The World of Shannon Hale discussion

Welcome to RP! If you haven't created your character please do so on the charrie's page. For those unfamiliar with the topic/setting, let me explain.

It begins on Mount Eskel. It's a few generations after the time of Princess Academy and the capitol is restricting Mount Eskel's freedoms more and more. The improvments that Stephan and Britta had done for Mt. Eskel have gone. The new king has Mt. Eskel tightly in his grasp and continues to tighten the noose. The quarry is now part of the tax, they make no money from it (did they before?)The traders, do not visit anymore, for their goods are for the capitol. childlren are forced to go to school till the age of 16, thus, the quarry workers have more work to fill the tax every month. The studies that were taught in Princess Academy, are now part of regular school.

When a new kind of Linder is discovered, the people of Mount Eskel keep if a secret. Maybe if it stays undiscovered by Danland, they can find a way to profit, without having more added to the tax. Things change drastically when the prince of Danland has been told that his bride will be found on Mount Eskel, and he comes to choose his bride.

(Sound good? I tried to compile to info from the ideas page into one. What do you think?)

((I thought there wasn't going to be another Academy?))

((yeah, thats what I thought we decided too.....BTW, i changed the name of the RP to fit better. Revolution on Danland doesn't really work. :) hahaha))

((And I don't think that Britta would just stand by and let Mt. Eskel be abused. Someone new must've come into power.))

(It's a few generations after PA. So she's dead. It's her descendants)

((Okeydokey. Musta misread it))

((lolz, yeah. it's in my suggestions for this RP's plot, RP))

((:P))

((^_^))

((so are we good to go?))

((Yessiree))

Kirsa woke up at dawn, batting her brother away. He stopped nudging her and spoke. "Kirsa, it's time to wake up." She sat up and stretched, shoving her blankets off. "Obviously, or else you wouldn't be waking me up."

Rein smiled at her, knowing that she was joking. "Well, if you actually woke up in the morning, I wouldn't have to."

(do you guys freak out if we play your character a smidge?)

Suddenly, a tap on their window. "Kirsa! You up yet?" Karri called to her friend.

Eric felt disdain cross his face. This was where he was to spend the next year? This rock pile? "I won't last a week in this place," Eric muttered to himself. He looked at one of the dirt mountain dwellers and sniffed. 'At least I'm here for a good reason,' he thought to himself. It helped a bit, but not much. Not much at all.

Kirsa grimaced. Another wake up up call. But it was from her friend, so it was okay. "Yes! Come in!" She scrambled off of her pea-shuck matress and opened the door for Karri. "I was just about to start breakfast." Kirsa went over to her stores, getting out some wheat porridge and bread and goat cheese.

Rein rolled his eyes. "Yes, you were thinking throught your dreams, "Oh, I should get up and start cooking. I'll just wait for my brother." She punched him lightly on the arm before returning to her cooking.

Dagur popped his head in. "Morning." Rein greeted him back and waved him in.

Sienna yawned as she sat on the hill, watching the sun rise. She sat up and walked over to Kirsa's house, where her twin Dagur and Karri were already, talking to Kirsa and Rein.

Kirsa looked up at the doorway as Sienna entered. She smiled shyly, "Morning Sienna." By then, the little house was crowded with Rein and Kirsa's friends. It was surprising to her how she and him could have this many friends, since they were one of the more reserved villagers on Eskel.

"Grab a seat around the table, you all," Rein insisted. They had a fairly large table. At one point, the house had held ,any people. But now it was only Rein, Kirsa and their aunt, who had already went out to the quarry.

Dagur took a chair and sat on it, feeling very much at home. "Morning sis."

"Morning Kirsa, Morning bro," Sienna replied, taking a seat next to Dagur.

"I'm making some breakfast. Want some?"

Dagur fiddled with the linder sculpture in the middle of the table. It was the old kind, with green veins streaking the white surface of the stone. It was shaped like a tree, which appeared to be done effortlessly, even though he knew it must have taken some care.

"Is this new?" Kirsa nodded, "Yep, finished it last night."

"Sure," Sienna smiled gratefully. Her father had just left a hunk of goat cheese out on the counter and she had decided to leave that for her mother.
"It's beautiful. It's almost like.....it's alive. You have a gift."

((i thought the NEW kind was the green streaks.....))

((Nah. Green streaks already happened, I believe.))

"Thank you," Kirsa responded. she then put out the food for everyone to eat and joined her brother at the table.

((I forgot their ages XD))

Eric looked around the quiet little village. He thought that the mountain people were early risers. He shrugged, yawned, and walked around the town. Peeking in through the windows of different houses. One particular house was quite full. There were four or five people his own age sitting around a crude table, eating plain bread with bad smelling cheese. 'I wonder what they are like.' Eric thought to himself and then he pushed the thought out of his head. They were probably vulgar and plain.

Kirsa looked through the window and saw Eric. She had only glimpsed him earlier, when he first came to the village, and never paid any mind.

She averted her eyes out of courtesy. "Rein, do we have enough food for one more?" He shrugged, "Looks like it to me." He was about to ask why, but she was suddenly at the door, talking to someone.

Kirsa waved at Eric. "Are you hungry?"

Karri walked over to Kirsa, "Need some help? I've eaten, but I will help you." She offered. "I can not wait till I'm sixteen in 10 days! I'll be out of that stupid school and able to work with you guys in the Quarry. School stinks. I'm glad Sienna is still with me."

Rein's eyebrow twitched. "Gee, thanks Karri."

