Kas Sun, 15 Feb 1998 6:03p.m.
Kas, lamb in tow, was once more adrift in the great
hall, but she was in time to see Lady Niki present the Friendship Ring to the Warrior. She nodded to herself - it was a good choice - although it served as a reminder that a week had already gone by.
"I could be a dog," she thought. "My life is going just as quickly! But it should hardly matter here... there is no such thing as time." So she dismissed the whole idea from her mind and decided to concentrate on other things instead.
Scooping the lamb up in her arms, she put it on a table and knelt so that she was eye-to-eye with it.
"How am I going to get to know all these people? It's hard just trying to match names and faces in my head."
In response the lamb leapt down and scampered towards the double doors. Where it stopped and looked back, as if to say, "What
are you waiting for?" Kas sighed and hurried to catch up. The lamb kept going - away from the celebrations in the great hall - away from the thumping beat of the music - and up the stairs.
Listsibs often made a home for themselves in the Halls of Mist, and being the magical place that it was, the building accommodated itself to their needs. Kas had made herself a cosy little room with plants and vines draped over the walls, framing beautiful postcards featuring the work of famous artists (Monet, Franz Marc, Chagall, Mucha, Parrish, the Pre-Raphaelites)
and posters from movies (A Room with a View, Three Colours Blue, Romeo and Juliet, Titanic, etc.) All available wallspace was
taken up with postcards - Kas liked to paper her room to give things a "lived-in" feel - like her dorm in Wollongong.
Her chamber in the Halls of Mist had three features she was extremely proud of. The first was a retractable roof so that if she wanted to, she could go to sleep with the constellations wheeling above her head in their finery. The second was the surround-sound stereo system that had been built-in along with the sound-proofing. And the third was a black baby grand piano -
a Kawaii - whose keys never needed tuning.
The lamb seemed to know exactly where to go for it nosed the door open and head straight for the farthest corner where Kas'
computer terminal sat hooked up in a web of wires and plants. It nudged the mouse and the "Romeo and Juliet" screensaver dissolved, leaving the tulip-covered background. Immediately the lamb jumped in and shrunk.
"No!" Kas rushed towards the monitor but the lamb seemed to be having plenty of fun. It baa-ed gently to her through the
screen interface, rearing up on its hind trotters to beg like a dog. Then with a laugh it was running all over the desktop, opening applications, shutting others and causing great threads of text to stream all over the place.
"What are you doing?" she cried. But it soon became clear - the lamb was compiling a database:
- ADRIENNE
"Who is she?" said Kas to herself. "Oh yes - I remember. She is very friendly - talks to a lot of people. And I think I
overheard her having a
discussion about Krebain and Leareth with Barb and the
One Who Seeks. Last
I saw she was dancing with Skywolf."
- AERDEN THE HEALER/(green firelizard)
"Aerden... Aerden... ah yes, saw him briefly before
with a green firelizard on his shoulder. He made several song requests - 'Black Flame' or 'Mother Russia' by Renaissance."
- ANA/ILI (sloathe)
"Oh yes - she came when she was on her way to the
computer lab and was welcomed by Ili. She was also the first one to discover Ilia the page when she went hunting for clothes to wear. At the moment she's at the DJ's booth, helping with the karaoke and the music selections."
- BARBARA/(sheep)
"She just met a sheep. Perhaps a relation of yours?"
Kas raised her eyebrow at the lamb but the lamb ignored her.
- CENYDD MAGE OF GREEN SILENCES
"Well, everyone knows who he is. He is the one who started this whole thing off by presenting the Friendship Ring to Lady Niki. A
very handsome and distinguished man."
- FALLENANGEL/ISIS (Panther)
"Storyline Monitor for the Story Circle (who are still
deciding on a name - Carson suggested 'Bardic Circle'). Isis is her bondmate - a winged black panther. They make a marvellous pair, I thought!"
- FLOWER FAIRY
"Small, dressed in a blue gown that shimmers in the
light with silver
spirals on the hem. She's the one who made those
gorgeous edible roses."
- ILIA THE PAGE
"Insists on addressing everyone formally no matter
what. But a very
diligent young thing."
- ISOBELLE
"I don't know much about her really - just that she
isn't too pleased to be
stuck in the company of Countess Twinkie Fluffenutter."
