Waldemai's pouch jingles appropriately. "I'll go five hundred on your highness, then, your highness. Got to guess the vote, too, right? I'll go thirty-two."

Lethe has joined the long bench.

Huff! Puff! Caith comes running -- RUNNING -- in from the north with her skirts held up in one hand. She's not late! She's just sprinting because of .. reasons. Health reasons! Yeah! Her other hand is bandaged up (oh gosh, will thqt impact her hugging ability?! TIME WILL TELL) and she skids to a stop near Sabella. "I'm here," she declares all breathless. With excitement! Her guards come jogging along. And Humphrey, her grouchy brute. And Stumphrey -- who is wearing a little sweater that has a sign pinned to it that reads:

TEAM CAITH

...and last but not least, her assistant Carys wanders in, holding a fluffy white cat. Caith looks over at them all and ahems! They all hold up wee banners and wave them. The banners? They also say: TEAM CAITH. Hurrah!

Lethe arrives ready to see some hugs. She smiles as she finds a seat.

Sabella laughs and grins at Caith as she slides on in, "You brought your own cheering squad? I should have thought of that! Or you should have," she elbows Niklas. "Wait. Is Isabella going to vote for me?"

Talwyn has joined the long bench.

Domonico wanders into the park... if that is what you can call his purposedful striding with his crested (spartan style) helm under one arm.

Waldemai hands over his silver quickly. "There's nothing that's not better with some silver riding on it. I'll have Princess Sabella with thirty-two votes."


Less purposeful, more... meandering... Evonleigh wanders in, glancing down now and then at a book in her hand. She's carefully enough to look up so she doesn't run into anyone. When she spots the large gathering, she tips her head, one brow lifting as she sees the cheering squad for Team Caith. A small smirk turns mouth upward and she finds a place to lean and watch, a little out of the way, amusement sparkling in her gray eyes.

Stumphrey waddles around, sniffing at this person and that. Every once in a while, he finds a particularly interesting smell that must be investigated further and ends up licking someone's boot. Or ankle. Or calf. Such is the life of the stupidest corgi in Arx! Is he a good representative for Team Caith? You decide!

Speaking of Caith.. the blonde Thrax princess stretches out her arms and windmills them a couple times, getting her hugging limbs nice and loosened up. "It will be such a pity to embarrass you in front of all these people, Sabella," she laughs, all bright and merry. "But if nothing else, I can give you some Best Hug Ever(tm) pointers." A wink is given to her rival and then she gazes out over those gathered. "So, who is voting?"

All that excitement come running up in pure Mourning Islander style, colliding with the shores of Grayson aplomb. The Oathlands are positively _dull_ by comparison. At least they are tonight in a corner no where near here. Talwyn watches Caith blow in with distinct interest, right up to the cat and the assistant clutching said cat. Banners added atop the display bring him to speculative regard. Does Sabella have such things? A squad? A pile of puppies in a basket? "This is particularly concerning. What happens if they have a draw?" he asys aloud.

"Thank you!" Sabella tells Waldemai with a bright smile, taking the silver and handing it off to Elizabetta who puts it in a safe box in her keeping. Lily is nearby to glower at anyone that comes by. "Again all proceeds will be donated to the Knights of Solace after I show Princess Caith here that there is none greater than Grayson at hugging! So far we have Master Waldemai! Voting for me, by the way." She tells Caith with a grin.

Sable occasionally ventures into the city, because it's really right there and it covers quite a lot of territory. The huntress warily approaches the green, munching on an apple. Curious.

"Oh, there won't be a draw. One of us is clearly the better hugger." Sabella says to Talwyn then. And stage whispers, "It's me!"

"There should be no doubt," says Niklas, "that they are truly the two best huggers in all of Arx. After all the two, working in tandem, managed to make Princess Saoirse weep with joy as she received the biggest group hug in the history of Arvum. While I have never experienced a hug directly from Princess Caith, I can assure anyone who might ask that Sabella is a hugger without peer. Though Sir Jeffeth Bayweather comes close."

