The Palace of the Cursed discussion

Found on the ground floor, this hall is massive and was once used for parties and dancing. The Cursed now use it as an area to teach the children and hold meetings.

Zibiah hesitated for a second outside the massive oak doors that lead into the Great Hall. She had been told that the older Blessed - sorry Cursed - used this hall as a place to teach. She had always loved learning, hearing the stories of her tribe, and so when she had learned about these lessons, was determined to come. Now that she was here however, she was scared. The doors suddenly started opening and Zibiah shot off to the side in fright, hiding in the shadows as the doors fully opened and a stream of younger children came out. They were all laughing and chatting and...thanking the older ones for a great lesson. So they were the teachers. There was quite a few of them and they all responded kindly to the students thanks. They seemed nice, but Zibiah was still wary. Oh, it would be so much easier if she had a friend to come here with! She probably could have asked Leah or Rosie or someone, but she wanted to do this on her own. Now she was regretting it.

Corazon was tired from staying in her dorm room and decided to do some exploring around the Palace of the Cursed. She was tired of staying cooped up in a stuffy room, and the spirit of exploring inside of her was about to implode if she didn't do anything, so she decided to go to the Great Hall. She slipped in through the shadows, aware that people could see her, but was still trying her best not to get spotted. She looked around and gaped at the amazing sight around her.

When the stream of children coming out of the hall had lessened and kids her age started to go in, she too slipped in to the hall through the large oak doors. What she saw had her gasping in awe. This room was 6x times the size of any tent! It was even bigger than the tents used during the Gathering! The oak used on the doors was also used in the floor, dark brown polished and gleaming. The room was a long rectangle with giant, evenly spaced windows of glass along the right wall. These windows were rectangles with rounded tops and opened out into the front courtyard, giving all those inside a few of the Old Palace grounds and the intricate silver front gate. The arched ceiling vaulted up into heights unheard of, the most beautiful, intricate art work painting on the ceiling for all to gaze upon. Three chandeliers hung from the ceiling, intricate crystal showing their makers talent. Overall, the Great Hall truly lived up to its name.
'This hall is beautiful. But it was also sad.' Zibiah thought to herself, gaze going back up to the chandeliers. Although the windows and floors were nice and clean, it was the chandeliers that showed the palaces true nature. Dust covered the once sparkling crystal like ash, spider webs hung from every arch and even travelled across to the skirting boards of the ceiling. When looking up, this place echoed with sad ghosts of memory. When looking down, one saw a different story. Tables and chairs, all different sizes and woods had been gathered from all over the palace and placed here in rows. Chairs scattered the room, both behind the tables in rows and at the edges of the room. A massive table sat alone at the front. It was long and rectangular and made of the same dark oak as the floor and doors. A meeting table. This was the table the teacher stood behind, facing their students with a smile. Cursed children were now trickling in through the doors, chatting to friends and finding seats with long practised ease. Many had sheets of paper and pencils, some did not. One had something that looked like a blank book. Everything goes here it seemed. The teachers didn't mind if the students brought things to take notes with. This was no school, there were no tests. This was only a place where those deprived of an education can learn.
Zibiah hesitated in the shadows of the room, wanting to go grab a seat and make friends but to shy to do that. Then she saw another girl hesitating in the shadows. She looked about the same age as Zibiah but she couldn't be sure. She couldn't even tell what animal she was! (though the girls large tail was clearly evident). Zibiah felt her Guardian push her on, encouraging her to talk to the other girl. Although she was scared, she trusted her Guardian explicitly, and so, made her way over to the girl.

Corazon noticed a girl, the same age as her, perhaps older coming over and she felt scared. She mentally scanned through the list of things she'd done, trying to figure out what she did wrong and how to come up with an excuse, or which class she failed and an excuse for that. She quickly slipped a bit further, eyes widening as she gulped nervously.

Zibiah crept closer, watching as the other girl saw her then backed away nervously. With a sigh the girl stopped, convinced that her long pointy horns had scared the other girl off (as sometimes happens). But then her Guardian gave her another nudge. Well, ok! Zibiah thought nervously, then started walking again. When she was close enough to be heard she spoke. 'Umm...hello. Sorry to bother you. I just...umm...' She stammered, brown doe eyes flicking everywhere but never looking the other girl in the eye, delicate hands nervously tugging on the odd necklace she had around her neck (a long string with a variety of things attached like stones, small bones, a tooth etc). 'I...This is my first time here...for classes I mean....and I wasn't...what I mean to say is.....' She stopped talking for a second, knowing she was letting her nerves get the better of her and probably confusing the other girl. Taking a deep, calming breath, Zibiah spoke again. 'Hi. I'm Rasha.'

