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 Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 4:29 pm
A wash of grey, green, pink, and gold bustled through the territory, talons clicking elegantly along the floor of the hollow as the Lady Peridot busied herself with tidying her home. Loose twigs and feathers and tiny bits of food (no doubt the work of her parus, August, because she insisted that she would never play host to such a frightful mess!) were pushed out of the entrance in haste. Her beak clacked nervously as she hurried, barking orders at Gus to gather some fruit from the cache in the hollow below and to pick some blossoms from the citrus grove nearby.
Everything was to be perfect - the infamous matchmaker, Iennta, was on her way and would probably fly in at any moment, and first impressions were always key to any match made. Of course, this meeting wasn't for Peri - oh no! - but for her darling niece, Magnolia, whom she thought was in sore need of a proper companion. She had seen young Maggie grow over the years from a boyish ragweed into a gentle bloom, and by Noctus, she hoped this matchup would push her into the radiant flower that she knew she could be.
Gus struggled in with a beak full of blossoms and a foot dragging a pair of oranges over to a small pile of already accumulated fancies; Peri beamed, plucked the flowers from the heap, and set about garnishing her home and the evening snacks. "Any minute now, any minute... nearly dark now, innit Gus? Jus' afta dusk she said." Gus twittered nervously in reply, flapping his tiny green wings at his master, waiting for orders.
"Now, wait outside n' call when she's comin', ya'hear?" The bard preened fluffy chest feathers, moving the peridot and pearl necklace to just the perfect position around her neck, leaning her head down to fuss over her underbelly and primaries while she waited.
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Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 2:40 pm
 In reality, there was no reason for Periodot to be so excited or fussy. Though Iennta did appreciate little gestures like that, the mad old bird would have come to visit had Periodot lived in a hole in the ground. It wasn't necessarily rare that she have true business dealings (after all, some of these barely-grown young things just couldn't seem to impress on their own, and their interests always seemed to need little pushes), but it wasn't the most common for her to be invited to such a traditional sort of meeting. So the enthusiasm was there already. Especially since this involved true, old-fashioned pairing off. Matchmaking was a wonderful process.
She laughed to herself as she winged leisurely through the forest, her pair of Parus flapping around her in a haze of noise and bright feathers much like her own. Chitter and Chatter were good birds, for the most part. Iennta never much liked leaving them alone for they were good at causing ruckus and getting in trouble when she wasn't around.
The contents of the pouch around her chest clacked and clicked together with each studied movement of her wings, and the beads hanging from the cloth protecting her head clacked when she banked or adjusted her altitude. It all added up to the ridiculous haze of noise that was Iennta in business mode. As bad as a bard, she was sometimes. It would be impossible not to hear her coming.
Entering the territory, she sought Peri's nesting tree and found it without much difficulty, stopping a respectful distance away and preening her wings, waiting for the invitation that she knew would come. Looking around, she admired the spot. Periodot was an interesting Sentinel, proper and polite, and it was made all the better by the fact that she knew that neice of hers needed an elligible male in her life.
Hushing Chitter and Chatter when the pair began to squabble loudly, she gave a soft call to alert Periodot to her presence, just in case the other hadn't heard her already.
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Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 5:44 pm
Gus tilted his little head at the oddly colored menagerie, then leaped from his perch into a sharp dive, then winged his way once around the main tree and straight in, giving what he liked to think of as 'flair' - he was quite the show off sometimes, but he did it with every best intention, always wanting to make his master look best. Peri glanced up quickly from her preening and fussing as the Parus came squawking Iennta's arrival, his tiny wings beating furiously even as he landed. "Here they are, outside!" Another tiny flutter was given as he hopped to the lip of the hollow, and he added enthusiastically though in a hushed tone, "Loud like rain and rainbows!"
"Oh, darlin', that's just the ol' gal's ways. An' don' poke fun - I expec' flawless behavior." She waddled over towards her companion and poked her head out, the parus squeezing under her bosom, earring swaying against the bard's head as she turned. She spotted her company rather quickly with their bright dyes and her expression brightened tenfold. Pushing herself out she flapped her wings and gave a short hoot in reply, quite excited now that the legendary matchmaker had nearly alighted on her doorstep!
"Welcome and good evenin' to ya! Come in, come in! Right this way, dear, little birds too! Afta' me now," she called behind her as she turned and ducked her head back into the hollow, leaving the entry clear for her guests while she laid out the oranges and a few nuts and berries she had in a small wooden bowl.
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Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 1:11 pm
The little parus did not go unnoticed by the Watcher (not much, after all, did...even that which did not happen) but Iennta let him go and waited for him to do whatever it was that he wanted to do. Both Chitter and Chatter peeped excitedly at the idea of another parus, and after a moment, Iennta shooed them off the branch. Twittering and trilling and calling to each other, they approached Periodot and Gus before the actual Sentinel did. Landing on the tree, both fluttered about in invitation, encouraging this other bird to go off with them. It wasn't a bad idea, after all. Iennta would shoo them away even if they didn't have a friend.
