Gwendolyn stared at the grandfather clock in the foyer. Half past 3pm. The letter said to be here at 3. It was only a rehearsal dinner, yet still she longed to see him once more. The Ceremony was already set in stone for this weekend. There was a certain air of hurry in their relationship so far, with her on the verge of true nobility. A woman in waiting lingering in that social circle for too long was like an apple overripe still in the stall. Even a slight mistiming of these precedings, or gods forbid Lord Wolfe backing out now would have Gwendolyn written of as a spinster, to be certain.



    Mori checked the conditions on the road into town from the roof. Even despite the current season, conditions were cold and misty, visibility on the path near zero. At least, at the ground level. Above the prevelant mist of the region, it was clear skies all the way to the Pale city, presumably. After reporting back to her master, she noted a grimace on Gwendolyns face.



    Thats probably what was taking him so long. Lorde Wolfe was notoriously averse to cold weather. His attire at their original meeting had almost been comical to someone so adjusted to the tempere, but she had to wonder. Did he have a castle of his own? Would he move in here with her, or the other way around? She had almost complete reign of the house since her father had been gone, but it was still technically his estate. It also raised the concern that she knew almost nothing of her fiance. Two problems that would need to be solved at this rehearsal dinner.


Quest Name: I spy with your little eye

Participants: Two or more

Location: Anywhere

Post Requirements: 6 post per person, 200 words per post

Reward: +1 Renown, +1 Mimic Slime, +1 Ooze Core

Description: Locals have asked for help in dealing with a rather nasty creature that has taken home in one of their buildings. Shops, homes, basements, regardless of what it is, a Mimic has decided to hole up there, killing pets and livestock while threatening the life of those who own the building. These creatures are difficult to get rid of because of their ability to blend in with their surroundings and literally become a normal object, like a chair or rug. Go in, root out the mimic and dispose of it the best way you can.

Quest Name: Tying the Knot
Participants: Two or more
Location: Anywhere
Post Requirements: 2 threads
Reward: +1 Eternal bliss
Description: Find the love of your life and delve into the eternal journey with them. Start with a rehearsal dinner, and then the big day! Maybe a few surprises happen along the way, who knows.

All the implications and importance of the event was something that Blue couldn't grasp even if they'd had any idea about it. To them, this was just another invitation to come eat a meal with a friend. They were just glad to hear that Gwen actually didn't hate them, since the last time they'd seen her was as she left in a huff right after giving them a slap in the face for reasons they didn't comprehend. All they'd done was say she could ride them again if she wanted. They'd had a fun time running in the race, with Blue serving as their own mount by transforming into a big blue cheetah. What was wrong with letting Gwen get on their back?

Thoughts of that event aside, Blue was now running a bit late. They'd changed into a bird to fly there, the cold not bothering them nearly as much as it used to thanks to a new little trinket they'd gotten. They could fly even in the freezing cold without worry of turning into an oozecicle, but that didn't stop the harsh winds from slowing them down on their way there and sending them briefly off course. Maybe flying still wasn't the best way to travel up in Frostgale. It was a good thing the skies above the castle were at least calm when they finally did arrive.

Blue landed at the front gate to Gwen's castle and shifted back into their humanoid form, wearing their formal attire instead of the thick coats they'd come wrapped in last time. A suit of dark blue with a white dress shirt and shiny black leather shoes. Their blue hair and beard that was usually a bit on the scruffy side looked more well kept today, their hair neatly styled as if it was gelled back.

They started walking up the path to the front door, barely able to see a few feet ahead of them with such a thick fog, but the shadow of the castle in front of them and the path below were easy enough to follow.

    “He’s here! He’s here!” one of the many maids shouted out from upstairs, alerting the rest to get to their places. The servant staff at Mystwud Manor was impeccable, each finding their place within a minute and preparing for the events of the evening. The cooks ignited the ovens once more, taking the still cooking meals slowly over the finish line to perfection right as pleasantries were due to conclude. The ones nearest the door waited for their signal, once given, and grasped the handle.



    As Lord Wolfe approached, the large wooded doors slowly opened, revealing Millicent and Mori as the designated greeters. The former was significantly taller, and less cat-like than the latter, so it was a bit of a mismatch. Unfortunately, the maids that normally performed this service were still missing from the races. M&m curtsied graciously at the approaching noble, welcoming him to the manor.



