A Beach Feast (IC)

[Lillorainen]

By the large fire.
Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
From up close, I was almost certain, that the other young man was Dragan.
In any case, I was also glad, that Chris didn't address me as Sir - he was part of the family, so that would be inappropriate!
As the hug had finished and Chris posed his questions, I nodded. "Wonderful, thanks to yer girlfriend. It is as if the Vixen Herself had sent her!", I complimented her and, to be honest, these praises weren't nearly enough, "Granted, we had to ask a friend to take care of the shop for the past two weeks, but it is all going well. We have them all with us here." I smiled down to my feet. "You already know Soiprigh, me lad, though the Lady might need an introduction. Her name's Garbh, she is my old matron. Extend your hand for her to sniff, if you want!"
Indeed, my old lady sat down on her haunches and awaited the hands.

By the large fire.
Chris had nodded and smiled about Gawain's compliment to Cel - indeed, he had known Cel as tremendously dedicated from the get-go (and even this was still a blatant understatement), and when he had learned, that she even was so committed to her work, that she even breastfed the Cubs, he, after the long moment of letting this surprising information sink, had recommended Gawain to take this into account next time Cel would ask for a wage raise. That had been the moment everyone knew, that Gawain would absolutely approve of him.
He had known about Garbh, from Cel's stories back in Purgatio, as well as the mention of her last litter in her invitation letter, but of course, Garbh had spent the time of Chris' first visit in Cuan, far away from Dumhach.
Chris nodded, went in the knees, and let Garbh sniff his hand.
Dragan said, "Good to hear, that the business never sleeps! So, they sell well, I take?"
Meanwhile, Kira and Leonie went down, too, letting Soiprigh sniff their hands, grinning.
Dragan noticed that, grinned, too, and added, "Not that it surprised me a lot ..."

[Shikonjima]

By the Fire.
Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
The brown-haired man bowed his head, his smile still present, and offered his hand: "Liam.", he said simply, then elaborated: "Captain Liam Fearg of the Tribe of Cavan, Captain of SDFS Carman Fea, a frigate in the SDF-Navy. Though Liam is fine, ladies, young man. I am on a vacation."
I smiled myself.
"Liam and I share a passion for fishing.", I explained, "Less for things washed ashore, mind you, but real fishing with a, hopefully, really big fish on the line!"
Liam nodded. "Granted, I am from the Northern Islands, so fishing is a bit more complicated for me, but I still enjoy a few hours of waiting for the one to bite.", he said and smiled.
He smiled a lot.

By the fire.
Yelda kept similing, while he accepted the hand he offered to her. She nodded - while fishing was less of a typical Sharulsi habit, despite having a small access to the ocean and lots of rivers with plenty of fish, she had some fishing experience from her friends' home country, where fishing was an established part of the local tradition.
She bowed her head lightly. "Nice to meet you, Liam! I'm Yelda Altanereg, but Yelda's fine. I might not have much of fishing experience, given that I'm from the Sharulsi Khanate, but be sure, that I'm able to tell the difference between a pike and a flounder!"
Setsuko bowed her head lightly. "Setsuko Abe" - she introduced herself, "but Setsuko or Setsu suffices. We're all on vacation, after all!"
They quite did notice, that Liam smiled a lot. He seemed to be even more of a cheerful soul than Kazuo, whose grin was already famous.

[Polish Prussian Commonwealth]

On the beach.
Yven Barriall of the Tribe of Monaghan.
I recognized one of the faces - people would think, that it would be the face of the Princess (in fact, I did not and to be honest, I had no idea, that she was a Princess), but it was the one in the uniform.
A rather weird choice for a beach party.
Anyway, I recognized her... here was the problem, though, from where did I recognize her?
I am Yven. Brown haired lad, 1.83 meters tall, model for BI and heir to Barriall Cobblers, one half of a pair of twins, my sister being of the Spiorad. My family worked a lot with leather, so I had experience with leatherworking, including in the tanneries of Súdaire.
I was also a student, in High School.
I wore a pair of swimming trunks, a shirt and a pair of sandals.
And I decided something.
I approached the two, grabbed three bottles of lemonade, the sugary nuclear warhead analogue that was Selkie-Lemonade, fresh from the cooler (Ida gave me one look, I bowed my head lightly to her and her two sisters, who had brought that cooler and five like it for everyone, she was pacified), and approached the two.
When I was close enough, all three bottles in one hand, I cleared my throat behind my other hand. "Excuse me, ladies...", I began, then turned to the one in uniform, "...my apologies if this sounds weird, Miss, but... do I know you from somewhere?" I indicated to the bottles in my other hand. "If it is too weird, I offer these as tribute to you, so that mercy may be found in your hearts."
Well, that didn't sound completely over the top, but I hoped, it would serve its purpose.

Adelheid watched Yven cautiously. "Erm, thanks? It's no issue...Marie?"

Dead silence. Adelheid turned to Marie, who seemed...spaced out? For lack of a better description, she looked like a veteran having a flashback in an old Vietnam War movie.

At last, Marie spoke. "I...think we've met. Is your name Yven Barriall, by any chance...?"
Now that he was closer, he would notice both her branch tape and nametape.
WOJSKA LADOWE
ERNST-GLÜCK
Perhaps that, combined with Adelheid slipping her name, would jog his memory a bit.

[Quen Minh]

Pléaráca Beach.
Branwen Blaidd, of Tralee Descent.
The truth can hurt.
The truth can sometimes be ugly, emberrasing, the wrong thing at either the wrong time or the right time. Or all of that and more.
The truth, in this case, was that among the veritable sea of beautiful women, many of which worked with their beauty in one way or the other, but mostly in fashion, these two beautiful women simply went under the radar.
Where in other parts of the world, heads would turn, here, the two of them were merely spared a glance.
Mostly.
I recognized one of them, Hoàng Tuyết Loan - we had talked over Piffle and I looked exactly like my avatar. Granted, today I wore another swimsuit, a black bikini, which let my warm, brown eyes shine.
I waved towards her and her friend, motioned for her to join my conversation group with lemonade. My big sis Elin, her girlfriend Ritubani Aoi, her rabbit ears standing tall and herself dressed in a black, high-leg one piece, and Leathchúpla-Twins, Nora and Patty.
The latter two were normal humans, not Spiorad like me and my sis, nor Mimio like Ritu.
We had enough lemonade to spare, that was for sure!

Walking on the beach, Loan noticed a wave from a familiar and recognizable individual, the one she conversed with on PiffleNet. A glint brighter than the sun formed in her eyes, leading her to give her counterpart a nudge.

"Hey, Ms. Hyùnh," Loan said in her native language, "I'll introduce you to someone I've met online."

"You mean the one with the fox-like ears," asked Hyùnh.

"Yeah. And no worries, she won't bite," Loan chuckled, "And she's an author as well, which got us talking for a while."

"Well, she does look friendly...and quite a captivating one, at that," Hyùnh nodded.

The pair then walked over to where Branwen, the one with the black fox-like ears, and her friends were at. Loan, being the eager one she is, strolled ahead of Hyùnh, which made the latter insist her to slow down.

"Xin chào, xin chào," Loan greeted Branwen, "Nice to finally meet you in person! Did you get the book I recommended? Also, this is my colleague Nguyễn Ly Hyùnh, Assemblymember and President of the Nationalist Party."

"Xin chào," Hyùnh bowed, "And mind you when I'm asking this, but are those ears for headwear or...?"

[The Selkie]

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
I had been quite busy over the last few months, inviting people, who might have been interested, and convincing both Eithne and Mister Drisiúr, that the company should and could take the costs for the trips.
While Marionette had been a logical choice with her historic apparel manufacture and criticism (a market we were currently dabbling in a bit), the Allens were a bit more exotic. It was simple: Joshua, the oldest sibling, was cute, and so were his siblings. And not only that, for a bunch of simple farm-kids, they had rather interesting connections, namely to Isabel Canno, who was the daughter of Sirin Canno, as in Canno Textiles.
Mostly, however, it was because Joshua was cute.
And, as it appeared, taken, but that never stopped an old vixen from having fun!
I was blonde, my long hair bound back with a red ribbon, my violet eyes sparkling, my body dressed into a violet bikini with a translucent sarong complimenting my hips. The most remarkable feature of mine, however, aside from the pair of large milk dispensers, was a pair of fox ears with golden fur and a tail of the same colour, which swished behind me.
I smiled as I approached the little group, recognizing Kara de Kristalo, a fellow model and quite a good looking one - with a very good taste in swimwear, one had to say, the black bikini looking very sexy on her. I was sure, that some of the lads would want to dance with her.
Anyway, I smiled at Joshua as I approached. I saw him and a young woman, a blonde with darker skin and green eyes, hugging and her kissing his cheeks.
I cleared my throat with a grin as I addressed the group, stopping a bit away from the beach umbrella and grinned, my tail wagging slightly in excitement.
"I hope, that I am not interrupting?", I asked, my tone almost teasing, and then proceeded, hopefully jogging his memory: "I'm Macha - we spoke over Piffle, Joshua. Welcome to the Archipelago, everyone!"

As the group finished perching their little "camp" they were soon approached by a somewhat familiar face. None other than the good lady who invited them along to this, probably the trip of a lifetime so how could they not be grateful for her. Joshua stood, while gently wriggling free of Sono's embrace. He did appreciate her affection, even if she was a bit much for him, she was sweet and kind. "Oh yes! Macha." He greeted back. A little loss for words but he found it soon enough. "How great it is to see you, as you can see we made it... Uuuh anyway please let me introduce everyone to you, you probably remember my siblings, Bianca my sister and Jacob my brother....Oh well Jacob I think is off a little starstruck he'll be back in a moment. My sister's friend, Isabel. This..." He introduced Sono next by helping her up to her feet and she went ahead on her own behalf, "Sono de Turoj, sinjorino vulpo."

"Well long story short, she and I are dating. Told you I had a couple girls I was interested in, Sono was one of them. Took your advice to heart and just started a conversation with her. Oh and..."

"Kara de Kristalo, and another island native of Kuronami's Mazomba Region. How great it is to meet you, sinjorino. Might I say a lovely lady you are, a fellow model I take it? I understood this was a whole event hosted by a fashion giant in this country. I'm a model myself, you've probably seen the handful of PiffleNet posts I've made as well."

Bianca and Isabel mostly looked on with quite awe, obviously Bianca heard tales of the unique Spiorad Ainmhithe that inhabited this region but this was the first she saw one in person.

Isabel shaking herself out of her stuper, politely bowed her head in gratitude to thank her, "As I'm a guest of Bianca, whom you invited directly, I'm thankful to you, madam. Miss de Kristalo is also a friend of my mother."

A short beat passed when the younger brother returned "Hiya, I got it, see I told ya she was the real deal. Oh, who's this?"

"This is Macha, the one who invited us." his older brother told him.

"Oooh cool!"

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
When I was introduced to everyone, I bowed my head lightly to Sono, grinning wildly - I was happy, that an old vixen's tricks still worked these days!
I nodded at Kara, almost starstruck myself. Sure, BI was a huge number in the Free Lands, and its models were known quite well, but Kara de Kristalo - she was a huge number. And, to be quite honest, quite sexy...
Isabel and Bianca were just too cute, their awe at who or what I was, even Isabel's formal introduction of herself.
And Jacob was the complete contrast, that made me giggle.
Still, I had little time to even say hi to someone!
I smiled into the round. "I am glad to see, that you all arrived safely to the Resort and are in such high spirits.", I said, my tail still swishing back and forth, "As mentioned, I am Macha Taise, of Cork Descent. But please, Macha is fine... I get enough of 'Milady Macha' every time we get new employees..." I shrugged with a grin. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Would anyone mind, if I were to hug everyone of you?"
The last question was mostly aimed at Sono - who knew, how possessive she was? I was, after all, possible competition and absolutely not shy.
Before anyone could reply, though, a horn was blown by the road...

In the general vincinity of Ayla.
Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I was a sight one could hardly miss - 2.17 meters tall, red hair, a square face as if chiseled out of marble, muscled to the point, that there were tree trunks slimmed then my arms, broad-shouldered enough for wardrobes to hide behind me, and dressed for the occasion: A pair of swim brief. Admittedly, they didn't leave much to the imagination, but if I found an admirer or two, I would not mind.
I could very much live with that, especially in my business!
Silvio, my old friend, who was paying his respects to Mister Drisiúr, our host, a few dozen meters away, was a bit more uptight, preferring a long-sleeved, but light shirt and long pants and I knew why. And I knew, that some lads and lassies would stand in line to have a dance with his assistant, Aurora.
In any case, my attention was focused on a woman, who I knew from images: Ayla, the Chief of Corona in the United Islands States of AHSCA. She was a beautiful, young woman, her green hair open, herself taller then many of the women present and just as well-formed.
It came as no surprise, that a young lad, I thought him to be around the age lads entered puberty, wanted an autograph. I had no idea, that his name was Jacob. Granted, around that age, I would have asked for a metaphorical spot on her metaphorical dance card, but still - despite him screwing up by not bringing anything to write, he performed well and Ayla seemed willing to humour him.
He ran to a small group of people, grabbed something to write and was on his way back - I meanwhile, approached Ayla with a huge grin: "Ah, youth... a wonderful age, full of wonders! And the age one discovers, that girls don't have cooties!", I told her with a grin as the young man was in conversation with his group. "I hope, that you don't mind me joining you for a few minutes, Miss?"

That was strange indeed and it seemed someone else took notice No sooner had Ayla sat down to enjoy the warm sand beneath her had someone else approached, a very tall man, good heavens, a good head above herself. But with a jovial friendly approach nevertheless chuckling at the sight. "Indeed, spirit of a child like that, should be nurtured. Please, feel free." She gestured for him to have a seat next to her. "I'm just soaking in the warm sands and sunshine. Right now where I'm from, we're in our deluge. So it's simply just a lot of rain. I like the rain but I do get to miss the sun at times. This is pretty nice. Ayla." she extend a hand to him as a greeting.


