Wild Forest Alliance
Year: 2117
“Monday. 8 AM. My House”
“Today’s the day! Today is finally the day! I can barely hold my excitement but I need to calm down and make sure I have everything before I leave for this interview. Notepad and recorder, check. Brown Satchel, check. Wallet and ID. Check. Glasses with flight straps, check. Finally, my lucky white hair tie. I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS!!! I REALLY GOT CHOSEN TO INTERVIEW THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES OF THE W.F.A. I really don’t want to embarrass myself. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind if I was a few hours early. The sky looks really good today so let’s make use of such a nice day and fly to the train station. Thank you Bhalmin for this once in a lifetime chance to meet our future leaders.”
Estelle Merit, a college student majoring in journalism at West Alliance University, has been selected to do the one thing she’s dreamed of since she was learning to flap her wings: interview a world leader and become a well known journalist. She wasn’t picky. It could’ve been the Dronfeyan Queen, Trinity, but there was never an opportunity, nor was Estelle strong enough to endure their…culture. This works out perfectly for her. Estelle flips and rolls through the air heading for her train. She does her best to wear out her enthusiasm before it leaks out during her time with the candidates and is right on time to board her method of transportation.
Not much time passes for Estelle as her train reaches one of the checkpoints. As it blazes over the water, through the windows Estelle can see the city the interview will be broadcasted from: New Faustin, The Sprawling City of the WFA. Ranked the biggest city within the WFA and the agreed upon meeting spot between leaders, New Faustin has historically been a place for many faunus in the land to gather on good terms. Being deadcenter in the middle of the WFA and Lofi gives all individuals the most reliable access for transfer to all territories in the alliance. Trade, commerce, marketing, business, food, smithing, all held and conducted to high levels of professionalism and class within the city.
Estelle makes her way into the city, bright eyed and excited about the day, she takes out her recorder and starts documenting her travels
“Monday. 9:34 AM. New Faustin.”
“Im…kind of nervous. The city is a lot bigger than what anyone could have prepared me for.All of this is…did WAU have nearly as many people as this? It’s kind of sufficating. I have some time before I have to be at the station for the interview. I’ll find some food and let you know what looks good later.”
Estelle clicks her recorder ending the voice file. She attempts to fly to get a better view of the street but gets too self conscious, worrying about whether or not there are flight laws here like at the university, or if she’d inconvenience anyone with her wingspan. Passing civilians would slowly watch a light green haired bird faunus nervously fidget and slightly tremble, arms shrewd up in indecisiveness…
…And this continued…
… for a while…
“I would be so embarrassed if I hit someone though. Not again. If I hurry up though, I can be off the ground and out of the way. Alright. Here goes. 3. 2. 1.”
“Are you okay, miss?”
“AAAAHHHHHH”
A concerned and mature woman’s voice makes Estelle spread her wings in mere seconds and panic launch several feet into the air. Her frazzled state makes her flail in the air for a second but she gathers her airborne composure fairly quickly. She fixes her hair and looks towards what the sea of people seem to be crowded around and when she realizes who all is in the center, her eyes widen far. She nosedives out of the air and flips forward, landing in the lowest formal bow known to faunus.
“MA’AM I AM SO SORRY PLEASE I MEANT NO DISRESPECT I-”
“Please raise your head, Miss Estelle.”
Estelle snaps up into perfect posture.
The woman chuckles, raising her hand to cover her wide smile.
“I can see you’re rather ecstatic for today. Are you nervous?”
“Oh-Of course Ma’am. Today is a very big day for all of the presidential candidates. I wanted to make absolutely sure nothing went wrong and everything was prepared before you arrived.” Estelle responds, continuing on as the nervous wreck she is. “There’s still some time before the broadcast Ma’am. May I ask, if that’s fine, and in no means disrespectful, why are you out so early? Isn’t it dangerous being out in the open like this?” She says in a softer tone, noticing the eyes now trained on the two of them.
“Perhaps” says the woman. “I’ve been more than occupied with campaign projects and preparing for the interview as much as possible so I thought getting to New Faustin early would give me some alone time.”
Estelle clasps her hands against her mouth, thinking she’s interrupting the candidate’s time away from work for how short she has it. She profusely apologizes and turns around before running to allow the woman to enjoy her free time.
“I’m sorry for intruding upon your time Ma’am.”
“You’ve done no such thing.” The woman looks around to her immediate surroundings. Watchful eyes gaze upon her and Estelle, many having a curious and intriguing look within them, others with confusion and bewilderment. Within these moments of realization, the woman looks towards Estelle, softly meeting eyes with her.
“Would you care to join me before our meeting Ms. Merit?”
Our starstruck interviewer couldn’t have dreamed of a better day than this. She rapidly shakes her head up and down, disregarding restraint to observe a future contender of the nation. With that agreement, the woman smiles and formally introduces herself with an extended hand.
“It’ll be lovely to have you with me today. My name is Namine Nuevelle. As I’m sure you know, I am running to be the next president of the Western Forest Alliance.”
