3 | Sweet Setbacks
In this story, you are Ebi, a bright-eyed strygi beginning their adventuring journey!
"What do you mean, school is closed?!"
You weren't expecting a side of heartbreak with your breakfast. After all, the morning began as an absolute dream. Waking up before the sun could even fill your room, the energy that filled you on the road to Iverra was surging again, fueled by a full night's rest and the smell of something amazing wafting up from the kitchens on the level below.
Your first steps out of the tavern were still cloaked in the rich smells of the kitchen and your delicious meal, but once your feet hit the paved stones of the walkway outside, new smells greeted you with the eager impact of a puppy meeting a new friend. Floral aromas swirled in your nostrils in a range from soft and sweet to sour and bold. The fresh smell of clipped stems and foliage and the earthy scents of carved wood and tree sap followed, squeezing into the gaps between the stronger scent notes. It was so much to take in at once! Effect gained: Festival of Blooms!
"But... I came all this way!" You were making such great time on your quest, and now there's a delay? What a disaster! The words fell from your beak, fumbling through the spaces between the forkfuls of food it was stuffed with.
"Not forever, silly." The innkeeper, with an apologetic frown, gave you a reassuring pat. As she reached towards you, a little name tag pinned to her apron flashed in the light — her name was Ffion! Her presence was calming and warm, her energy less bouncy than the other mustaia running the tavern. Her soft mink fur still carried the scents of the delightful spices and flavors that went into making the feast before you. "The springtime festivities have most of the town shut down for the day, is all. Everyone is preparing for the big event tonight."
Ffion gestured softly to the table with her other hand, bidding you to resume your meal. It was absolutely delicious, but your mealtime bliss took a bit of a dip as she delivered the terrible news. The stew was hearty, eggs light and fluffy, and the roast spectacular, so you didn't allow yourself to wallow too long, popping another morsel of food into your mouth. Chewing your food slowly, you searched your mind for what exactly she could be talking about. The town seemed pretty normal when you arrived last night. You thought yourself perceptive enough to know if there was a festival on!
"You seem like you're a long way from home, so why not take this first day in town to relax, anyhow?" Ffion's warm smile brought your racing thoughts some calm, allowing you to think it through some more as you took a few more bites of breakfast. As your despair quelled, the flavors returned, punchier than ever! The innkeeper, pleased to see you perk up at her suggestion, grinned and started moving off to tend to other patrons, calling back to you before she got too far, "There's lots to see in Iverra this time of year! Bloom big, little one!"
With a sendoff like that, there was no chance this little delay was going to ruin your trip. In fact, you were even more excited to know you had a full day of exploration ahead of you!
Your first steps out of the tavern were still cloaked in the rich smells of the kitchen and your delicious meal, but once your feet hit the paved stones of the walkway outside, new smells greeted you with the eager impact of a puppy meeting a new friend. Floral aromas swirled in your nostrils in a range from soft and sweet to sour and bold. The fresh smell of clipped stems and foliage and the earthy scents of carved wood and tree sap followed, squeezing into the gaps between the stronger scent notes. It was so much to take in at once! Effect gained: Festival of Blooms!
It was also beyond delightful as you took notice of the state of the streets around you, which were covered from the ground-up in floral decorations and arrangements. Blooming ornaments hung from every tree branch, the wooden beams of every building, and any other horizontal surface one could feasibly hang something off of. Every building boasted a beautiful and near-bursting flowerbed beneath each window, and loose petals and leaves gathered at the edges of building entrances and the stone walkways. People ran gleefully through the streets with ribbons and flower crowns, some skipped with baskets of fruit and flowers, and others gathered at shops and pavilions with treats, drinks, and friends. Ffion was right — there is a festival on, and it's in full swing!
There was still something tugging at you that kept you from indulging in the festive fun; you knew better than to doubt the kind innkeeper, but curiosity had a way of besting you in more situations than not. Before wandering off anywhere else in town, you pulled out a newly-acquired map of Iverra and took note of the path you'd been eager to walk from the moment you woke up this morning. From the plaza outside of Ffion's tavern, you waved gleefully through the window, then took off, the floral streets becoming a blur as you tunnel-visioned in on your destination.
