Dear reader! Whether you are new here, archive-reading and whatnot, or you are already someone who has been with us for quite a while, I would like to say a few words that I believe are best kept close to mind.
-This is an MLP quest. And more importantly, none of us are gratuitously cruel. So good things will happen on this quest, and I hope that enough good things have already happened to prove that.
-This is also a horror quest, so bad things will happen. Bad things might happen to good characters if you are not able to protect them, and you most certainly will not be able to intervene if you lack the tools to do so.
-And finally, this is a quest in which you jostle with powers greater than yourself, with all that it entails.
Please, do keep those things in mind as you go forward. But ultimately, this is also a quest in which it is hoped we all have fun! So if any of the above points is not exactly your cup of tea, or somehow make the experience as a whole "not worth it", then this quest might not be for you. Which is fine! Individual tastes are a thing, so don't think any more about it if you don't want to read anymore. And regardless, I hope you have a lovely day!
Readers should take their own mental health into consideration when voting and not subject themselves to triggering narrative elements like rape or constant mental torture of a friend just for the Greatest Good of a world that doesn't exist.
If those are fine for you or Regrettable is even more triggering, then GREAT! More power to you. But you aren't a bad or selfish person for picking the option that keeps the characters you've emotionally connected with safe. [REDACTED for spoiler warning]
This is a high intensity quest that doesn't hold back when it comes to horror and negative consequences. Take care of yourself.
Enough to fund an expeditions across the continent on routine basis. At least if we go by CS gameplay. Problem is, earning this much money legally without deep entrenchment in the higher noble circles is a problem.
Enough to fund an expeditions across the continent on routine basis. At least if we go by CS gameplay. Problem is, earning this much money legally without deep entrenchment in the higher noble circles is a problem.
No way this can end bad. Not at all it can make us into a monster.
Seriously, though. Both Moth and Grail make people pursue their fancy and the combination is rather disturbing, and we have a family to care for, so I would suggest to take something more down to earth first.
No way this can end bad. Not at all it can make us into a monster.
Seriously, though. Both Moth and Grail make people pursue their fancy and the combination is rather disturbing, and we have a family to care for, so I would suggest to take something more down to earth first.
level 2 grail shouldn't really do all that much to us, so I think we can go for that without problem but I do think we should maybe rank up something else before going for level 3
No way this can end bad. Not at all it can make us into a monster.
Seriously, though. Both Moth and Grail make people pursue their fancy and the combination is rather disturbing, and we have a family to care for, so I would suggest to take something more down to earth first.
Velvet is level 3 Moth and has attained the grand and terrible ability to... see in the dark and be really quiet. Grail is not gonna turn Velvet into an off-brand Slaaneshi Cultist, not at this level anyway. If she were to go hard Grail than sure but that goes for every Lore.
even lvl 2 aspect in CS already gives some personality changes, considering the flavor text. In case of Moth it is fluidity and volatility we kinda saw at the last scene. It shouldn't be drastic, but is likely to affect our family life somewhat and I got the impression we want to keep it. I would prefer to approach the matter with caution.
even lvl 2 aspect in CS already gives some personality changes, considering the flavor text. In case of Moth it is fluidity and volatility we kinda saw at the last scene. It shouldn't be drastic, but is likely to affect our family life somewhat and I got the impression we want to keep it. I would prefer to approach the matter with caution.
Well QM has said that this game won't be exactly like either CS or MLP to keep some surprises for the players. Plus from our experimenting we've found out that we don't actually get any noticeable powers (and by extension) quirky behaviors until a lore hits level 3 and even then it was described as minor and not really noticeable unless someone is looking for it. Plus I think the current plan is to get all lores up to level 3 partly to get a decent boast to all lore related rolls and mostly to get a better idea on how each lore will effect Velvet. Then pick 2 or 3 lores to focus on and only rise the rest as needed to progress the quest. Besides to advance we're going to need to progress our lores just to be able to do certain actions down the line and depending on WHAT pops up we may be forced to invest in to certain lores more heavily then we'd want to since that just seems to be the nature of the beast some times.
even lvl 2 aspect in CS already gives some personality changes, considering the flavor text. In case of Moth it is fluidity and volatility we kinda saw at the last scene. It shouldn't be drastic, but is likely to affect our family life somewhat and I got the impression we want to keep it. I would prefer to approach the matter with caution.
Mind you I haven't played the game but it seems to me that the lores as described in the quest would put a level 2 lore closer to the first paragraph presented in the link to "Saliba, a disciple" you presented and that doesn't seem to really speak about the effect it have on him, that first comes in the later ones. the first 2 levels in general seems to be rather minor which is also why we don't get a magical effect before the 3rd one.
