Bardic College, City of Fairhaven
To be completely candid, I didn’t expect packing to be so heartbreaking. I only lived on campus for the final year and a half of my apprenticeship, but somehow I’ve managed to accumulate far more junk than I could possibly hope to carry with me on the road. And each precious gift, award, and curio is tangled up in its own set of memories and emotions. Cleaning out my dormitory chamber has been like saying goodbye to the past eighteen months of my life, one beloved treasure at a time.
Have I mentioned, by chance, that I detest goodbyes? My classmates have been leaving in a steady stream since graduation, and my dear Wilona departed just this morning too. She and I have grown so much closer these past few days. Now that I am a full-fledged bard, Wilona has begun to really open up and let her hair down, so to speak. Real friendship – peer friendship – is blooming fast, and I absolutely adore it! It’s hard to imagine not seeing her face everyday, but I know I must walk my own path for now.
I just thought I would be more excited than melancholy, I suppose. Ah, well – enough self pity.
On a cheerier note, my first solo tour begins tomorrow as well. I’ve been assigned to perform the Midsummer’s Festival in the township of Bolton. A prestigious assignment for a new graduate, if I do say so myself. Even as one of the minor players, I am deeply honored. Bolton is easily the largest trade town in the country – only a venue in one of the cities would have been higher praise.
Though it does twist my tail a bit that Tormeia Highthicket actually got a city assignment! Mistwatch Harbor may be the smallest city in Fairhaven, but still – it’s almost unheard of for a first year. Of course, Tormeia is strikingly talented; truly the best of our class… And such a sweet girl, too. Which, I suppose, makes it impossible to hate her for it. Damn.
Bolton is about a tenday’s journey west, on the coastline. With more than twice that until Midsummer, I should have plenty of time to spare for dazzling adoring crowds and gathering juicy gossip – news of the realm, I mean – along the way. The caravan I will be traveling with is only traveling as far as Stonehome, but that gets me halfway with plenty of time to spare. I’ll spend a day or two plying the locals with my craft, then find another caravan headed further west.
Since bards of Fairhaven are guaranteed at least modest food and shelter in exchange for our services at any inn in the country, staying a couple of extra days anywhere is never a problem. A very handy perk if you happen to be a fresh graduate with minimal coin. The few tips I’ll make won’t do much to fatten my purse, though. With some luck I’ll be able to find work in town as well, so that I may entertain and delight while also increasing my fortune.
I must admit, though, I am a bit nervous. Ridiculous, I realize. I’ve traveled this same route a dozen times with Wilona, but it seems so much more daunting on my own. I’ll be fine, I know, but I bet I’ll still be up half the night fretting over it. Ah, well, I’d best turn in. Goodnight dear reader, until next I write.
In these postscript sections I will loosely discuss how the random events generated by The Adventurer’s oracle decks inspired the journal entry you just read. If a solo play journaling rpg sounds like fun to you, pick up a copy of The Adventurer and start writing!
Schedule Change: The release dates of the 1st and 15th of each month are going to be changing to the first and third Thursdays each month. Next post will be out on Thursday, February 17th, 2022.
For this entry, the I drew a Locatoin card from my Adventurer Oracle deck – Town or Village. Since Revelry had just graduated, with Loversmoon being similar to June, it seemed to make sense that the College would assign all graduates to a specific Midsummer’s Festival – I chose the Township of Bolton. The first post of the journey, which you just read, is Revelry’s reflections and concerns the night before departure. Over the next several entries you can expect us to explore more of realm and events along the road as Revelry travels first to Stonehome, and then his final destination of Bolton.
We’d love to hear your thoughts and questions so please leave them in the comments. Some answers may have to wait until the appropriate journal entry to be revealed, but we will be as responsive as I can! 🙂
