< atton revisited > The information page for Atton has been fully revised and updated with the new map!
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Welcome to the world of Fortuna, a land of fantastic proportions. This is an original fantasy roleplay that takes place in a world developed over nearly a decade of work and collaboration. We aim to encourage all participants to have a hand in the stories of the characters here, and the world around them. Your choices are key - so make them with pride. You decide who wins the wars, you decide who becomes King, the world is ours, and together we will bring it to life!
Post by Ellis Danton on Jan 13, 2017 7:43:29 GMT -7
She finally took a bite, but that didn't relieve his anxiety. She remained stone-faced as she chewed, and it was as if he was watching her in slow-motion. He tried to distract himself by gathering a spoonful of it himself -- but it was as though his appetite had simply disappeared.
Mmm, He finally heard her say, and his shoulders fell in a sigh of relief while the rest of him perked up. His ears went pink and the grin on his face was so big it might have hopped right off. Perhaps she was just lying for his feelings - but at least, if that were the case, she cared about him that much. He stood back up, never having taken a bite himself, and turned to the door to get the next dish, but her question stopped him.
He hadn't realized that she could hear what happened in the room through the door. Not without it intending to, anyways. He had never tested it, but now he had no choice. "E-er," He managed, one hand on the door jamb, tapping half-mindedly. It was an easy answer, but he hadn't heard the word in Attonja yet. He didn't really know how to explain it. Thankfully, he remembered Kav'nok using a word that must have been child, or children. That could help. "Tra ot Ellis Danton... E-er... Yi uf ran iyxp. M-mother--" He pointed to the door, then to himself, "Son."
She is Ellis Danton... I am her young.
Last Edit: Jan 13, 2017 7:44:07 GMT -7 by Ellis Danton
Xanthe didn’t realize how anxiously he was waiting for her to try it and tell him she liked it until she had tried it and told him she liked it, and immediately he relaxed and even broke out into a wide smile. That smile was a smile of pride, for sure. What confused her was that he immediately stood up and went to the door then, having not even tried any of the dish himself.
When she asked about the woman he paused and looked almost embarrassed again, and for a moment she wondered if he secretly had a wife that he had been hiding and he just didn’t want to say anything. But a moment later he explained that the woman was none other than Ellis Danton, and he was her young. Despite the awkward wording she did understand what he meant, and she wondered if it was common in the outside world for children to have the same name as one of their parents, and if it was always opposite like mother to son or if they just chose whichever they thought fit best. And in that case would both children be named after both parents? what would happen if there were more than two children? She had a lot of questions about it, but Ellis was speaking again, in his language, and pointing through the door to say ‘mother’ and then back at himself to say ‘son’.
She nodded her understanding and since this was as good a learning opportunity as any she replied, ”Your word ‘mother’, Attonja word fesan. Man is husan. Son mean all young? Or only man? mosan is word all young, man young is jusan, woman young is jesan.” She paused then, looking thoughful. ”Fui yi faas ran?”
——— mother - fesan father - husan child - mosan son - jusan daughter - jesan
Post by Ellis Danton on Jan 15, 2017 13:19:09 GMT -7
She was teaching him again, and he had to smile. He didn't realize how much he had missed this. It felt like a distant memory that they had shared so long ago. Something that defined their relationship with one another. It was something he never wanted to let go, even if he could learn Attonja and she could learn Common completely.
He nodded his understanding, "Mosan uf ch-children, jesan uf d-daughter... Son uf jusan." But at her next question, he wanted to feign ignorance. He knew what she meant, they were all words he had used when telling her about Pelagia only a week ago. He didn't... want to. He tried to think of a reasonable excuse - she was frail? He'd be found out the moment his mother decided to pass by the door. He didn't want her to enter Atton? Well, she didn't have to. She could just stand at the door.
Finally he nodded a little, avoiding Xanthe's eyes. He continued through the door and disappeared from view, and though Ellis spoke too quietly for Xanthe to hear, the voice that returned his speech was loud, high-pitched, and obviously excited. A woman immediately rushed into view, waving happily. She was not as tall as Ellis, but not short, standing around 5'8", and she was round and jolly in all of it. Her skin was pale like Ellis', but she lacked his freckles and red hair. Instead, she had curly blonde hair piled in a mop atop her head. She wore a white, almost toga-like dress that covered her from shoulder to toe, and a blue apron was tied around her waist.