"I'm Corazon." She said softly, tail swishing behind her. She was nervous to be talking to another student, and was afraid to be judged. She wanted to turn away, but knew that would only make her seem more pathetic. "So..." She started to whistle, not knowing what else to say or do.

Zibiah smiled at Corazon, seeing that the other girl was just as nervous as she was. That thought made Zibiah laugh, the sound high and pure. 'Sorry.' She said through her giggles, willing herself to calm down. 'Its just...Look at us. To nervous to even hold a proper conversation. We're both Blessed, both girls, we're probably both the same age!' Zibiah said, grinning and rolling her eyes at herself. She already knew that her nervous wary nature was something she had to get over and this conversation with Corazon, small as it was, seemed like a victory to her and it gave her courage. 'Anyway, its nice to meet you Corazon. Would you like to sit with me for class?' Zibiah asked the other girl, sounding confident but her still fiddling hands displaying her nervousness clearly.

Corazon was requiring some time to process everything that Rasha had just said. "Sure." She paused. "I'd love to sit with you in class." She liked the way that Rasha had laughed, and felt a smile form on her face, showing both her happiness and her nervous side.

Zibiah grinned happily, pleased that the other girl had agreed. And she was smiling! Win! With another smile, Zibiah grabbed the other girls hand and promptly pulled her towards the nearest vacant seats. Choosing one, she sat down, smiling up at Corazon and gesturing for her to sit down on the chair beside her. It was good to have someone to do this with.

Corazon nervously moved over and sat down, standing up directly after to tuck her tail aside. She liked having someone to sit with, it made her feel more comfortable and less lonely. She looked around, still hung up on how amazing it was.

The students were still gathering so the girls would have a little bit of time to talk before the class started. Looking over at her new companion, Zibiah could clearly see the awe on the girl's face. She herself probably looked the same. This place truly was spectacular. 'I know. Amazing, isn't it.' She said with a grin, eyes following Corazon's movements. 'The fact that this is a tent of stone is astounding enough, but its sheer size and intricacy just makes it even more awe inspiring. I wonder what those sparkly things do?' She said happily, murmuring the last bit to herself in confusion.

Corazon nodded, understanding what Zibiah meant, but not wanting to say anything. She was scared to embarrass herself, and to seem weird. "I'm not sure, the sparkly things seem just to be there for people to stare at." She said. She noticed more people coming in, and immediately shrunk in her seat.

Zibiah hummed and nodded. It was strange but Corazon's words made sense. Well, regardless of what they were used for, someone needed to clean them! Out of the corner of her eye Zibiah saw the girl shrink in her seat, as if scared. Frowning, she looked around to determine what had scared her possible friend. Then she saw the huge number of people that were coming through the doors and filling up the remaining seats. Corazon was even shyer than her, so the other girl was probably really uncomfortable. 'Hey. Don't worry about the others ok. You can stick with me! So, Corazon, your guardian spirit, what is it?' Zibiah asked as she tried to distract the other girl.

"Kangaroo." Corazon said quietly. She was glad that Zibiah was trying to help her, but was very distracted by the people that were flowing through the doors like water. She wanted to shrink into the size of a fly, but knew she was unable to. She looked at the shiny things, trying to distract herself.

'That's so cool!' Zibiah said excitedly, looking over Corazon with a more critical eye. She didn't really know much about the creature but would love to learn. 'My spirit is the Gazelle. Though, you probably already figured that out.' She said with a laugh, gesturing up to her long horns with one and rubbing the base of them self consciously with the other (kinda like one would rub the back of their neck).

Corazon grinned. "I like the Gazelle." She looked at Zibiah and her long horns and unconsciously looked down at her own tail, swishing it around. She was kind of glad that she was here, but felt kind of sad that she wasn't able to leave. "Are you scared of people judging, or are you okay with it?" She asked bluntly suddenly.