Through the busy streets, you made your way forward with a barrage of "excuse me"s and "sorry"s until the path started to clear as you gained distance from the town's center. It didn't take much time at all for you to reach your stopping point: a grand metal gate, shaped with dainty floral accents and adorned with wooden frames, the latter of which were carved with rings and stripes in fun patterns. Bright blooms grew on either side of the gate, painting the path beyond in bold yellow splotches amid the green grasses of the surrounding lawn. Beside this gate, you saw a sight you'd been yearning for through all of your travels: a sign which read, Ringtale Elementary School. Location Discovered: Ringtale Elementary School
A giant smile crept across your face as you stood there in front of the sign, reading it several times over, just to be sure you didn't somehow lose the ability to read before reaching Iverra, and that your brain wasn't simply pranking you with this vision. A tiny tear started to form in your eye as your excitement bubbled over, and you bounced on your toes to let that energy out.
Yes, the school was closed, as indicated by another nearby sign, but you already knew that to be the case. You were glad that you got the news before reaching the gate for the first time; you got to hold on to this excitement, knowing full well that a day of fun and flowers was the only thing standing between you and your first day at adventurer's school!
"Thank you, Ffion! I'm going to bloom so big! But first... flowers!"
There was not a single quiet, dreary part of town in sight. No quiet corners, no empty shops — even the smallest cafes were buzzing! You followed your nose back to the town center, where stalls stood newly-built to host beautiful wares, freshly cooked and crafted for the festivities. Heaps of warm breads filled one of the stalls, no single loaf lasting long enough in the pile to grow stale sitting out in the sun and gentle breeze. Delicate desserts flew from nearby displays faster than their bakers could hope to refill them.
Merchants circled the square on foot, baskets of delights in-hand, offering samples and sales to festival-goers. You clutched the humble coin purse at your side, knowing that they could easily tempt you out of your whole stash if you weren't careful. Best to shop with the eyes only, at least for a little while, you thought.
"You look like you'd be a big fan of these, my little friend!" It didn't take long for your first trial to begin.
"What are they?" You peered curiously over the rim of the baker's basket to see a small stack of baked goods, frosted in pastel colors. Your stomach grumbled the tiniest bit at the sight of them; your incredible breakfast was somehow eager to make some space for a tasty treat, but you made your best attempt to remain defiant in the face of this temptation. "I mean—no, thank you! They look super tasty and great, but I need to save my money!"
"I'll tell you what, young one. These are the last few from the bottom of the basket, so they're a little smushed. Have this one, on me!" The beaming anseni plucked a slightly-battered éclair from the basket and offered it to you with a little chuckle. It didn't look all too bad compared to the ones you saw on the market stalls in their nice displays, so you hesitated to take it, but the baker's warm gaze never wavered.
"Really? You'd just give me one for free?" You held the pastry in your hands so gently, fearing that you might smush it beyond redemption if you gripped it too tightly. Lavender Éclair added to inventory.
"If it's your first time having a lavender éclair, it would be a crime to make you walk away without trying one!" The anseni wiggled with glee as she delivered her response, hugging the basket to her chest. "Besides, if you fall in love with this one, you can find much fresher ones at our bakery!"
"This is amazing! Thank you!" She pointed just over your shoulder as you thanked her, showing you the big fancy bakery sign hanging over the road, a short distance away from the square.
"Pop by any time you need a sweet treat, little sprout!" She stepped away, with a little twirl, catching the attention of her next prospective customer. As she did so, you took your first bite of the éclair. The pastel icing on top cracked slightly beneath your bite, bits of purple flaking away to float off in the breeze. A light, floral aroma wafted up to your nose, the flavor melting on your tongue as you got a proper bite of cream filling. Sure, it was a bottom-of-the-basket pastry, slightly dried and a little dinged up, but it was comforting and delicious.
That long walk over to the school and back didn't tire you out all that much, but you noticed that a nearby storefront had a bench that looked like the perfect place to stop and savor a tasty sweet treat. Maybe it's a good idea to sit down for a little while?
Mellowed out by the lavender sweet, your hyped-up thoughts slowed down a bit, allowing you to take in the sights and sounds of the plaza more closely. Folks from all kinds of places seemed to be visiting the town for the festival; the tones and rhythms of different languages and accents tugged at your curious ears, music from different shops and locations caught your attention sporadically as though jumping between different radio stations, and talks of money and currencies from all of the different stalls made your head spin a tiny bit. As you grew more accustomed to the bustling environment and all of the activity around you, more subtle interactions started to catch your attention.
