Tigereans and Weres - Matsuri/Ren Faire.
May. 2nd, 2011 10:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tigerAnother Web-enhanced version, just for YOU!
Feburary 21st, 2011
I had been talking with Sh'Meral in the reception area of the embassy, and she had mentioned that Mikaela had talked to her about a cultural festival occurring from when she picked up the latest dress she had ordered, and she was curious about it.
"Oh, Matsuri? It's a festival celebrating Japanese culture, and the diversity of the Japanese-American community. I’m assuming that you wish to attend at least one day?"
She shook her head. "Rather, I want the entire embassy staff to attend, in full formal dress or costume. I've spoken with my representative that handles the Asia region, and he thinks it would be a good idea. You may remember meeting Ka'Malak a few months ago?"
I nodded my head ruefully. "I still remember the headache from the language download. I don't think I'll ever be able to speak or write it coherently, but I can at read the primary dialects and understand the gist of a conversation. Russian wasn't as bad, at least."
The receptionist, a mid 30's Native American woman werewolf who had introduced herself to us as 'Rebecca Proudfur' during orientation, spoke up. "That sounds like fun! It'd be nice to get out of the office and do something as a group- I feel like I'm going to get domesticated if I sit around in here much longer."
My reply was pretty much off the cuff, and completely not serious. "I dunno- Staying in here might help you from chewing on my ass all the time. A little domestication might do you a bit of good; and make you somewhat less of a bitch."
Sh'Meral was halfway wound up to punch me in the shoulder when Rebecca picked up that she didn't get the joke, and started laughing/wuffing. "Sh'Meral, it's OK, don't hit him. It's a private joke between the two of us. The textbook definition of 'bitch' is a female dog, and I certainly qualify as one, having spent years in full morph. He don't mean nuthin by it."
I noted that her voice had picked up, of all things, a bit of a cockney accent, and as Sh'Meral went around to either see if people's schedules were free (or to free them up), I asked her where she got it from. She explained sheepishly that she played World of Warcraft as a worgen priest. As I started back into the shop area, I muttered, "Crap, another Alliance player!" Her laughter was heard right until the door shut.
I got back to work with the CNC machine and the masterwork project I had been working on. It didn't take me very long to get wrapped back up in it, and fortunately everyone left me alone until about lunch time when Mikaela appeared in the shop area and forcibly dragged me to the large conference room where everyone was gathering.
I took a seat, and Rebecca came in with Ch'Mrr and a large stack of pizzas from the local delivery place. As we all started on lunch, Mikaela and Sh'Meral explained what they wanted. The gist was that the entire group was to go in whatever 'official' costume or uniform they wanted- The Ambassador would be going in full dress along with her honor guard. (which included me in mid-form with my staff and other regalia) The rest of the Tigereans would be dressed in their formal uniforms. The 'human' contingent (except me) would be free to wear whatever form or dress they desired.
During the discussion that followed, Rebecca partly lamented that the costume she had in mind was both beyond her skills, and implied that she didn't have the money in any case. I winked at Miklaela, and she went over and quietly talked with her as I got up and walked over. by the time I got over there, Rebecca was thanking Mikaela for offering, but she still didn't have the money to make it happen. I asked how much it would run, and Rebecca told me how much. "Well, with the hat, it's looking at around $300 or so. While I've got the money, I'd have to give up on the ren faire visit I was wanting to make this year."
I nodded. "OK, send me the bill. Consider it my way of apologizing for all the jokes and other crap I've given you over the past months. Besides, I want to piss off the LCA some more as well, and this is a good a time as any."
The Saturday morning was refreshingly cool as we boarded the shuttle at the embassy building’s landing pad. I was in my honor guard uniform, albeit with a few minor alterations- instead of a srr'rath, I carried a 2 meter staff with an intricately detailed headpiece that had various glowing and blinking sections, with the voodoo beads firmly attached. For once, I had just the stunner concealed on me, along with the rest of the honor guard and the Ambassador herself. I was also in Mid-form and fit right in with the rest of the honor guard with the exception of the leather hat which I habitually wore.
Mikaela had pulled the metaphorical rabbit out of the tophat, which presently was perched atop a grey pelted female werewolf, who was wearing a stunning replica of the cloth armor set from the tier 10 raid set with the sole exception of the hood. The staff that Rebecca was leaning against was much more ornate then mine, but unlike hers, mine was functional, and with my abilities and energy driving it, could generate some very impressive effects. Katholos was also present, being escorted by T'Grlf, as we were still getting kinks out of the new telepresence droid that I had been feverishly laboring to complete earlier in the week and get it operational.
