#fheyla

[cksimpodia]

Another wild night at Club Wake!

[straycatte-archives]

Rythas’ House Fire: featuring @fheylahaken​ Lola’s crazy cousin, where to begin? She’s always a hilarity to be around and certainly a skilled bartender! Thank you for being so open to Lola being part of the family. (: It’s been awesome getting to know Fhey more and seeing all the trouble those crazy cats can get into!

[idanwyn-et-al]

Duets and Dastardly Deeds: A Harbor Herald Exclusive!

[The Palazzo Aldenard, Mist.]

Good day, lovely readers! It is daytime where you are, perhaps, yes? Or perhaps the stars have begun their slow scrawl across the darkened bowl of the heavens, the sun a memory to be gossiped about while Her Radiance is raising crops and crisping skins on the other side of our own star. Whatever light is creeping across your parquet floor, your larboard, your patch of forest, I hope to find you in good health and with a hankering to read about a most curious concert that took place at the Palazzo Aldenard’s Opera House a few days past.

This concert hall is well-known to many, but I confess, lovely readers, that it was this reporter’s first chance to visit the venerable venue for herself, and it did not disappoint. A crewmate of mine (ah yes, yours truly is a captain now, of her very own definitely-haunted ship; quite the tale of an unlikely inheritance, and utterly better-suited for another column entirely) and I took our seats, sharing uisghe and waiting for the show to begin. As this reporter is a long time fan of Savo’s (she is indirectly responsible for a prison sentence I served some years back, another story best shared over a plate of steak frites and a gallon of stout), I knew that her gnarled, underfed-despite-everyone’s-best-efforts paw brings a twist to every show, and inspires the audience to loosen up when confronted with the unexpected. Little did I know how much of a twist this show would wring itself into, like a wet rag squeezing water over still-smoldering embers! However, I am getting ahead of myself, lovelies. 

The evening began with a dueling duet; T’ahlia and D’ahlia! D’ahlia played classical piano with poise and elegance, fingers running over the keys nimbly. T’ahlia echoed and responded with her ceruleum guitar, sending reverbs into the rafters. Still, D’ahlia was dauntless, playing the act of straight man to the showy comedy of T’ahlia’s riffs. Both showcased skill and playfulness with ease, getting things off to a joyful start.

The duo was joined by Hani Dan’na, singing a song about lost relationships. Resigned, lovely lyrics left many an eye wet; surely, it was the profusion of springtime blossoms outside that caused such a thing. Surely, that.

Lionnellais Deveraux and Rythas Brynelle next took the stage, a pas de deux in lyrical form about looking at oneself in the looking glass and resolving to change. The two tall, lithe performers did, indeed, seem to be looking into a mirror as their eyes met and their melodic runs tumbled into harmonies. To this reporter, they seemed to encapsulate the desire to make today the first day of the rest of their lives---to use a quote oft-seen in cross-stitch on one’s grandmama’s wall---but were almost daring the other to be the first to change.

Aero, a new performer to this reporter and many others in the audience, was as forthright about being high on Shroud mushrooms as he was about body positivity; he performed entirely in the nude, and one was certainly larger than the other (pupils, I mean. Pupils!).  Savo provided riffs on her famed ten-stringed viol, and the pair brought levity to the stage. I do believe in a thing called love, even if it comes at the cost of Keepers of the Moon dragging you out into the woods and making you question all you’ve ever known. 

Zanin Briggs and Rythas continued in this vein with the next piece; it seems they, too, are reluctant-yet-indulgent caretakers of Savo and Fheyla. Family may make you question everything, dear readers, but if they lead you to great adventures, things like fleas, questionable manners, and spotty hygiene can be overlooked. 

A pair of mysterious Elezen women took the boards with a back-to-back set filled with as much fire as a bellyful of my late Papa’s famous uisghe. Injecting the room with a raw-hearted, toothy roar of lyrics meant to ignite the still-simmering resentment in Ishgard, these mysterious performers dressed to impress did just that! Yes, dear readers, although word out of those stony, snowcapped spires is that the Lord Commander has done his level best to close the gap between high and lowborn, it seems a thousand years of rigid social structures and war leave those still in the social depths wondering when their voices will really be heard. It was then when this reporter began to notice something of a theme throughout the night’s performances; unease, discontent, loss, building into...

