The Elusive Cinder

Emerald Gaze "It is quite lovely, If I do say." Emerald responded with a smile. "Such interesting architecture and accommodating inhabitants - I could see myself visiting again sometime, should the opportunity arise." It was all basic small talk and chit-chat, but every word had that small chance of uncovering something useful. "There was something that I wanted to ask actually Tragedy... sorry, It was Tragedy, wasn't..." As one of the newer guests made an offhoof comment and fell to the ground, Emerald mirrored him - jumping upright instead with an expression of concerned panic. She gasped in an almost theatric manner, taking a horrified step away from him. What had he said, that the wine had a bitter aftertaste? No that didn't seem quite right, she hadn't tasted anything wrong with it, and she had been expecting to. She had been drinking more as well if she was correct, though admittedly her observations hadn't exactly been focused on the drinking habits of her other guests. 'Which means that either the fool is genuinely ill or he's feigning his ailment for some reason. Sickness doesn't usually set in so quickly so logically... but why?' Either way, she wasn't in a position to administer medical help - she wasn't a doctor and on the off chance he had some intricate plan that she was struggling to see, she wanted nothing to do with it. "Oh my..." She stated lightly, glancing around at the hosts and remainder of the guests. "I'm afraid I cannot help here - perhaps it would be best if I excused myself?" Bowing slightly to the remnant of the hosts, she gave a weak smile - taking utmost care to ensure she seemed genuinely flustered yet gracious. "We can speak later, when there are less pressing matters, yes? I would enjoy that I think."

Emerald Gaze 'Out of character? Hardly, I would think. Perhaps more openly vocal than usual but I doubt anyone is genuinely supprised at his tone.' Emerald thought - raising a brow ever so slightly in response to her own internal monologue. 'Not that we can call such behaviour normal that is - it wouldn't be like any noble to burst in looking so disheveled, never mind Blueblood himself...' She cleared her throat to break the tense silence after the prince had been led away. The best thing now was to keep things moving smoothly and try to brush the whole episode aside for the time being. Keep the tone neutral - show concern, but not too much so as to appear suspicious. 'Suspicious? Of what? We didn't have anything to do witg this - if he is sick then that still has no bearing on us.' She thought. 'Of course, if he isn't... it seemed earlier like there was something being hidden from us - and why would a sickness be hidden and not even alluded to - even if downplayed? Something doesn't quite add up.' "Aha, I see. Well if the Prince is unwell I certainly hope he recovers quickly." The diplomat stated carefully - casting a sympathetic half smile towards her hosts, with just enough concern on her face to suggest a passing concern with no real emotional investment. 'So what next? If they already believe that I saw something while absent from the table just shortly before we were interrupted, perhaps I can use that? Or maybe it would be best to take a more discreet approach? Ugh - I wasn't prepared for this!'

Apologies for my absence: started with not really knowing what to post for a while (due to Emerald not really doing much of interest in character) followed by simply not having the time to get onto the forums. Catching up what I've missed now!

Emerald Gaze Emerald inwardly smiled to herself as she noticed the glance cast her way - evidently she was correct: there was something interesting happening here that she wasn't supposed to know. Now the only question that remained was what exactly. Well that shouldn't be too difficult find out. No doubt she would be confronted at some stage soon - all she needed were enough clues to make them think she knew more than she did. '... Beloved princess...?' She echoed mentally, taking care not to give any outwards indication of her musing. It was probably nothing, but there was something about that line that she didn't like. Of course Luna was the obvious reference, but she wasn't the only one such a statement might relate to. Was whatever secret they were hiding something sinister? Rebellion or Regicide? At first she had suspected some kind of personal secret, but now she wasn't so certain. And then the one called Shadowhide started asking questions with all the subtlty of a Sledgehammer in a glasshouse. Emerald glanced around. Ideally, she should speak with someone, but doing so would mean having to divide her attention - better to keep to herself as much as possible and simply observe for the time being.

My newest post is kind of just an additional to my last, in light of Silverhearts. Just thought I'd give a heads up on that fact.

