#ofpherae

[wingboundwarrior]

[ PHOTO-ARTIFEX ] - The ever-popular photo-artifex makes its annual return, allowing users to capture pictures in as little as a flash of light and a moment. Take home something to remember the event by!

Fiora is still lingering around the photo artifex, staring at her red bouquet splotched with a single white crescent, thinking of her littlest sister, the ray of sunlight in her life. How disappointed would that soft-hearted girl be, if she could see what had become of her stalwart sister, who she had turned into? What would Florina think if she knew that Fiora was the sort of person who had drowned in failure -- so much so that she ran away from all of Elibe? So much so that she left missions unfinished, families unhelped? What was she doing, here? Playing pretend with Soren, in glittering, fanciful light hung around them... when there were people back in Ilia starving because of her...?

Her eyes are glassy, the start of angry, bitter tears she'll refuse to cry here, when she trods straight into--...

"F--forgive me, sir." A deep bow... But she does a double take at that fiery hair, and those kind eyes that sit beneath it. "M... my lord?"

Lord Hector hadn't recognized her. It's more than likely Lord Eliwood will not, either. Who is she to the life of a lord? But where Lord Hector and she had known each other in passing, she and Lord Eliwood... had spoken.

We are equals, fighting together for a common cause.

Equals... Maybe he had believed it back then, but if he knew the sort of person she was now...

Hoping he cannot see the sorrow in her eyes, she pulls one of her roses from the bouquet and offers it to him, sinking again into a bow.

"It is... good to see you, my lord."

[shystratagem]

[ CORN ] - A new strain of corn has been bred in Bergliez with a curious trait—it pops when exposed to heat, becoming light and fluffy! Help yourself to a bag; it's a little bland on its own, but you get the feeling you could find something to spice it up.

Mark was somewhat disappointed by the catering, though he tried not to let it show. It wasn't that the food on offer was bad by any means. Mark had just hoped it would be a bit more substantial, something more than these little snacks. He had gotten his hopes up for samples of full dishes, new flavors from lands unfamiliar to him. To be fair, he could have gotten at least some of that from the mess hall already... if he remembered to feed himself on a more regular basis. Unfortunately, Mark was often too distracted by his work to do so, and when he did eat, it was usually something quick and accessible or something he prepared for himself in order to not take too much time away from whatever he was trying to get done. This had been a chance to finally get to eat the local cuisine, or at least Mark had thought that was what it would be.

Still, he couldn't quite complain. This puffed corn was enjoyable enough, perhaps a bit too much so. Mark had just gotten himself a serving, and by the time he'd managed to wrestle his way through the crowd (a difficult task for one as lacking in presence as he) to get back to his seat, he'd managed to eat almost all of it. Mark hadn't even noticed his supply getting low, idly popping one piece into his mouth at a time as he walked. It was much too easy to eat a lot of this, which made it a dangerous snack to have on hand.

"Have you gotten to try any of the food?" Mark chirped as he sidled over to Eliwood. "You should have some of this puffed corn if you haven't had the chance yet. It's really good!"

The bowl in Mark's hand was extended towards Eliwood... and so was a lily from Mark's bouquet. He'd dropped the flowers several times on his way back from the snack table. It was a small wonder more of them hadn't ended up in the bowl.