Ginger Meets the Boogeywoman!

	Ken Bakersfield: April 23, 2026 Sounds of two voices drift through the early-morning streets, one high-pitched and young, the other low and raspy. Both are familiar to the inhabitants of the shop: Ken and Ginger. She’s sitting on his shoulders as he walks lightly down an old power line towards the shop’s roof. Ken hops down from the roof and swings in the window, setting Ginger down once they’re inside. “…yes, that could work I suppose. But you would have to have a very large dog. Tilvy has not learned how to be that big yet. Good morning, Sanura!”
	ST “But Gianna says I’m a runt. And I’m the shortest in my class. I could totally ride Tilvy into battle!”
	Sanura Sanura looks up from where she’s packing things into two large bags. One holds foods, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, cake, cookies, various tea blends. The other holds various fabrics and a few small packages for Aida that she’ll give to her privately. She Smiles to the duo “Good morning Butch and Sundance” she greets as she offers Ginger a lemon cookie to start her day. Sanura is dressed and pressed with her hair carefully arranged in curls that sort of bounce with her motions. Her combs hold a bit of the hair up and away from her features. She arches a brow at the battle business and gives Ken a slightly disapproving frown. What ideas is he giving the girl.
	ST Ginger takes the lemon cookie and scarfs it right away. “Guhn monin,” she chews, cheerful. After a vigorous swallow she adds, “I’m not supposed to be up right now! But Gianna totally let me be up. And she let me go with Ken all day! Gio getting in trouble is the best ever.”
	Ken Ken snorts good naturedly. “You are that small now, maybe. But even runts get bigger when they grow up… I was no bigger than you when I was your age. Besides, riding into battle is overrated.” Ken returns Sanura’s slightly dissapproving look with an arched brow. Giving a kid cookies for breakfast?
	Sanura She blinks a few times and questions “why does Gio getting in trouble mean more fun time with Ken for you?” curious not judgey. She glances to Ken .. flat look.. battles trump cookies for breakfast every time.
	Sanura Sanura points out also “I was shorter.. till just last year”
	ST “’Cause when Gio gets in trouble, Gianna has to go fix it. And when she has to fix things, I get to do fun stuff!” Ginger grins broadly. “I didn’t used to. I used to have to stay with Gianna the entire time. But that was dumb and made me sad so I decided I wouldn’t do it anymore. ‘Course, Gianna doesn’t like it when I go off and do things on my own ‘cause she thinks I’ll die or something. But because Ken is the greatest granpa EVER instead of yelling at me she just makes him do stuff with me.”
	Sanura Sanura nods her head softly listening and then grins at the last bit. “Ohh I see, well it’s very fortunate for you Ken is such a good Grampa” She smiles more broadly and offers Ken a cookie as his reward.
	Ken Ken nods, mock serious. “Yes, she forces me. It takes such arm-twisting to make me hang out with the little devil.” He accepts the cookie, breaking it in half and giving one part back to Sanura. “Well, Etta?” he addresses her, “Are you ready to go?”
	Sanura She nods and holds out a third bag of fresh foods to Ken. “Give me a hand?” she smiles a little as she shoulders the other two bags along with her own usual leather bag.
	Ken Ken eyes the multiple bags of food. “Perhaps,” he suggests, as he takes one, “We could leave the other two for someone else? Brendan and Aida were a bit overwhelmed with leftovers yesterday. They were trying to convince Nucklevee that strawberry tarts are just as tasty as fish, but I do not think he believed them.”
	Sanura Sanura pauses and looks at the bags “well one is more cloth and clothes and such.. but if you think it’s too much then we can certainly find others to gift the second bag of food too..”
	ST “Who’s Nuckelavee?” Ginger asks, not at all concerned about stepping on the current conversation.
	Sanura Sanura laughs softly “That’s a bit of a long story”
	Ken He shrugs. “Whatever you like, Sanura. If they do not want it, we can always bring it back, ja?” He slings the bag over his shoulder and heads outside with a ‘follow me’ wave. “Nucklevee is one of Brendan and Aida’s friends. He lives in the ocean outside their house.”
	Sanura She nods her head softly “Oh that’s a good point” she smiles a little bit as she walks with them out of the door and follows either above ground or along the way.
	ST Ginger perks excitedly. “There’s an ocean outside their house? Does that mean we’re gonna go real far away?”
	Ken Ken takes them along the streets - nearly empty in the pre-dawn gloom. He thinks about Ginger’s question carefully. “Yes and no. Far away is more about how you look at things than how they really are.” He takes them through a narrow, twisting alley-way draped with sleeping morning glories. As they go down the road it becomes increasingly twisted, increasingly narrow, and altogether unlike what one would expect for Bakersfield. Ken pushes aside a curtian of vines. And makes a small gesture and a bow to the ladies. “After you.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little and let’s Ginger go ahead of her, stepping through the curtain just after with a faint nod of thanks to Ken. She adjusts her bags on her shoulders. “It’s too far for me” she murmurs. “We need to bring him home” said too low for the child to hear but Ken would pick it up.
	ST Ginger steps through… and halts in the middle of the doorway, eyes wide. “Whoaaaaaaaa.”