A glance is given to Waldemai and then Caith's grin brightens. "I will be sure to comfort him with a hug then," she says, poking Sabella with her elbow. "..when he is overcome with sadness due to picking the wrong person. Because you are right -- one of us the the better hugger." She motions to herself and then flourishes a little bow. Wait, no, curtsey! "And it is true. We did make Saoirse cry. I believe it was life changing."

"Is Princess Saorise coming?" Sabella asks curiously, motioning to Lily to write things down as more people come up to cast votes and make donations. She beams at the rest of the crowd, "Don't be shy! If you'd like to test out our hugs before we get to the main event, feel free! Ever hugged a princess? It

's probably like hugging anyone else!"

Niklas calls out, "It's not!"

Domonico slows down his stride, brow furrowing as he tries to decipher the point of this... spectacle is. He ends up a short distance away, straight backed and stoic, watching silently.

Talwyn's easy manner turns to a spreading grin, charmed by the conversation and the activity. He keeps penning a few notes here and there on his scale. "I would not have either Princess Sabella or Princess Caith think their generous spirit goes unwelcome. Not while I still draw breath and a stipend from the Prince of Sanctum, anyways." He broadly grins. "Five hundred? I will gladly pay that, andhope for success."

Caith shakes her head. "I don't believe so," she answers. "I think Saoirse is still recovering from the last hug we gave her." There is a pause and then she turns to the people here, lifting her bandaged hand. "Don't let that frighten you! Our hugs are just very good and Princess Saoirse is a novice when it comes to such things!" Tilting her head, she considers Sabella. "I think we should offer a demonstration, yes?" And then the Valardin prince puts up some cash and the Thrax woman bounces on the balls of her feet. "Well done! Thank you, Prince Talwyn!"


"Are the votes for those gathered here, or for a lifetime worth of hug recipients, your highnesses?" Evonleigh says with that amused smirk of hers, stepping forward to take some silver from the silken pouch at her waist. "I'm sure I wouldn't be able to guess at the number who might vote for either of you if it's everyone you've ever hugged. It seems that number would be like counting stars on a clear night."

"I may be somewhat biased, just a little, but there's no reason I wouldn't put my money where my hugs are." Niklas pushes up from the benches and jingles a coin purse. "So I will place my bet on my wife." He glances to Sabella. "That's you." Then he holds his arms out to the side and walks over to the princesses. "Everyone hug me!"

"Actually," says Niklas suddenly, "I think today I will dedicate to the Thirteenth! I bet on Princess Caith! Though if we were betting on who gave the best cuddles, Stumphrey or Valor, I do believe I would bet on Valor!"

"Lady Evonleigh! How nice of you to join us for this very important event!" Sabella greets with a laugh, "And just on number of votes. I'm afraid the two of us have given so many hugs in our lifetime it would be too many to count, never mind guess!" She glances over to Domonico and gives him a wave, "Good Lord Domonico are you placing a bet?"


"Lovely to see you. It does seem a very momentous occasion," Evonleigh says, with a laugh. "I think I must be faithful to House Grayson and vote for Princess Sabella, though I've never hugged either the two lovely princesses, and I'm sure both are superior in their own ways." She moves forward to make her bet. She judges the crowd. "By 23 votes, shall we say." She flashes a dimpled smile at Caith. "No offense, your highness."

Domonico blinkd as he is addressed by Sabella and he straightens a bit more before bowing slightly, "Your Highness. I... will not. I'm not much of a betting man I'm afraid. Especially regarding hugs."

"One would think that a doughty warrior such as yourself, Lord Domonico, would recognize the value of competition! To say nothing of the value of an ingot of star iron. I hear that when a swordsman wears a band of star iron foes find him harder to hit because ... magnets? I honestly have no idea how it works." Niklas frowns a little, looking down at his ring. "Or if it works. I might be making that up."

Caith gasps when Niklas puts his money on her! Betting against his wife! OH MY GOODNESS. She, apparently, is just choosing to ignore the 'dedicated to the Thirteenth' thing. "You are a wise man," she tells him once she recovers, giving the playwright a wink and then turns to Sabella. "Oh, by the way, Luca said he wanted to place a bet for me. 35 votes!" Twinkle grin! Her gaze sweeps over to Evonleigh and she flutters her good hand. "Oh, no offense taken. It's all good fun! I mean, you have chosen poorly but it is all for a good cause so it works out just fine."

