Ari walked to the fire, and rook off her boots, and headed towards Ballad to join her in the surf, to let the water splash on her feet

At Ariadne's laughter (This is Fantastic) and Jade calling her name (Ballad!), Ballad turns away from the churning sea to hail her cousins. She flashes trademark lopsided smile, dimple very much in evidence. The whole of her body language says: glad you're here! Glad to hear you! Glad to see you! Glad glad glad!! A wave rushes in, but she's beginning to move away from the water to meet her fellows.

"Hooray, Ari! I'm so glad you approve, and -- " a little squeak as Jade reaches her and Ballad returns the hug, whole-hearted and laughing. " -- Jade! Have I mentioned how I love night get togethers best of all? How was the city? Did you all have many adventures?" She sounds wistful, as if she'd've liked to be having adventures with her cousins down in the city too.

"Oh we had a few, yes !"

"There herald sketching with decisions being made and remade, pastries making their rounds, and axes being thrown."

Ari smirked
"Our dear cousin Jon almost murdered an old lady, but we made sure she wouldn't bother us again."
She looked playfully at Jon before facing Ballad again.
"All in all, nothing too exciting.  What have you been up to?  Besides being the perfect hostess, of course?"

“'Made and remade'?” Ballad echoes Jade, curiously. “Did you change your mind about the lighthouse and tentacles…? Axes thro—?”

She looks from Jade to Ariadne. The moonlight silvers the beach. From the vantage point of in the water, the torches throw squiggly lines of golden fire on the wet sand; it’s all lovely, foam slipping up and away. Ballad’s eyebrows leap upwards at: our dear cousin Jon almost murdered an old lady, and she looks Jonwards, too. She's pretty sure they're joking. She grins.

"Oh, sure. Doesn't sound exciting at all! And yet I find I wish I'd gone to the city with you lot even more than I already wished it! What did the old woman do to inspire such wrath? Was there axe juggling as well as throwing? Who won the hour? As for what I've been up to, well..."

"I'll tell you! But first, do you lot want to eat and talk or splash and talk?" Ballad, always ready to be playful, backs a little further into the surf, lowering her hands toward the water in a definitely going to splash you sort of way. But she's far too gallant to do it immediately, without warning. At least, that's the air she's putting on. Mischief. Innocence? Mischief. ...Innocence?

"Ezra said people might take my idea to mean ill will towards Amber, so I changed it so that I wouldn't have to deal with even more sailors cursing me. Oh ! the old woman really didn't do anything she was just in the wrong place when we held an ax throwing contest, Ariadne won the day !"

Ari walked out into the surf a little, sighing happily as he feet moved through the wet sand.  She reached down to catch some water in her hands, then brought it to her mouth to taste it briefly.  It was salty and briny, of course, but so clean.  Cleaner even than the waters of Hawaii.
She stretched out her arms as she looked out onto the horizon, and smiled.
"This is just beautiful."

Jon grins broadly at the sight and the excitement of Jade and Air.  He stops and helps the guard bring all of the items we collected.  As he starts down the path, he stops and stares as catches site of Ballad just as she is turning. For a moment time stopped for him as his gaze fell on Ballad and then Jade and the juxtaposition of the two and Ari dark and mysterious their beauty left him stunned for a moment.  Luckily for him, the distance and the darkness hide his blush.

Recovering, he looks to the guard "That is an amazing sight. Not one I shall soon forget." *smiles*

As he nears, he hears Ari's version of the Axe throwing. Gives her a grin. "The old women did nothing to earn my wrath, but she surely must have done something to the Axe.  For I attempt to hit the tree that Ari and Jade did, but I missed and the axe flew straight and true, just missing her.  Axes are definitely not my strongest weapon." *chuckles* "But we sent a guard to identify her and I plan to meet and apologize to her."

He sets down this load, take a moment to look around, "Ballad, this is amazing! You organized a beautiful setting." he then nods to the guard and the servants "And you both did a wonderful job executing her vision.  Thank you."

Ballad nods her understanding when Jade explains why she changed her crest. She draws her fingers through the water, combing the wave. The water flirts: it draws back, then surges forward a gentle billow. Oh! Jade says, and Ariadne won the day, and Ballad smiles at them both.

Their answer seems to be implicitly: let is frolick in the water, not eat yet, so she flings a handful of saltwater up in a vaguely-you-are-goingt-be-splashed-next way, wiggling her eyebrows at Jade. But then:

"I am glad you all like it. All due credit to Aymer and Emmaline for the idea! And candlelight. Candlelight always deserves credit. Does it feel good, Jade, to look upon the silver shore, and know yourself home? I am so glad you're all here."

"Jon, did you bring a game?" Look, she may be sentimental, all romantic heart and feeling, but only now and again. Games! She splashes toward Ariadne and Jade again, just teasingly. "Speaking of games, do any of you know how to play poker? Uncle Random wants more people to play with. That's what I was doing with some of the evening."

Jade turned and smiled kicking up some of the water, "I love it. Perfect location. I get to feel the ocean on my skin again and hear the call of the sea. I am quite happy." Jade only reluctantly now came over for a bit of food.

Ariadne raised an amused eyebrow.
"You people have poker here?  You seem more like a bridge or gin rummy crowd.  Or maybe Cribbage.  That was big in my neighborhood."
She wriggled her toes in the sand

Jade says, "Well we brought some throwing axes, and we brought some shoes and spikes." to Ballad.

"I wish I'd brought a guitar "

“I think poker is just about ubiquitous—though I find there are variant rules. You’ll have to play Random and compare your Earth rules against Amber’s rules. I think I've played all those games you’ve mentioned except bridge—how's that one work, do you build a bridge out of the cards and whisk glasses of drink under it, trying not to knock the card-bridge down?” Ballad’s keen, naturally. And if a game of chance can be turned into a drinking game, why, why not?

