Creative Inspirations | Monday, period 1

[sharp_as_knives]

"Good morning," Hannibal began when they were all present. "Today we will once again be experiencing a manmade curiosity. In the thirteenth century, the abbot of the Sedlec Cistercian Monastery brought back soil from the holy land, prompting a great number of the faithful to want to be buried in the church. As has happened in other places, once there was no further room for burial, the bones were kept in an ossuary nearby."

//From the outside, it doesn't look like much,// Jono said, hands in his pockets, looking over the faces of the students for any signs that anybody might be uncomfortable with today's trip. It wasn't exactly a cheery vacation destination, however fascinating it seemed to himself and Hannibal, after all. //It's just a small old church, more or less. The inside is… a little bit more striking. The bones were stored there, yes, but there were so many of them, a woodcarver was hired to put them in some sort of order. The result was… rather spectacular, if macabre.//

"If at any point you feel unable to remain with us," no pun intended, naturally, "there is a nearby gift shop, or you can wander the small town. Though we will be in the Czech Republic, so unless you speak Czech, I recommend you not go too far," Hannibal cautioned.

Jono was still briefly tempted to elbow Hannibal for that completely-unintentional-honest pun all the same. Honestly, Hannibal.

//If you're exceptionally uncomfortable and would rather not wander alone, feel free to grab me,// Jono added, just to be on the safe side. //I'd rather not have anybody doing anything they're really not okay with today, especially given that these are actual human remains we're dealing with. For those who do stick around… no touching, please. Because, again, human remains. Respect for this history and the people involved in it above all else, while we're out today.//

"And whether you are awestruck, horrified, or any combination thereof, we hope that it inspires you," Hannibal said.

He led them through the portal, which let them out in the charming little cemetery surrounding the chapel. It was a lovely day.

[OOC: OCD up! Also, a warning, links lead to photos of (very artistically arranged) human bones. Click at your own discretion!]

Comments

Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Just inside (https://www.google.com/maps/@49.961782,15.288043,3a,75y,82.17h,84.11t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sbkyhcKvK9ukAAAQfCV3_1g!2e0!3e11!7i6000!8i3000)
Tons of photos (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sedlec+Ossuary/@49.961833,15.28791,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1s37894646!2e1!3e10!6s%2F%2Fstorage.googleapis.com%2Fstatic.panoramio.com%2Fphotos%2Fsmall%2F37894646.jpg!7i1536!8i2048!4m2!3m1!1s0x0000000000000000:0x320cc9caa5f1508e!6m1!1e1)
The restaurant across the street, if you'd rather (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Restaurace+U+Bal%C3%A1n%C5%AF/@49.961521,15.287734,3a,75y,246.97h,86.06t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s5nbX3W8Cd2K7OyazlyZVYQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26output%3Dthumbnail%26thumb%3D2%26panoid%3D5nbX3W8Cd2K7OyazlyZVYQ%26w%3D223%26h%3D75%26yaw%3D275%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D120%26ll%3D49.961521,15.287734!7i13312!8i6656!4m2!3m1!1s0x0000000000000000:0x677265fbab35f099!6m1!1e1)

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[that_oldsaying]

Guess who wasn't going to need to go for a walk or be kept away from the bones? Guess?

Alluka bounced in--but quietly, since they were supposed to be respectful, though she didn't really get that point--and stared big-eyed and seriously up at all the bones.

"I didn't know you could make them so pretty," she said happily, and then wandered further inside to get a better look. If it was creepy, Alluka really wasn't aware of it, as she hummed under her breath and named the bones she could see.

She was pretty good at naming bones. What ones that she couldn't remember, Nanika could. Nanika was even better at bones than she was.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal heard her and smiled. "You know a lot of the bones," he observed. "Do you enjoy learning about bodies, or is it collections of things?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[that_oldsaying]

She had tilted her head back to study the ceiling when he spoke to her, so Alluka looked his way and beamed.

"My family taught me," she said. She hadn't been left alone in her room at first, just mostly isolated. There had still been lessons for awhile, while they'd decided if they could figure out a way to make use of her--not that Alluka knew their motivations. "And the lessons were always pretty fun, so the first one maybe?"

The only collection Alluka cared about was her toys.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal nodded. "I enjoy them, too. It's one of the reasons I went to medical school." Among many. He grinned at her and then up at the ceiling. "Would you like a closer look?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[that_oldsaying]

Did she ever! "Oh! Yes, please!"

