ic Freedom City Renaissance Fair

[Breella]

GM

September 7th, 2011

The sun had not yet crested over the trees around the clearing, the smell of jerky and mead still tried to crest over the smell of unwashed bodies. Even though it was only 10am there are many people present. Tents, booths and lean-to's line the makeshift corridors at the Freedom City Renaissance Fair. Some of them selling items, others with small games of skill. In the center is a large competition ring where jousting, archery and other medieval events will take place over the course of the day. Performers dressed in medieval garb weaving their way through the 'streets' proclaiming their thee's and thou's. Overall it was shaping up to be a wonderful day at the fair!

[Breella]

Gwen was thoroughly excited. She had never been to a European medieval re-creation before. She had decided to wear a long billowy peasant skirt and a sheer white peasant top. She let her long auburn hair flow around her and her shoes were simple brown leather thongs on her feet. She reached into a black purse that was attached to her belt and checked the time on her cellphone, she hoped that everyone wouldn't be late. Several of the Claremont students would be taking a bus over to the fair and they were supposed to meet out at the gate soon. Fun today? the vines inquired of her. I hope so, this will be new for me too. The Vines were all hiding in their baseflower on Gwen's shoulder, and the usual vibrant green of their ink was the red/brown of henna. Gwen had scampered ahead of everyone else to get a good place in the line to enter. She had been told that the wait at the gate for entry could be almost an hour long and people had been right.

[Raveled]

The Claremont bus rumbled along the road, swaying from side to side as it hit ruts in the road. Brian Harris had been half-expecting a hover-bus or at least a robot driver, but once again the school's commitment to maintaining the fiction of normality won out, and the dozen or so students who had signed up for the Renaissance Faire were bouncing around the back of a city bus. The young man stood and stumbled to the front of the bus, grabbing the tails of his costume and thudding into a seat across from Morgan and Vicky. He grinned at his friends, tugging at his 'costume,' such as it was. He wasn't as jazzed to be spending the day pretending to be a knight as his friends were; he probably wouldn't have signed up at all if it hadn't been Gwen coordinating everything. As it was, he'd rented a fairly basic knightly costume from a party place and cut it down further. He was still wearing the cotton tabard (with a white tee underneath) and had the plastic stuck through his belt. He'd left the plastic helmet/crown at the dorm along with the cotton trousers, replacing them with a pair of black jeans.

He gave his friends a grin. "What's up," he tossed out. "Looking forward to the jousts and the mutton?"

[Tiffany Korta]

Lucy felt a little embarrassed standing in the queue for the faire. Deciding to attend on a whim, after seeing a flyer on her explorations of the old Westside of the town, she now felt decidedly underdressed compared to the medieval finery on display in just the queue. Still the sunglasses were required what with her distinctive eyes; she was beginning to get recognized by a few people around the city.

Still it was something she hadn’t tried before, the idea hadn’t been even conceived when she was young. Still it was lovely day and everyone seemed to be in a good mood.

What could go wrong?

[Ozob]

Johnny sat on the bus, still not entirely sure where he was and what he was doing here. As his last year of high school he should have been king of the school and surrounded by friends getting ready for college. Instead he was on the East Coast in a school he knew nothing about in a city that he'd barely ever heard of. Looking out the window as they wound their way through town he at least had the consolation that he had been in this situation before. Perhaps this was the third or fourth prep school that he'd been transferred too, so it wasn't like he hadn't been sitting on a bus like this before.

Emily was right though, might as well make the best of it. There was something about this place that she hadn't been telling him, which was odd. However, she seemed to think he was going to like it here and her instincts were rarely wrong.

Well that just left getting to know people, even if he seemed to be woefully under dressed for the event. His recent trip to the mall hadn't really prepared him for some kind of Ren Faire, so his cargo shorts and body shirt had to do. Actually, he hadn't really even made it to the campus yet. They had been in the process of checking in and the receptionist had indicated that there was a bus leaving for the Ren Faire if he wanted to meet some people and have some fun before classes started.

With a deep breath, he put on a genuine smile and moved forward a couple of rows, flashing the people there a shaka sign in greetings, "hey, how's it hanging?"

[Azuth65]

Vicky moved her arms under the purple cloak she'd picked up from the costume shop and had donned over a pair of black pants and almost corset-like top. Around her left wrist was a well designed faux-silver bracer etched with arcane-looking sigils and runes.

At Brian's question she looked up, "The jousting, fencing, and archery displays here. That and giving my Halloween costume a trial run." Nodding to her boyfriend in the seat next to her she smirked, "So far, so good."

