aefenglom | UN: Lady Maria

Name: Lady Maria
Date: Ieneur 20-something
Format: Video

[It is video, but the video is not of Maria. Instead, it is of a flatbed horse-drawn cart. To the front is attached a buckskin colored draft horse, and inside... are what appears to be crates of glass bottles. Curiously, they all appear to currently be empty, from what can be seen, but there's labels, and embossing on them.

Maria speaks from somewhere behind the camera, but her quiet, gentle voice carries enough to be heard just fine.]

Thank you to everyone who gave feedback and tried out the gins I sent out for Modranicht. Your comments were valuable to make a couple adjustments I had been hesitant about to the formula, and I think the results are all the better for it. The first batches for commercial sale are now ready, and I am picking up the bottles for them.

There are two types of gin that will be available... [Her hand reaches down, and picks up one of the bottles. When she lifts it, the sunflower embossing remains on the shoulder of the bottles, but there's a fancy label indicating the alcohol meant to be contained within is Dorchacht Rose Gin, made with specially cultivated Dorchacht roses.] The Dorchacht Rose is made from the wild roses from the region; they are hallucinogenic by nature. The effect is mild, and I infused it with other plants used to make love and happiness potions here: the effect is to allow you to remember pleasant memories, whether they be of home or here. It does have a decent alcohol kick, and a higher ABV.

The other... [She puts the first bottle down, and takes out a second. This label calls it Summer Garden Gin.] Also has a distinct rose note, but has a gentle floral accompaniment to the juniper. It has no magical effects. I also reeled back the ABV on it a little. It should make for a pleasant sipping alcohol, especially with a bit of ice and a lime wedge.

And finally... [Putting away the second bottle, she pulls out a third. This says it's a limited edition mead.] My bees produced far more honey than I was expecting, so I decided to make a small batch of mead.

If any among you wish to purchase of a bottle, I'll set aside some for you; otherwise, they will be available at a few bars and taverns in Aefenglom and Dorchacht. Furthermore, if any of you wish to taste test for future batches, let me know. It's free alcohol, in exchange for some feedback. I don't see much of a downside, if you enjoy a variety. I'd like to perhaps see about wines and brandies sometime in the future.

I'll even deliver it, if any of you wish, whether you buy it commercially, or wish to taste-test future batches. I need to get out of the house more often anyway, and it will be good exercise for the horses.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Yes, well, it's not as though I am exactly low on funding. [She motions around. Besides the big house and big grounds, she does still have that huge garden, two horses, and a wolf, not to mention Kaede's rescues.]

My fencing job pays easily for most of it, so I can afford to be a bit more giving. Besides, it's mostly selling what I don't intend to drink out of what I make.

[She looks at his crutches, then back up at him, then over to the crates of empty bottles.] The crates aren't too terribly heavy, but I don't know if you can lift any of them. I'd be just fine if you would like to rest in the kitchen while I get the rest of these put away.

[ she can also sell the stray scales eren sheds in the mansion, so, maria is making it rain. oho, but maria was mistaken— he's off community service since last week and has the strength of, well, a dragon once again. it won't be a lack of a limb or two that'll coax him into rest. maybe the weather would, but he's got more than enough heating aids on him to look functioning. with a gaze from the witch to the crate, what swells in him is a need to work, and the determination to do it. ]

Just for that, I'll take two.

Alright, but don't rattle the bottles too hard when you hop around.

[She can get more, but she got just about exactly as many as she needs, and doesn't have a lot of extras. She gathers up two crates, and walks them over to him, holding them out so he can get them balanced.] I'd say if you break one, you bought it, but I don't think that's a problem, and it's not the money, it's the time that would be the issue.

[Still, there's a lightness to her tone. She's not actually serious about making him really pay for anything. They're just hanging out.]

I won’t put your time to waste.

[ or any of his, and that was a truth that threaded between a thin line of playful back-and-forths and serious discussion that he wouldn’t fool with. he remembered that he made a promise when it came to being of positive use to each other— else their time be worth nothing.

eren takes the boxes handed to him, first resting his crutch against the carriage before unraveling his arm wings for the load. it’s a light one, where his strength is concerned, but eren’s balance takes a toll when part of his body starts to slant. and slant . . . luckily, his tail comes to the rescue in putting more weight over to the opposite lacking side, lifting into an arch and successfully stopping his disequilibrium. for now. ]

I can drink what’s intact.

[ how does that sound? is implied, but with the same sort of airiness found in harmless tomfoolery. he doesn’t really need to drink all this much. two crates worth.

unless . . . ? 🤔

anyway, time to take the first step: a hop worthy of its own circus act. ]

[Honestly, she's also curious as to how he's going to manage to maneuver with the one leg, so she watches until he has himself balanced, then picks up another crate for herself, and... hangs back a step to see how he manages it.

The first jump is... rather impressive, honestly. Seems he's putting real effort into it, from what she can tell. She raises an eyebrow, but hangs behind him as he moves - in case she needs to catch him, catch a crate, or... well, just because it's entertaining.] Some of this is for bars and stores in the area. Unfortunately, I cannot let you have all of it. [Though really, what she's selling is excess. She keeps what she thinks she'll drink - which is still a pretty hefty amount.]

[ the second hop, third, forth— actual successes, with the aid of his tail helping him all along the way and into the proper storage places. when he's halfway there, he turns his head over his free shoulder just enough to get his voice out. that, and get his hair out of the way. ]

I'll just settle on one with you. [ or, two, if it went that way, but lately eren hasn't had the need to drink until he felt drowsy. it was more to, funnily enough, appreciate it. who fucking knew. ] Any requests?

[ this is a one in a lifetime opportunity. ]

[It's fine, she's actually pretty relaxed right now. With the proper flow of mana, she even feels better than she has in months, and without her PTSD acting up as bad as it had before.

She doesn't even drink as heavily as she used to, but she still does a bit more than the average person.]

Let's just enjoy some of the plain gin. I'm not sure I'm necessarily in the mood for much nostalgia.

[ plain gin was good gin. any sort of gin was good gin. a small smile plays behind the dragon's curtain of dark hair as he finished his hilarious hopping and placed the crates, finally, on the floor, safely, and in the right place.

he just gestures for his crutch once he's done. ]

I thought nostalgia was a good thing, [ but, ] sometimes.

[ not all the time was the past welcomed, even if it was happy. ]

UN: Lady Maria | Video

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