Mistakes Were Made [Wulfbauer]

[kleineklementine]

"M'lord, of course we all agree with you on the value of Wulfbauer life, but are you sure this is the best way to preserve it? We must send our troops back, Duke Therrien. And the criminals that were captured in Valance, brought to justice. It's the only way. We cannot risk open defiance of the Grand Duke's orders."

The counselors were all abuzz after Erwin's pronouncement, fighting to speak over each other. No one was sure what to think.

"Rumors have spread that one of the prisoners," a voice finally cut through, an older lord, well past his years in the army, "is Lady Constance Carwick. If that is true, then the young lady can be no criminal. We must protect her. It is our duty to her father."

"Any mage can be a criminal!" the eldest son of another lord sneered. "A mage is a mage. That's what this has all been about, hasn't it? The law has been clear; all mages are to be handed over to the Grand Duke's men. Criminal mages are to be hanged."

That caused an uproar. A tumult followed: I refuse to believe that Lady Constance could have... - ...Our duty is to Wulfbauer, not to Calent's endless quests... - ...But if the army is called back... - ...could severely affect our trading...

Everyone, it seemed, had something to say. And none of them looked entirely confident in their young, untested new duke. After all, this hadn't been the man they had chosen. That man was under the earth.



"Call back the army? The entire army?" Olive repeated Grace's words, staring ahead at the blank wall as Grace tugged at and fussed over her hair. "I heard them say something of that when we were returning from... But I didn't realize they meant the duchy's entire forces."

"Oh, I wish your father were still alive, Olive," Grace fretted. "Duke Therrien is, well, he's a fine enough man, but..." Grace sighed. She shouldn't, of course, be speaking openly about her duke like that! But she prided herself on having spent most of her life serving the Carwicks. And this new duke; it would be a long time before Grace's image of him recovered from that thief woman he'd let run about! And now with the Grand Duke..

Olive cut in to save Grace from having to explain herself. "Any action that brings the war to a swifter end is a good one, Grace," she said, calmly but with a firmness that had been lacking from her voice since the flight from Hellvion. "If the dukes start to question the war... Calent can't keep it up forever. Some good may come of Duke Therrien's actions. Perhaps much good."

Grace sighed. She finished the bun and came around front to look at Olive properly. There was a sadness there, but also a compassion. Olive had forgotten how much these people were, well, like family. "Well, I hope you're right, Olive," she said wearily, putting a hand on Olive's cheek. Then her expression hardened and she continued with a strict tone more familiar to Olive's memory of her, "And if Duke Therrien thinks for just one minute that he's going to hand you over to anyone, don't you think we'll let him! You rest up now; you've had a hard day. I'll try and bring you news as I get it."

Olive gave Grace a small, sheepish smile, feeling a bit like a girl again. She supposed she probably was still a girl in Grace's eyes. But the smile faded as she watched the maid make her way out, and Olive suddenly called out after her, not yet sure about the wisdom of doing so, and she felt a heaviness set in upon her. Any action that brought the war to a swifter end... She shivered, thinking of what had happened in Hellvion. Would Roderick's actions bring the war to a swifter end, she wondered, remembering his anger, his pain... or simply a bloodier one?

She felt her own responsibility turn over in her stomach. What would her actions do?

[Cambie]

Posted around a large table covered in maps and papers, the argument between the Duke's counselors raged on into the night. Hours and many pots of hot tea later, the small council remained divided as ever. Every man around that table could only agree on one thing: the prisoner housed in the East Wing was, indeed, Constance Carwick.

Her miraculous return to Wulfbauer notwithstanding, the noblemen continued to urge Erwin to act upon their suggestions, whether it be hanging Constance in the morning or ceding from the realm and declaring outright war on the Grand Duke. He didn't know who to trust. Indeed, the Duke could barely discern who was working toward whose interests. Were they faithful citizens of Wulfbauer? Did they have designs on the duchy for themselves? Were they in the palm of Calent?