[Quinn]

Morgan was dressed a tad more eclectic; bonus of knowing a genuine old-school dwarven smith was the level of reference material you could get for costumes. Using Logan's knowledge and his dad's expertise with history, he'd assembled an outfit that looked like he'd stepped right out of a painting of his ancestor; Cuchulainn of the Red Hand. Granted, most of it was modern materials, and half of it was made on the cheap (being a student far from home meant his cash flow was slim to the point of nonexistent), but that didn't stop him from acting like a giddy schoolboy (which he was) when he first saw the thing. At his girlfriend's comment of "so far, so good", he looked over at her and made a deliberate show of examining the costume from head to foot.

"Certainly eye-catching; the purple makes you look particularly regal, love."

He smiled, and turned to his roommate, leaning back on the bus seat.

"I'm looking forward more to the art displays; glassblowing and illumination. But yeah, seeing dudes throw down with swords and armor's going to be awesome."

Then the newcomer walked up, and Morgan blinked for a moment, nonplussed. The lack of costume was a bit surprising, but then he noted a distinct uneasiness in the teen's demeanor. Wrong bus, maybe? Nevertheless, he held out a friendly hand to shake.

"Solid day so far, man. Name's Morgan, yours?"

[Ozob]

"Johnny," he replied taking Morgan's hand and pumping it in a friendly manner.

Looking over Morgan's costume, he nodded, "Sweet threads. So... is this kind of thing the norm around here? I mean we're not all going to be studying Renascence history or something are we?"

As he spoke he nodded to the other people nearby. They were colorfully dressed and he was beginning to think that he might have to buy something at the fair to fit in.

[Breella]

GM

As the Claremont bus approached the entrance to the fair it weaved through jam packed parking lots. "Glad we don't have to walk to the door." someone muttered from the back. They couldn't be more right. Throngs of people some in garb, others in plainclothes and yet some dressed as wizards, faeries and other mythical beings swarmed to the mountainous line that was the front gate. Said gate was beautifully decorated in bright paints, hanging tapestries and had "guards" posted checking tickets for admittance. The bus rolled to a halt at the drop-off point just as the "show" was starting again. Trumpets were sounding and the actors on the pavilion were beginning to take places as the teens assembled to join Gwen.

[Breella]

Gwen turned when she could see the blue and yellow bus and waved the teens over to her. "Hurry! The entrance show is about to begin!" Gwen had heard that there was a cute "show" put on every 10 minutes at the gate and she had patiently waited for her friends to arrive before going farther. "I've got all of our tickets, we can walk right up!" When she saw Brian her face flushed red and she smiled brighter. She had so been looking forward to a nice day with him. Surely there wouldn't be any sharks or sharktopus men here.

[Ozob]

Filing off the bus with everyone else, Johnny took in the sights of the fair and the seeming hordes of people dressed both in period and other costumes. He was pretty sure that barbarian's were not really Renaissance based, but there were certainly enough of them along with the Norse raiders, wizards, and all the other fantasy memes. Still even if he smirked at some of the out of place characters, there was something about the sheer number of people in costume that made it both fun and interesting.

He was trying to figure out where to go, when the group he had introduced himself too walked over to a long haired girl waving them forward. Not having any clue where to go or really who anyone was, he followed figuring that someone would either tell him to wait in the monstrous line, or that she had already purchased tickets for them.

When he got too them, he said, "do I need to get in line over there, or is this some kind of school thing?"

[Azuth65]

Vicky looked over at Johnny.  "Nah, but some of us take our fun pretty seriously," she said with a friendly smile.

At Morgan's comment she blushed almost as scarlet as her irises.  "You outfit certainly gives you a certain old world charm," she replied.

As they exited the bus she directed the crew towards the waving Gwen, catching the glances between the Floropth and Brian she smiled to herself, glad to see another couple together.

Taking her ticket she nodded and said, "Thanks Gwen.  The entrance show sounds like fun." At John's comment she hoped that Gwen had covered for more students, the line really did look terribly long.

[Raveled]

Brian gave the new arrival a smile, shaking the other boy's hand. "Hey, Brian Harris. Glad to meet you." Aside from that, he let Morgan and Vicky handle the socializing. He was looking forward to seeing Gwen too much.

When the bus arrived, he was on his feet before it was stopped. He was the first one off and the first one to see Gwen in her costume. A wide, silly grin grew over his face and he stepped forward, grabbing her hand and squeezing. "You are looking absolutely fantastic, Gwen," he said. "Just so you know, I would so fight a dragon for you."