But then: “Ha! I wanted to hunt down a guitar or a fiddle, but I didn't think I had time. Next picnic." A promise. "What song would you play right now?” Ballad asks Ariadne, gracefully collapsing onto one of the cushions. She rolls onto her side, propping her head up on her fist in order to look at Jade.

“Throwing axes, shoes, and spikes; what an interesting game that sounds like it might make," gaze gone inquiring, from Jade to Jon, then back to Jade. "Oh! Did Ezra have a reply to my note?” She looks hopeful and starry and Jade's the keeper of all her hopes.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:29, Sat 23 Jan 2021.

In reply to Ballad (msg # 18):

Ariadne smiled
"I'm no musician,  per se, but i know a few pop songs and a couple of medieval ballads.   Nothing special,  but fun when everyone is drinking "

Jade nods, "Yes, Ezra said the design was fine and he had no problems with it. Oh that reminds me, where is Lance. Lance sent his heraldic design to Ezra as well, and I got the messenger to talk, we found Lance was running off to camp in the woods somewhere. Do you know where he might have gone ? Is he going to join us this night ?"

Ballad did not submit a design for herself, so Jade's response does not make sense. Before getting to Lance, she wants to get this straightened out and interrupts accordingly. "Wait, wait, please. That was what Ezra said to my note and question? And the sketch?"

As focused as she is, well, for Lance she wants everybody to have drinks, so she'll get up and start pouring and passing around. Metal cups. Juice or something fizzy or fresh water.

"Well he said gargoyles were more common to our enemy during the Black Road War, He said gongs were used now and again in Golden circle kingdoms, uhm Cibola, Jaday I can't remember the other. There was another. He said primarily Jaday though. The Pegasi he said some shadows near Amber they believe the Unicorn could grow wings, he said he rather liked that. That is what he specifically said about the note you gave me to hand to him."

"Jade, you're a dollop of cream and honey fresh from the comb!" Jade gets a drink and another hug. "Thank you for carrying that message. He just told you his reply, didn't write anything? Our enemy during the Black Road War, huh? Did he happen to say how he knew that?" Earnest. Ballad, turned thoughtful as she finishes pouring. Then: "What do you all think, since it won't upset any petty noble in Amber, should I try to find a pegasus for a mount?"

Jade beamed at the praise as if standing in the sun.
"No written reply, as to how he knew that about the gargoyle, you should see the man's home. He has things from all over. He said he knew it from some broken banners and a cloak clasp that were left from that war." Jade checked her pocket book but was pretty sure Ezra didn't give a written reply. (GM if I am forgetting I would hand it to Ballad.)

She then turned to behold Ballad fully, "That would be a wonderful idea, you could ride across the land or fly through the heavens, I should love to see such a sight."

*smiles* "Yes, I brought a improvised version of a game from home."

He then listens to them, "Poker, yes, I am also familiar with that game.  Many of the guards and Rangers play it."

He sits back watching the women play in the surf before returning for drinks.
He hears the question about Lance and the Note.

"Indeed, Ezra's home was quite full of various items.  But what Jade said matches my memory of his reply.  What does it mean Ballad?"

*chuckles* "Well, you can get a pegasus in my home.  A griffen as well.  or a Roc.  We have dragons as well, but very few ever allow themselves to be mounts.  They are proud creatures."

Jade looks to Jon and then Ballad, "I have heard of poker but I have never gotten to play. Odile taught me a game with the family cards but it is different. Is poker hard to learn ?"

She then looked more to Jon, "I would like to visit your home sometime."

*smiles* "I look forward to taking you there and introducing you to my mother and friends." he then looks to Ari and Ballad "All of you." *grins* "Maya is going to love you."

“Don’t be shy about asking Uncle Random for a game, Jon. He says nobody will play him and he's not one of those who get so stiff with intensity you think they're going to snap if things don't go their own way. I’d say it’s fairly easy to learn, Jade--I’ll teach you if you like! What sort of game did Odile know to do with the family cards? What card games do they play in Rebma?”

Ballad listens with interest to Jade and Jon’s account of Ezra’s house. The corner of her mouth quirks up as Jade regards her; says she’d love to see such a sight. And the corners of her eyes crinkle, when Jon says pegasi and rocs and dragons oh my are all to be found in the Faewylds. "So many beasties in the Faewylds," remarks she. "Thank you for the invitation. As for what it means, Ezra's answer, it may mean nothing at all. But it may also be proof of a connection between the gray men and the Courts of Chaos. I found something with that image on my gray man after he died, you see."

Then: Ballad lifts her cup. "Friends, I propose a toast." She'll wait (Ballad has a fine sense of the dramatic, you see; of timing and poise, where it marries a certain kind of grace) for assent. Then, "To Lance ab Flora, may his Patternwalk bring him happiness, and may that happiness stay longer than an hour." And then, "I saw Lance in the library. He walked the Pattern this morning and has gone off into shadow on an errand."

"Oh it was one using the major arcana sadly we are not in it yet to cause trouble in the game. Where ones goal is to try and gain forces to beat ones opponent if you will, a chance to win the throne of Amber."

"In Rebma we don't really play cards, instead we play lots of board games, as well as games like chess, checkers, dolphins and sharks, coral chest and capture, things like that." Jade is smiling, "I didn't get to play them that much but the queen was kind enough to indulge me from time to time."

"Oh speak with Ezra then, it might take him a while to find something in his house but then you could double check it yourself."

Jade raised her glass for the toast but looked more and more horrified as Ballad spoke.
"He already walked the Pattern, without us there to wish him well ?" The pout was impossible to miss and there was an equally hurt look in her eyes.