TDM 1 ⬡ The Oval Portrait

[liburuzaina]

	Casting Call The Oval Portrait Edgar Allan Poe »» "Long — long I read — and devoutly, devotedly I gazed." Name: The Aristocrat Casting Call: Characters with a Birthday from September through December Physical Notes: Desperately wounded, to the point of being bedridden, but not losing consciousness. Personality Notes: Curious, and prone to becoming enraptured by the pursuit of learning about whatever has caught their curiosity. Mildly delirious due to injury. Compulsions: To learn about their surroundings, whether through study of the portraits in the chateau apartment, conversation with a companion, or ill-advised exploration. «« »» "We established ourselves in one of the smallest and least sumptuously furnished apartments." Name: The Valet Casting Call: Characters with an Unknown Birthday Physical Notes: Older than The Aristocrat by ≥ 5 years. Personality Notes: Willing and able (by force or by cleverness) to break in to a home for the well-being of their employer. A caretaker by nature. Compulsions: To see that The Aristocrat is comfortable for the night and their wounds are tended to, and to get some rest themselves once their duty is complete. In the absence of The Aristocrat, The Valet is free to act as they please. «« »» "She was a maiden of rarest beauty, and not more lovely than full of glee." Name: The Maiden Casting Call: Characters with a birthday from May through August Physical Notes: Young, aged from 15-20. Personality Notes: All smiles, loving and cherishing of all things, hating only The Painter's art, for they deprive them of their lover. Compulsions: To live life to the fullest, to love, to be happy... But also to make their husband, The Painter happy, by being a good and willing subject for his portraiture, should he ask. ⬡ Will slowly waste away and die, should they sit and allow themselves to be painted. «« »» "And evil was the hour when she saw, and loved, and wedded the painter." Name: The Painter Casting Call: Characters with a birthday from January through April Physical Notes: Older than the maiden by ≥ 10 years. Personality Notes: Passionate, studious, austere, wild, moody. More in love with his art than his wife. Compulsions: To paint. To paint, and paint, and paint some more. To ask their lovely wife to be the subject for their next piece, and to throw themselves into the completion of it. ⬡ Unaware they are doing harm with their painting, until it is complete. «« code @ efryndiel The Chateau ⬡ Common Cast Characters most likely to originate in The Chateau are The Aristocrat and The Valet ⬡ Literary Description "To all appearance it had been temporarily and very lately abandoned. We established ourselves in one of the smallest and least sumptuously furnished apartments. It lay in a remote turret of the building. Its decorations were rich, yet tattered and antique. Its walls were hung with tapestry and bedecked with manifold and multiform armorial trophies, together with an unusually great number of very spirited modern paintings in frames of rich golden arabesque." ⬡ For Your Exploration Characters may attempt to explore the Chateau, but it will be shrouded in darkness, and every room they enter will bring them back to the apartment chosen by The Valet. What decorations may be seen are dark and victorian in design, and the room and halls may be lit by candlelight. The Maiden's portrait is on the wall, and will initially be cloaked in shadow for The Aristocrat to find. It appears remarkably lifelike, almost as though it is a window instead of a portrait. The other paintings on the walls will contain figures that are almost familiar to The Aristocrat and The Valet - as though they could be someone they know, but only if they squint. There is no electricity. Characters will not have access to any powers. The Artist's Tower ⬡ Common Cast Characters most likely to originate in The Artist's Tower are The Maiden and The Painter ⬡ Literary Description "But she was humble and obedient, and sat meekly for many weeks in the dark, high turret-chamber where the light dripped upon the pale canvas only from overhead. But he, the painter, took glory in his work, which went on from hour to hour, and from day to day." ⬡ For Your Exploration Should characters leave the Painter's studio, they will immediately be transported outside, to a sprawling field of wildflowers. There won't seem to be anything else around, but there will be a light breeze and the sound of the sea in the distance. Inside the studio, the air is stale and musty, smelling of oil paints and turpentine. It's dim, lit only by a skylight. There is a stool for the subject and an easel with canvas sitting in the light, but everything else - art materials, more canvases, both empty and with the beginnings of paintings, and props - are all pushed to the sides of the room and cloaked in shadow. Like The Chateau, there is no electricity, and characters will not have access to their powers. The Library ⬡ Welcome! Free from their roles, through either death, completion of the Story, or from not being pulled into the tale in the first place, characters will find themselves in the gardens outside of the Library itself. As always, it will look and feel like a temperate, autumn afternoon. As this setting is part of the Library itself, characters will have full access to all their powers. ⬡ Grand Opening Coming Soon! The front door will, unfortunately, be locked, and a sign will be taped on the doors, detailing how the Library will be opening soon, but in the meantime to please enjoy the grounds and the pizza party in the courtyard. ⬡ Pizza party? Pizza party! In the courtyard, there will be tables set up that will be absolutely covered in stacks of paper plates, 2-liter bottles of any soda one could dream of, and stacks and stacks of pizza boxes, containing any flavor combination that could be desired. Opening a random box will provide a random, but popular, flavor. Opening a box with an Intent and a Desire for something specific will provide exactly that. Enjoy! It won't run out. navigation • premise • reserves • faq