Watch, next is a natural one, and we end up implying to Jade Whistle that we think we're better than her at magic because we're a unicorn or something.
So is it me or does Starry Dancer seem to be HEART aligned. The references to dancing and rhythm are hitting a few flags. However, her view on the Master seems to be more "rose-coloured" from ours. It's nice to see how one views the Master from a different perspective
About the library idea, it is possible. But it would have to be in a place accessible to the cult, for it to be useful, so you might have to talk to Windy Flakes to have it set on... wherever your cult is moving to. You haven't exactly visited it yet.
You also might have to add some comments on the books, every now and then. They aren't exactly Lore books, they are regular books from which Velvet "had a small realization" on a certain Aspect. But those might not be more immediately obvious to the regular initiate. Sure, the library will give immediate bonuses, but unless you find actual Lore Grimoires you might have to spend an action grabbing all the books and mulling them over.
Which kind of is your job as loremaster but... oh dear, where will you ever find time for that?
Plan Outreach
-[X] Before this month starts, you will perform a ritual to draw the attention of MOTH (This is a free action to summon "The Attention of the Laws")
-[X] A measured commitment: Give everything a once-over, sign everything in stacks. The farmlands wont just crumble and burn if you miss a few numbers this month.
(6 personal actions and 1 servant action. Might be noticed by those closest to you. Will not be noticed by the family head if you do not do this often.)
-[X] You seek the Princess of the Night, and perhaps you are the only pony in Equestria who can access the Dreamlands, bar your compatriots (to whom you showed the way). She is bound to be there. And even if she is not, she is bound to sleep, and everypony has a door.
--[X] Invoke the power of the MOTH to Protect You From Nightmares. -[X] You are a noble, albeit a lesser noble. But the crown has called for every stallion and mare for help, and it would be very noble of you to join in the searches. Offering your help to the search parties will surely give you useful insight, on their progress if nothing else.
-[X] Help Comet Feet
--[X] He is out of town in… whoever knows where. Reach out to him, he could definitely use some company.
-[X] Help Starry Dancer
--[X] She seems somewhat rattled. You all are. Lend her an ear, or perhaps a shoulder.
-[X] Help Jade Whistle
--[X] She might not be as quiet and disconnected as she seems. Get to know her better. -[X] Of course you love your family very much, but you could always spend a bit more time with them.
--[X] Just another pleasant day that you will spend with them. Perfect for cooling your head off.
-[X] There are books that could be of use. You should start looking for them.
--[X] In Ponyville, and its… great assortments of libraries? (no extra cost)
----[X] [Servant Action]
- - -
"A final turn to the left and… the fourth house after the tree carved with a heart?"
These certainly are curious instructions, especially since mentioning the street and the number of her address would have been more than enough, but you follow them anyways.
You have been thinking about meeting Jade Whistle to talk to her. Your official excuse would be that you wanted to know how her studies for the ritual are going, since heaven knows how much work it must be to devise a new ritual from scratch, but you are actually more interested in getting to know her better. Especially because of her curious reaction, even if it was only with a single phrase, after the last cult meeting.
Was she trying to console Starry Dancer? Was that simply her outlook in life? Was she as shaken as the pegasus, as shaken as you all were, but simply managed to hide it better? These were things you were planning to find out, or at least try to.
So how surprised you were when, before you even tried reaching out to her, you instead received a letter from the mare inviting you to her home.
"This certainly must be that tree…" you look at the large tree, one of the many that usually dots the streets in Ponyville, and see that it is indeed carved with a small heart, two cutie marks also scraped within it.
You wonder how long ago that was carved. You wonder if those two ponies are still together.
They probably are.
You continue walking, counting the houses you pass by until you reach the fourth and… wait, is this really the place?
You arrive before a… well, you first retrace your steps and make absolute sure that this is the fourth house. But after said checks are finished, you once again arrive before a particularly shabby house. You don't mean to be rude, and you most certainly don't think like that because you were raised a noble, but the place certainly is… unkept.
Houses in Ponyville are usually brightly painted, and even the least adorned among them will have dozens of small signs that tell this and that about their residents. You have been to a bakery that is shaped like an actual cake, and you have already passed by a house that you swear had chimneys shaped like the pipes of some musical instrument, perhaps an organ or something else.
But even the houses that aren't as personalized as those will have smaller details on them, even if it is just a simple garden and some potted plants, or perhaps a wooden workshop or the likes.
However, the house that you see in front of you does not even have that much… less so, in fact. Its once bright paint is clearly worn, you see a few signs of cracks here and there, although they are tiny, and even the grass around it is slightly overgrown and unkept. Jade Whistle is an earth pony, and the very plants around an earth pony's house tends to behave better than not, so that small detail also seems out of place.
