EVENT #1: FAE FESTIVITIES

[diceofthegods]

INTO THE WOODS

Click Clock Wood (Spring) by Grant Kirkhope

2:05 / 4:59

▶︎

Click here to listen.

Grant Kirkhope is a Scottish composer and voice actor for video games and film. Some of his notable works include GoldenEye 007, Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64, and Perfect Dark, among many others.

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After making your way through the tiny farming town of Ich and out towards the rim of a massive raised crater, you will find yourself being led through a narrow split in the canyon wall. Inside, glow worms cling to the ceiling and create the illusion of a thousand twinkling stars above the moistened rocks.

When you finally emerge, it is into an impossibly lush landscape of massive, redwood-sized tangling trees and a soft moss carpet. Life abounds here. It feels like an oasis of birdsong and animal activity.

A short walk leads you to the prepared party-grounds. A large clearing with quaint huts all around decorated with strange flowers for partygoers to rest or otherwise entertain themselves.

There appear to be several games and stalls set up, the sweet and savory scents of delicious food fills the air, and so do the patrons of the forest. Seemingly hundreds of Fae folk zip around and greet the newcomers excitedly by placing garlands of vines and crowns of flowers atop their heads.

Glowing flowers and toadstools light your way here. It also seems that even the animals get in on the festivities! Really, just about everything talks here. Almost everything, anyways! Talking to a tree stump might not yield many results but you're welcome to try.

Each entrant is also provided upon arrival a copy of The Rules. A rolled parchment that resists water or any other damage. It also prevents you from writing on it so you can't just do what you want.

The rules read as follows:

DO:
⁂ Accept gifts from the Fae.
⁂ Sample the food provided at the party ONLY.
⁂ Play games with the Fae.
⁂ Feel at ease to rest in the provided huts.
⁂ Keep tabs on your shadow lest it wander.
DO NOT:
⁂ Make a TRADE with the Fae.
⁂ Provide any personal items as gifts or otherwise to the Fae.
⁂ Provide your true name to the Fae.
⁂ Wander away from the designated party area.
⁂ Ascend any staircases you find in the woods.
OTHER ITEMS TO NOTE:
⁂ If you see an old woman hiking through the area, feel free to stop her and lie to her. The more brazen and obvious the lie the better. She appreciates this!

GAMES & ENTERTAINMENT

Amongst the games and attractions are a variety of fun possibilities!

GAMES

⁂ Battleship! (Fae Style!) A number of Fae will be hiding on a large grid of flowers. You guess the locations and if you are correct then you will win a small prize! It is a cup of nectar that refills endlessly, and numbs any pains you may have. This works even outside of the forest and can be taken home.

Every time you miss though, you receive a small 'curse.' Nothing harmful! Maybe you’re just rotating in place for the next hour, your ears become daisies, or you grow a tree out of your head? (Feel free to come up with your own silly ideas!) All of the curses will dissipate after a time or upon leaving the forest and none will do any harm or cause pain. The Fae are all about fun tricks, not hurting anyone!

⁂ Dress Up Darlings! You enter a booth and allow the Fae to decide your outfit! Upon the agreement that you'll wear it the rest of the party, of course, no matter how silly or ridiculous it is.

⁂ Bobbing For Onions! Yes, you read that right. Bobbing for onions. There are onions floating around... in water. You have to catch them with your teeth. The prize for success is a Bag of Onions. This bag never runs out of onions. They are always fresh and always onions. Not always the same kind of onion, but always onions nonetheless. This bag works outside of the forest and can be taken home.

⁂ What's In The Box? There is a box. There is something in it. Maybe it's frogs. Maybe it's slugs. Possibly bugs? Maybe apples. We don’t know. Stick your hand in the box and take a guess at what you’re touching! If you’re right, you win the contents of the box!

We'll let players decide via coin flip, rolls, or however they want if their guess is correct! Any items won though will be common, every day items like mentioned and nothing especially exciting. Unless you're really into frogs. Then it's your lucky day, apparently!

ENTERTAINMENT

⁂ Slayd & The Possums! Slayd is here and he’s throwing down the banjo tunes with his possum pals. Feel free to join him if you are musically inclined! The Fae will provide any instrument your heart desires! They can't grant you the ability to play it though if you don't know how.