Na'Meeth had parked the shuttle in the only real RV/bus parking that was close, so the entire entourage had a nice walk in which attracted a massive amount of attention; almost as much as the festival itself. We had finished one loop around, when we encountered a quartet of oni mask wearing dancers, who came to a dead stop when they encountered us. While we had seen what they did from a distance, they didn't really muck around too much with us, and they departed in a different direction from us after a short bit of silliness involving pulling my tail and tickling Rebecca's ears.
We took in one of the taiko performances (and I snickered as I caught Ch'Mrr tapping his foot in time to the drums!), and we found a block of tables while Mikaela and Ryan volunteered to get lunch for us after I palmed them a fair amount of money. As we waited, I chatted with Rebecca, mostly in English, but also in primal, as the rest of the non-honor guard crew had gone off in pairs to see other performances, or people watch. I was relating a good portion of my background to Rebecca when I spotted one of my former co-workers coming over to us. I winked and told Rebecca to watch and be amused as N- introduced himself to the Ambassador.
The Ambassador replied back to him, "I think I know who you are- You work at the casino, yes?"
He nodded, and asked who the rest of the group was. Na'Menth and Na'Meel introduced themselves, as did Ch'Mrr. While T'Grlf wasn’t strictly part of the honor guard, he had been helping Katholos to make sure the puppet was working correctly, along with generally acting as the grumpy father figure for the group. Both he and Katholos introduced themselves, and then Rebecca stood up, took off her hat, bowed deeply, and spoke clearly in a dead-on cockney accent. "You've got fine taste, I can tell." A couple folks who where watching nearby just about fell over laughing, they got the reference and the joke. I was having a hell of a time keeping myself from cracking up, when his eye turned on me. I gave him the once over, and remarked. "Did you get some more ink done? It looks really good." He just looked at me, and I could tell that his mind was looking for something to connect with. Muttering "James is gonna kill me" under my breath and grabbing my staff, I 'pathed hold on to yer skin to Katholos, and weaved an illusion of me in human form wearing the same crazy outfit standing next to me. As the weave faded, I heard Katholos start laughing, and said "I'm assuming this might look a bit more familiar to you?" to N-.
The light went on for him, and he said, "So this is something of a new look for you, then?" I nodded, and dropped the illusion.
"Mostly. I've been able to do this since the middle of last may, but up until recently I was under some restrictions about wandering around in public. Something about a shadow government suppressing shapeshifters in general and other assorted tinfoil beanie material. Hell, I'm waiting for some LCA agents to show up and try pulling our wolfish friend here out of the picture- It's her first time out in public like this."
The Ambassador chuffed and added, "I've love to see them try it- She, as Ti'Grr here, are tigerean citizens, and under our full protections." I noticed that Na'Meth and Na'Meel had both nodded with the certainty of a tigress protecting her young. Katholos finished off the train of thought with, "Plus, the LCA has found out the hard way that going after a Seer and her Guardians is a very fast way to end up in a fatal 'accident'." The puppet that she was controlling had a few additional 'features' that the Tigerean version didn’t have, and the eyes were glowing a soft amber which indicated that the defensive systems were at full power.
N- stayed and chatted until Mikaela and Ryan returned with a stack of food cartons, and they made their introductions to N- just before leaving. We all dove into eating lunch, and it was about 20 minutes later that another co-worker swung by- This one was the supervisor that we had met from nearly a year ago at the water park- Not surprisingly, he didn't quite recognize me until I opened my big mouth. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay very long, as he was out getting lunch himself- He was actually doing some volunteer work for the science center next to the festival's location.
After eating, we wandered around the festival location a bit more. Most of the cosplayers were just as interested in us as we were of them; Unfortunately, I was occupied with my official duties, so the task of getting pictures had fallen into Rebecca's lap. She was doing great until we ran unto some fursuiters. The two groups looked at each other, and the cameras started buzzing away from both groups and several others watching. I looked at Rebecca, path'd a few comments to the Ambassador, pointed at the 'suiters and said, "Doggies?"
Rebecca shook her head, picked up the cockney accent, handed me the camera, and said "You're doing it wrong, luv. Let me show you how to do it right." She stepped forward towards the fursuiters, opened her paws wide and up in the air at slight angles and shouted, "DOGGIES!!!!"
After everyone stopped laughing, we all got a few group photos before going our separate ways.