"Hallo! Sie müssen Xanthe sein. Ich bin Ellis Danton, Ellis Allen's Mutter. Meine Güte. Du bist genauso schön wie er gesagt hat. Schön, einzigartig und stark! Ich dachte nicht, dass meine Ellis Allen jemals Kinder haben würde, aber ihr beiden würdet starke, große, schöne Kinder machen. Hat Ihnen der Apfelbettelmann gefallen?" She spoke swiftly, and loudly - loudly enough for a soldier to poke his head around the corner with concern.
"Mutti! C-common!" Ellis called out, reappearing with arms full of trays, cautiously balanced. His mother put her hands on her hips and looked back to Ellis, wagging a finger but still smiling. She turned back to Xanthe and spoke slowly, still loudly, and with more caution: "You mast be Xanthe, Ellis Allen he has told me so much abit you."
It did feel comfortable to be explaining words like learning the language was the most pressing thing on their plate as opposed to working to stop the war. She realized how occupied she had been with the bigger picture the last while, and had missed the simplicity of simply sharing their languages. Children. Daughter. Son. She wondered if she should not have asked to meet his mother though, because he had that look again and she felt that he would have preferred not to, though she couldn't imagine why. Xanthe had no family she could introduce to Ellis, but if she did she was sure she would be more than happy to do so. She wondered if he was embarrassed of his mother and didn't want Xanthe to meet her, or if it was the other way around.
When he agreed Xanthe almost wanted to say that he shouldn't feel obligated, and he could have just said no if he really didn't want to, but he was already gone. Xanthe stood from the table a moment before the woman rushed out excitedly and she couldn't help but smile at Ellis Danton, her Ellis's mother. The language she spoke sounded almost like Common in a way, and she understood her name and when his mother introduced herself because she heard her say Ellis Danton, and Ellis Allen's mother. Well, it sounded like mother? After that she didn't understand much, but she heard Ellis Allen again in there, and later on she heard that afflesomething word that Ellis had called the dessert. Xanthe's smile was bright, hearing her speak so animatedly and looking so cheerful, even if she didn't understand anything she was saying. When Ellis came around the corner he told his mom to speak Common, and his arms were full of trays. Xanthe wanted to offer help, but also didn't want to step into the room, despite everything.
Ellis's mother turned back to her and spoke in Common this time, and Xanthe nodded. "I am honoured to meet you, Ellis Danton," she replied, bowing her head respectfully to the woman. "Ellis Allen is a good friend. A good man." She looked to Ellis, her Ellis, and smiled softly. "Fa fesan ot u debadi lefux," she said to him and then turned her attention back to his mother and gently took one of her hands, cupping it in her own as she said, "Thank you." Even just reaching through the door made her feel wrong, but she wanted to convey so much more than she could with words. She wasn't sure what Ellis had told his mother about her or Atton or the war so she didn't want to say anything that could reveal something she didn't already know, and common was neither of their first languages, so any conversation would likely be difficult anyway.
She released his mother's hand then and stepped back from the door to let Ellis out. His trays looked a little precarious.
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Fa fesan ot u debadi lefux - your mother is a lovely woman
Post by Ellis Danton on Jan 15, 2017 21:25:55 GMT -7
Ellis Allen flushed, and Ellis beamed at Xanthe's compliments. Mother looked between the two of them and nodded approvingly, speaking once again in Aurcaeli: "Sehen? Ich habe es dir gesagt. Jetzt können Sie sie nach Hause bringen und mir einige Enkel bekommen." This caused Ellis to go red and nearly stumble, but she seemed used to it as she was quick to catch the trays that were unbalancing. He would agree with Xanthe about his mother on most days, but not today.
"Fa jezex m'xel ud l'rus tra ta tui'ux!" He told Xanthe as he allowed his mother to take some of the trays, his mother not hesitating to whap him upside the head with a free hand, "Ellis Allen! Common!" And she laughed, believing this to be an excellent joke. Ellis smiling reassuringly at Xanthe as he and his mother passed through the door, his mother having an obvious shiver at the change. The air was certainly more electric hear - but Ellis had gone in and out enough to get used to the sudden shifts. The two of them placed trays around the table, and Ellis introduced each one as they revealed it, putting a small serving of it onto her plate.