⁂ The Crowning of the King of Misrule! Randomly chosen by the Fae, enter a lottery to be chosen as the King of Misrule for the evening. You will be dressed in a stupid outfit and granted Fae wings for the night! You also have the insatiable urge to play harmless pranks on people. The Fae will also give you a "Special Gift" at the end of the party...

FOR THE FOOLISH

Ahh, but there are rule breakers amongst us aren't there? If you choose to sneak away from the party, chances are nobody will stop you; however, you are now on your own in the Talahee Forest.

FIRST LAYER

Rak'tika Greatwood Theme ( Civilizations ) by Masayoshi Soken

4:34 / 5:15

▶︎

Click here to listen.

"Civilizations" prominently features a female vocalist. The lyrics are in the Ronkan language, and has not been officially translated.

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The first layer of the forest is very much similar to what you have already seen. Everything is coated in a thick mat of moss and trees wind away like a massive birds nest to form the canopy above. The faint sounds of animals can still be heard. Up here, you may encounter Fae who did not attend the party. They'll ask you your name and other personal details.

Best that you lie.

SECOND LAYER

Click Clock Wood (Autumn) by Grant Kirkhope

1:12 / 4:11

▶︎

Click here to listen.

Grant Kirkhope is a Scottish composer and voice actor for video games and film. Some of his notable works include GoldenEye 007, Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64, and Perfect Dark, among many others.

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The further in that you head, the darker the forest gets. It seems you are following a downward slope. The trees get bigger here, as do the insects and toadstools. Bioluminescence rules down here it seems. You may encounter stranger creatures here. Ones that will try to make very tempting trades for your personal belongings. Things that will seem like an amazing deal to you. They offer magical items of great power, or even personal effects from home.

Don't be fooled though. These objects are cursed, and are not at all what they seem. You have the distinct feeling of being watched at all times here.

⁂ Possible Encounters: Owlbear, Displacer Beast, Giant Badger

THIRD LAYER

Saint Mocianne's Arboretum (Hard) by Masayoshi Soken

2:50 / 5:10

▶︎

Click here to listen.

...hordes of aggressive plant life exposed to the strange substance stand between you and the information you seek.

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Are you getting smaller or is everything else getting bigger? Were Slayd here, he would have told you about the concept of Deep Forest Gigantism. The deeper you go - just like the ocean - the larger that the flora and fauna get.

You are dwarfed by the mushrooms here in the pitch darkness and only guided by the latent glow of the creatures and fungi that dwell here. Bugs the size of house-cats skitter in your wake. Are you sure you want to be here? Should you encounter anything larger, you’d best stay silent. Or run!

⁂ Possible Encounters: Giant predatory Elk (RUN), Rodents of Unusual Size, Extra Large Bugs

FOURTH LAYER

Poison Tree by Grouper

0:30 / 3:16

▶︎

Click here to listen.

'Poison Tree' is a meditation on the complexities of anger and the internal conflict it causes. It draws inspiration from William Blake's poem of the same name.

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The trees seem to clear out here as you reach the bottom of the forest. There is no light here so hope you brought a match. The landscape down here is a blanket of moss dotted with countless shallow pools. Looking into one of these pools, you will see your reflection... though it may look different in some way.

You will feel extremely compelled to reach down and touch the reflection in the water. Should you give in, you feel as though your world is turning upside down. You could receive memories not quite your own. Memories of a different version of you, even! (CRAU, Canon Update, or Canon AU!)

Yet, you will be experiencing them as your own. A long time could pass in your mind while only seconds have only elapsed in reality. Upon waking, you will find that you have been ejected from the party and the forest entirely. You find yourself at the entrance to the crater. Disoriented, and compelled not to re-enter, you have only yourself to blame as you must shamble your way home with this burdensome knowledge.

Notes

⁂ For the game prizes, we're using the honor system here! So long as you clear the roll then you can receive a prize with no mod permission needed.

- Battleship: If you roll a d20 above a 13, you can receive one of the nectar cups.
- Bobbing For Onions: If you roll a d20 above a 10, you can receive one of the bag of onions. En...joy...?

⁂ To sign up for The Crowning of the King of Misrule, comment here! We'll RNG the winner likely within a few days to a week to give folks time to participate if they want!

