Determined

It's been a long time yet again. I'm sorry.

Coal and Blaze not back yet, but they should be back within the week. Hooray! I haven't gotten used to his not being around. I miss him.

There is a growing sense of discontent in the Palace. Everyone can feel it, no one can pin-point why or when it started. Executions of peasants are coming at an absolutely alarming rate. Every couple of weeks someone is executed. The spies are poking into everything, in the Palace as well as the village. I've completely given up on keeping a journal, this blog is all I have now. Nothing is secret, nothing is safe.

I can't figure it out. I haven't heard any talk against the Fire Lord lately any more than I have before. Everyone respects and fears him as always. There doesn't seem to be a reason for all the sneaking around and knotting stomachs.

I must assume then that the Fire Lord is doing a remarkable job of keeping the issue secret. Something must be wrong. Unease, executions, and unexplain arrests don't just happen, there's a reason. What's going on?

I know it isn't my business.
I know I should pry into the Fire Lord's affairs.
I know these things are best left to spies and soldiers.
I know good sparktresses don't meddle in things like this.
I know I've been raised better than this.
I know.
I know.
I KNOW.

But I'm curious. Maybe that's a bad thing, maybe it's a good thing, maybe it's just a thing. But I'm going to get to the bottom of all this ridiculous strife if it kills me.

Terrible

Sorry, SAge, for not posting! *laughs* I can't believe anyone actually likes reading about my life.

I didn't have much to say until a couple of days ago, but now I think I can think up enough for a post.

Well, it's beginning to cool off a bit in Furier. I've been spending a lot more time outside; the weather does feel nice, although I still prefer summertime, and I hate to see it leave.

Unfortunately, aside from the weather, things have not been going well in the Palace at all. The Fire Lord is so on edge of late that no one dares distrurb him for anything.

The sickness that was sweeping through Furier has not gotten worse, but it hasn't gotten better either. Flicker and Firefly got it last week, so now I'm the only one who hasn't gotten it. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

*moan* I'm sorry, but this is going to be a long, complaining post, I think.

Back to the Fire Lord being on edge. I think it's still because of the rebel peasants, but that was weeks ago! The Fire Lord has never seemed this upset about peasants before. And he took care of the resistance, right? So what is there to worry about? I haven't heard anything more about peasants wanting to rebel, so he ought to just relax. No one would dare oppose him, not seriously. It would be pure suicide! And he's not that bad, really. Strict, yes, but a ruler of such a great city MUST be strict. Mustn't they?

Blaze and Coal are still in Brightwood. Reports from them come every few days. As far as I can tell from snatches of conversations and gossip, the woodland elves in Brightwood are living and acting just as they always have been. They're supposed to be very small, rosy and cheerful and not like to make trouble. I haven't actually met one before, though, so I can't tell you first hand.

I do miss Coal. And Blaze, too, although I'm not sure I've completely forgiven him for reading my diary. I hope he hasn't told Coal that I used to think I was in love with him...Anyway, not having Coal around really is just terrible. The other kachinas don't seem to understand me when I say I miss him. I miss him coming around to talk to us; I miss being able to ask him questions about what's going on, or what something means; I miss knowing that as long as he's around, nothing will get past him (he knows everything about everyone. I don't see how it's possible); I miss him chasing us off when we try to spy on him; I miss everything about him!

And I am NOT in love with him! Don't even think that!

We also have a bunch of new kachinas. *rolls eyes* Like they can ever hope to replace us! We're getting better all the time, and that's not even possible. They are terrible! They can barely do a straddle leap, and they can't even make firestrands the right way. Who in the world put them into kachina training? They will never be as good as us.

So, over all, my life is not going well. The summer is ending, the Fire Lord is in a terrible mood, Coal is gone, I just keep waiting to get sick, and we have a bunch of new little kachinas-in-training. Things can't get worse, they have to get better.

Right?

Daily Schedule

I'm sorry I haven't posted in a long time. Nothing interesting has happened. Everything has been perfectly typical every day.

But then I got to thinking: you probably don't know what a typical day for a kachina is anyway!

So, I'm going to tell you what a typical day looks like in the Palace of Furier.

5:00am: The morning bell tolls and everyone gets up. We kachinas usually just dress in our kachina costumes because the Fire Lord usually wants entertainment fairly soon after breakfast.

