[GP] Midnight Carnival

[st_aff]

Once, back at the beginning, Songrans had started the Carnival at midnight and ended it an hour later at one minute past. At least, it was reasonable to suppose they had, but, in truth, it had been such a long time ago, it was an article of faith rather than fact. Nowadays, Midnight Carnival began when the sun went down and ended when it came up again. It had been wryly suggested by many more than one Songran that it ought to be renamed "All Night Carnival," but somehow it never was. It made for convenient fiction on the Day of Kosal that all licentiousness had taken place in a single, short, non-existent hour, and so it remained as it was.

What it was depended on who did the describing. It might be wild twists of fortune at games of chance tended by sloe-eyed men and women in brilliant costume. Or it might be fine rice wine sampled from one end of the street to the next until the world spun like Samnang's wheel. For lovers of the Youngest, it might be greasepaint and cartwheels or blindfold-tag in a crowd or blowing soap bubbles at passersby. Chanda's devotees spent the night in sexual revels or romantic trysts under firework strewn skies, while enterprising followers of Vanna might find selling candy or trinkets or operating currency exchange more to their delight.

As soon as the sun set, buildings vomited forth a brightly festooned sea of humanity lit by colored silk or paper lanterns. The night smelled of sweetened puffed rice, rich and salty fish dumplings, spicy chili-fried insects. Turn a corner and chocolate, sugar, cinnamon, gave way to sweat, smoke, wine and sex. By midnight, the Carnival resembled nothing so much as a bejeweled caterpillar comprised of myriad masked and painted faces, in wild distortions of ecstasy, agony, and joy.

Comments

[st_arkunderitall]

Sansa studied him quietly for a moment, trying to figure out the reason his tone changed but she didn't know him nearly so well that she could hazard a guess. She did smile when he looked at her, ducking her head to look away quickly so it wouldn't seem like she was staring.

Then she looked up at their surroundings. "There was a market in King's Landing but I wasn't...I didn't go there often."

It also had bad memories for her but she pushed them away with a little shiver.

[st_artingover]

Thorfinn felt the shiver, and placed a calm hand on her arm, careful not to be forceful. He could tell she was upset over something, he figured it was the same reasons he was. If only because he was so used to suffering and seeing others suffer, it pulled at his heart to think this woman may have as well.

"Well, then we should enjoy this night, as we may not get to find such festivities for awhile."