Clovius and beyond

[Alberich]

Tim gave a look of horror for just a moment at what Tamina was doing...the sight of the kobold controlling a rodent-thing's movements by magic brought back memories of himself and Eli, summoning Silka to the peril of their souls...

...but this magic didn't have the Ralkin flavor. Of course it didn't. Kobolds and Ralkin were mortal enemies. He calmed down.

"I don't know if they do or not," said Tim. "Why don't you take him one and ask him?"

Tim thought an afterthought to Rose:

That image is on thin wood, and I've got a knife right here suitable for woodcarving. He patted his left sleeve where he always kept it - and for sure, he preferred that to other uses he'd made of it. I could cut out the picture of Melusine in a minute or two. Then Therese could have her sodomitical souvenir, Amalric's family scandals could stay private, and everyone could be satisfied. That damnable beaver could even frame the smaller piece for her, if you'd like. I'm sure it has the skill.

[Graybeard]

"Tim, this is not open for debate," Sister Rose said curtly. "That picture isn't going back to Emerylon. It is going to Therese. Period, end of discussion. Now let's go." She turned to go, just in time for Tamina's "hunt" to succeed ...

She facepalmed. "No time to cook it here, and I really don't think beavers eat mice, even talking, bipedal ones."

This is all making my decision easier ... and I'm not looking forward to showing Tim that letter.

So, maybe, I won't.

[Alberich]

Tim's esteem for Rose sank to a new low, as she insisted on releasing a (minor) embarrassment to the Church, ignoring his perfectly humane solution. He did not utter any threats. But he would remember this. When it came to the mission, she was always ready to ask advice from all and sundry. In battle, she would dither and complain after the fact. When it was time to be disloyal to the Church and its image, for personal reasons having nothing to do with the mission -- ah, then she could be decisive.

That she had chosen to speak it unnecessarily aloud despite the mind link, serving no purpose but to embarrass him a little in front of the kobold, to Tim this was just a further sign of Rose's poor leadership. Everyone he met seemed to hold her in awe for such wonderful things she was supposed to have done before he met her. But he believed his eyes over his ears, and this didn't match that.

Maybe he'd have to find a chance to appeal to Therese's sense of decency. It rankled but the red-haired heathen did seem to have one, and she'd shown none of the petulant pettiness Desiree did, wouldn't take pleasure in his humiliation like that half-elven harlot he liked too damn much. Or so he read her character.

[Graybeard]

By the time Sister Rose, Tim and Tamina made it back to the wagon, the other occupants were scanning their environment nervously, and with reason. The faces that were poking out of the windows and doors bore distinctly hostile expressions now, and a woman could be seen hefting an axe that Rose wasn't sure she could even lift. Ebenezer set the vehicle in motion as soon as everyone was aboard, and got the reindeer up to a brisk trot.

"What was that all about?" Therese asked when they were under way.

"I don't rightly know," the old half elf(?) answered. "The village has been that way for as long as I can remember. It isn't just your church, although that probably didn't make them any friendlier."

"It's not my church," Therese protested softly, but Rose persisted. "Was there a problem with the church? Best I could tell, it was barely used at all." Except as a base for Amalric to do some reconnaissance, I wager.

"It wasn't," Ebenezer agreed. "There was no priest there most of the time, except when he came up from Clovius, which doesn't have a church any more either. There was just this one old man who kept to himself, didn't go out and talk to people, wasn't friendly at all. I did talk to him once that I recall. He said he was half lay preacher, half janitor." He chuckled. "The preacher half didn't do much preaching, though."

I was right, thought Rose. She turned to Therese. "We have something from inside that place that I think you'll want to see."

[OOC: Minor retcon. Point understood about real-life delays, D; I just wanted to make sure the subject wasn't dropped, as it may set the stage for some ... interactions between Therese and Desiree later.]

[Drusia]

He chuckled again, then asked Desiree, "So what gods or forces or spirits do you worship instead?"

Several thoughts go through my mind rather quickly.

First off, if his people passed down any sort of racial memory, then mentioning the elven gods is probably a bad idea.
Secondly, I have no idea what other half-elves worship aside from Lillith.
Thirdly, I only ever got a general idea of Lillith's beliefs. Probably not enough for me to fake it. And, even if I did, I have no idea where her beliefs are from. I don't want to get her or her faimly in trouble if I happen to make a mistake.
Fourthly, I probably shouldn't just go with passion as a general concept. Even if he's more open-minded than the locals, I'm afraid I might scandalize him. Besides, I'm supposed to have a fiancee - somehow I think that might cause more trouble than its worth.
Fifth, I didn't want to directly lie to him. I'm sure I could manage it, but it just seems impolite.

"I don't really think it has a name," I reply with a shrug. "I just worship the same gods as my mother. The Luminosans call us heathens or pagans, but I don't think that's quite accurate. Or maybe it is."

There. Vague and technically correct - as far as I know, there isn't a proper name for the elven gods other than "the elven gods". And, if he assumes that my mother is human, then he will likewise assume I worship human gods.

-- Desiree

OOC: Thanks for the fix.

[Alberich]

Tim gave a brief scowl as Rose handed the picture over. (An involuntary reaction, not a signal; only an exceptionally alert and perceptive person had any chance of noticing it.)

"I just worship the same gods as my mother. The Luminosans call us heathens or pagans, but I don't think that's quite accurate. Or maybe it is."

Tim's eyebrows bounced at that. Of course it was accurate. For all this "seeing the world" she hadn't learned very much. It was perfectly simple --

The Orthodox were the worshippers of Luminosita who accepted the doctrines of the established Orthodox Church of Luminosita;

The Unorthodox were worshippers of Luminosita, who held to the doctrines of a tolerated sect, such as the Reformists;

The Faithful were the Orthodox and Unorthodox together;

A Heretic was someone who claimed to worship Luminosita, yet persisted in doctrines that were not approved by the established or tolerated Church (though some of the Faithful, Orthodox and Unorthodox alike, in the grip of the odium theologicum, threw this word as an insult against each other);

An Apostate was someone who had once worshipped Luminosita, but abjured his worship to go whoring after other gods, or the pitiless false god of Atheism (ditto ditto, as witness the late Sister Bree);

A Heathen was anyone who had never worshipped Luminosita, regardless of whether he worshipped anything in his stead; thus everyone in this group except for Tim and Rose was a heathen; it was not necessarily a perjorative, though an angry mother whose children were running wild might call them "heathens" before giving a smack on the bottom; and an angry wife or mother-in-law might use it the same way on a husband who hit the bottle or the dice a little too often;

A Pagan was someone who had never worshipped Luminosita, but worshipped something else instead; Desiree, with her "Anilis," and Therese, with her "Five Great Mothers," were both pagans;

And a Demon-Worshipper was someone who served an infernal power, and whose soul was in the gravest peril of all.

...but since Tim was supposed to be keeping a low profile here, not drawing attention to his status as a priest of the Faithful, he didn't say any of this.

[Drusia]

Tim gave a brief scowl as Rose handed the picture over. (An involuntary reaction, not a signal; only an exceptionally alert and perceptive person had any chance of noticing it.)

Ack, bad timing. I didn't mean to talk about my... less than favorable feelings about Luminosa in front of Tim or Rose. Rose is distracted giving something to Therese, but I see Tim scowl at sometihng I said.

He is so stuck up! He and his Orthadox lot are the ones who use all those mean words to describe people who worship different gods than he does. Can he just learn to be nice about it like Rose is?

-- Desiree

OOC: Yes, I intentionally had Desiree misunderstand why Tim scowled. I figured it was more fun this way. :p

[Graybeard]

Sister Rose, unaware of what (if anything) was passing between Desiree and Tim, was concentrating on the matter at hand. She carefully unwrapped the portrait and handed it to Therese. "I thought you'd want to have this," she said softly.

Tears formed at the corners of the tall woman's eyes. "Yes, that is Melusine," she said, no louder than Rose had been. "Was, anyway. That must have been at least fifteen years ago, probably twenty ... before ..."

Rose enveloped her in a hug, and if there were any more tears, she resolutely vowed not to notice them.

[Drusia]

Therese is crying. ... why is Therese crying? Should I... do something? Rose seems to be handling it, but....

"Excuse me for a moment," I say to Ebenezer. I carefully climb into the back of the wagon where everyone else is. I step past Tim, ignoring him - I don't have time for his silliness right now - and approach Therese and Rose.

I open my mouth to inquire if something is the matter, but stop myself. Something is clearly the matter. Instead, I ask Therese "Is there anything I can do to help?" I have no idea what the problem is, but if I can help, I want to.

-- Desiree

[Alberich]

The thing that really bothered Tim about this scene didn't involve Desiree, so he did not visibly react to her intended snub. He ignored her ignoring him.

If he had a chance to talk to Therese alone later on, he might just take it, but it was obvious no one else here would (or at this point could) be of any help.