Comments

oh mr qing, oh!!!

[weifinder]

( The inbuilt inequity of this relationship should (does) bother him, but at the same time, much as he's a bit of a flightly, easily injured art enthusiast semi-wastrel of an aristocrat, he's not totally insensible to the moods of those around him. Switching from statements about spending a life searching (and oh, that hurts, and he can't figure out why) or having no one left (this hurts too, an ache that beats with his heart in his chest) only to switch over to compliments that don't feel like anything of the kind: he doesn't think of himself as kind hearted, only as slightly less bloody minded when there's room for negotiation.

Also that negotiation room does not always exist.

He's not energised enough to do more than plop his chin down on his arm and remind Yan Qing: )

You've got me. Troublesome as that ends up being, it's still at least half not a terrible thing.

( And makes himself grin, lopsided, thin lipped. )

Oh I will, will I? Promises, promises! ( He laughs since he's about as serious as never, casting his eyes across this endless, blooming meadow. ) Or we could pause for a moment, take a nap, see if clouds form interesting shapes or the scent of a flower inspires poetry without the sweet nectar of its wine on hand.

uwu! also i think we can wrap this thread up soon?! this was a ride LOL

[killful]

[The words bring comfort, lift his spirits, though Yan Qing's not quite sure why they move him this much. He should know his master's habits by now, but after all the years he thinks he's spent with him, he still manages to smile like it's the first time. Half not a terrible thing sounds better than none at all. He almost even forgets where he is, and relaxes. For a while, he's himself.]

Haha, that doesn't sound so bad! Even I could use a nap right now.

[But it's a distracted answer as something else tugs at the back of his mind. Half not a terrible thing — he made his work difficult, but was Wei Wuxian really so dreadful? He reaches a high spot in the fields where they can see everything that reaches the horizon, and he sets Wei Wuxian down gently for him to take it in. He plops himself on the ground beside him, leaning on his arms and sitting up with his legs stretched as he turns his head toward the sound of the sea.]

How's this, Master Wei? If you're uncomfortable, let me know. I'd offer my lap, but I think I shouldn't be presumptuous.

oh yes totally i think this brings me to ten including starter and VERY WILD

[weifinder]

( He utters a quiet grunt when he's settled down, looking out across this sea of flowers, the pain mellows, easier to forget. Feverish and light headed, he can only think, what beautiful flowers, and collapse slowly towards Yan Qing's shoulder. )

A shoulder would be more than enough. Not a lap man, if I'm honest.

( Not a terribly physically intimate man, if he's even more honest, but when he trusts, he trusts wholly, and with the history he's so certain days between them, it makes it acceptable to presume that his deadweight against the other man's shoulder won't bowl them both over.

The exhaustion and fatigue has caught up with him, and his tenuous claim on consciousness finally, fully slips away. )

AWWW YEAAAAAAA just gonna wrap this up AND good luck!!

[killful]

Hahaha! Good night, Master Wei.

[They may be far away, but there's no need to rush. The Yiling Patriarch, the Skillful Star and founder of the Yanqingquan — for now, these are forgotten titles that hold no meaning. But if they could remember, then perhaps Yan Qing could understand how much they need this moment of repose, if not deserve it.]