Emerald Gaze. @@FortyTwo42, (Also @@SilverHeart) The corner of Emeralds mouth curled into a very slightly different smile. One of amusement, rather than generic polite friendliness. If others were playing the game then she would give them something to think about. Focusing her mind, she channeled a very weak glamor onto herself in the hope of drawing any wayward attention towards her bluff. Leaning a little closer towards Aero, she spoke in a slightly (if barely) hushed tone. "Actually, there was something quite interesting that I found." She added in a conspiring tone. "Though we probably shouldn't discuss such things at the dinner table. I'll find you later and explain."

Emerald Gaze. @@FortyTwo42, "Oh, hello Aero." Emerald nodded, turning in the direction of the one who had addressed her - a familiar face at this table of strangers. She smiled and shrugged slightly at his question - not really wanting to go into such details at the dinner table... or at all for that matter. Casually brushing a not-quite smooth strand of her mane away from her face and back into position she gave a noncommittal gesture before speaking again. "It was nothing, really." She reiterated with a slight wave. "How have you been enjoying your visit? I notice you've made some new friends." The idle chit-chat about fairytales and Styling techniques wasn't of any particular interest to her, but she kept an ear out nonetheless - as one never knew when or where a useful snippet of information might uncover itself. Besides - it was interesting to learn a little more of her new acquaintances. Now that a couple of them were opening up and becoming a little more vocal she might overhear something useful. @@SilverHeart, Glancing around, Emerald tried to get a feel for exactly who of their number the locals were. It wasn't particually difficult - the nobleborn were clearly not guests, but exactly what their purpose here was, she couldn't say for certain. Did the nobles simply invite themselves for entertainment? They hardly seemed present to serve after all.

Indeed: I can't remember whether I actually established this earlier or not, but Emerald is quite fond of wine. I like the stuff but I'm hardly an expert - I just like to do a little research to make my characters credible

Emerald Gaze. Managing to refrain from pausing when the feeling of paranoia hit her again, Emerald continued as social norms dictated. She began to pick at some smaller portions of food, one ear flicking as she vaguely overheard her name from somewhere across the table. After a moment or two she couldnt help but inspect the others again glancing smoothly around, this time under the pretence of searching for the wine. She was certain that she had been being watched. Nothing - at least at a glance. Noting however the overall lack of enthusiasm that seemed to have taken hold of the table. Few of her fellow guests seemed comfortable with their situation , and from while her late arrivial had left her in a poor position for eavesdropping she was able to pick up on the general tone of conversation without much effort on her part. What was more, despite her pretence she was almost as distracted as the rest seemed to be. 'It is nothing. Why are you unable to simply enjoy an evening? Blueblood might be an oaf but even he isn't so foolish as to try anything untoward, not here of all places. Relax - this is what you live for. Enjoy yourself.' She closed her eyes for a moment before forcing herself to relax a little - smiling as she felt herself adjust back into her natural instincts. Taking a sip of wine she had poured, she raised a brow approvingly. "Oh, now this is simply excellent." She stated to no recipient in particular. At these kind of events the right ears would always overhear a compliment. And a compliment it was - and an honest one at that. "Quite divine indeed. Somebody has excellent taste in wine, if I might be so bold as to say. The sweet tasting alcohol served its secondary purpose delightfully as well - the paranoia faded a little as the nare began to relax. She watched the others, waiting for an opening. One of their company cut into a conversation while another - Shadowhide, she recalled - looked almost offended at some offhand remark that Emerald had missed. Another that she couldn't name was keeping his head down almost too intently... 'So all in all, not a typical dinner, I suppose' She allowed herself to think, suppressing a slight titter of mirth.

Apologies for the somewhat short post - its not that I'm half-arsing it or anything, but I didn't want to write a ton and burn myself out after a post or three. Rather go for some consistently decent writing that I can sustain. Anyone can feel free to interact with Emerald - she'll start talking to folks anyway, but I thought I'd leave the opportunity open for if anyone in particular wanted to acknowledge her first.