She gave him a moment but the boy had quickly returned. Well, hard to be mad, his bright eyes were enchanting and his voice still in the throws of pre-adolescence, young enough to still have a little magic, no sense spoiling the fun. "Here, please sign this for me." She took the book from his hands, a unique pulp novel about a jungle girl, maybe a bit like Ayla but didn't really look much like her but oh well. "hehe sure, I'd be happy to. Might I have your name?" she wrote it out to him following a little message tenu vian fajron brulanta. "There you go, little fella."

"Wow thanks! Ooh I better get back to my bro. Hey if I see you later, I'd like to talk to you some more."

"Well...Okay..." She hoped she kind of wouldn't. Only because she wouldn't want to ruin the fantasy for him. "Enjoy your day."

"You too ma'am. Sir." He also took a quick moment to acknowledge Heardread Folrach. Ayla again couldn't help but chuckle "He's a spirited little guy. I really would hate it if I had to tell him I'm not the lady from his novel. Seems truly enchanted. But anyway, you might be?"

In the general vincinity of Ayla.
Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I nodded - the fantasies of a boy, the fantasies of ever-lasting glory, which he read about in his books, they were very familiar to me. Very intimately familiar, too...
At Ayla's question, I grinned: "I am Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow - but please, Milady Ayla, just call me Heardread.", I asked of her, "Where I am from, Conall Curach, we have winter - being this close to the arctic circle, it's dark most of the time, so I took my two children and decided to overwinter the worst of the darkness here. Aonas only joined us a week in, he made a short-term trip to Kuronami, but still... with my daughter here, the two of us could finally spent some long-needed time together. She's becoming a merchant like me, you see?"
There was a lot of pride in my voice by the end.
Indeed, I was very proud of both of my children.
Then, someone blew a horn - a sound, which was very familiar to me.

"Pleased to meet you" replied Karen and Jason, each offering a hand shake,

"yeah, we've seen a few creatures, hence why Marv is on a leash" replied Karen "so no playing ball then with the cat, and he's certainly not going swimming"

Jason smiled, slid his arm around Karen, "and as for a living, I run a haulage firm back home with a large number of trucks operating through out the nation shifting every thing from containers to refrigerated loads. If its come to the Aurora Confederacy through Kai'Ilana river port, chances are its been on one of my trucks, however we're here to chill out, relax and have a holiday, and you?" he says with an honest tone in his voice, with the company he is reffering to being that of Space-Night Transportation, a successful Auroran company (who's storefront is in need of some updating!


Karen listened intently, every now and then glancing up at Jason in a loving, affectionate way,

"Fisheries science, sounds interesting" replied Karen. "Jason taught me how to drive, and within six months of meeting him, I was driving for him"

"A fine creature" noted Jason, "obedient too, unlike furball here" he says, stroking Marvin's neck, causing a typical responce...

...."meow!"

By the tideline.
Amy Ramallae of the Tribe of Monaghan.
We nodded as they told us, that they had a logistics firm, something familiar to us due to the wide connections BI-models had.
"We are here both for relaxation, overwintering and a bit of work.", I told them, "We are both models for Bicíní Industries." There was quite a bit of pride in my words, as that was truly something special. "And I am also here to observe Cealg in his natural habitat..."
"...while I study here.", Filly finished with a smile, "I work aboard RV Fairtheoir as well, that's a Fisheries Research Vessel of the Dair-class. A few of our crew wanted to come as well, but so far, no dice..."
"Probably observing the coral habitats at the Duo.", I said with a shrug, mostly because that was, what would interest me the most. I would be diving there in a few days. Then I turned to Jason. "The Duo is a small island group a few kilometers from here. It's a beautiful coral reef and quite the attraction for wreckdiving tourists as the SDF-Navy scuttled a cruiser there in 1979. SDFS Aeval." Filly looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Me Mam is a bit of a coral reef enthusiast..."
Before I could dig myself a deeper hole, a horn sounded from the tree line, Cealg perked up considerably.
"If you would please excuse us?", I asked of Jason and Karen. "There's something we need to take care of."
And with that, we were gone.

Gerald Vicente
At the Party

"No, Yvain, I do not," Gerald replied. While he suspected Isla's reaction was what drove her father to ask, it didn't hurt to be sure: "What gave it away?" In his defense, he was an only child with what his peers often called a single-minded obsession with his work; true, he took vacations every now and then, but to him they were essentially extended break times. At 32, he still took to the inversion of working hard and playing harder, putting more energy into his job than his recreation.

Collision averted.
Yvain Saighead of the Tribe of Westmeath.
I smiled.
"Don't worry, the right woman will come soon enough.", I said, "And yes, one saw it... you hurt Isla quite a bit. She is a young woman, after all, not a child, and of the age, when the distinction becomes more and more important." I pondered for a moment, sure, that he would remember that time as well. "Though, I am sure, that you could get away with calling her searrach."
I shrugged.
It was around that time, that Isla returned. "Finnegan says, that you can bring it to him at the larger fire.", she reported, then added: "Say, Mister Vicente, wanna have a dance later?"
At that time, a horn was sounded, but I had more important things to worry about - for example my daughter becoming as devious as her mother...

Miss Donatella Pintaral
Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort
Approaching the party

---

"What a journey," muttered an exhausted girl. It felt as the sun was only extending it's heated rays towards her as she wiped the sweat from her forehead. Wearing a typical sunhat and over-sized black sunglasses, they both did little to protect her. Otherwise, her see-through royal blue jumpsuit and matching lace bikini kept her cool enough. Approaching the crowd that assembled on the beach, the girl would clearly be foreign in most regards. If her looks did not give it away, her accent would once she began to speak.

Almost unknown to many at the resort, the girl would be recognized by a few as Donatella Pintaral: heiress, socialite and model. Hailing across the vast sea from the lands of the Gristolian Imperium, or more specifically Serkonos, she was well-known in popular media as a fashion icon. From Karnaca to Dunwall, she would be seen in only the latest fashions from such fashion houses like Maldonado and Elizabeth Pollard. While she was mainly known for her modeling and public appearances, Donatella's father, Valentino Pintaral, ran the third largest import-export business in all the Isles. From this wealth, which she was due to inherit it all, the heiress afforded her luxurious lifestyle.

Still, even while being so famous, scandal was always around the corner. The hottest gossip in Karnaca at the time was the fact that Donatella's ex-boyfriend, the football player Bautista Romano, sold some of her more scandalous pictures to the tabloids. Donatella's father succeed in stopping most of the tabloids from printing, but sadly the internet was another story. So, when a friend of Donatella's at the modeling agency forwarded her a beach feast invitation from Bicíní Industries, she gladly took the chance to get out of the country.

Juggling the gifts she had brought to the party, Donatella kept playing Fruit Smash on her phone waiting for something to happen.

Asteria Aoibhiúil of the Tribe of Wicklow.
Donetella's scandals and misadventures were quite unknown to me, that was true, but also true was, that I was not interested in such news. I was an air racer, one of the best the Free Lands had, and I was on my way to a beach party.
And what I saw was a young woman struggling to hold all of the stuff she had with her.
I was a young woman myself, red eyes and silvery hair, which went down well past my hips. I wore a simple bikini with frills along the cleavage - while I couldn't compete in that regard with some of my fellow airracers (least of all with Amy's massive additional fuel tanks), there was no sense in not showing the assets, which I had. A Lapa, a descendant of Cealg, was on my side, his name was Ga.
"Careful, there, lassie!", I said and offered my hands to her, "Lemme help ya, okay?"

Marion gave him a little curtsy, made a bit difficult due to the fact she was still holding a carpet bag and a parasol. She put the carpet bag down and shook the gentleman's hand, "I'm glad to meet your acquaintance." She gingerly looked all over the beach at the ever so unfolding events going on around her before turning back to Khalid, "Seems like things are starting up pretty quickly at the moment, I wouldn't know where to start." She smoothed out her dress, "Can't say I don't stand out though, for my clothing and not my figure." She smiled at Khalid, "I suppose that's why you're here? Taking pictures of anything unique here at the after shoot party?"

Admittedly she didn't mind the attention, she'd often get questions ranging from "Can I take a picture?" to, "What in the world are you wearing?" It just meant that more people were starting to get exposed to vintage clothing and how relevant it still was. It was a bonus that said attention also apparently recognized some of her work.

The wonders of the internet.

Khalid Faris.
I smiled, nodded.
"Indeed, I would love to take photographs of unique happenings tonight - though not for release, but for private purposes.", I replied, "Maybe to share them with colleagues anf friends, but decidedly not for sale." Even if something juicy happened, that the yellow press would love to see, I would not sell unless they paid a disproportionately high price. I was, after all, the son of Beyeha Fadwa Faris, the head of the Kyrenaian Surya Corporation. Money was not an issue for me. "Yet, I must disagree with you, Miss Marionette. While it is true, that you aren't as... curvy as some of the women here, you are a beautiful woman in your own right."
I bowed my head.
"My apologies, if I offended you.", I said with a small blush.
That was, when a horn was sounded.

Walking on the beach, Loan noticed a wave from a familiar and recognizable individual, the one she conversed with on PiffleNet. A glint brighter than the sun formed in her eyes, leading her to give her counterpart a nudge.

"Hey, Ms. Hyùnh," Loan said in her native language, "I'll introduce you to someone I've met online."

"You mean the one with the fox-like ears," asked Hyùnh.

"Yeah. And no worries, she won't bite," Loan chuckled, "And she's an author as well, which got us talking for a while."

"Well, she does look friendly...and quite a captivating one, at that," Hyùnh nodded.

The pair then walked over to where Branwen, the one with the black fox-like ears, and her friends were at. Loan, being the eager one she is, strolled ahead of Hyùnh, which made the latter insist her to slow down.

"Xin chào, xin chào," Loan greeted Branwen, "Nice to finally meet you in person! Did you get the book I recommended? Also, this is my colleague Nguyễn Ly Hyùnh, Assemblymember and President of the Nationalist Party."

"Xin chào," Hyùnh bowed, "And mind you when I'm asking this, but are those ears for headwear or...?"

Pléaráca Beach.
Branwen Blaidd, of Tralee Descent.
Unaware of them thinking of my ears as fox ears, they were actually dog ears, but that didn't really matter, I smiled.
"It's a pleasure to meet you both.", I said with a smile, bowed my head lightly, then motioned to my sides: "That's my sister Elin..." The other black-haired woman nodded, smiled. "...and her girlfriend Ritu."
"Sowa okiyoro desu.", she said in her native tongue, as a Mimio, that was not Sekie or English, but it was a friendly phrase expressing her pleasure of meeting the two.
"And those two...", I motioned to the two girls, actually sixteen years of age, their silvery hair bound back into a pony tail, and looking identical. "...are Patty and Nora. Don't ask, who's who!"
"I'm Patty!", both said in unison.
"See what I mean?", I asked with a smile, then looked at Hyùnh, "And I do not mind the question. They are not headwear but a part of me." As if for emphasis, I let my slightly floppy ears twitch. Elin and her stiffer ears could do that better... Anyway, I added: "Elin and I are of the Spiorad Ainmhithe. Ritu's a Mimio, though."
"Distant relatives.", she added and I nodded.
"If you want, you can pet mine.", I offered the two of them, cocked my head slightly. "And yes, I ordered the book, but it didn't arrive yet."
And then, a horn sounded.

Adelheid watched Yven cautiously. "Erm, thanks? It's no issue...Marie?"

Dead silence. Adelheid turned to Marie, who seemed...spaced out? For lack of a better description, she looked like a veteran having a flashback in an old Vietnam War movie.

At last, Marie spoke. "I...think we've met. Is your name Yven Barriall, by any chance...?"
Now that he was closer, he would notice both her branch tape and nametape.
WOJSKA LADOWE
ERNST-GLÜCK
Perhaps that, combined with Adelheid slipping her name, would jog his memory a bit.

Yven Barriall of the Tribe of Monaghan.
As I heard the name Marie, I had something in the back of my head, but when I spotted the name tag (didn't want to stare at it for too long, as it might give the impression, that I was staring at the body part it was attached to), I grinned and looked at Marie.
When she asked for my name, I knew, that it was her.
"Marie!", I called with a huge grin, "It's indeed me, Yven! Come 'ere and lemme hug ya! It is good to see you again!"
I spread my arms, bottles still in hand.
The horn being blown was irrelevant to me right now.

By the large fire.
Chris had nodded and smiled about Gawain's compliment to Cel - indeed, he had known Cel as tremendously dedicated from the get-go (and even this was still a blatant understatement), and when he had learned, that she even was so committed to her work, that she even breastfed the Cubs, he, after the long moment of letting this surprising information sink, had recommended Gawain to take this into account next time Cel would ask for a wage raise. That had been the moment everyone knew, that Gawain would absolutely approve of him.
He had known about Garbh, from Cel's stories back in Purgatio, as well as the mention of her last litter in her invitation letter, but of course, Garbh had spent the time of Chris' first visit in Cuan, far away from Dumhach.
Chris nodded, went in the knees, and let Garbh sniff his hand.
Dragan said, "Good to hear, that the business never sleeps! So, they sell well, I take?"
Meanwhile, Kira and Leonie went down, too, letting Soiprigh sniff their hands, grinning.
Dragan noticed that, grinned, too, and added, "Not that it surprised me a lot ..."

By the large fire.
Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
I looked at Dragan as Chris successfully introduced himself to the old lady and Soiprigh was excited to meet the two girls, and shook my head.
"They don't sell at all.", I said, "I don't sell them, after all. They're living creatures with heart and emotions and feelings and I spent some time as a pet myself, so... I would not wish it upon anyone else." I was not mad at him. "I do sell stuff to take proper care for them, though, from brushes to food to books on how to." I nodded. "That stuff sells well. Their image in the general population around Lake Mór, who traditionally sees them as pests, is changing."
I let a beat pass.
"Though, my apologies, searrach, I know, that I know you, but I don't remember your name...", I said apologetically.
The horn being sounded was a background noise to me.

