serraic

[serraic]

The Ethereal Ball is on the horizon! Although the monastery’s reconstruction efforts have been steady, some put into question if it’s really in resplendent enough condition to host such an event. The normally quiet Viscount Menja of the Adrestian Empire has graciously offered to host the Ball instead this year, claiming his viscounty’s waters and fleet will make a grand venue despite the break in tradition. For the price of admission, all he asks is that all guests prepare a present each for his heir’s birthday. He’s given no restrictions, but every gift shall be checked before entering Menja territory. With only a few weeks away, all of Garreg Mach is now in a frenzy. What IS the perfect birthday gift, and do YOU have yours ready?

Erk is supposedly studying, but that doesn’t bother Serra — she’s made herself at home in his room, lounging in his chair the wrong way, sitting sideways so that her legs are hanging over one of the arms of the chair and her back is against the other.

“... And because of all that, now we have to bring gifts,” she’s just finished explaining. She’s not sure he’s heard any of it, though, because he’s been pointedly looking at his book the whole time. “Hey! Erk! Are you even listening? This affects you, too! We have to bring gifts, for the ball! So that we can attend! We are attending, aren’t we? You and I, together? As a couple?” // @adalrikr

Gifts for the Greedy 🙄

[serraic]

“Thanks! I know!” Too confident, brimming with joy, overflowing with happiness. “Black or blue, hm? Something... flow-y...” They weren’t technical terms, but Serra could figure out Lucina’s meaning. She starts thumbing through the dresses on the rack, rather quickly. A lady on a mission, one could call her; someone who knows exactly what she’s looking for, and is dead set on finding it.

“Hold this, please,” she says, thrusting a black dress at her — and quickly, the pile is added to. Poor Lucina is hurriedly loaded up with multiple dark-colored dresses of varying lengths and styles. Serra’s enthusiasm takes her away a little bit, but she manages to catch herself at five dresses. “Hold them up for me?”

She looks through them again, nodding at all of them in turn. One is black lace, mid-length with long Bell sleeves. Another is a long, draping velvet dress, tied at the shoulders and falling downwards prettily. Next is a thin-strapped dress with a low cut — something Serra would never wear herself — whose overskirt had tulle with impressions of flowers sewn into it. Option four had high shoulders with long sleeves, a tie to accentuate the waist, and appeared to be a simple A-line dress. The final dress was satin, off-the-shoulders, and billowing — actually quite a bit poofy. (Serra wanted to test whether or not she really did want poofy, and there was only one way to do that, after all...)

She beams, broadly. “Try these on to start. Show me when you get in them! Tell me what you like and what you hate about all of them! Really get into how you feel about them! I didn’t make them, I don’t care! But try them all, even if you think you’ll hate it! It may surprise you!”

Say Yes To The Dress

The ethereal ball may be next month, but that doesn't mean we can't prepare in advance!

[serraic]

“Well, you’ll like this one!” Because it’s her, right? That’s how it works, right? She smiles, bats her eyelashes prettily, and leans forward. “C’mon! You’ll love it, Erk, I promise!”

(Yes, she’s totally ignoring how flat his voice was when he opened the door, and yes, she’s ignoring how unexcited he is right now. A few minutes on the ice and he’ll liven up! She’s sure of it! ... Maybe?)

“But you have to dress very warmly, okay? More warmly than you may think you need to.” The ice made it even colder than just being out in the cool air. “I’m warning you now, so you can’t get mad at me if you’re cold when we get out there!” She shakes a finger at him, sternly, but she can’t hide the smile that’s taken over her features... She’s too excited!

I Could Be The One to Love You

[serraic]

April Activity

Status: Passed! Skill Points Gained: 1

Activity ➜ +1 Authority

Skill Changes:

Authority - C (½) ➜ C (2/2)

Mastered the Class:

Recruit

Gained/Obtained:

Resistance+

[serraic]

Ha! So there is someone to impress, and all, in Lucina’s head! Serra smiles, self-assuredly, and nods to herself. She knew there was. There always is, after all. Even if you don’t know it, there’s always someone to impress.

“Don’t say that! Of course there’s something that’s going to suit you! You definitely have a specific style! It’s like, very dignified, and sleek. Not too flashy, but definitely super respectable. Most of this stuff is for girls, though, not ladies like us.” The distinction seems very important to her. She puts a hand on her neck, smiling placidly. “I know they have the kind of stuff we’re looking for, though. I got something here last year. We just have to look! I promise it’s here!”

An extra set of eyes means half the work. So when Lucina offers to help, even though she’d just been struggling with her own dress problems, Serra brightens up. “Thank you! I’m looking for something purple... and stunning. I have someone I’m trying to impress too, of course. Hehe... I won’t be satisfied unless he forgets his own name.”