O'batzten had the appearance of some kind of beige dip, with green onions sprinkled all over the top. Along with it, Ellis put a soft, curled up kind of bread with bright white minerals over it.
Sauerkrautsalat was next, and looked like almost paper-thin bits of some kind of... Vegetable maybe? With some brighter, more colourful vegetables cut up in it. Ellis had to admit, he was worried she'd hate it. It took him twenty years to finally get over his childhood fear of sauerkraut salad.
Jaegerschnitzel would be the one entree they had made. It was some kind of thick, breaded meat with a brown sauce poured over it, and several cuts of lemon on the side. It looked plain, which Ellis was unhappy about, but it was something he had missed while in Atton. No one but his mother could make Jaegerschnitzel right. It was likely because of what she put into the sauce.
The next three were all desserts. Some kind of strudel of apple and cream chese, black licorice coated in candy (it wasn't home-made, but Ellis really wanted black licorice), and black forest cake. By the end of it, Xanthe's plate was full, and Ellis had yet to serve himself. His mother began to sit down, using one of the trays for her own plate, but Ellis caught her eye. "Mutti," He warned in the meek and quiet way he seemed to speak to everyone but Xanthe with, "I-Ich sagte... Sagte d-dir, ich w-wollte mit Xanthe allein s-sein."
She sighed, smirked, and got up, raising her hands in surrender, "Ja, ja, aber sagen, dass schöne Feofil Peti zu besuchen mich besuchen. Er war so schön!"
"Mutti!" He flushed and she laughed, giving Xanthe a wave as she re-entered Aurcaele. "Xanthe, it was very good - sehr gut - to meet you. I hope very well that we meet again soon, ja?"
Translation: You do not know all what she is saying.
Xanthe still had no idea what Ellis's mother was saying, and this time she didn't even have any words she thought she could guess. But his mother looked pleased and Ellis of course went red which was his signature colour. He seemed more red than usual and she wondered what exactly it was that she had said to get such a reaction. Maybe Xanthe would ask him later, or maybe she wouldn't because he probably wouldn't want to say. His mother helped him with his trays as he fumbled with his balance. He told Xanthe she didn't know what his mother was saying, and for a moment she worried it was something mean but his mother seemed so nice and the look she had on her face was a friendly one, the look of a loving mother, so she thought maybe it wasn't mean but just embarrassing to him.
A moment later his mother gave him a joking smack and told him to speak common, just like he had done only moments ago, and Xanthe laughed brightly as well because she agreed, it was a great joke.
From there it was a whirlwind of food being set up and briefly explained, and Xanthe couldn't wait to try it all. She had no idea what any of it would taste like but the afflething really set her expectations up. As they were explained they were portioned onto her plate until it was piled high with food, and Ellis's remained empty as he had been too busy with hers. His mother grabbed a tray and looked like she was preparing to eat with them, which personally Xanthe wasn't opposed to but she knew that Ellis had intended this to just be the two of them, and when he said the word she assumed meant mother and then said something which includes Xanthe's name, she assumed he told her the same.
When his mother spoke it included Feofil's name and Xanthe wondered what she was saying, maybe she wanted to eat supper with Feofil if Xanthe and Ellis were dining alone. Ellis flushed at whatever she said though, and said an affronted-sounding 'mother' or so Xanthe assumed the word meant. Maybe his mother had said Feofil was attractive.
His mother went back into the room, into Aurcaele and waved at Xanthe and said she hoped they met again soon, and Xanthe smiled and waved back. "I would like that," she replied, and when his mother was out of sight back in the room somewhere she finally took a seat and looked over the spread of food. "That was fun," she said and chuckled lightly. "I do not know what your mother said, but I like her."
Post by Ellis Danton on Jan 17, 2017 11:44:31 GMT -7
Finally his mother was gone, and Ellis could relax. He slumped down in his chair a bit before Xanthe's voice brought him back to attention, his back straightening like a soldier's ought to. His ears were still red, and Xanthe's words as he translated them didn't change that fact. If Xanthe knew the things Mutti said, He thought, That might have ended differently. He had spent much of his life cursing the fact that he needed to learn to stumble through two languages, but his mother's preference for classic Aurcaeli was a boon in this situation.