"Enough. We will reconvene in the morning," the Duke finally said when the many candles in the study burned bright. With a frown and a gesture, he ordered his advisers out. Convinced that the Duke would not change his decision at least this evening, they all left without much protest.

With a groan Erwin practically collapsed into a cushioned chair and buried his head in a hand. Fumbling, he reached for his cup of tea and took a long sip, eyes closed as he tried to clear his head. Perhaps his declaration earlier in the day had been made out of momentary frustration, but he'd had the rest of the evening to weigh every side of the coin. He'd heard all the advice in the world.

And yet, something in his gut told him that he would not change his mind on this matter. He couldn't decide whether this was , wisdom, pride -- or foolishness.

A little while later, a knock sounded on Olive's little East Wing door, which swung open. Silhouetted against the hallway's torchlight Erwin stepped into the little room and pulled out one of her chairs for himself, sitting as the guards closed the door and locked it behind him.

"We need to talk about Hellvion," was all Erwin said.

[kleineklementine]

Olive lay spread out on the hard, narrow bed, her hands folded behind her head. She stared at the ceiling, drifting between memories of this place, her family and her childhood, and the news that Grace had brought. Occasionally she wondered about what Erwin had said in the mausoleum. About how long he would think she was useful, and what would happen when he stopped. But mostly she thought about her parents and the chunk of her life that had been spent here with them. How far away it felt.

She pulled herself up into a sitting position when she heard the door open. Her surprise to see Erwin - and not one of the maids - was unmasked as he strode in and sat down. As that was the room's only chair, she swung her legs off the bed and sat perched on its edge. If she was surprised to see Erwin enter the room, though, she didn't look surprised at his statement. In fact, she was surprised she hadn't been questioned by him about it before. Not only Hellvion, but what Olive was doing - in general - alive and outside of the camps. And whatever it might have made her feel, she looked at him unfazed.

"Alright," she answered simply, waiting calmly for Erwin to say his piece.

[Cambie]

Erwin leaned forward in his chair and clasped his hands together, thinking. He'd already put himself and the Duchy in a delicate situation today by sending to Calent what essentially amounted to an ultimatum. He had to be delicate with the way he handled this whole Hellvion situation.

But first, he had to know the background of it all. Looking up at Olive, he exhaled softly and began.

"I'm sure Grace has already slipped news to you of what I've spent today doing," he said. Before she could protest in the old maid, he raised a hand and added, "That's the decision I've made for now, but I need to know if I'm justified in doing so. Am I keeping an assassin in this castle?

"I'd heard about what transpired in Hellvion, at Duchess Melora's ball. But I know nothing of the details, and all I hear are conflicting stories. So be candid with me and tell me from the beginning what transpired."

[kleineklementine]

Olive did open her mouth to protest, but not Erwin’s decision. She wasn’t quite presumptuous enough to give a wholly unsolicited opinion to a duke; her duke. Not at this moment, anyway. She’d opened her mouth to deny that Grace had told her anything. A lie, but a white one.

She’d been expecting, of course, Erwin to ask her about Hellvion. But she hadn’t expected him to ask so broadly. So she paused a long moment, studying Erwin and trying to decide what ‘from the beginning’ meant. If she gave away too much in response to his open-ended question, after all, she might risk more lives than her own. Finally she nodded her assent.