FIRE! You read that right, faithful readers; a fire erupted backstage, and we were all summarily evacuated to the lawn for half a bell’s time. Take heart; the Palazzo’s staff were professional, efficient, and informative. I have now learned that if one must shout fire at a crowded theater, this is the theater in which to do so, lovelies. Once the blaze was contained, the show did indeed go on; and that, I believe, is my quota of cliched phrases for this article.

Once we had all filed back in---neatly and in single file, I assure you---Lionnellais and Rythas welcomed the audience back with a jaunty tune with the refrain “Under Censure”. This reporter must confess that the untimely fire combined with the lyrics that speak of restraints fraying under pressure had her wondering a great many things. Still, just as the show went on, so, too, must this article. 

T’ahlia returned to the stage with an acoustic guitar, and was joined by Hesper of Trinity. The pair sang a soulful duet about an “army of two” that would stand against all odds and defy the world. Your faithful reporter was very much lost in her own thoughts and suppositions, but was briefly brought back to attention by the songstress Sif, who joined T’ahlia for the next piece. This one spoke of T’ahlia’s conflicted feelings of yearning and betrayal directed at her mother, a woman of the Shroud who did her best for the young Miqo’te and yet left her wanting. The duo of Sif and T’ahlia singing call-and-response that melded into soulful, wistful harmonies drew the audience in and included us in such tender, bittersweet recollections.

As their last chords were still lingering like dark tea on the sides of the tongue, we were all drawn to our feet by an upbeat, glittering tune about calling on shinobi when in need! True to the legacy of those infamous assassins, the stage effects were superb; one might even believe that said shinobi were hiding in plain sight, deploying mudra and shadow-smoke to great effect amongst the waving glow wands of the enthused crowd. This reporter could not help but muse over how some of the other performers might, indeed, be inspired to hire a shinobi for their current troubles that simmered along the floorboards along with the occasional puff of singed scenery.

T’ahlia and Dane Escherra brought us all back to those melancholy undercurrents, with the latter offering soulful vocals recounting being a wartime prostitute. They fight like men, die like boys, and the women are expected to pretend it doesn’t affect them, offer themselves up as trophies. It was a simple yet poignant view into a world that many would rather pretend does not exist; this reporter, for one, was more interested in the stories of these women than the wars that raged around them.

Oh, dear readers, how I do eat up the ilms of column space on this one! The final two acts followed the evening’s emotional hills and vales, leaving us on a hill of humor. Zeraia Reynard crooned and Savo clawed tunes about male Seekers of the Sun, and...well, the lyrics are not entirely fit for print, but in the interest of public health (and allowing for poetic embellishment), this reporter must firmly suggest that all those who have enjoyed sexual relations with male Seekers of the Sun be tested for diseases at your local chirurgeon. E’rin Rae’s finale piece, in which she joined the dogpile (catpile) upon male Seekers, was a humorous lament about how they all seem to prefer the same sex, and how she has resigned herself to this fact. 

Though this sennight’s issue has been dedicated to my personal review of this revue, I must let you all in on a little secret; the fire that occurred backstage is quite suspicious, and this reporter will be writing another article or two as she investigates it. In the next sennight’s issue, please look forward to a collection of thoughts, statements, and observations by those that attended the show. In the meantime, I wish you all health and happiness, and would highly recommend the Palazzo Aldenard for its fine facility and superb entertainers.

Song and Scandal,

Idanwyn Lluanswys

Harbor Herald Food and Lifestyle Columnist

((tagging @palazzoaldenard​ , @savothesewercat​ , @rythasbrenelle​ , @fheylahaken​ , @whitherwanderer​ ! Please tag others, I am sleepy and forgetful. Thank you for the excellent show, and please stay tuned as Idanwyn does her best to investigate! I also enjoy going to concerts, restaurants, and other such fun social events to write articles, so message me here or on discord at #esper3592 if you’ve got something fun coming up!))

[fheylahaken]

Guilty or Innocent: Fheyla Haken

Asked someone to marry you?

"No, I've never married anyone I particularly liked."

Kissed one of your friends?

"I kissed almost all of them."

Danced on a table in a bar / tavern?

"Sure, and under."

Ever told a lie?

"I'm lying now." *Raises a snowy white eyebrow.*

Had feelings for someone you can’t have?