By the fire.
Yelda kept similing, while he accepted the hand he offered to her. She nodded - while fishing was less of a typical Sharulsi habit, despite having a small access to the ocean and lots of rivers with plenty of fish, she had some fishing experience from her friends' home country, where fishing was an established part of the local tradition.
She bowed her head lightly. "Nice to meet you, Liam! I'm Yelda Altanereg, but Yelda's fine. I might not have much of fishing experience, given that I'm from the Sharulsi Khanate, but be sure, that I'm able to tell the difference between a pike and a flounder!"
Setsuko bowed her head lightly. "Setsuko Abe" - she introduced herself, "but Setsuko or Setsu suffices. We're all on vacation, after all!"
They quite did notice, that Liam smiled a lot. He seemed to be even more of a cheerful soul than Kazuo, whose grin was already famous.

By the Fire.
Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
Liam smiled and bowed his head lightly at the introductions.
"It is my pleasure, Yelda, Setsu.", he said, "So, a Sharulsi and a... my apologies for the assumption, Setsu, but might you be from Shikonjima? Beautiful countries, both of them... I know, that Admiral Curadh plans for send ships on goodwill tours to both countries next year, so with some luck, I might see them... unless Amy decides to send Galen and his Maighdean, or Finnegan and the Bruinneall." He shrugged. "Still, it will be fun for all involved."
He wanted to ask something, and so wanted I, but a horn was sounded.
We looked at each other, then to the tree line, where the street from the Pléaráca Hotel met the Pléaráca Beach. Standing there was a horse with a rider, a young man with red hair bound back into a braid, a pair on swimming trunks on him, as well as a spear, in his other hand a horn, which he lowered.
From nearby us, another horn blast sounded, a reply.
It was tradition, one horn blast to announce the presence, another one as a reply.
At that, the young man trotted forward, followed by a large, two-axle cart full with crates and boxes and people, a man on the bock, flanked by two girls, the cart itself flanked by a total of six other horsemen. Some had additional riders as well, I spotted Celina Treoraí of the Tribe of Louth with a young woman sitting behind her, arms slung around her hips, as well as a number of other familiar faces.
Kieran, Eoin and their girlfriends sat on the cart, grinning. The two young men, Children of the Great Woods, were the heroes of tonight as they had hunted and killed the Bull Boar, which we would eat tonight.
Behind them, another cart, but a smaller one, came, two horsemen escorting that one - and while one was a man, broad shouldered and muscled, the other could pass as a boy, his short, green hair only emphasizing that. Those, who knew Selkie-Movies or Marcach, would recognize the two of them, Galen Lannaire of the Tribe of Louth and Kean Tuadóir of the Tribe of Wexford.
Behind that cart, a special vehicle came: A small Colúr-Tankette, driven by a young blonde in a white swimsuit with blue borders. With her, a few others sat in the little armoured tractor on caterpillar tracks. It's escort comprised of a total of four people on motorcycles, outfits and helmets included, on a mix of different machines.
Keen eyes could spot a Gabha Motorworks G 18, a HMW KR-115, a Gabha Motorworks G 10 and a Walaea Motorworks W-52 Dirt Bike, the only bike among the four, which was actually built for the conditions of the beach. The G 10 carried two passengers.
The Tankette pulled a small trailer filled with all sorts of goodies as well.
I looked to the four others in our round, smiled. "Well, the last cart is here - let's go and help unloading!"
And with a smile, I went forward to do exactly that, and I was not the only one.

[New Visayan Islands]

Gerald Vicente
At the Party

"Mea culpa, Yvain," Gerald replied as soon as he realized his attempt at being endearing backfired. Seeing Isla return with an offer to dance, he took the opportunity to correct his initial mistake. "My apologies for earlier, I meant no offense," he spoke to Isla. "Perhaps I should take you up on your offer...searrach," Gerald then added before moving to the larger fire to deposit the coffee.

[The Gristolian Imperium]

Miss Donatella Pintaral
Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort
Playing Fruit Smash

---

Asteria Aoibhiúil of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I was a young woman myself, red eyes and silvery hair, which went down well past my hips. I wore a simple bikini with frills along the cleavage - while I couldn't compete in that regard with some of my fellow airracers (least of all with Amy's massive additional fuel tanks), there was no sense in not showing the assets, which I had. A Lapa, a descendant of Cealg, was on my side, his name was Ga.
"Careful, there, lassie!", I said and offered my hands to her, "Lemme help ya, okay?"

Completely zoned out, and forgetting a moment where she was, Donatella slowly responded to the foreigner, "What? Oh! Yes, if you do not mind." She handed some stuff to the generous stranger. The heiress stared at the stranger's hair color for a moment. While she had seem maybe a redhead or two, it was still very uncommon in Serkonos.

Donatella continued, "I am still not sure where to put this stuff honestly. Do you think people will like rum and truffles?" Before waiting for a response, Donatella immediately noticed the cute animal to the stranger's side. Bending down to talk to the cute creature on its level, she asked in a childish voice, "And who is this? Are you not the cutest thing! Oh," the heiress paused for a moment, continuing in a normal voice while looking up to the redhead, "I am Donatella, by the way. Donatella Pintaral."

[Lillorainen]

By the large fire.
Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
I looked at Dragan as Chris successfully introduced himself to the old lady and Soiprigh was excited to meet the two girls, and shook my head.
"They don't sell at all.", I said, "I don't sell them, after all. They're living creatures with heart and emotions and feelings and I spent some time as a pet myself, so... I would not wish it upon anyone else." I was not mad at him. "I do sell stuff to take proper care for them, though, from brushes to food to books on how to." I nodded. "That stuff sells well. Their image in the general population around Lake Mór, who traditionally sees them as pests, is changing."
I let a beat pass.
"Though, my apologies, searrach, I know, that I know you, but I don't remember your name...", I said apologetically.
The horn being sounded was a background noise to me.

By the Fire.
Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
Liam smiled and bowed his head lightly at the introductions.
"It is my pleasure, Yelda, Setsu.", he said, "So, a Sharulsi and a... my apologies for the assumption, Setsu, but might you be from Shikonjima? Beautiful countries, both of them... I know, that Admiral Curadh plans for send ships on goodwill tours to both countries next year, so with some luck, I might see them... unless Amy decides to send Galen and his Maighdean, or Finnegan and the Bruinneall." He shrugged. "Still, it will be fun for all involved."
He wanted to ask something, and so wanted I, but a horn was sounded.
We looked at each other, then to the tree line, where the street from the Pléaráca Hotel met the Pléaráca Beach. Standing there was a horse with a rider, a young man with red hair bound back into a braid, a pair on swimming trunks on him, as well as a spear, in his other hand a horn, which he lowered.
From nearby us, another horn blast sounded, a reply.
It was tradition, one horn blast to announce the presence, another one as a reply.
At that, the young man trotted forward, followed by a large, two-axle cart full with crates and boxes and people, a man on the bock, flanked by two girls, the cart itself flanked by a total of six other horsemen. Some had additional riders as well, I spotted Celina Treoraí of the Tribe of Louth with a young woman sitting behind her, arms slung around her hips, as well as a number of other familiar faces.
Kieran, Eoin and their girlfriends sat on the cart, grinning. The two young men, Children of the Great Woods, were the heroes of tonight as they had hunted and killed the Bull Boar, which we would eat tonight.
Behind them, another cart, but a smaller one, came, two horsemen escorting that one - and while one was a man, broad shouldered and muscled, the other could pass as a boy, his short, green hair only emphasizing that. Those, who knew Selkie-Movies or Marcach, would recognize the two of them, Galen Lannaire of the Tribe of Louth and Kean Tuadóir of the Tribe of Wexford.
Behind that cart, a special vehicle came: A small Colúr-Tankette, driven by a young blonde in a white swimsuit with blue borders. With her, a few others sat in the little armoured tractor on caterpillar tracks. It's escort comprised of a total of four people on motorcycles, outfits and helmets included, on a mix of different machines.
Keen eyes could spot a Gabha Motorworks G 18, a HMW KR-115, a Gabha Motorworks G 10 and a Walaea Motorworks W-52 Dirt Bike, the only bike among the four, which was actually built for the conditions of the beach. The G 10 carried two passengers.
The Tankette pulled a small trailer filled with all sorts of goodies as well.
I looked to the four others in our round, smiled. "Well, the last cart is here - let's go and help unloading!"
And with a smile, I went forward to do exactly that, and I was not the only one.

By the large fire.
Dragan had nodded, being thankful for Gawain correcting his slightly flawed memories - which Chris could easily have done, if he hadn't been busy introducing himself to Garbh. At least, Gawain didn't hold that against Dragan.
It was beyond his understanding how anyone could possibly see them as pests, though ... and judging by how Leo and Kira had their fun with Soiprigh, they wouldn't be able to relate to this, either. But at least, this attitude seemed to be changing a bit.
"Oh, my apologies for not remembering correctly, then ...!" - he said. "And no problem - I think, we haven't had to do a lot with each other back then. I'm Dragan Bandera. Perhaps you remember ..."
It would take its time until one would know, whom or what Gawain might or might not remember - as all of a sudden, a horn sounded. It came from the direction of the road from the hotel to the beach.
Another horn replied to the announcement of the arrival of what could almost have passed as a small army - a huge two-axle cart, accompanied by six horsemen, a Tankette pulling a trailer, and several motorcycles of different origins.
Chris spotted his girlfriend amongst the horsemen. He also recognized Kieran and Eoin, who had hunted the Bull Boar for tonight - they had already been in charge of doing so last time. Kira, who wasn't only into movies for private reasons, grinned, as she spotted Galen Lannaire of the Tribe of Louth and Kean Tuadóir of the Tribe of Wexford, both actors and Marcach; the latter was also known to Dragan, since Amy had told about him and, in particular, the start they had during the shooting for Flight on the Seven Wings, which to call bumpy was as much of a blatant understatement as calling Pontrath a 'town' would be.
For Dragan and Chris, this was nothing new; for the girls, however, it was. Kira whistled through her teeth, and Leo grinned. "They don't really do things in halves in here, eh?"
Both got up, to see, if help was needed.

[Shikonjima]

By the large fire.
Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
I looked at Dragan as Chris successfully introduced himself to the old lady and Soiprigh was excited to meet the two girls, and shook my head.
"They don't sell at all.", I said, "I don't sell them, after all. They're living creatures with heart and emotions and feelings and I spent some time as a pet myself, so... I would not wish it upon anyone else." I was not mad at him. "I do sell stuff to take proper care for them, though, from brushes to food to books on how to." I nodded. "That stuff sells well. Their image in the general population around Lake Mór, who traditionally sees them as pests, is changing."
I let a beat pass.
"Though, my apologies, searrach, I know, that I know you, but I don't remember your name...", I said apologetically.
The horn being sounded was a background noise to me.

By the Fire.
Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
Liam smiled and bowed his head lightly at the introductions.
"It is my pleasure, Yelda, Setsu.", he said, "So, a Sharulsi and a... my apologies for the assumption, Setsu, but might you be from Shikonjima? Beautiful countries, both of them... I know, that Admiral Curadh plans for send ships on goodwill tours to both countries next year, so with some luck, I might see them... unless Amy decides to send Galen and his Maighdean, or Finnegan and the Bruinneall." He shrugged. "Still, it will be fun for all involved."
He wanted to ask something, and so wanted I, but a horn was sounded.
We looked at each other, then to the tree line, where the street from the Pléaráca Hotel met the Pléaráca Beach. Standing there was a horse with a rider, a young man with red hair bound back into a braid, a pair on swimming trunks on him, as well as a spear, in his other hand a horn, which he lowered.
From nearby us, another horn blast sounded, a reply.
It was tradition, one horn blast to announce the presence, another one as a reply.
At that, the young man trotted forward, followed by a large, two-axle cart full with crates and boxes and people, a man on the bock, flanked by two girls, the cart itself flanked by a total of six other horsemen. Some had additional riders as well, I spotted Celina Treoraí of the Tribe of Louth with a young woman sitting behind her, arms slung around her hips, as well as a number of other familiar faces.
Kieran, Eoin and their girlfriends sat on the cart, grinning. The two young men, Children of the Great Woods, were the heroes of tonight as they had hunted and killed the Bull Boar, which we would eat tonight.
Behind them, another cart, but a smaller one, came, two horsemen escorting that one - and while one was a man, broad shouldered and muscled, the other could pass as a boy, his short, green hair only emphasizing that. Those, who knew Selkie-Movies or Marcach, would recognize the two of them, Galen Lannaire of the Tribe of Louth and Kean Tuadóir of the Tribe of Wexford.
Behind that cart, a special vehicle came: A small Colúr-Tankette, driven by a young blonde in a white swimsuit with blue borders. With her, a few others sat in the little armoured tractor on caterpillar tracks. It's escort comprised of a total of four people on motorcycles, outfits and helmets included, on a mix of different machines.
Keen eyes could spot a Gabha Motorworks G 18, a HMW KR-115, a Gabha Motorworks G 10 and a Walaea Motorworks W-52 Dirt Bike, the only bike among the four, which was actually built for the conditions of the beach. The G 10 carried two passengers.
The Tankette pulled a small trailer filled with all sorts of goodies as well.
I looked to the four others in our round, smiled. "Well, the last cart is here - let's go and help unloading!"
And with a smile, I went forward to do exactly that, and I was not the only one.

