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Through a Glass Darkly [M]

Started by Lion, May 10, 2017, 11:24:23 PM

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Lion

[Tags to @Draconian  ]

Folkvar. It was a long way from home.

It was easy for some to forget that the roads were no longer as safe as they once were. But even with the contingent of Bellkrath soldiers following him, Mercuxio was anxious and kept his eyes  up and alert as they traveled south into Folkvar. Another duchy, another wilderness to wander through. Another sea of madness.

The trip too longer than a few weeks, even by horse, and the weather was cold, gloomy, and wet along the way. Light drizzle pelted down on them from passing gray clouds and Mercuxio had no idea how close they were to the sea. It must have been close however, by the mere sound of ocean spray off in the distance, and the sudden ring of sunglight that poured down on him when the gray clouds passed over.

It was a foolish endeavor. And for all he knew it was going to be a complete waste of time. But it was worthy an attempt. He was in need of a wife, and they seemed eager to be rid of her. Which seemed a bit suspicious in his mind, and he tucked that thought away to be considered later. Perhaps they simply didn't want their daughter to wilt away in a castle by the sea.

Whatever the case, for now, he was here to assess this woman's potential. He was Duke now, and his people would require the certainty of lineage. Mercuxio closed his eyes and swallowed at the salty air that landed on his tongue.  And he swallowed it down with a swig from the water skin hanging from his saddle. In the quiet of the ride, he forced himself not to think of his father.

Dardanus was a sunken husk of a man in his last days, and Mercuxio wince at a pang that reverberated inside his chest. The man he'd known as an impenetrable wall of infallibility, stubbornness, a pillar of strength, had withered and when Merric knelt before him, he embraced him with whatever strength he had left, clutched him as he had done when he was a little boy.

Mercuxio's jaw clenched, and he kept his gaze steady as the manor in the cliff's began to come into view, and the banner bearer of the heraldry of House Rastonglir and the Duchy of Bellkrath ran ahead of them toward the gates. And Merric let out a steady breath, and let the cool sea air soothe him.

He was no longer clothed in priestly garb. That was an idealism that had no place in the here and now, and instead he wore a clean cloth tunic,  layered outer-robe and painted armor, the wolf crest of House Rastognlir. Titus chuffed underneath him, the black horse stalking along as he and the rest of his contingent stayed in formation in their approach.




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"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

From her perch on her pretty beast, it was apparent that her family sought to sell her.

A purse of her lips and Aveline adjusted the hood, careful to keep any pale locks of hair from spilling forth. Wouldn't do well to give away her gender immediately. It was bad enough she wore mens clothing - not even the dainty version of mens clothing that was for ladies. Pants tucked into boots. Shirt tucked into pants. Cloak to cover her hair and keep the chill at bay.

Aveline was hardly a lady - but she was rich and she could play at being one if she had the mind to.

Usually though, she had the mind to tend to her horses. A hobby of her grandfather's that she latched onto. No doubt the horses would also be part of any deal that would be going on. Aveline, being unmarried and a younger sister, obviously wasn't allowed to own anything. Though she'd fight tooth and nail for her horse.

It was an easy gait that Aveline nudged her horse along to her home, watching the bunch of strangers arrive at her home. Her parents home. This would be the third suitor, Aveline thought with a roll of her eyes. While there was wealth there was also her and while she wasn't hard on the eyes in any fashion, being a first class annoyance made the money not look so good.

The ride home was easy and once she was in the manor her mother and maids rushed her off to make her presentable. Hair done. Cheeks pinched to give them a flush that wasn't from the cold. Then she was given a book ( which she held boredly and upside down) told to sit by the fire and look pretty. No talking. No making faces. Be quiet. Keep seated, pretend to read.

Avelina grumbled while she flipped pages of the upside down book - though she honestly made attempts to read it.

The fire played off of her so that she practically glowed by the light and the manor's help let the newest suitor and his entourage into the building. To be greeted by her mother and father. Don't talk. Don't think. Don't move.

She'd ruin everything. Aveline was tempted to move. The idea of being throw out though, losing her horses and her family... She sighed and stared at the upside down words in the book. The noises her parents were making sounded like the ocean. Talk of technicalities and dowries and how soon can the wedding be.

Aveline ignored most of it, finding it boring and not at all her problem. Well, it was.

Right now it wasn't thought.

"Aveline," Her mother said, having walked over to her daughter, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'd like you to meet Mercuxio Rastonglir," Aveline glanced up, looking unimpressed and bored, "he's the Duke of Bellkrath." Aveline stood up, holding her upside down book to her belly and gave a polite bow, glancing off to the side and looking bored.