Iennta herself bowed in response to Peri's greeting and glided not-quite silently to the entrance of the hollow. Looking around, she decided it was quite large enough for everyone, but nonetheless...
"Eeh," she answered, "Chitter and Chatter can say outside. Little darlings, louder than the Thunderbird when they want to be. Ah, indeed, did you fare well in that bit of a disaster we had?" she asked abruptly, though it was likely she knew most of the answer. "Myself, I didn't have much of a problem. My tree's good and sturdy, good and sturdy." She broke off for a moment, helping herself to one of the berries. "Excellent fruit you've put out," she said after a moment. "And all for me? You shouldn't have."
She took another berry.
When she had finished that one, she again turned to her two parus, who were still lingering, and shooed them absently with a wing. They ignored her, and she ignored them, for the time being. There was business to attend to.
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Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 1:57 pm
Gus was quite excited, half-flying, half-hopping around in the hollow at the enthusiasm of the other birds. Peridot encouraged socialism among companions, as that was one of the first steps to being a well-behaved and proper companion (she thought), and, after all, all work and no play made Primfeather a dull bird! Gesturing with a nod of her head, the green-winged parus took to the pair with little hesitation afterwards.
"Oh, don't worreh now, they'll have comp'ny." She chuckled lightly, folding her wings firmly. "Oh, we did quite well here, quite well. This ol' tree has stood longah than Olivine, been through mo' storms than I can count, and worse, I'm sure! The fruit trees took a beatin' though, some o' th'youngah ones snapped, fruit all ova' the ground, gettin' picked through by everythin'. Glad you made it unscathed!" She nodded, face calm as she looked about her dwelling. The same territory was passed down through her bloodline for many generations, starting from the Great Lady Olivine, whose battle for it inspired songs that were still sung today. The ghost looked down to her talons - cleanly sharpened and deadly if she wished them to be - knowing that she would protect this place as long as she lived.
"Fruit?" She uttered, caught well off guard. She came back quickly to the present and bowed her head humbly, "Oh, it's the least I could do, dear, what with you helpin' my darlin' Maggie..." she shook her head at the mention of her tomboyish neice, a helpless smile forming on her face. "Now, as I'm a tad unfamiliar with how this whole thing works, why don't you walk me through the process?"
Brief yet still polite, she sat herself comfortably and waited for Iennta to finish the fruit and begin with their appointment.
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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 4:52 pm
Iennta didn’t say much for a while, watching Periodot with blithe amusement and flickering her attention back and forth between the Sentinel and the small flock of parus. Her own were darting back and forth near the hollow, twittering rather incoherently (they didn’t speak much) to Gus, but eventually they both took off and through the trees in an avian game of something like tag. Smiling a bit, Iennta turned back to Periodot.
“Eeh, dearie, my territory’s of the same stuff. Trees older than the Brigadier, and all.” She laughed a bit and then clicked her beak and fussed with the pouch settled on her breast. Peri’s courtesy was both somewhat disconcerting—Iennta was admittedly unused to such direct flattery (for it was flattery) and honestly surprised by it—but it made the old watcher incredibly proud, and inflated her. Fluffing her feathers and then smoothing them over with her beak again, she looked up at Periodot. Ah...she needed an explanation, then?
“Well, there are a few ways to go about it,” she started. “I can arrange a few social introductions for the lovely lady and see which of the lads she gets along best with, or I can simply find a promising fellow who needs a mate, and then it’s up to all of us to convince her that the lad’s the best thing that’ll ever happen to her.” She was blunt; it wasn’t as if the male had all the power in a Sentinel relationship, indeed, females took more control and it had always been so. So it would be impossible for anyone to force two Sentinels together if the female didn’t approve.
“Ideally, I’d suggest the first method with alterations. What are you lookin’ for for her?” she asked, idly clicking her talons against the floor of the hollow and helping herself to an orange. Holding it with her Will, she hooked a talon into the thick skin and methodically began slicing it to peel away.
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Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 4:09 pm
She listened intently to the ways of matchmaking as explained by Iennta, nodding her head from time to time and exclaiming with a few Oh!s. "Of course, of course..." she added, clicking her beak as she mulled over what had been said. She stretched her wings briefly, taking up a few nuts for herself, chewing thoughtfully, and looked out at the playing Parus flock.
If only, she mused, wishing for a moment that Magnolia was that easy to entertain.
"Ah well, that all sounds good ta me. She's special to me, of course ya know, so I want the best ya can find. A gentleman but no stick 'n th mud - Maggie's got a sense of humor and is not as... lady-like as I'd like her ta be. A little shy around males... but she loves children and I'm sure she wants an egg or two of her own, so, her suitor would need to be interested in a family. And an expectant aunt!" She chuckled a bit, then smoothed her feathers with a smile.