⁂ The plotting post for this event/November is up!

⁂ Additionally, we have a state of the game post available to people read about updates, clarifications, and a poll to participate in!

⁂ If you have any further questions or feedback about this event specifically, please comment here!

⁂ Full Navigation ⁂

Comments

I'll wait for both seph and angeal to reply and assume that'll be the thread order!

[amaratha]

Hey- you better come back!

[As insistent as she'd sounded, Absinthe is not so anxious to be staring a stranger every second. Or maybe she's just too easily distracted when it's not her life on the line (she knows how to break falls, she probably won't die from this). Regardless of the reason, when Angeal returns with Sephiroth they will find Absinthe having found her way to one of the trees, and in the middle of trying to do some mid-air flips using a branch as a pushing off-point.]

Eyuh-!!

[She begins to spin, to claps and cheers from the pixies watching (there is no longer any ongoing Battleship game), being like a shirt in a washing machine for a short distance until she smacks into another branch. The impact finally breaks her out of it and she grabs onto the branch with both arms like a man pulled out of a river. Or a washing machine.]

….. you're back…!!!

[Not gonna lie, she may not have the common sense to doubt a plan like “we'll fish you down”. She's just happy people are here to help.]

[snapp_crackle]

Having stupid petty arguments with your peers is good for social development and gets you used to using rhetoric and standing up for your beliefs in a low-stakes environment. None of this is occurring to Popp, of course.

He does notice that Sephiroth is getting engaged in the argument and this means that he's paying attention to him, which he's on some level happy about because he... likes... attention... but also he's still in a real snit about the whole premise of the argument out of his pride as a mage.

"Oh yeah? If you think using magic to bake is so easy, why don't you try it?!"

[avanture_time]

Avan's face twists into a comical grimace as his shoulders slump. "You're not supposed to eat large quantities of any of it." Large quantities overall, sure, yeah, we're both growing boys here, but not of any one thing!

[snapp_crackle]

Drawing attention to her chest makes him look down at it on reflex, realize that right, there are all these weird scales, better look at her face, oh no she's upset... He's not on his mental A-game at any point that he is around Rosie and this is worse than usual.

"I get it, but you shouldn't be alone by yourself out here!" Case in point, he would have loved to sound kind of suave here instead of frantic. "There could be bears, or man-faced trees, or anything - I couldn't live with myself if you got eaten and I could've done something about it!"

[hammerbearer]

"I guess it's not been bad exactly. But I still keep thinking the other foot's going to drop." She can't help it. There are good stories and bad stories. But maybe, maybe she's being a little unkind to keep it up. As long as they stay in the grounds of the festival anyway.

Gaia pauses with a stick of meat that isn't fried on the way to her mouth. "A what? What's a twinkie?" Battered and deep fried seems a bit much for anything; the piece she has is definitely a grilled skewer of some type which after a brief scan for hints of anything suspicious, she takes a bite out of. It's good so she'll eat some more.

"I did win a bag of onions. And that cup of nectar on the ship battle game." She was lucky on the latter and just doesn't want to talk about the first. But said prizes are stored near her napping spot.

"I don't think I trust the pixies to dress me up. I'd probably never escape if I let them arrange my hair like they want." The crown of autumn flowers is set aside for now but it's probably still in a basic braid from the onion bobbing incident.

Dancing. This earns a nose wrinkle. "Not really my thing. But if you want to try and need a partner I guess I could do it for a little." It's clear that she's only offering because the other teen himself seems to be... well, lacking in experiences. It's been a bit clear to her as their meetups became a staple of this new life.

"The games and such, they're what people generally like at a festival. Fun is really subjective though."

[hammerbearer]

Five Ascians? Really? Or that's what she's going to assume Elidibus implies here. While she's gotten somewhat accustomed to the fact that there are several here- okay she met two before Elidibus. But what a two to meet- it doesn't mean she's completely free of the suspicions that they're actively a part of what's going on.

Though it's also in her mind that they may have been swept up in this. And one told her he'd already died.

"Etheirys?" Another familiar term, maybe. There's uncertainty there for a moment before Gaia shakes it off by actually shaking her head and looking a bit cross. "I don't know that name." ....She sounds like she's telling herself that. Firmly.