- JEANNE RIVERWOLF/JARETH & CHEYLASA
(Dese'ala'ima'quah - fairy humans)
"She accidentally got doused with custard by Torell
when she first arrived.
He almost did the same thing to her friends - Jareth
and Cheylasa - only
with mousse au chocolat. Jeanne's had quite a bit of
dunking - Yvonne got
her too with the saltwater."
- LADY NIKI
"The first Bearer of the Friendship Ring. She's been
getting to know many
people but out of all of them, she chose to pass the
Ring onto the Warrior."
- LADY OF THE WATER-BORNE (Yvonne Shadowshape -Goddess of Kelpies, Selkies, and the other Water-Borne, Knight of Fluff)
"Likes to dump saltwater on newbies with her bucket.
Is also one of the Knights of Fluff."
- LANI HUNTER (LadyKnight of Fairygrove)
"I don't know much about her either. She arrived
wearing a blue cape and
she had on this sumptuous burgundy and silver gown. I
don't know where
she's gotten to since."
- MARK THE TAX ZOMBIE
"Last I saw, he was in the library. It is a shame that
he must spend his
time doing taxes - I didn't think that such things
existed around the Halls
of Mist."
- THE MINSTREL
"Was attending to Lady Sophia, Goddess of Music and
Song, but then got
side-tracked by the karaoke. Hopefully we will hear
her play later."
- TROLL
"He's dressed in white. I think his name is Muranog
Shadowbane but we
haven't been introduced yet."
- RAINBOW/DEE'RINA
(Animiian)/ (Pegasus)
"Confused no longer I hope! She and her Pegasus friend
Dee has generously
graced us with her presence!"
- RAVEN (sword - Darkblade)/TRISTAN (Raven)
"I suspect she is very skilled with that sword of
hers. She is disdainful
of social custom and prefers to wear chain mail and
elvin silk instead of a
gown. Tristan sort of adopted her and now won't go
away."
- SAMANTHA (Bard in Training)
"I just saw her briefly while she was reading."
- SEASHIMMER
"I think she is more of a watcher than a participant.
She had just created
this beautiful silver fog though when we left the
great hall."
- SHADOWBLADE (also known as Blade)/YNYS
(Unicorn)/DANAA (Fairy)
"She's responsible for the bubbles and the great
selection of music we've
been having. She also conjured up a hi-fi set - wish I
could learn that
trick! Wonder what will happen when Ynys meets Dee."
- SHADOWDANCER/LURKER (Wolf)
"Brown hair, hazel eyes. She received an image of a
woman out in the storm
and she and Lurker went to rescue her. She kept watch
through the night and
the following morning she and the Stranger came back
together."
- SHADOWWOLF (second "W" capitalised - "ShadowWolf")
"Master-thief and skillful dancer. He requested Celine
Dion's rendition of
'My Heart Will Go On' - which really is a beautiful
song. James Horner is a
genius." Kas slid onto the piano stool and played a
couple of bars for a
moment.
- SHANTAYA AUTUMNLEAF (Were-cougar)/TORELL (Jester)
"Shantaya and Torell arrived together. Torell dumped
custard on Jeanne
Riverwolf and is now running around with chocolate
mousse. He failed his
bard's examination five times. As for Shantaya, she is
a were-cougar which
means that she must go out hunting in cougar form
every new moon."
- SKYWOLF/MISHA (Wolf)
"Collects taglines. Appeared out of nowhere at the
Coffee Cat to bring her
friend Rob to the dance floor in the great hall. She
is teaching others
too. Misha has mind-speech as well as an insatiable
appetite."
- SORANA SHADOWCAT (Goddess of Flions)
"What are Flions? She arrived at the same time as
Yvonne - only she flew
instead of stepping out of a pool of saltwater."
- SORCHAFYR (Also known as Sorcha. Knight of Fluff)
"She was present at the first ring-giving ceremony but
I haven't seen her
since."
- STASIA
"Friend of Niki's, sings 'Indigo Girls.'"
- STRANGER
"This was the woman that Shadowdancer found out in the
cold. She is like
Seashimmer - prefers to watch."
- SUNCHILD
"She comes from the mountains and sports two braids
which sweetly frame her
face. I think she's elvin."
- THE WARRIOR
"Second Bearer of the Ring. She doesn't have a name...
yet."
- YOUNG MAN
"I saw him wandering around - a voice spoke to him and
he promised to take
a more active role in things. He seemed rather nice."
The lamb finished organising the data and then waited
at the edge of the screen expectantly. Kas looked at it.
"Well, what is it? We're done, aren't we? Isn't that
everybody?"
The sheep started to look reproachful.
"Oh yes... I forgot us...."
32. KAS/(sheep) -
"Hang on, you don't have a name. What's your name
anyway?"
The lamb jumped out of the screen and adeptly skipped
over the keys on the keyboard, spelling out -
- S-H-O-R
"Shor it is. My, you do type fast."
Shor baa-ed happily and then continued skipping over
the keys.
"A PORTRAIT GALLERY WOULD BE NICE."
"Good point," said Kas thoughtfully. "All the members
of the Halls of Mist up in one room. And it would make it easy for everyone to get to know everyone else - matching names to faces and all that. Let's go look for an artist - perhaps they would be willing to paint everyone's likeness."
Carson Sun, 15 Feb 1998 7:49p.m.
The as-of-yet nameless (don't suppose anyone wants to
help out with finding a name? :> ) minstrel squirms her way towards the Karaoke booth, just in time to hear the words "Indigo Girls" and something about needing someone for
harmony, and a moment later someone else volunteering
to help out. Oh, well, she'll just have to think of something else to sing. She moves over to the karaoke controller person and asks, "What about Loreena McKennitt's 'All Soul's Night'? Can I get in line to sing that one?"
Ana Sun, 15 Feb 1998 10:10p.m.
Ana blinked, "you say I forgot *what* Ilia?"
"You forgot some other requests, here's the list."
Ana glanced at the list, and then looked back at Ilia, "You'll have to wait on the 'Safety Dance' ok?"
Ilia just nodded, then poured herself a glass of blood
wine.
Ana went back to the CD changer, *alright, more Loreena McKennitt and Sarah McLachlan-'Tango to Evora', and 'Ice'.*
"Is nice music!"
Ana grinned, "So it is Ili, so it is..."
Niki Mon, 16 Feb 1998 3:56p.m.
Lady Niki grabs Stasia's hand and they run over to the
karaoke machine. Niki is looking forward to belting out a song or two. But first she's going to get something to drink. She's feeling a bit warm. In fact, she has the sneaking suspicion she's been (gently) flamed. She thinks perhaps she'll try to keep her conversations brief for a little while --
she does have that tendency to circle around and
around a point, taking quite some time before she finally moves in for the kill. Well, if she
stay busy singing, she can keep out of trouble. ;o}
Shadowblade Mon, 16 Feb 1998 5:28p.m.
ShadowWolf wrote:
"Before ShadowWolf can say anything she says "Quick, let's get out on the dance floor before Ana changes her mind." They walk
out on the dance floor leaving Ana in charge of the booth for now."
"Now, now...would I be so mean?" Blade arches an eyebrow at her chief. At his nod, she laughed. _Well, I'm _finally_ up and
moving!_ The song changed just as they stepped onto the floor... A nice fast one with an upbeat tempo..._Wonder where Ana found _that_ one..._ Moving to the beat to catch the rhythm, Blade conjured away her black robe to be replaced by a black shirt and jeans -- much more suited to dancing. Her boots remained where they were of course.
Dancing to the beat of the night, she wonders why ShadowWolf looks so uncomfortable.... _Must be the stiff attire._ She
grinned wickedly at his attempts to dance in formal robes.
Rainbow suddenly called out for "Amazing Grace"/"I will survive", Blade looked up and yelled back, "'Amazing Grace' is Far too spiritual and solemn! Let it be "I will Survive then!" Looking around, she spots the Minstrel and mindcalls to her, :Heyla Minstrel! You're up after Rainbow OK?: At the Minstrel's answering nod, Blade _politely_ asked Ana to pause awhile after
the dance track and let the Karaoker's do a turn. Ana grinned over to her and gave a thumbs up signal over the hi-fi.