By the fire.
Both Kazuo and Setsuko nodded, and not only the two of them, but also Yelda quite liked the imagination of what hopefully would remain a smaller unit of Selkie coming over on their goodwill tours, plannings which both Kyouko-Koushaku and Atakheer Khan were quite likely to already know about.
With her head, Setsuko also pointed to Kazuo. "Hai, ware-ware wa Shikonjimajin desu!" - she said, smiling back. Since she wasn't exactly small by Shikonjimanese standards, she had a habit of slightly bending down while talking to people, which, unintentionally, also emphasized her 'milk shop' a bit. Liam didn't seem to be too distracted by either this, or Yelda's smile too much, though - or he was along the same lines as Kazuo and very successful in hiding this. "And yes, should you come over, you will certainly have a lot of fun! And there are quite a few places I can only recommend you to see. There are also a few tourist traps, of course, but these are there anywhere."
Yelda nodded. It wasn't much different where she was from.
The sound of the horn announcing the arrival of the last cart interrupted their conversation. The two Shikonjimanese and their Sharulsi company gave this an admiring look; Yelda, in addition, nodded in approval as she quickly checked, whether or not the riders on the horses and motorcycles were wearing protection in the appropriate manner. The force of habit ... however, she was quite amused, when she identified the types of the motorcycles - only one of them, the W-52, was actually suitable for a terrain like this.
Faye suggested to go and help unloading, which Kazuo, Yelda, and Setsu immediately went on doing, following Faye.

[AHSCA]

In the general vincinity of Ayla.
Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I nodded - the fantasies of a boy, the fantasies of ever-lasting glory, which he read about in his books, they were very familiar to me. Very intimately familiar, too...
At Ayla's question, I grinned: "I am Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow - but please, Milady Ayla, just call me Heardread.", I asked of her, "Where I am from, Conall Curach, we have winter - being this close to the arctic circle, it's dark most of the time, so I took my two children and decided to overwinter the worst of the darkness here. Aonas only joined us a week in, he made a short-term trip to Kuronami, but still... with my daughter here, the two of us could finally spent some long-needed time together. She's becoming a merchant like me, you see?"
There was a lot of pride in my voice by the end.
Indeed, I was very proud of both of my children.
Then, someone blew a horn - a sound, which was very familiar to me.

"Heardread..." She repeated "Well feel free to just call me Ayla as long as I get to call you by your name." She smiled "winter you say....I assume you to mean the cold kind. Penguins, ice, not good for a tropical born native as myself!" It made her cold just thinking about it. "To live so far near the top of the world too, so far from everything. Goodness it must be hard. Then again many would say the same about where I'm from so far be it from me to criticize. More I admire your dedication. Oh you have a family too you say! Daughter looking to become a merchant, good for her! A good line of work she can find!" The sound of a horn caught her ears as well "Oh what is that?"

[Polish Prussian Commonwealth]

Yven Barriall of the Tribe of Monaghan.
As I heard the name Marie, I had something in the back of my head, but when I spotted the name tag (didn't want to stare at it for too long, as it might give the impression, that I was staring at the body part it was attached to), I grinned and looked at Marie.
When she asked for my name, I knew, that it was her.
"Marie!", I called with a huge grin, "It's indeed me, Yven! Come 'ere and lemme hug ya! It is good to see you again!"
I spread my arms, bottles still in hand.
The horn being blown was irrelevant to me right now.

Marie seemed stunned for a second, then laughed and nearly floored him.
"Yven! Good to see you too, after all this time! How are you? How have you all been?"
Adelheid stared in amusement. "You two go back, I assume?" she asked.

[Quen Minh]

Pléaráca Beach.
Branwen Blaidd, of Tralee Descent.
Unaware of them thinking of my ears as fox ears, they were actually dog ears, but that didn't really matter, I smiled.
"It's a pleasure to meet you both.", I said with a smile, bowed my head lightly, then motioned to my sides: "That's my sister Elin..." The other black-haired woman nodded, smiled. "...and her girlfriend Ritu."
"Sowa okiyoro desu.", she said in her native tongue, as a Mimio, that was not Sekie or English, but it was a friendly phrase expressing her pleasure of meeting the two.
"And those two...", I motioned to the two girls, actually sixteen years of age, their silvery hair bound back into a pony tail, and looking identical. "...are Patty and Nora. Don't ask, who's who!"
"I'm Patty!", both said in unison.
"See what I mean?", I asked with a smile, then looked at Hyùnh, "And I do not mind the question. They are not headwear but a part of me." As if for emphasis, I let my slightly floppy ears twitch. Elin and her stiffer ears could do that better... Anyway, I added: "Elin and I are of the Spiorad Ainmhithe. Ritu's a Mimio, though."
"Distant relatives.", she added and I nodded.
"If you want, you can pet mine.", I offered the two of them, cocked my head slightly. "And yes, I ordered the book, but it didn't arrive yet."
And then, a horn sounded.

The pair smiled and nodded as they were introduced to Branwen's friends with keen interest.

"When can you expect it to arrive," Loan asked.

When Loan's questions was answered, Hyùnh seized her chance to ask Branwen, "So, what you are is a combination of human and animal in a way that you possess the senses of the latter?"

Then, as if it came from nowhere, a horn blared, leaving the two somewhat discombobulated.

"Are we going somewhere," Hyùnh then asked.

[Kuronami]

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
When I was introduced to everyone, I bowed my head lightly to Sono, grinning wildly - I was happy, that an old vixen's tricks still worked these days!
I nodded at Kara, almost starstruck myself. Sure, BI was a huge number in the Free Lands, and its models were known quite well, but Kara de Kristalo - she was a huge number. And, to be quite honest, quite sexy...
Isabel and Bianca were just too cute, their awe at who or what I was, even Isabel's formal introduction of herself.
And Jacob was the complete contrast, that made me giggle.
Still, I had little time to even say hi to someone!
I smiled into the round. "I am glad to see, that you all arrived safely to the Resort and are in such high spirits.", I said, my tail still swishing back and forth, "As mentioned, I am Macha Taise, of Cork Descent. But please, Macha is fine... I get enough of 'Milady Macha' every time we get new employees..." I shrugged with a grin. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Would anyone mind, if I were to hug everyone of you?"
The last question was mostly aimed at Sono - who knew, how possessive she was? I was, after all, possible competition and absolutely not shy.
Before anyone could reply, though, a horn was blown by the road...

"ah no, that should be fine." Joshua replied "We're just settling in on the beach here."

Sono did look a bit visibly perturbed at the busty fox beauty before them would spend the time but maybe there wasn't much to be concerned, after all she was quite older. At least that's how she understood about it.

"Yeah we'd like to have you, Macha." Bianca responded "We wouldn't be here at the beach if not for you!"

Sono muttered something then spoke, "Oh yeah, fine I suppose. Jacob what do you say you and I start off walking in the surf?"

"Huh? Oh yeah sure, we can. Macha we'll just be spending time along here so feel free to stake yourself a spot."

Before anyone really moved the loud sounds of a horn caught their attention. "What was that?" Bianca asked

[Mervay]

Lisolette Camilie Alizee Devienne and Lucas Walker, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort
Nothing much better than a good time on the beach, far away from the winter of Mervay, celebrating Christmas and New Year here would the dream of every couple if you see how this place looked like, a beautiful place if said freely.
Perfect and nice, and as such this lovely couple from Mervay to well enjoy and have a great time together as they are there for a few weeks. Certainly the Free Lands became an well searched and loved tourist destination for Mervayan's like AHSCA, North Point, Apotos, San Salvación, Kuronami, Kyrenaia and Lillorainen were some of the common destinations for Mervayan's when going in for vacations out of home.

For this lovely couple made by a noble lady of Aristocracy and Royalty, Ardens Crown Princess and the son of the NCA Chief Director, still it was your normal and lovely cute couple.

Now they had left all they had on their rooms at the Pléaráca Hotel and went to have a nice time on the beach and enjoy. Lise had brought a nice and elegant swimsuit. What's intetesting is the fact she brought a umbrella with her too, that's surprising, well not so much seeing that she brought with her a pair of glasses. Meanwhile the guy at her side and boyfriend went simple too, just a pair of black shorts too and a bag with what they need for the beach; in other words they went with what they need there.

For this lovely couple there was always someone close to them, a good friend of them, loyal and caring, a good mascot and a great friend. Of course it was their Black Fox, Dilly, the friendly Black Vulpine of Lise and Lucas, a good friend and part of the family ever since she found him on Cuán.

Those three would be having some funny weeks, mostly because they are already there and it seems more logic to celebrate holidays there and return days later after New Year; in the end they had to enjoy and spend as much as they could such opportunity.

Meanwhile Lise was walking with her friend and beloved boyfriend as she kept the umbrella above her head, like protecting herself from the sun, surely because of her skin being pale white like snow, even so she had put sunscreen like so did too her boyfriend and mascot.

"So... Guess we have at least two weeks for ourselves here... We have to be glad to be here rather than in home with that winter. Although... I wish we could have brought with us our parents..."

That last bit made them a bit sad as Lise spoke about it, they really loved their family, they would have loved to spend holidays with them but, they supported them coming here since they were more than old enough and were free to do what they wanted, they were 18 years old.

Lucas comforted his girlfriend as he held her, smiling at her.

"Hey. Don't worry about them, remember they wanted us to enjoy and besides they deserved to enjoy on their own too."

He chuckled about that as he looked at his girlfriend, now smiling and laughing a bit about it, their fathers did really deserved a christmas for themselves. When she stopped, she looked at her boyfriend with her scarlet eyes and kissed him.

"Thank you for lighting my mood up dear, I do really needed it."

She smiled and grinned at him as she kissed him once again on the cheeks, making him blush slightly as he sheepishly smiled, it made her giggle as their fox was grabbed by his female owner.

"You do really like to tease me don't you??"

He laughed a bit as she laughed too, smiling teasingly at him.

"Perhaps..."

That teasing look made them laugh even more as they kept walking with their small fox friend.

Vladimir Toschya or Mateo Alfonso Crucitti??, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort

It could be weird?? Yes. It is, but certainly for this man his priorities were set and they weren't related to the beach not a single bit, all that it mattered. Were guns, this person was known of being legitimate bussinessman, at least on Bolgiano, albeit it wasn't a well kept secret there too like it does on Europa that he was one of the most wanted criminals on both continents.
But a well kept facade and a fake password did the trick and made him enter to The Free Lands, a SEA Nation, for him the SEA Represented an disgusting project, one which wanted to take away the sovereignty of the nations on it and where both the corporations and the powers inside the alliance were the ones with the true power and with the benefits of it. But he wasn't in favor of being alligned with Rohan, or as known on Bolgiano and Europa because of it's old story, Lucifenia. For him Lucifenia or Rohan as known outside those continents was the same as the SEA Nations, but he had a plan, a vision, an ideal, a free and independent Yuktobania, one that doesn't rely on the main powers of Mervay, Rohan/Lucifenia, The SEA Nations and no other, but for his plan to succeed, he needed to play and use the system to his favor.

So here's the question, how does a man known of being a crime boss in control and head of one of the most feared and wanted Crime Organizations such as the Bolgiano Club, a organization specialized on smuggling, racketeering, fraud, counterfeiting, money laundering, etc. Can enter to a SEA Nation and without problems and act like a legitimate bussinessman on control of one of Bolgiano's most important if not the most important PMC, which acted as one of his many front or shell companies on Bolgiano that served for their money laundering activities and to have their people on a official roaster to have them working like if they are doing a legitimate work that serves for them to have an alibi, be at the sametime, the true force on the shadows of a revolution??

That question was clearly to be answered later on as time goes on...

Athena Freezis, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort

Ahh The Free Lands, what a beautiful place to be, nothing so good than having a good time on the beach and enjoy as being away from winter, maybe have a drink with new friends and who knows... Find that special someone maybe?? It all depends on things and how they go, but everything could happen.
She was well dressed for the beach with a Nice and Simple Swimsuit, her violet eyes were looking at the nice wiew of the sea, a nice and lovely wiew, hopefully she could spend a month away from work here.

She did really needed it after all, it was a crazy year and next year will be the same. So yeah... Better be ready for next year and enjoy as much as possible here.

[Danceria]

Pléaráca Beach.
Khana Amina bint-Karim.
I knew, who he was.
Considering, that I was a Kyrenaian Khana and his cousin had once fucked a very close friend of mine, Princess Fara, it would have been quite rude for me to not recognize him.
I was a tall woman, well over two meters (though a smidgen shorter then Mister Folracht), my white blonde hair open and my red eyes sparkling. I was here both as a model and as a designer - why, you might ask yourself, would a Kyrenaian Khana, and her Princess, for that matter, go on and model and design clothes? The former for charity, the latter because it was fun, my respite from governing the Khanate of Sheliak. Everyone knew, that a part of the proceeds of every piece of clothing, which Marla and I wore for model shootings, would be used for a good purpose, currently for a new children's ward at the Ulu General Hospital in the Khanate of Jazirat Alshahwa. It needed the upgrade and while Samir was a good man (and so was his daughter), I had said, that I would raise the money and so I did.
This time, I was actually around in a piece from last year's Archipelago Shooting, a black collared bikini, an anchor ornament emphasizing the lowest point of my cleavage (I like that one, mainly because it offered a clear indicator as to where the eyes of my conversation partner were), with pocket on the bikini top, small ones, barely large enough for a few bank notes and surprisingly helpful. The bottoms were a pair of really short shorts, held up by a white belt.
I turned back to my conversation partner, Darufa Rialtóir of the Tribe of Conn, Dumhach's Mayor, who's little girl was currently playing with Marla. My own adopted daughter was a Selkie herself, yet she was by now a Kyrenaian, too, and a Princess to boot - yet, she was still also a girl, and her playfulness with the one year old Nolwenn was a testament to that.
Not that I blamed her, to be honest.
Darufa, in any case, smiled at me. "You saw someone interesting, Amina-Khana.", she said and I nodded. She looked from the corner of her eye. "Prince Sabin? Well, he does have a strong figure..."
I nodded. "That he does.", I said, "Though, character-wise, he is not really my type. Were I 15, 20 years younger, I might be crushing on him..." We both laughed at that. "Though, would you excuse me?"
Darufa nodded. "Sure, go ahead. I'll keep an eye on the girls!", she said and nodded towards where Nolly was playing with Marla or vice-versa, who knew that?
I bowed my head and then departed, nodding to Marla. She nodded back, understanding, a dark, professional look crossing her face for but a moment. She was a good girl.
I turned and approached Sabin - would he recognize me? Good question... still, better approach him neutrally, until I knew, what his game was. I was part of the BI-Family, I had a special place despite being Royalty, Fürstin Oda had her grandmotherly charme, but Sabin? Where would he go?
As it happened, I grabbed two bottles of lemonade, Teressian Lemonade, not the sugar-water that was Selkie-Lemonade, from one of the lads, who had just opened a cooler - he looked up, I winked at him, he gave a playful salute, all was good.
Anyway, as I approached, my hand went to the belt, taking out a bottle-opener, then stepped right into his field of view, not to be missed as I approached him.
"Good evening, stranger.", I said, and used the last word in a way, that indicated, that I knew very well, who he was, then indicated to the two bottles, "Wanna have a drink? Gotta stay hydrated in this climate."
It was an excuse, we both would know that.

