?" Cinnamon blinks, reflexively (and unwittingly) leaning back just a little as she gives one small, silent nod. She feels... almost guilty, somehow, even though she knows it's not her fault. Sparrow shakes his head, "Not. Acceptable." Again, his voice is quiet... clipped... even. Everyone here knows Sparrow doesn't get loud when he's angry. Instead he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath... and a smile settles over his features again, "But not our problem for much longer."
Cinnamon is unwittingly leaning back against Shane by now, her eyes a little wide behind her glasses as she squeaks, "S... sorry? I, um... th-think Snow and -- a-and Jalil and Nasteexo... all agree too? S-so that'd be, umm... seven or eight of us right there?"
Sparrow shakes his head, "You've nothing to be sorry for, darlin'." After that, someone manages to steer the conversation away from politics and onto more playful, personal subjects, while people nibble on muffins and drink tea or mead or wine. It's quite late at night when everyone finally heads home, replete and warm with happiness.
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