Although the Cepheus Palace was not Momma Bolormaa's first or even last choice for an event venue, here she was, accompanying the chittering sprite with a glum slouch to her walk.

"AND THEN!" Nemean was saying, fluttering clumsily through the hallways with her arms reaching toward the ceiling. She was talking with words, but a lot of it was very much her arms and hands, too. "They get introduced to these bees, right? And they have to pair them up! But they can totally get it wrong!" A tiny hand slapped her knee as she laughed.

Isra nodded with a hum, fiery eyes sliding to view Momma Bolormaa. "And you agreed to this?"

But Momma Bolormaa didn't get a chance to answer.

"OF COURSE SHE DID," blurted Nemean, summoning a rolled scroll with a puff of glitter. It was small, too small for Isra to read, but Nemean unrolled it and pointed to each word as she read: "'And I agree to sign away my rights for my event, in which I will get to participate as an audience member only.'" She let the scroll snap shut and it vanished in a flash of light. Nemean crossed her arms and nodded sagely.

While still looking at Momma Bolormaa, Isra simply said, "I see." It was clear to her that Nemean had absolutely conned one of the nicest creatures known to the gembounds. A shame, but it was not her business. "If you need anything around the palace while you're here, please let me or Eggbert know."

Trailing slightly behind them with as quick of a waddle as he could manage, Eggbert chirped reassuringly.

Momma Bolormaa only nodded, still trying to figure out how it had possibly come to this. They were in the palace to do some preparations, but she had been informed that there would be a live audience in the Forum of Orion, and that the entire thing would be more spectacle than... She sighed. She had just wanted to find good pairs for her bees and thought the gembounds certainly could help. But now?

"Anyway, I got lots of little accessories made for them," Nemean had continued, breaking Momma Bolormaa from her thoughts. "This is going to BEE GREAT!"

Nemean

Isra

Eggbert

Momma Bolormaa

At the Forum, Nemean was overseeing the completion of a large screen with four sides that had been hoisted in the air at the center of the ring, so that spectators in the seats could all see the events of whatever was being shown. By now, she was hoping many of the audience members would begin filling into their seats.

Prepped and waiting for the show to start, carnival imps had been employed to walk the stairs offering concessions: hot dogs, popcorn, drinks, and a variety of other snacks. In a booth with comfortable seating, Momma Bolormaa and Eggbert also waited for things to start. The little butler was doing his best to keep Momma Bolormaa in high spirits and she appreciated his presence, but still, her heart hurt at the knowledge that her beloved bees were turned into a drama for sport.

"BEELOVED BEES," echoed Nemean, as if she could read the creature's thoughts. The sprite was welcoming a cart wheeled into the center of the Forum on which the bees were stationed cutely in little doll-house-sized rooms, her arms spread open in a grand gesture. "Let's get ready to BEE introduced!" She flitted to each room to double-check their accessories before flying over to imps operating a table of gadgets. Everything was in place and ready to go!

She snapped her fingers and the screen sparked to life with loud, chirpy music accompanying a cheesy introduction video that displayed portraits of each bee before it settled on the title: 14 Day Beeancé!

"HELLO AND WELCOME TO ALL OF YOU BEE-UTIFUL MEMBERS OF THE AUDIENCE!" boomed her voice over the speakers. Nemean was floating around the bee house in a circle, the camera following her to display her on the screen. "Today we are going to play 14 Day Beeancé, where it will BEE up to you to match these lonely bees into pairs! Those foxy imps will be coming around to give you all voting buttons and snacks, and as we get into the show, you will all vote together on who to match with whom!" Her explanation was accompanied by goofy cartoon graphics on the screen.

"BEEfore we get started, let's all give a round of applause for MOMMA BOLORMAAAAAA," rang her voice as she spread an arm toward the VIP viewing box, the camera zooming in on it: Eggbert waved his broad tail but Momma Bolormaa only gave a small, shy nod. "Without her, this would not BEE possible!" Nemean clapped her tiny hands together as the camera focused back on her. "ALRIGHT, LET'S MEET OUR BEES!"

The speakers began playing the joyful music theme again as profiles of the bees started to be displayed on the screen. (View bee profiles here.)

Imp had come as quickly as he could, as soon as he'd heard that something Nemean-related was going down. Not that he was particularly eager to see her die again, or anything. On the contrary, he just felt the deep need to be involved.

As he made himself comfortable up in the stands--with a good, clear view of all the screens at once and a very oversized tub of popcorn--he found himself wondering about all that. I mean, she invited me to the Ball, he reasoned. And in a rare moment of growing maturity: she ripped out my eyes but I did do art of her without asking, even if she is the Betrayer. But I got her boiling alive for awhile, and I got my eyes back, and then she did invite me to the Ball so--maybe we're cool? Plus they actually hung his art on the Palace walls, now. He wasn't sure why Aethril liked his... 'style' so much, but hey. He wasn't complaining.

He considered, and decided that if Nemean wanted to call it even, he was... relatively okay with that. Still a little pissed, but she hadn't had him murdered at the Ball or whatever, so she wasn't still mad, right?

"HEY NEMEAN," he bawled up as the bees' profiles began to roll. Not wanting to interrupt, he kept it short: "WE COOL?"

He was paying attention, though.

Bees. He paused in his cheerful popcorn-munching to squint at them. They have hats, he noted, with a sort of dull surprise. It was as if it were so strange, his mind couldn't even really register it. ...And jewelry? And- "Did you guys glue all that shit on?" he called out, fighting a grin.

And why the hell did a bee need a hammer?

Maybe it was a carpenter bee.

Acheron lived in Orion, so it wasn't long before the lights and sounds drew her attention that way. She plodded that way cheerfully, the green leather pouch (complete with stitched candy cane) from a cycle before still slung around her shoulders.

Even from outside the arena, the booming sounds and the... Bees? (she thought, squinting) on the screens were visible. Afraid to miss anything, Acheron picked up the pace.

Soon enough she was taking a seat in the stands, lying on her chest to watch the show. Amusement flickered through her, and awe at what she assumed was magic creating all the noise and light. They were perfect projections, far more detailed and colorful than anything she'd ever seen magic create, and fascination kept her gaze fixed firmly on the screens.

A glance around reminded her that she was alone, today. I suppose it's as good a time as any for that spell, she thought. She glanced to a point beside her, remembering all the little Lessers she'd seen, and tried to form one up. Trying to stay cheerful (she'd had a lot going on lately with family, after all) she left it sort of open as to which shape it would take--a surprise!--and blinked to find it had become a little coiled Lurker with fins. Huh. Neat, she thought. Its glowing fins rippled as it curled up at her flank, and both of them turned their attention--hers real, its probably imitated--to the bees on the screen.

"...Does that bee have hair?" she said aloud, at length. Not that anyone could hear her, but she'd been too surprised not to say something.

doberman photo credit: pato garza on flicker

It's been a while since Lorelei ended up very far from water for no other reason than events are fun. So, of course, when the opportunity presents itself, here comes flopping one very large seal to see what all the commotion is about.

While the attendants do seem eager to help Lorelei around, it does take some effort for her drag herself up the rows of seats to a spot she can sit and watch. She thanks them with one head, taking an offered piece of jerky with the other. Now situated next to the railing, the seal turns her attention to the show starting below.

"Bees? Bees," she puzzles, not exactly sure what a bee was before today. But they're all shown on the screens large enough for her to see. Not sure what I expected. A party, maybe. Bee-matchmaker wasn't exactly what Lorelei thought today had in store.

Even so, the air is infectious, and so is Nemean's showmanship. Lorelei is soon enough clapping her flippers along with the rest of the crowd's hollering.