video, both courts. (second inning)

[slugout]

Man, you guys are serious about this whole... stabbing-people-you-don't-like thing.

If you're out in the woods, be careful! There's a marine wandering around in the dark hunting [ LARGE AIR QUOTES ] "rabbits" and he's pretty grumpy. He'll throw rocks at you if you're not careful. [ juNPEI YOU STARTED THAT. ] I don't think he's a fan of baseball, either. He was in the Noa Woods earlier, but he's probably moved on by now, terrorizing the rabbit and rock populations.

Anyway, does anybody know the best way to make money here that doesn't involve stabbing people shaped individuals? We don't mind fighting....

[ cue him getting smacked in the back of the head by some pink sweatered demon offscreen, effectively cutting him off from whatever he was going to say.

the recovery, to say the least, is conspicuous. ]

... Large angry rabbits?

002; audio

[steelminded]

[ The voice at the other line sounds exhausted. Well, considering he did spend a month away from the locket for the duration of the month on a building project, it's no wonder he didn't even bother to show his face to the general public. Either ways, Shirou Emiya is going to address the mass with a question. ]

...What exactly do you guys fight for? I used to think that I know what kind of future I'm moving towards, but lately it's been really fuzzy.

[ It's true that this world would end up another illusion that will disappear the moment he ends up back within his own world, but there was no way of knowing that right now. Having to deal with a close friend coping with this war, and having to question his own ideals for the second time had not been a fun experience for him at all. ]

I guess I'm just unnerved by all these going-ons, but I'd appreciate it if you could spare your time to answer this question.

[ It was short, but what could he say? The growing tensions between the Seelie and Unseelie meant that he can't really say anything specific of his current going-ons. ]

video, open to both courts (action if you are at the barrel)

[digophelia]

[ Alice has been at the Barrel for a few weeks now. No one's asked her to cook and clean, but it's been a bit of an engraved habit brought over from her time in London. It's only through getting children's clothing and interacting with the nearby town that it's been plaguing the back of her mind. Unlike the last time she's popped on the lockets back in December, Alice looks healthier, but she is still pretty thin.

As usual. And as usual, her white rabbit is sitting there beside her, munching away at a bowl of food. She's not good at public speaking. ]

Hello.

These may be strange times to open a dialogue about this subject while both of our courts prepare for another skirmish. There are plenty of natives here of various ages who have been hit the most by war, especially children. I used to be the maidservant of an orphanage back in Whitechapel London.

[ Her face only flashes with a hint of pain when she mentions it. ]

Houndsditch Home for Wayward Youth—if you heard of it. And the children there came from similar backgrounds, that they were all traumatized and lost family either by sickness, death, or murder. These children are often overlooked, sometimes they are swept up by those with ill intentions and treated even worse. But they are still children and they still have pieces of their innocence left.

I may not have the resources nor the... capacity right now to replicate that orphanage, but I still want to help the youngest natives here have the smallest comforts like food or clothing. I've only had a handful of opportunities in Redgate and the Station to make good on my word and clearly I need the additional hands.

In addition to natives being sent away from the path of war, I hope that there can be a way to provide resources for them or find them the appropriate care somewhere down the line. I know that it is silly to think of such a thing when all the adults in this world are preparing for battle, but they are so young and they deserve so much more while they are being guided to safety.

But if I were to oversee these things, I reserve the right to be very picky. The children I cared for weren't even spared from the cruelty of adults, even the proprietor of that orphanage.

Surely my friends will be thrilled if I focused my attention on children rather than them. I know they must tire of my nagging.

Text | Locked to Unseelie plus Lancelot, Kaldur, and Flora

[gordianknots]

[The message is simple, because there's no reason to elaborate. Everyone knows what's happening and where it'll be. But it needs to be done, so that no one comes to him at the last minute to find things shuttered.]

The Barrel will be closing as of the 27th.

Thank you for your patronage. It has meant the world.