    “Good evening Lord Wolfe. Welcome to Mystwud Manor. Lady Gwendolyn awaits you within the parlour. May I take your jacket?”



    Gwen stirred from her chair, fixing her posture, as well as straightening out the nice pale blue evening gown that she had chosen for the rehearsal. Her hair curled nicely into a bun, with just a bit twirling down the side of her face. She slipped back into the crystal heels she had taken off for comfort, and eagerly awaited his entrance. It was electric, though she would have to confront the crude comments made at the race earlier in the year.

"Thanks!" Blue replied with a smile, happy to be complimented on just how even they'd made their hair and beard for the occasion. It was a little difficult since they usually just let it be more messy. It was nice to have their efforts recognized a little.

"Sure. I'll get it back later, right? I really like this one." They said as they took off and handed over the jacket. They didn't want it taken away since Cantio had made it for them, but letting it be taken was apparently the polite thing to do for some reason. At least they were pretty confident that they'd give it back when they left like they did his other jacket last time he had visited Gwen's mansion. Still, they just wanted to make sure.

Blue walked behind the maid as she escorted them to the parlor where Gwen was waiting for them, the other maid heading off to store their jacket wherever they stored the jackets they took from their visitors.

When they walked into the parlor, Blue immediately waved to Gwen. With their jacket removed, the chiseled form of their body was much more visible through the fabric of their shirt. For some reason, the shirt was a little tighter than Cantio usually made their clothes that were tailored to fit their humanoid form perfectly. Blue didn't notice it much though, and didn't suspect anything about it either. They never questioned Astrid saying she was going to help Cantio out with making them a special outfit for this.

"Hey, Gwen!" Blue said as they took their seat on the sofa opposite from her.

“Of course sir, it will be in the closet nearest the door for your convenience.” Millicent offered, slightly confused as to the implication. Does Gwendolyn have a habit of keeping her suitors jackets like some academy girl with their first boyfriend? She made a mental note to dig through her ladies wardrobe the next time she was out adventuring. Her facial expression never changed however, only bowing, and showing the young master to the parlour.



Gwendolyn stood at his entrance, offering a polite curtsy before sitting back down. “Lord Wolfe, certainly a pleasure. Apologies for our last meeting ending in such…strife. Our mutual acquaintance Astrid assured me that the comment was innocent.” Was she being too stiff? Their wedding was this weekend after all, she needed to be more inviting else he was liable call the whole thing off. She could just imagine it, another suitor claiming her an ice queen and gone off to tell the whole Pale Concord. The ring on his finger must be riddled with worry, collect yourself woman. It was hard to put on a front to someone who was capable of knowing your every emotion. His geniality was reassuring, in fact all the times they had been together he’d been nothing but cheerful, except of course that first date… A blush spread across her cheeks.



Mori interrupted her thought process spiraling as if she were peering inside her as well. A silver tray of warm coffee, specialty sugars, spice blends, and biscuits were placed before the pair. “Ah, perfect timing. Thank you Mori. Wolfe, I must ask, I understand you hail from the Dragons Cradle, but what estate exactly are you Lord of? Surely this manor must be quite humble compared to your own abode, yet I’ve yet to lay eyes on it. In fact, should we be expecting any entourage of servants from your house for the events of the weekend? Accommodations must surely be made… My apologies, this is all happening so fast. Mori and I head out for Darkveil next week, and Father insists that the event happen before then for whatever reason…” She sighs, placing a few fingers on her forehead in frustration. “My apologies, just feeling a bit overwhelmed with all of this.”

Blue was glad to hear that was solved. They still had no idea what the mix up was, or why Gwen slapped them just for offering to let her ride them again, but Astrid took care of it for them. They'll just ask her what a metal aqua tints is later and that Gwen called her that, whatever it means. Gwen sure likes to use a lot of big words.

With coffee and snacks brought out, Blue helped themself. They ignored the coffee and reached right for a few of the biscuits, idly snacking on them as they listened to Gwen talk.

