The Underground Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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undergrounds2017-02-02 11:07 pm
undergroundmods) wrote in undergrounds2017-02-02 11:07 pm
Imbolc
The festival of Imbolc marks the end of winter and the coming of spring. It may not seem like it, but the days are getting longer and winter's grip is beginning to thaw. What better time to celebrate new beginnings and make a fresh start?
That's exactly what the witch community is doing, as Samantha Okeke takes her place as the newly anointed Mother of Witches. The event is being held at the Redbright Institute, courtesy of Sylvia Redbright the previous Mother, and will take place entirely outside. Carefully placed warming spells ensure that the air temperature in the grounds is comfortable rather than freezing.
The event begins at 5pm (after sunset at 16.52) and finishes at 8pm.
Order of Events
5pm-5.30pm: Flowers and Candles
The first half hour allows time for guests to arrive and mingle. The main area where guests will arrive first is the lawn and pavilion. Here there are two stalls selling a variety of early spring flowers and candles. A third stall is selling hot drinks where you can buy tea, coffee or brandy, a fourth is selling a variety of fruitcakes, cupcakes and seed cakes, and a fifth is doing excellent business selling plant pots filled with earth blessed by the new Mother of Witches and a variety of plant seeds. A sign on the stalls proclaims that all proceedings will be used to fund a new centre for magical innovation, sponsored by the Mother of Witches.
At the pavilion there is an altar where guests are encouraged to light their candles, lay down their flowers and wish for good health in the year ahead. It is also traditional for young witches to wear flower garlands, so expect to see a lot of flowers around in general.
5.30-6.15pm: The Mother of Witches
At around 5.30pm there will be a ceremony where Sylvia will officially pass on her crown as Mother of Witches to Samantha. Guests will be ushered through to the quad to witness the ceremony. A podium has been set up in the middle of the quad where Sylvia will wait for Samantha to arrive on a raised chair carried by four male witches. Wearing a white dress with gold lace trimming, Samantha represents the purity and fertility of the upcoming spring.
It's then time for Sylvia to symbolically hand over her power by giving Samantha her wand and setting a crown of jasmine flowers on her head. The final act is for Samantha to light the candles that have been placed around the podium, a symbol of new beginnings.
She will then give a speech, addressed to the witches of course, but she is aware that there are others in the crowd who will be interested in what she has to say.
6.15-7.15pm: Offerings
Samantha will be sitting on the raised chair which has now been set down on the podium, flanked by the four male witches. A small white cat sits in her lap. Now is the opportunity for all guests to bring gifts and offerings for the newly anointed Mother of Witches. Every coven will nominate a representative to present a gift and say a few words. It would be courteous for guests from other factions to do the same, though not everyone will.
In the meantime, the gardens are open for guests to wander around with fairy lights strategically placed to help guests find their way.
7.15-8pm: Mingling
The remainder of the event is open for guests to mingle as they please, with the quad, front lawn and gardens all open. The stalls will be selling food, drink and other wares right through to the end of the evening.
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She was being totally polite! She practically bit off her own tongue to avoid snapping at him. Is this what it's like being a celebrity? She doesn't act all best buddies with someone and suddenly they think she's a sniffy bitch. People were never like this in Manchester.
She forces herself to stop and look politely confused rather than pissed off. "I'm sorry, did you mean to catch me? I was just getting out of your way."
Yeah. Jerk.
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"But now that you're here, there was somethin' I thought was a little weird." He crosses his arms over his chest loosely before continuing, "That was a real inspiring speech, but it sounded like you think witches are- I dunno, at a disadvantage or something like that." Which is just silly, he thinks, considering they practically run the entire shitting city. "I ain't a witch or anything so I wouldn't know, obviously, but are you all really that bad off?"
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"If all you see of witches are events like this, then no, you don't know." And he shouldn't make assumptions. "I'm not saying we're all poor and destitute, I'm saying that we can do so much more. Maybe ask your alpha. You're with Katherine, right?"
The East End alpha is the only one Samantha has seen at this event, so it seems like a fair guess.
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"Yeah," he answers quietly, glowering at the mention of Katherine. He'd noticed them talking earlier, and has to take a moment to smother a sudden bubble of over-protectiveness caused by the memory. It's an awkward feeling. Kneejerk and unnecessary, but still- that's their alpha. Powerful witches who haven't yet proven their trustworthiness have no business spiriting her away.
"You friendly with her?"
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"Why're you even interested in her? Or what makes you think she's interested in you, and not just being polite?" Slim chance on that last one, he thinks. He's not so hopelessly naive as to believe there's literally a romantic scenario going on here, and it's not that he thinks poorly of Katherine, either. He understands why Katherine would want to get Samantha on her good side.
But what the hell is Samantha getting out of it.
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God knows she isn't surprised when they're represented by scruffy yobs like this specimen in front of her. But she'll hold her nose until she gets the wolves on her good side.
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After a slow sigh, he thinks he has his temper a little better managed. Enough that he won't make the comments that he wants to make, but not so much that it prevents him from silently praying to whatever forces rule the universe in hopes that she'll accidentally dribble coffee on herself. "And I guess you wanna be our friend just 'cause you're nice, huh?"
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She laughs, shaking her head. "I get it, you know. The suspicion of authority. Fuck the system, right? I think I made a bad first impression and I'm sorry for that, but you're the one who almost walked into me. So why don't we forget that and start over?" She holds out her hand. "I'm Samantha."
It's as literal an olive branch as she can manage without offering him an actual fucking olive branch. He's going to be relaying all of this to Katherine, she supposes, so better to get him on her side before they finish this conversation.
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Her apology is a cute attempt, although he finds himself frowning down at her hand a second later. "Fine. I guess it's not your fault you're a witch." Hah. An acceptance and a jab all at the same time- he's talented that way. He reaches out to briefly take her hand, holding on only long enough to say, "Hi, Samantha," before pulling his own away and slipping it in to a pocket. Hiding it just like he decides to keep his name hidden, apparently.
"Witches don't really like us around here," he explains. Not all witches, sure, but enough. And certainly the ones in charge. "Been getting my patience sorely fuckin' tested with 'em lately. Figured you were the same." Maybe she did something right, because at least she's getting a bit of honesty.
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She shrugs back, maintaining her smile. "If you want to be liked, you could start by introducing yourself."
She gave him the perfect opening and he deliberately missed it.
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Even now, despite using a fake name daily, he still doesn't like giving it out. But this should be fine. What could she possibly do with it?
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It must be. It sounds like he's part of a gang or something. Then again, that is basically what werewolf packs are.
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"You don't think it sounds legit? Why not?" His smirk is barely there, but it is there all the same. "Don't I look like one?" There's a sense of humor in there somewhere, see.
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"Actually, I think it suits you." Her smile dimples her cheeks. "Question for you, Ghoul. If you could change one thing for your pack, what would it be?"
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The smile quickly fades off, however, once she asks her question. "Me...?" He's obviously not the most diplomatic wolf of the bunch, so the seriousness of it leaves him thrown off guard for a good second.
What he settles on is, "Reputation, I guess? For us to be taken seriously." They've been having a rough time of things. The worst of it happened a bit before his time in the city, but he's heard all about it and seen some of the effects. Losing territories, appearing weak. No presence whatsoever in the Council. Not even a stop on the Night Train's route, for fuck's sake. In his mind, they need to push back and have a presence before the pack ends up being whittled away entirely.
Not really a witch-relevant problem though, is it? "Kind of a weird question."
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She flashes him a smile, and then her attention wanders, seeking out important faces in the crowd. She can't be distracted for too long by some random wolf. Time to move on.
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