Lush crimson rose petal

Prize item from the Hunt for History II.

a lush crimson rose petal

This item has no show.

Loresong (part 1)

As you sing, the crimson rose petal shifts listlessly in your hand. Its soft, velvety surface rubs against your fingers, and you find yourself becoming lost in its softness until your vision fades to that of a moonlit evening...

Your vision centers upon a slender ivory vase, a single rose contained within. Its soft, velvety petals are still fresh with tiny drops of dew that sparkle like miniature stars upon a galaxy of florid crimson. The perfect flower fuzzes gently into the background as you draw nearer toward the balcony beyond it. Silhouetted against the star-dotted sky are the forms of a couple, their embrace close and full of undeniable warmth.

The taller figure leans down to nuzzle the shorter, more diminutive form of the woman, his long platinum locks intermingling with her own blonde tendrils. He opens his mouth to speak in a soft whisper, "I must see you again, my love... I cannot bear to be without you." The woman looks up toward her taller lover and her lips tenderly touch his own briefly before she speaks, "It pains me when we must say goodbye... but you know my father will have none of it..." A single tear sparkles in the moonlight as the man runs a finger softly through her hair, wiping her tear away in one gentle stroke. "You are a stronger woman than you give yourself credit for, my sweet. Talk to him, tell him the truth of us... let us not skulk in the night like thieves any longer, let us know the light of day. Let us be together for every waking moment and be free." As the man turns to stare into her eyes, the moonbeams cause a gentle sparkle to alight in his own, "Let us be free... to be wed."

You hear a short, shocked gasp, then an immense sigh as the woman hugs him tightly. She rains kisses down upon him as she murmurs, "Yes, yes... I... will m-marry you. And... I'll tell him. He can't deny us any longer, I know he won't... as long as I have you beside me..."

The man smiles deeply as she rests her head on his shoulder, and you find yourself drifting up into the sky, the darkness of the night giving way to reality once again.

The lingering aroma of roses fills your senses, and your vision takes you again to the rose sitting in the vase. Its serene appearance betrays that of the actual mood in the expansive bedroom -- you hear angry shouts between father and daughter. The argument presses on, and the scene pulls back to reveal the two -- the woman stands near her bed, idly toying with a jewel-encrusted mirror, as if the distraction would make the conflict go away. The elderly, pudgy man stands defiantly near the doorway, his arms crossed and his face stern. Between them both is the open balcony, its silk curtains billowing listlessly with every faint gust of wind.

You will NOT marry that... that... that streetrat! This is final! You will have a *proper* arranged engagement when *I* feel it is the right time for you!"

The girl's distracted expression cracks as she looks up at her father, her face a mask of anger and despair, "He is not a streetrat! You can't stop me from seeing him!" Fury rages in the girl's expression, clearly overriding her ability to think clearly, as she soon blurts out, "I have seen him many, many times before! You stand where he once stood, do you really think you can stop me now, father?! Do you?!"

The man's face turns nearly beet-red. The curtains begin to billow wildly, but the disturbance goes unnoticed amid the heated emotions. "Is THAT so? You will see what I can do when angered, my daughter! I'll hire guards to slay him on sight, and there will be an entire battalion outside of your windows and rooms! You are forbidden from LEAVING these rooms now until I can arrange a marriage for you! I hope you are satisfied!"

The curtains billow further, as if the tension were fueling their activity, but neither notices. The woman's face goes completely blank, for a second her expression a portrait in the very essence of hopeless despair. After a moment, anger seethes back into her beautiful face, and she throws down the mirror harshly toward the floor. As she opens her mouth to speak, time itself slows to a trickle. The only sound you hear is a heartbeat as your view draws closer to the balcony. You watch as the silhouette of a very familiar man with long platinum locks materializes from the air -- his own tendrils of hair billowing about his face of their own accord. He moves with a fluid grace toward the mirror, which has now shattered upon the floor. The shards travel through the air slowly, as if they were caught in a thick oil. Smiling in a fashion that is far too sincere for the given situation, he reaches out toward one of the larger jagged shards, and tilts it in a seemingly random direction. With a soft, nearly inaudible laugh, he disappears into the air as time speeds up into normalcy once again.