"I have the thought that any hug given to the princesses would be an experience. The reflecting warmth of them might make it impossible to leave." Talwyn pauses at this. "Perhaps if someone had a good blanket or rug heated by the fireside, it could substitute briefly to allow their escape." It is a very important occasion that he participates in with great amusement.

Waldemai suggests, "A very large doll, maybe."


Evonleigh dips in a little curtsy. "Choosing poorly is rather what I'm known for in some parts of the land, so it's all well and good, your highness," she says, gray eyes sparkling as she moves to lean against the wishing well.

Garibaldi, the Lycene swordbearer arrives, following Theron.

"You heard it here first ladies and gentlemen! Betrayal on the Green! Hugs are serious business!" Sabella laughs again, clearly not taking any real offense to Niklas' bet. "And Lord Domonico, all proceeds will go to the Knights of Solace at the end of the night, so it is got a good cause and not at all for our egos." She glances over at Caith. "That's the line right, this isn't to feed either of our huge egos?" She then grins to Talwyn, "I'm rather sure that on a moonless night Princess Caith's hugs cause the sun to shine and birds to sing! It really screws things up."

Lethe looks from Sabella to Caith. "I think both of your hugs are too amazing for me to decide between."

"Indeed," Caith says, nodding solemnly. "And Sabella's hugs! My goodness, they are the stuff of legend. They put the waves in the ocean. They pulled up the mountains. They placed the sun in the sky!" She reaches over and takes the Grayson's hand and lifts up the woman's arm. "Just look at this. Is this just an arm? No! No, I say! This is comfort. This is love. This is joy."

Sabella grins at Caith, "Hey, that's not how you do it! You talk me up and then you sneak in a little undermining bit at the end so people are like 'oh she does seem like the best OH WAIT' and then they have doubt and vote for you!" Lily is getting pretty steady business in people coming up to her to place bets and even some are sending in messenger. "Okay, everyone! I think in...five minutes we're going to close betting and do this thing! So if you haven't made a bet yet, THIS IS THE TIME!" She shouts, voice bright and cheerful. "And I promise, Princess Caith, even if I lose I will still want to be your best friend!"

Of course the cheerfulness and enthusiasm would bring out another empath. Almost as if feeding off the energy of the crowd, Jophiel arrives, taking in everything as he offers warm smiles and bows of his head before going to Lily to queue up to place his own wager. To Princess Caith, he offers a bit further of a bow, acknowledging a fellow Heart in Hand.

Garibaldi, the Lycene swordbearer leaves, following Theron.

Lethe stands. "I've decided to make a bet. 29 votes for Sabella."

Lily writes it down!

She's doing this wrong? Caith just holds up her hands and laughs. "Oh well!" she chirps. But when Sabella mentions that, no matter the outcome, they will still be future BFFs, the Thrax blinks in surprise. "Wait," -- she presses her good hand against her heart -- "..I thought this was a hug-off TO THE DEATH?" THRAX DON'T MESS AROUND. Tears in their wake, never at their wake.

Is she serious? She looks serious.

Oh my gosh.

Seconds pass. It starts to get weird. And theeeeen..

Laughter. "I'mm just kidding! Let's hug!" She holds her arms open wide.

Sabella checked charm + empathy at difficulty 15, rolling 17 higher.

Caith checked charm + empathy at difficulty 15, rolling 46 higher.

Jophiel checked charm + empathy at difficulty 15, rolling 11 higher.

When Caith holds her arms open, Sabella moves forward to embrace her! Only she kind of trips and just falls into Caith's warm, loving, wonderful hug! It's so good Sabella's eyes actually close and she puts her head on Caith's shoulder for longer than might be necessary. It's pretty obvious right away who the winner is because Princess Sabella Grayson might actually be asleep. "Princess Caith, if even half the hugs you gave out tonight were this good, I think I don't stand a chance." She sighs into the Thraxian Princess' comfortable shoulder.