"Then... Just so you know, whatever you might think of me, my name is Gaia."

...It's funny really, that she doesn't seem to realize that name might have significance to some of them too. She probably should after a bit of thought about where that name had been given to her.

[zodiheart]

She seems shocked by the number of his people here. More and more he is beginning to suspect that she is someone who hails from their own home - and her given name causes that assumption to gain a bit of merit. He does not know of her specifically, however. Perhaps that will become rectified soon.

He does so enjoy making new friends.

"Etheirys, yes," he nods, "the name my people called our Star prior to its sundering. To my knowledge, others have taken to using that name once they learned this information. The word means 'star' in our language." He is going to speak as if she knows what he's talking about. If she does not, he can always answer her questions later.

She did not ask, but he's going to say so regardless. "To my knowledge, two of our number in this world were taken from when the world was whole, and an additional individual taken directly from the aetherial sea - having been released from his slumber within Zodiark to his rest."

And, now, a certain point...

"Your name is yours, I would not think to call you another."

[hammerbearer]

The Star. Sundering. These don't seem unfamiliar terms. It meant star.... fitting, really. Gaia listens though her gaze narrows suspiciously when Elidibus claims that not all the 'Ascians' are from the time when they would be or rightly could be called as such.

But... isn't it possible? Other worlds exist, she knew that even before coming here. Why not other times as well? But after the man before her agrees to call her by nothing more than the name she game, Gaia is willing to relax a little bit. Talking seems to be the only thing that is wanted here. So she can talk.

"...Sometimes," she offers. "There were some people I knew that would refer to my world as the First. Though really, you might as well have called it Novrandt, for all that was left of it after the Flood."

That look cast at Elidibus which she follows it up with suggests she knows just why Floods were a thing.

[snapp_crackle]

Someone who grew up in a city or even a good town probably would know this and know why. Popp's generally had the good fortune to be traveling either with a rich man who cooks as a hobby or with an actual princess who's willing to cover meals. Free food definitely is the best but he might have missed out on some street smarts.

"Because... they offload all the worst ingredients on what they're giving away so they can write it off on taxes?"

His dad would not skimp on his own products out of principle and especially not in a community where your business relies on word of mouth, but he sure does tend to grumble about other people. Sometimes the people he complains about are not even his son.

[snapp_crackle]

Heh heh, praise is almost as good as the cool magic item he won. He'd love to hear more of it, honestly, but how's he going to show off next?

Dancing is right out with the various extra growths, he might have been playing it up for the audience but the initial slipup was very much an accident he turned into an opportunity.

"I'm feeling pretty good about my luck and my wits right now. I'm going to check out those boxes - there might be something really good in one of them just waiting to turn up."

His grin hasn't lost its sly edge from his cunning victory but something about it gets a little slyer. Elidibus likes novelty, right? And he gets the impression he likes a challenge because that's also got to be a novelty at this point.

"You should give it a shot too, maybe they've got something you won't be able to guess even with a hundred thousand years experience in touching stuff."

[miniroth]

"Magic isn't real."

He says it as if it's a fact, not a hypothetical, not a guess. If earlier statements rankled Popp's pride as a mage.. "If it abides by studyable, enforceable laws, with outcomes that can be predicted based on those observations, then it's not 'magic'. If it cannot be studied, observed and acted upon ... it doesn't exist."

A final bun is snatched off the plate, held in his gloved palm. Wind of all things begins to gather in thin delicate nearly tangible wisps of air, swirling in a tight enough circle to lift the bun unsteadily off his palm in a tiny, tiny tornado. "This is science, as understandable and predictable as the nuclear fusion of the stars."

The currently steak-flavored bun bobbles in place, delicious and savory. It's not easy to keep it in one spot with an aero spell.

[relativefugue]

"Least we can agree on that," Cloud says flatly with a light shake of the head. His nose wrinkles at the comment to not damage things, but the merc manages to hold his tongue. He's already seen how far arguing with the kid gets the both of them, and with how exhausted he is by the party, he's trying to be selective with what he goes in on.

Trying, at least. So he listens further. Sure, the part about Ich needing the peace makes enough sense. Even if Cloud naturally bristles at the feeling of being once again schooled by a miniature Sephiroth.

