My WOT Characters

4. Proper Attire

5. Dancing

FINAL: Gala Ball Hosted by the Sisters of the White Tower, each in attendance is to wear appropriate clothing for such an event from their native land and exhibit something from all five lessons while posting obviously showing up in the outfit covers #4. All students must find a partner to dance with, eat at the snack table with grace and dignity, present proper attitudes & speech, and use some of the greetings, farewells & traditional sayings from their native lands. Over all the student must look and act comfortable (despite how they might feel inside) in the courtly environment, where etiquette knowledge is a must, to pass.Elaine and YuvalArie and Daemon

Corwin and Ana

Capin Dalwyn and Raven

Borax Youth and Brililin Kedali

Vanair Sharkan and Rowan

Andular Rojvas and Nyna

Damian Gaillard and Kit

Iussi and Me

Telcia entered the classroom with a warm smile playing on her lips. This was her first class since … the fall. Melanie was buried now and though the Yellow Sisters might well have wanted her to spend more time under their watchful eyes but she, as a sitter, could not afford to seem weak.

This class would prove she was more than fine. More than fine with life, death, and of course the reoccurring subject of men. The question was now if she could pull it off. Setting down her notes on the desk and filling herself a cup of hot tea she listened to the young women and men talking. Few Aes Sedai felt as if they needed to take the class but she was glad to see some, Nyna and Arie, had decided to join just the same. Some girls, novices especially, seemed all too excited to spend time with men even if they were trainees and guards. She hoped they expected to learn as much as they did socialize though.

“Good morning class. I am Telcia Sedai of the Red Ajah, please everyone take your seats so we may begin.” One by one the students took their seats and waited for silence to fall over the room. “Welcome to Basic Etiquette 101 or better known by the short version, BE101. Many of you are here because you feel you need to learn the basics and that is fine. There is absolutely no shame in admitting to a slender amount of knowledge – rather the opposite. I would have been more concerned if no one showed up to this class at all. So for each of you consider this a small victory and one step towards passing. First let us begin with a small seating chart, a bit unusual I know… but for the sake of simplicity let us assume these seats everyday when you come to class.” Telcia began to organize the classroom into four rows across first a female, then a male, then a female and then a male.

“Elaine, Yuval, Arie & Daemon row one.”

“Nyna, Andular, Ana, & Corwin row two”

“Brililin Kedali, Borax Youth, Rowan, and Vanair Sharkan row three”

“Raven, Capin Dalwyn, Kit and Damian Gaillard row four” Telcia looked out into the room and low and behold there stood one last man. It had worked out well for her. She smiled to see it was a lowly trainee and one she knew as well. *This is my lucky day* she thought to herself. *No danger there.*

“Iussi. You will sit up here.” Telcia pulled a chair and desk near her own. “You will be my partner for the duration of the class.” Telcia smiled warmly at the trainee knowing how much that the poor boy must have been sucking on lemons over the announcement even if he didn’t show it.

“Today’s lesson will focus upon greetings and partings. Sometimes the greatest barrier between two men or women is not understanding simply how to begin proper relationships. So let’s first focus on what we do know and then move on to what you do not. Iussi… why don’t you show the class how you might say hello to me if we met on the streets in Ebou Dar.”

[[[[ooc: Arette I assume this is going to be interesting so I’ll leave my response blank for the moment… Telcia *SO* walked into this one blindly. I’ll let you npc Telcia responding in your post since this is part of the assignment.]]]]

IC:

Telcia cleared her throat and took a drink of her tea. “Well… that aside let’s move on to how you SHOULD greet someone properly. There are many ways to greet someone in the court, and most of it hinges on their rank. To subordinates I would say Master Iussi, for example, with a nod of my head like this.” Telcia then repeated herself nodding her head in a very gentle manner. “If I wanted I might also add a friendly compliment or question but to a subordinate is not necessary.”