"But of course, that comes later. Maybe someone who can make her see how beautiful she is? A few different choices and meetings with each should be fantastic. I know she'll be excited." Of course, Maggie would probably be horrified, but Auntie Peri paid no heed. "Anything else you should know?" She racked her brains for anymore useful information she could offer.
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Posted: Tue May 27, 2008 4:38 pm
Beak full of orange when Peri asked the last question, Iennta shrugged her wings in response before tossing back her head and finishing the segment of fruit in a quick swallow. "I would like to meet the young lady in question at some point, but that can wait for a while. I'll get to work on the rest of it as soon as I can."
"Now...as for the lads, I don't know what I can promise at the moment. Pickings are a bit slim right now." She frowned and shook her head. "Half these young ones seem to think that bringing food to their own gender is the thing to do at the moment, and it's throwing everything off."
Snorting, she sliced out another segment of the orange with a sort of vehemence, reflecting how she felt about this stupid tendency of young ones to do things completely contrary to nature (or, more probably, her own planning). She unceremoniously gulped that slice, too, then paused and looked at Peri, a slow, sly smile stealing onto her face.
"What about you, Miss Periodot? I assume that since you are still Miss, that you haven’t settled down with any fellow, eh?" Her expression was pleasant but slightly gleeful, not that she had cornered her, but rather that she had found a new avenue for her (occasionally destructive but mainly harmless) energies.
Periodot was pretty, she was a bard, and she had a very impressive territory. In all honesty, Iennta would be better able to find her a mate than she would her neice.
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 9:59 am
Peri nodded her head gravely at the information - presenting food was bad now? She must be behind on the times! - and picked again at a few nuts, stealing a glance out of the hollow after the parus'.
"Aaah, I see! Well, really, I don't wanna rush a good job, so take yer time! Maggie's pretty young n' full o' life. I want her ta be jus' perfect." She sighed wistfully, thoughts of her neice and her future-mate floating around. Glorious it would be! "Ah, how does a week from today sound? I think she'll be ovah the shock by then. Do let me know if ya find anythin'...," so she could check them out herself, of course. Magnolia was her blood, her pride and joy, and she wouldn't settle for anything less than perfect.
"O-oh, me? No no, dear. Magnolia first! Once she's happy and raisin' chicks and takin' a hold of her career, I'll think about me." A small chuckle spilled from her beak, brows hitched as she looked over in the direction of where Maggie's territory was, not far at all from here. Avoiding the matchmaker's gaze (and future question, no doubt), she peeled herself an orange with a sharp talon, holding it before her with her will as the rine was cut away. "I had many, many suitors in my prime, all very nice gentlemen. But I was young then, and unconcerned with the world. Ah, me...," She shook her pretty head, nipping gently at the jewels around her neck, and tilted her head at the old bird.
"Perhaps I've said too much, but all I'm interested in now is watching Maggie grow and retirin'. Maybe then I'll have eggs on the brain!"
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Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 7:03 pm
Iennta smiled at Peri's seriousness concerning Maggie. She wasn't the only older female looking for a mate for a young female relative, and Iennta knew how grueling the search for that perfect male could be. "Oh, trust me, I'll let you know the moment I find a nice unmated laddie for her. And a week will be just fine, I think. Long enough that she probably won't go about pinioning all the young males I send her way." Nodding sagely, she zeroed in on Peri's response to her previous question.
Ah, so she was flustered about her own social life? Perhaps she could arrange for a few fellows to...just happen to be around to visit Miss Periodot in the future, then. The fact that Peri avoided her gaze made Iennta's triumph grow even more, and she had to consciously stifle her laughter at the thought of observing a meeting between any fine gents and this particular bard.
"Ah, I see," she said lightly, all the pretences of completely letting the matter drop. "Well, then..." she preened a wing absently, clicking and clacking in the noise the beads on her headscarf, and then looked up suddenly, realizing something Peri had said.
"Retiring, d'you say?" she asked, looking suddenly interested. "No more barding for you?"
She had seen Periodot perform, and she rather enjoyed it.
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Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 11:00 am
"Yes, yes! It all sounds very good, jus' perfect, I think. Deares' Maggie will become a fine lady." She chuckled lightly, noting the matchmaker's growing smiles. Ghostly feathers fluffed at her nervousness and she smoothed them down quickly, thoughts lingering over her past briefly. Hopefully this old bird wouldn't cook something up... but she probably shouldn't be so trusting.
She passed the thoughts off with a shrug of her wings and nodded, leaning to pluck a berry from the bowl and swallow it slowly, thinking how best to put her reasons.
