Madison Valley Role Play

Stories and tales; in them we find the heart of a civilization, the soul of a culture. All the sorrows, fears and hopes of life can be found in the stories we tell, and in the way we tell them. In my world, it is said that my people know all stories, and before I came here, I very much believed that to be so.

But here, there are so many that I do not know, tales from cultures my mind hasn't even dreamt of, of people beyond the boundaries of my imagination. If we are to come together as allies - if not friends - in this place, should we not share a bit of our worlds? Should we not tell the stories and songs that make us who we are? I have shared a few over the time I have been here, and would be more than glad to do so again, but for now I should like to sit back and listen, while you regale me with your tales.

So, begin!

Well, this is definitely new. I'll have to get a feel for this place.

Bo? Kenz? Hale? Any of you here?

What motivates you to do the things you do?

Like, how long do you think we'll be here? Will we have time to get used to it?

It's not bad, really, but I kind of miss the angst. It's a lot easier to write depressing angsty romance or poetry in the zombie apocalypse than in this...pre-rising ennui. Although maybe I could use the ennui.

Or maybe I'll just write more porn.

Oh, joy. All the confusion without actually having to step through an anomaly. I'm so thrilled, really I am.

WHO: Kvothe and OPEN
WHAT: Christmas songs by the fountain
WHERE By the broadway fountain
WHEN: Sunday morning
WARNINGS: TBD
STATUS: Open/Ongoing

( ~+~+~+~+~+~ )

WHO: Marley Rose & Kvothe
WHAT: Hanging Out, Rehearsing
WHEN: Wednesday Afternoon
WHERE: Outside the house she lives in with Klaus and Co.
WARNINGS: TBD
STATUS:: Gdoc'ed, Incomplete

( ”~+~+~+~+~+~+” )

I have at last had an opportunity to properly explore the markets and warehouses in this town. They are a delight! Perhaps I cannot locate everything I would have cared to purchase at home, but there are more than enough alternatives to satisfy and having solved the issues of currency, purchases were made!

Perhaps best of all, I found a little shop someway south of here selling all manner of wonderful fabrics. I shall soon have plenty of new dresses!

[Filtered to Kvothe]

I have been informed that you are the best person to consult on all matters musical?

I wish to retract my earlier statement.

This is not a nice place to live, it's beastly, and I was being childishly optimistic and naive when I said otherwise. I apologize to any decent people who were misled by what I said.

I have heard much talk lately of the fae, and the dangers people face when they come up against them. If you've a moment, I'd very much like to tell the tale of my own experience with the fae, and the dangers, pleasures, and mysteries that surround them in their land; so close to ours, and yet so far away.

It was not very many months ago, when I went away from University, to the service of Maer Alveron, a particularly powerful Vintish noble. He wished for my skills at tales and music to help him court the woman he loved, which I aided him with very ably and successfully. I shall not go into detail at the moment of how I saved his life from a murderous alchemist, or how I won him the love of his life only to be cast aside by the both of them...

But alas, those are tales for another time.

The Maer sent me, with a motley crew of soldiers, deep into the wilds, to capture a bandit who had been stealing great sums of money from him. Indeed, much is to be told with this tale as well, and perhaps in time I shall tell you of our daring fight, and how I called down the lightning to win the day, but for now, our story goes elsewhere.

On our way back home, we came by a vision of feminine beauty; a woman lovelier than any other, bathing naked in a pool as she sang. Most of the men were enthralled, and had to be held back from rushing to her, and to their certain deaths! For this was Felurian, an insatiable fae seductress from whose arms men have never returned with both their lives and their sanity. We were able to restrain them, but I...enraptured - but not enthralled - by her music, and the beauty of it and of her, made a conscious choice to follow her. And so I did, into the faen realms. I, like others, spent many days in her arms - or was it weeks? or months? or years? Time passes differently in the faerie realms, and I know not how much time I spent with her, drunk with the touch of her, learning all it was she had to teach me about love, and sharing music with her in more ways than one.