Wait, estate? Manners? Servants? What did all that stuff have to do with them hanging out and having dinner together? They didn't have any servants and they didn't even know what an estate was. They were trying really hard to have nice manners while they were here, like Cantio told them to, and thought Gwen's manners were just fine to them. They weren't an expert judge on manners, but she was being nice to them, wasn't she?

"Uh, no, we don't have any servants in our.. abode? It's just me, Astrid, Cantio, and Melodia. And Astrid's pets. And a robot." Blue answered as they took a spoonful of sugar from the sugar bowl and ate it as if it was a spoonful of soup. They were careful to actually put the spoon back instead of eating it as well. Cantio told them eating silverware was rude and not good manners at all.

"I think you have really nice manners. Mine aren't that good. I'm still really new at being a noble."

She steels her resolve. No time to be up in a tizzy about nothing then. The ring offers a sort of content confusion from Lorde Wolfe, a feeling that is not all unfamiliar to her at this point. So he lives with Astrid, I think she at one point called them siblings so that is to be expected.



Wait. Did he just eat a spoonful of the coffee sugar? And then put the spoon back into the sugar afterwards? …Was this a Dragon’s Cradle custom she was unaware of? It was almost revolting, but it would be rude to offend a cultural difference. She picked up the spoon, took a scoop of sugar and ate it herself. She suppressed a gag, swallowed, and offered a strained smile at the compliment he offered soon afterwards. Millicent, standing behind Lord Wolfe against the wall, could only offer a disappointed look.



“Ah, that would explain a few things. Well, I suppose that settles the moving question.” And left others unanswered, like why would he bring up that he owns a rowboat. “Manners are something learned over time, it’s something we could practice together once we’re more settled together. Though I am quite impressed at the name you’ve made for yourself in such a short time, not to mention your ascension to your first ring in the Mage’s Gu...” She stopped, and eyed the coffee mug on the table. Had it…moved? No, perhaps Wolfe had knocked into the table by accident. NO. It was inching towards him, she saw a small tentacle slither back into the handle. What the fuck.

Moving question? What did that mean? What was moving?

"Oh, uh, yeah. Practicing manners together sounds fun. I guess I did make a nice name for myself, huh? I tried really hard to make a good one, but I like it. How did you know?" Blue answered, a bit caught off guard.

Blue didn't know how Gwen figured out the name "Geoffrey Wolfe" was made up, but they also thought it a was nice, impressive name. They'd tried really hard to think of a good one and had ended up calling themself Wolfe, after the animal they'd been transformed into when they'd first met Astrid. Adding "Lord" and "Geoffrey" came later as more problems came up, like them being declared a new noble and being asked for another name. Why did people need to have so many names? It was just weird. Even Astrid had two names.

Blue looked down in confusion at the mug Gwen was suddenly staring at suspiciously. Was there something wrong with it? They didn't see anything weird about it. Wait, was she suspicious because they were doing something wrong? Were they supposed to drink from it now or something?

Blue reached down and picked up the mug by the handle and started to lift it toward their mouth to take a sip from it when it suddenly burst into motion. Tentacles grew out of it and wrapped around Blue's hand, the top opening of the mug grew sharp teeth, the insides of the cup becoming fleshy with a tongue whipping around, trying to lash at Blue's face.

Blue leaned their head back to avoid the whipping tongue and started bashing the mug-creature on the table until it stopped moving. The tentacles wrapped around their hand loosened and fell limp.

Was Blue still supposed to drink from this thing, or were they supposed to eat it? Was this normal for noble gatherings? Oh no, were they not supposed to kill it!?

"Uh..." Blue didn't know what to say as they glanced between Gwen and the dead mug, unsure of what to do next.

Was this the answer to the moving question? It was the mug?

    She took a moment from staring at the teacup to look back at Lord Wolfe after his name comment with a bit of a raised eyebrow. It wasn’t the time to be nitpicky, but she was at least glad he was trying to project a good reputation rather than a bad one. It was a bit simplistic yes, but noble in a way. Regardless, there was a more pressing matter at hand.



    “Geoffrey no! Wait!” She shouted as he reached for the mug, which quickly evolved into it’s full mimicy form. Millicents eyes widened, and she readied for combat with static sparking at her fingertips. There wasn’t a clear shot though, since she was behind the lord. Gwendolyn summoned her Fuming Maul Enlightened Redolence as the mimic lashed at her betrotheds face with deadly malice. But then, with only what seemed to be eager confusion, he began smashing the teacup mimic onto the edge of the table until it stopped moving.



