come_midnight: (c ~ be a queen)
Iobel Maryah Swan ([personal profile] come_midnight) wrote2014-05-24 12:17 am

shindig

Iobel is barely related to the Countess. The Countess is her great-aunt, and there are several layers of not-very-close family in there: the Countess never much liked her sister, said sister engendered little fondness in her only daughter, and said daughter - well, Iobel liked her just fine, which only served to cement the distance between her and the Countess. Iobel supposes she is technically in line for the title, but only if a rather intimidating number of cousins from that more prolific branch of the family all succumb to mortality first.

So Iobel lives in a little flat above a little store and under the old landlord and his wife, and she cohabits with her cat, and she sells hexes and custom spellcharts and consults on other people's spells in progress. It's a decent living even though she buys nice, quality things to lay the hexes on, and it's fun, and she has lots of spare time for personal research and reading since she taught the cat to operate the cash drawer and speak the few Marlese words necessary to tell customers "thank you" and "my spellbinder will be back in an hour" and convinced him to actually use those words instead of his choicer acquisitions.

But she is still noticeably related to the Countess, and when the Countess holds a big shindig, when she wants to fill up that manor house and all the gardens with eight hundred people, then Iobel gets an invitation.

So she goes, because why not, it's a holiday party and the shop's getting no business on the Equinox Revel anyway. She brings Cricket the cat along and takes the ferry up the canal to the estate and is offered a little guest room in the back wing and subtly insulted into borrowing one of her great-aunt's old dresses for the duration of the party. And then she loiters, cat at her heels making rude private-language comments about everyone they see, and she eats the hors d'oeuvres and lets some cousin teach her a simple dance because she finally managed a spell to cure her clumsiness the other month and this is as good an opportunity as any.
aestrix: (Default)

[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 06:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"I think so, but he could always use suggestions for what things need doing."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 06:22 pm (UTC)(link)
"Sort of. Not officially, but I like to keep my eyes and ears open for things that involve the future of this country, and ways to help it along."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:05 pm (UTC)(link)
He snorts. "Definitely not. I just try to pay attention."

By employing spies. He's not, technically, one himself.
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:08 pm (UTC)(link)
"Count of the Northern Isles. Also an acquaintance of your great-aunt, though I wouldn't call us friends."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:10 pm (UTC)(link)
"Why," teases the man, "were you worried that I was beneath your station?"
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:14 pm (UTC)(link)
"Counthood has its benefits. I'm trying to see if they will be a good fit for Marlatia, or cause the country to - worsen."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:16 pm (UTC)(link)
"Indeed. That's what I'd very much like to prevent."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"Well, not you in particular, but them doing worse than the late queen, certainly."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:22 pm (UTC)(link)
"Thank you. If you'd like to help, I'm trying to find possible queen candidates."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:25 pm (UTC)(link)
"To be entirely fair," says Natariem wryly, "I am not necessarily saying you. Unless you'd think you'd make a good queen?"
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:30 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yes, annoyingly messy business, that. What would you do with it, if someone just handed you queenhood?"
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:45 pm (UTC)(link)
He tilts his head.

"Hm. Okay, you would probably make a good queen. I recommend making a trip to the palace and seeing if you can meet them, and if they suit you..." He shrugs. "We get a decent queen."
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[personal profile] aestrix 2014-05-24 11:50 pm (UTC)(link)
"Make an excuse that you need to visit the fountain for your familiar, then mention you are nobility and would like to meet them. Or I could send an announcement for you, if that's too troublesome."

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