The windows, also, seem spent, and you can see that the curtains behind them are closed shut. You look up, at the sun that is well on its way to the highest point of the sky, and let out a soft "Huh…" at that.
But this is most certainly the place where her letter told you to go, so you knock on the door and wait for an answer.
And you wait… for a considerably long time.
"Jade? Jade Whistle?" you knock again, this time more insistently, not in an annoyed or impatient manner, but you are quickly starting to wonder if you have taken a wrong turn somewhere. You hope not, because the letter wasn't exactly short when it came to the instructions.
You keep knocking on the door, wondering if you should put an ear against it to check if there is any sound coming from the inside.
Until finally the door opens, only a slight crack that is, but you can see somepony looking at you.
"Velvet Covers?" you hear a voice coming from the inside, its tone too closed to that of a tired droning, followed by a… a yawn?
The door finally opens, revealing the mare herself, her grey mane clearly unkept and the fur of her light blue coat slightly ruffled.
Did she just wake up?
"Did you just wake up?" you let your thoughts out almost involuntarily before you can stop them.
But the mare simply looks at you and nods as an answer, her expression almost the same as the one she usually wears, with the slight difference that her eyes are slightly more closed than usual.
The two of you stand there, staring at each other for a while, until she shakes her head an looks at you with a little more attention.
"What are you doing here?" she asks, although she sounds like she isn't really interested in the answer.
"You… invited me over?" you say, starting to feel somewhat awkward, but you float the letter she wrote you in her direction, which she grabs and slowly reads.
"Oh…" she says, as if she were talking to herself, "so sending this wasn't a dream…"
You suppress the urge tilt your head at that, and calmly wait as the mare looks behind her, probably looking at something inside her house, before she turns back in your direction.
"I wasn't really expecting you here for a few more days, so my house isn't exactly presentable, but…" she fully opens the door and turns her back to you, walking away from you with a yawn, "you can come in," she finishes, her voice still coming out somewhat drowsy.
The door leads to a small corridor, and Jade Whistle disappears after turning a corner that leads somewhere, leaving you alone in front of her open door.
Your self-control fails for a moment, and your face turns into a confused version of itself, your head tilting slightly as you try to understand what had just happened. But you quickly recompose yourself and take a deep breath.
You neither see nor hear any further signs of the mare, and the small corridor is still silently waiting for you, so you take that as an invitation for you to go in. She did say you could, after all.
You step into Jade Whistle's house, closing the door behind you, and turn in the direction that you saw she went to.
And once you turn around that corner, you must admit that you are somewhat… surprised at what you see.
Or rather, at what you don't see, after all her house is extremely dark.
Well, perhaps "dark" is not the correct term, but it is very badly illuminated and your eyes take a good few moment to adjust to it. You see no candles, and the ceiling-lanterns don't look like they have been used in ages. The only light you see is the one coming from the windows, and that is only because their curtains are old and worn to the point where they are thin, with a few small holes dotting them here and there. That much light, however, is only enough for somepony to be able to vaguely discern what colors everything was supposed to be, at best. Like how a place might be during the very end of the sunset, or perhaps under a slightly clouded moon.
This place is the kind of shady-dark that is enough for a pony to walk around just fine, and have a good guess of what and where everything is. But it is certainly not bright enough for somepony to live here, not comfortably at least.
You can see that you are in some kind of living room, with a few cushioned sofas and an old fireplace, but you still close your eyes every now and then as you walk through it, just to make sure that you don't stumble on anything.
"Over here" you hear Jade's voice coming from the other end of the room, followed by the sound of a match being struck.
Her voice came from beyond a slightly open door, and you see the light of a recently lit candle casting a shadow against the ground, so you head that way.
"You can sit there," she says as you enter the reasonably large (and unreasonably dark) study room, pointing towards a chair.
"Thank you," you answer her, heading towards the chair. Although the mare doesn't seem to acknowledge that you said anything.
You awkwardly look at her, wondering if you should say anything else, but she seems to be focused on making sure that the candle is properly sitting upright. She also has her back to you, so you are not sure if you should interrupt her either.
"Like I said," she finally speaks again, turning her head in your direction, "I wasn't expecting you for a few more days, so I don't really have anything ready right now." You dearly wonder what she means by "ready", but you keep a polite smile by your face, "I'll go get something for us to drink."
And with that she slowly walks out of the study room, leaving you alone. Again.
You take a deep breath, trying to focus yourself. You wish you could chide yourself for not saying anything, or for not attempting to start a conversation, or for not doing anything else other than simply following the mare here. But you honestly can't think of how you could have done anything else.
You saw no hints on Jade Whistle's body language, you aren't even sure if she is giving you any hints or social cues of any kind. You honestly can't even tell if there were any cues to begin with.