    Their eyes met, going back and forth between each other and the mimic. It was dead alright. An assassination attempt? Did Lord Wolfe have enough enemies to infiltrate the Mystwud Estate just for a chance to kill him in this brutal fashion?! “M-Millicent! Take the maids and investigate the rest of the kitchen. I beg your forgiveness Lord Wolfe, a trespass such as this is a tragic failing on my part.” She pleaded, bowing deeply to apologize for serving him his own potential downfall.



    It was astounding how well he handled the situation actually. Barely surprised, he acted with deadly decisiveness. He would make a shrewd and powerful husband, that is if he didn’t call off this whole affair due to this slip up. She felt alot of confusion coming through the eternity ring, but it was so conflicted and mild she could only compare it to a minor faux pas. Was he this used to assassination attempts?



    The maids tore apart the pantry, flicking cups and saucers to ensure that there were no more hidden intruders. There would be an investigation into how such a creature managed to slip onto the serving tray, but Gwendolyn wouldn’t subject her lord to such banal affairs. 

Blue's confusion only grew as Gwen started to apologize and bow and say she'd failed something. Blue had no idea what she was talking about? Did she forget to do something she was supposed to? What did she mean a trespass such as this? Were they in the wrong place? Were they trespassing and she just realized it now? But wait, didn't she live here? And why were they investigating the kitchen? Blue was starting to have a sneaking suspicion that something wrong happened, but couldn't figure out what it was.

"It's okay! We can't be trespassing if this is your house, right? Let's just go fix what's wrong. I'll help too!" Blue tried to cheer Gwen up.

They stood and started walking toward the door, the dead mug mimic still in their hand. Oh right. They were pretty hungry. With their back to Gwen, they lifted the mimic to their mouth and slurped it up like a fork full of spaghetti, the tentacles flailing as they were pulled into Blue's mouth where the creature simply vanished as if it was being sucked into a void. There was no sign of swallowing or chewing from Blue as they ate the creature whole.

Blue then looked at their hand and noticed they were slightly hurt. A small trickle of blue liquid came from a bite mark of jagged teeth on their hand. Standing still for a moment, Blue sealed the wounds shut again and then pulled a handkerchief from a pocket on the inside of their coat to wipe off their hand.

Normally, the ooze would just keep anything they needed inside them, but they'd been trying to act more normal around others by actually keeping things in pockets on their clothing when they wore any. When they finished wiping their hand off, they put the handkerchief into their mouth and are it. They still had some work to do with acting normal, but it was a start.

He was right, as one of the masters of this manor, an assassination is but a failure of security, and not of decency. Despite his being of new nobility, he certainly had a deep understanding of the social etiquette around mishaps and protocol breaches. Perhaps they had a lot to learn from each other. She smiled, grateful at his forgiving attitude, and mustered her will once again.



“Right then! Let’s thoroughly inspect the kitchen stores, hopefully however this monster had been snuck in will be uncovered there.” Dismissing her maul, she strode towards the massive professional kitchen, doors held open by two maids.



It was on par with restaurants in the capitol. marble furnishings and equipments, shining silver hewn ovens and stoves, massive whitewashed cabinet displays with priceless collections of ceramic, silver engraved plates and silverwares. She could only hope but feel a twinge of self doubt at a fellow noble seeing her collection not being gold emblazoned. A poorer metal perhaps, but she liked the colour better.



“Alright, first, lets see the corpse of the specimen that Lorde Wolfe has so graciously saved us from. A thorough inspection will give us some clues as to what we are looking for.” She says, looking at the hairy nobleman, eager to begin.

Blue followed along, heading to the kitchen. The kitchen looked nice to them. Their opinion on fancy stuff and how valuable things must be wasn't very developed. The marble, silver, and ceramic looked pretty much the same to them as the kitchen and dishes back at Astrid's house. Their focus also wasn't on those kinds of details. They were here to look for more mimics. Blue had already begun looking around when they froze at Gwen's words.