[Breella]

Gwen blushed a deep shade of red this time. Her cheeks raised in a deep smile that reached her eyes. "Brian!" she let out, shoulders raising as a giggle escaped her lips. "You flatter me good sir." she said with her best accent like those of the performers who were about to go on. She pushed her hair over her shoulder and reached into her purse, she looked around at the gaggle of students who had assembled around from the bus. "If all the Claremont students would be so kind as to line up to claim their tickets from me, you will be free to go about your business-- erm fun as you please. The bus will pick us up here again at 8pm. If you miss it prepare to cab it back to school." Gwen preceded to hand out the tickets to the other students then turned to her small assembled group. "This is going to be a wonderful day!"

[Breella]

GM

"HEAR YE HEAR YE!" A loud voice commanded after the trumpets ceased. "THE QUEEN, LADY ELLENE AND THE GOOD KING DONOVAN WILL SEE YOU NOW!" Two regally dressed figures made their way to the platform.

"Who are all of these-- these peasants!" the Queen demanded of the announcer. "I do believe my dear, these are the peasants come to see the tournament today my dear." the King intervened before the obviously angered Queen could inflict a harm upon the man who brought so many commoners into her vision. "My My, they do look absolutely dreadful! How can I find anyone in this sea of commoners?!" The Queen peered out into the audience, looking to choose someone. "You! Young lady with the pale powder skin, you'll do!" She pointed straight at Lucy and continued to scan the crowd. It was however the King who spoke up. "And you, you two look like a couple of brave young men!" the King pointed to Morgan and Brian then turned back to the Queen. "They will do!" They said in unison, voices cascading. "THE KING AND QUEEN HAVE DECIDED. THESE WILL BE YOUR LADY AND YOUR TWO CHAMPIONS, THEY WILL FIGHT FOR YOUR KINGDOMS HONOR AT HALF PAST NOON!" The gates to the fair were opened by footsoldiers and the crowd allowed to pass.

[Tiffany Korta]

Standing in line Lucy was enjoying the sight and sound. As she watched a bus rumbled by with a few face she thought she’d recognized, of cause most of the people she’d met all wore mask so there was no way that she could be totally sure.

She then listened intently as the “King and Queen“ of the fair declared her as the Lady of the joust.

She bent low in her best curtsey.

“Your majesties do me the greatest of honors.â€

She scanned to boy chosen to be her champions, she smiled at the thought she could probably beat then in a fight. Still she was going to enjoy being princess for the day.

[Raveled]

"Not by half," Brian said, watching Gwen hand out the tickets. He made sure to get his last and took her hand again, walking close to the gate as the performance began, but he was unprepared to be singled out by the 'king.' He glanced around and shrugged, making a passable bow as he was called on. Once the gates were opened and the students and other folks began filing in, he spoke to Gwen. "So, m'lady. Can this poor, humble knight ask for a sign of your favor before the match?" He was distracted for a moment as one of the performers handed him a piece of paper; he glanced at it, shrugged, and stuffed it in a pocket. He didn't expect that the entertainers would let their guests get seriously hurt, or even humiliated in front of an audience.

[Ozob]

Johnny could see the doe eyes that Gwen was making at Brian and guessed that they would far rather walk around together than have him tailing along. In fact, it looked like there were more than a few couples on the bus which left him as quite the unenviable third wheel. Well, regardless, the sun was out, the food smelled fantastic, and apparently there were going to be some kind of games given the most recent announcement.

He smiled as Brian and Morgan were singled out, it would mean the show had a little personal interest for him. Always better when you could cheer for someone you actually knew.

Knowing the stigma of the new kid he let them all go their own way and waited to see who might stay back or was looking for someone to wander the fair with. Worst case, he'd manage it on his own, but these things were always better with someone to share the experience.

[Breella]

Gwen smiled at Brian "I'll have to think on that one." she proceeded to jerk her head in the direction of the new boy. New friend! the Vines chirped, but were fighting against the desire to jump out and meet a new student. Get a hold of yourself, not here! Gwen had to struggle to hold their attention. She turned to the new boy.

"Just be glad that your first day at Claremont didn't involve this one leg first into an almost extinct species of tree." Gwen pushed a thumb at Morgan then stuck out her hand to the new boy. "I'm Gwendolyn Barr, please call me Gwen." Gwen made a mental note that she seemed to be joining Morgan on the Claremont Welcome Wagon. She had been present for more than a few new students in recent weeks. "I've only been here for about a month and a half myself."

