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ALL IN THE NAME OF BEING HOLY
YOU THINK YOU KNOW ME, YOU COULD BUY ALL THE STARS, CAN'T CHANGE WHO YOU ARE
YOU THINK YOU KNOW ME, YOU COULD BUY ALL THE STARS, CAN'T CHANGE WHO YOU ARE
Nothing was truly accidental. Tess had stumbled upon one too many coincidences with disastrous effects that she did not trust fate at all. Behind the scenes, there was always an individual or group pulling the strings. Manipulating them could be yet another puppet master; the trail of deceit went on endlessly and unamusingly. Therefore, the white and blue haired mage was suspicious of the missive she had received in several morning's mail. The delivery boy handed her the packet of letters everyday, but she was only now glancing through the stack built up from the week. Per usual, it was thick and useless. Littered with advertisements—living in Magnolia Town had its drawbacks—from numerous merchants clumsily throwing money into mass promotions. She had received the same letter every four days for nearly four weeks straight now. The new duplicate found its place in the recycling.
Among today's delivery of commercials was a particular notice that caught Tess' eye. Very much like the others, it was a hundred percent a bulletin intended to sell her a product. With all complete honesty, the product in question was not necessarily rare, and she had been handed pamphlets for its purchase previously. Yet, this flyer was special in some way. Most aggravatingly, Tess could not pinpoint what was different about this advertisement from the rest. However, she did not believe in coincidences. On the offhand chance that nothing was out of the ordinary, she would not have paid any attention to the slip at all.
Resolve etched across her face, Tess' fingers left frosty prints on the surface of the paper as she let it flutter down onto the table. Ridiculous. There was nothing remarkable to be found. Her mind was playing tricks on her again, the paranoia crashing down. Shuddering, Tess reached for the brassy door knob of her flat. Likely, the suffocating walls of her tiny room were blocking her mental focus. A short jaunt outside would help.
Cold, fresh air slammed into her face, tightening her skin and shrinking her pores. Tess breathed in the air, reveling in the sharp, almost painful sensation of freezing oxygen sliding down her throat, dissipating into her lungs. It was a beautiful sensation. Of course she could not feel truly cold, but the abrupt change in temperature still had her reeling. Feeling a chill ghost across her skin was a far cry from feeling chilly. Tess shook her head at the semantics. Gazing up at the sky, she noted that it was just past dawn; perhaps a little after six in the morning, shops would be opening up soon. Deciding to take a walk, she stepped down from her door step onto the side walk. To take a left or a right- Tess could not care less. Randomly she swiveled to face one direction, and then she was off. During this time, the busy city felt calmer, but not at all sleepier. Unlike some villages where the entire infrastructure shut down during the night, Magnolia never truly slept.
Bright, bold, and red, a nearby yard sign caught Tess' eye. 'For sale. Certainly nicer than my apartment,' the slayer moved on as quickly as she had stopped. Surveying what she could not afford was asking for trouble. However, the pale haired mage was distracted several more times as she tried to take a stroll down the street. 'Everywhere, advertisements. When will it end?' Tess loathed the way sales were constantly pushed into her face. Taking advantage of people who were not searching to buy, sales strategies garnered the opposite of a positive reaction from the violet eyed girl. Even so, she was not immune to their pull. One in particular caught her eye; it claimed to dispel any enchantments influencing the user, as if to ignore how the advertisement was utilizing attraction charms at that very moment. Tess snorted, before catching herself in the midst of the unladylike act and transforming it into a condescending sniff. Her charade only lasted a few more seconds before the girl burst into giggles, leaning against a metal railing nearby. This path overlooked the river that ran through Magnolia Town, and there was a barrier for safety reasons.
Truth be told, that ad for the anti-control amulet reminded Tess of the pamphlet which had strongly hogged her attention earlier. Thinking of it, she must have been caught by a compulsion of some sort. The mere thought of that made Tess bitter. A great number of innocents could have been influenced by their schemes. It made her upset, sad even, to be unable to break the hold mass marketing had over the populace.