“For equals, a slight curtsy – or bow, and a greeting by the first name. It is also nice to add a small compliment to the greeting to help smooth the entrance into pleasantries, followed by a question to start the conversation. So, in this case I might say: ‘Iussi, how very nice to see you.’” Telcia slightly curtsied to Iussi. “You look simply dashing today. Did the Master of Arms choose that new suit for you?” Telcia smiled. She knew the boy had enjoyed his vibrant colors and she was sure the Master of Arms had insisted on a new suit for him.

“For superiors it would be by their rank: Lord, Lady, Gaidin, Sedai or Aes Sedai if you do not know their first name to which you would add the honorific. Your bow should be at the waist with a fist to your heart and a woman’s curtsey should be respectfully deep but your hands should in no way come too close to the floor and NEVER touch it. Gentlemen, if the Lady offers her hand, you may brush your lips rightabove it. Royalty requires more however. A small kiss is appropriate to show your respect to a Queen. So in the case of Iussi here I might say: ‘Iussi Gaidin, it is my great honor to make your acquaintance.’ When I have finished with my greeting and he gives me mine I am allowed one friendly question. Should he answer and not reply with another a parting might be appropriate. If he replies and questions me in return, this is a sign we may converse. Never push for a conversation with someone above your station unless you are prepared to direct the conversation and have no fear of the consequences.”

“Lastly, you can refer to royalty as Your Majesty or Your Highness. Say whichever you are the most comfortable with. You should kneel on one knee in your bow, hand still to your heart. If a Queen offers her hand, never -EVER- ask for it, you may kiss it. Women a deep curtsey where your hands could touch the ground is appropriate. It shows that you know your place. However never go so low you rip a dress or that you lose your balance.”

“As a small addition to the basics of proper greetings I’d like to add on that in the borderlands men will often find the need to honor greatly the Aes Sedai and to men they will often say ’Peace Favor your Sword.’ They take their ceremonies of comings and goings very seriously. Feel free to exchange the phrase ’peace favor your sword’ with them.” Telcia will sip her tea and smile at Iussi once more before finishing up.

“In parting follow the same set of standards as above. Never rush a parting. Speak in peaceful tones, keep eye contact, and use the person’s name and title when necessary to remind them that you appreciated their company and will remember them in the future. This tactic will, indeed, help you to remember the person you have met. ’Master Iussi, I have greatly enjoyed our time working together today. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.’” Offering her hand to Iussi she will wait to see if he kisses it.

[[[[[Ooc: again arette feel free to add Telcia’s response if Iussi does something odd. LOL]]]]]

“Your in class assignment today is to practice greetings and partings with your partner. First pretending they are your subordinate, your equal, your better, and royalty. Begin with each person on one different end of the scale so that you are not playing equals until the middle. When you each have done so I suppose you will know each other well. Feel free to mix in questions as you like but you need not take too long on this. You will have plenty of time to socialize in our upcoming classes so don’t spoil the fun by leaving yourselves nothing to discuss. Once you’ve finished class is dismissed. I’ll be up front with Iussi if you have any questions feel free to ask.”

“Partners will be:

Elaine and Yuval

Arie and Daemon

Corwin and Ana

Capin Dalwyn and Raven

Borax Youth and Brililin Kedali

Vanair Sharkan and Rowan

Andular Rojvas and Nyna

Damian Gaillard and Kit

Iussi and Myself.

Good luck and have fun. I’ll be watching for questions and problems should they arise. I expect we should not have any issues though because I know how much all of you wish to see continued mixed classes with those in warder training and those of you who are ladies of the White Tower. Now let’s begin.” With that Telcia turned to Iussi and let him begin his practice of greetings and his goodbye.

Ooc: ASSIGNMENT:

1. Only one post is required you may do more if you like.

2. All posts for lesson one should be done by 7 days after my post unless I say otherwise or unless you speak to me privately about an extension.

3. Rp yourself talking to your partner. You should greet your partner as if they were a subordinate, your equal, your better, and royalty. Then say a parting.