	Ken Ken steps through after Sanura. The kiss of wind on the face A rush of stars, a glimmer of darkness The music of hearts Salt on your tongue Have you been here before? You can almost remember… Breathe. It’s a big room, compared to most in bakersfield. But most of it is taken up by the large, dark, somewhat battered grand piano against one wall. A shabby rug cloathes the floor, it’s pattern obscured by a million tiny blackthorn blossoms. Soft music echoes through the walls even though no one is playing the piano right now. “Ja. Whoooooooaaaa.”
	ST The girl moves forward into the center of the room almost as if her feet are carrying her of her own accord. Her eyes rove the length and breadth of the place, hungrily taking in all the scenery she possibly can. Naturally, once her gaze falls on the piano, she makes a beeline for it. The shadows in the corner deepen and blacken, and then shift. Shortly thereafter Aida pulls away, the blackness almost dripping off her like oil. Her brightly, vividly colored tattoos fade slightly. She tosses her hair a bit (which appears to have been freshly braided and beaded in varied and beautiful designs) and chides mildly, “You should ask Brendan’s permission first. He’s pretty protective of his piano.” She nods and offers a warm smile to Ken and Sanura. “Hi there. Welcome back.” Ginger yanks her hands away from the keys as if she’d nearly touched something hot, and snaps a look over to Aida. When she does, her taut expression releases into one of awe. Her eyes then flick to the doorway, which is on the other side of the room, and back to Aida. “Are you the boogeyma—boogeywoman?” she asks. Aida offers a little surprised chuckle, tinged with some nervousness. But the question slides off her astonishingly easily. “Actually, I’m Aida. Are you a friend of Ken’s?” “Ken’s not my friend he’s my Greatest Granpa.” Ginger corrects. Then she adds, as an afterthought, “Which is way better than a friend.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles softly at Ginger’s swift motions and then more widely as Aida makes her appearance. “Hey there sweetness” she greets gently before allowing the two to get to know one another a bit. She adjusts the bags on her shoulders and strides a bit further in “Yeah Ken is the best Grampy ever” she smiles to Ken and lightly elbows him.
	Ken “Good morning, Aida. I take it you’ve recovered from yesterday’s trials?” He asks with enough of a grin to let Sanura know that the ‘trials,’ whatever they were, were not particularly trying. As they talk Ken starts meandering through the halls like usual, albeit more purposefully than normal. He’s going roughly in the direction of the kitchen. “Aida, this is Ginger, Ginger, this is my friend Aida that I told you about.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little and holds up the other bag of food. “We bring victuals” she follows after Ken and allows Ginger to stay or go as she pleases. She’s more than safe here after all.
	ST Aida moves over to Sanura to give her a more hug-filled greeting before accompanying Ken down the hallway. “Yes—it was tough, but Brendan and I worked through it together.” She pauses, considering. “Although… I think I could stand a little more of that.” Ginger darts to catch up with him once it’s clear that they’re gonna get to explore this huuuuuuuge place more. “You didn’t say you’re friends with the boogeywoman!” She stops, her eyes going wide at the possibilities. “Ooooooh is Brendan the slenderman? Are the slenderman and the boogeywoman married!?” She looks up at Aida. “Do you have babies? Are they boogeybabies or slenderbabies?” She pauses and looks somewhere beyond into her imagination, considering, eyes wide and mouth a little slack. “Maybe they’re both.” Aida simply watches Ginger, a little at a loss for words. Instead she decides to leave the girl to her reverie and regards Ken and Sanura. “Brendan should be back in a little bit. He went out for a walk with Nuckel and Bat.” Instantly Ginger abandons her train of thought. “Who’s Bat?” Aida stares at Ginger, considering exactly what sort of answer to give her. “A 777-eyed bat. He helps watch over the ghosts here.” Ginger’s expression goes wide yet again, this time with a smile breaking out on her face. “COOOOL!”
	Sanura Sanura winces softly but then imagines Slenderboogie babies and grins a bit “when is the boogie woman having the wee shadow babibins?” she questions Aida teasingly though not lingering on the tease. She instead digs through the leather bag and produces a few drawings she’d made for the wedding guests attire for Aida to look through.
	Ken “Well, I suppose he is on the scrawny side…” Ken glances from Ginger to Aida and Sanura, with the suspicion that this is somehow related to the boogeyman. But he doesn’t bother asking. If it matters, she’ll explain. He sets his sack of food on the counter before rummaging in a cupboard. Ken pulls out some mushroom-spinach peirogies and sets them on a plate for Ginger. “Here. After breakfast, perhaps you can meet Bat. He lives here too.”
	ST Aida takes in and lets out a deep breath at Sanura’s teasing, her eyes rolling to the ceiling. “Quite possibly never. That’s something Brendan and I agreed on years ago.” “Yes. I want to meet Bat. And I want to pet him.” Ginger plops into the chair offered her and chows down on a pierogi obediently. Her eyes go wide yet again and she pulls the remaining pierogi away, staring at it. “What’s this?” she asks of Ken, her voice low.
	Sanura Sanura nods her head softly in understanding of that decision and starts unpacking food stuffs. “If there’s anything in this you don’t think you guys need Ken has a list of folks he can regift to, I just want to make sure you’ve got plenty of fresh fruit and veggies and so on” she murmurs as she looks around them. It was dark but it was also very pretty.