And on the topic of you starting a conversation yourself, what were you supposed to say? "Thanks for having me here, and wow your house is really old"? That surely is not how you hope things will go.
You let out a frustrated sigh, taking care that it is not loud enough for her to hear it from… wherever she is. But you think you hear a few clanking sounds in the distance, so she must be in her kitchen getting something for the two of you, as she said she would.
But what to do… what to do…? You look around while clopping your hoofs together, thinking of what your next step should be. You certainly have the impression that you ought to do something. You don't think the mare was gently telling you to leave when she told you she was not ready for you to visit her, but you certainly don't think she will take the first step at anything conversation-wise.
Or is she telling you to leave? Good heavens Velvet, you are supposed to be good at this sort of thing!
You look around you, trying to take in the study room where you are. Maybe something here will help you get a better read on the mare?
[A thousand shadows around the candle's flame, breakpoints 20/40/60/80/100]
[Roll: 71 + 12 (Intrigue) = 83]
And you notice several small things.
The study room is filled with all sorts of objects. Curios and souvenirs, small trinkets and tokens that seem to have come from all kinds of places and cultures. This study room reminds you somewhat of Baldomare's living room, with the number of little things and details everywhere you look. But where Baldomare's lodge seemed to display fond memories next to a roaring fireplace, and was heavy with loving reminiscences and history, this place you are in right now feels like it is… empty, despite the many small objects everywhere you look.
The sheer quantity of things seems to cast shadows everywhere, in fact, even with such a small candle illuminating all of it, and for some reason that makes you feel something heavy in your chest. But strange sensation or not, you close your eyes to take a better look.
And a few other things become immediately clear.
First of all, you see that her house is extremely unkept. And again, this is not your noble upbringing saying anything, this is your clear observation. Seeing the house from the outside, and its neglected structure, is one thing, but as you look around you can't help but notice that the same amount of care (or lack of thereof) is given to the inside of her home as well.
There are spiderwebs everywhere, on every corner of the ceiling, and even near some of the trinkets that are further away from a normal pony's reach. There are several cabinets near the walls and next to the wooden table on the other side of the room, but you can see a thin layer of dust over many of the books, especially those that are higher up on the cabinets. You wonder how long it has been since this place was used for its intended purpose.
However… you can also see the signs of a recent cleaning, or at least of a recent attempt at cleaning things. This time you are indeed drawing from your experience as a noble, as you can see the several small markings that somepony has done a very sloppy once-over on part of the room, or that you are in the middle of a very slow attempt at cleaning everything.
You can see that the dust on the floor has been mopped away, but with signs that those efforts were done starting from the door, and curiously stopped at the spot where you are sitting on your chair. You see that most of the small trinkets that dot the cabinets have been dusted off, especially those that can be more easily reached by somepony around Jade's height. That and several other little things tell you that some effort has been put into making the whole place more presentable.
Maybe she did mean it when she said she wasn't expecting you for a few more days… maybe this is what she meant by it? You are not sure if you are somewhat flattered that Jade Whistle actually made some sort of effort to have her place cleaned, or if you are worried over the fact that she… doesn't really seem to care much about her own house otherwise.
You hear the faint hiss of steam coming from a few rooms away. Jade Whistle must be doing tea, you think, and that sound probably means that it won't be long until she returns.
You look around, with more attention now, looking for more subtle hints, for more things that you might have missed with a quick glance.
You try to blink your eyes, but you remember that they are already closed to begin with. You wonder for a few seconds as to why you would have wanted to blink to begin with, until you realize that the candle's light is actually a bit too bright, almost to the point where it is slightly uncomfortable. You open your eyes, surprised at that, and take a better look at the candle itself.
And you recognize the candle. It is the same candle that was left behind by your Master after the end of the ritual into Princess Luna's dreams, the one with a slight tinge of Lantern to it. You see that the candle is not rightly burning or melting the wax of its body, and that confirms your suspicion.
Curious that Jade Whistle would have held on to it. Of course the thing is precious, or at least Mansus-touched, but after what you saw on the ritual it didn't even cross your mind to reach for the candle after everypony had left. By all rights, everypony was so shocked that this artifact should have been discovered by Windy Flakes, days later as he finished his business on his underground storage.
You look around at the study room once again, but what about the other trinkets? You doubt any of them are Mansus-touched, they all seem too common and mundane, but why then does she hold on to them? The more you look around, the more this study room seems like an old and forgotten museum, but why is it like this?
Maybe, you think, the idea striking you suddenly and without warning, these trinkets are not hers to begin with. Maybe this whole study room isn't hers.
You think back to the impression that you feel like you are in a museum. Maybe this whole house isn't hers to begin with. It might belong to her, but it might not actually be hers.