The Beach.
Caollaidhe Fáscadh of the Tribe of Cork.
I was the Captain of the Swordmaidens, the Order dedicated to Carman Fea, the Goddess of War and Science, a well-trained woman with muscles and not an ounce of fat, who's chest was... lacking. Especially compared to some of the girls of BI, where I had veritable breast-envy.
It came as little in the ways of a surprise, that I preferred to wear armour, but today, I had swapped that for a light polo shirt and a skirt, as well as my riding boots, the unarmoured ones.
I was edging along the side of the entire party, which soon would come into full swing, watched for a point, where I could maybe join a group of fellow swordspeople, priests, whatever... of course, I missed the yawning Suleiman al-Salek, bumped into him.
Literally.
"My apologies, Sir.", I said politely, bowing my head slightly, "You are unharmed?"
My good luck at work, ladies and gentlemen...

Sabin sadly didn’t know who anyone was.
Considering that the notion of the breakup, and that Aceus had indeed, fucked with and indubitably fucked over a certain Kyrenaian princess, or at the very least, the relationship went up a creek without a paddle…

Well, he wouldn’t know how far truly the gossip spread out of control, or how unsympathetic things had become. Such was the media, apparently, that in spite of only being in the background of the Festival of Light in AHSCA and the Harvest Festival of Launceston...well already he was developing an international reputation. Sadly, a reputation soured by someone he looked up to, or at the very least uncontrolled, but that was neither here nor there.

The muscular man had heard the call and seemed to shift, more at being addressed by someone who he was pretty sure knew of him but he did not know of her. Or it could be budding social anxiety, who could tell at this point. He welcomed the beverage with a smile. “A drink would be nice, but company’s better.” the Prince smiled and took the bottle in a meaty hand with surprising amount of delicacy. Sabin was often noted as a gentle giant to his friends, soft-hearted and often more of a listener than a speaker, yet here he was, with one of Kyrenaia’s seemingly dime-a-dozen dashing dames.

“I’m Sabin,” he began, somewhat awkwardly. “Who do I have the pleasure of sharing a drink with?”

---

Even in such a tired state, the trained woman would notice a reflexive open-palm strike, before his eyes widened in shock and the Persian man stammered. “Er, no-I mean, yes I’m unharmed, are you…?” he ventured. From what the Swordmaiden would note, he was remarkably tense in spite of his jetlag. Somewhat twitchy, and not simply from because of laying hands on a woman-but rather the woman in question being the brunt of his unintended attack. Amateurish, sure, the Captain would’ve perhaps noted the beginner’s desire of drilling in the Persian, but he seemed to be an ordinary civilian...or perhaps someone who was desperately trying to be a civilian.

Such as when he grabbed his beach-bag, before bowing slightly. “I should’ve watched where I was going, apparently didn’t get enough sleep on the way over.” he conferred sheepishly. He heard the horn calling and seemed to perk up. “...That bonfire being put to use?” he ventured.

[The Selkie]

Farouk bin Abdul' Hakim and his wife, Zehra Arslan, stand on the beach, the cool sand beneath their toes, the breeze ruffling their hair and filling their noses with that salty, ocean scent.

The two were on a vacation at the Selkie. They wanted to get away from the stress of work at home.

It had been hard lately. Farouk's friend, Ibn Marwan, was instilling a bunch of legislations, policies, and executive orders to change his country, and Farouk had trouble keeping up. Ordering billions of firearms, sending off his brothers to foreign military academies, fixing the military, revolutionizing the navy. Not to mention the whole KA war.

Farouk had made no effort to hide who he was. He was the only son of Abdul' Hakim Hashim, the President of the Land of Islam. Ibn Marwan was one of their friends. Though younger then Farouk, he was a prominent man in the government. Apparently, his father, Marwan, was a friend of Abdul' Hakim? It didn't matter much to Farouk, anyways. When he entered the island, he was dressed in his military uniform, awards draped on his clothes, a sword in a baldric. His badge read his name in Arabic and Turkish.

His wife was Zehra Arslan. She had just one sibling, a younger sister, Halima. Zehra grew up in the desert. She lived a bedouin lifestyle. When she learned that she would be married to the Prince of the country, she nearly lost her mind with excitement. She had adjusted well to her new lifestyle, always grateful to God for the fortune she now had. It was Ibn Marwan she suggested that Farouk marry her. Ibn Marwan grew up with Zehra in the same tribe.

Now, two horse-drawn carriage rides later, Farouk and Zehra were standing on the beach. They were dressed in very modest swimwear, neither one of them showing off too much skin. They had handed their gifts off to someone, and they were now on the beach.

Farouk got to setting up chairs and things on the beach. Now, they sat comfortably and relaxed in the sun. The tropical climate was a breath of fresh air from the desert they lived in.

Now, they just waited to see what would happen.

Eileen Íseal of the Tribe of Conn.
It was a rare opportunity, one, which begged to be taken - that, and someone else had begged to take it. To explain, I am Eileen Íseal of the Tribe of Conn, Bass Guitarist and singer and songwriter for Dísréad, one of the most successful Selkie-Rock Duos currently active.
That, of course, brought a lot of business and hectic into the life.
Mhairi, the other half of the Duo, was just as hectic, so any breaks were welcome. And that was, why we were at the Tearmann Island Resort, early winter being a bad time for concerts anyway.
That, and we needed a break every now and again.
It just so happened, that our vacation coincided with the one of Mhairi's older sister, the director and movie producer Celina Uasal of the Tribe of Fermanagh, as well as with the one of a little rock trio named Na Siúracha Beaga, or the Little Sisters. And, true to their name, the Little Sisters were composed of mine and Mhairi's little sisters and their friend Juna.
And that brought us here: The three had proposed to come here tonight and we had agreed without missing a heartbeat. It promised to be relaxing.
Now, Mhairi was playing in the surf with the three whirlwinds and a ball, shooting it back and forth in a manner similar to Kyrenaian Footvolley, while I held myself back with Celina.
All six of us wore swimsuits, from a blue one piece like Mona, my little sister, to a white bikini like Mhairi, to Celina's black cross-halter bikini and my own black one piece.
The statuesque blonde next to me had her hip-long blonde hair open, resting on her lower arms as she watched her sisters, her legs crossed at the ankles. She smiled, which reached her blue eyes and made them sparkle like the ocean - she indeed was a beautiful woman, which did not need to hide herself when one of the ladies of BI came around.
I, I must say, didn't look bad either, quite on the contrary. My silvery hair went well past my hips, a pain to brush every evening (and to wash after every beach visit), my red eyes were of a deep red, the ominous nature standing in stark contrast to my friendliness. My one piece was a more casual model, emphasizing my massive bust, while leaving the back open.
I watched the four from a sitting position, smiling as they played their ball back and forth, Mona making a header towards Liv and the young woman used the chance to make an overhead kick - really, it was a picturesque maneuvre, one, which one could use to teach the move... if it weren't for the fact, that it missed Mhairi and went wide, the ball coming to a stop to Celina and me, the blonde laughing as Liv fell into the surf with an "Umpf!" just as a wave washed over her but was up a few moments later and pretended as if nothing happened.
I had to grin, too, rose.
Mhairi motioned to shoot the ball towards her, while Juna and Mona stood free as well.
I gave the triplet near us, with their own beach chairs and everything a friendly wave, not knowing, that it was apparently Farouk bin Abdul' Hakim with his wife, but I noted the modesty in their apparel.
Then I weighted the ball, threw it up for me, and gave it a hearty kick.
One should note, that I was never good at ball sports, so the shot went wide away, much to the deadpan amusement of both my little sister, my partner and the others.
I looked over to Farouk and his wife (still not knowing, who they were) and shrugged with a grin. Maybe they would understand it as the invitation to join us, that I meant by it, we had a cooler with lemonade and another with ice cream, after all, or they would invite us over or they would just wave back - who knew? It was a nice evening and the night was young!

Gerald Vicente
At the Party

"Mea culpa, Yvain," Gerald replied as soon as he realized his attempt at being endearing backfired. Seeing Isla return with an offer to dance, he took the opportunity to correct his initial mistake. "My apologies for earlier, I meant no offense," he spoke to Isla. "Perhaps I should take you up on your offer...searrach," Gerald then added before moving to the larger fire to deposit the coffee.

Isla Saighead of the Tribe of Westmeath.
A little time for a change in perspective, don't ya think?
Anyway, I smiled as Mister Vicente accepted my offer for a dance and I would make certain to hold him up to it (despite their being some delicious examples of Selkie-Manhood and at least one literal Prince being around). Being called searrach was the proverbial icing on the cake!
It was both a term of acknowledgement, as well as of affection, less derogatory then 'child', but often translated into English with the same word. It also meant foal, as in a young horse.
I motioned for him to follow me towards the fire, or rather someone close to it, a woman in her late forties, her white hair open, a modest black bikini showing, that she certainly was not as well-equipped as some of her and her husband's employees, but her blue eyes still shone with joy and excitement.
A young lad, maybe thirteen, dark skinned and with red eyes, which told everyone with two brain cells, that he was not a child of her own birth despite him calling her Mam, was closeby and organized something with a few lassies of around the same age.
"Good evening, Miss Banphrionsa!", I greeted in English, the woman turning and smiling, "Mister Vicente here has something for all..."
I motioned for him to step forward and Eithne looked at him with a smile, that would have made an Arracht piss himself - a moment later, her smile relaxed, became more friendly.
"Oh, is that so?", she said politely, bowing her head slightly, "Then I am very grateful, Mister Vicente. I am, as one could say, the quartermaster tonight, so I am quite excited to see, what you have for us..."

Miss Donatella Pintaral
Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort
Playing Fruit Smash

---

Asteria Aoibhiúil of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I was a young woman myself, red eyes and silvery hair, which went down well past my hips. I wore a simple bikini with frills along the cleavage - while I couldn't compete in that regard with some of my fellow airracers (least of all with Amy's massive additional fuel tanks), there was no sense in not showing the assets, which I had. A Lapa, a descendant of Cealg, was on my side, his name was Ga.
"Careful, there, lassie!", I said and offered my hands to her, "Lemme help ya, okay?"

Completely zoned out, and forgetting a moment where she was, Donatella slowly responded to the foreigner, "What? Oh! Yes, if you do not mind." She handed some stuff to the generous stranger. The heiress stared at the stranger's hair color for a moment. While she had seem maybe a redhead or two, it was still very uncommon in Serkonos.

Donatella continued, "I am still not sure where to put this stuff honestly. Do you think people will like rum and truffles?" Before waiting for a response, Donatella immediately noticed the cute animal to the stranger's side. Bending down to talk to the cute creature on its level, she asked in a childish voice, "And who is this? Are you not the cutest thing! Oh," the heiress paused for a moment, continuing in a normal voice while looking up to the redhead, "I am Donatella, by the way. Donatella Pintaral."

Asteria Aoibhiúil of the Tribe of Wicklow.
"I am Asteria.", I replied to the introduction, adjusting my handhold of the stuff, which I now carried, "Asteria Aoibhiúil of the Tribe of Wicklow, but please, Asteria is fine. This young gentleman down there is Ga. He's a Lapa, a species native to these parts, and my faithful companion and mascot. Offer him your hand to smell, if you want to pet him."
I clicked my tongue a moment later and Ga sat down on his haunches, waiting patiently for the hand.
Not domesticated or not, I had managed to teach him some things along the way.
If Donatella offered him her hand, he would smell it and then run his scratchy tongue along it, accepting it, a gesture similar to a gentleman kissing a lady's hand, which would tell Donatella, that she was allowed to scratch his very dense fur, guard hairs keeping water out.
I smiled.

By the large fire.
Dragan had nodded, being thankful for Gawain correcting his slightly flawed memories - which Chris could easily have done, if he hadn't been busy introducing himself to Garbh. At least, Gawain didn't hold that against Dragan.
It was beyond his understanding how anyone could possibly see them as pests, though ... and judging by how Leo and Kira had their fun with Soiprigh, they wouldn't be able to relate to this, either. But at least, this attitude seemed to be changing a bit.
"Oh, my apologies for not remembering correctly, then ...!" - he said. "And no problem - I think, we haven't had to do a lot with each other back then. I'm Dragan Bandera. Perhaps you remember ..."
It would take its time until one would know, whom or what Gawain might or might not remember - as all of a sudden, a horn sounded. It came from the direction of the road from the hotel to the beach.
Another horn replied to the announcement of the arrival of what could almost have passed as a small army - a huge two-axle cart, accompanied by six horsemen, a Tankette pulling a trailer, and several motorcycles of different origins.
Chris spotted his girlfriend amongst the horsemen. He also recognized Kieran and Eoin, who had hunted the Bull Boar for tonight - they had already been in charge of doing so last time. Kira, who wasn't only into movies for private reasons, grinned, as she spotted Galen Lannaire of the Tribe of Louth and Kean Tuadóir of the Tribe of Wexford, both actors and Marcach; the latter was also known to Dragan, since Amy had told about him and, in particular, the start they had during the shooting for Flight on the Seven Wings, which to call bumpy was as much of a blatant understatement as calling Pontrath a 'town' would be.
For Dragan and Chris, this was nothing new; for the girls, however, it was. Kira whistled through her teeth, and Leo grinned. "They don't really do things in halves in here, eh?"
Both got up, to see, if help was needed.

Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
My joy at hearing the name Dragan Bandera went under in the arrival of the last supply cart and its escort, because I recognized the name - both due to us having exchanged a few words, but also because he had been the lad, who had been the Intercontinental Ballistic Boyfriend of one of Cel's fellow models, Amy Laoch.
She never lost a bad word about him, even after the two broke up, so I was quite sure, that he was a good lad.
I saw the joy in Chris' eyes, as he saw his girlfriend, my assistant, and I smiled, as I saw the recognition on the faces of Kira and Dragan, as they, too, recognized some of the many people.
"Indeed we don't.", I replied with a smile, recognizing how they got up to help, if that was needed, and Soiprigh's disappointment at that. My old matron nuzzled him, which seemed to stifle some, but not everything of it. I motioned for them to follow me as the horsemen slipped off their horses and began to tend to them, Cel solely occupied with tending to Camfheothan (or Cammy, someone, who Chris should still know, too). "Come, let's help!"
Unloading was tedious work, that was true, but it was well worth it.
The delivery of Lillorainian Beer was among the things on this cart, as were the pieces of the Bull Boar for tonight, and, on the second cart, a lot of other things... and, of course, people, one of which might be of particular interest to Dragan.
I heard Amy's voice say a friendly: "Hello, Dragan."

By the fire.
Both Kazuo and Setsuko nodded, and not only the two of them, but also Yelda quite liked the imagination of what hopefully would remain a smaller unit of Selkie coming over on their goodwill tours, plannings which both Kyouko-Koushaku and Atakheer Khan were quite likely to already know about.
With her head, Setsuko also pointed to Kazuo. "Hai, ware-ware wa Shikonjimajin desu!" - she said, smiling back. Since she wasn't exactly small by Shikonjimanese standards, she had a habit of slightly bending down while talking to people, which, unintentionally, also emphasized her 'milk shop' a bit. Liam didn't seem to be too distracted by either this, or Yelda's smile too much, though - or he was along the same lines as Kazuo and very successful in hiding this. "And yes, should you come over, you will certainly have a lot of fun! And there are quite a few places I can only recommend you to see. There are also a few tourist traps, of course, but these are there anywhere."
Yelda nodded. It wasn't much different where she was from.
The sound of the horn announcing the arrival of the last cart interrupted their conversation. The two Shikonjimanese and their Sharulsi company gave this an admiring look; Yelda, in addition, nodded in approval as she quickly checked, whether or not the riders on the horses and motorcycles were wearing protection in the appropriate manner. The force of habit ... however, she was quite amused, when she identified the types of the motorcycles - only one of them, the W-52, was actually suitable for a terrain like this.
Faye suggested to go and help unloading, which Kazuo, Yelda, and Setsu immediately went on doing, following Faye.

Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
While I knew, that Liam liked women, unlike the international cliche of men in the Navy, but while Setsu's posture of slightly being bent over showed her bust a bit, especially in swimwear, Liam was too much of an officer and gentleman to stare.
That did not mean, that he didn't think Setsu to be a beautiful woman, I saw that in his smile at her, but the greatest threat, that might come from him for now would be the request for a dance later - and that was a threat to her feet.
Indeed, the majority of the horsemen and horsewomen were not really protected, but the motorcyclists were. They killed their engines a bit to the side and took off both helmets and overalls, revealing a total of five young women, who wore swimsuits underneath.
We went helping with unloading, joining the human chain, which brought the material to the large fire, from where things would be distributed, Leftenant-Quartermaster Ilia keeping things in check. He was a competent lad, when it came to that, one had to give him that.

In the general vincinity of Ayla.
Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I nodded - the fantasies of a boy, the fantasies of ever-lasting glory, which he read about in his books, they were very familiar to me. Very intimately familiar, too...
At Ayla's question, I grinned: "I am Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow - but please, Milady Ayla, just call me Heardread.", I asked of her, "Where I am from, Conall Curach, we have winter - being this close to the arctic circle, it's dark most of the time, so I took my two children and decided to overwinter the worst of the darkness here. Aonas only joined us a week in, he made a short-term trip to Kuronami, but still... with my daughter here, the two of us could finally spent some long-needed time together. She's becoming a merchant like me, you see?"
There was a lot of pride in my voice by the end.
Indeed, I was very proud of both of my children.
Then, someone blew a horn - a sound, which was very familiar to me.

"Heardread..." She repeated "Well feel free to just call me Ayla as long as I get to call you by your name." She smiled "winter you say....I assume you to mean the cold kind. Penguins, ice, not good for a tropical born native as myself!" It made her cold just thinking about it. "To live so far near the top of the world too, so far from everything. Goodness it must be hard. Then again many would say the same about where I'm from so far be it from me to criticize. More I admire your dedication. Oh you have a family too you say! Daughter looking to become a merchant, good for her! A good line of work she can find!" The sound of a horn caught her ears as well "Oh what is that?"

Heardread Folracht of the Tribe of Wicklow.
I grinned as the horn was sounded, turned to where the street met the treeline and the horseman sitting there astride on his steed - he looked so mature, so strong... a young man, not a boy anymore.
I called over and he waved, before I explained to Ayla: "The last of the party supplies for tonight and their escort.", I told her, as the carts came into view, my son slipping off of his steed. That was, that I saw him having a companion in the saddle, a young brunette, who had his arms slung around hips and whom he helped down with a grin, his hands, modestly, around her hips.
I would guess her to be a few years younger then him, her face beet-red as she stumbled a step forward, colliding with him, who he held her secure in something approaching a hug. She wore a blue one-piece, which mostly showed, that she had nice hips, but yet had to mature into a woman.
"See that redhead?", I pointed out to Alya as my son stepped back, the brunette observing him tending to his horse Asalcloig. "That is my son, Aonas. Don't know, who the girl is, though..." I still grinned, a lot of pride in my voice. "Regardless, would you mind me calling him over?"

Marie seemed stunned for a second, then laughed and nearly floored him.
"Yven! Good to see you too, after all this time! How are you? How have you all been?"
Adelheid stared in amusement. "You two go back, I assume?" she asked.

Yven Barriall of the Tribe of Monaghan.
I was nearly floored, yes, but I did not mind, hugging the living daylights out of Marie.
"I'm well, Cao is well, everyone's well.", I said, then gave her another tight squeeze for good measure, then looked at Marie, into her eyes. Where she would see joy at seeing her again, excitement at being here, friendship and even a bit of the love, which we had once shared, way back in Shella, when we had been younger, I was not sure, what I saw... "Indeed, we go a bit back, drifted apart, though."
My explanation was a bit bare-bones, but it was one.
"How have you been, Marie?", I asked, "And who is your friend?"

The pair smiled and nodded as they were introduced to Branwen's friends with keen interest.

"When can you expect it to arrive," Loan asked.

When Loan's questions was answered, Hyùnh seized her chance to ask Branwen, "So, what you are is a combination of human and animal in a way that you possess the senses of the latter?"

Then, as if it came from nowhere, a horn blared, leaving the two somewhat discombobulated.

"Are we going somewhere," Hyùnh then asked.

Branwen Blaidd, of Tralee Descent.
I smiled.
"It should come in January.", I told Loan with a smile, "I look forward to it. You made it sound exciting!"
Then Hyùnh aked: "So, what you are is a combination of human and animal in a way that you possess the senses of the latter?"
Elin preempted me, telling her with a small smile: "Both enhanced senses, Branwen and I are very good at smelling stuff, for example, and some instincts, yes. First thing Ritu here did when meeting me, for example, was running." Ritu smiled, the bunny ears on her head standing in stark contrast with Elin's dog ears. "And we have another advantage over 'normal' humans... we live for a very, very long time."
Then, the horn interrupted us.
At the nervous question, I smiled reassuringly.
"Don't worry, it's just the last supply cart arriving.", I explained, motioned to the tree line, where the lot of them came, the two carts and a tankette, escorted by horsemen and motorcyclists. "Alright, apparently a few more carts..."
Elin giggled as if I was a cute little puppy, which just did something funny.
Nora and Patty excused themselves to go and help.

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
When I was introduced to everyone, I bowed my head lightly to Sono, grinning wildly - I was happy, that an old vixen's tricks still worked these days!
I nodded at Kara, almost starstruck myself. Sure, BI was a huge number in the Free Lands, and its models were known quite well, but Kara de Kristalo - she was a huge number. And, to be quite honest, quite sexy...
Isabel and Bianca were just too cute, their awe at who or what I was, even Isabel's formal introduction of herself.
And Jacob was the complete contrast, that made me giggle.
Still, I had little time to even say hi to someone!
I smiled into the round. "I am glad to see, that you all arrived safely to the Resort and are in such high spirits.", I said, my tail still swishing back and forth, "As mentioned, I am Macha Taise, of Cork Descent. But please, Macha is fine... I get enough of 'Milady Macha' every time we get new employees..." I shrugged with a grin. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Would anyone mind, if I were to hug everyone of you?"
The last question was mostly aimed at Sono - who knew, how possessive she was? I was, after all, possible competition and absolutely not shy.
Before anyone could reply, though, a horn was blown by the road...

"ah no, that should be fine." Joshua replied "We're just settling in on the beach here."

Sono did look a bit visibly perturbed at the busty fox beauty before them would spend the time but maybe there wasn't much to be concerned, after all she was quite older. At least that's how she understood about it.

"Yeah we'd like to have you, Macha." Bianca responded "We wouldn't be here at the beach if not for you!"

Sono muttered something then spoke, "Oh yeah, fine I suppose. Jacob what do you say you and I start off walking in the surf?"

"Huh? Oh yeah sure, we can. Macha we'll just be spending time along here so feel free to stake yourself a spot."

Before anyone really moved the loud sounds of a horn caught their attention. "What was that?" Bianca asked

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
Sono looked a bit pertubed, which I had expected - I was a woman and a vixen, while she was a girl. And while I would, maybe, snatch him away for a dance or two later, Jacob, I felt, would remain faithful to her.
Such loyalty and devotion was rare these days. Then again, it had always been rare...
Still, I smiled and wanted to tell them to watch out for Arrachts, a little joke, when the horn sounded and Bianca asked what that was.
I motioned to the tree line: "That's the last supply cart, well, apparently supply carts, plural, arriving with their escort. The horn is a bit like a door bell, an announcement 'We're here and we men peace!', the other blast the acknowledgement.", I told her, smiling. Selkie-History was not a nice place, and that came from someone, who lived through it. "Wanna meet some horses and their riders, Bianca?"

Lisolette Camilie Alizee Devienne and Lucas Walker, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort
Nothing much better than a good time on the beach, far away from the winter of Mervay, celebrating Christmas and New Year here would the dream of every couple if you see how this place looked like, a beautiful place if said freely.
Perfect and nice, and as such this lovely couple from Mervay to well enjoy and have a great time together as they are there for a few weeks. Certainly the Free Lands became an well searched and loved tourist destination for Mervayan's like AHSCA, North Point, Apotos, San Salvación, Kuronami, Kyrenaia and Lillorainen were some of the common destinations for Mervayan's when going in for vacations out of home.

For this lovely couple made by a noble lady of Aristocracy and Royalty, Ardens Crown Princess and the NCA Chief Director, still it was your normal and lovely cute couple.

Now they had left all they had on their rooms at the Pléaráca Hotel and went to have a nice time on the beach and enjoy. Lise had brought a nice and elegant swimsuit. What's intetesting is the fact she brought a umbrella with her too, that's surprising, well not so much seeing that she brought with her a pair of glasses. Meanwhile the guy at her side and boyfriend went simple too, just a pair of black shorts too and a bag with what they need for the beach; in other words they went with what they need there.

For this lovely couple there was always someone close to them, a good friend of them, loyal and caring, a good mascot and a great friend. Of course it was their Black Fox, Dilly, the friendly Black Vulpine of Lise and Lucas, a good friend and part of the family ever since she found him on Cuán.

Those three would be having some funny weeks, mostly because they are already there and it seems more logic to celebrate holidays there and return days later after New Year; in the end they had to enjoy and spend as much as they could such opportunity.

Meanwhile Lise was walking with her friend and beloved boyfriend as she kept the umbrella above her head, like protecting herself from the sun, surely because of her skin being pale white like snow, even so she had put sunscreen like so did too her boyfriend and mascot.

"So... Guess we have at least two weeks for ourselves here... We have to be glad to be here rather than in home with that winter. Although... I wish we could have brought with us our parents..."

That last bit made them a bit sad as Lise spoke about it, they really loved their family, they would have loved to spend holidays with them but, they supported them coming here since they were more than old enough and were free to do what they wanted, they were 18 years old.

Lucas comforted his girlfriend as he held her, smiling at her.

"Hey. Don't worry about them, remember they wanted us to enjoy and besides they deserved to enjoy on their own too."

He chuckled about that as he looked at his girlfriend, now smiling and laughing a bit about it, their fathers did really deserved a christmas for themselves. When she stopped, she looked at her boyfriend with her scarlet eyes and kissed him.

"Thank you for lighting my mood up dear, I do really needed it."