But in all my time with Felurian, she was unable to bend me to her will. She tried - oh, what a prize I would have been to her, indeed - as I was far from being one of the hunters or farmers she usually ensnared! But she was unable to control me, as I found her Name, and with it bent her to my will.

In time, my wish to return to my land, to my home, and those I had left behind grew stronger. Felurian had never faced such a thing before, as all men before me had either died or been driven mad in her embrace. But through music, a little bit of trickery, and the power of my magic, I was able to convince her to allow me to leave - on the condition that I would someday return to her. For, I told her, how was I to call her the best of all women at the art of love when I had known the touch of no other women?

And so I, alone of all men, left the faen realm, and escaped the arms of Felurian with my life, and with my mind intact.

And I warn all of you to heed Mr. Dresden's words of their danger; no matter how lovely they may appear. Always remember that there is an alien otherness beneath whatever charmed words they may tell you, and whatever sensual pleasures they may promise.

I've been so sick this last week I thought I was going to die, but apparently I wasn't nearly as sick as I thought.

I would love to know more about how the technology here works. I've never seen anything like it, even Master Kilvin's work in the Artificery.

I've been contemplating the matter and having been here for several months now I have to say that living here doesn't seem nearly as awful as it did at first. There are still distasteful elements, of course, but I am quite able to separate myself from them.

It isn't the worst place to be.

Hey, everyone.

My name's Peeta Mellark, and I wasn't in the best shape when I got here didn't greet all of you as I should have.

When we introduce ourselves at the games

So, I guess what would be interesting to know, since we're all from different places - what's the thing that's most different between this place and your home?

For me, there's so much food, and everyone has so much money. My father owned the bakery in our town, but I could hardly ever afford cookies or cakes, because the cost of sugar was so high. But here, I see kids coming in the morning before school every day and buying two or three doughnuts. It's crazy.

So, what about everyone else?

[Filtered to Cuthbert's potential festival planning committee - anyone who expressed interest]

I thought we might discuss our ideas for the winter's festival, and if there's any aspect in particular you might like to take charge of, you could say that too. I'd hear of what you'd like to see before I plan it out proper.

We'll need both an outside area for markets and entertainments, and a hall for the feast and the dances. I've looked at a few places, but again, if any of you know a place just right, mayhap you'll say.

[Filtered to Roland]

I know I said I wouldn't. But I thought on it and I'll not let Valen down; he's done much for me and he more than most deserves something to look forward to.

So, it's pretty obvious that a lot of us have wildly different opinions about what's appropriate to post on the network and what isn't. Obviously we can't please everyone, but maybe we could come to some sort of agreement on what should and shouldn't be posted on the network (at least without an Over 18 filter)?

These are my suggestions, but feel free to offer your own.

Please Filter the Following to People Over the Age of 18
1. Graphic talk of sex.
2. Requests for sex.
3. Complaints about lack of sex.

Anything else? This isn't telling anyone they can't talk about this stuff, just trying to make everyone a bit more comfortable.

The Name of Stone, like stone itself, is deep, eternal, and forever sad.

Wind, I think, must be much more changing, transient, and fickle. I think I'll try to find it next, simply because it's so different.

WHO: Marley Rose and Kvothe
WHAT: Rehearsing
WHERE: The Park
WHEN: Sunday Around Noon
WARNINGS: TBD, but probably N/A
STATUS: Closed/Ongoing


( Oh the Farmer and the Cowman Should Be Friends... )

Hello everyone! New Arrivals, welcome to Madison Valley. For those of you who don't know, my name is Justine and I work as a secretary in City Hall. I'm from Chicago 2007.

So here's a few things, 1 and 2 are for new arrivals and 3 is for everyone:

1. I'm making a roster for those who are looking for work but are having a hard time finding it on their own. Please sign up, and I will get back to you all at the same time when I have more information.

2. If any of the new arrivals are from a pre-Industrial or post-Industrial society, I encourage you to attend classes I hold throughout the week. We'll focus on teaching you some necessary survival skills in the 21st century. They happen on Tuesdays and Thursdays as needed, from 6:30 to 7:30. Thomas and I also hold a sex education class and we cover topics as needed and new sexually transmitted diseases found here that you may or may not be aware of in and from your respective timelines. If you have any questions about sex or sexually based concerns please do ask us, we encourage communication.

3. I thought we'd celebrate Thanksgiving with a potlock. If anyone's interested in doing that we can, otherwise enjoy the holidays with your respective friends and family. But, that also made me realize that we're sticking to very American holidays, and if there's anything any of the non-Americans want to celebrate, we should do that too.

Thank you!

[AUDIO POST. Kvothe sings the following a cappella, but despite that his tone and pitch are flawless. His accent is a flawless 'southwestern' sort of American, something that he's obviously practiced]

There's a bright, golden haze on the meadow
There's a bright, golden haze on the meadow.
The corn is as high as an elephant's eye
And it looks like it's climbing clear up to the sky.

Oh, what a beautiful Mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day.
I've got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way.

My question: Has Curly ever actually >seen an elephant? They're not native to Oklahoma.

There are a lot more people here than when I was here last time.

So how about this, let's everybody introduce ourselves. Give me your name, where you're from, and one interesting fact.

WHO: Kvothe and Cassiopeia Black
WHAT: Match-up!
WHERE: On the street not far from the library
WHEN: Friday morning
STATUS: Closed/Ongoing
WARNINGS: TBD

( ~+~+~+~+~+~ )

Ok, so I gave it a try, but my foster parents and I don't really see eye to eye on.. well, on anything. However, they did say that they wouldn't fight me if I found another guardian among our own group that would be suitable. I think the dad is kind of afraid that if he fights me on it, someone scarier than him will step in.

I'm fifteen, almost sixteen and attend the high school. I like to sing and I just won the female lead in the school musical, so I'll probably be at school rehearsals and practicing with the male lead a lot for the next little while. I can try to get a part time job if that would help.

Edit: Looks like I have a new guardian. Thank you, Klaus.

I'm glad to see that the school knows talent when they see it.

I've looked up a few of the songs I'll be singing, not exactly my style to be sure, but I'm quite certain I'm capable.

Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'
Surrey with the Fringe on Top
People Will Say We're in Love

Is that a proper accent for someone truly from this Oklahoma place?

[Filtered to Marley]

We should schedule a time to go over our scenes.

The library here is an enormous disappointment. While there were some interesting plays to be read, the rest of their collection is sorely lacking.

They don't even have a copy of Celum Tincture, not to mention The Mating Habits of the Common Draccus.

Hey.

Um Someone said I should introduce myself on this thing because there's others out there. My name is Katniss Everdeen. I guess you'd call me a new arrival.

I'm really bad at stuff like this.

Okay, I am trying to make up this pamphlet for newbie arrivals and have some questions for all of you.

What was the most helpful thing someone told you upon arrival?
What was the least helpful thing told to you?
What information would you have liked to have known upon arrival that you didn't find out until later on?

Answers, go!

WHO: Kvothe and OPEN
WHERE: In the park not far from the apartments
WHAT: Practicing for his audition, thinking
WHEN: Saturday afternoon
WARNINGS: Possible talk of death, ptsd
STATUS: Open/Ongoing

( ~+~+~+~+~+~ )

I heard on the police scanner that they caught the guy who beat up Fix. Arrested him.

I thought everyone should know that - the police did what they were supposed to do, even when it came to protecting one of us.

I don't know what's going on with this kid that Dresden brought home last night, but I'm of the opinion that we need to step up and make sure they don't make those mistakes before they even happen. We need to be proactive on this, instead of sitting back and letting them have the first move.

I think we need to...be more involved with the process of arrivals, too. We need to be more proactive on this, instead of sitting back and letting them have the first move.

Would you be interested in working on our auditions together? It could only help if the director sees that we are already comfortable playing off of each other.

Today at school, it was announced that tomorrow would be the beginning of tryouts for West Side Story at the High School.

I found the soundtrack, and read the script, and I think I'll be trying out for Tony.

Is anyone else trying out?

I can't decide what I find worse: That I'm considering settling in Madison Valley for the long term, or that the city is not functionally allowing that to happen.

