undergrounds | Fall into Summer (OPEN)

Some witch holidays were meant to be enjoyed by all, regardless of species, alliances or preference to magic. Holidays like Lammas! Think of it as witch Thanksgiving.

An old woman by the name of Agatha Chapman was of the personal opinion that there was just too much infighting between her fellow witches this year. Those Circle Midnight witches were practically children! Agatha had raised enough children to know they were just going through some rebellious phase. It would pass. But this wasn't the time for expressing such things. This was a time of togetherness! Which was why Agatha had, through her daughters and granddaughters, sent a very public invitation to the supernatural community:

~Lammas Day Celebration~

Come celebrate the great tradition of the first harvest and shorter days with a beach party and bonfire!
Food, fun, and sun! No limits on guests, bring your friends!

AUGUST 1^st 2015
12 PM - 2 AM
(public rituals @ 10 PM)

KINGSGATE CASTLE, JOSS GAP ROAD.
BROADSTAIRS.
KENT.

Transportation from the city will be provided from Victoria Station. Present this invitation at the ticket office.

You totally want to go right?

Like the invitation said, all guests transportation will be provided. The train happens to go directly from Victoria Station to the castle, which totals up to a two hour trip - giving plenty of time for people to run into one another on this train-ride. Let's get along everyone.

Upon the guests arrival everyone is greeted by the hostess; a very old, very cheerful lady who insists on being called Ms. Agatha. She introduces her daughters and their daughters. Hit on them at your own peril. After the brief introduction and delicately worded warning that no witch need reveal their coven to others, and no one need attempt to confront them about their choices, everyone is invited down the side of the slow incline of the cliffs to the beach. Time to have fun.

Lammas was traditionally a holiday to celebrate the last day of the wheat harvest. It seems like the witches hosting this party went all out in incorporating that. Golden colored canopies cover the tables that are set out for food. Along with them are large punch bowls filled with different colored liquids and a small bar for anyone who wants something a little stronger than fruit, both of which are abundant - after all this holiday was centered around a community feast. There seems to be a general theme following the decor; apples, cinnamon, and vanilla feature heavily in every dessert of pies, cakes, puddings and ice cream in very creative ways. The more savory foods, less so. But they all fall into the category of typical beach party foods.

There is a changing area towards the face of the cliffs along with bathrooms.

Another fun tradition of Lammas is competitive and athletic games! There are two volleyball nets set up, and what looks like an area for sandcastle building. The team that wins the most games, and the person who builds the best sandcastle wins a prize! The prize is a Maen Magl necklace. The stone is said to bring good luck and good health to the owner. Additionally, they can cure diseases of the eye if rubbed on one's eyelids.

If you're not interested in games, there's always the golden sand to relax and tan on and the water to swim in!

Later, after the sun sets a bonfire is constructed - you can help, but enough driftwood has been collected for the fire itself. As the sun sets, the women hosting the event let everyone know what the purpose of it is. The fire is meant to - while also help people make amazing smores, roasted corn, and apples wrapped in foil - allow the witches and everyone else in attendance to participate in the Lammas rituals. Everyone is encouraged to engage in the rituals, though no one is required to do so.

Nowadays, Lammas is the time to cast off bad habits, thoughts, and what is no longer needed in your life. This spiritual cleansing is represented by fire, and burning things. There are two that will be done tonight, but they won't take longer than thirty minutes when alls said and done. They maybe be performed in any order.

A ritual called 'Winnowing' is meant to cleanse, where everyone writes down negative emotions and bad habits they want to lose on a piece of paper. The witches in the group will all know the chant:

Blessing and curses
Come from the harvest
Return to the earth
To nourish next years

The paper is then thrown into the fire, where it will spark and disintegrate.

The second is highly encouraged for everyone to participate in, as the more people who do so, the more the blessings will be! Everyone is given nine sheaths of wheat, which they are to weave into a braid, and then attach a ribbon to the base of the braid. The witches in the circle around the bonfire should, as the braids are being done, chant:

We weave you and hail you
As queen of the corn
When all's gathered in and
When you are sown.

Once the braids are done, those that weaved them are meant to grab a piece of paper and write what blessing they wish for their friends to have, such as 'Friendship' or 'Mobility'. They must keep the blessing secret and secure it to the ribbon. The ribbons are meant to be kept till Imbolc - another witch holiday - and then be burned, while the ashes are meant to be kept on the individual until the next Lammas. Hope you'll attend that party wherever it is!

After the Ritual, there are plenty of smores to make and some lovely music to listen to while everyone gathers around the bonfire and relaxes until they want to leave. There is no curfew, but the witches hosting the party will be going back up to their flat in the castle around two in the morning.