"What a pleasure to meet you, sir," she said, face stoic and expression lax. The pleasure was plain on her face. It wasn't at all and she'd rather be playing with her horses.

Lion

Mercuxio had come all this way to find himself a wife. And come better or worse, he wasn't going to leave without one. Folkvar would not have been his first choice. The distance had been a minor inconvenience, but the people here were less than, well, polished. If he wanted to pull an apple from a rotting tree, there was a damn good chance there'd be worms inside of it.

The details of money, dowry, property and were all inconsequential in the scheme of things. He needed a wife and for the people of Bellkrath to become confident in the knowledge that their new Duke was securing his line. And that even this far into the war, Bellkrath would remain stalwart.

The manor house was pleasant looking enough and gave Merric a vague confidence that these wouldn't be as much of a country of bumpkins as he feared. She even had a book in her hand. That was promising.

As his entourage spoke with her father, Mercuxio stepped forth into the sitting room to greet the young woman addressed as Aveline. Merric blinked, squinting his eyes at her, becaue while her family seemed pretty keen on making a good show of things, he could tell there were places she'd rather be.

Oh good, then he wasn't the only one.

"A pleasure, surely, that's entirely my own," he said and reached out, to pry her hand from that book and bring it up to his lips. Merric gave her a firm kiss just on her knuckles, finding them worn beneath his own chapped lips.  He released her hand and met her gaze steadily, blue eyes catching in the firelight.




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Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Ah Court manners.

Aveline watched him boredly, let her hand be pried away from the upside down book - and was disappointed when it didn't get some sort of dirty look. Still, formalities were important and she supposed she could suffer through him kissing her hand. An impulse to snatch it away was pushed down and she watched the Duke with honey gold eyes.

At least he had nice eyes.

"A pleasure," she echoed, glancing at his lips. His neck. At least he was handsome. So far he wasn't terribly annoying. "I understand you're here to see if I'll be a decent partner in producing children for yo---" " Aveline! " her mother's voice cut and she winced away, glancing to the side and frowning.

"I do apologize," Her mother started, moving in to take Mercuxio's hand and moving to the side before she glared at her daughter who was playing with the ends of her blonde curls, "She has a mind of her own but, sadly, no will to keep the words in her head. I assure you, she's just in a mood and usually much better behaved." Aveline looked to Mercuxio before she rolled her eyes.

Lion

A duke in a foreign province. While in support of the Grand Duke, Mercuxio knew he was still very much a stranger in a strange land. A stranger that was here to spirit away another from this land of ocean bluffs and harsh gray stone.

To somewhere even farther away, north. Across a landscape rife with violence. In the scheme of things, a marriage seemed rather unimportant. In the current political atmosphere, it couldn't have been more. Mercuxio was here for one purpose, to find a wife. And that was just what he was going to do.

So when Aveline's mother pulled her hand away, he had to blink twice. Did that just happen?  Just when the girl was starting to get interesting.  Merric wasn't grinning, and his brow drooped, just enough to express disappointment. "That is all well and good, Lady Marsters. But if I may, perhaps Aveline and I can take a walk. Talk for ourselves," he said, gauging between the two women and bowed his head respectfully.

Mercuxio stepped around her mother and offered his hand again to Aveline. "Please, I'd love to see your home if you care to show me," he offered. "Shall we talk a bit?"




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The Order of St. Agratha

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The Red Legion

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Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

This was awful.

Aveline knew how much her mother wanted this. Not only because it would get rid of her, but because of just who this was. Taking a moment to breathe she reached and took Mercuxio's hand in her own before she curled her arms around his and tucked his elbow to her side.

"Of course, Sir," she said softly, glancing over her shoulder to her mother before she guided him along. Not that she knew where he would be staying. Once they were out of ear range, Aveline guided him to a small study before she closed the door.

"I'm not good at pleasantries. I understand you have need of a wife. My parents are worried i'll soon rot off the tree and die a childless spinster," she let go of his arm and leanrd against the desk, crossing them. A movement that pushed her breasts up and she tilted her head and fixed her curls  to spill over her shoulder.

"As it is, if you decide the dowry is worth it and you chose to marry me you'll have your heir and spare as soon as possible and we can go back to whatever hobbies we've had that have kept us from marrige much sooner," she eyed Mercuxio. He wasn't unattractive, but he was old enough.

"I'm not a quiet polite lady unless I need to be -I can fake it well enough - and if we marry i would like to get along with you." Aveline pursed her lips and looked at him. Honeygold meetinf blue. "Any questions?"

