Today it was raining, and Juliet was... peeved. Though she would prefer not to allow such pettiness as annoyance at rain, of all things, cloud her focus, the truth of the matter was, all of her plans today had been spoiled by the weather. Letting out an enormous sigh, Juliet stared out the window. And then proceeded to cough and hack, covering her mouth unsuccessfully. She had inhaled a piece of fuzz- this was why it never paid to be dramatic. Juliet backed away from the wall and turned to pull the cords of her curtains over the glass panes. There was no use in lingering on her inability to go hiking. Perhaps the insufferable gods had sent the storm with the intention of pointing out how much of a waste of time her hobby was. It would be just like them to act out of spite- but that was wishful thinking. They simply didn't care about mortals. She had no reason to linger on thoughts of the deities who were so patently uninvolved.
Still, a certain set to her shoulders made it clear as she made her way downstairs that there was plenty of unresolved tension simmering inside. Juliet fumed inwardly. The ruination of another perfectly planned agenda was a regrettable loss, but it was time to move on. She was wasting time, now. Breathing as evenly as possible, Juliet grabbed her iLac from where it sat on the kitchen table. Despite living alone with barely enough for cheap rent, she had her own kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom here- that was good enough. According to her iLac, it was just past nine in the morning, which had Juliet burning with shame. She had slept in, assuming today would be a perfect time for an afternoon hike. This entire week, she'd been bogged down with work. Even through her best efforts, some jobs had managed to go poorly. Apparently, the passport she had obtained to do licensed foreign work was invalid because it marked her as a guild mage. As a very guildless, non stamped individual, Juliet was unable to verify her guild.
She still had no idea how that error had happened. Regardless, it had to be rectified. This wasn't the first time she had been mistaken for a guild mage- apparently there were so many of these... Dies Irae folk running around that their uniform was a common occurrence. No matter. Juliet had contacted the passport agency to get her documents corrected-
"This is a joke," she said flatly, staring at the email on her iLac. "Miss Juliet Rothschild, we regret to inform you that in order to be excused from status as a legal guild mage, the bureau requires proof from a guild master or ace of the faction in question. Please return by email or fax the appropriate documentation to our business office at any time during the following hours. Monday, eight a.m to three p.m. Tuesday- damn it all," she cut herself off and stood up, jostling the kitchen table. Breathing deeply, Juliet grabbed her cloak, a deep red garment with gold fastenings, and threw open the door. Rather, she tried to, but it was so cheap that the knob stuck for a few moments. After jiggling it around, she managed to unlock it and finally make her dramatic exit.
Proof from a guild master or ace? Juliet wanted to rip her hair out as she stalked down the streets of Magnolia, her expression dark with irritation. The sheer inefficiency of the passport agency baffled her. Did they seriously intend for her to provide proof of leaving a guild which she had never previously been affiliated with? Scratch that, Juliet was infuriated by the constant confusion she had to deal with. What was with people and assuming she was a legal guild mage? Pulling her cloak more tightly against her body, Juliet flipped up the hood, obscuring her eyes as she stood on the sidewalk with the rain pouring down on her shoulders. All of this was a bother, but it had to be dealt with.
Surprisingly, the tracking down the base of operations of Dies Irae had been easy. Juliet supposed that was by design; after all, it was a proper guild and had to be accessible to the public, somewhat at least. Still, she was pleased. In addition to the position of the hall, her online research had provided a lot of information about the guild. In particular, apparently they wore uniforms quite similar to her own. Extremely similar, in fact. Juliet groaned as she stared again at the picture on the website. It was one of their leaders- a guild master, or something. A stunningly beautiful woman with long, blue hair. Realizing she had been staring at the image for far too long, Juliet powered off her iLac and closed her eyes, trying to focus. They snapped open again when she realized she kept seeing the same picture swimming in front of her. "Damn it!" She cursed loudly, shame filling her at her own inability to concentrate. Shaking her head, she cleared her mind and then snapped her fingers, teleporting in a blink to what should have been Amber Island.
It seemed that the coordinates she was given went directly into a town called Port Amber. At least, that was what Juliet observed, judging from a sign a hundred or so meters away from the spot where she arrived. Unsure of where to go next, Juliet steeled herself before walking up to a nearby vendor. She pulled her cloak a bit more tightly around herself, her eyes and part of her face still obscured. Even though her clothes were practically dripping wet from standing outside looking at her iLac for too long, Juliet didn't care. It was a slight bit embarrassing to be walking around here with her bedraggled look, though. Apparently the weather was much different over here, bright and sunny with only a few clouds in sight.
"Excuse me, but do you know where I could find the... Throne Hall, of Dies Irae?" It had taken her a moment to remember the information from the website, but she asked the woman successfully (while purchasing a banana, so as to not waste the seller's time without a sale). Fortunately, the guild seemed to be well known around here, for Juliet was directed on her way without any issue. She headed up the way the woman had indicated, muttering a brief spell that changed her clothes into dry, civilian wear. Her cloak and formal garments disappeared, replaced by an outfit that made her look much younger and nonthreatening. Hopefully, it could aid her in both acquiring the assistance of a guild master and also not being mistaken for a member... again.
When she had finally made her way to the front of the guild hall, Juliet snorted. It was enormous! Wetting her lips, she stepped through the great archway, eyes darting briefly to the side to stare at the numerous banners clearly marking this room as a celebration of Dies Irae. The pomp and splendor reminded Juliet in a distasteful way, of the nobles and aristocracy. She felt as though she were approaching the royal court on a smaller scale. Glancing around, Juliet put her personal feelings aside and began to look for someone she could ask for further guidance. This was a mission, nothing more.
1234 Words, Outfit