By the time we got home, we were all tired, but happy. It had been a very fun time, and the group had learned a great deal about successfully dealing with going out in public in a group. Katholos was exceptionally happy- not only did she get a lot of exposure, but the puppet, with one exception, worked flawlessly. After dropping everyone off at the embassy, the Ambassador requested that everyone be present Monday for another lunch meeting.
Lunch time on Monday found all of us in the large conference room, with lunch itself being another tigerean standard dish, which we humans found rather tasty. Sh'Meral was in the middle of congratulating us on all being very well behaved during the weekend, and that as a reward, she talked with a few people, pulled some strings, and had arranged not only entrance to the Renaissance Festival, but booked the entire group for the feast as well on Saturday. Mikaela and Rebecca looked like they had been slapped. I was wondering just how Sh'Meral had managed it, when James walked in. He proceeded to speak.
"This also includes any family or guests. However, I need a head count by the end of today to give them. Mikaela, I can only assume that you wish to bring your family? Yes? Excellent. Ti'Grr, I already know you'll be dragging Katholos along with. Nice job, by the way. If it weren't for the energy signature, I would have called your masterwork real flesh and blood."
It was my turn to be dumbfounded- I hadn’t known he had attended the matsuri festival. However, I did manage to not show it, and bowed and thanked him, confirming her attendance as well.
The rest of the week proceeded for what passed as 'normal' for the embassy- I had several meetings for the Worldnet corporation and a lot more testing with Katholos and the puppet to verify the design capabilities matched what I had specified. In any case, Saturday morning found all of us back at the embassy's employee parking area waiting to board the Varletha's larger sibling, a 30 passenger transfer shuttle with the unimaginative name Kal'meth 30-43 (passenger transport cap.30, #43). Mikaela had advised us that hamming it up was allowed and encouraged, so everyone was dressed up in some manner- The Ambassador was present in her full formal uniform along with her honor guard once again. Rebecca was back in her worgen costume, Na'Meth and Na'Meel were dressed in some eye-bleedingly bright outfits with enough pockets, frills, and lace to drive a sewing machine insane. Katholos was dressed in full barmaid wench garb, with a bustline to match, and Mikaela and crew were dressed in their faire outfits. James, Tigra, and Bear in his mid-form arrived, all dressed in pirate outfits.
The trip over was interesting, at least for me. I found out why Na'Meth and Na'Meel had reacted the way they did last week- they had adopted Rebecca and given her a home, a job, and a real future. I discovered this from talking to Rebecca in a more serious manner then the usual trading of insults and and other tomfoolery that normally occurred at work. I chewed on it for a moment or two, and said with a grin, "I see. This makes us clan siblings, if they've adopted you. At least, I think it does. At least it gives me a justifiable reason to keep giving you shit about things."
Our chuckling was interrupted by Na'Meth announcing that we were landing in the back of the parking lot, And that there would be several units of law enforcement waiting for us when the hatch opened. The Ambassador decided that we should play it up a bit, and after the drive system of the shuttle were turned off, myself and Na'Meel opened the large rear egress ramp and took up a defensive position as Ch'Mrr and the remainder of the honor guard exited from the shuttle. Ch'Mrr spoke with the captain of the squad that were waiting for us, and it took a few minutes for everything to calm down. Apparently, someone had forgetten to tell the Pinal Country Sheriff's office that we'd be bringing a shuttlecraft over instead of using every single vehicle in the embassy's yard. There was also the matter of leaving the swords and stunners in the shuttle.
Once we got everything locked down, we made out way over to the entrance in a big procession, which pretty much caused another scene, this time with the 'royal family' of the faire, and with the administration running the faire. Fortunately, Mikaela had given us an outstanding nugget to use mid-week, and we all played our parts quite nicely. About the only problem we ran into was that one of the security staff cornered me before going in, and kindly requested that I refrain from performing any effects during my visit, and that my puppet was very nice and shiny, but that they didn't want any funny business. I replied that we didn't want any funny business either, but we would defend ourselves if someone else threw the first punch. That seemed to satisfy him, and we were allowed in.
The pleasure feast was... interesting. I was kept moderately distracted by the banter and Sh'Meral and Ch'Mrr picking my brain for the references and sharing them out with the rest of the honor guard; Rebecca did a decent job keeping up, as did Mikaela and her crew. The fact that Katholos was able to effectively match or exceed some of the gaffs and other anachronisms that were in use amused me greatly. (Well, she was old enough to have been alive during the 1800s, after all) After the feast, we wandered around for the rest of the afternoon, looking at the crafts and other shops. We also stopped and enjoyed a few of the acts that were there. My enhanced hearing got a lot more out of Cast in Bronze and the other musical acts, although Sh'Meral and Ch'Mrr were less then enthusiastic about it then I was.