”I’m no assassin,” she said, starting slowly. ”And I did not know such a violent attack was going to happen. I was there. I stole Bryony’s invitation; we look enough alike. I wanted to find Avery, or someone, just to let them know that I was okay.I- I didn't know yet, about Avery and Cass, and before then, I had been purposefully avoiding returning to Wulfbauer.” Olive spoke carefully, but calmly, her tone and expression composed. She resolved to say nothing that wasn’t true, but she was mindful of what she said nonetheless. And it was true that she’d hoped to find Avery, though she hadn’t admitted it to her compatriots. ”But more than that, I wanted to tell people about what was happening, across the country and in the north, in the camps. People who might actually have the power to change something. It was risky and maybe stupid, of course, but having a ball like that, after the winter we’ve had, and with a war going on…”

Olive’s carefully composed expression cracked then, and her nose crinkled in the disgust that she felt about Melora’s lavish ball. She’d spent the winter scraping and starving herself, but more than that she’d been traveling through the country and seen how much everyone was scraping and starving. Including in Hellvion. It made her stomach churn again, thinking about the presumption of such a lavish and exclusive feast in the midst of all that.

Recomposing herself, Olive continued measuredly, ”The explosion happened before I had much of a chance. I wasn’t in the hall when it happened, so I can’t tell you exactly what happened there. I was outside with Aella and-”

Olive clamped her mouth shut, eyes widening a little as she suddenly realizing what she’d said. ”Please don’t ask her to confirm it,” she finally said, worry creeping into her measured tone. ”It would be a bad position for her to be in. If they knew she’d known a mage was there and hadn’t gone immediately to the guards or, I don’t know.”

Olive could only imagine Melora’s reaction to that. A childhood friend of Aella, Olive’d been strictly banned from their residence after she’d been Marked.

”Well, the explosion happened, and I fled of course. Many people did, but the consequences of being found for me were rather high. A templar who I had run into before, however, saw me as I was trying to get out and pursued me. He knew I was a mage. You know the story from there.”

[Cambie]

Erwin, for his part, remained silent as Olive carefully weaved her narrative. It was clear from the start that she was choosing her words, but he didn't expect any less from any person in this position. He had not thought for a moment that she would spill every single detail, or admit to every charge against her.

His brow raised slightly at the mention of Aella. Like with Constance, Erwin had met her years ago and had little recollection on her as a person. He didn't even really know Duchess Melora all too well, for that matter. But that was another lead, and he lingered on that fact for a moment before tucking it away in his mind.

"The way you tell it," he finally said after a moment to digest her tale, "I'm to believe that you were there by coincidence, that you were not associated with whoever was responsible in Hellvion."

He leaned forward slightly, blue eyes gazing at Olive. Something in his expression seemed to suggest that he was both curious and appreciative of her honesty -- but also slightly disbelieving. She had more to tell.

"How did you escape the camps, and how did you ever intercept a letter bound for your cousin?"

[kleineklementine]

"No, that isn't what I said."

Olive didn't hesitate to correct Erwin's assumption, though it was born out of her own omissions. She was still clear-eyed and composed. Olive knew how damning this conversation may end up for her, but she wasn't cowed and didn't seem afraid.

"I was not there coincidentally, and I was associated with the man I'm fairly certain was responsible. But I didn't lie. I didn't know his intentions, or when he formed them."

She didn't elaborate. She'd corrected his assumption and hasn't asked anything further, so Olive didn't offer anything further. Her reaction to his next question was an instinctual, gut feeling - a cold clenching of her stomach, a flash of unexplained anger. 'How did you escape the camps.' Though she might not be able to articulate why, even to herself, Olive felt a fierce protectiveness of those years, those memories. Perhaps 'protective' wasn't  the right word. But she wasn't going to offer them up to Erwin's curiosity. No, she didn't owe him any information about that time.

Outwardly, she only frowned. "Does it matter how I escaped the camp? I was interred there, and now I'm not. That's criminal, however it happened. I don't see how it's pertinent here beyond that." There was a fierceness in her eyes behind her otherwise composed answer. Olive would answer Erwin's questions about Hellvion, yes, but it was clear she was not going to give up more than that. Not now.