You click your tongue, realizing something that should have been obvious from the start. You passed by a living room with a fireplace and several sofas, you are in a study room and there are at least three chairs in it, yours, hers and the one covered in dust next to the desk on the opposite end.
The house itself is two-storied. The stairs to the second floor must be somewhere else you haven't passed by, but the more you think about it the more you realize how large the place is. Not unusually large by Ponyville standards, but definitely not a place a mare would be living alone either, and you are certain nopony else lives here with her.
The more you think about it, the more you realize how empty this place is. This place feels very lonely, you realize, and an idea of sorts slowly starts to piece itself together in your head.
A chill runs down your spine, and you think you feel a faint echo of Winter in the air.
You hear a few more clanks coming from where you believe is the kitchen, followed by the sound of Jade Whistle's hoofsteps. You shift your mind into a more frantic gear as you keep looking around you.
Something still feels wrong, you feel like you are missing something or that perhaps something is missing from this place, and you know that whatever it is, it's the piece that you are lacking for the puzzle.
The mare's hoofsteps are nearly on the door when you finally realize what that thing is.
You finally realize that you see no pictures. This is a study room, and perhaps a personal office of sorts, and although you know that it might not be a practice everypony has, the sheer quantity of souvenirs and small things around you suggests that the owner of this place liked to remember things. You have a few pictures of your family in your own office, and something in you tells that there should at least be a few dozens of them in here by the look of things.
And once you realize it, you notice them. You see several small gaps in the cabinets, between certain objects, where a picture might have fit. You notice the tiny holes in the walls, where a nail might have once stood and a photo frame might have been displayed from.
No, that isn't exactly right, if you are being honest. You only realized that there are pictures missing because so far you have only seen a single one. You see the small corner of its frame, high up on a cabinet by the door, forgotten behind several other trinkets almost as if it had been purposefully hidden there.
You almost missed it. In fact, you would have missed it if not for the reflected glint of the candlelight on its metallic frame. You spy at the picture, far as it may be, and something tells you that it must be the only picture that exists in this room. Or perhaps in the entirety of the house.
Although you have no idea, then, why it is hidden away in that spot.
"Here," Jade Whistle returns, carrying a set of tea with two cups, fresh steam coming out of it.
She leaves it on a less-occupied cabinet, near her own reach, and sits down on the other chair. You know it is good manners to put this sort of thing near your guests, so they can reach it with their hoofs, but you take the cue anyways and float one of the cups towards you.
You sip from it. It's not bad, but you have the impression that Jade Whistle doesn't know the first thing about brewing tea. You are struck by the sudden thought that perhaps this is the first time she has ever tried doing it, but you are not sure where that idea came from.
She calmly drinks from her tea, with her eyes closed, which reminds you to double check that yours are open.
But apart from that, she remains silent.
And you are honestly, for your part, not sure of what to say. You have thought about several things to discuss with Jade Whistle while on your way here, several ways that you could have started, guided or ended a conversation, but none of them really seem adequate right now.
This place… this room, this house, Jade Whistle herself, it all just feels too… heavy.
She opens her eyes after what must have been more than a minute, and looks at you with her usual uninterested expression.
"Maybe calling you here was a mistake," she says suddenly, although with a tone as neutral as one she might have used to talk about the weather.
"What?! Why?" you say, trying to control your surprise, but otherwise completely taken aback.
"Well, you haven't touched your tea for starters" she says nonchalantly, and you suddenly remember you have been floating the teacup next to you the whole time, "also you aren't really saying anything."
She calmly closes her eyes again and sips from her own teacup, in a way that could make you very well believe you are not there at all.
"But then…" you try, hesitantly, "why did you even call me here?"
You keep your eyes trained on her. Normally you would be doing that so you could be attentive to any slight movement, any small hint of body language that might occur if you were having a normal conversation.
But right now, you are looking at her because looking anywhere else just feels too uncomfortable, especially after noticing all the little details that you did.
"I called you here because I want to know you better, why else?" she answers simply, and although she doesn't shrug that sort of movement wouldn't have been out of place right now.
"Why?" you ask again. A part of you knows that you are fumbling, and that you must sound extremely uninteresting right now, seeing that you are doing all the things you would want to avoid in a normal conversation.
But nothing else comes to mind right now, and a part of you is really dreading that she might be thinking of simply asking you to leave.
"Because you seem nice. Well, not exactly nice…" she opens her eyes slightly, looking at nowhere in particular as if searching for a word, "but you seem to be… the kind of mare who can understand things, I guess. Not like the others, I mean."
"I don't look like the others…?" you narrow your eyes, seeing that you might just manage to go somewhere from this, "why exactly do you think that? What is the matter with the others?"
You are almost positive she means the rest of the inner circle, so you ask precisely that.