_All set! Ahh, what a wonderful thing is telepathy!_
:I'll say, I won't be able to enjoy anything otherwise!:
_Ynys!_
:Duh! Anys, I'll see you when this huge party is over. Something's up at the other End, Danaa's going with me. Don't wait up! The ghosts agreed to stay behind and takeup watch-duty...:
_Oh. OK! Cya!_
Turning her attention back to the dance, she continued dancing. "Hey, hey.. here's a move I learned from MTV!"
Aldric Mon, 16 Feb 1998 10:18p.m.
So, the warrior is the newly choosen one (so to speak). How fitful. Maybe I'll get to talk to the warrior later. But as for
now, I must dance. Wait, wait, wait. I wouldn't want to embarce anybody so maybe I'll just sit this one out. The next though, I promise to dance (unless I change my mind). All these people, I could just stay in the shadows forever. Is it just me or is
it that once you have been in the shadows they seem to
draw to you. It is like you must stay there. Well no more. I will dance. Yes that is what I will do. "Excuse me, anybody want to dance?" Maybe I should grab one of my fellow lurkers. No, that would not be polite. I will just dance by myself,
looking like the biggest fool. But at least I am dancing.
"Oh boy, what a dance--I am so tired. I think maybe I will just rest a few and laugh at (I mean with, really) the Karaoke
people."
"I'm going to have to start talking to people before I have to stop talking. You over there, yes I'm pointing at you.
Let's talk. No? Okay. Oh, hey how about...you? Where did he go, it's like he disappeared into the shadows of lurkdom."
Hey, what do you think about that, think there is
some special place where lurkers go. Maybe it's really awesome there and that is why they never come out. I don't know. I must go and ponder this...
"Excuse me, can any one tell me where I can go to ponder the
thoughts floating in my head? Help would be most generous. Oh, and can you also tell me where the bathroom is, I'm dying here."
Lady Sophia Mon, 16 Feb 1998 10:34p.m.
From a terrace atop the Castle of Mist, the small figure in silvery white turns from contemplating the far reaches of the sea. A tiny smile quirks the corner of her mouth as she notices the minstrel deserting the White Hall. With a tiny gesture
of her fingers, she ensures that music will continue playing in the hall, for people to dance or listen to, while the minstrel
is dancing.
As she re-enters the Hall, she notices the Lady Niki passing the
Friendship Ring to the Warrior, and nods in approval. A few people look up as the silvery fanfare accompanies the transfer.
The Lady Sophia glances toward the karaoke machine, and shakes her head in amusement. Well, the Elven-Archer of Fairgrove - whom she is pleased to note is still wearing her magic arrows - and her friends seem to have the matters well in hand, and they know who to pray or tithe to, if the need help with the music. The Lady Sophia's eyes glow momentarily as she monitors the music
flowing throughout the Castle of Mist. Satisfied, she begins to descend the winding staircase, as Loreena McKennitt fills the
Hall...
Lady Guenevere Tue, 17 Feb 1998 12:12a.m.
The doors to the Hall of MIST open, and a young woman with long brown hair and green eyes walks in. She is dressed in flowing robes that sway around her as she walks, and a wolf follows closely behind her. She asks the wolf to wait for her in the woods outside since there already seems to be quite a menagerie forming. She nods to the many familiar faces, and turns towards
the new ones.
"Hello," she says smiling, "I don't think many of us have officially met, since the world beyond has commanded far too much of my attention lately and I have been forced to lurk in the shadows listening to the wonderful thoughts and comments you have made. Hopefully soon I will once again be able to join in on the discussion with the same regularity I did when I first encountered these Halls a year ago. The science of politics and the need to find a new home have taken my attention away, as well as some surgery I had to undergo in January. My name is Lady Guenevere. I am pleased to meet you all, and am happy to see that the Mage has started an interesting party."
She turns and walks to a corner of the room. She unstraps her sword and leans it against the wall. She knows she will not need it here since she is among friends. From her bags she pulls out a long silver flute. At first, to honor Lady Niki, she tries to play the Talking Heads on it, but it does not seem to sound right. Instead she sets off into a Celtic reel for everyone to dance to.
Fallenangel Tue, 17 Feb 1998 1:06a.m.