She smiled and grinned at him as she kissed him once again on the cheeks, making him blush slightly as he sheepishly smiled, it made her giggle as their fox was grabbed by his female owner.

"You do really like to tease me don't you??"

He laughed a bit as she laughed too, smiling teasingly at him.

"Perhaps..."

That teasing look made them laugh even more as they kept walking with their small fox friend.

Vladimir Toschya or Mateo Alfonso Crucitti??, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort

It could be weird?? Yes. It is, but certainly for this man his priorities were set and they weren't related to the beach not a single bit, all that it mattered. Were guns, this person was known of being legitimate bussinessman, at least on Bolgiano, albeit it wasn't a well kept secret there too like it does on Europa that he was one of the most wanted criminals on both continents.
But a well kept facade and a fake password did the trick and made him enter to The Free Lands, a SEA Nation, for him the SEA Represented an disgusting project, one which wanted to take away the sovereignty of the nations on it and where both the corporations and the powers inside the alliance were the ones with the true power and with the benefits of it. But he wasn't in favor of being alligned with Rohan, or as known on Bolgiano and Europa because of it's old story, Lucifenia. For him Lucifenia or Rohan as known outside those continents was the same as the SEA Nations, but he had a plan, a vision, an ideal, a free and independent Yuktobania, one that doesn't rely on the main powers of Mervay, Rohan/Lucifenia, The SEA Nations and no other, but for his plan to succeed, he needed to play and use the system to his favor.

So here's the question, how does a man known of being a crime boss in control and head of one of the most feared and wanted Crime Organizations such as the Bolgiano Club, a organization specialized on smuggling, racketeering, fraud, counterfeiting, money laundering, etc. Can enter to a SEA Nation and without problems and act like a legitimate bussinessman on control of one of Bolgiano's most important if not the most important PMC, which acted as one of his many front or shell companies on Bolgiano that served for their money laundering activities and to have their people on a official roaster to have them working like if they are doing a legitimate work that serves for them to have an alibi, be at the sametime, the true force on the shadows of a revolution??

That question was clearly to be answered later on as time goes on...

Athena Freezis, Pléaráca Beach, Tearmann Island Resort

Ahh The Free Lands, what a beautiful place to be, nothing so good than having a good time on the beach and enjoy as being away from winter, maybe have a drink with new friends and who knows... Find that special someone maybe?? It all depends on things and how they go, but everything could happen.
She was well dressed for the beach with a Nice and Simple Swimsuit, her violet eyes were looking at the nice wiew of the sea, a nice and lovely wiew, hopefully she could spend a month away from work here.

She did really needed it after all, it was a crazy year and next year will be the same. So yeah... Better be ready for next year and enjoy as much as possible here.

Enya Cíochach of the Tribe of Navan.
I was no stranger to the flora and fauna of the Free Lands, I was, after all, half a Selkie and grew up here. I was also one of the three daughters of Teressien's Ambassador in Fortham, the youngest of the bunch, and the girlfriend of Teressien's Prince, or Fürst, Alrich III..
So, it was as if it was logical, that I spent some time with my prospective Mother in Law, and yes, Oda was here and was enjoying a nice conversation with Prince Elian ibn-Sarah right now, the Kyrenaian Prince having appeared as if he was the cavalry to occupy the old lady elsewhere, I also had to wear a modest swimsuit.
Sure, I was not a woman of the horizontal occupation, so I like swimsuits, which were more then two triangles and a dental floss, I had quite a cute one with a sailor collar, which had been vetoed... well, next time I saw Alrich, he would get a bit of a private fashion show!
As it was, I wore a competition swimsuit, a black one with red and white highlights - not bad, especially when considering my figure, but I envied my sisters a bit... Kiah wore a black bikini and a pair of dark denims, the straps of the bikini bottoms peeking over the edge of said denims, emphasizing her hips, while Ida wore a sports bikini. The three of us sat together and enjoyed a lemonade, Ida having just explained us something from her studies of philosophy and the three of us contemplating her words, a bottle of lemonade from the cooler with each of us.
Well, complaining did nothing to lighten my mood, but the couple with the Little Black Fox did. They looked cute together, both the two humans alone and the fox with them. The girl wore a bikini, which looked quite gravity-defying, if you asked me, but it worked and it worked well.
I waved to them, my sisters following my look and as they spotted the three, Kiah, a cat owner herself, grinned.
If they would join us or not depended on them, but Ida was already taking out two bottles of lemonade and a few of the ice cubes for melting, so that the vulpine had a chance to drink something as well.
They looked cute!

Leonard Rualacha of the Tribe of Wicklow.
The woman with the violet eyes in the 'simple' swimsuit, which suited her very nicely, piqued my interest. As a rather tall, muscled young man, who was both a student, a model and a part-time Marcach, I had the interest of many women, but I had only interest in a few.
Lugh, my best friend, was not with me, which was strange enough, but the tinkerer was about to talk shop with some of the motorcyclists... to each their own, I guess.
As two-wheeled motorized transportation held little interest for me anyway, I was looking for a different conversation partner - and Miss Violet, I had no idea, that she Athena Freezis, looked like a nice partner.
With a bottle of lemonade in hand, I approached her, looked out to sea.
"Nice view, innit?", I asked. "I'm Leonard, but please, Leo is fine."

Meanwhile, the man known as Vladimir Toschya or Mateo Alfonso Crucitti, or by whichever other moniker he went, would find himself mostly left alone. A few kids ran past him, one almost bumping into him, but immediately apologizing, but that was about it.
He had the possibility to join any group he wanted, from models of BI, which were more then a pair of tits, but indeed had something in their heads, to their photographers, one of which was a rather eccentric fellow, who wore a rather stifling-looking coat, to a tall man with a pair of black cat ears peeking out of his white hair.
Gwydion Ddeliwr, of Cefnffordd Descent was a Spiorad and a very old and very experienced merchant with good ties to the Banphrionsa-Family. His two daughters, Carys and Olwyn, who usually posed as his maids, were merchants in their own rights as well, and while the short haired Carys was helping with offloading the supply carts, Olwyn with the long hair was by her father's side, dressed in a white summer dress.
Another option was to join one of the groups with coolers and lemonade or any other form of non-alcoholic drink, Vladimir might recognize Silvio Esecutore and his beautiful apprentice, assistant and secretary Aurora Alce, Professor Clais Levasseur from the University of Nouvelle-Dunkerque, who had made headlines a few years ago as a 'pirate', sailing a replica of a pirate-frigate from the 17th century to close to a modern trade convoy with predictable results, Isa Tropp from the Teressian travelling agency TAMS, as well as Princess Alya bint-Sarah, who was nursing a bottle of lemonade on her lonesome, which was quite interesting considering, that she was literally a Princess.
He had options.

Sabin sadly didn’t know who anyone was.
Considering that the notion of the breakup, and that Aceus had indeed, fucked with and indubitably fucked over a certain Kyrenaian princess, or at the very least, the relationship went up a creek without a paddle…

Well, he wouldn’t know how far truly the gossip spread out of control, or how unsympathetic things had become. Such was the media, apparently, that in spite of only being in the background of the Festival of Light in AHSCA and the Harvest Festival of Launceston...well already he was developing an international reputation. Sadly, a reputation soured by someone he looked up to, or at the very least uncontrolled, but that was neither here nor there.

The muscular man had heard the call and seemed to shift, more at being addressed by someone who he was pretty sure knew of him but he did not know of her. Or it could be budding social anxiety, who could tell at this point. He welcomed the beverage with a smile. “A drink would be nice, but company’s better.” the Prince smiled and took the bottle in a meaty hand with surprising amount of delicacy. Sabin was often noted as a gentle giant to his friends, soft-hearted and often more of a listener than a speaker, yet here he was, with one of Kyrenaia’s seemingly dime-a-dozen dashing dames.

“I’m Sabin,” he began, somewhat awkwardly. “Who do I have the pleasure of sharing a drink with?”

---

Even in such a tired state, the trained woman would notice a reflexive open-palm strike, before his eyes widened in shock and the Persian man stammered. “Er, no-I mean, yes I’m unharmed, are you…?” he ventured. From what the Swordmaiden would note, he was remarkably tense in spite of his jetlag. Somewhat twitchy, and not simply from because of laying hands on a woman-but rather the woman in question being the brunt of his unintended attack. Amateurish, sure, the Captain would’ve perhaps noted the beginner’s desire of drilling in the Persian, but he seemed to be an ordinary civilian...or perhaps someone who was desperately trying to be a civilian.

Such as when he grabbed his beach-bag, before bowing slightly. “I should’ve watched where I was going, apparently didn’t get enough sleep on the way over.” he conferred sheepishly. He heard the horn calling and seemed to perk up. “...That bonfire being put to use?” he ventured.

Khana Amina bint-Karim.
"Amina.", I replied, well aware, that this may or may not jog his memory, but that the reply was most likely no. While I was among the better known Khans of Kyrenaia, the middle-nobility, that not necessarily translated to what appeared to be a random foreigner to know me. Granted, I knew, that he was not random, but that was another question. I was glad, that no one was genuflecting around here, that was for sure. "And indeed, company alone is better then a drink alone, but the best of them is both at the same time, Sabin."
I opened the bottle cap of mine with my belt buckle, threw Sabin a wink - well, there was certainly one use for it - and then waited until he had opened his.
"First time in the Free Lands?", I asked.

Caollaidhe Fáscadh of the Tribe of Cork.
While the man tried an open palm strike on reflex, I was reflexively bringing one arm up to intercept the hand and reached for my sword with the other hand - for my sword, that was not there.
Otherwise, he would not have a fun evening, but it would have been short.
Still, I sighed in relief as he was apparently unharmed.
"Don't worry about me, I'm tough.", I said and meant it, "And yes, they're going to grill a bull boar on that later tonight. And a lot of other stuff, too. But generally, we have a lot of things to grill, cook, eat and so on... this is the second time, that I participate in a party hosted by Bicíní Industries."
I smiled slightly at that.
Time sure flew...

[Polish Prussian Commonwealth]

Yven Barriall of the Tribe of Monaghan.
I was nearly floored, yes, but I did not mind, hugging the living daylights out of Marie.
"I'm well, Cao is well, everyone's well.", I said, then gave her another tight squeeze for good measure, then looked at Marie, into her eyes. Where she would see joy at seeing her again, excitement at being here, friendship and even a bit of the love, which we had once shared, way back in Shella, when we had been younger, I was not sure, what I saw... "Indeed, we go a bit back, drifted apart, though."
My explanation was a bit bare-bones, but it was one.
"How have you been, Marie?", I asked, "And who is your friend?"

Marie saw all that, of course...She had missed Yven, but resetting the clock wasn't something on her mind at the moment. Even while she was hugging Yven, half of her mind was on Unit 777. While they were in no danger of running out of supplies, there still was the issue of modernization, and what to do with all of the surplus BMP-2s and AK-74s that would have to be disposed of...hopefully in such a manner that they didn't end up on the black market.
But she couldn't tell Yven that, of course.

"Well..." Marie started. "It's been a little crazy. Went to college to get a degree in statistics, got my education put on hold and was yanked out by the Reichswehr. Got involved in a dustup in the Sandbox with a nation called "Saranidia"..." She trailed off, and was about to add something.

"I technically can't say anything more." she finally said. "But if you've been following the news, well, you might have seen my name a few times. And...well, this is Adelheid von Hohenzollern-Jagiellon. Crown Princess of Prussia-Poland, etc."

The woman in question extended her hand for a handshake. "Nice to meet you, Yven."

[Ard al Islam]

Eileen Íseal of the Tribe of Conn.
It was a rare opportunity, one, which begged to be taken - that, and someone else had begged to take it. To explain, I am Eileen Íseal of the Tribe of Conn, Bass Guitarist and singer and songwriter for Dísréad, one of the most successful Selkie-Rock Duos currently active.
That, of course, brought a lot of business and hectic into the life.
Mhairi, the other half of the Duo, was just as hectic, so any breaks were welcome. And that was, why we were at the Tearmann Island Resort, early winter being a bad time for concerts anyway.
That, and we needed a break every now and again.
It just so happened, that our vacation coincided with the one of Mhairi's older sister, the director and movie producer Celina Uasal of the Tribe of Fermanagh, as well as with the one of a little rock trio named Na Siúracha Beaga, or the Little Sisters. And, true to their name, the Little Sisters were composed of mine and Mhairi's little sisters and their friend Juna.
And that brought us here: The three had proposed to come here tonight and we had agreed without missing a heartbeat. It promised to be relaxing.
Now, Mhairi was playing in the surf with the three whirlwinds and a ball, shooting it back and forth in a manner similar to Kyrenaian Footvolley, while I held myself back with Celina.
All six of us wore swimsuits, from a blue one piece like Mona, my little sister, to a white bikini like Mhairi, to Celina's black cross-halter bikini and my own black one piece.
The statuesque blonde next to me had her hip-long blonde hair open, resting on her lower arms as she watched her sisters, her legs crossed at the ankles. She smiled, which reached her blue eyes and made them sparkle like the ocean - she indeed was a beautiful woman, which did not need to hide herself when one of the ladies of BI came around.
I, I must say, didn't look bad either, quite on the contrary. My silvery hair went well past my hips, a pain to brush every evening (and to wash after every beach visit), my red eyes were of a deep red, the ominous nature standing in stark contrast to my friendliness. My one piece was a more casual model, emphasizing my massive bust, while leaving the back open.
I watched the four from a sitting position, smiling as they played their ball back and forth, Mona making a header towards Liv and the young woman used the chance to make an overhead kick - really, it was a picturesque maneuvre, one, which one could use to teach the move... if it weren't for the fact, that it missed Mhairi and went wide, the ball coming to a stop to Celina and me, the blonde laughing as Liv fell into the surf with an "Umpf!" just as a wave washed over her but was up a few moments later and pretended as if nothing happened.
I had to grin, too, rose.
Mhairi motioned to shoot the ball towards her, while Juna and Mona stood free as well.
I gave the triplet near us, with their own beach chairs and everything a friendly wave, not knowing, that it was apparently Farouk bin Abdul' Hakim with his wife, but I noted the modesty in their apparel.
Then I weighted the ball, threw it up for me, and gave it a hearty kick.
One should note, that I was never good at ball sports, so the shot went wide away, much to the deadpan amusement of both my little sister, my partner and the others.
I looked over to Farouk and his wife (still not knowing, who they were) and shrugged with a grin. Maybe they would understand it as the invitation to join us, that I meant by it, we had a cooler with lemonade and another with ice cream, after all, or they would invite us over or they would just wave back - who knew? It was a nice evening and the night was young!