Serra scans the rack that Lucina’s at, shakes her head and moves to another one. These dresses seem to be made with different fabrics, and are of a slightly different caliber — well, to Serra, anyway. She pulls one off the rack, hums, puts it back. “Any particular color or cut you’re looking for?”

Say Yes To The Dress

The ethereal ball may be next month, but that doesn't mean we can't prepare in advance!

[serraic]

“You came all the way out here without Nils?” It seems... so out of character for Ninian, really! Not in a bad way! Just in a... Serra-can’t-quite-believe-it way! “Wow... you must have really wanted to see the academy.” Or there was more to the story that Ninian wasn’t telling her. But wasn’t there always? Ninian was sort of like that. Very to herself. Serra had come to accept that. Maybe... maybe things could be different, now? Now that the two of them... were reunited?

Eh... probably not. Serra wasn’t really the sort of girl that had lots of close friends like that. Even though Erk said he loved her, even he and her had a... distance, of sorts.

“A—anyway! Yeah! Erk’s here too! And some other people! Like Legault, and Heath, and Lloyd. The bad guy, Lloyd. But he’s not really so awful, really. And Karel. And Mark! Can you believe Mark’s here? I couldn’t either!”

She’s not sure how many of those names, other than Mark, Ninian will really resonate with. But Serra only knows about who she knows about, after all.

“Thanks... for the congratulations.” Her cheeks redden, a little. “Okay! Well, if you’re fine with us shopping together, we should get started! What sorts of things are you looking for? You said furniture... what do you already have, what do you need?”

Sweet Like Sugar

[serraic]

“That’s nice.” Serra’s never heard of Crimea. Maybe Crimea has different rules for its priests. She takes a big handful of his sleeves and starts leading him out of the church, because even though she’s not scared enough to not ask him this question at all, she’s not dumb enough to do it in a church. “Yes, I work here. Kind of. Sort of. Just—...” She’s dragging him. Whatever answer he’s looking for, he’s probably not going to get it.

Out the double doors, propped open, and into the cold air, and she only leads him a few steps down and outside of the church before she lets him go and spins on him.

“I saw you the other night. With that big blue-haired guy. By the frozen lake. You two were aaaall over each other.” She’s not going to explain the details of what she saw him doing, but — he should remember what he did in public, shouldn’t he? “So... is it different in Crimea, then? Are priests not celibate? Or are you just leading him on?” That seems kind of mean... but hey, even she’s had her thoughts of kissing Erk...

So Many Questions, But Am I Talking to Myself?

[serraic]

It’s another normal, blustery day in Garreg Mach. Serra’s wearing her some cleric wear, accessorized with bows in her hair, a ribbon at her throat, and a sweet hat. Her cowl hangs warmly around her shoulders, sweeping low enough to nearly brush the floor. And here she is, bent over clasped hands in a pew, praying. Not to Saint Seiros, but to her Saint — Saint Elimine. Mostly telling her about her day, her night, what’s been going on... her wishes and dreams...

She hears, through her prayers, Father Meven greeting someone that’d entered the church, and then she hears a quiet voice that sounds a little familiar reply. Wait... she twists her body slightly, cracks an eye open surreptitiously, as though she’s trying to hide from Saint Elimine that she’s sneaking off in the middle of the prayer... omigosh... it’s that guy again!

She’d seen him the other night on the lake, kissing on someone and holding hands, and... now he was in a church in... priest robes?!

Umm... praisebeyourgracesandthankyouforeverythingokaybye.

She leaps from her seat, brushes her skirt out, and bounds over to the poor man the second Father Meven is done talking to him. “Hi!” she says, a little loudly, and then remembers herself and lowers her voice a little. “I’m Serra. I’m a cleric. Are you a priest?” // @gentleaureole

So Many Questions, But Am I Talking to Myself?

[serraic]

Crazy Stupid Love

[serraic]

What Serra’s startled by is the defeat in this beautiful girl’s voice. She stands there, waiting to see something other than a gorgeous girl throw her whole Ethereal Ball away, but... nope. That’s all she’s seeing.

“No,” Serra says. “Absolutely not.”

Righteous fury blazes in those amethyst eyes. Gloved knuckles press on her hips. Then a single finger points at her.

“You can’t go in your uniform! You wear that, like, every day! You’re not going to impress any boys in that! You’re gorgeous, but even pretty girls like us have to dress up if we want to get special attention! And there’s no better time than the Ethereal Ball! When are you going to get another opportunity to show him how beautiful you are? Not for a whole. Year!”

