The day had finally come.

After months of preparation, weeks of planning, and days of arrivals, the big day had finally home. Tsuko was thrilled. His son was finally getting married... oh, and his nephew too, but that was less important. Getting the guests settled down was the hard part, of course... finding room was a chore in and of itself. But it was now the day that Tsuko had been awaiting for months on end.

He got up early, of course (Emeila mumbled something and fell back to sleep... she was a late riser, as always), out of sheer nervousness. He dressed himself in the finest suit and coat he had (good silk, with an impressively high collar), and quickly roused most of the staff and set them to work. Some of the kitchen staff was already at work making breakfasts (some of the guests had no personal chefs), but Tsuko roused the rest and sent them off making lunch already... after all, the caterers should have an open kitchen to work with when they prepare the dinner.

Tsuko spent much of the morning rushing about trying to put matters in order. By mid-afternoon, guests were already filled into the central courtyard, waiting for the ceremony to start. Tsuko took some time to identify a few of them... some miscellaneous Ghayth nobles, some pompous looking lords from other parts of Marlas... Tsuko personally welcomed the High Seat of House Ghayth, of course, and rather grudgingly welcomed the High Seat of House Calendae as well. The others he mostly let filter to him to offer their congratulations. He was quite proud that he only slipped up once or twice and called the wedding his son's rather than that of his nephew and his son... but such was life. Oh, well, maybe it was more than once. Half the time. To occasionally high ranking people. But that was a minor mistake. His good friend Blyth he greeted warmly, though he wondered what he was doing there. Hadn't he said he had some business deal to take care of? Or something?

Soon it was almost the hour when the actual marriage ceremony would start. He quickly moved over to Rhys Horsehand, who seemed to be dressed in her finest for the wedding... poor girl. Well, he supposed the life of the peasant wasn't the most profitable. And she did look... tolerable. Though he did almost mistake her for a servant, of which there seemed to be several hundred walking around on some chore or other for their master. Why, he almost ran into one early in the day, and she looked so startled Tsuko felt compelled to murmur an apology.

To Rhys, he said, "Miss Horsehand... I have had the horses brought just outside that gate over there," he said, flicking his hand in the direction of a gate to his right. "It would please me if you had the honor of escorting the brideprice into the ceremony at the appropriate time. Your horses proved to be the best of those that we bought."

He paused for a moment to hear her answer, gave a quick "Thank you, Miss Horsehand," he quickly bustled away, wondering whether he would need to see to any last minute preparations. Unfortunately, a guest waylaid him on the way out. And what could he do but stop to converse for a short time?

((So remember everyone... you're probably here for my nephew's wedding, not my son's. Let the fun begin! :D))

'Oh gods. Everyone is here. Everyone I have ever met. Some that I haven't met yet. I can only identify so many. I can't remember all of the names. Always been a face person anyway. Father has been running about all day "taking care of things." Oh gods, I am nervous. I've tried to be as polite as possible without looking like a wreck. Nothing to be done about it I guess. Today is the day.'

'Out of all the people, I still haven't seen Jenin. Where is he on this all most important day. He should have been here at least an hour ago. Oh well, he never was on time. The horses look good. Especially the ones that Father brought from that girl. What was her name? Rose, Regan, Rolynda, Rhys... That's it, Rhys. They are nice horses, easy to train well. I think I saw her earlier.'

'That man that my father seems to know rather well is here. Alarion Quint, or something of the sort. I don't remember. Anyway, Silva is here. I'm glad that he could make it. Most of Ghayth has turned out too. They are all cold. None of them respond to my pleasantries. Just trying to be nice and what do I get for it? Nothing. Oh well, I just hope the girl is nicer than her family. Gods, I don't know her name. What am I supposed to do at the ceremony?'

Enderron bumped into someone as he turned the corner into the great hall, "Excuse me, I didn't see you."

Iffalna looked up at the tall young lord. "Of course you didn't, I'm shorter than everyone in this blasted land. I swear, Marlas breeds them taller than any other place in Olencia!" She said huffily. She had been looking for Blyth. She'd lost track of him and was worried he was up to no good, and besides, she had never been to a noble wedding in Marlas. She'd been to several common weddings; they'd been lively affairs with lots of dancing and plenty of food and wine, but nobles...They were different. She wanted to see Blyth to get caught up on any rituals they hadn't covered on the ride over; they'd been too busy training him to really discuss anything.