Lion

Oh she was leveling with him now was she? That was a good sign. Although perhaps not everyone else would agree to that. For Mercuxio, however, that meant there would be little in the way of disguises and that suited his purposes just fine. He was not going to pretend that he was here for anything other than dragging back a wife.

And she, seemed to be in quite a similar predicament.

"That's fair enough," he admitted with a nod.  His eyes gauged hers, those honey colored orbs rather warm and inviting as they were. Odd, though. Maybe she was part mage. He hoped not, but he wouldn't put it beside her family to intermingle with such things.  For now, though, he'd give them all the benefit of the doubt.

"I ask nothing of you. I came here for a wife, and that's just what I intend to find," he said matter-of-factly.  Mercuxio's eyes flicked down for the briefest of moments, taking in the sight of her cleavage. And no small amount of it at that. Gods....

"Dowry and other technicalities aside, I have no complaints so far as to the prospective match. I understand your father has horses. A lot of them. That's good. Do you work with them quite a bit? And for the record, I appreciate your candor," he said, giving a flicker of a smile. Mercuxio eyed the view of their land through the window. "Show me the grounds. If you'd like."




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

The eye contact was a little unnerving.

Aveline frowned at him after a few moments before she turned her head and shifting her shoulders, glancing off to the side. The dress was designed to push things up and down. Slimmer waist. Bigger bust. Bait on the hook and Mercuxio was the fish. Or the Duke was the fish. Either way, she listened to him speak and was pleased when he wasn't irritated by her candor.

The faint hint of a smile when he said he appreciated it.

A faint blush and she looked away. Though his comment about the horses had her bristle. A glance to the window and she sighed before she pursed her lips and looked away.

"They're my horses," She said simply, still, she stood up and held out an arm, "I'll show you. Introduce you," A wiggle of her fingers and she walked towards the door, impatient to be moving along. "The sooner we're married the sooner my horses are your horses and sooner I have your children the sooner I can get back to my horses," She grinned at him, finding that cutting right to the meat of the dinner suited her just fine. Another impatient wiggle of her fingers before she pushed the door open.

Lion

He was the fish, and even Mercuxio was aware of this.This was a game after all, an angle all to be played out to one's heart contentment. He wasn't stupid when it came to power plays. And right now the cards were in her favor. He was a suitor in desperation to find a wife, and now that he found one, he would have to do whatever it took to bring her back home with him.

Because he wasn't going to leave without marrying some unlucky woman.

Mercuxio took those wiggling fingers into his own and was lead outside toward the grounds. "That sounds good enough for me. While we can agree that this is all rather a large inconvenience, getting it over with as quickly as possible would be in everyone's best interests," he said and gave a gently squeeze to her hand.

While they wandered out toward the paddock where her horses were he gazed out to those powerful animals. Their coats glistened in the morning light. "They're beautiful," he commented idly.




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

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The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

The warmth of his hand was nice.

Aveline felt like her hands were getting sweaty. Nerves were taking over. Her heart picked up a few thumps but by the time they got to the stables. The horses calmed her and once they were there and the beasts were in view she slipped her hand from Mercuxio's and went to her horse.

Still a little sweaty from the adventure earlier she smoothed her hand over the horses face and pressed a kiss to her nose. "Hello Beautiful Day," She said softly, scritching cheeks. "She's mine. I raised her myself," she said, smiling over her shoulder at her... Parents choice in husband. "She's called a frame paint," her hand smoothed up the white face, gazing into the blue eyes of the content beast.

"Most of my horses are," A glance to Mercuxio and she turned around, the horse leaning over her shoulder to sniff at Mercuxio, "I'd be bringing some horses with me," she stated, giving him a level look. "Tell me about your horse."

Lion

The horses, while a rather lucrative part of the deal, were not the reason why he was here. For the time being he just wanted to see her in her natural state, and his mind worked to find the easiest ways to make her feel comfortable when the time came that they had to leave. Bellkrath was a long journey, and within that time, the sickness and longing for home could make or break her.

She seemed resigned to her fate. Mercuxio's eyes flicked between her and her horse. Beautiful Day. And a beautiful animal at that.

"My beast of burden is that animal over there. Tended to by another of my entourage," he said. "His name is Titus. He's a black horse, and strong stock like the other horses of Bellkrath, perhaps a little thicker around the chest than Beautiful Day. She truly is her namesake though! Who were her sire and mare?"




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Black.

Aveline smirked slightly, head tilting before she pushed a pile of ringlettes over her shoulder and tilted her head to the side. A blatant exposure of her shoulder and neck. More bait for the hook. She smoothed her fingers over her neck, down her front and she let it rest at her waist. His questions had her tilt her head at him.