And you dearly hope she takes the bait, you really hope that she doesn't simply brush your question off and resume her silent demeanor.
She opens her mouth after a few long moments, but what comes out isn't exactly the answer you have been hoping for.
"Why did you join the cult, Velvet?" she asks, in her same usual impassive tone.
You suppress a reaction, a deep breath that your body is calling for you to do. At least, you think, the mare is still talking, so you go for that.
"Well, the cult seemed interesting, for starters… it was interesting enough for me to want to go to the first few common meetings with Copper, before I was introduced to the Master, and I also had the time," you answer, to which she nods.
She looks at you for a few more moments, and then she nods once again, this time more slowly.
"And why do you think then," she asks, seeming to take more care with her words now, "that everypony else joins the cult?"
Is she judging you? Is she hoping for a particular answer? Is there a trick to this question that you haven't noticed? You mull her words over in your head a few times, but you can't really see any of that.
So you decide to go with what you know.
"Well, I assume that for the same reasons?"
She tilts her head at you, the first reaction you have ever seen from her, as far as you can remember. Although you can't really say what exactly she means by that, whether if it means a polite show of surprise or if it is the equivalent of a facehoof.
"It's a cult Velvet," she says, still with that same dispassionate tone, "it garners for ponies who have problems. It is a micro-society, and the only reason anypony would join it would be because they don't think they have a place in the society they are currently a part of."
She says that, slowly, without breaking stride and on the same way she might be saying she thinks your dress looks nice. But you can't help but notice that your eyes are now wide open in surprise.
That was not, in a far shot, the sort of answer that you were expecting.
"What… whatever you mean by that, Jade?" you try to recompose yourself, but you stammer a little in your answer. You open your mouth to try and word it better but, again much to your surprise, the mare is already talking again.
"Well, it's clear enough, you can see just by looking at us. For example" she says, calmly sipping from her tea, "Starry Dancer is illiterate, or at least has a very big difficulty with it, and as much as she tries to hide it I think you have noticed how she acts evasively whenever she has to read something, be it a letter or whatnot. Comet Feet came from out of town and keeps to himself, but not in a healthy way."
The mare stops for a few moments, just to put a little more tea in her cup.
But by now, interrupting her does not even cross your mind.
"Copper Secateur needs to appear interesting to other ponies, and sometimes she won't bring in an initiate as much as she will seduce them, and Windy Flakes…" she stops for a few moments and simply stares at her teacup, "well, I just think it's clear that everypony there feels abandoned somehow, or that they don't fit. And the sense of being part of something bigger, or of having guidance, or of belonging to something that is personal and mysterious, is what attracts them."
You realize that you are sitting straight on your seat, that something in you is rigid with shock at the mare, although she is not even looking in your direction. You are not even sure of how to react, of even if you should react at all.
"But what about you?" she raises her eyes from her teacup, and look into yours, "Windy says you have a daughter, and Copper mentioned once you have a nice husband, so I was wondering why a mare like you would want to distance herself from that by joining a cult."
"I…" you hesitate.
Jade Whistle is right. She is frighteningly right, although that was not something you had consciously considered before. Of course, you had no idea about anything she just told you, about all the little details she mentioned in an almost off-hoof manner, but you can see the logic behind her reasoning.
And you can see it in yourself as well. You recall the way you felt years ago, as a mare who had been married off to an unknown stallion of some conveniently influential family, as a mother whose daughter was practically hated by her own grandfather by virtue of having been borne with wings instead of a horn. About all the little dissatisfactions that piled up in your life over the years, ever since the accident when you were younger, after which you slowly drifted apart from your father and was isolated from the rest of your family.
Until you met Copper Secateur, during one of the particularly long trips your husband was making, and she introduced you to your… pastime.
You swallow something dry, and a corner of your brain reminds you that your tea must be cold by now, but you don't care. You look at Jade Whistle's impassive eyes, and you think that mare might as well be looking straight into your soul.
"I… don't exactly have a perfect life either…" you finally answer, to which the mare gives a deep and understanding nod.
But in that nod you see something, you see a hint that isn't only of understanding, but of some deeper feeling that is crossing her mind. You recognize a glimpse that you think you saw when she tried to comfort Starry Dancer after the last reunion, although her use of words might have been as nonchalant as the one she has now.
You see… some sort of familiarity? As if she somehow understands what you mean too well?
You see all of that, and you can't help but to wonder…
"But what about you?" you ask, knowing that she understood your question before you even finished saying it.
Jade Whistle keeps her eyes trained on yours, in silence, but you can tell that she is thinking. She might even be thinking deeply, if you really are beginning to understand the mare.
Until she closes her eyes again, and takes another sip from her tea.