4. You do not have to wait for a reply you may LOOSELY (meaning do not rp another person if you don’t have to – like I did above with Iussi – you may leave a little note telling your partner to add into their post what their reaction would have been (to what you did in your post) when the write their own post.) I know many of you will find over the course of the class that sometimes its hard for you to keep up a bouncing rp in a class and stay within deadline times so… be descriptive of yourself, do what you can in the lessons, have fun and remember you’ll have lots of rp in the final exam which is the ballroom gala.

5. Have as much fun with this as you like but be reasonable. Remember who will be your betters when you leave the class because they may get you back in another rp later. *wink wink and smile* Also keep in mind a Red Sitter is hosting the class so consider that when thinking of making trouble. I will send you to your appropriate higher up person if you do cause too much trouble. So fair warning had been given. Do the crime, Do the time. This is, after all, a cross class and we DO want more of these. *evil grin*

Lesson IIOOC: IF you missed posting to lesson one please send me an email with your lesson in it so I know you did it AND include the reason why its late. I expect that most of you should have this done as I gave a few extra days to do it in. thanks to everyone who is keeping up with us. :rollin“We are gathered here today for a class on the subjects of attitude and speech in the court. Proper speech and attitude will get you far in all things you will do in life. These topics will be of great use to all of you when you gain full rank.”

“The first subject will be attitude. The number one rule is to be polite. Always. To everyone. In compliment or scorn, it is expected that you be courteous. Manners will get you far in the court atmosphere and gain you respect in many other settings as well.”

“One should also speak with authority. Keep eye contact while speaking, to not do so leads people to believe you have something to hide or that you are dishonest. Be clear, concise. Slurring your words will only cause confusion. Also, it is stereotypically believed that a well spoken person is often more intelligent or honored. Do not let yourself fall into that trap. Keep in mind that many people from various countries find their language tainted by local dialects but this does not reflect a measure of their true intellect.”

“A corollary to being polite: be respectful. Even if it is your archenemy, your highest rival, or the lowly servant woman, one should honor all of these people with respect. Many of you are not from noble or royal birth. You may have the perspective that this class of people look down upon the lower socio-economic statuses. In many cases, that is true. This is yet another pitfall you may stumble on. Respect and politeness can throw your enemy off balance, or it can gain loyalty from the subordinate you may need to rely on one day, or gain a return respect from your superiors.”

“Lastly, one must be positive. I do not mean be an over optimistic light skirt… just be positive. Negativity, even on an issue that is so horrendous it makes your stomach turn, scars you. People remember the negative coming out of your mouth and suddenly you find people thinking of you in an unfavorable manner.”

“Another thing that goes hand and hand with attitude is speech. If you have not noticed, I have been speaking in a clear, firm, confident, and proper voice. I also have not been using contractions or slang. These small things will make you seem well educated, intelligent, and will be received in a better light. Furthermore, do not threaten people or use profanity. Using a respectable voice that is neutral in tone, but polite, will make you seem like the type of person that people of the court can relate to; hence winning their respect or loyalty.”

“Now before I assign your homework I would like to remind each of you that our next class we will be hosting in the dining hall. As it will be a class on dining etiquette you will be eating lunch with us. I would hate to see anyone unable to take part because they had already eaten.”

“For today’s lesson I’d like you and your partner to pair off once more. Keeping in mind the ideas of good attitude, proper speech and of course greetings from yesterday’s lesson I’d like you to impart a small speech to your partner for their critiquing. The speech should be a little about yourself and where you come from. Your partner will point out the errors in your presentation of yourself. Iussi and I will demonstrate.” Telcia stood and smiled at Iussi.

