Griffon gripes

[aventuriere]

FORM: Sending crystal
SENDER: Freddie, Val, and Jehan (your favorites!)
RECIPIENT: Everyone
WHAT: A Griffon Grievance
WHEN: Now
WHERE: Everywhere
NOTES: Can we say a group of griffons is called a grievance? A grievance of griffons?

Inquisition.

[This is Val. Don’t stop listening, his tone is grave and serious, which means what follows will be equally grave and serious.]

When one thinks of the noblest of creatures, beasts of the air, one must first and always think of griffons. The dragon, she has a certain unspeakable loveliness, a loveliness of her form, in all her savage glory, but if the word to meditate upon is nobility, then it is the griffon that comes first to mind. On this, we can all agree, yes?

So, then, tell to me: why complain about the smell? [ Because it is terrible! another accented voice says in the background, muffled. ] Yes, it is a pungent aroma. But nobly so. Less noble and far more worthy of complaint is the habit of the griffon of which books do not speak of: the habit of airborne thievery.

A whole ham, Inquisition.

[ Jeannot—who had his despondent face buried in a pillow, before this point—lifts his head to chime in. ]

A good ham. It tasted of hope. Or I imagine that it must have, before it was swallowed whole by a beast who did not even pause to appreciate it.

We ought to have been warned. And another thing—

And another thing! [ It's Freddie now, talking over Jehan, feel free to begin paying attention again. She sounds incensed, but also like she's probably putting it on a bit. ] Hair ribbons! If the beasts want my last good set of silk hair ribbons I would be more than happy to donate them to the cause of brightening up the horribly dull colors you chose for their tack, but I won't have them eaten! It shows an appalling lack of taste which would never have happened if these fine Orlesian creatures had been properly raised.

Perhaps it is not the tack that is the problem? Perhaps it is the color of the griffons themselves. The horrible grays, and duns - the griffons are surely desperate. I would be. Can you dye the feathers, do you think?

—I was going to say, [ Jehan continues, ] I think we are owed an explanation, as academics, for this reemergence of an extinct species. As well as a new ham. If we are given these things then perhaps we can offer ribbons and dye.

And if we offer these griffons ribbons, and dye, and perhaps the smallest piece of our ham - I will take the cut, my friends - perhaps then the griffons will find themselves more kindly disposed to us. And by us I mean me. [If Val sounds a little sulky, that’s because he is.] What an unkindness. I will stoop to bribery if I must, griffons.

Comments

[degenere]

I think not. I will leave that writing for others more suited to it. I have written a great deal, of course, and I am very well-published--but it has all been scholarly works.

But tell me. What is at the bottom of that darkness, beneath the city that hangs by the slender thread of magic?

[blessedmaiden]

And what is more scholarly than thalking about other worlds, my friend? [There's a small chuckle, if anything she's amused he discredited her story so easily] I guess I will amuse you a bit further with my tale-like origins.

Oh... countless caves. There are caves above us, you need to pass them to access the entering teleport, there are caves under us and may Bahamuth protect you if you ever fall, if anything I really learnt how to navigate my way underground.

[degenere]

Well, since you asked--talking, for the sake of mere conversation, is not very scholarly. That is a conversation, you see. At least there ought to be note-taking involved for the activity to take a scholarly bent. And one ought to approach the conversation with the intent to make study of its contents later.

If you learned to navigate your way underground--does that mean you did fall?

[blessedmaiden]

But one can always learn, even from mere conversations with others: wouldn't it be a shame to lose potential precious informations only because the Scholar dismissed whatever talk he had only because it didn't happen... in the appropriate way.

Not that my story is important or interesting but others may be...

I didn't but I had to learn from my people. When I was finally allowed to return on the surface I had to travel alone and pass the caves I mentioned before to return to the humans I traveled with as a kid.

[degenere]

A point, yes. But it isn't that the conversation is inappropriate. More that I would need to refer only to memory, should I want to use the conversation, or refer to it later. And memory is so unreliable, Mademoiselle Rifter. I say that, even as a great mind myself.

What a strange obstacle to have needed to overcome. Who was barring you from your return, that you had to wait to be allowed?

[blessedmaiden]

I can understand your point, even if I still consider oral tradition extremely important and reliable. You know, a piece of paper can hardly transmit someone's feelings about a certain things, openly talking about it... that can.

I thought I told you, sir, I had to be trained. I wasn't allowed to leave the Feymarch until I was ready for it and no, Leviathan wouldn't offer me another free ride to step in or leave.