She skipped over to him, her pigtails bouncing.

"Are there a lot of bodies at medical school?" she asked curiously. "Like these ones or ones that look more like living ones? How are we going to get a closer look?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

"A lot of bodies," Hannibal agreed. "Some like these, some that look just like living people, some in between."

He knelt down next to her. "Sit on my shoulders. Once I'm standing, you can stand on them. You'll be very tall."

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[that_oldsaying]

Because this was Alluka, she took him at his word and didn't argue with how funny it might be for a teacher to help her do this. Instead, she just clambered up on to his shoulders carefully.

She giggled, once she was settled. "I'm ready to be tall!"

A beat.

"Can we go to a medical school sometime for class?"

Yes, yes she wanted to see the bodies.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

"I'll have to see; we hadn't planned on it, but it's a possibility." If she wanted to see bodies, he could probably arrange that, too.

"All settled?" Hannibal stood, holding her steady, then brushed the soles of her feet off a bit before taking her hands. "Now can you stand?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[that_oldsaying]

Jono would probably frown at Hannibal a lot, but Alluka'd be all for it.

"Seeing bodies reminds me a bit of home," she said happily as he took her hands. "I'd like that." She'd been feeling homesick lately, thanks to what Ringo had said. "Okay, I'm standing now!"

There was something to be said about genetics and selective and aggressive breeding through the generations to make perfect assassins and that was, while Alluka had zero training in how to actually kill someone, it turned out that her balance was perfect. She didn't even wobble as she stood up on his shoulders.

"Hiiiii," she said to the bones over her head.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[halfbad.livejournal.com]

Nathan hadn't ever been in a place like this before. It helped finally get him to a calm, unafraid state of mind. He still felt concerned about what he'd experienced last week but he was dealing with it. He could deal with it.

He stayed inside, walking slowly to take everything in.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[bestatmystery]

"Oh. My. GAW." Lottie turned slowly in place, staring up and around at the walls. "This is the most ma-CAW-brey thing I have ever seen."

She loved it.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal chuckled, at both her reaction and her pronunciation. "Inspiring?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[bestatmystery]

"Do they let people film in here?" Lottie asked, making a little frame with her hands and peering through it.

That would be a 'yes'.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

"So long as you don't use a flash or any other equipment," Hannibal answered. "I imagine they let filmmakers in outside of standard hours."

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[bestatmystery]

"I hope so!" Lottie said. "This is the most metal place I have ever seen."

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal smirked. "Well, since I have only vaguest sense of what 'metal' is, I shall bow to your expertise." Which he did. "Perhaps you can find us something to watch later."


[OOC: OMG there is a metal band named Sedlec Ossuary. Of course there is!]

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[doesnotkneel]

"'s a bit off-putting, isn't it?" Edward mused to himself, like a man completely unawares of the amount of skulls he'd be putting on things five years from now.

To be fair, he wasn't genuinely put off. A little weirded out, perhaps.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

"Is it?" Hannibal asked. "Why do you say that?" There was no judgement in his voice, only curiosity.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[doesnotkneel]

"Arranging a dead man's bones like it's a bouquet of flowers," Edward said. He squinted towards Hannibal. "Doesn't that strike you as off-putting?"

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal looked around at the bones as he thought.

"If you believe these are all just structures, no humanity attached, I think the artistry is admirable. If you look at them as the remains of individuals, it's worth considering that many of these people paid considerable sums to be laid to rest within the grounds, and are now actually a part of the chapel itself."

He smiled at one of the skulls. "Personally, I should much rather be made into art than left to molder underground. Wouldn't you?

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[doesnotkneel]

Edward thought about it - really thought about it.

After a short silence, he said, "i'd find being alive still vastly preferable to both," he said.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

Hannibal laughed quietly. "Definitely. But death is a part of life and comes to...well, to most of us, at any rate." Jono was still debatable.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[doesnotkneel]

"Perhaps, but it seems like a grand waste for a man to linger on it when there's still so much living to be done," Edward said.

But then he was an optimist for his time.

Re: Enjoy the ossuary!

[never-dull.livejournal.com]

"Do you mean the artist?" Hannibal asked. "Or the visitors? The church has always very much been about death."