Out of the corner of her eye, a dark shape attracted her attention. Perhaps something could be done. Tess slowly crossed the street, keeping her eyes trained on the box of a building. Brick and glass, it was very modern in structure: practical and reminiscent of an office. What interested Tess were the words emblazoned across the front. "Fairy Tail," the slayer mused. Without realizing it, she took quick steps across the street, crossing illegally to stand on the other side of the avenue. By now, Tess had been drifting on the streets of Magnolia Town for over an hour. The hall looked to barely be open. For such a famed organization, she was surprised by the plainness, aside from the obnoxiously shining golden letters. Releasing a breath she had not realized she was holding, Tess stepped up to the doors and shoved them open, overtaken by curiosity.
Immediately, upon entering, her mind searched for something to say. Truly, Tess had walked in on a whim, but she knew the organization also sold magical goods and services, taking jobs across Fiore and internationally. The white and blue haired mage was more interested in investigating what they were selling when it came to wares. On the off chance that there was a tracking spell, she could use it to locate the sender of that dreaded flyer from earlier. Aside from that interest of hers, Tess could potentially be intrigued by many products. In particular, she sought the same from every vendor: a particular subset of potions. Any concoctions intended for usage to put the drinker to sleep, work as anesthesia, induce numbness, or even stunt emotions and create apathy were an immense attraction for Tess. Extremely lethal doses of poison and light healing potions were always nice, but far more readily available in high quality. At least, in her experience.
She saw two different counters; on her left wasa long, messy table, while some sort of official-looking area sat to her right. On instinct, Tess steered away from that, until she found herself in front of the bar. "Hello," her voice slipped out, smooth and clear even in the bustle of people chattering away and coming and going. Tess supposed the hall was less chaotic than usual, being so early in the morning. Still, as a popular guild, it was bound to be mildly busy regardless. "Could I get a bottle of water?" At a loss for words, she ended up ordering the first thing that came to mind. Passing over a few hundred jewels, the slayer accepted back her change with a vague smile. 'Tess, what are you doing here?' She questioned her actions. There were no magical artifacts in sight; no mysterious brews to investigate. 'I need to locate something of value or else leave before I waste more money on water,' the white haired girl berated herself internally.
Words ;; 1,251 ❅ OOC ;; Long background post, things should get shorter as the thread continues!
- Formatless:
- Nothing was truly accidental. Tess had stumbled upon one too many coincidences with disastrous effects that she did not trust fate at all. Behind the scenes, there was always an individual or group pulling the strings. Manipulating them could be yet another puppet master; the trail of deceit went on endlessly and unamusingly. Therefore, the white and blue haired mage was suspicious of the missive she had received in several morning's mail. The delivery boy handed her the packet of letters everyday, but she was only now glancing through the stack built up from the week. Per usual, it was thick and useless. Littered with advertisements—living in Magnolia Town had its drawbacks—from numerous merchants clumsily throwing money into mass promotions. She had received the same letter every four days for nearly four weeks straight now. The new duplicate found its place in the recycling.
Among today's delivery of commercials was a particular notice that caught Tess' eye. Very much like the others, it was a hundred percent a bulletin intended to sell her a product. With all complete honesty, the product in question was not necessarily rare, and she had been handed pamphlets for its purchase previously. Yet, this flyer was special in some way. Most aggravatingly, Tess could not pinpoint what was different about this advertisement from the rest. However, she did not believe in coincidences. On the offhand chance that nothing was out of the ordinary, she would not have paid any attention to the slip at all.
Resolve etched across her face, Tess' fingers left frosty prints on the surface of the paper as she let it flutter down onto the table. Ridiculous. There was nothing remarkable to be found. Her mind was playing tricks on her again, the paranoia crashing down. Shuddering, Tess reached for the brassy door knob of her flat. Likely, the suffocating walls of her tiny room were blocking her mental focus. A short jaunt outside would help.
