#dreaming

Chime? Citrine says. Perhaps noting this dog is even bigger than the ones at Silverwolf. Pyschka nearly swalloed her once... sure, she was poking at the dog's gums, but really

"Doggie want a donut?" Pause. "Or three?"

This pauses Cerebrus, and all THREE heads pop up. The powdered donuts definitely caught his noses. One head licks it's chops

She digs out the treats and offers them. "Waaait. Waaaait. Waaaiiittt." Just like she does with Muppet.

One of the heads extends a tongue, if the tongue gets it then it doesn't count right? Another head is clearly better trained.

(Cha or Manipulation plus Animal Ken)

/roll 4

"Okay! Good boys!"

THey actually hold still, even the head that seems the least won over!

So they Waiiiit

and when she lets them, chomp down on the donuts

They snarf and chomp just like any dog (or is it dogs?) would

there's a surprised voice "You don't want to enter the land of the dead, and yet you feed my dog. why?"

"Pretty sure Spot here is still a dog. Dogs are dogs. I'm not some big animal nut like my friend, but I guess I don't mind them."

"I see. There is not minding, and then there is being kind. But... it never helps to have folks think you're too kind, is it? they think it means you are a push over, someone to be manipulated by whatever sob story they create" The shadowy figure comes more into view.

Batman?

Nope, this guy has a different head piece, some kind of greek helmet

Whoever he is, he pets the dog, and the dog, wags furiously. Which is a pretty good clue to his identity

"Normally, when the living come to my cave they want something" The figure continues to say "Then again, normally I'm not up here."

"Well, I do want something, but I sure as hell hope you ain't the one I need to ask for her."

"Last I saw, she was still alive."

"Who do you seek?" the figure says

"My friend, Gladiola. She fell into this realm, and I followed to bring her home."

"You've come at an interesting time for me. A time I feel more kindly than I would. You are a crafter, yes? I know a nocker. What is your craft?" An odd change of subject

"You know about nockers? Yeah? I figure that'd be Heph.." A pause. "I'm not actually entirely sure how to pronounce his name right, and it'd probably be rude t'mangle it in a Godswood. Vulcan. Vulcan would know nockers, I'd think. I do... different things? Clay, mostly, and alchemy, and fire..."

An amused look at something, then "Build me something, no, build something for my lady, and I will aid you. Deny me and... I'll do nothing. You're not dead. Not in my domain, and I am not as petty as my brothers, though I do have my moments. You were kind to my dog at no gain that you knew of. That's rare enough to catch my interest"

Cerebus wags... and the figure goes on "I am Hades. And today is the day my lady comes back to me. Craft me something worthy, I can give you the time to do it, to gift her. If it is quality, I'll assist. Know that if you agree and it is poorly done, THAT I might be petty about. No one insults my queen"

"So the choice is yours. Craft her a gift; I'll give you the tools and if it is good, then I'll assist you, and you'll need some assistance here. IF it's poor, I hinder you to say the least. Or refuse, which, I quite understand, an no harm done."

A crooked smile. "Right. Queen Persephone deserves a shiny."

"She deserves, everything" He corrects, but his shadowed features so grim, do smile, just for a moment "Time will pause then, and your workshop awaits." A tunnel to the side opens into the cave "Go in. And show me a wonder worthy of the perfect goddess"

"I have an idea. Do you have any garnets or rubies?"

"I am considered by some to be the God of Wealth. Take as many as you want" he holds out a hand, a dozen rubies of various sizes and shaped await

"Mmph." She takes a handful, and goes off to sort through them.

She has an IDEA.

As she enters the new tunnel created just for her (not the one going down) she finds... holy shit, huge ass Kilns plural, and other gear, and five pale looking people, four men, one woman. They explain before you ask "We are the spirits of fallen crafters of yore. We are to assist your work, and have had our flesh returned to us long neough to do so"

"Yeah? Do you actually know how to do anything?"

"I've forgotten my wife's name, where I was born, but the skill? That remains" Says one ghost a bit testily

"My hands are good" the woman says "Just see"

"Okay, so, I have a plan. Have you heard of cloisonné?"

More than one nods, and one says "a technique for decorating metalwork objects with colored material held in place or separated by metal strips or wire, normally of gold" another says "I think you can work with Enamel with it too"

"Yeah - enamel fires, like glaze, similar technique... now, you, Skinny, and you, Good Hands, I want you working on this garnet - I need them polished up...."

They nod and get to work on it

Hades gets other requests - for gold, for mahogany, for tools. Thistle was told time would stop, so she believes him!

It is provided... and all top quality stuff. Shit. She could buy a house with the amount of wealth she's got in her use right now

It is for a QUEEN!

The dead prove to be good at taking instructions, and skilled at support

She drafts up plans... farming out parts to her helpers, but overseeing and guiding and tweaking so there's not a part she's not touched.

When all is said and done, she has assembled an art-nouveau inspired dressing screen - folding wooden frames, with some emerald-dyed silk set behind an elaborate scrolling trellis of pomegranates and greenery. The stems are twisted gold wire, the the leaves luminescent enamel. The fruits themselves are studded with garnets where their ruby-red ceramic 'skins' split.

Something not so far from this: