Wanderlust

Mari Marian May, 24, Restless Soul

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Familiar Face || Anita & Mari

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A N I T A :

Oh yes, Anita was out walking her dog again.

It was a lovely Saturday, just a little after noon. She’d spent the morning with Roger at the plantation (spent the night before, which she rarely did) and she’d had a wonderful time speaking with Powell and helping Roger out with the dogs. And doing so had made Anita miss her lovely Viola very much and so she decided that she was well overdue for a walk with her own dalmatian. Roger had to practice for an upcoming show anyway and so Anita went home to find her own steadfast and true dalmatian waiting for her, wagging her tail and everything.

“Oh yes, you’d like a nice walk, wouldn’t you?” she’d cooed, Viola answering with kisses all over her face. Anita fetched Viola’s leash and after that– well, they were off!

She walked her all the way downtown, Viola prancing quite dignified down the streets. She’d walked down Main St then up again, but still Viola was not ready to go. “One circle, I suppose, around the park,” she giggled out loud to her friend. Viola’s tongue lolled from her mouth in an enthusiastic canine smile.

They set off to the park at once- and then Viola yanked her suddenly to the left.

“Oof! Viola, what are y–” she stopped at once as she looked up and saw…

“M–Marian? Oh my goodness, Mari, it is you!” gasped Anita. She laughed at once and came forward to give her dear childhood friend a hug. “What on earth are you doing here? Last I heard, you were– oh gosh, was it Sweden?”

As her friend pulls her into a hug she feels a deep sense of relief that her wanderings over the years and the way she was almost impossible to contact hadn’t affected their friendship. She embraces the other redhead tightly, as though she’s making up for all those years that they’d been denied each other’s company and such simple contact. As she pulled away she answered with a smile on her face. “I think so. But then there was Norway in between then and now.” Laughing lightly, she knew if anyone would understand her need to explore it would be Anita, if only because of the sheer volume of postcards that had been sent to her.

“It’s so good to see you.” And it really was when she was still trying to find her feet in a new town. Her smile turned a little more sheepish before she spoke again, unsure of how her news would be taken even though it was something of a silly thought when Anita had always been nothing but wonderful to her. “Well, I’m actually in the process of moving here. Or at least the decision has been made and I’m just trying to find somewhere to live.”

Then her attention turns back to the dog which had been the first thing to catch her eye, bending down slightly before she stretched out a hand to stroke it. “And who is this lovely lady?”

[marixmay-blog]

Decisions, Decisions || Open

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G E O R G E T T E :

Georgette was on her way to the gym strutting a very typical gym outfit: t-shirt, tights and sneakers (the only time she will ever wear sneakers mind you). She needed a long, hard and very strenuous workout, a very well could pop out all of her recently acquired stitches work out.  

God she had a hangover the size of Montana hanging over her head. 

Not that anyone would really know, she looked composed enough minus the messy bun her strands of golden blonde hair was rocking, but as it was, she was heading to the gym so that was the standard hairstyle. See, Georgette had spent her entire night in her place living under the bottom of tequila bottles. Her flashback and nightmares have grown worse after that ambulance ride that had triggered everything back to her.

If she thought she couldn’t sleep before, it was worse now. The tequila did help a little though and so did the stronger sleeping pills. 

It was why Georgette was scrolling through her phone when some stranger tried to grab a hold of her attention. (She was looking for different essential oils that would help with splitting headaches. If she was going to be popping sleeping pills with alcohol the least she could do was avoid the use of other medications.)

She placed her phone down. Lord, was she not in the mood to be someone’s tour guide right now. “Walking it. It’s a small town. You can walk all of it and do whatever it is you want when you find it.”

Over the years she had spent travelling Mari had had her eyes opened to the fact that the world was truly made up of all sorts of people. While the circles she’d moved in with her family had been those that enforced politeness whether you liked it or not, all fake smiles and false niceties, the rest of the world didn’t require such things at all. Working in various customer facing jobs while she’d been explore meant that she’d been exposed to a wide variety of people, some far worse than the woman she’d stopped.

So when the blonde gives her a short answer it doesn’t faze her in the slightest. It wasn’t her place to judge or make assumptions and for all she knew it could just be a simple case of her catching the other woman at a bad time - they were all entitled to bad days, after all. 

Taking a proper look at her, the redhead saw the gym equipment and put two and two together to come to the conclusion that she’d interrupted her on the way to some kind of workout session. An apologetic smile is given her way. “Sorry, I don’t mean to keep you.” 

Still, she thought she’d give it one last try, keeping her words just about vague enough that it didn’t seem as though she was asking too much again. “I just think that the locals usually know the best spots and while I know it’s all subjective I think it’s always interesting to hear about their favourites.”

[displacedprincess]

Shift Drinks . Marilena

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E L E N A :

Elena took a deep breath before starting the final song of her set tonight. She always was nervous when she sang something in Spanish that wasn’t a popular English song translated; but since she started throwing one in toward the middle or end of her sets here, people responded well to it. Maybe it was because she was a scantily-clad woman singing well in a language people liked to fetishize. Or maybe people in this town actually had an appreciation for Spanish.

Azúcar morena es tu piel, tus besos me saben a pura miel Tu boca son cerezas para comer Tu voz retumba en todo mi ser Azúcar, azúcar tu piel

It was probably the former, but Elena liked to be optimistic. She’d changed up the arrangement to sound a little more jazzy-slash-sultry and little less cinematic, more up the Court’s alley. Still, she was a little nervous.

Azúcar, azúcar Azúcar morena es tu piel, es tu bella voz que retumba en mi ser Son tus ojos que manipulan mi miel

Elena finished off the end of her set with a winning smile to the audience, and quickly scanned the room for the friend she left her blanket scarf with. Fuck, she couldn’t spot them. Not that Elena was cold - it was warm in The Court almost always - but Elena felt a little exposed in her barely existent top. Elena didn’t mind it on stage, like it was either show off the assets or wear something stunning, and Elena enjoyed doing both, but off stage when men made creepy comments…

Shit, where did her friend go with her scarf? Oh, well. 

The princess decided scarf or no scarf she deserved a shift drink so she hopped up into a seat at the bar and told her coworker, “My usual!” before she braced herself for the certain onslaught of str8 men.

When she had first started travelling there had been a degree of caution included in all of her decisions, leading to something of a hesitancy to fully embrace any and everything that came her way. It had made her think twice about things whereas now she had shaken off that minuscule sense of reluctance and happily dove headfirst into whatever came her way. After all, life didn’t wait for anyone and she had never enjoyed feeling as though she was missing out on something when she tried to live without any regrets.

That was how she had ended up at The Court of Miracles, tucked away in a little corner with a drink that she was sipping on in front of her. Her attention had been captured by so many things around the room it was hard for her to focus on just one but as soon as she heard the singing start it was the brunette who had her full focus.

Breaking out into applause when the other young woman finished, Mari made her way quickly to the bar where she’d seen the singer hop up onto a stool. Managing to beat everyone else there, some degree of side eye given to all the men who had flocked there, she smiled at the singer and was unable to stop herself practising the bit of Spanish that she did know. “Fue increíble.”

Her praising wasn’t finished yet though and she continued to speak warmly. “I’ve never heard someone sing so well!” After a moment of hesitation, Mari decided that she had nothing to lose and makes her request. “I was just about to get myself another drink, would you mind if I sit with you for a while? I can promise so drinks in return if you need some extra incentive.”

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Tell Me More || Mari & Hercules

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H E R C U L E S :

Hercules was minding his own business, as he always did, especially on campus. He had to keep as low a profile as possible so that when he was very much Not Low Profile (aka throwing cars through shoppe windows, or accidentally breaking women’s collarbones, or attempting to stop a deadly car crash) people didn’t recognize him.

Which was hard for a 6′2 Indian man in a small English town, but he had gotten very good at blending in over the years. 

He was minding his own business, sitting on a bench outside (the weather was overcast but still bright–chilly, but the cold didn’t bother him, so he barely noticed that at all) when a girl approached him.

Hercules glanced up.

A pretty girl. A beautiful girl. 

He blinked once and then smiled his best smile. “Oh, uhm, yeah! Yeah, definitely. I can–help…probably. Hopefully! Er, what do you need?”

While she tended to almost overflow with confidence, especially when it came to meeting new people and having little issue with approaching strangers, she always found it rather endearing when someone seemed more hesitant than she did. It always mellowed her slightly, perhaps not completely noticeable to those who didn’t know her but her enthusiasm was dialled back to a more normal level when it could easily be seen as overwhelming.

Still, she couldn’t help but beam at his offer of help when she’s genuinely pleased to learn that people in Swynlake are at least willing to try and help others. She knew that everyone had their own lives to live and things to do so to her it spoke volumes about a place when it’s residents took a moment of their day to help a stranger.

“Thank you, I really appreciate it.” Her smile was as warm as her words but she barely hesitated before she began to explain herself. “It’s nothing too important or an emergency or anything but I’m just curious about this university and wondering who to direct my questions too.”

Deciding that he seemed as likely as anyone to know, Marian continued with something of a self deprecating smile as she gives a little insight into her indecision. “I’m tempted by the idea of starting some sort of course but I don’t really know where to begin.”

[marixmay-blog]

Decisions, Decisions || Open

There was something of a knack to getting the most out of a place and Marian liked to believe that after six years of travelling how to do just that. It was all about the hidden treasures and immersing yourself in as much of life there as you could. Now she had even more incentive to do that when she was keen to sort forming some sort of tentative friendships in an attempt to settle down in the place that so far had done nothing but surprise her and in the process endear itself to her with each day that she spent there.

The Town Hall had seemed to be the best place for her to start, spotting the notice board and letting her eyes scan over it hoping to be able to pick out something that would be of use to her. A job and somewhere permanent to live was still very much needed but for now she’d even be satisfied with some activities to keep her busy and perhaps even help her meet people in the process. Hearing footsteps behind her, the redhead looks around quickly and addresses whoever is coming closer with a warm smile on her lips. “What would you recommend?” 

Realising it was a little open ended, she decided to get a little more specific with what she was wanting to know, even if she truly did wish to know everything that she could about Swynlake. “It can be anything. Things to do, things to see, things to eat.”

[multihailstormm]

Bake Sale Babe || Open

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T I A N A :

Pleased with the response she’d been getting all day from customers, and the redhead’s response was not different! She took great pride in all of her baked goods and to have people compliment them and get excited to see the cookies and the brownies, it meant that Tiana was on the right track. Food was in her future and this just confirmed it. 

“The gift my momma gave me! Most of the recipes are her and my father’s. Great grandmother’s. Great-great grandmother’s. I could keep going, but I won’t torture you with a boring history lesson.” She smirked, waving her hand in the air to move things along. “Baking is a science. It’s not the easiest thing to do, but anyone can learn how.” 

Tia picked up a few of her sweets and handed them in the girl’s direction. Two beignets, three different cookies and a handful of cake pops. “Take these. Treats hand-picked by your truly! I’m Tiana by the way. I’m new in town, so this is my attempt to lure people in to friendship.”

With her attention fixed firmly on the young woman speaking, Mari decided that this was someone who definitely knew what they were talking about - perhaps even someone that she could learn a thing or two from eventually when she past attempts at baking had all ended in some form of disaster. Whether it was the taste, the texture or failing to get the right cooking time it seemed that she was doomed to be hopeless.

“It’s so lovely that you’ve kept those recipes in your family.” Her own family was rather lacking in that way, only passing down expectations and pressure. “A science? I think it’s definitely one I need to study more than if my track record is anything to go by.” The redhead laughs lightly, always finding it easy to poke fun at her own shortcomings.

Taking what was offered to her, she couldn’t help but marvel at the creations a little more. “Thank you, these look amazing.” Her smile brightened when she realised that the two of them were in a similar position. “Oh you’re new too? Mari, a pleasure to meet you. If you’re offering treats then I’m sure you’ll win everyone over.”