I also just occured to me that you might not know what kachina costumes look like. If you want to know, click the following links. Firefly might not be pleased with me for sharing the pictures. She hates the costumes; thinks they're too "revealing". They probably are, but I've known them all my life so it's hard to suddenly be ashamed of wearing them.

Links:
1. https://secure.isisexchange.com/images/03190909.jpg
2. http://www.worldtrendz.com/bellydancingoutfitspics/orange-goldbellydancingoutfit.jpg
3. http://www.security-b2b.com/b2b/pics/Belly_Dance_Costume.jpg

They are the closest things I could find. They're actually quite authentic. Hopefully you won't think badly of me for having to wear those to dance in. It's no choice of my own, believe me.

5:30am: Usually this is when breakfast is served in the main hall.

6:00am: Everyone must report to the throne room for any announcments.

6:30am: Everyone is dismissed. We kachinas usually go back to our room and try to sleep a little before kachina training/practice.

7:30am: Kachina practice. Ruthless training where we have to do things to strengthen our bodies, perfect our tecniques, become more flexible, work on our endurance, etc. etc. etc.

The Fire Lord usually calls us in to entertain him.

9:30am: Often, we go out into the city and visit various friends. Usually that's Torchess. Sometimes we just sit at her house and talk, or sometimes she makes us help with chores.

10:00am: We rush back to the Palace. Sometimes, the Fire Lord has been looking for us, and we're in a lot of trouble. If he is, we go into the throne room and the curtains are drawn over the floor-to-ceiling windows and any candles are blown out. The musicians play their eerie-sounding music, and we six kachinas dance. Sometimes we us firestrands as streams. If the Fire Lord hasn't called us, we usually go and do things with Coal or Star Dancer until he does call us in to entertain him. Usually we do thing with Coal, though. Star Dancer can be...unpleasant company.

12:00noon: The midday meal is served in the main hall.

1:00pm: Nothing happens much. Usually it takes a while to clear up and wash all the meal dishes, so sometime we help the kitchen maids with that.

2:30pm: The Fire Lord calls all the official types (guards, spies, generals, etc.) to the meeting room and they discuss peasant rebellion, surrounding kingdoms, and other boring things like that. We kachinas either go back to Torchess's house or help Star Dancer with her chores. Once we listened at the door to the meeting room, but Coal, with his uncanny ability to sense whenever we're around, came out and ran us off.

4:00pm: The Fire Lord calls us in for entertainment again.

5:30pm: We clean up for dinner, which is a very solemn occasion. The Fire Lord dines with us, and the spies are always around, making sure non of the slaves are talking rebelliously (they never are).

7:00pm: Finish with dinner. Any new announcments are made.

7:30pm: If it's a Friday, the Fire Lord's ceremony begins with announcments and then mingling time. If it isn't Friday...I actually don't know what everyone else does. We kachinas are usually called in to entertain.

9:00pm: If it's a Friday, the mingling part of the ceremony ends and the entertainment portion begins. First the village entertainers put on a show. If it isn't Friday, we finish entertaining the Fire Lord and go a large room in the far wing of the Palace where most of the slaves gather after all their work is done. We all talk and do things together like playing games. There's always at least one game of sparks (see the middle-end part of the post A Terrible Night).

10:00pm: If Friday, the kachina portion of the entertainment begins. This is everyone's favorite part if I do say so myself. If it isn't a Friday, the slaves' little gathering continues unless someone is called to the Fire Lord. Sometimes one of the spies is, or we kachinas, and often the guards come and go as they switch posts.

11:30: Friday: the ceremony ends with a drawn-out Thank You speech by the Fire Lord. If anyone has gotten in trouble over the course of the ceremony, their stomach tightens painfully in anticipation of receiving their punishment after everyone has left. Not Friday: the slaves' gatherhing disperses and everyone goes to bed.

12:00pm: Most everyone is in bed except the guards on duty, any snooping spies, and any slaves being punished. Sometimes the Fire Lord will demand entertainment at this ungodly hour as well and we'll have to stay up and dance for him.

1:00pm: The Palace is dark and quiet and filled with sleeping fire fairies, stealthy spies, and bored guards.

Then the day begins again.

I hope this wasn't too terribly boring to you! At least now you have a better grasp of what it means to be a slave in the Palace of Furier. Thank you for reading! I appreciate you all. All four of you...*smiles*