"Why?" she tilted her head and looked down the stable, "Does Titus need to have an heir?" She reached forward and nudged Mercuxio's arm before she scritched Beautiful Day's chin. "Her dam is Beautiful Skies and her Sire is Bright Day. She didn't quite get her mother's colouring but she's the spitting image of her father," A smile and Aveline turned around to look at the horse. An elegant looking girl, Beautiful Day - or simply Day - had a white mask and for the most part a white body. Golden coloured mane and a stripe along her back to her flicking gold tail.

"Adding new bloodlines is always good," She smirked and smoothed her hand over her abdomen, looking up at Mercuxio through her lashes. Making lame little attempts at some form of seduction, "If Titus is looking for a wife I'm sure there's a lady for him somewhere in these stables."

Lion

Now... now it seemed like she was trying just a bit too hard. She didn't need to. Mercuxio wondered if she was perfectly aware of this? Technically speaking, she already had him on the proverbial hook. He wasn't going to make two trips and he'd be damned if he was going to waste her time as well.

"Titus...I think would be happy to breed. All too much. Poor boy has been stuck with me for more than ten years," he snorted, and giving a firm shake of his head.  Another look to Beautiful Day and Merric reached a hand to let her sniff him, as he did with all the horses in his paddock back home and reached out to touch her neck and jawline. She really was a sight to behold, and a lot less forboding than he would have imagined.

Some horses were just odd.

"Titus is a good boy. I think they'll get along just fine."  Mercuxio smiled, tilting his head to Aveline. A rare expression these days in light of recent events. She was easy company however. He didn't have to have any pretense. All of that was exhausting anyway.

"You take good care of them," he commented.  "She's round but strong. She has good build on her. I've been riding since i was a child. But...well, a duke's son rarely has other hobbies. It's only recently that I've gotten out of the priesthood."  Blue eyes cut back to hers. "But that part of my life is over now. I'm ready to move on. That's why I'm here. And, if you don't mind me saying so, i think you'd make an excellent wife. You clearly have a good heart and mind. I can see that just by looking at Beautiful Day."




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Aveline let her hands drop to her waist and she watched Mercuxio while he pet Beautiful Day. Tilting her head and just... Watching. You could tell a lot about someone just by watching. She leaned against the stable door, arms crossed over her chest before she smiled ever so slightly.

Beautiful Day nuzzled into Mercuxio's hand looking for treats before she huffed and gave Aveline a nudge then she turned away and presented her butt. She was quite done with them and their pets. Aveline just studied Mercuxio while he spoke, slowly turning away.

Of course at the mention of Priesthood, Aveline's back straightened and she slowly look at him through her eyelashes. Then she frowned. "Priesthood," she repeated before giving a shake of her head, glancing away. Poor man. Wanting to be a simple priest and now he was... A Duke. Surely that wasn't where he wanted his life to end up.

"Well," Aveline started, "I could do worse than a husband that likes men," She eyed him for a long moment. Why else would the son of a duke be a priest? Holding out her hand she tilted her head, finger combing her curls with her free hand. "Well, I accept. The sooner this is over with the sooner we can go back to your home and I can get used to the rest of my life. Shall we?"

Lion

Mercuxio didn't know what she was looking at, but once she agreed to the proposition that was enough for him. It was too bad that Beautiful Day didn't want any more pets because he'd been more than willing to provide. Instead she turned away from him and presented her backside.

Well, that was rude.

Mercuxio stepped away long enough to avoid being farted at or worse, and almost missed the implication she made. He blinked at her.  "I'm sorry? I..."  He was rather taken aback. Too taken aback to really respond to it. So instead he just bowed his head to her and reached his hand out to her. "Let's go back inside then. To finalize the details. We'll be married in the morning. Then we'll be on our way to Bellkrath. Is there anything about me you'd like to ask though? Before all this is official."




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Anything about him?

Aveline gave him a quizical look.

Was there?

Ex-priest. Older - but not droopy older. Liked horses. Was to the point. Seemed polite and kind. "Are you going to have mistresses?" She asked, head tilted, "mother said it would be likely, but as long as I have children, no matter how many others you may have, mine would be heirs and thats all that mattered." Aveline gave a tight littlw smile.

What was a man mistress called? Surely he'd have a man on the side. While she spoke, she guided him across the well kept lawn, passed the sad garden and finally to the doors where her family waited on the other side.

Lion

Mercuxio put that other comment behind him. It was not worth focusing on. And within that small garden he'd rather get to know the better parts of her rather than inane comments. At least she was pleasant to look at.