But now she'd found the bridegroom. One of them, anyway, and it was probably rude to ignore him. She grabbed the edges of her ridiculously gauzy, lace-encrusted skirt, tried to curtsy, and threw the skirt behind her in frustration. "Excuse me, young, man, give me a moment..." She muttered. She was very unsettled today. Not that she was ever really graceful, but today...Today was not a good day! The dress didn't help, either. She gathered the dress behind her with one hand to draw the skirts tight like trousers, and bowed. "Happy wedding day, Enderron. I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Iffy. I belong to Blyth...Torg...Darkswo...Oh, HELLS!" She swore.

Iffalna had NO PATIENCE LEFT to deal with pleasantries. She just wanted her apprentice so she could ask him how to properly give the couples their miniature trees, and she was bumbling around like an idiot in this STUPID dress that she couldn't even move in! And even worse, she didn't know Blyth's pseudonym, so she couldn't even ASK for him! Scowling, she planted her hands on her hips and stared up at the bridegroom. "Look, just remember that I'm Iffy and I'm someone's crazy old aunt from the Barrier. In fact, I'm SO crazy that I don't remember my nephew's name. Now scat. I'm trying to find my nephew, and you have a wedding to attend to. I think there's a crisis out the gate, a brown-haired, freckle-faced girl holding a chestnut Great Horse was yelling at some stablehands about a lost halter. Go help her if you know what's good for you!" She snapped.

"Happy wedding day, Enderron. I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Iffy. I belong to Blyth...Torg...Darkswo...Oh, HELLS!" She swore.

'What a pleasant little woman. Her patience is not long. Funny, actually, I'm sure she means no harm to me. I should help her.'

"Excuse me, good madam, I believe you are looking for a one Alarion Quint. He is my father's friend. He said he was bringing a crazy relative. Barrier you say. Must be a frightful place to live so close to the border of the Dragonlands. Oh well, I'm sure you make due. I'll help you find Alarion. You look a little out of sorts. No matter, we'll find him just the same. Stick with me, I know this place like the back of my hand. I should, for all my sixteen years here."

'Funny lady. She seems almost to walk flustered. She seems different than the others. Less used to this kind of thing. I suppose she doesn't get much of this where she comes from. Only commoners live up there. That and lumber merchants. Either way, the nobles aren't brave enough for that kind of risk. I wish I could live like that. Out in the country. Miles of open space. Easier to knit together a close community.'

He didn't even LISTEN to her! He didn't even STARTLE!

...Iffalna was getting old, wasn't she?

Glumly, Iffalna followed the young bridegroom. She knew it was customary for nobles to marry young in Marlas, but sixteen? Iffalna hadn't perfected her first strain of blight-resistant wheat at sixteen! She hitched her skirts up to keep from tripping again, and resumed stomping. Damn tall Marlas folk! No wonder she couldn't get him to startle, he could hardly see her!

But she'd dealt with sixteen-year-olds who were taller than her before. She had them tend the feilds, her greenhouse, her breeding program, whatever. Most of them were nice enough, for teenagers. So she dropped the scowl, mostly, and gruffly asked, "What do you think, of being married so young? Have you even met your bride, yet?"

"What do you think, of being married so young? Have you even met your bride, yet?"

'It's too soon of course. But what can be done? No one will understand my reasoning for not wanting to marry. It's customary. And customs are most certainly not optional. Oh well, nothing to be done about it now.'

"Well, I'm excited. Marriage will be a new adventure I'm sure. Will I regret the lack of the freedom of single life, probably, but I won't let that keep me from doing my best with the marriage. Things like this are planned from birth. Nothing can be done about them. No, I haven't met her. I've heard good things though. Things always work out for the best. I wish I could remember her name. Oh well, I'm sure Father will tell me before the vows."

"Let's see if we can't find who you are looking for. Alarion Quint. I'm sure Father said he was coming with an aunt. He was raving about it all week. Alarion is the only person that I think my father is excited to see. I can't wait to meet him. He is supposed to be very nice. That's what father says of him anyways. Let's go."

Enderron walked down the great hall and turned into the great hall where all the guest were meeting for the ceremony.

The wedding was more than wonderful. Khira had expected a whole lot, and she was pleased to see that her expectation were met, and more. It was wonderful to see so many nobles from many different Houses in the same place. Khira had interacted with the nobles of House Ghayth so much that she had craved for some variation. Of course most nobles of Ghayth were here too, but there were so many others! She was a bit disappointed that she couldn't name all of them even after hours of study with her aunts. She recognised the most high-ranking ones of course, but it was impossible to match a name with a face in the huge crowd of nobles when she had never seen the face before. Nevertheless, it was all very exciting.