We had an incident occur while we were wandering around- We were sitting at the back of one of the pavilions watching Ziltch the Torysteller, when a human took a seat at the end of the row were were sitting on, between me and Rebecca. (From outside in, it went human, Rebecca, Me, Katholos, and the rest of the honor guard with Sh'Meral in the center.) I was paying more attention to one of the tigerean honor guard members, (Ch'Mee of the So'lu clan) who was managing to keep up with the spoonerisms that Ziltch was speaking in, when a sharp nudge from Katholos focused me back on the human, who was talking to Rebecca, who was on the verge of panicing and dropping to full-morph.
I leaned over, and said/'pathed in low tones to the LCA agent "We'll talk after the show- You are making my guests worry and attracting the attention of people who want to be left alone." His attention turned to me and Katholos, nodded, and faced forwards. I think it was the fact that the puppet's eyes were faintly glowing, and that the crystals and lights in my staff were much more active and brighter then previous. I 'pathed If he even *touches* you, tell me, and he'll go far, far away to Rebecca, and we turned our attention back to the performance.
After the performance, the agent told us point blank that as we were appearing in public in these forms, that we were in violation of the Therianthrope Secrecy Act of 1923, and that he was empowered to take the two of us into custody. I started laughing, as I felt a distressingly large pool of energy taking form as an illusionary Dire Bear about a meter behind the agent, courtesy of Bear. He asked what was so funny, and Rebecca told him to turn around and walk away, as we were under the protection of the Tigerean Trade empire, and that any attempt to take us in or molest us would be construed as a diplomatic incident with negative consequences. By now, Na'Meth and Na'Meel were standing behind us, with very unhappy looks on both their faces. The agent told us that this was not the end of the matter, and as he turned he was looking not at a illusion of a dire bear, but a very grumpy looking man dressed in garb who introduced himself as a member of the security staff, and escorted him out. Katholos said that he would not bother us again, and that the LCA itself would leave us alone after today. When Rebecca asked why, Katholos merely said (in a perfect reproduction of Emperor Palaptine's gravelly voice) "I have foreseen it."
While we still attracted attention, most of the members of the public left us largely alone. The performers and re-enactors, however, had a large amount of questions, largely around how tigerean culture operated and other things that the web site either never addressed, or was intentionally left out. We ended up hanging out in the crofter's area for about an hour during this impromptu Q & A session. It also didn't help the Katholos was asking them questions about how they did certain aspects of the re-enactment, comparing them to what she had been taught by her parents and grandparents when they were alive several centuries ago. In addition, James, Tigra, and Bear put in their pennies at times as well. One of the reenactors who was not being grilled sat down next to me, whispered to me how these four knew so much. I chuckled quietly, and told him that unfortunately, it was privileged information.
The trip back out to the parking lot was a bit tedious- I ended up conjuring up a couple wagons for the giant pile of packages the group amassed on the shopping spree on the way out. Fortunately, I was able to Not Attract Attention in that I tossed a distortion bubble over a small out of the way corner so that the mundanes didn’t see nuthin, and the folks that had the sight merely gave a very subtle nod. I do know that my wallet and one of the credit cards I had were screaming for mercy by the time we got to the exit.
As we approached the shuttle, we found that the Pinal county sheriffs had all but abandoned 'guarding' it, and had left a single officer there largely as a token gesture- the rest had gone off to deal with more important things like traffic control. Fortunately, this officer had a radio on her, so Na'Meel was able to let people know that we were about to lift off for the embassy and get clearance for low altitude flight. I don't remember much about the flight back, as I fell asleep leaning on the corseted up chest of the puppet.
Feburary 21st, 2011
I had been talking with Sh'Meral in the reception area of the embassy, and she had mentioned that Mikaela had talked to her about a cultural festival occurring from when she picked up the latest dress she had ordered, and she was curious about it.
"Oh, Matsuri? It's a festival celebrating Japanese culture, and the diversity of the Japanese-American community. I’m assuming that you wish to attend at least one day?"
She shook her head. "Rather, I want the entire embassy staff to attend, in full formal dress or costume. I've spoken with my representative that handles the Asia region, and he thinks it would be a good idea. You may remember meeting Ka'Malak a few months ago?"
