Shadow (the Hedgehog) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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unfinishedlibrary2026-01-26 12:58 pm
ultimateedgehog) wrote in unfinishedlibrary2026-01-26 12:58 pm
so shines a good deed in a weary world.
Who: The Umbra Vampire Court & You! Known werewolves should probably come in disguise unless they want to be on the receiving end of some vicious mockery intense disdain.
What: Accepting the petitions of their loyal citizens is something the Umbra clan does regularly. It's how they uphold their end of the bargain they have with the humans; it's the payment they make in exchange for blood. So now, in the days before the ball - they are accepting supplicants and auditions for entertainers (and anyone else who wants to worm their way into the Umbra side of things).
When: Days 1 and 2, before the Masquerade takes place.
Where: Beneath the Umbra Mansion.
Content warnings: General warning for everything associated with or adjacent to vampires. Specific warnings will be added as they come up! Unless a preference is specified, it will be either Nero or Shadow who responds. (Or if you're up for a multi-way thread: why not both?)
The room the audience takes place in is located beneath the Umbra Mansion. Set apart from the rest of the complicated warren of rooms, this reception hall is - like the mansion above - ornately decorated. Lit candles flicker behind stained glass, casting prismatic images across the walls. A series of iron grates along one wall open to the catacombs that run beneath Montica, and a lit fireplace crackles nearby in an attempt to combat the persistent draft. A red carpet is draped carefully over the worn stone floor, hiding the stains that give evidence to the transgressions of the past.
A series of steps rise at the back of the room, leading up to a raised dais. A couple of high-backed chairs are centered here. They sit spaced a distance apart, allowing room for a portrait to be seen clearly between them; as if the young girl painted there is presiding over the proceedings herself. Those familiar with the clan will recognise her name as Maria, the person around whom the Head has built the clan's values.
Other chairs are positioned in an outward semi-circle from those not-quite-thrones, enough for those who comprise the Umbra court to gather.
It is in those two centered chairs that the Lord of Shadows - Lord Umbra - and his Heir sit. Looking about equal in age, the one to the left is Lord Umbra himself. He seems somehow older - a heavier presence about him, the shadows beneath his chair seemingly darker. The one to the right is Nero, sitting with the same deliberate poise, his face schooled into neutrality; but occasionally something flickers across his expression, traces of humanity he hasn't quite yet lost shining through.
They are both trying very, very hard to keep their patience as the Lord raises his hand for the next petitioner to approach. Not only are they seeing supplicants today - those seeking favours or supports - but they are also accepting... auditions. For performers at the ball. (The last flutist left such a ringing in the hall that the Lord is reconsidering that decision.)
Word travels fast, and the audience chamber is open to all. Even if you're not seeking something yourself, it's a good place to further some understandings - and maybe find some allies to hatch some plans.
What: Accepting the petitions of their loyal citizens is something the Umbra clan does regularly. It's how they uphold their end of the bargain they have with the humans; it's the payment they make in exchange for blood. So now, in the days before the ball - they are accepting supplicants and auditions for entertainers (and anyone else who wants to worm their way into the Umbra side of things).
When: Days 1 and 2, before the Masquerade takes place.
Where: Beneath the Umbra Mansion.
Content warnings: General warning for everything associated with or adjacent to vampires. Specific warnings will be added as they come up! Unless a preference is specified, it will be either Nero or Shadow who responds. (Or if you're up for a multi-way thread: why not both?)
The room the audience takes place in is located beneath the Umbra Mansion. Set apart from the rest of the complicated warren of rooms, this reception hall is - like the mansion above - ornately decorated. Lit candles flicker behind stained glass, casting prismatic images across the walls. A series of iron grates along one wall open to the catacombs that run beneath Montica, and a lit fireplace crackles nearby in an attempt to combat the persistent draft. A red carpet is draped carefully over the worn stone floor, hiding the stains that give evidence to the transgressions of the past.
A series of steps rise at the back of the room, leading up to a raised dais. A couple of high-backed chairs are centered here. They sit spaced a distance apart, allowing room for a portrait to be seen clearly between them; as if the young girl painted there is presiding over the proceedings herself. Those familiar with the clan will recognise her name as Maria, the person around whom the Head has built the clan's values.
Other chairs are positioned in an outward semi-circle from those not-quite-thrones, enough for those who comprise the Umbra court to gather.
It is in those two centered chairs that the Lord of Shadows - Lord Umbra - and his Heir sit. Looking about equal in age, the one to the left is Lord Umbra himself. He seems somehow older - a heavier presence about him, the shadows beneath his chair seemingly darker. The one to the right is Nero, sitting with the same deliberate poise, his face schooled into neutrality; but occasionally something flickers across his expression, traces of humanity he hasn't quite yet lost shining through.
They are both trying very, very hard to keep their patience as the Lord raises his hand for the next petitioner to approach. Not only are they seeing supplicants today - those seeking favours or supports - but they are also accepting... auditions. For performers at the ball. (The last flutist left such a ringing in the hall that the Lord is reconsidering that decision.)
Word travels fast, and the audience chamber is open to all. Even if you're not seeking something yourself, it's a good place to further some understandings - and maybe find some allies to hatch some plans.
no subject
... Hopefully he isn't going to get a Discussion later about the impossibility of peace with the packs later. He knows there isn't, but that faint human hope is still one of the few things that's alive about him.
no subject
She moves mechanically, as like a toy with articulated joints, or the juddering of clockwork, and she sneers, and her voice is haughty and cold as silver.
"Hear me well, who'd pretend I am unseen,
Thirsting as you do for sensation amid falsity;
Shed your false modesty,
parktake in pageantry,
I offer merriment and recreation,
shelter from the storm between...
So come, and march with us toy soldiers with pikes and shot,
And show us your art, or else your bleeding hearts,
Recite thy part, end to start, and weave our web,
And when the curtains rise,
our masks shall hide us not!
So sit, as we put powder and bright rouge on thy face,
Discard the shards of misspent youth,
be reborn with a new phase,
Fear not your fall from grace,
invoking dreamlike pace,
And tarry and enjoy the play,
and rest, for the most minor change of pace..."
no subject
He would sigh, if he had breath to spare. He dislikes this part of the preparations the most - weighing what the court will fancy versus his own interests. He hasn't gotten to go out to the theater at all in recent years. This is just reigniting the desire to go out... but not now. Right now passions must be put away, and statecraft followed to the letter and the spirit.
"Much better. I think we may have a place for you in our masquerade after all. ... Pending negotiations, of course. We pay our artists fairly here." No more and no less than they deserve, and half in advance. They're cultured, not brutes like some creatures.
no subject
“Thank you, my lord. In truth, I suspected the first might go over like a brick, so I had a second pistol loaded, and am glad of my foresight. If it’s but a manner of fair compensation, would you mind palavering with our purser?”
no subject
'As you wish, milord.' The vampire's voice is gravelly with age, but he still looks sharp-eyed.
"As for you yourself... I would speak with you later, after the event perhaps. We may be able to work out some sort of continuing arrangement depending on how your performance is received."