Masquerade - These Masks We Wear

[Channelknight Fadran]

Wendy both clamped her mouth shut and squeak-yelped at the same time, making for a strange choking noise. Swallowing her saliva and forcing herself not to grab Arabella and run, she slowly asked, "uhh... Nicolae, is it?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"Yeah. Nicolae, Nico. Whichever." He smiled, blushing, and ran a hand through his hair, only to upset his hat. He got to his knees and picked it up, muttering, "Didn't catch yer name though." 

[Channelknight Fadran]

"I--I'm... Wendy." She carefully set down her tray of cleaning supplies on a nearby countertop. "H--how do you know... Ara?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"Oh, this lovely little cookie?" Nico grinned and scooped her up onto his shoulder. "I met the poor thing after she'd been sent to the Raveness, now, ain't that awful? Us'lly I wouldn't speak no ill of the king, but I dunno what he was thinkin' makin' a call like that. I'm just glad she's alright. We had a swim a few days ago, with little Katie. And I made her that paper bird, I did." 

[Channelknight Fadran]

Wendy swallowed, then forced a smile onto her face. "Well, uhh... good for... her. And you." 

What the stars do you want with my kid, you tramp?

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Quote

How can she not seeeeeeee!! ToT Nico is the most wholesome person you'll ever meet. ... Wendy's never met the guy, yet she believe's all the rumors?

"Yeah. Nice to have a friend." Who doesn't think of you as the bed boy.... "It's lovely tuh meet 'cha, Wendy. You seem like the nice sort."

[Channelknight Fadran]

"I... umm... you too." Wendy began scanning the room, eventually moving to clean a mirror. She looked at Eleanor's through her reflection in it. "And who are you, might I ask?"

@Condensation

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Quote

I may or may not have had Riva put on fake eyelashes just because I wanted the Madame Medusa aesthetic. That movie was my childhood and if you know it, I respect you

Riva tossed the fake eyelashes into the wastebasket. They wouldn't be worth gluing on again and if she wanted another pair, she could certainly have one made. She sighed, depressed from her previous thoughts, and tossed her hair back, staring herself down in the mirror. She didn't look that bad, did she? Her eyes weren't that sunken, her skin was only slightly grey, and her teeth were really only had a touch of yellow. She needed more bleach for those... But honestly, why did she even care? Her face was covered up by a mask usually anyway. The mask was pretty and that was all people needed to see to know it was her. Her hips might have been all bony and sharp instead of youthful and curvy, her breasts saggy and small, but what did it matter when she had padding and fabric? She was fine. She looked fine. 

So why did she have tears to wipe away?

Pull yourself together, woman, Riva thought to herself. She had to smile at that. It was easy to hear her new husband say that in his eastern-accented growl. Stars, that man was something else. A grumpy little nut, definitely, but he bent to her like reeds before the wind. Oh yes, he knew who his master was. And that was why he was perfectly fine with stepping out of the room in her chemise to find the kitchens. The under-dress barely covered Riva's behind and was utterly sleeveless, sheer, and tight. She honestly didn't care if anyone saw her in it. In fact, part of her hoped someone would. It was dark in the hallways now and her skeletal shadow would be a thing of nightmares. A little over-the-top, definitely, but whatever. Stars knew she didn't do anything halfway.

It took a little bit of wandering - and she gave a few unsuspecting guards one Mal of a scare - but she eventually found it. And was met with an... interesting sight. 

@The Ward's Guard

[Condensation she/her]

2 hours ago, Shard of Thought said:

"Parents?" NIco chuckled. "Miss, the Raven and the General are old enough to be yer grandparents. They's gettin' married at the king's orders."

"Oh, that makes more sense."

2 hours ago, Channelknight Fadran said:

"I--I'm... Wendy." She carefully set down her tray of cleaning supplies on a nearby countertop. "H--how do you know... Ara?"

2 hours ago, Channelknight Fadran said:

"I... umm... you too." Wendy began scanning the room, eventually moving to clean a mirror. She looked at Eleanor's through her reflection in it. "And who are you, might I ask?"

@Condensation

"I'm Princess Alienor. You said your name was Wendy?"

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

The sound of a pen scratching on paper was quickly overpowered by the General munching rather loudly on some small baked goods that the castle chef had called "koekjes." Caden didn't particularly care what they were called, he just liked that they were both sweet, and that they had a solid crunch to them as he popped another one into his mouth. He chewed on the koekje absent-mindedly as reviewed the report that was on the table once more while still in his uniform, confirming that he understood the details right before continuing to work on his response. He stated that the man who wrote the report was to investigate this matter further before Caden would be willing to commit more resources to the situation.

He was so engrossed by both his work and snacking that he did not notice the woman who stood at the door to the kitchen at first. It was only a second later that he realized he wasn't alone, but since no one bothered him at such a late hour he was at a loss for who it could be. When he looked up from the document, he nearly did a double take, trying to work out who stood before him until. "Raveness?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Riva grinned. "Ah, well, hello there Caden. Stealing cookies from the cookie jar are we? Naughty General. And passed your bedtime too..."