"Yeah. Not gonna give them problems."

But...Now what? Storm off? Or...? He has to keep reminding himself Sephiroth is young. Also, that this Sephiroth is likely going through some serious things.

Cloud allows silence to hang in the air for a few moments, before mumbling:

"Find anything not worth pissing off so far?"

[firsteditionbfs]

Okay, so, he has a couple of questions on the whole weather thing. That doesn't seem exactly normal, but he's not sure if that has to do with the dragon, or the fae, or just really weird coincidence.

However, they're honestly questions that can wait a minute. They're unimportant side chatter compared to what he's really here for.

"Local style, huh?" he says casually, almost enough that maybe she might think he hasn't cotton'd onto her lying. "The local style of avoiding anyone seeing whatever changes might be hitting you from becoming a dragon?"

Even if he didn't know her, Angeal thinks he could cotton onto that lie... but that might just be because he does know her. Whatever. Doesn't matter.

[firsteditionbfs]

She can look as monstrous as she likes, but Angeal figures they've done nothing really wrong. And he has some bullshit plans in place if she tries to confront him on it. As it is, however, he just flashes back a simple wink over his shoulder.

Fuck off.

As it is, however, things almost go well for about two minutes - which is longer than he really thought he'd get with Cloud. He knew the waist grab would throw the guy off-guard. This is just way more off-guard than he would have thought. He'll have to drop this little bit of information for Genesis... and maybe the Sephiroth he's dating, although he's not sure how inclined he will be to this sort of thing just because of the history going on here.

You never know, however.

"I mean, I probably don't qualify for a professional title as much," Angeal says, when Cloud's brain finally stutters into functioning order again. He's not leaving the waist-grab, Angeal mentally notes. "But I do know my way around one. Had a pretty good set-up before I was in here, however. Was working on a new sword for myself with a couple of different ideas from different problem thinkers."

He says, fondly. At least of Themis. Dirk Strider is... That was a whole thing, they probably shouldn't worry about it.

"What, you want me to show you proof?"

[firsteditionbfs]

that sure says something about the kind of life that Popp has lived here. Still, Angeal can't wholly say that's wrong for some...

"I mean, that's one way to do it." He shrugs, looking over the spread to decide on his next sample. "But some don't even get to the taxes part. It's far cheaper to get subpar or even bad food, and somehow still make a profit. And that's just the more honest bad goal behind some free food."

It gets worse? But of course.

"Depending on where you are, the food might be drugged."

[miniroth]

There are indeed profoundly upsetting things going on, but one of them at least is comparatively minor compared to the rest of his life.

Things like the noise levels and the lack of fun are low scale and more easily adapted to, or run away from. In this case walked away from. "There's occasionally others out here. They may be fae but they're not pixies. They seem nice. Very inquisitive."

Uncomfortably so in fact, to the point where he'd balked not out of suspicion but dislike of social interaction of any stripe.

At least if nothing else Cloud did not seem intent on causing problems for the forest, its rulers, or the unfortunate little town outside. "..When Slayd said there would be entertainment," he adds, slowly, "I expected something other than ... dancing, or humiliating oneself in public attempting to bite an onion." There were countless other games and all of them were the same tier of obviously meant to be laughed at, not with. "They could have worked in at least one more combat oriented challenge, that would have been more fun."

[miniroth]

What IS a twinkie? That's a good question. "I don't know. Something very sweet." It was a mistake and he is never eating another one if he recognizes it in time. If the other shoe was going to drop, at least he had a weapon! .. He always had a weapon though, that was just the way he did things. "It could be the problems will be afterward. And that little town outside punished or rewarded depending on how we measured up to unknown standards."

He didn't bring anything he hadn't tried yet and found it all reasonably agreeable, if a bit odd in some examples. "Oh, I won the cup too." They'll have to compare cups. There were so many designs. "I'm surprised you tried the onion thing. It looks ridiculous."

Not that he was much invested in his cup but it might be kept at her house regardless so knowing which is which is good. Any mention of a dance gets a quick negative head-shake; he absolutely does NOT want to, even if certain other people seemed to enjoy it.