"As for Bryony's invitation," she continued, her posture backing off a little, "letters are intercepted all the time now, during the war. When  you're forced to live as a fugitive in the wild, there aren't many ways to get information about what's going on. I was with a man who had intercepted a courier when I saw the invitation. The rest were sent on their way, I kept the letter for Bryony." Olive said this all simply, unapologetically. Because it was true, not just the way it had happened, but the necessity of intercepting letters. The realities of living as a fugitive might sound sordid from the noble loft of a duke, but they were realities none the less.

[Cambie]

Erwin looked at her, unmoving and silent. She was right when she said her camp escape wasn't pertinent. He had no interest in how she escaped or even her experiences in the camps themselves, for they had nothing to do with the subsequent chain of events leading up to Hellvion and Valance.

Her story did beg the question though. "You were associated with the perpetrator, but you did not know his motives. You didn't know he planned on killing the Grand Duke, or anyone for that matter? You were simply there to find your cousins, and nothing more?"

Of course it didn't add up, but a part of him hoped fervently that she really was innocent of the murder attempt. At the very least her non-involvement would somewhat justify his keeping her alive and protected.

[kleineklementine]

”I already said that my primary reason for being there wasn’t simply to find Avery,” Olive corrected him. Her green eyes watched him, steady and studying. She wondered what news exactly had reached him. What she’d experienced - the explosion that had destroyed half of the hall - had been much bigger than what Olive would call ‘a plan to kill the Grand Duke.’ She didn’t know how many had died, and it made her stomach a little queasy to guess.

She took a breath, then decided to preempt the questions that would surely come next. ”The plan that I was part of - that I thought we were both part of - wasn’t to kill anyone, Grand Duke or not. The bomb that he carried was meant to be placed in the armory. It would be empty with all the guards patrolling the grounds and attending  to the ball. Higher security, you know. And it’s far enough away from the main hall that it shouldn’t have done anything more than scare the guests, if badly. But maybe that’s what people need, if they think they can go on with balls and petty politics when their people are starving, mages are still held and killed in camps conveniently beyond their sight, and boys as young as fifteen are now being drafted into a war they’d rather pretend wasn’t going on.”

Despite her words, Olive sounded more worn down than bitter. She’d lived firmly by her convictions for the past few years. They’d been the only thing she’d had, really. She still believed them, she thought, but the memory of the explosion, the fate of Valance, gnawed in the back of her mind like a rat. She gave a heavy sigh, looking away from Erwin and towards the window. ”I don’t know when his plan changed. Maybe that night. Maybe earlier. Maybe someone should have known his anger was too great. I can’t tell you. We were separated at the ball, and before the time we were meant to meet to go to the armory, the explosion came from in the grand hall. I don’t know more than that.”

Olive looked back at Erwin for a moment before she spoke again, "I realize it sounds convenient for me to say I didn't know of his intentions. But I can only give you my word."

[Cambie]

Erwin frowned and let out a soft sigh. His hands clasped together and he hunched over, eyes peering up at Olive.

He wanted to believe her. He wanted it to be the truth, that she was simply party to a misguided attempt at sending a message, and that any casualties were not her fault. He wanted to distance her involvement from the true culprits at Hellvion, if for no other reason than to prove his judgments in this matter correct.

He had a nagging suspicion in the pit of his stomach, of course, for what sane man would have believed every word told him by a mage or a prisoner in these times? When each person had to struggle to look after themselves? Olive had a large incentive in lying about her involvement to protect herself. But why would she stay silent through whatever beatings his guards had doled upon her, just to admit her involvement privately to him, knowing full well that these small transgressions were enough for him to send her to the gallows?

No, he decided for now that she was telling the truth. Or at least most of it.

"You were mistaken for the real culprits," he said half to himself, as though formulating her story for her. "You knew them, that is your whole involvement. After, you fled home to Wulfbauer. Your people tried to safeguard you, but in the process their homes were razed. And here we are."