He managed to chuckle along with Xanthe, his a bit more nervous, and then he finally began to put some food onto his own plate. "Tra ta bani fena uvaad'ux lrax fa jexez m'xel l'rus tra ta tui'ux," His voice was almost a whisper, despite the fact that his mother certainly didn't know any Attonian, "Thys... tra ta yi Mutti, te yi deba ran aisan lui."
He forked some of the jaegerschnitzel, excited about finally having a taste of home -- but he didn't quite eat, looking to Xanthe perhaps a little too expectantly. "E-Er... Ost emui oh fa jexez doma uxi, Xanthe. Fuxi jexez doma Aurcaeli hej."
Tra ta bani fena uvaad'ux lrax fa jexez m'xel l'rus tra ta tui'ux -> She is much more charming when you don't know what she is saying. Thys... tra ta yi Mutti, te yi deba ran aisan lui -> But... She is my Mutti, so I love her either way Ost emui oh fa jexez doma uxi, Xanthe. Fuxi jexez doma Aurcaeli hej. -> Er... It's okay if you don't like any, Xanthe. Many do not like Aurcaeli food.
Ellis looked like every interaction with his mother left him exhausted and embarrassed, and for all Xanthe knew maybe that was true. When he said she was more charming if you didn't know what she was saying, she once again tried to dispel the paranoid worry that his mother had been saying horrible things disguised behind her kind smile and cheery attitude. It certainly didn't sound like Ellis was going to tell Xanthe what his mother had been saying regardless, and Xanthe didn't press him for it.
Ellis assured her, as though worried she would hate everything, that it was ok if there were things she didn't like because many people did not like Aurcaelie food. Xanthe looked at the assortment, which all looked varied and certainly smelled great to her, and shook her head. "It looks good," she told him. She was not a picky eater, and she was sure she would love anything that Ellis had put the effort into making.
This was nice, this supper. It was so.. normal? The fate of her entire country didn't depend on it, for one thing, which was really nice. It was just supper, and trying food she had never even heard of before, and looking through the room into Aurcaele, a place she had never been. The willow tree swayed gently in a breeze outside the window and everything was just.. nice.
She decided to try the same thing Ellis had just grabbed for himself, and she cut into it with her knife and was surprised to find meat inside the breaded exterior. She had thought maybe it was bread all the way through. She tried it and was happy to find that it was in fact very delicious, and if she didn't also have a giant mound of other food to try she would have eaten the whole thing right then.
Post by Ellis Danton on Jan 18, 2017 11:55:55 GMT -7
He felt a surge of pride, and felt like there couldn't possibly be a moment more perfect than this one. The two of them sitting, sharing their cultures once more, forgetting the troubles outside of this hallway. His mother's words were not ringing in his ear, his meeting with Pelagia was not looming over him, and the endorphin rush from completing the treaty signing were still fueling him. No matter how much had happened in such a time, he didn't feel tired, he didn't feel the weight -- he just felt happy.
He didn't care about what was going to happen.
"Yi uf ruvi," He said as he finished his jaegerschnitzel, clearing his mouth with a napkin before talking, "Yi xaban m'xed'uz l'rus yi lut fot'ux. Sux'm fa... Sux'm fa hen poba'ux yi faux'ux, Xanthe.
Yi uf ruvi -> I am happy Yi xaban m'xed'uz l'rus yi lut fot'ux. -> I never knew what I was missing. Sux'm fa... Sux'm fa hen poba'ux yi faux'ux -> Thank you... Thank you for giving me meaning.
Xanthe finished half of her meat and then tried the vegetable thing, sour something she thought but she couldn't remember what they had called it. Ellis said he was happy, and she felt like it was more than just happy with the food or that she had said it looked good, but perhaps happy in a broader sense, and it made her happy to hear that. She nodded and smiled slightly, close-lipped as she was chewing. The vegetables certainly had a tanginess to them, but she liked it. It was very flavourful.
Ellis continued speaking by saying that he never knew what he was missing, but Xanthe didn't really understand what he meant by that until he continued by thanking her for giving him meaning. She had finished with her own mouthful of food by now but wasn't sure how to reply to such a statement. She was always happy to be appreciated and she liked to think that she was a part of a lot of people's meaning or purpose or at least held in mind by many, but for Ellis to say that she had given him meaning was flattering but a little... confusing maybe. Fa ruba ud'luit ruj faux'ux," she replied, "thys yi uf p'duj fa heyxj vynveta rana."
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You have always had meaning, but I am glad you found purpose here.
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