Zibiah grinned her thanks. She liked this girl. Yes, she liked her very much indeed. Corazon's blunt question had her turning more serious, taking a second to think and organise her thoughts before replying. 'No, I'm not scared.' She said slowly, but determinedly. 'I haven't been here for long, but everyone here is Blessed, same as us. We are all the same, having had similar experiences, thoughts, feelings etc. Our Blessing connects us all and thus, they are family. Family won't judge. As for the humans.....I'm not scared of them either. In my tribe, I was the only Blessed. I was surrounded by humans. But they weren't like the humans here. They were loving and kind and we walked the ancestral land together as equals. They did not judge me for being Blessed, they praised me for it. The humans here have forgotten. Forgotten their history, their past, the fact that we are not Cursed but Blessed. They are pitiful, misguided souls. I do not fear them, I fear for them. I just hope that in time, hey will remember who they were and how we were.'

"How long have you been in here for?" Corazon said, shocked at the knowledge and opinions that Zibiah had about the Blessed, humans, and everyone. She looked down at her shoes. "I'm scared. Of everyone, the scary people, I don't like that they think they're at a higher rank than us just because we're different. But if we want them to treat us like equals, shouldn't we treat them like equals?" She asked, pointing out. "Sorry for talking like that, it's just that....Why are they scared of us, yet pretending they're higher than us, better than us." Corazon had never thought about these things before, and now that all these thoughts were in her face like a rush, and she didn't know what to say, what to think, and how to keep calm.

Zibiah sighed sadly as she thought through Corazon's words. It was questions she had long asked herself and she wasn't sure if she would ever find the right answer. Still, she tried.
'They act this way both because they are scared and because they have forgotten. Many animals will lash out and attack when frightened. I believe the humans are doing the same. They are scared of us and what we can do, because things that are different frighten them. They don't know if our difference makes us a threat to them and it scares them. But they don't like to acknowledge they are scared, don't want to lose the mirage of control they have. This is what makes them act like they are better than us. If they act this way they can ignore that they are actually scared. But their actions have not just been shaped by the present, but by the past to. The way a person is, is shaped by how they were raised and children unconsciously emulate their parents. The humans now hate us because their parents hated us and their parents before them. Its all they know. Its a bad combination that creates a vicious circle. They are raised to hate and fear us and this emotion then becomes their own. Then they fear us even more and try to cover it up. Then they teach their children and it goes on and on. That's why I pity them. They are truly misguided souls and don't know how good and true humanity can be. They are drowning in their own fear. I want to remind them of who they once were and could be again, but I fear it may take a miracle to accomplish that.' Zibiah finished her impromptu speech softly, eyes turned away so Corazon could not see her tears.

Corazon looked away as well, feeling as if this subject was a little touchy for Zibiah. She didn't want to push her, or make her feel uncomfortable. She opened her mouth to say something, but she wasn't sure what to say. She thought about what Zibiah had said, but wasn't sure how to relate.

Zibiah had looked away as she tried to compose herself, willing away her tears and dark thoughts. Turning back, she noticed that the other girl was hesitant, clearly unsure of what to say or do. Taking pity on her Zibiah changed the subject. 'So!' She said brightly, smiling. 'What do you think we will be learning? How do they teach here?' She asked curiously. Truly, this way of teaching with tables and chair etc was not the way she had learnt and it was confusing but exciting.

"Well, I hope that we will learn about why we are the way we are, some history, maybe knowledge about our guardian spirits? You know, besides what we already know." Corazon said, thinking about it. She had never been asked this question and was unsure what to say, but come to think of it, she had never thought of things like this. "I think their teaching will probably be different to the human society."

Zibiah laughed, the sound ringing like a bell. 'I meant for todays lesson silly! Whilst I'm sure their teaching style will be very different, I doubt the elders can teach us all that in a day!' The girl teased, her smile and sparkling eyes making sure Corazon knew she was only teasing. 'I really hope its not math! I am hopeless at it.' Zibiah groaned dramatically.

Corazon grinned. "I'm not good at math either, don't worry. If it's math, we can suffer together." She joked, smiling. She liked the way that Zibiah's laugh sounded. "I'm not really good at history either, but I like to learn new things everyday." She paused awkwardly, unsure what to say next. "What's your favourite subject?" She asked Zibiah.