Emerald Gaze ( In case anyone has forgotten what Emerald looks like or not met her already: ) https://mlpforums.com/page/roleplay-characters/_/emerald-gaze-r3772 Reaffirming her poise and dignity, Emerald paused for a moment to collect her breath as she stood outside the wooden door to the dining hall. She binked a couple of times and shook herself very slightly - reaching up to adjust the long wooden pins that held her mane in place. It was a little disheveled compared to her arrival, but still far from unacceptable. 'Well, hopefully nobody will notice.' She breathed to herself before fixing a serene half smile on her face and pushing the door open - a faint green glow of light fading away as she did - the glamor spell would have to gloss over any slight flaws in her usually immaculate presentation. "Good afternoon again everyone." She announced in a clear voice as she stepped into the hall. "My deepest apologies for stepping out so suddenly - I'm afraid I had some business that simply could not wait." She flashed a slightly brighter smile for a moment while stepping forward and taking a seat - thankfully she seemed to have still been accounted for in her absence. Emerald wasn't particually hungry but refusing hospitality on such trivial grounds would certainly be unacceptable - no, it would be much better to see though the meal as usual. Besides, as a meal such as this the food - good as it might be - was barely even a sideshow: the real joy was the conversation and intrigue after all. There were questions that she had that she couldn't simply ask, and this might be the beat time to get her answers. "No cause for alarm - simply a slight personal matter. So then, is everyone well? My apologies but I believe that I might have missed introducing myself to some of you. My name is Emerald Gaze - a pleasure to meet you."

Well, I found myself with a little downtime at work and decided to hop on here - see if any folks I knew were still about. Pretty surprised when I saw this RP was still running! Hey folks, long time no see! I'd like to say I had a ton of time to get into the fandom and RPing like I used to, but that's sadly not the case. That said, I've taken a (very quick) glance over the RP here and noted that you may be doing a sort of soft-reboot here? If so - and if you'd have me after vanishing so abruptly and for so long - well... y'know, wouldn't be against putting in the occasional post when I have free time.

Scarlet Rose. Scarlet shook her head in irritation as she stepped aside huffily to avoid yet another foolish newcomer who seemed to have sudden doubts about where they were going - stopping suddenly directly in front of her in the process. It was chaos - idiots everywhere and seemingly nobody within a hundred miles with both authority and common sense. Admittedly, she wasn't exactly doing great at finding her own way around... but she couldn't held but feel that being surrounded by such incompetence was mostly responsible for that. "Ugh, move!" She hissed at a student as she pushed past them. "It's really not that hard - one leg in front of the other..."

Damn Squirlz... you have all the luck don't you? Well, I can only be glad nothing worse happened. Even though... y'know, that's pretty damn bad itself. Nope, Sanc has been away from the site for over a month now, far as I can tell.

Just to let y'all know I'm still here. Been busy at work, and playing Persona. Ehehe... I'll probably get a post up tonight

It IS going pretty slow, but that's more from waiting for folks than the story itself. Nothing we can really do about that however - other things nees to take priority over the forums after all, as I say.

Scarlet Rose. Scarlet shook her head and rolled her eyes as she stepped through the University grounds. This was always a problem with beginning at some place new: being grouped together with the idiots and the fools... Couldn't just once she be surrounded by cool, intelligent folks, rather than unfunny jokers and dolts without a sense of decency? "Ugh. Typical..." She muttered, shooting a withing glare at another nearby first-year and sending the poor colt hurriedly away. "How long do I need to wait 'till these buffoons start dropping out? So much arrogance and ignorance everywhere I look..." She sighed a little, frustratedly. Reaching a hoof to her scarlet mane, she adjusted the red rose that was perched there slightly. 'Just need to find someone decent - smart, cool... someone worth talking to. Find a few of them and we'll run this place in a few weeks, easy.' The white made paused as she approached the auditorium, pausing for a brief moment to grade condersedingly at a pony who seemed to be trying to access the building through the wall. She tutted, shook her head in annoyance and continued inside before anyone suspected her of having anything to do with the fool.

I actually... now understand most of what folks here are talking about! Heh, glad I picked up the game now - though the 'shoot yourself in the head' symbolism of p3p is a little... unorthodox. Thanks by the way, I'm pretty proud of how she turned out.

Okay! So, I've spent some time on the TV tropes pages and I've got a copy of P3P on my phone: still doing a lot of learning, but here's a first attempt. Name: Scarlet Rose Age: 19 Most details are covered below: http://mlpforums.com/page/roleplay-characters/_/scarlet-rose-r6189 Human Appearance: (Clothing, hairstyle, etc.) Fair skinned and lyth, Scarlet tends to wear clothes with simple designs and colours, adorned with brightly coloured accessories. A typical outfit might consist of white training shoes, jeans and a white T-shirt. She dyes her hair various bright colours, but more often than not it is some shade of magenta or red. She has a habit of scowling when she knows somebody is looking at her and doesn't tend to smile much unless she is alone. Its not that's she's genuinely sad or angry: merely the image that she wishes to maintain. Weapons: Spear Persona: Valkyrie Element: Wind. Major/Concentration: Classical Literature / Poetry.