You fumble internally at that, did you perhaps completely misread her or-
"Could you bring down that picture? The one on top of the cabinet?", but she interrupts your train of thought, "I saw you looking at it when I came back, so I know you noticed it."
You feel slightly uncomfortable at that, something in your head is telling you that you shouldn't have noticed that photograph to begin with, although you have no idea of how noticing something could possibly be your fault.
But you reach out to it with your magic, regardless, and float it towards her.
To which she shakes her head, and gently pushes the floating picture in your direction.
"That's my family", she says, as soon as you reach it with your hoofs, although you have to swipe away a layer of dust.
And you can see that, although the way it is portrayed surprises you. In the center of the picture is Jade Whistle, a younger version of herself, and she has a beaming smile. Her coat looks like it is a lighter color, and she is… she is hugging a small colt, that seems to be the same age that Silky is right now.
You can see that the sides of the picture are torn out, but you can make out that to each side of the duo stands a mare and a stallion.
"That's me and my brother, together with mother and father," she confirms your suspicions before you even voice them.
Another chill runs down your spine, and you remember just how large and empty her house is.
"They used to travel a lot, and bring back all sorts of trinkets and objects with them. They would tell us all sorts of stories about their travels, too, and we would always listen to them with a shine in our eyes."
She continues to speak, although her voice sounds like the very opposite of somepony who even once in her life ever had a shine in her eyes, or that ever smiled the way you see that she did for the picture.
"It would rile our imagination, of course. I even got my cutie mark when I realized I like to collect things, like the ones they used to bring from their travels," she says, looking at her own flank in between her sips of teas, "and my brother… well, he thought he might earn his own by being an adventurer like our parents."
You take a second look at the picture, feeling a knot tie itself in your chest. The little colt, much like your daughter, doesn't have a cutie mark either. And being a mother, you are especially used to a small pony's antics when they try to figure out their cutie marks.
"So he tried doing just that. One morning he left for an adventure. Mother and father were away, and I was busy cleaning the house," she continues.
Her tone sounds like she is very bored, but you notice how she takes a deep breath before continuing.
"Only problem is, of course, Ponyville is right next to the Everfree Forest."
She stops, and takes a long sip from her teacup. You have no idea if she is just allowing the meaning of her words to sink in, or if she extremely distressed without letting it show. But you remain deathly quiet.
Of course you do, you wouldn't know what to say even if you wanted to say something.
You wouldn't be able to say anything even if you tried, not with the knot in your chest slowly squeezing you more and more.
And after what must have been almost a minute, Jade Whistle continues.
"The thing about timberwolves," she says with a slightly different tone, almost as if she was reading aloud form a book, "is that, being plants, they dislike things which can move. They do not need to eat, feeding themselves as a plant would, but they will hunt down anything that has even the slightest movement to it. Be that movement a regular trot, the ability to breathe or even a pulse."
Jade Whistle closes her eyes, and takes another deep breath, putting her teacup aside once she is done with that. She looks back at you, and you wonder if she can tell that your heart is practically hammering against your chest, that it feels like it is about to be squeezed out of you by the sheer weight that you are feeling.
"But timberwolves usually leave their mark alone once it stops moving," her tone is back to normal again, you have no idea how, "and his cutie mark was the image of a small adventuring kit. A little lantern, some rope and… some other things more… it was hard to tell. But a few days after that happened father left, saying he couldn't stand to live here anymore, and then mother gave up," she finishes, staring at you with her deadpan expression.
But you nearly stop breathing at that. You realized how she worded her parent's reactions very differently. You realized how her father left, and then her mother left.
An idle part of your head wonders how your expression must be right now, but you really don't have it in you to care anymore.
And you slowly start to ask a question, almost without conscious thought.
"Why…" there are several things you want to say, a lot of things you nearly want to shout, and quite a few things you want to do right now. But you can only properly form one question in your mouth, "why are you telling me this…?"
You almost whisper it, your voice would tremble far more than it just did if you tried to say it any louder. It is not that you are asking her why she just told you that, but instead why she wanted to tell you all of this to begin with.
Why did she think about inviting you over, having intended to send that letter or not, and simply sit you in… somepony's study room and tell you all of this? Why you, if you practically don't even know her at all?!
"Because you seem like a nice pony… and I thought you would understand."
"Understand what?"
She looks at you, and for the first time her expression turns into something resembling doubt, and she simply shrugs.
"I… I don't know," she concedes, "but that's how things are, isn't it? That's the way things go. Once you realize something, once you see something and notice that it is there, your whole world changes it. After that point you live in a world where the thing you noticed is there, and it exists for you now, and it demands space, and sometimes even your attention and…"
She lets out a sigh, a defeated sigh this time, although you can barely differentiate it from a normal one, coming from her.