I nodded my head ruefully. "I still remember the headache from the language download. I don't think I'll ever be able to speak or write it coherently, but I can at read the primary dialects and understand the gist of a conversation. Russian wasn't as bad, at least."
The receptionist, a mid 30's Native American woman werewolf who had introduced herself to us as 'Rebecca Proudfur' during orientation, spoke up. "That sounds like fun! It'd be nice to get out of the office and do something as a group- I feel like I'm going to get domesticated if I sit around in here much longer."
My reply was pretty much off the cuff, and completely not serious. "I dunno- Staying in here might help you from chewing on my ass all the time. A little domestication might do you a bit of good; and make you somewhat less of a bitch."
Sh'Meral was halfway wound up to punch me in the shoulder when Rebecca picked up that she didn't get the joke, and started laughing/wuffing. "Sh'Meral, it's OK, don't hit him. It's a private joke between the two of us. The textbook definition of 'bitch' is a female dog, and I certainly qualify as one, having spent years in full morph. He don't mean nuthin by it."
I noted that her voice had picked up, of all things, a bit of a cockney accent, and as Sh'Meral went around to either see if people's schedules were free (or to free them up), I asked her where she got it from. She explained sheepishly that she played World of Warcraft as a worgen priest. As I started back into the shop area, I muttered, "Crap, another Alliance player!" Her laughter was heard right until the door shut.
I got back to work with the CNC machine and the masterwork project I had been working on. It didn't take me very long to get wrapped back up in it, and fortunately everyone left me alone until about lunch time when Mikaela appeared in the shop area and forcibly dragged me to the large conference room where everyone was gathering.
I took a seat, and Rebecca came in with Ch'Mrr and a large stack of pizzas from the local delivery place. As we all started on lunch, Mikaela and Sh'Meral explained what they wanted. The gist was that the entire group was to go in whatever 'official' costume or uniform they wanted- The Ambassador would be going in full dress along with her honor guard. (which included me in mid-form with my staff and other regalia) The rest of the Tigereans would be dressed in their formal uniforms. The 'human' contingent (except me) would be free to wear whatever form or dress they desired.
During the discussion that followed, Rebecca partly lamented that the costume she had in mind was both beyond her skills, and implied that she didn't have the money in any case. I winked at Miklaela, and she went over and quietly talked with her as I got up and walked over. by the time I got over there, Rebecca was thanking Mikaela for offering, but she still didn't have the money to make it happen. I asked how much it would run, and Rebecca told me how much. "Well, with the hat, it's looking at around $300 or so. While I've got the money, I'd have to give up on the ren faire visit I was wanting to make this year."
I nodded. "OK, send me the bill. Consider it my way of apologizing for all the jokes and other crap I've given you over the past months. Besides, I want to piss off the LCA some more as well, and this is a good a time as any."
The Saturday morning was refreshingly cool as we boarded the shuttle at the embassy building’s landing pad. I was in my honor guard uniform, albeit with a few minor alterations- instead of a srr'rath, I carried a 2 meter staff with an intricately detailed headpiece that had various glowing and blinking sections, with the voodoo beads firmly attached. For once, I had just the stunner concealed on me, along with the rest of the honor guard and the Ambassador herself. I was also in Mid-form and fit right in with the rest of the honor guard with the exception of the leather hat which I habitually wore.
Mikaela had pulled the metaphorical rabbit out of the tophat, which presently was perched atop a grey pelted female werewolf, who was wearing a stunning replica of the cloth armor set from the tier 10 raid set with the sole exception of the hood. The staff that Rebecca was leaning against was much more ornate then mine, but unlike hers, mine was functional, and with my abilities and energy driving it, could generate some very impressive effects. Katholos was also present, being escorted by T'Grlf, as we were still getting kinks out of the new telepresence droid that I had been feverishly laboring to complete earlier in the week and get it operational.
Na'Meeth had parked the shuttle in the only real RV/bus parking that was close, so the entire entourage had a nice walk in which attracted a massive amount of attention; almost as much as the festival itself. We had finished one loop around, when we encountered a quartet of oni mask wearing dancers, who came to a dead stop when they encountered us. While we had seen what they did from a distance, they didn't really muck around too much with us, and they departed in a different direction from us after a short bit of silliness involving pulling my tail and tickling Rebecca's ears.