	Ken Ken inspects the food carefully. “Peirogi. They are a kind of russian dumplings. I think that is a mushroom, and some spinach. Ah! And onion.” He sets a cup of milk down next to her plate and then perches on the table. “But Aida, it is a little late to never have children, eh? What with raising Senbast and all. Of course, you can always stop at one.”
	ST “pierogi,” Ginger whispers reverentially, still regarding said food with awe. “this is the best ever. i would come back to life after i died to eat this again.” She seems to be making a direct promise to the food between her fingers than anyone else. And then she noms it. Aida sends a nod Ken’s way. “Okay. Point taken. Ruben and Galen too. But everyone had a hand in that, really, and they sort of defaulted to Lisa’s care. Also Senbast was already six when he joined our family, and is now off pursuing his own interests. Actually having our own children…” she looks around the castle and sighs thoughtfully. All the things that come to mind, all the discussion she and Brendan had… just sort of fade in the face of keeping the conversation light. “Well, even if that was something we wanted, it’s just so much simpler not to. And we both need at least a little bit of simplicity in our lives.” She pauses and turns a little, her ear tilted up slightly. A bit of a smile quirks, but she doesn’t comment, instead idly brushing a blackthorn petal off the counter.
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little bit “need time for a honeymoon too, though I know it’s all traditional and so on” she waves a hand and sets out the boxes of cookies and the several tins of various tea blends. She hums softly to herself and goes to the cupboards and icebox to see what they might need for her next visit.
	ST The cupboards are full to overflowing with all manner of food that only seems a couple days old at the oldest. Someone had a field day in the kitchen recently.
	Ken “True, true. Children are nothing if not complicated, eh Ginger?” Ken teasingly nudges her shoulder with the toe of his boot before fetching her some more pierogi. He also sets a pot of water on the stove… fresh water this time. Tea comes out much better that way.
	Sanura Sanura chuckles a little “well I guess I’ll just leave the tea and sweets then” She murmurs as she glances to Ken and holds out one of the tins she’d brought with her.
	ST Ginger looks over to Ken, her mouth full of as many pierogis as she could stuff into it. “Mpf!” she agrees wholeheartedly and puffycheekedly. Aida gives Sanura a nod and smile of thanks as she breaks the food out. And then, after the sounds of a rushing curtain of water, a voice rings through the hall, alongside very squishy footsteps and copious amounts of dripping and splapping. The voice draws closer, becoming more distinct. “… liiivin’ on a praaayer!” It’s not long before the source of the voice appears. Brendan, sopping wet, tunic clinging to his form (which is indeed quite slender), his red hair clearly slicked back by a couple pass-throughs of his fingers, drips through the kitchen, headed straight for Aida. She holds her finger out to forestall him, giving him a warning look. “Nuh-uh. Don’t you dare.” A mischievous grin breaks out over him. He speeds his pace, pausing only to give Ken and Sanura a brief look and a quick nod of greeting (pausing slightly longer before nodding to Ginger). Then he resumes his hunt. Aida places the flat of her hands on the counter, clearly ready to evade him. Brendan does the same, albeit with the intent to use the counter as a launching point. After some fake-outs and false starts, Aida manages to bolt past him. Brendan catches her a couple times but she slips away, smoothly. But as she passes another counter (the cupboard flicking open at her passing) he manages to corner her—not that she’s trying terribly hard to escape—and draw her in for a long, soggy kiss. After a long moment they pull away, with Brendan giving her an affectionately victorious grin. Then Aida (now rather soaked herself) gives him a return smile, mischievous and with a slight sultry tinge. She slips a particularly creamy pastry out of the nearby shadows and squishes it against his face, clearly taking the time to savor the moment.
	Sanura Sanura watches this all with a little grin, glad to see them being playful and when Aida steals victory with the aid of a hidden pastry bomb she actually laughs softly. “Nice” she chuckles a little bit as she glances to Ginger “try one at a time darlin’ no one will take them from you I promise” she murmurs softly.
	ST “Mfffphh,” says Ginger. Clearly she doesn’t agree.
	Ken Ken takes the tea-tin from Sanura with a nod. He doesn’t comment or look up throughout the soggy, custard-coated combat. Once Bren and Aida have finished with their greeting, he sets down the teapot and turns to Brendan. “Good morning, Brendan. How are Nucklevee and Bat doing?” He gives Brendan a hug of greeting, not particularly bothered by the sogginess. Then Ken straightens and bows, doing a reasonable impersonation of ludicrously-stuffy formality. “Your Magesty, King of Cair Urd and Keeper of the Dead, may I humbly present miss Ginger Bianca Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorffvoralternwarengewissenhaftschaferswesenchafewarenwholgepflegeundsorgf altigkeitbeschutzenvonangereifenduchihrraubgiriigfeindewelchevorralternzwolftausendjahresvorandieerscheinenb anderersteerdeemmeshedrramschiffgebrauchlichtalsseinursprungvonkraftgestartseinlangefahrthinzwischensterna rtigraumaufdersuchenachdiesternwelshegehabtbewohnbarplanetenkreisedrehensichundwohinderneurassevanver standigmenshlichkeittkonntevortpflanzenundsicherfreunanlebenslamdlichfreudeundrhemitnichteinfurchtvorangrei fenvonandererintlligentgeschopfsvonhinzwischensternartigraum.”
	Sanura Sanura blinks a few times through the very long introduction, pausing halfway through grabbing a cookie for herself. She glances at Ginger and muses.. “your name is bigger than Bat” she notes softly.