Zehra got up and picked up the ball, before whispering to her husband in Turkish.

"Dear, let's go play ball with them!"

Farouk was hesitant to be around scantily clad women, but his wife urged him to go and join their game. They were here to have fun, after all.

Farouk takes the ball from his wife, and the two walk, arms linked, to the people playing. Farouk speaks to them.

"This is volleyball? We'll join you."

[Kuronami]

Macha Taise, of Cork Descent.
Sono looked a bit pertubed, which I had expected - I was a woman and a vixen, while she was a girl. And while I would, maybe, snatch him away for a dance or two later, Jacob, I felt, would remain faithful to her.
Such loyalty and devotion was rare these days. Then again, it had always been rare...
Still, I smiled and wanted to tell them to watch out for Arrachts, a little joke, when the horn sounded and Bianca asked what that was.
I motioned to the tree line: "That's the last supply cart, well, apparently supply carts, plural, arriving with their escort. The horn is a bit like a door bell, an announcement 'We're here and we men peace!', the other blast the acknowledgement.", I told her, smiling. Selkie-History was not a nice place, and that came from someone, who lived through it. "Wanna meet some horses and their riders, Bianca?"

Bianca nodded with great enthusasim "Yeah, can I bro?"

"Yeah go right ahead."

"Isabel, you too?"

"Yeah, I'd like to see a few as well, if you don't mind me tagging along, Miss - er- Macha."

"Well guess that's settled then. We won't be far, just walking along."

"Thanks big bro!" Bianca thanked and took Isabel by the hand so they could follow Macha along.

[Lillorainen]

Gawain Folaíochta, of Wicklow's Tribe.
My joy at hearing the name Dragan Bandera went under in the arrival of the last supply cart and its escort, because I recognized the name - both due to us having exchanged a few words, but also because he had been the lad, who had been the Intercontinental Ballistic Boyfriend of one of Cel's fellow models, Amy Laoch.
She never lost a bad word about him, even after the two broke up, so I was quite sure, that he was a good lad.
I saw the joy in Chris' eyes, as he saw his girlfriend, my assistant, and I smiled, as I saw the recognition on the faces of Kira and Dragan, as they, too, recognized some of the many people.
"Indeed we don't.", I replied with a smile, recognizing how they got up to help, if that was needed, and Soiprigh's disappointment at that. My old matron nuzzled him, which seemed to stifle some, but not everything of it. I motioned for them to follow me as the horsemen slipped off their horses and began to tend to them, Cel solely occupied with tending to Camfheothan (or Cammy, someone, who Chris should still know, too). "Come, let's help!"
Unloading was tedious work, that was true, but it was well worth it.
The delivery of Lillorainian Beer was among the things on this cart, as were the pieces of the Bull Boar for tonight, and, on the second cart, a lot of other things... and, of course, people, one of which might be of particular interest to Dragan.
I heard Amy's voice say a friendly: "Hello, Dragan."

Gawain, while visibly delighted at realizing, that he was just talking to someone he had already met in these parts - and who had ended up being Amy's Intercontinental Ballistic Boyfriend for a while -, got interrupted by the horn and by Kira and Leo getting up, and motioned for the others to follow him, to help unloading, as they were already intending to.
Kira had noticed, that Soiprigh was visibly disappointed, thus had given him one last stroke for now, announcing, "We're gonna get back to you, no worries!" - before he got nuzzled by Garbh.
Chris noticed, that his girlfriend was occupied with Cammy, so it might just take a while until she would be available - but this wouldn't keep him from hugging and kissing the living daylights out of her for very long. First, there was a bit of work to do, though - unloading. Last time, they had helped unloading the food and drinks from the cart, too, quickly forming a supply chain which would have put a factory's production line into shame regarding efficiency. Would they manage to do this again now? It was tedious work, for sure, but no one would complain. And so far, it didn't look too bad.
Amongst the goods from the first cart, they wouldn't only find the pieces of the Bull Boar, but also beer of brands they would easily recognize.
And not only these.
Someone greeted Dragan in a brief, yet all in all friendly manner - and while Dragan was not surprised to meet Amy in here, he was quite surprised to meet her in here this soon. But if he had any problems with that - which there was no reason for -, he wouldn't have decided to show up.
He smiled.
"Zdravo, Amy!" - he said. She would be likely to remember the first term, simply meaning 'hello' in Serbian. "Long time no see!" He let a beat pass. "How've ya' been doing?"
Of course, she would recognize Chris and Kira, too; both smiled, while nodding - both as a greeting as well as to let her know, that they were just as curious as to how she had been doing as Dragan was. Sure, Dragan could be fairly straightforward, but that would be nothing new to Amy.
While passing a crate of beer and some pieces of meat on to some teenage lad who looked like someone from Shikonjima or some other place in that area, Leo greeted, too, though, although Amy wouldn't know her (however, Amy wasn't entirely unknown to Leo) - neither her, nor Kira's (and others') vague assumptions as to how close Dragan's friendship with his colleague truly was. But this wouldn't become a point of debate as of now. Maybe a couple of hours later ...?
Be it as it may - Dragan hadn't lost any bad word on Amy, either, so no one would have a bad impression of her.

[Shikonjima]

Faye Donn of the Tribe of Wexford.
While I knew, that Liam liked women, unlike the international cliche of men in the Navy, but while Setsu's posture of slightly being bent over showed her bust a bit, especially in swimwear, Liam was too much of an officer and gentleman to stare.
That did not mean, that he didn't think Setsu to be a beautiful woman, I saw that in his smile at her, but the greatest threat, that might come from him for now would be the request for a dance later - and that was a threat to her feet.
Indeed, the majority of the horsemen and horsewomen were not really protected, but the motorcyclists were. They killed their engines a bit to the side and took off both helmets and overalls, revealing a total of five young women, who wore swimsuits underneath.
We went helping with unloading, joining the human chain, which brought the material to the large fire, from where things would be distributed, Leftenant-Quartermaster Ilia keeping things in check. He was a competent lad, when it came to that, one had to give him that.

One could easily have gotten to the assumption, that Liam was too much of a soldier to be as undisciplined as to downright stare; Kazuo was certain to be disciplined enough himself, too, even though there wasn't really a military career he could look back to aside from being a Commander in Age of Empires II, a game he could be considered professional at - even though he had already been confronted with opponents he surely had regretted challenging ...
(He would be likely to have some real-life experience in a few years, though, for conscription was a thing in Shikonjima.)
Hence, he might or might not have had a similar thought along the lines of, 'Hey, he doesn't stare!' - but wouldn't express it; just as he wouldn't have gotten to the idea of commenting on Liam's name ending up on anybody's dance card.
Yelda had to grin when the motorcyclists disembarking from their machines turned out to be five young women wearing swimsuits - but there wasn't much time to stop and stare, for Kazuo had already received a crate of beer and some pieces of meat from the Bull Boar from a lassie whose ethnicity to guess would be a hard job. He bowed his head very lightly and passed it on to Yelda, who would pass it on to either Faye or Liam, whoever came first, and so on. The chain worked.

[Quen Minh]

Branwen Blaidd, of Tralee Descent.
I smiled.
"It should come in January.", I told Loan with a smile, "I look forward to it. You made it sound exciting!"
Then Hyùnh aked: "So, what you are is a combination of human and animal in a way that you possess the senses of the latter?"
Elin preempted me, telling her with a small smile: "Both enhanced senses, Branwen and I are very good at smelling stuff, for example, and some instincts, yes. First thing Ritu here did when meeting me, for example, was running." Ritu smiled, the bunny ears on her head standing in stark contrast with Elin's dog ears. "And we have another advantage over 'normal' humans... we live for a very, very long time."
Then, the horn interrupted us.
At the nervous question, I smiled reassuringly.
"Don't worry, it's just the last supply cart arriving.", I explained, motioned to the tree line, where the lot of them came, the two carts and a tankette, escorted by horsemen and motorcyclists. "Alright, apparently a few more carts..."
Elin giggled as if I was a cute little puppy, which just did something funny.
Nora and Patty excused themselves to go and help.

"Rất đẹp," Loan replied, "And I say again, it's really good. The plotline, characters and prose. There's no reason to not make it sound exciting."

In response to her recent question, Hyùnh replied, "I see. And what do you suppose those carts are carrying?"

[Hanoverian Great Britain]

Having got here by a classically designed carriage, Alexandra couldn't be more thrilled at the opportunity. To be fair, its not like she blatantly disliked her role as monarch, but for a young woman like her, the 2 years of her suffering from the chaos of Brexit has started to take its toll. As she stepped out overlooking the scenery in a white floral dress, she held a particular black suitcase in her right hand, which most likely contained her swimsuit apparel and an another, a brown one in her opposite hand. "Well, looks like its an another holiday for me", remarked her leisurely.

Upon quickly finding an empty spot, Alexandra quickly got to work as she opened the brown suitcase and began applying the sunscreen lotion onto herself while at the same time, she took a few seconds to observe the sky. "The temperature and all is perfect, good for me", remarked her again.

As she does not desire to be stuck there all day long, she quickly got up and walked to a nearby bar with her black sunglasses on. As she sat down, she hoisted her order to the bartender, "Anything light please, not too much, just little", described Alexandra as deep down, she hopefully believed that someone, or even the bartender himself would be open to talk with.

[AHSCA]

I grinned as the horn was sounded, turned to where the street met the treeline and the horseman sitting there astride on his steed - he looked so mature, so strong... a young man, not a boy anymore.
I called over and he waved, before I explained to Ayla: "The last of the party supplies for tonight and their escort.", I told her, as the carts came into view, my son slipping off of his steed. That was, that I saw him having a companion in the saddle, a young brunette, who had his arms slung around hips and whom he helped down with a grin, his hands, modestly, around her hips.
I would guess her to be a few years younger then him, her face beet-red as she stumbled a step forward, colliding with him, who he held her secure in something approaching a hug. She wore a blue one-piece, which mostly showed, that she had nice hips, but yet had to mature into a woman.
"See that redhead?", I pointed out to Alya as my son stepped back, the brunette observing him tending to his horse Asalcloig. "That is my son, Aonas. Don't know, who the girl is, though..." I still grinned, a lot of pride in my voice. "Regardless, would you mind me calling him over?"

"Ah so the festivities are still yet to come huh?" She grinned widely. He then pointed out his son, no doubt his pride and joy and Ayla nodded. A girl was with him as well, girlfriend maybe? Or could be a simple acquaintance and friend, either way the idea of more kind folks to talk with sounded really appealing. She really did need to get out more even though she was plenty social with her own people. "By all means, please!" She nodded with enthusiasm again.

[Aurora Confederacy]

By the tideline.
Amy Ramallae of the Tribe of Monaghan.
We nodded as they told us, that they had a logistics firm, something familiar to us due to the wide connections BI-models had.
"We are here both for relaxation, overwintering and a bit of work.", I told them, "We are both models for Bicíní Industries." There was quite a bit of pride in my words, as that was truly something special. "And I am also here to observe Cealg in his natural habitat..."
"...while I study here.", Filly finished with a smile, "I work aboard RV Fairtheoir as well, that's a Fisheries Research Vessel of the Dair-class. A few of our crew wanted to come as well, but so far, no dice..."
"Probably observing the coral habitats at the Duo.", I said with a shrug, mostly because that was, what would interest me the most. I would be diving there in a few days. Then I turned to Jason. "The Duo is a small island group a few kilometers from here. It's a beautiful coral reef and quite the attraction for wreckdiving tourists as the SDF-Navy scuttled a cruiser there in 1979. SDFS Aeval." Filly looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Me Mam is a bit of a coral reef enthusiast..."
Before I could dig myself a deeper hole, a horn sounded from the tree line, Cealg perked up considerably.
"If you would please excuse us?", I asked of Jason and Karen. "There's something we need to take care of."
And with that, we were gone.

"sounds an interesting place, sadly we won't be able to visit the islands on this trip" commented Jason, "as we're flying out after the event. Our flight is tomorrow evening on the Trans Polar flight"

As the horn sounded, Jason looked over to its direction and so did Marvin, "well have a good time" replied Karen with a smile, before turning to Jason
"well the pit is dug, and looks like we have some wood, time to put it in the fire pit"

"aye, then we can walk down the beach and meet a few other guests, just keep Marvin away from the waves"

With that, Karen takes the wood that Jason had gathered and Jason takes hold of Marvin's leash and together they begin the walk over to where Karen had dug a small hole in the sand, once there, a thick branch was pushed into the ground and Marvin's leash looped through it at the top to prevent Marvin going for wander as Jason got down onto his hands and knees to begin placing the wood into the pit, Karen passing him a small fold up saw from the bag in order to cut the wood down.


Jason took the saw, opened it out and began to cut the driftwood into pieces roughly 2 feet in length before putting the cut lengths into the pit.

"that should be enough I think, now for some dune grass.." mentions Jason, with Karen soon walking off to the dunes to get some grass, she picked about half a bag full before returning to Jason, who was now spread out his arms out teasing Marvin with a ball, that was until Marvin bats the ball with his paw to a point where Jason couldn't get to it without getting up.