His blue eyes surveyed her, a little more carefully now than before and he grinned, that curvature gracing the corner of his mouth. "No, I don't I'd even have time for one," he admitted. "Mistresses tend to require a certain dedication. I'm afraid most of my duties will be directed to more important to tasks."

Like ensuring an heir, and preparing Bellkrath for war.

On the other side of that door was her parents and his own people. He smiled congenially at them and the look of apparent relief on their faces was more than evident. Merric didn't at all consider that others might not have been so eager to marry her. Mercuxio supposed he could do worse.

"She will do," he assessed, nodding to his own attendant. The man bowed his head.

"Very well. I shall draw up the necessary paperwork. It will be available come morning." He turned on his heel to disappear back behind the rest of the entourage.

"Shall we have dinner then?" Merric suggested.




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Aveline shifted her top again, looking down at her bosom.  Well, that was a bust. She smirked at her silent internal pun before she adjusted her top again and fixed her hair. There were polite nods of her head while she listened to him dismiss the idea of having a mistress - though she was unsure if he knew that having a mistress that was a man still counted. Not that she wanted to have relations with a man who had relations with a man.

A sly glance to Mercuxio before she glanced away and puffed out her cheeks.

She will do.

Aveline almost scoffed at that and visibly rolled her eyes.

Her mother gave a cry of delight and her father looked proud of himself. Aveline just looked bored.  Her mother gave a pleased 'Oh, yes,' to the suggestion of dinner and her father reached forward and shook Mercuxio's hand. "Welcome to the family," He said, giving a few pumps of his hand, "Come along! We should celebrate. Cigar? A drink?" He dragged Mercuxio into the manor and looked all to pleased with himself.

Finally he'd pawned off his pain in the ass daughter. As much as he loved her- and he did  - she was old now and becoming less and less appealing for marriage. Except now. Now she was going to marry a duke. "Of course, you'll have to name the son after me," He gave a guffaw while he dragged Mercuxio along.

It was going to be a long night, Aveline sighed while her mother tugged her along. Couldn't wait to be done with all this.

Lion

A long night to be shared by the both of them, for better or for worse. Mercuxio was quickly coming to realize the enthusiasm that came with the knowledge that Aveline was going to be married off. Were her parents just excited simply because she was going to get married? As did parents mostly - except when they had to shell out a pretty coin to do so.

Or were they were they bloody ecstatic to rid be rid of a head ache?

A consideration that Mercuxio was having now when he was dragged away by her father to have a smoke and a drink. Did he smoke? God no! Did he drink?! Not heavily. But the brandy Marvin Marsters was brandishing was to be comsumed by the gallon and with gusto. Well, far be it from Mercuxio to be rude to his host. And by the end of that little meeting and dinner finally being served, he was already feeling the room spinning underneath his feet.

"Hell well, now that young lord can hold is liquor well,"Marvin guffawed. "Because he damn near drank the entire decanter. Ahhh, fresh fish! Well Duke Rastognlir, I am honored to have you join us at this table. And to share our food. And to take our daughter as your wife. And I am sure she is just as honored."

And gave Aveline a pointed look.




Like to kill mages?  Join the Order!
The Order of St. Agratha

Help Rebuild Connlaoth from the ashes of war!
The Red Legion

Jump in the water's fine!
Desert Valley Nights
Wrong Turn

"Go into battle determined to die and you will survive.  Go into battle hoping to live and surely you shall not." -Bushido proverb
"Life is a series of dogs." -George Carlin
"We must view with profound respect the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of useful knowledge." -Thomas R. Lounsbury
"If a cosmic tree falls in the universal forest and nobody is evolved enough to hear it, does it make a sound?" -Unknown

Draconian

Aveline had snuck a drink in the kitchen from the kitchen staff's stash. The old cook gave her a look before she just grinned and then cackled. A rough handed pat on the back and Aveline gave the cook a sick worried look. She wasn't made to be  a wife. All quiet and a ... Quiet. Having children. Aveline smoothed her hand over her abdomen before she stared down at the floor and made eye contact with the cook before she snuck back another drink.

Enough to smooth the frayed nerves at least.

A puff of breath, she pinched her cheeks to give them a non-alcohol induced flush and made her way out of the kitchen to see Mercuxio and her father headed to the dining room. Slipping down a different hallway, she seated herself at the table, fixing her skirts and trying to make her coils of blonde hair sit perfectly over her plush bosom.

"the most honored," She said, looking away to roll her eyes.

Mercuxio was seated beside her and her parents were across the table. Dinner was served and Aveline pursed her lips before she looked over to her... New friend. "Are you drunk?" She whispered to him, leaning to look at him, a little concerned, "Can't stand the idea of marrying me that much?" She teased, nudging his elbow.