Fallenangel moves forward into the hall, listening to interesting
conversations but not joining in any, finding she doesn't really have any reason to de-lurk *completely* as of yet. She hums along to Gloria Gaynor's 'I Will Survive' when she suddenly hears the DJ call for '80s music. A smile spreads over her face and she moves in the direction of the Karaoke machine when a heavy weight presses against her knees.
:You aren't thinking of singing!: her bondmate Isis says, her eyes wide with alarm.
:Why not?: Fallenangel replies. :It won't be like last time, I promise. There isn't any glass I can break...not much, anyway.:
She steps over Isis and drifts forward to request 'Harden my Heart' by Quarterflash. Waiting her turn to sing, Fallenangel wanders off to the banquet table, (her winged panther bondmate following, ears laid back) humming softly. "Gonna harden my heart, gonna swallow my tears, gonna turn...and...leave...you here...."
Adrienne Tue, 17 Feb 1998 2:27a.m.
Adrienne quietly slips out from dancing, promising herself and her nearby friends that she will return just as soon as she can :)
Megan Tue, 17 Feb 1998 3:05a.m.
Megan notices two new figures materializing along the walls of the Hall of Mist. Sure enough it's Reighvyn Emrys who is bold enough to say: Ok. First of all, I'm new here. Megan creeps around one of the madly dancing minstrals and......POUNCE,POUNCE !! Welcome to the List, Reighvyn (just how do you
pronounce your name. It looks Welsh) We have a little madness going on right now, but we're glad you dropped in for the party.
Megan looks around. ....."Oh Kelpie........"
Then she turns to Catsai "And POUNCE, POUNCE to you too. Welcome.
The story was started on Friday, Feb 6 by our illustrious Mage of Green Silences when he gifted Lady Niki with a Friendship Ring which is to be passed on each Friday to someone else. It was done to liven up the list a bit.......but only proved the ancient caution "Be careful what you wish for". You will soon find the whole thing in the digest. (I'm not sure how long it
takes Mel to put it there. Judging by the volume of mail it started, it could take a little while)
Skywolf Tue, 17 Feb 1998 3:54a.m.
Skywolf peered around the Hall happily while taking a breather on the side. The music had veered off from swing to karaoke to 80's to much more. A little tough to swing to, but if there's a will, there WILL be a way. Rob leaned over to Skywolf while absently patting Misha on the head.
"This is sooo cool! How'd you meet all these people in the first place?" he asked.
"Well, "said Skywolf, "It all started out with a common interest..." and the explanation went on. Rob, being a more mystery minded person, listened avidly. While they were talking, Skywolf noticed another wolf enter the Hall. It hung back a bit, lurking half in, half out of the shadows.
:Misha, : Skywolf began, but Misha had already noticed him.
:I'm off: came the reply, and she vanished off through the crowd with a flip of the tail.
After a while, Rob had to return--thinking that their friends at Coffee Cat would be absolutly frantic with worry. It was usual for Skywolf to vanish for a week at a time, but for Rob to go with her, was, well, highly stressful. With Rob safely returned, Skywolf reentered the party in a cheerful mood. Heading over to the DJ, she whistled some Pink Floyd.
"Hey Ana, could you please please please play "Under Pressure" by Queen and Bowie for me after the karaoke? Please? With cherry flavored sheep on top?" she said with a huge smile that lit up her golden eyes. She tossed her long black hair (now out of its formal hairdue for swing dancing) over her shoulder impatiently.
"Sure, " Ana said, giving Skywolf a wink. "I'll get back to you for those sheep, though." Skywolf grinned back and went to find something to drink.
Morgana Tue, 17 Feb 1998 6:18p.m.
In a small enclave off of the Hall of MIST, Morgana raises her head. :Music. Good music. Wonder if anyone will request Concrete Blonde. Especially Tomorrow Wendy.: The Karaoke catches her ear. Oh! She rises up, and walks over to the entrace. Seeing everyone dance and sing, she smiles, then glances up. Oh... my... how beautful, skydancing.
As the fog starts to drift, Morgana floats out into the hall, keeping out of the others way. :I could go and talk, but everyone expresses everything so well. What if I just repeat what everyone else is saying?: She decides to stay where she is, and smiles.
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