	ST Brendan wipes the pastry off his face and gives it a taste before turning to Ken and saying, “Good morNING!” He meets the embrace with wide arms and a hearty squeeze, smearing the pastry innards all over Ken’s back. After they pull away he says, “Nuckel and Bat are doing pretty well. Better even—this time Bat actually followed my advice and closed his eyes while we were walking. I think it made him a little uncomfortable, but it’s better than spending a day having to sit and suffer eyedrops.” At Ken’s introduction of Ginger, however, Brendan straightens a little himself, astonished. Aida, on the other hand grows increasingly incredulous. Ginger, still quite full-mouthed, does not waste this opportunity. She stands up proudly in her chair, plants her fists akimbo on her hips until he finishes, and then bows deeply, vigorously, and decisively. After a moment’s silence, Brendan says, “Well. Um. Nice to meet you.” “Nife t meet yu too, Mfr. Kng duud,” she says carefully through her teeth.
	ST Just then, through the halls resounds the heavy patter of irregular galloping steps, also accompanied by the sounds of copious amounts of water. And then Bat charges into the room with sheer and utter delight, sliding to a halt in the midst of the kitchen (sending flower petals flying everywhere) and shaking off his fur vigorously, spraying the entire chamber and everyone within it with seawater.
	Sanura Sanura watches all of this with her lip firmly between her teeth. She grins at Ginger’s very .. enthusiastic and .. careful greeting. Her eyes widen at the drenching "GAH Hellfire and damnation -again-? She mumbles curses as her makeup runs and her dress is ruined, her curls falling against her shoulders.
	Ken If Ken notices that he is now covered in seawater and pastry filling, he doesn’t care. “Good, good, 777 eye drops sounded like an uncomfortable way to spend the day.” He sniffs the tea, trying to decide if it’s done or not. It’s opaque though, so he decides it’s probably good enough. Ken pours a cup for everyone except Ginger - she gets a cup of milk with a drop of tea in it. “Ah! Speak of the devil. Ginger, this is Bat. Good morning, Stertgi.”
	ST “MMMMHHHH!” Ginger cries in muffled distress, as the remaining pierogis are soaked.
	Sanura Sanura looks to Ginger in concern and then realizes the problem and notices the cookies she’d set out were also ruined. Groan. She eyes Bat with a little frown on her lips. “Rude”
	Ken Ken scratches Stertgi’s ear companionably. “Do not worry, we will all dry off. It is worth a drenching to see you so happy.”
	ST A few of Bat’s eyes blink open, his manner starting bright and happy at Ken’s greeting. But as he’s chastised, he visibly wilts, hunching over and offering Sanura several dozen apologetic looks with the eyes in his face. But his look turns hopeful at Ken’s reassurance. As Ginger looks over to Bat, taking in just how BIG he is, she forgets the tragedy on the plate before her. After several hard swallows she hops off the chair and picks her way closer to the super cool monster. Aida waits for the soaking to end and then gives Brendan a flat look. He looks to the ground, properly chastened, and gives a flourished wave of his hand. At that, the moisture draws from everyone’s clothes, cleaning up various messes (and also collecting dust that seems to have collected on the floor and counters) and coils around Brendan’s hand, wrist, and arm like some kind of dragon. Ginger’s quickly distracted by this display, her wide eyes watching the water gather at his command. “Slenderman has water control powers??? I never knew that.”
	Sanura Sanura sighs softly at the look from Bat and walks over to give his arm.. foreleg.. uh.. side.. a pat. “It’s good to see you and yes good to see you in good spirits” she miles a little and is a bit happier when her clothes and hair are free of sea water. She still has black marks down her cheeks and her curls are flagging but at least she wasn’t wet anymore. She hears Ginger’s words and worries a moment if Bren will take such poorly, though he seems in good spirits so perhaps he will be unphased.
	Ken Ken moves his hand down a bit to get that itchy spot between two neck-eyes that Bat can never quite reach on his own. “Ah, thank you Brendan.” Ken raises his eyebrows at Ginger. “Who is this ‘slenderman,’ Ginger? I have not heard this story.” He stops petting Bat and retrieves some more stuff from the cupboards for Ginger - this time an apple turnover. Ken sets her back down at the table and gives Bat a ’she’d love some snuggles’ look.
	ST Bat brightens at Sanura’s patting. “Slenderman is reaaaaaally tall and reaaaaaally skinny, wears aaaaall black, and has white skin and cuts bad kids up with his tentacles and puts their organs in a bag and stuffs the bag back in their bodies and then hides their bodies where people can find them. He doesn’t like being looked at.” Ginger gives Brendan a more thorough eyeing, however, and says, “‘Cept he’s also supposed to have no face.” Brendan nods. “Although Slenderman could still have water control powers.” Ginger nods. “Yeah. Maybe that’s his tentacles. Like your water there.” She turns back to face Bat, tilting her head back to take him in in his entirety. “Hi Bat,” she says. Bat carefully unfurls a wing and gently taps it against the top of Ginger’s head in an imitation of a pat.
	Ken Ken thinks about this carefully. “Hm. Well, in that case I do not think Brendan is Slenderman. He certianly has a face, and I have never seen him cut up children good or bad. But he does have lots of ghosts that live in his house.” Ken takes a sip of tea. “Speaking of which, how are they getting along? No more squabbles yet?”