Aww, look. Lethe is hugging Talwyn on that bench. It is an entirely polite hug.

Waldemai may be on the same bench, but he's watching the hugging he has money on.

Over where the actual work is happening, Lily and Elizabetta are counting up the votes. They confer for a moment, check a list, then Lily actually looks impressed for once. "The winner of the bet is Prince Luca Grayson, who successfully placed a bet on Princess Caith, who received 46 votes, his exact guess! Princess Sabella received only....17 votes." She squints. "Are most of these in Prince Niklas' handwriting?"

Waldemai cheers for the combatants even as his silver sails out the window. "A fine duel! Well fought!"

Niklas narrows his eyes at Lily. "I'm a writer, Lily. If I wished to cheat, you would never know it. I have a dozen different handwritings I can employ at any given moment. I am a master of ... whatever." He walks over and looks at the ballots. "Hm. Well. I guess there are a lot of people," Niklas turns to size up the stupid NPC jerks, "who have very questionable taste!"


Evonleigh claps for the winner, with an exaggerated pout at losing, before turning to Niklas. "I see I'm no luckier playing with someone else's money than with my own. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing, really," she says, before calling to Caith and Sabella, "Nice hugging, your highnesses. Someone has to do it. Someone... who isn't me." A smirk punctuates her words.

Her arms wrap softly around Sabella and Caith murmurs:

"There, there.."

She strokes her friend's back and soothes away troubles with one grade-A excellent hug. For a moment, the world stops. The heavens part. Songs sound sweeter, flowers smell more delightful, babies stop crying and everything is just RIGHT. Pulling back, Caith grins at the Grayson and holds her lightly by the shoulders. "Best friends?" she asks with a tilt of her head. And then a glance around the grounds. "HUGS FOR EVERYONE!"

"Best friends!" Sabella confirms with a big, if slightly sleepy and peaceful smile for Caith, "I fully declare, in front of all of you, that Princess Caith Thrax is the best hugger in the world! You've all borne witness! Go forth and tell others of what you have seen here today! And should someone need comfort, you know the superior princess to send them to! And thanks to everyone's generosity, we'll be donating ten thousand silver to the Knights of Solace come morning!" She announces, clapping her hands and bouncing on her slippered toes excitedly, "Thank you, thank you everyone that came out!"

Niklas eyes Sabella and Caith, then says, "Best hugger in the world. THIS YEAR! No, this needs to be an annual contest, because at any given moment Sabella may learn some secret hugging techniques lost to us until she dug them up in the archives. Did you know that in Cardia they only hug people while /upside down/?! That's crazy! Who knows what kind of lore there is to be discovered. Also, Caith is aging every day and may lose her touch any moment now as she becomes bony and pointy."

"I believe there be a run on regular embraces all around," says Talwyn, solemn and steadfast in his observations. He is done with hugging Lethe and turns his attention then to Caith and Sabella. "You two are the very epitome of good spirits. Bravo!" He claps for the victors and moreover, the show of good humour.

Bony and pointy?! Caith squeaks! "I would /never/," she declares and scrunches her nose at Niklas. However, she does tap a finger against her chin. "However, I am not opposed to the occasional rematch. If nothing else, it will inspire people to share warmth and affection with others." For example: look at Talwyn over there! Hugging Lethe! Caith beams proudly and nudges Sabella, pointing them out. See? See! Hugging is catching on!

Lethe claps for Caith once she finishes hugging Talwyn. "This was a lot of fun, and I was glad to see such an amazing show of hugging."

Caith is overheard praising Sabella: Your hugs are like sunshine!

Niklas is overheard praising Caith: Best hugs! (For now. :| )

Niklas is overheard praising Sabella: Best hugs! (Forever! :D )

Lethe is overheard praising Caith.

Waldemai wishes everyone a good day, and heads off, putting his cap back on.

Waldemai has left the long bench.

Isabelle, who is just so tired of everyone's nonsense have been dismissed.


Leaving without hugs, Evonleigh at least leaves while chuckling, a dip of her head for anyone looking her way as she makes a quiet exit.