You know what? I might just take you up on that. If you don't mind, I'll brush up on Persona knowledge a little, maybe pick up persona 3 on my phone and put in an application in a short while.

Looks like you've got something good planned here. I'd totally apply... If I knew anything at all about persona. Why do all the good looking RP's come from fandom's I know nothing about? Heh. Anyway. Good luck with this! Looks interesting - I might stalk the RP and try to learn something about persona from it.

*************** N'herr Market. A wicked little grin caught on the corners of the frail traders mouyh as he snorted slightly. His gaze shifted between the three hunters and he shook his head. "You really think that..." He chuckled a little under his breath. "Ahh... I see now! You're not just arrogant, but i... i... ignorant as w... well!" His eyes darted aside a little - down the long road that the hunters had walked and towards the ship that they had arrived on, docked in the distance. "You think that you're the f... first Witch Hunters o... o... on Inermis?" He turned and grinned - pointing up and over the city wall towards the centre of the island. A small mountain was clearly visible, but it was a long distance from the city and few other details could be made out. "She wanted to know where I got my a... antiques - the Old Kingdom ruins around the foot of the mountain. You should l... l... leave me alone and g... g... go a... after her. She can't b... be more than a week ahead of y... you!" Deseer paused - turning back again, wringing his hands with a hopeful, yet still hateful look on his face. "She threatened me as well, didn't rob me though... must have known her goons would be along later." He added in a mutter. "There! Now y... y... you know e... everything, now go a... after her o... o... or something! Just leave me alone!"

Adrass. Mother. Father. Venerator. Adrass nodded his head solemnly after a slightly longer than necessary pause. More words that made him feel... uneasy, why was that? What was wrong with him, was he sick? His mind raced for a moment, but ultimately, his instincts won out - to follow the will of his superiors, to not question what he saw and have faith in himself. After all, who was more superior than his father, what was more clear than what he saw before him and who had more faith in his magic than himself? Still narrow-eyed, the boy reached out a hand in a grasping motion, trying to feel for the tiny traces of water in the air - to urge them to obey him, to bend to his will. Mentally, he commanded them into position around his arm, to lock in place and to chill themselves to a frozen state. A patch of frost appeared against his skin - stretching and turning clear as simple but clear lines began to form and the patch of ice extended up along his forearm and down slightly past his wrist. It was quite beautiful in a way. For some reason however, he felt filthy. Repulsed and disgusted. There was something surreal about the whole thing - he had memories that told him what to do, but it felt so new and awkward to him. As the Ice crept upwards, he realised that he might not be quite as in control as he had hoped. It stretched around his elbow and locked his arm in place before finally stopping its development - less of a 'wrist guard' and more of a 'haphazard sleeve'. "Uh..." He grinned weakly. "I did it?"

A bit of both really. They're supposed to be dangerous (both themselves, and through other means), but to keep things flowing I might have made them... a little more discreet than usual. A tavern full of drunkards would probably not usually be so efficient and quiet, but let's just assume the three of them were too complacent or got unlucky for the sake of storytelling.

*************** N'herr Tavern. Without commotion or rukus, the inn returned to it's regular atmosphere. Locals went back to their drinks and the girl behind the bar breathed a sigh of relief to have the tension broken and life back to normal again. One of the patrons wiped a small line of blood from his brow. All was well, save for the mystery of the missing Witch Hunters. Ivondras is gone. Gron is gone. Joel is gone. *************** N'herr Market. "Oh so that's how it is, is it? You come here to my home, rob me blind, destroy my business and now you want me to h... h... help you?" Deseer spat on the ground, clearly upset, but pleased to have some measure of control over the situation, however small. "Well listen here, I'm t... telling you nothing! I've half a mind to tell you a lie that leads you off a cliff, but then I'd be no better than yourselves, would I? Go on, leave me to my m... m... misery you thieving dogs!