Wait.

“... Or her! Or anyone!” A little flustered at remembering that more than just boys exist, she flips a pink lock over her shoulder and says, “The— the point is... you’ve gotta dress to impress!”

She presses her gloved palm to her chest now, heart beating impassioned with her speech. “My name’s Serra! Don’t worry — I’ll help you find the perfect dress! We’ll make sure you’ll definitely impress whoever! Okay?”

Say Yes To The Dress

The ethereal ball may be next month, but that doesn't mean we can't prepare in advance!

[serraic]

There’s Ninian — all polite, and gracious, and beautiful, as usual. Weirdly, Serra had never been super jealous of her. Maybe it’d been because she was too busy hating Priscilla and scowling at Nino, or maybe the otherworldly luster that hangs around Ninian’s form like her tulle shawl was enough to mark her as something other than a threat in Serra’s mind. Either way, with Ninian’s dancing and Serra’s healing, Serra’d always seen her as just another part of the support puzzle on the field, and was greatly brightened by her presence nearby, often outright singing or humming along to whatever dance Ninian was doing...

But now, in the present, Serra is gasping, hands over her face. “No way! Ninian! I live in Garreg Mach, too! I’m a healer there, I work at the church! It’s a blessing from Saint Elimine that we can meet again like this, don’t you think?” Her smile is bright enough to light the way through any night. “And I’m here today because... well... Erk and I are official, finally.” There’s a mixture between relief and joy on her face, battling it out in warring colors. “And his birthday is soon! So I’m here to find him a gift like no other! Hey! We should combine our tasks! Why don’t we shop together? Make a day of it!” She loops her arm around Ninian’s. “You know I’m so fashionable, Ninian. I can help you pick out the best things for your room. You’ll have the prettiest room in all of Fódlan!”

But for once, Serra hesitates. You know... Ninian usually comes in a pair. “Unless... there’s someone else with you? Where’s Nils?”

Sweet Like Sugar

[serraic]

♡ UNO REVERSE

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“Initially, the clergy was hesitant to welcome her as a priestess for the Church of Seiros, considering the fact she answers to a different deity than ours. They claimed she would not understand our faith and either perform poorly, or utilize it as a chance to spread the belief of her own gods and saints instead of spreading the Goddess’ word.”

“I understood their concerns, but I chose to allow her into the clergy nonetheless. Her beliefs may lay elsewhere, but I can tell that her heart is in the correct place- and that priests and priestesses are not meant to solely preach the divine word. They must be welcoming, understanding, and sensible to faith, empathy and fraternity, traits I can see reflected on her.”

“So far, she seems to be thriving in her position. It makes me glad.”

[serraic]

♡ snile

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Nope, nope, no, no, no. This guy's a creep.

[serraic]

♡ hiii .

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Oh, it’s Karel! The insane one! You know, Serra used to be a little afraid of him. Enough that she gave him his space when he asked it, and didn’t bother him outside of her healing duties. But nowadays, she’s not so frightened of him. He seems a little softer, somehow. Maybe it’s just being out of Elibe. She doesn’t know — she doesn’t think about it too heavily. (Or maybe it’s just because Serra hasn’t seen him covered in blood in a while...)

[serraic]

♡ from Luci!!!

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Lucina! The beautiful girl from the dress shop! Honestly, Serra thinks Lucina is just gorgeous, and is overjoyed to help her find the perfect dress that will show her off in just the right ways. In fact, she reminds her a lot of Lyn, an old dear friend of hers! But different, too. And good.

[serraic]

{ ♡ !! spare vibe check miss serra? 🥺

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Hey... Serra thinks she remembers this girl. Didn’t they have a few classes together, back when Serra was a Blue Lions? Anyway; Serra really likes this girl’s energy. Happy, kind, bold in her own way — she’s exactly the type of person that people, like, should be! She’s totally what Serra is like, too! (At least, so she thinks.) Maria’s the best type of person!

[serraic]

♡

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Ah... Archbishop Rhea... When she shows up in the church, it’s one of the only times Serra tries to blend in to the background. That’s because, well... Serra doesn’t pray to the same Saint as Archbishop Rhea. Some people believe that all the Saints, in the end, support the same god or goddess. But for some reason, Serra has this weird feeling that Archbishop Rhea may not be one of those people. And it’s probably best not to get tangled up in... whatever’s going on with that.

... She can’t help her innate curiosity though. Archbishop Rhea looks so interesting. Has this kind of... energy, or air about her. Serra can’t help that her eyes are always drawn to her...

Saint Elimine, watch over me, she prays, and diverts her eyes right before the archbishop looks at her.