Cold, fresh air slammed into her face, tightening her skin and shrinking her pores. Tess breathed in the air, reveling in the sharp, almost painful sensation of freezing oxygen sliding down her throat, dissipating into her lungs. It was a beautiful sensation. Of course she could not feel truly cold, but the abrupt change in temperature still had her reeling. Feeling a chill ghost across her skin was a far cry from feeling chilly. Tess shook her head at the semantics. Gazing up at the sky, she noted that it was just past dawn; perhaps a little after six in the morning, shops would be opening up soon. Deciding to take a walk, she stepped down from her door step onto the side walk. To take a left or a right- Tess could not care less. Randomly she swiveled to face one direction, and then she was off. During this time, the busy city felt calmer, but not at all sleepier. Unlike some villages where the entire infrastructure shut down during the night, Magnolia never truly slept.
Bright, bold, and red, a nearby yard sign caught Tess' eye. 'For sale. Certainly nicer than my apartment,' the slayer moved on as quickly as she had stopped. Surveying what she could not afford was asking for trouble. However, the pale haired mage was distracted several more times as she tried to take a stroll down the street. 'Everywhere, advertisements. When will it end?' Tess loathed the way sales were constantly pushed into her face. Taking advantage of people who were not searching to buy, sales strategies garnered the opposite of a positive reaction from the violet eyed girl. Even so, she was not immune to their pull. One in particular caught her eye; it claimed to dispel any enchantments influencing the user, as if to ignore how the advertisement was utilizing attraction charms at that very moment. Tess snorted, before catching herself in the midst of the unladylike act and transforming it into a condescending sniff. Her charade only lasted a few more seconds before the girl burst into giggles, leaning against a metal railing nearby. This path overlooked the river that ran through Magnolia Town, and there was a barrier for safety reasons.
Truth be told, that ad for the anti-control amulet reminded Tess of the pamphlet which had strongly hogged her attention earlier. Thinking of it, she must have been caught by a compulsion of some sort. The mere thought of that made Tess bitter. A great number of innocents could have been influenced by their schemes. It made her upset, sad even, to be unable to break the hold mass marketing had over the populace.
Out of the corner of her eye, a dark shape attracted her attention. Perhaps something could be done. Tess slowly crossed the street, keeping her eyes trained on the box of a building. Brick and glass, it was very modern in structure: practical and reminiscent of an office. What interested Tess were the words emblazoned across the front. "Fairy Tail," the slayer mused. Without realizing it, she took quick steps across the street, crossing illegally to stand on the other side of the avenue. By now, Tess had been drifting on the streets of Magnolia Town for over an hour. The hall looked to barely be open. For such a famed organization, she was surprised by the plainness, aside from the obnoxiously shining golden letters. Releasing a breath she had not realized she was holding, Tess stepped up to the doors and shoved them open, overtaken by curiosity.
Immediately, upon entering, her mind searched for something to say. Truly, Tess had walked in on a whim, but she knew the organization also sold magical goods and services, taking jobs across Fiore and internationally. The white and blue haired mage was more interested in investigating what they were selling when it came to wares. On the off chance that there was a tracking spell, she could use it to locate the sender of that dreaded flyer from earlier. Aside from that interest of hers, Tess could potentially be intrigued by many products. In particular, she sought the same from every vendor: a particular subset of potions. Any concoctions intended for usage to put the drinker to sleep, work as anesthesia, induce numbness, or even stunt emotions and create apathy were an immense attraction for Tess. Extremely lethal doses of poison and light healing potions were always nice, but far more readily available in high quality. At least, in her experience.
She saw two different counters; on her left wasa long, messy table, while some sort of official-looking area sat to her right. On instinct, Tess steered away from that, until she found herself in front of the bar. "Hello," her voice slipped out, smooth and clear even in the bustle of people chattering away and coming and going. Tess supposed the hall was less chaotic than usual, being so early in the morning. Still, as a popular guild, it was bound to be mildly busy regardless. "Could I get a bottle of water?" At a loss for words, she ended up ordering the first thing that came to mind. Passing over a few hundred jewels, the slayer accepted back her change with a vague smile. 'Tess, what are you doing here?' She questioned her actions. There were no magical artifacts in sight; no mysterious brews to investigate. 'I need to locate something of value or else leave before I waste more money on water,' the white haired girl berated herself internally.
