sabrina
She thought this place couldn’t get more gaudy, with their golden banners and sundials and homage to Solis on every corner. Couldn’t go two steps without knocking into some visage of him, somewhere. They liked their monuments and idols, Solterrans. They liked their walls, too, but judging by how every five feet there was a gap with a stone bust of some old king or mass murderer (apparently they were frequently one and the same in Solterra) and the only way to tell the difference was to see which ones had been defaced.
It was too soon for Adonai to have anything of the sort, of course. Not a week into being crowned and he was already throwing a big, lavish party for the entire Court. Delivered by some big, fancy firebird. Sabrina hadn’t read the actual notice-- she wasn’t super familiar with the local language yet-- but gleaned, by word of mouth and whisper, what was going down. The whole Court buzzed like atoms in an autoclave, or a pot of water just before a boil; like things might just be looking up but everyone was scared that if they breathed, or got their hopes too high, it wouldn’t happen. All of Solterra balanced on that sandglass edge--
--then the first bell tolled, and all hell broke loose. And of course the preparations had been going on the entire time, but everyone looked away, tried to ignore it; it was all to good to be true. Like those old fairy tails, the gong of the midnight bell (or the midday bell, in this case) filled the air with magic and made everything real. And, for once, all of Solterra seemed alive. Children ran in all directions, screaming and laughing; women in silken trappings danced with anyone available. The air was hot and thick with spices, conversation, summer heat, and a general buzz of merriment.
Up the elaborate palatial steps, where prince Adonai and his ilk celebrated, servers in proper decorum carried shining trays of crystalline chalices; down here, with the commonfolk, it was glorious chaos. Hungry feasters closed in on the elaborately decorated table, snatching food and finding seats. There was, of course, no rule that those below could not go above-- but Sabrina got the vibe they were scared. Scarred. These people had been burnt before-- this entire kingdom was obsessed with the sun, after all-- but, deep down, she really wondered how many had partaken in the burning.
Delph would have been the first person at the food table and probably also the last. She and Puck were famous for really shoveling it in; their take-out bill was legendary, and all the buffets around town locked their doors when they saw the two of them coming. The memory, for once, brought a smile to her face, and not a frown, and she thought maybe this whole party thing-- whether she was really a Solterran or not-- may not be so bad.
Still, she wasn’t too big on the touchy touchy, and was being jostled enough as it was, some distance away from the edible accoutremants; she’d let the wave thin out before she bellied up to the bar.
Around her, the world spun like a carnival. There were fire-spinners and sword-eaters, magicians, live demonstrations on glass-blowing, music, laughing, and dancing.
Yeah, maybe this whole thing wasn’t so bad after all.
It was too soon for Adonai to have anything of the sort, of course. Not a week into being crowned and he was already throwing a big, lavish party for the entire Court. Delivered by some big, fancy firebird. Sabrina hadn’t read the actual notice-- she wasn’t super familiar with the local language yet-- but gleaned, by word of mouth and whisper, what was going down. The whole Court buzzed like atoms in an autoclave, or a pot of water just before a boil; like things might just be looking up but everyone was scared that if they breathed, or got their hopes too high, it wouldn’t happen. All of Solterra balanced on that sandglass edge--
--then the first bell tolled, and all hell broke loose. And of course the preparations had been going on the entire time, but everyone looked away, tried to ignore it; it was all to good to be true. Like those old fairy tails, the gong of the midnight bell (or the midday bell, in this case) filled the air with magic and made everything real. And, for once, all of Solterra seemed alive. Children ran in all directions, screaming and laughing; women in silken trappings danced with anyone available. The air was hot and thick with spices, conversation, summer heat, and a general buzz of merriment.
Up the elaborate palatial steps, where prince Adonai and his ilk celebrated, servers in proper decorum carried shining trays of crystalline chalices; down here, with the commonfolk, it was glorious chaos. Hungry feasters closed in on the elaborately decorated table, snatching food and finding seats. There was, of course, no rule that those below could not go above-- but Sabrina got the vibe they were scared. Scarred. These people had been burnt before-- this entire kingdom was obsessed with the sun, after all-- but, deep down, she really wondered how many had partaken in the burning.
Delph would have been the first person at the food table and probably also the last. She and Puck were famous for really shoveling it in; their take-out bill was legendary, and all the buffets around town locked their doors when they saw the two of them coming. The memory, for once, brought a smile to her face, and not a frown, and she thought maybe this whole party thing-- whether she was really a Solterran or not-- may not be so bad.
Still, she wasn’t too big on the touchy touchy, and was being jostled enough as it was, some distance away from the edible accoutremants; she’d let the wave thin out before she bellied up to the bar.
Around her, the world spun like a carnival. There were fire-spinners and sword-eaters, magicians, live demonstrations on glass-blowing, music, laughing, and dancing.
Yeah, maybe this whole thing wasn’t so bad after all.
driving on the south wind blows, a hatchback of thoughts that i'd wished you'd have known