	Sanura Sanura looks between those speaking not having much to add to the conversation.
	ST A grin breaks out on Ginger’s face at the pat. She steps forward and reaches out to pet him. But then she stops, considering. “I don’t want to poke you in the eye. Where should I pet you?” At this Bat turns a bit and lowers his head, revealing the opposite side of where Ken scratched, blinking the two eyes quickly to garner Ginger’s attention and then closing them so she can scratch safely between them. She does so, and after a moment Bat lets out a long sigh. “None so far,” Brendan replies. “Everyone’s been generally happy and well-behaved since Hathor came over yesterday.” “Thank goodness,” Aida adds. Brendan nods in agreement. Then he regards Ken and Sanura and says, “How are things… ah… on the surface?”
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little at the mention of auntie Hathor and hmms softly “was it very bad?” she questions of the squabbles?. Her arms folding over her chest as she shrugs “I’ve been.. sort of busy with some projects so I mean I haven’t heard anything going amiss save for Lake Isabella’s uh.. situation..” she mumbles with a slight flush to her cheeks. Bawdy lake.
	ST Brendan offers a bit of a sigh. “No, not very bad. Just a couple disagreements here and there. One was about to come to blows, but I stopped it in time and did what I could to solve the problem.” “Situation… ?” Aida prompts, intrigued. “Can I ride you?” Ginger asks of Bat after a moment. Bat pauses, several dozen eyes rolling up to consider, then turns a few of those eyes back to her and nods. This evokes a broad grin from Ginger. Without wasting any time she circles around him and begins climbing onto his back.
	Ken “Be careful,” Ken warns Bat, “She’ll break if you drop her.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little noticing the interaction with Bat and then frowns “well so long as it’s under control now.. is there anything I can do to help?” she questions before looking to Aida and going deadpan.. "She caught Coyote .. she caught him and took him home as it were.. " a soft sigh and a shake of her head. “apparently.. they were.. overly excited or rather she was and it caused quite the commotion on the river.. not to much damage in the city though thankfully and she’s promised to .. keep it down I guess?”
	Ken “I do not think it will last long between them. Coyote is not a stay-in-one-place type. But Isabella seems to know that.” Ken shrugs, taking another sip of tea and looking around at some of the new decorations Mokosh added to the place. The ropes of garlic and onions were a particularly nice touch.
	ST Bat gives Ken a nod, then waits for Ginger to situate herself comfortably on him before he curls and springs galloping through the halls. Brendan sighs and shakes his head. “Thanks, but not really. It’s just people being people. And it’s my job to… I guess oversee all these people. Which means dealing with all the bullshit.” He offers Sanura a wry smile of reassurance before giving way to the Lake Isabella/Coyote conversation. Aida gives Sanura a sidelong look, a little puzzled at her wording. But it doesn’t take long to suss out Sanura’s meaning and she gives a little chuckle, mostly at Sanura’s tip-toeing around the issue. At Ken’s statement Aida nods. “Frankly I’m surprised Coyote’s stayed this long. I’d figure he’d have slipped away not two seconds after they finished fucking.”
	Sanura Sanura nods softly “yes that was what we were concerned about but.. it seems she has accepted the transience of their relationship so .. there isn’t much one can do save hope is not worse for wear after he leaves…” worry clear in her voice. “She did seem very happy to have the goof with her so there is that.. but he was pleading with us to help so I’m not sure how but she’s got some hold on him it seems” she murmurs and her nose wrinkles “he ate a wet tamale.. who does that?”
	Ken “I would eat a wet tamale.” Ken says with conviction. “In fact, I have eaten wet tamales. They are better than no tamales, ja?” Of course, given Ken’s standards of edibility this is not exactly surprising.
	ST “Well, it sounds like she at least has no illusions,” Aida offers, with a one-shouldered shrug. Despite her noncommittal-ness, a small bit of consternation falls over her expression. “Still, that sounds pretty awful. Both having Coyote around and not having him around. Poor Lake Isabella.” Brendan quietly moves over to behind Aida, casually clasping his arms around her waist. “I’d eat a wet tamale.”
	Sanura Sanura nods her head to Aida’s words and then wrinkles her nose at Bren. “Men” she shakes her head some though more amused than anything. “I’m hoping that bringing people up to see her will help though.. I thought maybe Carmen and Summer for starters, I think Summer would have fun” she seems a little uncertain. “I think Derrick will probably take a few more to visit too, he seemed to be concerned as well.”
	Ken Ken gestures to Brendan as if to say ‘see? Other people would do it too!’ He just shakes his head. “Well now, Sanura, what would you do if your tamale got wet?” In response to the concerned muttering on Isabella’s behalf, he smiles. “We finished the trail to Lake Isabella late last week. Last I heard, a good number of people had decided to pay her a visit. I try to come by every so often, but it is difficult with so much to be done.” Ken finishes his tea and sets the cup down. He pulls out his harmonica and aimlessly (very quietly) plays along with the castle’s music.
	ST In the distance: “wheeeeeeeEEEEEEEEE! AHAHAHAHAHAHAAaaaaaa!” “Hey, I’d eat a wet tamale too,” Aida points out.