"I.. suppose I don't have a lot of experience with fun," he agrees reluctantly. "Maybe all of this is well liked and familiar to most people." Just not himself. "But why would people think it's entertaining to be mocked by the pixies and their bigger cousins all the time? There should be some tests of actual skill."

[firsteditionbfs]

For a brief second, just on the words, one could think that Byleth is simply calling his name. That the two of them, extremely social in their own ways, are familiar with one another.

But he learned, a while ago, to pick up the little tells in Byleth. To pick up on what things are different, what word choice might mean something.

The way they look at each other.

Even before Byleth tries to sit up, Angeal is already kneeling down besides him, and his hands gently catch at his shoulders when the attempt goes poorly. "What - since when did that happen? Well, I can imagine that," he amends, keeping his voice low and quiet as to not distress Byleth. "But... How, I guess, is the better question."

[relativefugue]

...Fair enough. The weird guy in the chocobo suit has a point about this place being ridiculous.

Still...

The hissing creature takes a step closer towards the pair. Cloud turns back towards it with laser-focus, poised to react should it come closer. It still seems focused moreso on the white-haired stranger over him.

"Hell no. Maybe in books, but that's it. They aren't real. We got plenty of monsters, even red lion-dog ones that can talk. But nothing with these far flung idiotic rules or whatever."

[hasitsthorns]

It does matter, she'd argue, because she likes to think she's a better liar than that. Maybe to people who don't know her, at least, but that's the thing- Some people here do, which is frustrating. Embarrassing. Can't a woman just be self-conscious while pretending she isn't in peace? Damn.

"That's the one," she answers, but now with a tinge of annoyance to her tone. "And so what if it is? Not all of us can just be okay with suddenly getting scales or horns." Especially not when she's already been struggling with feeling unwanted and unattractive to begin with. This just made it so much worse.

[firsteditionbfs]

Bold of her, really, to assume that he's okay with this... but he guesses maybe he should take that as a compliment. If nothing else, he's been doing pretty good not thinking about it, and can even pretend it's not happening. You know, as long as he doesn't do an indepth go-over of his own body.

"I'm not saying you have to be okay with it," he tells her instead, looking over the party to make sure their conversation stays mostly private.

"But listen - you're with a ton of other people who are feeling similar sort of ways as you, and are struggling through some weird bullshit happening to their bodies. You don't have to fake it; everyone would just guess the truth anyway. Might make you a little more stressed in the long term doing that."

[orbicularis]

He tilts his head at Cloud's response - talking red lion-dogs, huh.

But that's a conversation for another time. For now... Mithrun steps past Cloud, toward the fae, slipping his hands through the slits on the underside of those costume wings. "You'd better get used to it, then. There's no telling what you could lose otherwise."

And now he addresses the fae. "Your ploy will get you nothing here. Leave."

[hasitsthorns]

"Not everyone," she sighs. He just has the advantage of knowing a different version of her! "And I know it's not just me, but- Ugh." Any way she tries to look at it, she is just being silly. Isn't she? Never thinking of anyone else, just herself, and unfortunately being reminded why no one would be attracted to her beyond the physical.

None of that is anything she wants to express though, so- "I appreciate the concern, really, but I'll be fine. It's just going to take some time."

[firsteditionbfs]

"If you say so." Reaching up around her, Angeal fondly ruffles some of her blond locks. He isn't too hard, and maybe the placement is a little awkward, but he is trying to be considerate of that little flower crown on her head.

"Still, feel free to vent to me if no one else. Sometimes you need to scream into a pillow or something to feel better, right? And I've been told I have pillowy assets, so we'll say they're good enough."

[orbicularis]

The problem is that, for all that he impulsively followed her - addressed her, even - Mithrun never quite decided what to say.

He could play dumb, and ask what's wrong - but she'd likely see right through that. It has to be an answer to her distress, not a question. She won't want to hear anything to do with her other self - which means, really, nothing too specific to her, either. What would someone who didn't already know her be able to guess? What might they say?

Vitally, too, it has to be true. Mithrun isn't much good at lying anymore - and Rosie deserves better.

The seconds it takes him to answer feel longer - slow and agonizing, digging through the dregs of long-forgotten skills before he drags out a few words. "...It's a nice color on you. But you don't have to like it."