Zibiah just laughed again, grin wide and eyes sparkling with mirth. She was pleased that the other girl now felt comfortable enough around her to joke (she was also pleased she wouldn't suffer alone but lets not go into that).
The girl unconsciously started fiddling with her necklace while she thought of the best way to answer Corazon. 'I guess.....I'm like you. I love to learn new things regardless of the subject. However, if I HAD to chose I think my favourite would be....what do you call it?.....Geography. I think that's the word.' She said with a nod, memories of lessons with her Ugogo and Umama filling her head and making her smile. 'Though the way I was taught combined history and geography, for everything has a past that shapes the present and so to understand the present one must know the past.'

Corazon grinned, understanding what Zibiah meant, and what she liked about learning about Geography. She nodded. "Well, what do you think about Language subjects?" She asked. She didn't really like language subjects as she knew how to speak some, and found the teaching way extremely painful. She didn't enjoy any of it, but she was ready to respect Zibiah's different opinion.

'I like languages!' Zibiah said, eyes flicking around to the other students and wondering how many of them knew other languages. Most places in Keras had their own languages and local dialects, but most everyone learnt Common at a young age so everyone could converse regardless of where you came from. Though some parents had stopped teaching their children local languages and instead just stuck to Common so many languages were now under threat of disappearing for good. 'They are a pain to learn at times I know, and a lot of people just stick to Common, but being able to talk to people in their native tongue is fun. What about you? Do you like languages? Do you know any other than Common?' The girl asked curiously.

"I like speaking in other languages. The only problem is that I only know some of my native tongue, and besides Common, I don't know anything else." Corazon replied. She didn't know what else to say and felt incredibly awkward. She respected Zibiah's opinions, but she didn't like talking about languages away from class. She looked back down at her tail nervously.

'Hey, don't worry about it.' Zibiah said, nudging the other girl gently on the shoulder when she saw her nerves flair up again. 'I only know my native tongue, Common and bits of Veninian.' She said, then suddenly an idea popped into her head, making her smile in hopeful excitement. 'I know! How I about I teach you my language!'

"Really? Are you sure?" Corazon asked happily, looking up from her tail and at Zibiah once again, feeling Zibiah's hand on her shoulder. She was excited to have someone willing to teach her something, especially their native tongue. She didn't want to sound selfish and unwilling, so she replied "I would love to!" as she smiled happily.

'Kuhle kakhulu!' Zibiah replied, grinning widely, excitement making her bounce a little in her seat. 'Now, I've never taught anyone before so if you don't understand, just tell me and I'll change how I explain it. Oh, this is so exciting!' She said, wanting to run and spin and laugh to use up her energy but knowing that class would start soon so she couldn't. 'When do you want to start?' She asked, wondering if Corazon would like to start after this class.

"Probably after this class." Corazon replied. She was almost as excited as Zibiah, as she was extremely ecstatic about boosting her language knowledge. She really wanted to know more about ZIbiah, and learning something as important to her as her language would help her understand and know her new friend better. And after this class would be the perfect time to learn something beneficial.

'Yay! After class it is! Would you like to do it somewhere like the library or the gardens or what?' Zibiah said happily, already mentally thinking of different ways to teach her new friend.

"I prefer the fresh air in the gardens, but I love the library..." Corazon was having a hard time thinking about where she wanted to learn this new, mystical language in Zibiah's inventory.

'Gardens it is then!' Zibiah said happily. She preferred the gardens anyway, especially for learning. 'It will be easier to teach you there anyway. Ugogo always said that a language is like a great solitary tree, its roots run deep in the land and to know the language is to know the land and vice versa. You cannot have one without the other.'

"Well, thanks for considering how well you can teach me." Corazon smiled. She was happy that she had a friend that considered everything down to the tiniest details, just to teach her a new, mystical language. She didn't really understand everything about learning, but she was excited.

Zibiah giggled, then nodded, pulling her new friend into a quick one armed hug before letting go and turning to the front as the teacher called for quiet. Their first lesson had begun.

((I wasn't really sure where to go from here so I just ended it. Do you want to go straight to their lesson in the garden or actually end end the rp? I don't mind either way - though I don't actually know Zulu or how to teach so this will be interesting... Or we could introduce Zibiah to another one of your charries))

((Well, another charrie seems fine. The garden lesson could be later after you get a better understanding, maybe?))

((What?! I can't learn Zulu! I've been doing individual words via Google Translate!))

((Well then, an rp now won't hurt :) ))

((Sure! You have another charrie right?))

((Yeah, but she's kinda in an rp with LJF right now...))

((That's all good! When she is free message me and we can start an rp!))

((K :) ))