Estelle shakily grasps Namine’s hands and the two now acquainted ladies make way for many tourist attractions within New Faustin. First they eat at a restaurant known as The Puppet’s Garden, a place known for their salad, fresh and homegrown vegetables, and revitalizing drinks. Namine’s order, Reefsider Rice, consists of the store’s highest quality cucumbers, well seasoned zucchini and rice, and W.F.A’s specially grown Uma fruit shavings. Estelle meekly sips on her Mint Jade Tea feeling the glare of what feels to be the entirety of the city on her and her company. When Namine attempts to pay for their orders, the cashier happens to be a native to the Western Territory, so seeing the candidate in person wills them to pay for their meals himself.
After their meal, the duo walk into Spiraling Threads, a clothing store that uses a mixture of animal and faunus materials to create a mix of stylish, seasonal, and affordable wares for all citizens. They enter the store and are immediately greeted by a male Gecko faunus employee. “Welcome to Spiral Threads. We’re having a seasonal-” The man’s energetic retail voice drops as soon as he realizes the woman who has entered the establishment. “Let me know if you need anything,” the store employee says. His smile remains on his face, but there is a noticeable shift in attitude that Estelle timidly notices. Namine picks up a nearby flier and pockets it while Estelle stands bright eyed at all the apparel within the store. The both of them immediately walk over to the accessory wall where premium woven scarves, chains with metals from all countries, necklaces of high quality, and vibrant bracelets among other jewelry to fashion with hang in view for all to see. Once the ladies have chosen which items they’d like to purchase, being two sets of necklaces, a hairband, and finally a gold bracelet, they surmise that the total of everything should equal $180. Estelle rethinks her decision on the items she had chosen. “I…I didn’t think it would be that much altogether.” Estelle says in a disappointed but ultimately accepting tone. Realizing the total cost of everything, she begins to make her way back to the rack to put away her items. Namine grabs Estelle’s shoulder before she is able to move too far away and drags her to the register before she can put her items away. Namine places all of the collected accessories on the table. “We’d like to buy these.” she confidently says to the cashier with a bright smile, taking all the attention away from a beet red and flustered Estelle. “W-WAIT A MINUTE MS.NUEVELLE. I can’t possibly pay for-”
“The money shouldn’t be an issue Ms.Estelle. Especially…” Dragging the last word until she pulls out a flier that she picked up earlier within the store. “When there’s a 50% all accessories discount!” Estelle wasn’t sure what to do. She was grateful that someone was willing to buy her something nice but also felt as if she’d be lacking in ways to repay such generousity. Jumping between the back and forth with allowing someone to do something for her and feeling bad that someone is being nice and she can’t think of how to pay them back, Estelle falls into an abyss of anxious dispair, tuning out the rest of the world. Namine already has her card in hand as everything is getting ringed up past the register. Before she goes to swipe, she notices the amount to be paid. “Excuse me sir, this total is included with the discount in mind, yes?” she asks in a confused tone. “No ma’am, because our seasonal discount period has ended. $180 is your total.” the cashier responds in a similar customer voice fashion as when they first walked in. Namine looks at the flier once more before slowly putting it down.
“Ms.Merit, what’s today’s date?” A deceitfully innocent tone hides the sheer irritation beneath Namine’s question. Such a voice knocks Estelle back to her senses, almost activating her flight or flight response. A few seconds of recollection pass as Estelle answers in a shaky voice…
“It’s Monday June 19th, 2117 Ms.Nuevelle. Close to-OH NO!”
Estelle’s panic catches Namine off guard. “What’s the matter?” Estelle shows Namine the time on a clock hanging from inside the store. “Its 11:25! Our meetup time with the others is soon.” Realizing the situation and how much more time Namine would waste by arguing with the cashier, Estelle tries to relieve the amount paid by taking her necklace and bracelet off the table. “It’s okay Ms.Nuevelle. I can buy these another time. We really have to get going though. With a disappointed look…Namine hesitantly pays $90 for her items only. The cashier bags their items with a smug face and hands it to Namine wishing her a good day as she and Estelle walk out the door. The two rush out and only now notice how much further they must travel to get to where they need to be in time. Namine gives the bag to Estelle as she clasps her hands together and conjures a circle of magic around the both of them. Silver transparent gears appear from within the circle and grow larger and larger until they silently burst with a gust of wind. “You should feel much lighter now Ms.Merit. You fly to the networking station and I’ll meet you there.” Estelle, rushing to find the words to ask what happened, is too slow to ask as Namine jumps into the nearby water, trails of water being seen dashing towards the center of the city as her sea born faunus instincts kick in. Estelle opens her wings and realizes that Namine was right, she is much lighter now. Estelle was as light as a feather and when she flapped her wings, soared through the air akin to a car speeding down the highway.
“Monday. 11:52 AM. New Faustin Media Center”
“I made it to the media center on time. So much has happened, but I’m thankful I was able to make it. I can’t believe it even so long after it happened but I was able to meet Namine Nuevelle and BY BHALMIN SHE WAS SO PRETTY!!! I’ve seen her in photos and on television but seeing her in person…nothing could have prepared me. She’s so nice too so I’m happy to-oh the candidates are coming. I’ll update after the interview. Wish me luck.”