The scene fades away as you hear an awful tearing sound, the thud of a heavy body upon a floor, and a short, horrified gasp.

Loresong (part 2)

The couple embraces upon the balcony, the woman's head nuzzling into her lover's shoulder as if seeking reassurance.

"Do not worry, my sweet... I will have everything taken care of."

The girl's tears are now clearly visible in the moonlight, "It was... an accident... I loved father, I really did... I did not want him to come to..." She breaks down sobbing into the man's shoulder once again.

The sound of a carriage pulling up underneath the balcony breaks the near-silence of the tender moment, and the girl gives a slight gasp as she watches a woman step out and approach the doors to the manor.

"Mother... she's home early..." The terror on her face is renewed as she looks pleadingly at her lover.

He hugs her tightly and leans down to whisper in her ear, "My love... she could jeopardize us... she must be silenced..."

The woman shakes in his arms, and murmurs, "But... but..."

The man gives her another reassuring squeeze, and a sick smile spreads across his face as he leans out of her field of vision and murmurs, "Only silenced, my love... I will take care of both you and her. One without a tongue is one silenced. She will come to understand our love, yes? I will take you away from here, and she may come as well. But she cannot be allowed to speak of the transgression, or I could lose you..." The twisted smile disappears as he tilts her head up to look directly into his warm violet eyes, "And I would do anything, *ANYTHING* to ensure that I am with you, my love. Will you do the same for me?"

A conflicted look crosses the girl's face briefly before the colors melt away and you find yourself in reality once again.

He withdraws a dagger from his sleeve and places it atop the ledge of the balcony. With a soft kiss upon her tender forehead, he whispers, "I must make arrangements for us to flee this night, my sweet. When I return, you and she must be ready to leave..."

Shaking slightly, the woman tilts her head up to bade her lover goodbye with a gentle kiss. He jumps over the balcony and is gone, leaving the girl alone in the moonlight. Footsteps echo from inside the expansive manor as they slowly make their way up a staircase.

The woman shakes noticeably as her eyes swivel toward the doors of her room and back to the darkness beyond her balcony. Seconds seem like years before she tentatively reaches a hand out toward the ledge and grasps the dagger in her hand. Hiding it behind her back, she shakily steps forward and calls out softly, "Mother... mother?"

The vision fades away just as you hear the whisk of the air being sliced by a sharp blade.

The same rose that was once held in a vase is now held by a slender hand, its fingers caressing the petals in an absent-minded manner. Your vision pulls back as you see the platinum-haired man stroking his sleeping lover's prone form with one hand and the rose's petals with another. He glances out the window of the carriage as they approach a dark, gated manor.

With a gentle nudge, he manages to bring her to consciousness. As she leans up and yawns quietly, he says, "We are here, my love."

The carriage comes to a stop outside the massive black doors of the manor, and your vision pulls back out of the carriage to where you can see the house more clearly in the fog-shrouded night. A pair of servants rushes to the back of the carriage and withdraw a struggling, bound woman with blood leaking from the sides of her cheeks from its luggage compartment and disappear into the mist just as the gilded doors of the vessel open.

As they both walk toward the threshold of the interior, the woman turns to the man and smiles, reaching up to hug him tightly and kiss him passionately. As she leans back down, she says, "Oh, my love... I know things will be better... truly, I do. We can be happy now, can't we?"

She turns from him with joyful laughter and runs into the house, shouting gleefully, "Now we can be together forever, Eryael!"

He turns her back on her for but a moment and murmurs to himself, "Yes... forever." With a faint smile, he tosses the rose up into the air, where it explodes into a rain of crimson petals that scatter into the wind and beyond. He turns to stride into the manor.

The massive doors shut with a huge *THUD* as the vision fades completely away.

Scripts:
SNIFF: Augie inhales the scent of her crimson rose petal, and a dazed, dreamy expression briefly comes over her face.

Reference

Unofficial documentation located at: http://members.aol.com/gs3augie/rosepetal1.html and http://members.aol.com/gs3augie/rosepetal2.html