[the-benevolent-seawitch]

Bring in Spring *8* [Octomay]

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U R S U L A :

Ursula was walking in Main Street park to cool down from her yoga class. Most mornings she could be found walking the perimeter of the park, today in a dark purple lycra jacket and black exercise pants. She liked these days the best, where the air was brisk and cool, but not freezing by any means. It felt good on her hot skin and could breathe deeply.

Not that she was particularly stressed about anything. The opposite in fact. Her business was booming. The St. Patrick ’s Day special had been a hit, the club swollen with patrons. The girls had received excellent tips. She’d even given her very own encore performance, much to the delight of her girls. Her own tips she’d split between the girls working that night. It had been a good, classy time, and hopefully a positive rebranding of the Court’s name.

And, her side business was going wonderfully well too. She had two mermaids now, wrapped around her fingers and she could not have asked for better clientele to start. The memories of a once-Queen of the sea were exceedingly powerful and the voice of a mermaid was as rare as ingredients came.

So far, Swynlake was putting its best foot forwards and it didn’t seem like it was slowing down any time soon…

Which she thought to herself just as she finished her circuit and came across a girl struck with wide-eyed wonder watching a few fairies flit overhead (those pesky things).

“They’re very busy preparing for springtime,” Ursula noted as she stepped closer to the girl with her beautiful hair. She tilted her head and smiled. “Do you like the spring, my dear?”

Fairies were something that she had never had the opportunity to see before despite all the countries, cities and towns that she had been to, so naturally when she came across some while walking in the park she became transfixed by them. It was all so enchanting really and it made her wonder why she hadn’t thought about exploring her interest in all things magical a little sooner when Swynlake had always been practically on her doorstep.

She doesn’t know enough about them to know what they are doing but it was still a beautiful sight to watch them dart all around and she couldn’t help but be curious as to what they were doing. A voice seems to be able to read her mind and gives her the answer that she was wondering about, causing her attention to shift to the speaker.

The smile that had been on her lips while watching the fairies remains as she looks at the woman, a little nod given to acknowledge what has been said. “Well it’s very impressive to watch - I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Pausing slightly, though it’s not out of hesitation but rather weighing up her answer, Mari looks around once more before answering. 

“I think that there’s something to like in every season but spring is especially nice. All those new beginnings.” 

It almost felt fitting that she had chosen to move to Swynlake while the seasons were changing, something almost poetic in the way that it would hopefully begin to reflect her life. 

[marixmay-blog]

Now We’re All Grown Up|| Robin & Mari

Despite having had the opportunity and privilege of trying so many local delicacies that she’d lost track of them all throughout her time in Europe, she still craved British tea above all else. There was something about it that just made it so much more refreshing and satisfying than anything else that she had tried and while she was almost certain that a good deal of that had to do with her bias, it didn’t change the way that she felt about the subject. While she could have easily stayed within the Tipton to enjoy a cup, Mari decided that she might as well use her wanting for it as an opportunity to visit the little tea shoppe that she had noticed on previous walks around the town. 

In her eagerness to get inside, she barely noticed someone coming her way until she collided with them. An apology was quick to form when she had few intentions to get on anyone’s bad side and the words rush out quickly but with genuine sentiment accompanied by a sheepish smile that she hopes will help smooth things over. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I sho-” Only she never gets to finish the sentence when surprise halts the rest of the words upon seeing who it is that she’d inconvenienced after taking a small step back. “Robin?” While she was certain that it was him there was still a hesitancy to her voice when she had no idea how she would be received. He was, after all, another in a long line of people she’d drifted away from when she’d been too busy exploring Europe to remember those back in England.

Rather than just allow them to stand in silence she feels as though she should say something, anything. Her hands end up clasped in front of her just so that she doesn’t end up wringing them together and she clears her throat lightly. “It been a rather long time.”

@n0ttinghamshad0w

[marixmay-blog]

Familiar Face || Anita & Mari

Main Street Park was quickly becoming one of her favourite places to spend her time when there wasn’t much else to fill her days with. It was peaceful and yet so full of things to catch her attention, the perfect balance of soothing and entertaining. So when she found herself at a loose end having put a halt to her search for a job and somewhere more permanent to live, she found herself instantly drawn to the park with the intention to take a walk around the pond that lay within it. 

Lost in something of a daze as she finds her focus completely captured by all the sights around her, she almost misses the person walking the dogs approaching her. It’s the dalmatians that she sees first, her fondness for animals meaning that they always seem to peak her interest first. With a smile on her lips she’s about to practically coo at them but just before she does she looks up at whoever is holding their leads. Who she does see takes her by surprise, hazel eyes widening slightly as she tries to process what she’s seeing properly. Finally, she speaks again a slight hesitancy to her voice even though she is glad to see the other woman. “Anita?”

There truly weren’t many people that Mari had kept in touch with over her life when her attention was always taken by what was in front of her rather than what lay behind her but that didn’t mean that she didn’t feel some sort of pang of guilt that she had let her friendship with her old school friend fade into nothing more than a postcard every time she moved city. It was infrequent and almost impersonal and the other redhead had deserved something more than that. “It’s so nice to see you.” There was undeniable warmth in her tone when she still had such fond memories of the two of them. “This is such a surprise although I feel like only I can be blamed for that.”

@truly-aninspiration

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Tell Me More || Mari & Hercules

There had never been any place in her mind for regret when she was always far too focused on living life to its fullest instead of spending too long dwelling in the past. It didn’t mean that there weren’t times that her mind drifted off into potential could-have-beens or what-ifs and even if such times were rare she’d thought about what her life would have been like if her parents had gotten their way and she had ended up attending university. Even now she didn’t know what degree she would do but she had always enjoyed the opportunity to learn something new and was curious about what the university might have to offer.

For once she hadn’t gotten distracted by anything on her walk to the university, far too much determination in her steps to allow her attention to get caught by anything else along the way. Perhaps on the way back she’d indulge her curiosity a little more and wander into a few of the shops that had peaked her interest. From the bookshoppe to the record store and the tattoo parlour that was only fueling her desire get one herself, Mari was tempted more and more to spend what money she had saved.

But now wasn’t the time for that when she had questions that seemed to demand to be answered by how often they were playing on her mind. As she neared the campus, hazel eyes travelled over those who were milling about as she tried to pick out someone who would be able to help her. Finally her eyes landed on a man who she was almost certain wasn’t a student and she approached him with a smile on her face. “Hi, sorry to bother you but I was just wondering if you had some time to help me out a little? Or could at least point me in the direction of someone who could.”

@gothedistance-herc

[multihailstormm]

Bake Sale Babe || Open

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T I A N A :

Tiana had way too much time on her hands… and the kitchen of her dreams. Everything in Lottie’s kitchen was state of the art and high tech and Tia had been trying out all of the appliances - baking, braising, steaming, cooking - She spent her days doing all of the culinary adventures and they had started to pile up. There were more cupcakes, brownies and sweets in the house than Tiana, Lottie and Stella knew to do with. Being wasteful wasn’t an option for Tia though…

Considering she was between jobs and had no income coming in at the moment, the most obvious choice was to sell them! She grabbed some plastic wrap and a pretty ribbon and bagged together individual servings that she could sell to anyone willing to buy. Well, if she wasn’t able to get a job or create Tiana’s place in the future, she could could sell sweets on the street for the rest of her life. The thought made Tiana sigh exasperatedly. The bake sale would do for now though…

Tiana figured she’d hit a few neighborhoods. She could set up at Pride University in their courtyard area, over by the town hall, and somewhere by the lake. Hit all of the major locations in town that way she could sell all her treats. 

When she had everything together, Tiana made her way to her first location. She set up the table she’d borrowed, put a lovely table cloth on the table to make things look nice and inviting and put out all her baked goods on the table. With a smile on her face, Tiana tried her best to make not-awkward eye contact with the people that walked by. “I’ve got brownies and cookies!” She attempted to entice people.

Swynlake was still so much of a mystery to her and her curiosity just refused to let it stay that way for long. Exploring every inch of a place had always been her favourite pastime in every city or town that she’d been to, finding the little things that gave it its character and what made it different from any other place on earth. Everywhere was different and Mari couldn’t wait to see what made Swynlake so unique, other than the magic that was all around them. 

She’d decided to take a walk through the town’s cobbled streets, easily getting distracted by taking in all of the different window displays as she did. There seemed to be a constant stream of things for her to get captivated by and as the days of her being there wore on, the more and more happy she was that she’d chosen this town to try to make a life in.

Her eyes had been elsewhere, focused on the buildings rather than what was happening around her but when the voice calls out the redhead pauses in her steps and turns to look at the speaker. A grin is quick to form on her features, attention immediately caught by the mention of not only cake but cookies as well. “Well who can say no to that?”

Taking a few steps closer, she looked down at the table while pushing some of her hair away to get a better looking. “Oh my goodness, these look amazing!” Her voice is warm as she praises the other woman, genuinely impressed by what she sees and keen to let her know that she’s admiring her work. “You must have a gift - I’ve always been hopeless at baking.”

[marixmay-blog]

BASICS

Full Name: Marian Rosalie May Nickname(s): Mari Age: 24 Date of Birth: 23/07/93  Zodiac Sign: Leo Place of Birth: London Ethnicity: White Nationality: British Gender: Female Sexual Orientation: Pansexual Romantic Orientation: Panromantic Religion: none Occupation: currently unemployed Language(s) Spoken: Spanish, Italian, German and conversational French, Swedish and Finish Accent: well spoken British (x)

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Hair Color: Red Eye Color: Hazel Height: 5′4 Weight: 122lbs Build: slim

PERSONALITY

Positive Traits: playful, bold, independent, passionate, honest Negative Traits: unthinking, impulsive, sensitive, irrational, impatient Goals/Desires: at the moment she just wants to find a job and somewhere to live in Swynlake and she has ever intention of making it her home. Fears: needles and enclosed spaces (lifts/elavtors especially) Hobbies: she’ll try anything once but few things actually last long enough to be a hobby. She’s played badminton from a young age though and still does now. Quirks: can’t sleep after watching horror movies, collects ticket stubs and postcards, extremely ticklish, taps foot when bored, good at card games, does not drive. Likes: strawberries, sunshine, dancing, rainstorms, travelling, hugs, laughing, smiling at strangers, forehead kisses, new experiences, citrus smells, cinnamon, champagne, animals, the colours red and orange, uplifting films, fruity cocktails.  Dislikes: coffee, ketchup, snobs, the colour navy, too much salt in her food, rude people, foggy days, warm wine, dishonesty, humidity, ignorance, coca cola, littering, burning her tongue (happens semi-regularly), horror films.

FAMILY

Father: Jonathan May Mother: Claudia May Sibling(s): none Pet(s): none yet but she’d love a dog Financial Status: comfortable but far from rich

TESTS

Myers-Briggs: ESFP Enneagram: Type 7 - the epicure Temperament: Sanguine Hogwarts House: Gryffindor (though Hufflepuff traits too)

THIS OR THAT

coffee or tea? Tea showering in the day or night? Mornings taking baths or taking showers? Usually a shower but she enjoys a bath too tv or movies? Movies writing or reading? Reading platonic or romantic love? Any and all love iced tea or lemonade? Lemonade  ice cream or smoothies? Ice cream especially chocolate cupcakes or cake? Cupcakes beach or mountains? Mountains book smarts or street smarts? Both introverted or extroverted? Definitely extroverted sensible or imaginative? Imaginative brave or foolhardy? Foolhardy family or friends? Friends sunrise or sunset? Sunset but really both indoors or outdoors? Outdoors night owl or early bird? Early bird technology or old-fashioned? Technology left handed or right handed? Left handed

[marixmay-blog]