It all feels like a farce, we're only pretending. I understand. This isn't my home, and in a year if I'm here it still won't be.

When does it stop not being home, I wonder?

Valar, did we all travel the same path to get here at once? Though it wasn't where I'd intended to be. I've lost my candle, my blankets and the pickle.

Though I may have indeed eaten that entirely without noticing-

Eru!

[...]

Ai, all is well, I've found my harp.

When I said I would leave town, this isn't what I had in mind.

Am I alone here?

WHO: Kvothe and OPEN
WHAT: A rather interesting Shop Class
WHEN: Backdated to Friday, during the school day
WHERE: Madison Valley High School, Home of the Madison Valley Marching Llamas.
WARNINGS: TBD
STATUS: Open/Ongoing

( ~+~+~+~+~+~+~ )

I'm taking over management of the Halloween party Molly was going to throw. Everyone's invited, no matter your age. We won't be serving alcohol, but feel free to dress up. Thomas and I have picked out some prizes for a costume contest. I know it's ridiculous but we'll have fun with it.

We're pooling together money to rent a hall for a few hours, if you can pitch into that it'd be welcome. $5 will be enough, I think. Otherwise, we've got it covered.

If anyone wants to volunteer to help me decorate I will personally appreciate it. Caroline is decorating, take any and all ideas and volunteer questions to her, please.

Let's have a discussion.

Roland seems to have touched a nerve, so I'm officially asking everyone here:

1.) Do you feel unsafe? If so, who/what group are you worried about?
2.) If you do, why? Please mention whether or not this feeling is colored by previous experiences in your own timelines.
3.) What are some ideas you have for alleviating this problem, that you think could be implemented? We all have ideal solutions, but let's focus on pragmatics.

If you don't feel comfortable addressing some of these questions publically, feel free to either tell me privately in some way or say you don't feel comfortable. It's fine, but if you don't say anything at all, even to abstain from answering, we can't know your thoughts and consider them.

In terms of ideas, so far there's been Roland's suggestion of a protective force (which I object to, but I'm one vote). I'd also like to suggest the idea of escorting people, or setting up checks of some sort within the community for those who are interested.

I didn't exactly question it because I figured I was just dreaming. And the opportunity to take a shower was far too enticing and it was nice to actually sleep on a bed but I'm starting to think that this isn't a dream.

It feels like nothing was really explained or anything and I'm starting to freak out a little. As much as my sister is going to freak out when they find that I'm gone. And I'd kind of like to go back now.

[Filtered to Harry Dresden]

I'd like to talk to you.

[Filtered to Elodin]

Are you still offering classes, Master Elodin?

[/UNFILTERED]

I will soon be eighteen or perhaps nineteen, it's hard to tell. Does that mean that I'll no longer be required to go to 'high school'? It's rather ridiculous, as I'm already in University at home.

WHO: Kvothe and OPEN
WHAT: Magic (and a little bit of self pity)
WHEN: Sunday afternoon
WHERE: Around
STATUS: OPEN/Ongoing
WARNINGS: TBD

( ~+~+~+~+~+~+~ )

Hi, my name's Harry Dresden. I've been a wizard since I was 10.

And this freaking bubble is pissing me off. Wizard-mode engaged, I'm about to do what I do best: formulate really bad plans.

First guess was that the barrier was a mutated version of thaumaturgy. Which in wizard speak means that if you do something on a small scale and feed enough energy into it it'll happen on a large scale. Think a map of Indiana with a circle around Madison Valley and something funneling energy into maintaining the integrity of the circle. Except the actual effects are happening to us here. The types of things that can bring us here and feed energy into a circle that big means we should just quit life while we're still breathing because we're screwed.

Second guess was a magic circle. If you wanna see a demonstration of that my apprentices or I can show you. The center's the focus and used to contain things, or sometimes keep them out. But there are mortals here who can't get passed it, and that breaks every law of magic that I know and understand. If there are any practitioners who have a different experience it's time for show and tell, kids.

Who wants to show and tell anyway? Most people go out on Friday nights, I wanna play with your magic. Sue me.