“Warmest Greetings to you Master Dyfelle. It is good to see you again. Of course you know that my name is Telcia Sedai but my full name is Telcia Alainin Nalemar. I hail, originally, from the city of Bandar Eban where my mother’s family – House Alianin – runs their trade business. They are most renown for their trades with the Seafolk, an art I was required to master at the age of eleven summers. My father’s family, House Nalemar, holds a seat upon the Merchant’s Council of Arad Doman. The members of this council advise the King himself. When I was six summers old I began training for that position and up until the discovery of my talents with the One Power I was being groomed for that seat and perhaps even the King’s hand in marriage. I was seventeen when I was brought to the Tower and nearly two decades later I was raised to the Red Ajah. A short time later I was named one of the youngest Sitters in the Hall of the Tower, a great honor to be certain. Perhaps now you would care to tell me something of yourself?” Telcia smiled. She had slurred the words Arad Doman, Council, and Ajah on purpose. As well she broke eye contact from him at three separate points in the conversation. Once when she mentioned her Mother’s family, once when she mentioned her father’s family, and lastly when she mentioned her near marriage. All of it on purpose so she could see that Iussi was paying good attention.

“That is how it would begin. Now Iussi, before you begin tell me what you saw that I did wrong and then begin your speech so I can correct you. Once everyone has done this with their partners you are excused for the day. Remember… don’t eat tomorrow before class!”

Ooc: Assignment -

1. Post your little speech about yourself. Be sure to read your partner’s to get to know them! Heck read them all. It might be fun and you could learn something you never knew!

2. Include descriptions about yourself messing up. Did you slur, did you break eye contact, maybe if you talk in a confusing mannor you could write that way too, or if you use slang or curse words you might put those in too. I’m assuming some of you will do well but if you are here you might mess up something small without even noticing it. NPC your partner mentioning your errors to you and reminding you to work on those things in the future.

That’s it. Trying to keep this class pretty cut and dry for the first few parts. Eatting and Dress will be a bit more in depth and of course our final should be lots of fun to rp. Hope you are all keeping up.

Lesson III:

Ooc: for this lesson look here: http://www.cuisinenet.com/image/glossary/setting.gif

“This is your salad fork. Now please note the thicker tine at the left of the fork, which strengthens the tool — for right handed people — for use in cutting large salad greens without having to resort to the knife.”

“For fish, both a fork and a knife are provided. Sometimes the fish knife has a silver blade, because fish, which is often served with lemon, reacts with the steel in old knife blades, causing an unpleasant taste. The fish fork is usually shorter than the meat fork. That might also help you to identify it if you happen to forget the place it sits in.”

“The inner fork and knife are provided for the meat course of the meal. You will probably use these for most of the meal.” Telcia will show them off to the class.

“In our case today, the dessert utensils will be brought in with the dessert. However, you may encounter the dessert spoon — and fork, if needed – as part of the initial place setting. They would be placed horizontally over the plate and parallel to each other, with the bowl of the spoon pointing to the left and the tines of the fork pointing right. When tea is served, a teaspoon will be provided; it is brought in on the saucer.”

“Now let’s take a look at our napkins shall we? Using the napkin at formal occasions, as with much else associated with etiquette, should be a delicate affair. It is meant only to be dabbed at the lips and should not get dirty in the process. It might seem that the napkin is provided precisely so that it can help the diner clean up any mess that might occur during the course of the meal. Of course, this was its original use, once the tablecloth itself ceased to be used as a napkin, and at an informal occasion such as a picnic, it still performs this service. But the more formal the event, the more vestigial the presence of the napkin, because the purpose of nearly every aspect of table manners is to preserve cleanliness and proper appearance. If all other elements of the meal are going well, there will be no danger of smudging the linen.” Telcia will pick up her napkin.

“As soon as you are seated, remove the napkin from your place setting, unfold it, and put it in your lap. At some very formal restaurants, the waiter may do this for the diners, but it is not inappropriate to place your own napkin in your lap, even when this is the case. If your napkin falls on the floor during a very formal event, do not retrieve it. You should be able to signal a member of the serving staff that you need a fresh one.” Telcia will demonstrate this.