[kleineklementine]

From where Olive was sitting, it wasn’t 'as though' Erwin was formulating her story for her; that seemed to be exactly what he was doing. She had been prepared for much more of a confrontation than this - condemnation of her actions, her own morally-charged justifications, an accounting of the brutal crimes she’d witnessed with her own eyes that were lawful, and the just actions she'd seen that were not. Much like the arguments she’d had with the Templar. But not, it seemed, with Erwin Therrien. Erwin Therrien surprised her.

And she wasn’t sure what to make of that.

She was smart enough not to try to correct his story, built upon half-truths and omissions. But still she wanted to know. ”Why are you doing this?”

Even if Constance Carwick still carried some favor with her own people, no one would question a duke for handing over - or killing - a mage, no matter her birth. It would earn Erwin favor outside of Wulfbauer, and perhaps give him a more steel-clad reputation within. So why wasn’t he?

[Cambie]

"I am a loyalist, and I care about the well-being of Wulfbauer," Erwin said, sitting up straight. "I'll not have the Grand Duke's reckless crusade endanger our people, especially not innocents."

The same thought ran through his mind about whether turning Olive over to Calent would help bolster his place in the Grand Duke's court. After all, he was new to the political forum and needed to quickly find himself powerful allies there, to solidify his position among the Dukes.

But how could he be a part of a court whose increasingly erratic persecution of mages, many of whom were faithful law-abiding citizens, began to touch on all the other people? He could not bring himself to roll over quietly while Calent butchered his people in the name of a holy war against mages, no matter what his thoughts on mages were. A line had to be drawn somewhere.

"This war needs to stop," Erwin let out with a soft breath and his shoulders sagged slightly, though he fought to maintain a aura of control about him. He clearly wasn't ready for so much responsibility thrust on his shoulders so soon.

"We barely survived the Long Winter, and now all of this is happening. We should be focused on rebuilding, not burning down what little we have left. Laws or not, mages or not, the people deserve better. You deserve better."

[kleineklementine]

”On that, at least, we agree. This war needs to end.”

Olive let out a sigh, looking again towards the tall, narrow window. From a few meters away, she couldn’t see anything in particular through it. Just a vague impression of the sky. But it made her wonder about everyone out there and what was happening to them.

”But it won’t end like this. With how things are now as some new status quo. It can’t. If you give people no choice but to fight for their lives, they’ll fight.” And that’s what was happening. Olive’s words didn’t come out as a threat; but a simple statement of reality. She’d watched it happen. Most of the mages who’d been interred with her in the camps had been law-abiding citizens who were terrified at the idea of using their magic. It was their greatest fear. She’d watched as they were pushed and prodded and beaten, until they were left with no choice but to rebel against the government they’d once obeyed.

It had happened to her.

Olive broke her reverie and looked back at Erwin, seeing the slight changes in his demeanor. It wasn’t her place, of course, to ask him about his actions as a duke. She knew that, but her curiosity got the better of her and, sensing the slight relaxation of the tense formality between them, she asked abruptly, ”Did you really withdraw Wulfbauer’s troops and deliver Calent an ultimatum?”

[Cambie]

"No it won't," Erwin agreed quietly, also glancing out the window to the dark sky beyond. Appropriately enough it was overcast, much like his mood for most of this day. Come the morning, his counselors would all be back and he would once again be thrust in the middle of a dozen clamoring voices.

Her question was quite bold to say the least, but at this point in time he really had no reason not to tell her the truth. If anything else, she might offer him wisdom from a perspective none of his other advisers held.

"I did," he said after a moment's silence, rubbing at his temples.

[kleineklementine]

Olive's eyes widened, just a little, in a faint look of surprise. She had assumed, truthfully, that Grace had gotten a little carried away; or that lines had been crossed in the telling and retelling of events that passed between the staff. That Erwin hadn't really issued an ultimatum to Calent.

"Oh," was all she managed at first. "I thought that last part had been exaggerated. Or mixed up somewhere in the retelling." He clearly knew that Grace had spoken with her and didn't seem particularly upset about it, but habit still kept Olive from naming any names. It was always best to leave room for plausible deniability. She watched him, the way he slumped his shoulders, the way he rubbed his temples. It was clear from her own expression that she was holding back her own thoughts on getting confirmation of this news. And though she knew she was already overstepping the boundaries of 'prisoner and warden,' she decided to press - cautiously - on. Instead she said, still carefully, "That's very bold. For a new duke."

[Cambie]

Erwin paused to look at Olive, slightly taken aback from her question. If his ultimatum to Calent had been bold, her words in the East Wing were bolder. But the Duke decided then that he trusted this prisoner of his more than he did his advisors. At the very least, he didn't have to worry about her motives.

"A decision made in the heat of passion," Erwin said with a shake of his head. "Bold, or foolish."

He stuck with it though. Despite the backlash he'd received. Or perhaps because of it.

He had a reputation among the soldiers of Wulfbauer, of being the commander who had the presence of mind to take gambles and make daring maneuvers on the field of war, to great success. But this political battleground required more finesse and subtlety, and perhaps his skillset was more detriment than help. For the first time, the Duke quietly wished he was back in the field. Things were simpler out there.

[kleineklementine]

Yes, she believed that. Olive frowned a little. 'The heat of passion' was no time for a duke to be making decisions. It was clear from her expression that she had quite a lot to say that she wasn't saying. She might be bold, but she wasn't impetuous. Or, not quite impetuous enough to give Erwin her opinion when he hadn't asked for it.

But Olive was so used now to everything being discussed, every decision being made by painful consensus, and generally speaking her mind over the past few years (well, probably her entire life), that she was clearly struggling a little.

Finally, she asked, "Sorry, ah, Duke Therrien, but you've already sent the messenger with your demands, or you've already decided to send it?"

At least she was managing to remember to be polite enough to call him 'Duke Therrien,' as odd as the words felt on her tongue.

[Cambie]

"No messenger has been dispatched yet. My counsel wanted more time to persuade me otherwise."

He saw the way she tensed up slightly, as though suppressing words that desperately wanted to be said. Likely she had her opinion on his actions.

"You can speak freely, Constance," he said quietly, curious about her thoughts. Any guidance couldn't hurt.

[kleineklementine]

Olive hesitated for a moment, still conscious of the fact that it wasn't really her place to tell a duke what to do. Even if he was the duke of the duchy her father used to rule. But Olive was never good at holding her tongue.

"Well, if I were you," she started, pushing back her bangs in a slightly self-conscious gesture, "I would be a bit softer about it. Tell Calent that, in light of recent events, you need to consolidate your resources in Wulfbauer. Or that if he can't guarantee the safety of his allies from his own troops, it's necessary for you to keep your forces in Wulfbauer to defend their own land and people. He will understand what you want without you directly challenging or defying him. And if he brings Krah to justice, it won't oblige you to return your troops to his service in exchange. If it isn't what you think is best at the time."

She shrugged, as though to say, 'But what do I know about it.' But it didn't stop her from adding at the last moment, "And whatever you're going to do, I'd do it first thing on the morrow. Before your counsel can get a word in. You can't let them think they can push you around."

Despite how confident she'd been in her words, Olive's gaze slipped sideways away from Erwin back to the window again. Something about being here made her feel a bit like a girl again, and even fighting as a rebel wasn't the same as saying what a duke should do.

[Cambie]

Erwin quietly took in her words. When she was done a silent pall fell over the little room, interrupted only by the faint sounds of an owl drifting into the high window from somewhere far away.

Her advice, of course, was absolutely meritorious. Perhaps his outburst that morning had been a little bit extreme but he was too new at this game to know all its small nuances. Olive's more subtle approach was definitely a doable compromise.

"That's the best advice I've heard today," he finally said, his low voice cutting through the silence. "Maybe you should be my counsel instead."