We took in one of the taiko performances (and I snickered as I caught Ch'Mrr tapping his foot in time to the drums!), and we found a block of tables while Mikaela and Ryan volunteered to get lunch for us after I palmed them a fair amount of money. As we waited, I chatted with Rebecca, mostly in English, but also in primal, as the rest of the non-honor guard crew had gone off in pairs to see other performances, or people watch. I was relating a good portion of my background to Rebecca when I spotted one of my former co-workers coming over to us. I winked and told Rebecca to watch and be amused as N- introduced himself to the Ambassador.
The Ambassador replied back to him, "I think I know who you are- You work at the casino, yes?"
He nodded, and asked who the rest of the group was. Na'Menth and Na'Meel introduced themselves, as did Ch'Mrr. While T'Grlf wasn’t strictly part of the honor guard, he had been helping Katholos to make sure the puppet was working correctly, along with generally acting as the grumpy father figure for the group. Both he and Katholos introduced themselves, and then Rebecca stood up, took off her hat, bowed deeply, and spoke clearly in a dead-on cockney accent. "You've got fine taste, I can tell." A couple folks who where watching nearby just about fell over laughing, they got the reference and the joke. I was having a hell of a time keeping myself from cracking up, when his eye turned on me. I gave him the once over, and remarked. "Did you get some more ink done? It looks really good." He just looked at me, and I could tell that his mind was looking for something to connect with. Muttering "James is gonna kill me" under my breath and grabbing my staff, I 'pathed hold on to yer skin to Katholos, and weaved an illusion of me in human form wearing the same crazy outfit standing next to me. As the weave faded, I heard Katholos start laughing, and said "I'm assuming this might look a bit more familiar to you?" to N-.
The light went on for him, and he said, "So this is something of a new look for you, then?" I nodded, and dropped the illusion.
"Mostly. I've been able to do this since the middle of last may, but up until recently I was under some restrictions about wandering around in public. Something about a shadow government suppressing shapeshifters in general and other assorted tinfoil beanie material. Hell, I'm waiting for some LCA agents to show up and try pulling our wolfish friend here out of the picture- It's her first time out in public like this."
The Ambassador chuffed and added, "I've love to see them try it- She, as Ti'Grr here, are tigerean citizens, and under our full protections." I noticed that Na'Meth and Na'Meel had both nodded with the certainty of a tigress protecting her young. Katholos finished off the train of thought with, "Plus, the LCA has found out the hard way that going after a Seer and her Guardians is a very fast way to end up in a fatal 'accident'." The puppet that she was controlling had a few additional 'features' that the Tigerean version didn’t have, and the eyes were glowing a soft amber which indicated that the defensive systems were at full power.
N- stayed and chatted until Mikaela and Ryan returned with a stack of food cartons, and they made their introductions to N- just before leaving. We all dove into eating lunch, and it was about 20 minutes later that another co-worker swung by- This one was the supervisor that we had met from nearly a year ago at the water park- Not surprisingly, he didn't quite recognize me until I opened my big mouth. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay very long, as he was out getting lunch himself- He was actually doing some volunteer work for the science center next to the festival's location.
After eating, we wandered around the festival location a bit more. Most of the cosplayers were just as interested in us as we were of them; Unfortunately, I was occupied with my official duties, so the task of getting pictures had fallen into Rebecca's lap. She was doing great until we ran unto some fursuiters. The two groups looked at each other, and the cameras started buzzing away from both groups and several others watching. I looked at Rebecca, path'd a few comments to the Ambassador, pointed at the 'suiters and said, "Doggies?"
Rebecca shook her head, picked up the cockney accent, handed me the camera, and said "You're doing it wrong, luv. Let me show you how to do it right." She stepped forward towards the fursuiters, opened her paws wide and up in the air at slight angles and shouted, "DOGGIES!!!!"
After everyone stopped laughing, we all got a few group photos before going our separate ways.
By the time we got home, we were all tired, but happy. It had been a very fun time, and the group had learned a great deal about successfully dealing with going out in public in a group. Katholos was exceptionally happy- not only did she get a lot of exposure, but the puppet, with one exception, worked flawlessly. After dropping everyone off at the embassy, the Ambassador requested that everyone be present Monday for another lunch meeting.
Lunch time on Monday found all of us in the large conference room, with lunch itself being another tigerean standard dish, which we humans found rather tasty. Sh'Meral was in the middle of congratulating us on all being very well behaved during the weekend, and that as a reward, she talked with a few people, pulled some strings, and had arranged not only entrance to the Renaissance Festival, but booked the entire group for the feast as well on Saturday. Mikaela and Rebecca looked like they had been slapped. I was wondering just how Sh'Meral had managed it, when James walked in. He proceeded to speak.