"Well, ya see, I am gettin' past my prime I think, and with all these new younger fellows, I'm sure I'll be overshadowed. Gotta make room for tha' next generation, ya know? I've had my chance ta shine. I had thought more about takin' on apprentices and not performin' so much, teachin' tha upcomin' bards the art of song and fine ettiquete... we'll see after the Longest Night."
A heavy sigh fell from her beak at the thought of retiring, but she knew she had to pass on the jewels, if not to her own children then to a well-taught bard with much potential. She clicked her beak quickly, turning to the playing companions, and then back to Iennta. "And... payment?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 11:58 am
Ah, well, that made sense. Iennta liked Periodot, she decided. She admired the other female's good sense and traditional viewpoints. Certainly, Iennta thought that after a certain point, bardcraft was inappropriate for a certain age. Flicking her eartufts, she listened for a bit and then smiled. "The Longest Night should be a good moment for you," she remarked, plucking a berry out of the bowl and not really paying much attention at all. Until, of course, the converstation turned to payment. Ah...things had just gotten so much better for everyone involved. At least, as far as Iennta was concerned.
Finishing the berry and nibbling her talons thoughtfully, she contemplated all the things she could ask for. Periodot had influence, among other things. But Iennta wasn't entirely sure what she should ask for from this particular customer. She hummed introspectively.
"Well...." she said, rolling the syllable slowly. "Generally, I ask for a fifth of the payment up front, and the rest when the pairing is made official. But about what you want to pay...I'm not entirely sure how you want to arrange it. Usually, hunting or culls are a price for something like this. But from you, Miss Periodot..." she shrugged a bit. "I'm not all that certain. Anything you have an idea about?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:21 pm
Peridot smiled inwardly, happy that at least someone was happy with her decision, not telling her to rethink herself or question her love for barding. Certainly she loved the task, she had been performing since her own graduation, and surely that had been time enough. "Yes, I hope so," she quipped, nodding her head quickly as she watched Iennta think over the price of her services.
"Well, as a bard, I could maybe do up some prose for ya? Put ya in a grander light and enlighten everyone who doesn't already know or isn't sure of yer success. Other folk might be more open to matchmakin'..." she thought the idea over as she offered it, smirking with brows raised. "The orange grove also lies within my territ'ry, if you liked the oranges and blossoms I brought for ya..."
She laid the offers out and of course was open to other ideas should the matchmaker think of something. No price was too high when it came to securing Magnolia's future.
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Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2008 4:53 pm
Now, if that suggestion wasn't enough to knock an old biddy straight off her perch! Iennta's eyes grew wide at Periodot's suggestion, and she all but fluffed her feathers in absolute astonishment, taking a long time to consider the idea that Periodot would do something to make the young Sentinels less...reluctant to submit to her (obviously superior) methods of courtship. It could certainly help things along, yes, that it could. And Iennta, always practical somewhere in the back of that slightly kooky head, was always on the lookout for anything that could make her life and her chosen task more manageable.
"That," she said slowly, taking a moment to sleek down her feathers and nibble one of her talons before actually looking back to the bard, "Sounds like a very interesting idea in deed. Eeh, with that sort of a thing on my side, I could be unstoppable. About time these young ones come to realize that their elders know what's best for 'em." She nodded emphatically and then tilted her head. "But I wouldn't ask anything like that until I'd managed some sort of a suitable match," she said matter-of-factly.
"I think some oranges might be nice, though," she added, nodding but then looking thoughtful. "Dunno if you've got anything to carry 'em with that I could borrow, though? I din't think to bring something by. Of course," she went on without a breath, not waiting for any sort of reply, "if you wanted to come by the Deep Woods with something, that wouldn't go amiss, either. Weary ol' wings, mine." She didn't laugh when she said it, though the sentence was obviously absurd. Iennta had made the journey to Periodot's territory easily for a Sentinel her age, and while she was certainly no scout, she was quite fit.
Hopefully, Peri would take the hint.
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Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 9:17 am
Glad that the matchmaker accepted her offers, the Lady smiled and chuckled, fanning her tail feathers in enthusiasm. She definitely understood how hard it was to get noticed when everyone seemed fixed in their beliefs. "Well now! I'm glad ya agree. And of course, I'll have it ready for ya when ya find a suitor, because I know ya will!"
Peri beamed, nodding her head as she looked towards the collection of bowls and baskets she managed to amass. Most were gifts from fans long ago (the fruit they contained long gone), others she had made for her and were filled with her belongings, and still others she had ready for festivals and events. She decided then that she would have to have a nicer one made for Iennta, something lovely and cheery to deliver the fruit in. The best thank-you gift she could trade for!
"Don't worry about that now, I'll bring them myself inna few days' time, if ya don't mind." Even though she knew the old bird was quite capable, Peridot was a proper lady and she would deliver it out of gratitude and respect. She could probably use the excuse to check up on the search as well.
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