Just like that, you found yourself back out on the petal-covered stony streets of Iverra, with a new goal in mind. What you lacked in experience, you more than made up for in heart — and now it was time to see what that heart can do in a brand new town! Unfortunately, you only made it a few steps before you paused to think about your new objective. Okay... how exactly do I find a quest?
"There's no way we'll be able to take care of this in time."
Just like that, you snapped out of your people-watching haze. Your eyes darted around looking for the source of the downtrodden statement.
"Don't you worry for even a moment, Rory." Another voice chimed in from the same direction, with determination, drawing your gaze into the very shop you were sat in front of. Suddenly, excitement prompted you to prop yourself up on the armrest of the bench to get a better look inside. That's an adventurer! A real one! "We'll make quick work of this request!"
Clad in simple robes, the adventurer delivered her promise in a cool, measured tone. You marveled at her confident air, trying to take a mental note of all of her equipment as she continued to make light conversation with the worried shopkeeper. She wasn't too heavily equipped — her pack had nothing on your own near-bursting rucksack in terms of quantity, but the contents you could see poking out looked so refined. In her hands were a few notebooks, a small tome, and some sheets of paper; you weren't keen on snooping, so you didn't catch any of the words on them, but you took note of how scholarly she looked. You were so invested in making your observations that you hardly noticed her leaving the shop until she passed you by with a smile and a little wave of her free hand. The interaction between you was wordless, but left you with stars in your eyes.
Quickly, you rose from the bench and skittered into the store, ambling your way to the counter where the shopkeep, who you now knew to be Rory, stood. Peering over the tall counter, you sheepishly asked the question, "who was that?"
"My last hope to make this festival a success for the shop!" Rory nervously shifted his weight between his two feet as he spoke, keeping his balance with his two hands placed firmly on the counter's edge. "Erina, she said her name was? Visiting for the festival, but she wanted to help out. Here's hoping..."
"You don't sound too sure, mister. What's wrong? Do you think I could help, too?" You pouted at Rory's clear distress. It's an adventurer's duty to help others when they're in trouble! You won't sit idly by while someone faces a struggle! He looked you up and down, holding back a slight frown while shaking his head.
"This is a task for someone with a bit of experience in the field, I'm afraid. I can't be sending a sprout into the forest for this." He slid a little piece of paper over to you, a lovely green-white in color, with a list of some sort scrawled on it. "I've got just about everything on this list, but I'm missing just one or two things. Can't get 'em myself. Can't ask just anyone to retrieve them. I was lucky to have Erina walk in and volunteer her services."
As he explained his situation further, you squinted at the list, trying to make sense of the words on it. You weren't even sure half of these were real words at all! He slowly pulled back the list as you continued to try and identify its contents, taking your confusion-scrunched face to be a confirmation of his assessment of your experience level.
"Don't worry about us, all right? There's already someone on the case on our shop's behalf." He looked down at you with a slight tilt of his head. Your big eyes looked back at him, a little bleary with disappointment and frustration from being so stumped by Rory's indecipherable list. Tugged right on his heartstrings, it did.
"But..." Rory began, with a sympathetic sigh. "There might be other shops in need of some help. Maybe you can find someone with a less demanding ask?"
"You think so?" Those big eyes of yours stayed bleary and sad, but some hope sparkled in them once more.
"I've not a single doubt." He waved his hands in the direction of town, careful to make the gesture seem encouraging, and not like he was trying to shoo you from his store. "If you go on out there, I know you'll find someone who needs your help! Everyone starts somewhere."
Just like that, you found yourself back out on the petal-covered stony streets of Iverra, with a new goal in mind. What you lacked in experience, you more than made up for in heart — and now it was time to see what that heart can do in a brand new town! Unfortunately, you only made it a few steps before you paused to think about your new objective. Okay... how exactly do I find a quest?
Your gaze panned back and forth between people and shops for a while, unsure of how to proceed. Time for the classic fallback plan! Remembering Gram-Nana's words of wisdom once again, you closed your eyes and allowed yourself to follow your nose wherever it led you. This time, it was a lovely sit-down lunch spot. The wait was short for a table, since folks were too energized to dine-in during the festival. Lucky you!
Sitting comfy at the high-top table, you took out your journal to put Gram-Nana's wisdom of the moment into writing, to set the next leg of your day's adventure right:
"When you're lost and don't know where you're headed, set a course for a warm, tasty meal. That can help set the rest for you."
This was cozy and wonderful. A great look into your world through the lens of prose. Well done!