"I don't really prescribe to the word can't. But I got all sloppy-biscuited over a couple gay males, if that's what you mean."

Ever kissed someone of the same sex?

"If you mean on the lips, then yes, mostly. Males is all scritchy around their lips."

Kissed a picture?

"They don't let me in the Art Museum no more."

Slept until 5pm?

"You mean 5 am? I'm nocturnal. Either way, yes."

Worked at a fast food chain / restaurant?

"Yes, it was fun. When the food was ready I got to say, 'Think fast!' and throw the food at their faces."

Stolen something?

"Who are you my parole officer?"

Been fired from a job?

"Yes, remember that fast food restaurant question?"

Done something you regret?

*Sighs* "I gave someone their socks back once . . . "

Laughed until something you were drinking came out of your nose?

"It came out of all sorts of places."

Caught a snowflake on your tongue?

"I'd rather be ripped apart by a pack of wolves than admit to that. I mean . . . shit."

Sat on a rooftop?

"Hello? Cat."

Kissed someone you shouldn’t have?

"I don't really prescribe to the word shouldn't. But sometimes they're asleep."

Sang in the shower?

". . . . . . I don't shower."

Been pushed into a body of water with all your clothes on?

*Pouts* "Yes. When I didn't drown they pronounced me a witch."

Shaved your head?

"Twelve no, that would jeopardize my ringworm."

Made a boyfriend / girlfriend cry?

"I've made 'em beg, does that count? There were tears."

Shot a gun?

"I love those. They need larger magazines."

Still loved someone you shouldn’t?

"You mean like my mother? Yeah, I suppose a part of me loved her despite it all."

Have / had a tattoo?

*Points at her limbs* "Aye, these woad arts all got their own special meanings to my clan."

Liked someone, but will never tell who?

"I don't understand the question. Wait, yes I do. Okay yeah there was this pike who . . . I mean . . . no."

Been too honest?

"I'm always exactly the right amount of honest."

Ruined a surprise?

*Laughs and nods, brimming with pride.*

Been told that you’re beautiful by someone who totally meant what they said?

"I dunno what they was thinking, but they was accurate."

Stalked someone?

"All the time. I got needs."

Thought about murder?

*Softly* "Uh huh." *Leans slightly closer to interviewer.*

How about mass murder?

"Oh yeah. Every time I hear Starlight carolers."

Cheated on someone?

"Only from their perspective."

Gotten so angry that you cried?

"Sometimes there's this red dot . . . but I can never . . . little bastard keeps getting . . ." *Takes deep breaths to calm down.*

Tried to stay away from someone for their own good?

"Yes . . . . once."

Thoughts about suicide?

"Yeah, but then I learned something really super critically important about life."

Had a girlfriend / boyfriend?

"You mean one of those folk with both parts? I met a handful of them loitering near the Sands, but I ain't dated one. Seems like a time saver."

Gotten totally drunk during a holiday?

"Ain't missed one, yet."

Tagged by:  @rythasbrenelle​

Tagging:  @hanidahlia​, @talysings​, @erahsae-ffxiv​ and You! Yes, you.

[vylette-takeda]

Surrendering to the Music

Recently, in a conversation with Fheyla, the other commented something along the lines that ‘People say that artists need to suffer for their art, but that’s not true..they just have to feel something. That doesn’t have to be sad, it can be happiness too.’

The words stuck with Vylette because something more true had never been said. As chaotic and uncouth as Fheyla could be, she is in possession of tremendous wisdom at times.

As she brought out her harp to play, Vylette focused on her life and of her recent joys. She thought of her house in the mists, she thought about performing, she thought about her friends, and of course most of all, she thought about her mate Mai. The Raen came into her life in a single random instant, but she would transform it forever.

The Miqo’te could still perform the sad songs and the dirges of woe of course, but these days she found herself drawn to them less and less. Lately she wanted nothing more than to have her art driven by the happiness and love in her heart. She closed her eyes and played on and into the night.

*Tagging @mai-takeda and @fheylahaken for mentions in the narrative. **Pictures taken by the fabulous @egrine!

[o-hteco]

[savothesewercat]

Sewercats!

@fheylahaken and her cousin Savo

[kisskissrommie]

@rheyatayuun got @savothesewercat and @fheylahaken to perform a love song for her for Valentiones!