“When you leave the table at the end of the meal, place your napkin loosely next to your plate. It should not be crumpled or twisted, which would reveal untidiness or nervousness, respectively; nor should it be folded, which might be seen as an implication that you think your hosts might reuse it without washing. The napkin must also not be left on the chair. There is a Saldean superstition that a diner who leaves the napkin on his chair will never sit at that table again, but other, less supernatural, reasons are often cited for this: it might seem as if you have an inappropriately dirty napkin to hide — or even that you are trying to run off with the table linens.” Telcia will smile.

“Now, when eating there are a few foods which you may eat with your fingers. They are as follows; Artichokes, Asparagus, Bacon, Bread, Cookies, Corn on the Cob, Hors d’Oeuvres, Canapes, Crudités, Sandwiches, Small Fruits, and Berries on the Stem. Beyond that all other things should be taken in with a utensil.”

“Things to remember during dinner; it isn’t “first come, first served.” Always be patient and wait until everyone has been served. A common and embarrassing mistake is to start eating before the host or hostess has had a chance to say grace or present a toast. When you need to stand and pick something up bend at the knees. Like this.” Telcia will demonstrate.

“Always stand-up when anyone approaches your table or new guests are seated. If you do not this indicates that you simply cannot be bothered to stand-up and is a sure way to make any guest feel unwelcome. And do remember if a lady is sitting with you to pull out her chair and push it in for her! This is a common and expected curtsey. When your food comes to the table remember don’t be a food critic. This is especially true when you are a guest, as it can be insulting to your host or hostess. Also, never address your server as boy, son, honey, garcon, dear, or the like.” Telcia will pick up the salt shaker from her table.

“Add salt or insult? You should never season your food before tasting it. Seasoning your food will show a lack of confidence in the chef and is a surefire way to insult your host.” Telcia will smile putting the shaker down.

“If toasted personally simply soak in the toast mentally not physically. Never drink to a toast given to you. This is akin to patting yourself on the back. Instead, politely acknowledge the toast and thank the speaker once he or she has finished the toast in this manner.” Telcia will look to Iussi, smile and raise her glass ever so slightly to him before taking a sip. Returning her glass to its proper place she will continue.

“Messy Marvin should be neither seen nor heard. Slurping, smacking or otherwise eating food in a noticeably audible or visible manner is never pleasant for those who are present. Also, never talk with food in your mouth or on your utensil. The last thing you want to do is eject food at the person to whom you are speaking.” With a small wink to her students Telcia will produce a small tooth pick.

“No poking unless choking. In most cases, dislodging stubborn food particles from your teeth is forbidden at the table. Discretion is key so excuse yourself and leave the room. Picking with any implement whether it’s a napkin, toothpick, finger or dental floss can repulse your dining companions. And lastly ALWAYS remember to thank the host or hostess. Showing gratitude is the key to being a gracious guest. A handshake and a polite “thank you” provide a sufficient close to the occasion.”

“This is by no means a complete dining outline but it is the hard and fast guidelines that will allow you to dine in confidence at any event. Now what you and your partner will do is you will dine together and afterwards write an small evaluation of yourself over dinner. You may help each other as you need when done pointing out your errors. By all means speak over dinner. This is a social event and class. Get to know each other as you like and need. Keep in mind that certain subjects are simply not for the dinner table. Subjects detailing combat, death, bodily functions, or any other unsettling topic should not be discussed. Now. With that said feel free to ask questions if you need. Dinner will now be served.” As Telcia motioned for Iussi to begin by pulling out her chair the servants of the Tower began to bring in a four course meal fit for a King. Quite possibly the best meal many of the Trainees, Guards, Novice, and Accepted had tasted in some time.

Oc: Feel free to rp out dining. All that is required is that you write up how dinner went outlining things you found easy and hard and mistakes you might have made. The point is to think about what your character would have issues with and what might be easier for him/her. Feel free to include creative interaction with your partner! In a week I’ll post the next lesson.

FINAL:

RP occurs with the Tower and Tower Guards… players must have their characters display what they’ve learned