[Ozob]

Before heading off, he paused for a moment, looking at the pale skinned woman, now decreed princess. Not a bad way to start the fair. What surprised him was that she didn't have anyone obviously with her. While she seemed a bit older, she had an athletic look about her and she must have kept up her exercises because she moved like someone far younger. Regardless, a little compliment wouldn't hurt anyone and then he could get on with the day... who knows, maybe even meet a friend.

With an award winning smile he walked up to Lucy, "princess? Congratulations, you did that bow thing like you've done a few before. Anyway, I hope you have fun with it!"

He was about to turn away when he thought of something and began to rummage through his battered but comfortable cargo shorts. A few brief moments later he pulled out a small tube of sun tan lotion which he kept on him. Although, in retrospect, why was a good question. Spending so much time on the beach, gave him a very healthy tan and some pretty good resistance to the sun's golden rays.

"Oh, if you didn't already do the deed, I've got a small thing of sun tan. With that complexion and the sun today, you might really burn pretty bad today."

[Tiffany Korta]

Despite everything she couldn’t help but smile at the young man’s confidence, but then again that’s young men all over even in her time. At little too well built and tanned for her tastes but a charmer nether the less.

And it would be nice to spend the day in someone elses company.

“Why sir you do me an honor.†She gave a little mock bow “Maybe you could protect me from all the other less kindly sires who may try to gain my favors?†She gave her a wry smile.

“And thanks for the offer of the suntan lotion, but I don’t really need it. I don’t tan easily.†she smiled at her own private joke “And I defiantly don’t burn in the sunlight.â€

[Ozob]

"Awesome," Johnny said echoing his thoughts exactly. "I mean, um... it would be my honor your grace"

Thankfully, the surfing culture was pretty free wheeling. Male, felmale, old, young, it didn't really matter. What was important was the moment and experiences you shared. He'd spent a fair amount of time surfing with men and women of all ages, which helped reduce the awkwardness that he might otherwise have felt. So he didn't think it odd at all that they were going to wander the fair together.

As they started to walk into the fair proper, he looked over at her with a little worry. How she didn't burn with skin that pale was beyond him. However, she'd obviously lived with it all her life and hopefully knew what she was talking about. With a shrug, he put it back in his pants pocket. She knew he had it if she changed her mind later.

"You'll totally have to forgive me... I mean, I must beg your forgiveness on my attire. My squire left my armor in lands far west" he said trying to play along with her.

[Azuth65]

Vicky glanced over at the woman declared Lady and smiled in recognition as she joined the applause. She leaned towards Morgan and said in a whisper only he could hear, "I've 'worked' with her before. Remember the little recap I shared from up at Raymond? That's the non-sword swinging one. She takes her rads like a champ."

She eyed Brian and Morgan, "I do hope the event organizers will be providing the prop weapons. If I'd had some notice, I could have made the long trip back to the Windy City and gotten some of the gear from some of the guys from my old gaming group. Never got into it myself but some of them do the LARP thing pretty heavily." Vicky looked down at herself, finding the fit of her top doing impressive things with her chest, "Though, I could get used to it."

As the group navigated the crowds around the craftsmen she had to stop and watch a woman binding books. The wonderful leather-bound tomes came in several colors, she indicated to the binder's partner running the cash box she'd like the red and the black ones. One quick cash transaction later, she hurried to catch up with Morgan, Brian and Gwen. "Sorry. Shiny object," she said with a chuckle.

[Raveled]

Brian rolled his eyes at Vicky, doing his best to ignore what the tightly-laced top was doing to his best friend's girlfriend's figure. That was a chain of association that put her firmly outside of oogling territory, and the young man was determined to keep it that way. He focused on Gwen instead, holding her hand firmly as they wandered through the fair. As Vicky ran back with her new purchase, his eye fell on something more common at a state fair: an old-fashioned 'test your strength machine,' the kind with a mallet and a bell. He winked at Gwen and walked over, rubbing his hands together. He exchanged some banter with the operator and took the mallet, holding above his head and posing dramatically before bringing the oversized hammer down with all his strength.

[Breella]

GM

The operator was dressed in a long blue tunic beige trousers and had high leather boots. He smirked at Brian as he took his money and handed him the mallet. The man obviously didn't think that Brian would do as well as he did. The ball went up through levels such as infant, jester, child, merchant, farmer as high as "Average Knight." The worker smiled at Brian and Gwen "Huzzah! Pick your lady a prize from this bin my sir!" The man motioned towards a basket with several 'hand made' looking dolls.