	Sanura Scoffs “those were my tamales, I definitely did not eat them” She brightens “Oh that’s good news, I really hope it helps her!” She smiles as she hears two pleasant sounds, the music as well as the sounds of a joyful Ginger. "I guess I’ll be the weird one then.. " pause “No no wait.. Derrick didn’t eat one either so it’s not -just- me” she points out defensively now.
	ST Aida’s expression lightens some, and a bit of a smile comes over her. “How’s it going with you and Humperdinck anyway?”
	Sanura Sanura blushes and her nose wrinkles up again. “That nickname ug” she shakes her head a little bit before brightening a little. “good I -think-.” She frowns "though.. the overturned boat and subsequent investigation might have been a damper on the evening.. " pun intended.
	Ken Ken snorts. “So picky. Clearly the two of you are spoiled.” He says it with enough of a tease and a smile to remove all the bite from the statement, but he is also not entirely joking. He grins when he hears Ginger and Bat having such a good time, and goes back to listening and harmonica-ing while Sanura describes her date.
	Sanura Sanura now feels totally guilty like she’s starving kids in Africa by not eating wet tamales.
	Ken Ken gives her a somewhat apologetic smile and sets the harmonica down for long enough to pour her another cup of tea. “I am sorry. I meant nothing by it, eskan min.” He picks the harmonica back up, but doesn’t resume playing just yet. “So the two of you went for a romantic swim in the lake, eh?”
	Sanura She smiles a little and shakes her head. “Sorry I’m to sensitive I guess” she smiles a little and murmurs a thanks for the tea. “Well no.. it was supposed to be a boat ride?” she tugs at her earlobe. “I didn’t go for a swim thanks to Derricks warning, but he and the boat parted ways quite violently.” Doesn’t say and then he lost a bunch of his clothes but does think about it a little.
	ST Aida laughs a little at the mental image evoked from violently parting ways with a boat. “What happened then, huh? I can’t imagine him ending a date just because he’d taken an unexpected dip.” Brendan meanwhile remains silent, moving only to rest his chin on Aida’s shoulder.
	Sanura Sanura pauses “well he got the boat to shore and got dry-ish and we had to go see what had caused such a thing obviously.” She scoffs softly " he actually thought I’d head home and let him investigate without me."
	Ken After another few phrases of music, Ken puts the harmonica away and pulls a sheaf of papers out of his pocket along with some home-made crayons. He moves from counter to table, covering the surface with crumpled maps. Under his knobby fingers, marks start appearing - copying the same terrain onto half a dozen sheets of paper. “So Sanura… you have made some interesting things recently. What is next in line?” He waves a hand around to indicate the halls they’re in right now and the upcoming wedding that will fill them. “Aside from all the decorations and clothing and whatnot, that is.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles a little to Ken and clearly as a secret nyah nyah but verbally she shrugs “I’ve got a few ideas to work on.. the Dimmer I wanted your help with is a big one though.. but I want to do the same for a few other people..” she pauses and glances to Aida. “How would you feel about an item that .. could make your less mortal appealing traits dimmed?” She pauses "I’m making something for Derrick so he isn’t so.. .. uh.. influential… without meaning to be.. "
	ST Aida brightens a great deal at this thought. “Sanura, that’s a fucking brilliant idea.” She quickly considers the full implications of something like this. “If you can actually pull it off… gods. That’d be so good for him.” She looks back up to Sanura. “He’s already pretty head over heels for you so I can’t even imagine what would happen next. You’ve got to tell me how he reacts.” She pauses, considering. “And if there’s any possible way I can help…”
	Ken “Have you thought of how to make it work?” Ken pulls his axe out from under the table and uses it to sharpen his crayon for some finer lines. “Like Aida says, it is a wonderful idea… I would be happy to help too, if you tell me how.”
	Sanura Sanura blushes a little firstly at the great approval from Aida and then at the comment about Derrick’s feelings for her.. " ah .. ehheh.. yes well we do admire one another very much" she clears her throat softly and nods to Aida’s offer of help. She pauses a moment and rubs the back of her neck “well it’s sort of an airy idea but.. in Derricks case it’d be like.. Taking part of his.. um.. his supernatural appeal is the best way I can think to put it.. and to put it.. elsewhere, till such time as he might need it..” she pauses and nods to Ken “That would be where you would come in.. you seem to have a good sort of.. sense of -other- places.. so if you could find a safe place for his.. shine..?” She pauses and gives a faint little chuckle “Uh I sort of got the idea from an old movie..”
	Ken Ken stops scribbling for a minute to look up. “Ah? Which movie is that?” Not waiting for the response, he mulls over the idea. “There is plenty of space for his ‘shine’ to be. There is always room for these things. But he would have to know how to put it there. Hm.” Ken scratches his chin and mulls it over… the idea is familiar, but just different enough that it makes an interesting puzzle.
	Sanura Sanura grins a little sheepishly “The Little Mermaid” she answers and then nods “that is what the.. relic would be for.. I think that .. since I can infuse my magic into a thing then making an item that can draw in such a thing.. should not be beyond me..” she pauses a moment “Though if he could learn to put part of his power into such a thing that would make the relics creation easier I think..”
	Ken Ken laughs. “Ah, so you want to trap his voice in a shell eh? And tell me, if you kiss him does it undo the spell?” He reaches over to give her a teasing thump on the shoulder. “Well, I will see what I can do. Although there is a favor I have been meaning to ask of you if it will not take too much of your time…”
	Sanura She blushes again “I’d hope not” she mutters before she perks up a little. “Oh, what do you need?” she knew Ken did a lot of good for various people so she was eager to help him.
	ST Aida smirks at this, but leaves the conversation between them, leaning back and absently resting her hands on Brendan’s forearms and stroking his skin with her thumbs.
	Ken “Well… I have had a few more people decide to join the work-crews. Fourteen more, to be specific. Out in the woods, ja? But, you know, they do not have any gear…” Ken shrugs as if to say what can you do? Just because he can run around unshod and unsheltered doesn’t mean most people can. Not right away at least. “I would like to give them boots, coats, gloves, hats, socks, trousers, packs… nothing fancy, just sturdy things for work.”
	Sanura Sanura smiles to that and digs around in her leather bag for her notebook. “Ok it might have to wait till after the wedding but I’ll get right on it after that” she assures. “How many do you need outfitted?” she questions, licking the tip of her pencil and then grimacing at the burnt charcoal taste. “bluh”
	ST “eeeeHEEEHEEEHEEHEEE GO GO GO BAT GO! YEAAAaaaaaaa”
	Ken “Twelve for now. I have found gear for the others.” Ken smiles. “Thank you, Sanura. You are always so generous.” The smile turns to a grin as he hears Ginger’s delighted squeal.
	Sanura Sanura gives a little chuckle hearing the sounds of the girl having such a good time. She makes a few notes and hands over the list to Ken to check if she needs to add more things. "Oh I just like to help " she murmurs before glancing to Aida and Bren. “Hey Aida .. can I borrow you for a minute, another room?” She picks up the bag that didn’t have food in it.
	ST Aida perks a little, raising an inquisitive eyebrow. “Sure.” With a lingering bit of reluctance she parts from Brendan, offering a him a light kiss before she starts off alongside Sanura. When they’re some ways down the hall, Aida glances at her briefly. “Sorry, but I can’t get over how tall you actually are. I know I’ve always been taller than you but somehow I keep thinking you’re shorter than you are.”
	Sanura She smiles a little at that reluctance and then groans “Uuuug I’m not.. well I am now but I never was so tall” she mutters as she is reminded then to reach down and tug her stockings up to their proper place as it is just the ladies at the moment. “apparently I .. seem .. tall to people?” she mumbles about fate and it’s taking liberties with her personal appearance. “I guess I shouldn’t complain it’s made it spectacularly hard to have a bad hair day” she notes.
	Ken Ken folds up the maps now that they’re finished and stuffs them back in his pocket. Since Sanura and Aida are apparently planning to have a “private” conversation, something noisy is in order. Ken pulls out his harmonica again, raises his eyebrows at Bren by way of invitation, and starts in on a rowdy, cheerful tune.
	ST Aida casually puts a hand on Sanura’s shoulder and halts as they approach a cross-hallway. “Actually I can see it. It’s that commanding, imposing presence, y’know?” And then Bat and Ginger come blazing across in front of them, the wind of their passing ripping briefly at hair and clothing alike, sending a torrent of petals swirling before them. Once they pass, Aida continues onward. “Did you want a mirror, by the way? For your eyeliner?” she asks. Meanwhile, Brendan gives Ken a half-smile, clears his throat, and begins singing and clapping out the rhythm.
	Sanura Sanura wrinkles her nose softly “Gah don’t help.. I’ll be a giant if people have their way” she protests.. half joking but a little afraid of such a thing. She yelps a little and laughs at the two speeding about like loons. A nod of her head to the offer of a mirror. “I can at least scrub the old away so I don’t look like I’ve been weeping for days.” She follows Aida’s guidance and takes a deep breath and releases it. “Ready for the wedding? Everything is near prepared you know, save a few last minute things and some of the guests attire.”
	ST Aida leads her down another passage, into what appears to be a guest bedroom with a mirror in it. “Ready for it to be over, you mean?” she asks, a little facetiously, a bit of a smile quirking her lips. “Then yes. Easily three weeks ago.”
	Ken Under Ken’s ministrations, the song becomes even more boistrous than it was originally. Ken hops to his feet and dances along to the singing, clapping, and music. When they finish that one he starts in on another, equally singable tune in the same vein.
	Sanura She chuckles a little bit and takes out a lace trimmed hankie to scrub the khol from her face. “well hopefully we can make it at least a little enjoyable for you, after all there will be baked goods and who doesn’t like those?” she smiles a little as she squints the other eye up and gets it clean-ish. That done she’d stuff the hankie away for later laundering. “At least you’ll have the wedding night to look forward to, though I know you two aren’t waiting or anything” she waves her hand as she opens up the bag and takes out a few boxes. “I don’t know if you really got a bridal shower but I was feeling inspired and .. well I thought you might like these..” handing them over “I know you’re not a fan of clothes so if you hate them it’s ok I’ll figure something to do with them..”
	ST Aida takes out a kohl pencil from somewhere on her person and hands it to Sanura. “Oh, I’m sure it’ll be fun. I’m just impatient to have my marriage recognized as valid.” She gives Sanura a slightly puzzled, slightly incredulous smile at her mention of not waiting. Impatience with wedding rites in general aside, waiting now was a moot point—they’d been together for basically the past decade. Instead she says, “No, no bridal shower.” But she lets the matter lie and accepts the box. “Where did you get the impression that I’m not a fan of clothes?”
