Re: The Village of the Wayward Lambs (Pale, Oamp)
As afternoon turned to evening, the preparations for the festival were completed. Coloured lanterns, mostly blues and whites, hung on strings across the main street whilst children ran about, dancing and playing with matching coloured ribbons in their hands. It seemed the first part of the festival involved games for the children and they merrily laughed as they played and chased one another about through the streets. Meanwhile, a good amount of the the adults of the village, those not supervising the children's games, were hard at work putting the final touches on the feast. A large assortment of meals, easily enough to sate the hunger of all who lived here, prepared entirely without cooking; all the food was eaten fresh and cold and was (supposedly) safe to do so.
Meals ranged from cold meats and cheeses, fruits and vegetables, to perhaps most bizarre to the visitors some sliced fish which, while prepared, had not been cooked. The centrepiece was a large ice sculpture of a delicate faerie, which was particular impressive considering it was out of season for ice sculptures; clearly someone with magical talent had provided the ice block for another to do the carving, or perhaps they were one and the same. Still, it was certainly all an impressive sight for such a remote village and no wonder that they were so proud of their festival.
As the games wound down, the village gathered about to give their thanks to the goddess Auricael. As the village leader completed proudly declaring his thanks to the ice statue, a response came in the form of silvery laughter that seemed to come from every direction at once. A few sparkles of blue light flew through the air and with a bright flash, a female figure stood before the statue. She was tall, standing at somewhere slightly over six feet, with long, flowing blonde hair trailing down her back. Her skin was pale and her eyes a slightly glowing blue colour. Upon her body she wore a long, flowing dress of blue and white which seemed to float slightly as if stirred by a slight breeze and her feet remained bare, delicately pointed down and floating a few inches from the ground. "So kind of you all to come and give thanks to me," the figure declared with a slightly mischievous grin.
However, a murmur had gone up through the crowd, whispers and mutterings of how this figure before them was not how Auricael had ever appeared to them before. It wasn't long before the village leader spoke up again, "Forgive me, Great Auricael, but you appear... different... to us, than you have previously..."
This statement was met with more silvery laughter, which seemed to echo unnaturally as it bounced off the houses and scenery, her body shimmering with a faint aura. "I thought it was time for a change," she explains offhandedly, and strikes a few poses, running her hand through her hair and smoothing out her dress. "Don't tell me you don't approve?"
All in all, the villagers didn't seem to know what to make of this...