Uh oh.
She wanted to see the creature? The one that Blue just ate and dissolved into more goo? That creature? That there was basically no trace of anymore?
Uh oh.

"Uhh, I'm sorry. I already got rid of it. I didn't think of looking at it." Blue apologized, turning to look back at Gwen. Technically, none of what they said was a lie. They had gotten rid of it, and hadn't thought of giving the creature any kind of inspection. They just didn't need to mention how they got rid of it, right?

While Blue was embarrassedly looking over their shoulder at Gwen, the pot on the counter in front of them began to shake, the lid lifting up as tentacles began to emerge.

Her eyebrow arched sharply at the statement that her fiance had done something so short-sighted. Would he throw away investments the second they meet expectations, or sink a ship the moment he finished the voyage? What about their marriage… what about their kids. The anxious song of doubt sung through her mind in the matter of approximately three seconds.



That was until of course, the vintage gilded ceramic pot she had bought from the market last week jumped off of the counter and latched onto her face. A brief moment of silent disbelief echoed throughout the kitchen. Maids and servants stared at their master as the tentacles latched around her head and the teeth began trying to gnaw at her nose through her silver veil.



And then, chaos ensued. Gwendolyn's scream was muffled by mimic flesh. Two brooms were wielded by maids and swatted at her face as she rolled around on the floor. Lightning Crackled on Millicent's finger as she desperately tried to line up a clean shot. Gwen clawed at the beast, but her fingers continually slipped off of the smooth ceramic finish, and the loose tentacles fought off the combined assault of the house maids broomsticks.

Blue was shocked as the pot suddenly sprang onto Gwen's face, but not as shocked as the pot was after Blue finally ran over and grabbed it, electricity frying it as it traveled from one hand, through the creature, and back into their other hand, leaving Gwen unharmed. The living pot let out a feeble groan as it died, its tentacles going limp and detaching from Gwen's head.

"Got it!" Blue sighed in relief and held it up to Gwen. The two maids were also relieved, lowering their broom and finger as the danger seemed to have passed.

"Are you okay?" Blue asked, looking at Gwen. Her face looked mostly alright. The thing hadn't been latched onto her long enough to suffocate her, but lines of red spots on either side of her nose looked like it had managed to get a bite in before it had been fried. She was bleeding slightly, the bites thankfully shallow and not enough to bite her nose completely off. The skin was barely punctured.

Blue held up a hand, a small ball of blue goo forming in it. They held it up to Gwen's face, covering her nose. The goo felt soothing on her wounds, the bite marks closing up. They weren't the most proficient healer ever, but they could make some of their slime nearly mimic a healing potion after ingesting a few of them. It couldn't heal much, but a small bite mark was easy enough.

When the wound was healed, the goo ball shrank down in their palm again, subtly reabsorbed back into them.

"Uh, here. You want to look at this one?" Blue asked, holding up the new specimen.

---

Lightning Armor
Bouncing Bubble

A soft Shlorp and a couple of pops echoed off of the kitchen walls as the mimic was removed from her head. Her heart was still pounding as she looked up at Lord Wolfe with a sense of relief. Her saviour… lifting up to a sitting position Wolfe stopped her with a hand, which formed the electric blue ball that soothed her wounds. It smell pleasantly of raspberries, something that she now noticed she associated with Lord Wolfe intrinsically. It was… an odd sensation, but not unpleasant. Her heart went from pounding of adrenaline to fluttering with a sense of longing.



It was enough of a distraction to not notice the fact that there were no magical words to summon nor dispell the healing ball. No matter, he was probably just that good at magic. A subtle shake of her head brought her back to her senses, and her two maids helped her back to her feet. This was quickly turning into an irredeemably embarrassing situation for her. If it was not solved, their union might be on the line… or worse. Her reputation.



“Right then” She said, coyly brushing her dress back into place and gathering her wits about her. “Let’s see… This pot is part of an antique set I had purchased in anticipation of this event, not even a week ago. There were two cups, and the pot. But I don’t see the other cup?” Looking around, there was debris all over the floor. She had apparently knocked over one of the serving trays in her throes.



“If we can just find that last piece, hopefully none of them have had time to reproduce. Damned mimics, Probably got their slime all over my cabinets...”