Anyway. I was theorizing that we have a series of different practitioners and science types who understand the laws of physics and energy manipulation to some degree. So, maybe we could combine our strength and funnel energy into the barrier to knock it down. Depending on the spellcrafting. I've been testing the stupid barrier and a lot of magic gets absorbed, but the physical objects get thrown back with equal force.

The problem being that if the spell is reflected instead of absorbed, the expansion of energy will level a good portion of the area. If not the whole town. To counter that though, we could do a working where the barrier meets the river. Since I heavily suspect that's the weakest point. We can ground the reflecting energy out into the river itself, since water washes away energy.

Grounding energy into the earth would probably cause a quake and knock some buildings down or something. Not eager to do that. I have a clean record so far.

Has there still been no way discovered out of here?

I'm keeping busy enough, but it's a small place to be trapped for months on end when your feet are used to the freedom of the road.

Attention ladies and gentleman!

I am seeking plays, music, and differing types of entertainment for use in a sort of...variety show. I cannot help but think if we can engage the locals with an enjoyable outreach project, it can only be good for our reputation here. So I would like stories, tales, anything of the sort, from your homelands here, and singers, musicians and players to perform them.

Please let me know if you have any questions, or if you would like to participate.

I've found...something.

I didn't want to look why did Roland ever suggest I look it's worse than ever I


I'm going to be...away a while. Don't mind it.

[Filtered to Roland]

There's a book on the table by the title of The Gunslinger. I'll not talk about it. Don't press me on it, for your father's sake. I can't...I've made notes in the High Speech. In the little notebook. Read them when you're well, say true. I'll be back...when I'm back. The medicines are in the kitchen, and enough food to last.

I sat by the river with my lute today, playing the sunlight on the water, and the fish swimming in the depths, and the long and ancient path to the sea...

And I was near to finding its Name, I think. All those parts, those parts that I find with my music, are near enough. Could it be so simple?

Why do people trust you.

I've only gone and started coughing again.
It's only a little, not like last time, I won't let it be a bother.

I wonder how tea would taste with honey.

I'm not really messaging you all with such a triviality, though. Rather I wanted to say that Pollux and I have found a new place to live! It's about time; the flat wasn't really big enough for him alone, and then I arrived too and it was terribly cramped. Our new home will be roomier.

Does anyone truly believe that three representatives will serve the needs of all of those abandoned here? Will any of them listen enough to understand anyone but themselves?

Some people here can be so very bloody irritating.

[Filtered to refugees under the age of 20]

Further to discussion after my previous message, the nominees for youth representative candidate are:

Cuthbert Allgood

Lissa Dragomir

Kvothe

Voting is now open. I've attached a link to a secure site where you can cast your vote. You can only vote once, and your vote is secret. If you're a candidate, you can vote for yourself. In fact it would be odd if you didn't.

Voting closes in 24 hours at which point we'll offer official support to the successful candidate.

[Filtered to refugees under the age of 20]

One of us needs to be chosen to represent our interests to the council.

You'll all know me and that I have no interest in any...collective sentiment or anything of the sort, but there are a lot of us here who are young and dealing with things we wouldn't have to in our own timelines and we deserve to have representation.

You know me and you know also that I set up a network against the Council so I'm not going to be intimidated by their authority. If there's not a better candidate, I'll nominate myself. But I'm realistic and I know that I'm young even by our standards and there's very probably someone who will be more accepted.

I believe in democracy and while I know that the whole of my ideology isn't a popular one here? We've got specific interests in this specific context that merit working together. Shared interests, shared values.

So, if you'll follow the idea, this is the primary.

If you'd like to be representative, state your case here. We'll choose our candidate. Then we'll support them in the public thread. We've got the numbers, if you're willing to go along with the idea we can at least see that one young person is chosen, even if not your particular favorite candidate.

Nobody's obliged, of course. If you don't like the idea at all I'd ask that if you want to tell me why? Message me privately. I'm happy to talk about it but I don't want to derail the discussion. Let's have it more like datanet and less like internet. I'm not going to tell anyone how to vote but there's a reason why real elections have political parties and chosen candidates. I think it's important that we're listened to. Maybe some of you do, too.