((oh yeah! the new linder is.......dark green- and more then just streaks.........any one against that?))

Sienna laughed lightly, "It's not that bad. Some of the subjects are worth learning. Just, all the things we have to learn about the stupid capitol. I mean did you guys realize that we actually used to have freedom? And almost no one went to school. We started going to school after a stupid lowlander tradition of a 'Princess Academy' in one of the Danland provinces when it was chosen to be here on Mount Eskel several generations ago when King Stefan chose Queen Britta....." She trailed off, knowing that the others probably weren't interested.

Eric listened to the chattering inside. No one could see him, he made sure of that, but he could hear their conversation. He remembered that Queen Britta actually had been lowlander and not from the mountain. Stefan and Britta had ruled with peace, Danland had prospered, it had been interesting to see the mountainers interacting with the nobles. All it did in Eric's family was prove to his grandfather that the Eskel people were rough and uncouth. Something that Eric was more and more sure of every moment he spent in the town.

Kirsa frowned when Eric didn't respond and disappeared. "You must not be hungry, then." She returned inside and rejoined the conversation.

Rein crossed his arms contentedly, "At least someone pays attention."

Sienna smiled at Rein, grateful that someone appreciated her knowledge. "Eric is unsocial....." she said thoughtfully before realizing she had said it aloud.

Kirsa didn't want to agree, but she found herself nodding. "He must not like it here." Rein shrugged. "Lowlanders don't normally like the mountains. Not enough plats, I guess." Neither of them admitted that they also saw the mountain people as uncouth and lowly.

Dagur nudged his twin, raising an eyebrow. "Feeling a little off topic, sis?"

Eric suddenly realized that someone had been speaking to him. He hadn't noticed before, he wasn't sure how he had missed it. Back home, in the capitol, his tutors were always after him for his lack of attention. Eric weighed his two options. He could apologize and eat with the mountainers, or he could keep to himself. He chose the latter.

Eira had gotten up at dawn and gone out to tend to the goats. Now, she was walking through a brown meadow, watching the goats graze. The herd was smaller than it usually was this time of year. Times are geting harder. But if I was younger and still had to go to school, things would be even worse. Eira sighed. "If it weren't for you guys, I would have be in the quarry far more than I am now." One goat looked at her and she chuckled. "Look at me, talking to goats. People would think I'm crazy."

Sienna blushed, "He's just not making any effort, but I guess I can see why he would't want to....." She ate her breakfast and stared out the window hoping that she would't say anything else that would remind her of her mother's accident.

Dagur knew what Sienna was thinking and decided to (sort of) change the subject. "I kind of wish that I could work in the quarry more. It's nice out today." Kirsa nodded and even Rein, who was more of an academic, found himself agreeing. "It's not too cold, not to warm," Kirsa commented.

Sienna didn't say anything, lost in her thoughts, even though this was her favorite kind of day. She stared out the window at the mostly clear blue sky that was still tinged with pink and orange as the sun sat on the horizon, not fully awake yet.

Kirsa got up to get the water pitcher and brought it back to the table.

Eira sat down by a tree. She counted the goats in her head, and then again. She frowned. One goat was missing. It must have wandered off. She stood again and started to look around. She clucked her tongue because her goats usually come to that. The other goats gathered closer and Eira counted again. Still one missing. She sighed and led the goats back to their enclosure near her house. "Now you stay here while I find your friend." She closed the gate and walked back to where the goats had been, along with a pice of rope.

After a few minutes, Eira found the lost goat and brought it back to the pen near the house. "Now don't you go wandering off again." She said to the goat as she shut the gate. She walked inside the house and combed out her hair with a simple wood comb. She sighed and put her hair in one braid down her back. Eira walked out the door to go down to the town before she had to work at the quarry.

Eric wandered down to the quarry, trying to decide if it was worth it to help. They all shot him annoyed glances as if he hadn't understood what the other one was saying. It was like they were talking to each other silently. He supposed that if he didn't go, no one would miss him. Even if he tried to help, he never was thanked or anything. 'Ungrateful mountainers...'

Eira arrived at the quarry. She looked around at the place she knew so regrettably well. Everything was the same except there was a boy who stood out. She slightly recognized him. He was the one who couldn't do the quarry work right? She walked over to him. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Eric jumped back, startled. "Err, umm, I am just seeing if anyone needs help." His surprise making him drop his high-lowlander way of speech. It made him seem like a young mountain boy, same as everyone else. Eric cursed inside of himself. He was stammering like a silly peasant. Yet... It had felt so good to have someone speak to him.

Eira raised her eyebrow. "You don't already work at the quarry? How old are you?"

"Eighteen," he said stiffly. "I was just sent to the mountain a week ago. I'm from the Capitol."

Eira nodded slowly. "Now what is a lowlander doing on the mountain?"

Kirsa looked outside at the sky. "We should get to the quarry. The sun's almost completely up."

Eric looked around the quarry uneasily. Luckily, he had learned long ago not to show his uncertainty. His father had trained him well. Almost too well. He walked over to one of the older men, approaching cautiously, but with the look of a comfortable, cocky, young man. "Can I do anything?"

Sienna nodded, "And we should get to the school."

"Yeah. another LONG day." Karri said. Rising and following Sienna to the door. "See you all later!" Karrie and Sienna leave and a couple minutes later walk into school.

Standing by Miss Helga( the teacher, how would they address her?) is a regal looking man, with the crest of the Capitol.

"Why would there be someone from the capitol at school?" Karri whispers to Sienna as they take their place behind the rough wooden tables, or desks.