Happy Lammas!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's actually rather nice, being out by the water. Sirius had noticed during the day when he'd swam in it as a dog, but it had been a while since he'd appreciated it like this. He glances around again, sniffing the air, just make sure no one else is around. The last thing he needs are prying eyes or an over-curious fae.

Once he's sure the coast (literally) is clear, he takes a breath.

"Murder. I was framed for murder."

Mur... Murder.

Oh.

For a second there's no reply from her. She looks both shocked and uncomfortable while thinking of some sort of response to give him, to say to him because she asked and he answered and it isn't right to leave him in this sort of silence.

Clara is unsure of what to say to that. It. It is a difficult topic to speak of. Where do you start with something heavy as this? A thought comes to mind and it's the only thought that comes so-- "They... The person you were accused of... Did you know them?"

"Yes," Sirius says after a while. "They were a friend. A good friend."

And it was something that weighed on Sirius every day. After running away from home and being disowned by his family, his friends had filled that void. They'd become his family and he'd never do anything to hurt them. That would have been the height of dishonour.

"Oh Sirius." To be accused of something terrible as that must be awful. She can't imagine what it must be like to be framed for the death of someone she held dear to her heart. Let alone for such a long time. That's exactly what Sirius went through though and it makes her heart ache for him. "I'm so sorry."

She reaches out to rest her hand on his shoulder, hoping the chill of her touch won't be a deterrent for him. Due to not having her gloves on she needs to put more effort in her action and she does. She really does for him.

He tenses a little at the touch, more from the sudden chill than anything else, but the gesture is appreciated it. It's nice to finally get everything off of his chest, to have someone who knows pretty much everything at this point. Ghost or not, it's someone on his side.

She gives him a few minutes of silence so he can have some time to himself to... to do anything, really. To collect himself, to think what next to do.

When she thinks he's had enough time to himself, she tries to bring his attention back by asking in a timid voice, "Do you... Do you have an idea of who did it?"

"Not a clue," Sirius answers, perhaps a little too quickly. He has ideas, but dismisses them instantly. He couldn't imagine any of his friends betraying him like that. They were practically brothers after all, loyal to the end.

"It probably wasn't the smartest idea to come back here, but I have to find out who it was, and I'm pretty sure they're here in London still."

She shakes her head at him, letting him know that she thought he made the right decision if he thought it was it. "If it gives you closure, you do it. That person is out there somewhere and-- and goodness know what they could be doing right now."

"I'll help you. I... I don't know how I can help you but I will." She's a ghost only but ghosts can get certain things done if they put their minds to it.

"You've helped me a lot already," Sirius says, "But I really do appreciate it. I didn't really expect any help when I got here. It's nice to know I'm not alone."

Until his incarceration, he'd never really been alone. There'd been his family, and then his friends, who had really become his family. Being on his own, Sirius had decided, was something he could ultimately do without.

"And I'll help you out even more. There's no way I'm letting you do this alone." She says it in a stubborn manner, refusing to let him be alone in this.

She's there for him. It might not mean a lot for now but, sooner or later, she could stumble across something that can help him out. Maybe. "What do you think you should do next? Find a base of operations, so to speak? Look up old faces?"

"I guess I'm not allowed to say no, then, am I?" It's a joke, and he hadn't been planning on it.

"Probably a bit of both, to be honest. I'll need to figure something out.]

"Not at all. I'm going to stick to you like spectral glue," she jokes as well, smiling optimistically at him.

"Perhaps you can find a place somewhere in... Hmm..." She pauses, trying to think of a place that's 'safe' for him to be with his state. "I suppose the safest place for you are the dangerous places. Places people won't think of going if they know what's good for them."

Like the No Man's lands and disputed places. Not the best locations to be but it's a place all the same?

"Hiding in plain sight, in other words? I was also considering some of the no combat areas, but that would likely only deter those of this community."

Hillingdon was also a possibility, but that would also increase the likelihood of running into his family, since they were likely still around. While they'd probably just ignore him, some of the more vengeful might take action.

"Yes! That's it. If it's safe for you to be there." She does worry at the thought of him getting hurt there since some places, like the No Man's lands, can be rather brutal areas to be. "You can stay here, you know, Harrow."

"Who controls it right now?" Sirius asks, trying to sort the territories out in his head. He's been gone so long that he can never remember who has what, and things have been changing since he arrived.

"Harrow?" That must be what he meant given the flow of their conversation. "The Redbright Institute has it under its protection and I like to think for a long time too."

It's quite deep in the territories unlike the ones on the fringe, so to speak, like Barnet, and they're all clustered or close to allies like Circle Daybreak and the like. Harrow should be in safe hands for quite a while. "Though, I should tell you in advance that the Hillingdon area is literally next door to here. In case if you're not up for hunters or hunters-in-training sniffing the area now and then."

Mostly thanks to her shenanigans earning her a rather awful reputation of a dangerous ghost.

Fall into Summer (OPEN)

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