"This also includes any family or guests. However, I need a head count by the end of today to give them. Mikaela, I can only assume that you wish to bring your family? Yes? Excellent. Ti'Grr, I already know you'll be dragging Katholos along with. Nice job, by the way. If it weren't for the energy signature, I would have called your masterwork real flesh and blood."
It was my turn to be dumbfounded- I hadn’t known he had attended the matsuri festival. However, I did manage to not show it, and bowed and thanked him, confirming her attendance as well.
The rest of the week proceeded for what passed as 'normal' for the embassy- I had several meetings for the Worldnet corporation and a lot more testing with Katholos and the puppet to verify the design capabilities matched what I had specified. In any case, Saturday morning found all of us back at the embassy's employee parking area waiting to board the Varletha's larger sibling, a 30 passenger transfer shuttle with the unimaginative name Kal'meth 30-43 (passenger transport cap.30, #43). Mikaela had advised us that hamming it up was allowed and encouraged, so everyone was dressed up in some manner- The Ambassador was present in her full formal uniform along with her honor guard once again. Rebecca was back in her worgen costume, Na'Meth and Na'Meel were dressed in some eye-bleedingly bright outfits with enough pockets, frills, and lace to drive a sewing machine insane. Katholos was dressed in full barmaid wench garb, with a bustline to match, and Mikaela and crew were dressed in their faire outfits. James, Tigra, and Bear in his mid-form arrived, all dressed in pirate outfits.
The trip over was interesting, at least for me. I found out why Na'Meth and Na'Meel had reacted the way they did last week- they had adopted Rebecca and given her a home, a job, and a real future. I discovered this from talking to Rebecca in a more serious manner then the usual trading of insults and and other tomfoolery that normally occurred at work. I chewed on it for a moment or two, and said with a grin, "I see. This makes us clan siblings, if they've adopted you. At least, I think it does. At least it gives me a justifiable reason to keep giving you shit about things."
Our chuckling was interrupted by Na'Meth announcing that we were landing in the back of the parking lot, And that there would be several units of law enforcement waiting for us when the hatch opened. The Ambassador decided that we should play it up a bit, and after the drive system of the shuttle were turned off, myself and Na'Meel opened the large rear egress ramp and took up a defensive position as Ch'Mrr and the remainder of the honor guard exited from the shuttle. Ch'Mrr spoke with the captain of the squad that were waiting for us, and it took a few minutes for everything to calm down. Apparently, someone had forgetten to tell the Pinal Country Sheriff's office that we'd be bringing a shuttlecraft over instead of using every single vehicle in the embassy's yard. There was also the matter of leaving the swords and stunners in the shuttle.
Once we got everything locked down, we made out way over to the entrance in a big procession, which pretty much caused another scene, this time with the 'royal family' of the faire, and with the administration running the faire. Fortunately, Mikaela had given us an outstanding nugget to use mid-week, and we all played our parts quite nicely. About the only problem we ran into was that one of the security staff cornered me before going in, and kindly requested that I refrain from performing any effects during my visit, and that my puppet was very nice and shiny, but that they didn't want any funny business. I replied that we didn't want any funny business either, but we would defend ourselves if someone else threw the first punch. That seemed to satisfy him, and we were allowed in.
The pleasure feast was... interesting. I was kept moderately distracted by the banter and Sh'Meral and Ch'Mrr picking my brain for the references and sharing them out with the rest of the honor guard; Rebecca did a decent job keeping up, as did Mikaela and her crew. The fact that Katholos was able to effectively match or exceed some of the gaffs and other anachronisms that were in use amused me greatly. (Well, she was old enough to have been alive during the 1800s, after all) After the feast, we wandered around for the rest of the afternoon, looking at the crafts and other shops. We also stopped and enjoyed a few of the acts that were there. My enhanced hearing got a lot more out of Cast in Bronze and the other musical acts, although Sh'Meral and Ch'Mrr were less then enthusiastic about it then I was.
We had an incident occur while we were wandering around- We were sitting at the back of one of the pavilions watching Ziltch the Torysteller, when a human took a seat at the end of the row were were sitting on, between me and Rebecca. (From outside in, it went human, Rebecca, Me, Katholos, and the rest of the honor guard with Sh'Meral in the center.) I was paying more attention to one of the tigerean honor guard members, (Ch'Mee of the So'lu clan) who was managing to keep up with the spoonerisms that Ziltch was speaking in, when a sharp nudge from Katholos focused me back on the human, who was talking to Rebecca, who was on the verge of panicing and dropping to full-morph.
I leaned over, and said/'pathed in low tones to the LCA agent "We'll talk after the show- You are making my guests worry and attracting the attention of people who want to be left alone." His attention turned to me and Katholos, nodded, and faced forwards. I think it was the fact that the puppet's eyes were faintly glowing, and that the crystals and lights in my staff were much more active and brighter then previous. I 'pathed If he even *touches* you, tell me, and he'll go far, far away to Rebecca, and we turned our attention back to the performance.
After the performance, the agent told us point blank that as we were appearing in public in these forms, that we were in violation of the Therianthrope Secrecy Act of 1923, and that he was empowered to take the two of us into custody. I started laughing, as I felt a distressingly large pool of energy taking form as an illusionary Dire Bear about a meter behind the agent, courtesy of Bear. He asked what was so funny, and Rebecca told him to turn around and walk away, as we were under the protection of the Tigerean Trade empire, and that any attempt to take us in or molest us would be construed as a diplomatic incident with negative consequences. By now, Na'Meth and Na'Meel were standing behind us, with very unhappy looks on both their faces. The agent told us that this was not the end of the matter, and as he turned he was looking not at a illusion of a dire bear, but a very grumpy looking man dressed in garb who introduced himself as a member of the security staff, and escorted him out. Katholos said that he would not bother us again, and that the LCA itself would leave us alone after today. When Rebecca asked why, Katholos merely said (in a perfect reproduction of Emperor Palaptine's gravelly voice) "I have foreseen it."
While we still attracted attention, most of the members of the public left us largely alone. The performers and re-enactors, however, had a large amount of questions, largely around how tigerean culture operated and other things that the web site either never addressed, or was intentionally left out. We ended up hanging out in the crofter's area for about an hour during this impromptu Q & A session. It also didn't help the Katholos was asking them questions about how they did certain aspects of the re-enactment, comparing them to what she had been taught by her parents and grandparents when they were alive several centuries ago. In addition, James, Tigra, and Bear put in their pennies at times as well. One of the reenactors who was not being grilled sat down next to me, whispered to me how these four knew so much. I chuckled quietly, and told him that unfortunately, it was privileged information.
The trip back out to the parking lot was a bit tedious- I ended up conjuring up a couple wagons for the giant pile of packages the group amassed on the shopping spree on the way out. Fortunately, I was able to Not Attract Attention in that I tossed a distortion bubble over a small out of the way corner so that the mundanes didn’t see nuthin, and the folks that had the sight merely gave a very subtle nod. I do know that my wallet and one of the credit cards I had were screaming for mercy by the time we got to the exit.
As we approached the shuttle, we found that the Pinal county sheriffs had all but abandoned 'guarding' it, and had left a single officer there largely as a token gesture- the rest had gone off to deal with more important things like traffic control. Fortunately, this officer had a radio on her, so Na'Meel was able to let people know that we were about to lift off for the embassy and get clearance for low altitude flight. I don't remember much about the flight back, as I fell asleep leaning on the corseted up chest of the puppet.
As my guardian fell asleep against the bosom of this ‘puppet’, as he called it, I sensed that the reason for falling asleep was a combination of exhaustion and relief. Relief that nothing major or even minor had occurred, and more of a mental exhaustion then physical. He had been under a lot of stress and strain the last month, and I had been about to suggest to him that a vacation would be a good idea, but through the fake fur, silicon psudeo-skin, steel and titanium that comprised this puppet, I sensed that he had finally started to relax now that he knew that everyone he cared for was safe. While the incident with the LCA was regrettable, It was needed to keep the tapestry of the current fabric of events together- While my present guardian was merely a small part of it, between him, Rebecca, and the current contingent of Tigereans, they formed the basis of a much richer future for the two worlds. I only hoped that the remaining priests and acolytes understood what needed to happen.
Ti'Grr had been kind enough to build a comm-node set with a voice connection into this machine, and I took the liberty of calling one of the remaining two priests, a gentleman named Dimitri from Moscow. The conversation took a few minutes, but he agreed to contact the acolytes that guarded and kept the Citadel from falling into disrepair, along with the other priest in Japan, and let them know that I had returned to a flesh and blood body, and had recruited a new guardian.