Edited June 9, 2021 by Shard of Thought

[Channelknight Fadran]

12 hours ago, Condensation said:

"I'm Princess Alienor. You said your name was Wendy?"

"You're--" 

What.

In the world.

Is going on here today?

"Uhm... yeah." Wendy covertly wiped a bead of sweat off her brow. "Hi."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"So, miss Wendy, how do you know miss 'bella?" asked Nico. 

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

Caden shook his head, going back to the paper that he was writing on. "Brave enough to leave my room? Did you hope to catch me sleeping, Raveness, or were you hoping to apologize?"

[Vapor she/her]

17 hours ago, Channelknight Fadran said:

Wendy blinked a few times, confused. "Uhm... should I be hearing all this? And Ara, what the stars are you doing here?"

@Vapor

"I'm here with Nico!" Ara didn't react at all to the mention of the Rareness.

 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

3 minutes ago, The Ward's Guard said:

Caden shook his head, going back to the paper that he was writing on. "Brave enough to leave my room? Did you hope to catch me sleeping, Raveness, or were you hoping to apologize?"

"I think you'll find, Caden, dearest, that I'm much braver than you think. And actually, I was hoping to get a bite to eat." She walked over to the counter, picking through fruit. "What have you got in these cabinets anyway?" When she looked over at the general, she was rather relieved that his nose was in his papers. She wouldn't care if a servant saw her in her chemise, but it was different with Caden for whatever reason.

2 minutes ago, Vapor said:

"I'm here with Nico!" Ara didn't react at all to the mention of the Rareness.

Quote

Wendy, I swear, if you tell Ara she can't hang out with Nico because he's a bad man...

 

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

"Why the Maal should I know," he grabbed another koekje and took a bite as he finished up with his signature along the bottom of the paper. "It's food, if you want anything more, ask the blazing chef."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"Oh, Caden, watch your blazing profanity," Riva said with a smirk, rifling through shelves. She had filled a bowl with red grapes and was now looking for a decent cheese.

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

"I'll say whatever the blazes I want in my own home." He neatly folded the paper and tucked it away into an envelope. "Besides, I would have thought that the Raveness would like to spend more time in the room she stole."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"Despite my appearance, I actually do ingest food every once in a while. I hadn't eaten since the wedding, I was hungry. And I can't very well stay in the room forever; I have potions to work on. My servant should be coming with my things tomorrow. Though, knowing Daku, he'll probably be here either tonight or very early tomorrow. Speaking of which, I'll need an office, a lab. Oh, yes, and Caden? I wouldn't bother trying to get back into my room. I found the keys in there. I'll be locked from now on when I'm out or in, so unless you want to break down a door in your own home, the room belongs to me."

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

With a strange mixture of a growl and a sigh; Caden put the letter away and looked up at the Raveness for the first time, only to be confronted by what she was wearing, or rather, what she wasn't wearing. He was silent for only a few seconds before demanding, "what are you doing walking around the castle in just that?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Riva chuckled. "Well, I can't very well wear my soiled dress to bed, can I? What did you expect me to wear? I had no time to grab my nightdress, otherwise I'd wear that. And I'll be wearing this tomorrow morning, too, if you don't get me a decent outfit. I don't have anything else right now."

[Channelknight Fadran]

42 minutes ago, Vapor said:

"I'm here with Nico!" Ara didn't react at all to the mention of the Rareness.

1 hour ago, Shard of Thought said:

"So, miss Wendy, how do you know miss 'bella?" asked Nico. 

"She's the reason I'm here. I was... kind of in charge of taking care of her at... where we're from." Wendy looked between the two of them. "Umm... I'd love to stay and chat, but I still have work to do. Ara, you make sure to be a good girl; if I have time I'll take you and Katie somewhere fun tonight."

[The Ward's Guard he/him]

"Well you're not in bad right now," he turned away, picking up the jar for the koekjes. "Why didn't you throw something on before wandering around the halls of my home?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

3 minutes ago, Channelknight Fadran said:

"She's the reason I'm here. I was... kind of in charge of taking care of her at... where we're from." Wendy looked between the two of them. "Umm... I'd love to stay and chat, but I still have work to do. Ara, you make sure to be a good girl; if I have time I'll take you and Katie somewhere fun tonight."

"Aww. Now that's sweet of you, miss, takin' care of the girl." He glanced up at Ara and grinned at her before asking Wendy, "Somethin' happen to her parents? Surely she ain't yours."

3 minutes ago, The Ward's Guard said:

"Well you're not in bad right now," he turned away, picking up the jar for the koekjes. "Why didn't you throw something on before wandering around the halls of my home?"

"What, you'd like me to wear those massive shirts you have in the closet?"

Edited June 9, 2021 by Shard of Thought