"I'm sorry," she sure doesn't sound sorry, "this didn't go as I thought it would… You coming here was a mistake after all."
You look at the mare, your mind completely confused as to how it should react. How can Jade Whistle even be so neutrally calm like she is? What was crossing her mind when she thought about calling you over to just up and tell you all this?! What in the heavens is even going on through her mind for her to…?
And then it finally clicks.
She was answering your question of why she joined the cult. And she mentioned she called you because… what was it again, something about you understanding?
She was hoping, you realize, that you would understand her.
This is her problem. She did say that everypony has one, and she seems to be the kind of pony who words things like that. She understands that she has a problem, and that this is it.
Jade Whistle is, you realize, an extremely observant pony, and a very intelligent one as well. But you can't shake the feeling that despite all of that, or perhaps because of that, she has come to the conclusion that she has an almost alien view about life. She has a way of seeing things that causes her not to be able to connect with almost anypony else.
And once she realized it, well… the world she lives in "became a world where that fact exists" as she puts it.
But you realize that this conclusion made her an extremely lonely pony. The particular kind of lonely that is already so used to it, that they don't even notice themselves.
You see it now. There is too much Lantern in her. She can see things so clearly that she gets lost in them, and can't care enough to try and do anything about it, or maybe she simply has no idea of what to do to begin with.
So, she just… keeps looking at the world with those dead eyes of hers, with that neutral expression marred with indifference.
Although you can see that there is still somepony underneath all of that. In the very core, she still cares and feels very much.
"I will take you to the door," she gets up before you can react, and walks away from the study, towards the front door, "you can just forget about this whole morning and go on with your life."
You follow after her, but you still have no idea of what to say. Your words still stuck in your throat until you are standing out of her house, and she has her hoof on the door.
She looks at you one last time from inside her house, from within that cold and empty corridor, while you stand just outside of it. The two of you repeating the same scene from earlier this morning, with the tiny difference that she does not look as sleepy as she did back then.
Another difference, however, is that she didn't have as much… something in her eyes either, as she does right now, although despite your years of experience you have no idea of what that thing is.
"Look," she finally says, as if to say her goodbyes, "I know I'm not the best with words but… I'm sorry. Just pretend you didn't come here today, and I will do the same."
And with that she moves to close the door, but before she does that you-
[] nod at her. You asked, she answered. You searched, she let you in. Knowledge is never kind, and she seems to both know that well and have come to terms with it. What she has not done, however, is ask for your pity. Gain one scrap of LANTERNLore. (Jade Whistle might understand if you do this)
[] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTERLore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
[] do nothing. She, much like her house, is too cold and too dark. You'd better keep your distance. (Jade Whistle will very much understand if you do this)
Velvet Covers is not certain of what to make of any of this…
20: the recent cleaning
40: the candle
60: the empty chairs
80: the framed picture
100: the marks around her neck
You have not rolled high enough for her to tell you a certain secret about the cult, but she has told you almost everything about herself.
Jade Whistle is a very curious mare.
Jade Whistle is not a pony against whom social rolls, of the usual kind, will be used often.
Jade Whistle is…
Interpret it as you wish.
Voting will remain open until the next update, which will happen no earlier than 48 hours from now.
Its just that I find this, this "social-fu" as someone has cleverly called, a bit difficult to execute. But it is being a wonderful experience.
Give it no thought, give it no thought...
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTERLore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
I am glad that velvet is reaching a better understanding of the cult.
Everyone is broken in their own way, including her.
Now we just need to decide what to do with that information. (Become the cults mom obviously).
Yeah, this girl needs a hug.
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
We might need to work on hugging everybody a bit more, so to speak. Metaphorically. Maybe not another solid turn of it, but as a definite priority.
[x] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
My initial reaction is to ask how nobody in town has tried to help her before, but then I rememeber we're still early on in the show, back when Zecora was ostracized for just walking around town in cloak.
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
Responding to a story about movement becoming Stillness. Knowledge gained from beyond the Door is best for therapying at others. At least when that is what pains them. She may not understand, but all the LANTERN in her may force her to at least observe the intent of the action all the same.
[x] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
I think it's going to be a roll. A roll with a negative modifier.
But I think it's the only right answer to... to this.
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
And this is why we'll need balance. Jade clearly has too much Lantern, but not enough Winter to protect against the harsh truths she witnesses. But that's okay, because we can do it for her!
A more likely implication might be something like that she was with him, and the Timber Wolves got her first, and they got him because he distracted them to save her, (or something else like that).
[X] go ahead and hug her. This is not unwarranted pity, this is basic kindness. She may have her own way at looking at the world, but you can see that her world is a dark place, and that she very much wants to be found. Gain one scrap of WINTER Lore. (Jade Whistle might not understand if you do this)