With a click of her recorder, Estelle hurriedly fixes her hair and clothes to present as clean as possible. Keeping her professional demeanor about her, she hears the door open as Namine and two other men enter the room. With Namine being centered among the two, to her right is a taller green haired man in a nice black suit and light brown eyes that match his skin, Saige Kent, candidate for the Central Alliance. On Namine’s left, a much taller and more intensely fierce looking hooded man with light blonde hair and blue horns as well as sky blue eyes and pale white skin, Benimaru, candidate to be for the East Alliance. There’s a heavy contrast between the three of them whether it be in demeanor upon walking in or the attire they chose to wear for this interview. Even so, they all seemed to know one another and held a steady conversation before entering. Estelle walks up to the trio as production readies up with 5 minutes before it’s time to go on air.
“Hello everyone. Hope your day has been well and that getting here wasn’t too much of a hassle. My name is Estelle Merit and I’ll be the journalist interviewing you all today.” Estelle says in confidence with one hand placed in front of her and open. Saige walks up and is the first one to greet and shake Estelle’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Estelle. Namine told us a little bit about you before we got here. I believe you’ll do a great job here.” Estelle was a little taken aback hearing that Namine had been speaking good about her, but nonetheless, hearing praise coming from two candidate officials put a bright smile on the young reporter’s face. While still shaking her hand, Saige speaks again. “After the interview, I was hoping I could speak to you about working wi-” Namine interjects, “Uh uh! Not this time Saige. I already planned to have Estelle work for my territory. Don’t go trying to steal her away like you ALWAYS do.” Saige laughs after being called out so suddenly knowing that he got caught in his bad recruiting habits and heads to his seat. Namine now stands in front of Estelle meeting her eyes and speaks some reassurance to her. “You’ll do wonderful Ms.Merit. Don’t think too hard and it’ll go by as smoothly as possible.” Namine heads to sit beside Saige and talk a little more before the interview begins. Benimaru stands tall over Estelle with a much more menacing presence compared to the other two. Estelle meets his eyes and feels nothing but intimidation from this man, wondering what could he possibly have to say to someone he’s never met before. Benimaru opens his mouth and Estelle bucks up to bring out all the confidence she has left. “You were chosen for a reason. Don’t ruin it, Ms.Merit.” Benimaru says in a stern and militant tone to Estelle, which she responds with a nervous chuckle and a head nod of understanding.
Estelle takes a deep breath before moving to her seat and sitting down. Clattering against her wrist catches her attention as she recognizes the noise from earlier. She checks her arm and sees the bracelet from the store…on her. Had she not a job to do, Estelle would’ve fainted out of fear. Estelle sits at her station and catches a platonic yet snide wink from Saige as he realizes his work’s been recognized. Idle chatter among the candidates and Estelle happens for a short period before the production crew gets the attention of everyone to indicate they are about to be on air soon. Estelle fixes up her bow and glasses making sure she looks presentable. Namine and Sagie get off a few more remarks before sitting up straight and straightening themselves for the camera. Benimaru puts his hands inside his sleeves and softens his intimidating presence ever so slightly. A production crew moves about the stage setting up minor props and giving all of the candidates and Estelle water before a camera man starts a countdown. The countdown is silently finished after four. Lights from the top shine down and give a comforting light to all in front of the camera. Estelle’s time to shine has come.
“Good evening everyone and welcome everyone to the Bird’s Eye News Report. Im Estelle Merit live here with our esteemed guests and the talk of the Wild Forest Alliance right now, the Candidates themselves for the upcoming election.Representing the Western Alliance here with us today is Namine Nuevelle, our face of the Central Alliance is Saige Kent, and the man speaking for Eastern Alliance is Mr.Benimaru. On behalf of the entire nation, we’re glad everyone was willing to meet up for today to discuss what the parties plan on making the Alliance in the future.”
The candidates keep their faces and reactions in check being in front of the camera, but behind their masks, and even more seeable on the faces of the behind the camera staff, are the looks of people who were shocked and surprised at Estelle’s casting skills. Some never would’ve figured a college student to give off an energy to catch everyone’s attention, especially from how small she seemed when walking in. Her voice’s professionalism is a world’s contrast compared to the winged woman they saw burn her tongue with hot water. She doesn’t stutter over her words, her nervousness has all since erased entirely, her hands are as steady and her eyes are trained onto whichever individual she speaks to. Estelle speaks after getting to know the candidates on a slightly more casual level, allowing the audience to peer into a small bit of the lives of the possible future presidents. If it weren’t for this report who would know of such dire details like Saige’s favorite color being Emerald Green, or how Namine was captain of her swim team and went to nationals, and we can’t forget Benimaru’s favorite food being Grilled Cinnamon Apples. Of course when that’s all done, everyone straps in for the questions they need to know about. “It’s good to see that the relations between the three of you seem close. If it’s okay with you all, may we move into the interview portion?” Estelle asks the candidates as they all give their personal ways of saying yes.