	Sanura She looks at Aida’s features when she mentioned waiting and waved a hand about. “Some people would sort of .. take a break from lovemaking previous to their nuptials.. I’m not entirely certain why.” She frowns some. Politely declining the eyeliner she then points out “You were a bit eh about the wedding dress.. though I suppose you did tell Crook clothes were nice sometimes so maybe I misjudged the level of like and dislike” she reasons before shaking her head “Sorry, I tend to overanalyze some things and not think enough about others it’s a bad habit” she murmurs "anyway the whole idea of the moment was to get you away from the gentlemen so I could give you these.. " she gestures at the three boxes. “I hope you do like them”
	ST At Sanura’s statement about suspending lovemaking, Aida shrugs a shoulder. “Well, I suppose anticipation and all that. But we’d been apart for over a year. Both of us are tired of anticipating. Plus as far as Brendan and I are concerned, we’re already married. Neither of us are taking this wedding rite more seriously than we strictly have to. So that’s, like, two moot points right there. But I suppose I can understand where you’re coming from.” At the dress talk, Aida takes a breath. “I wasn’t terribly excited about the wedding dress because it’s another moving part in a plan that I didn’t really want to have to plan. And the more moving parts there are, the longer plans take to plan and then enact. It’s a cumbersome process, and the wedding dress was part of that. I don’t object to dresses in general. I gotta say, I really appreciate the freedom of movement they provide.” She looks to Sanura with a bit of a smile. “Does that help?” Throughout her talk, however, she opens the first box and looks inside.
	Sanura Sanura gives a soft little chuckle to the explanations and nods her head firmly in acceptance. “Yes very much”
	ST Aida holds the outfit up to her person, then looks up to Sanura with a raised eyebrow. “Is this for me or for Brendan?”
	Sanura Sanura chuckles a little bit “both?” she smiles “I find I like things like that.. they make me feel good.” She shrugs one shoulder “I’m under the impression that men are rather fond of the female form in frills and such so surely your spouse will at least be intrigued?”
	Ken Ken continues playing without so much as a note out of place, but that’s only because he’s trying very very hard not to laugh.
	ST Aida regards it again. “Well. I’m certainly open to trying it.” She raises an eyebrow at Sanura again. “Although… I don’t know about all men, but I think I have a pretty good idea of what Brendan’s… fond of about my female form.”
	Sanura Sanura holds up a hand “No details please” a little shake of her head and chuckles some as she passes over the second box, indicating this one is for the wedding night.. if they want to be a little more traditional. “see the bottom scallops are sort of like lotuses” she offers by way of explaining the lace. “the last is for when you get unexpected company” she gives over the dark blue satin like robe.
	ST Aida looks up again to Sanura after beholding the dark blue satin-like robe, giving her another look of slight puzzlement and incredulity. She can’t possibly imagine anyone having a problem seeing her naked if something was important enough to come over and demand attention in a hurry. But something occurs to her and it eases, and she lifts her chin, smirks, and says, “Thank you. Next time you come over unexpectedly and Brendan and I happen to be in the middle of sex, I’ll be sure to wear it.” She considers, then gives Sanura another, more teasing, look. “Although, maybe you’d prefer Brendan to wear it? I mean, after all, at least with me you won’t be seeing anything you aren’t already familiar with.”
	Sanura Sanura nods a little and then pauses “That is a very good point… I’ll get on making his right away.. emerald green to cliché?” she questions as she makes another note in her book. She sighs “I suppose it was a poor gift as it seems I’m the only one who has any care for .. such old fashioned things as modesty.” her brow furrows a bit as she tries to throw off the slight tenseness in her neck and shoulders now. “I hope the rest of the clothes I’ve made for the wedding will be more agreeable.”
	ST “You know what’s even older fashioned than modesty? Not modesty.” Aida laughs a little, then quickly fades her laughter. “It’s fine. I get it: your love-language is gifts. So I really appreciate that you care, Sanura.” She offers Sanura a reassuring hug. “I’m sure the rest of the wedding clothes will be perfectly agreeable. You’ve got your passion for fashion plus Derrick’s overthink-y thoughtfulness and consideration.” She briefly, gently pokes Sanura’s notebook with her finger. “Brendan likes sea green. Plus it’ll match his eyes.” Then, a moment later, she adds, with a half-smile, “Derrick’s favorite color is that rich sky blue of a sunny, cloudless midday.”
	Sanura Sanura sighs a little ‘yes yes but I wasn’t raised in that time now was I" she mumbles softly to Aida’s point about non-modesty. She smiles a little and nods. “Yeah .. it’s a weird language I guess but.. hopefully it gets my point across.” she smiles some at the reassurance and hug, returning the latter with a squeeze. She hmms softly and jots down the color change and nods her head a little “Thanks” She murmurs before Aida continues, her cheeks color faintly and she clears her throat softly. “Ah well that’s uhm.. good to know..if I want to make him a card or a new vest I’ll keep that in mind.” Nervous grooming kitty activated.
	ST Aida laughs and gives her another hug. “C’mon. Let’s bring the party back to the guys.”
	Sanura Sanura nods a bit and leans into the hug before the two would return to the kitchen.

Campaign of the Month: February 2017

God-Touched

In which Ken, Sanura, and Ginger pay a visit to Caer Uir

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