She was slightly put off by her mother's continuous attempts to introduce Khira to every single young unmarried nobleman with a bit of rank. Khira knew that her parents wanted her to marry, but she had no inclination to do something like that so soon. And she didn't want to marry outside House Ghayth where she would lose her mother and father's protection. No, she was too young to marry. It was too soon! But she still humored her mother by smiling politely to every man she introduced her to and trying not to be rude when she was guided to the next nobleman.

And she had to admit that she was rather enjoying herself, talking to all types of men who all found her attractive. She was wearing one of her finest gowns, pale green with dark green embroidery along the hem and the wide sleeves. It was a sleek dress that fit her snugly, but the hem widened somewhat around her ankles and the sleeves were very wide and lined with dark green silk. The bodice was rather generous, but her chest was covered with a very large and intricate gold necklace with large emeralds. Emeralds decorated her ears too and were competently spun into her hair that she had left loose. She knew that she was looking her best, and she looked better than most noblewomen around her. The feeling was wonderful.

They had offered their congratulations to the High Seat of House Marlas who seemed to be a rather distracted man, but that seemed to have been the end of official engagements before the actual ceremony, so Khira firmly convinced her mother that she should walk around alone for a while. Her mother and father grudgingly agreed and Khira wandered around with a wide smile on her face, greeting all Ghayth nobles and stopping to talk with a few of them. She loved all the admiring glances she gathered while she walked among the crowd. She grew bolder as she chatted with nobles she had never seen before in her life and the smile on her face widened. And suddenly she found herself face to face with the man they had formally greeted already, the High Seat of House Marlas.

Khira hadn’t expected to meet him again, but she didn’t let that bother her. She curtsied, not too deeply though since she was a Lady herself, but enough to acknowledge his status. “Good day, Lord Tsuko Theras,” she greeted quickly with a wide smile. “I do apologize if I am keeping you, but I must congratulate you personally on the success of the wedding. Everything has gone perfectly so far. You must be very excited. The ceremony will begin soon, isn’t that so?”

((Whoopdedoo. ))

Dressed in a dark blue gown that matched her eyes, standing alone amidst the throngs of people, Seyira felt unbearably out of place. She was unaccustomed to standing out in the open, being on her own rather that trailing silently behind someone else. Her simple dress and loose hair attracted her far less notice than the nobles in their sparkling, glittering attire, but she still felt revealed to the world, almost as if someone would pounce on her at any moment. It shouldn’t have mattered so much to her, as she was possessed of the self-same skills the other nobles had at their disposal, though trained to a much better extent, but her years as a maid had put a rusty edge on them, and if she wasn’t careful, she’d let something slip that she couldn’t afford to let slip.

Lady Seyira Vivienne of Ivria, that was who she was masquerading as here. A young orphan woman in the High Seat’s court, with few funds at her disposal and virtually no prospects, whose most outstanding trait was a sharp tongue that nearly everyone found offensive. It was a convincing story, and if one dismissed the ‘Lady’ that had been added in front of her name, a true story. Still, it bothered her, and she couldn’t say why. Nobility wasn’t her style. She would have much rather been disguised as the servant she was, hiding in the shadows, away from prying eyes and ears. There were so many people here, and it made her feel nervous. But she would not fail her lady. She could not fail.

Looking around the room, she saw countless nobles busy in conversation with each other, and she found to her surprise that she recognized a quite a few of them. Despite the fact that she had memorized their names and faces years ago, her memories of having learned them were still intact. There was the bridegroom, Enderron Kelesi, walking through the door. Lady Khira and the High Seat had just collided into each other, and had struck up a conversation. So many people, and it was her job to find out what they were all concealing. Well, not her job alone, but she had never trusted anyone to do her work for her.

She was rather happy where she was, alone in one of the corners, eavesdropping on whomever was nearby. If someone saw fit to approach her, then she would be happy to talk, but for the moment, she would stay where she was.

There were a lot of poor spies at the wedding. People who were just too plain. He was amazed that they didn't notice that each person they talked to had their own quirks and that the absence of those quirks made them stand out. Well, that was fine with him. Easier to keep an eye on the ones that he didn't know. The only ones that were difficult to watch were the ones he did know. The experienced ones. The spies and assassins that were of high ranking in their Houses. Some of them were even higher than the House Seat, whom they could have killed at any moment.

The only High Seat truly aware of the spy situation was the Head of Ghayth whom he hadn't yet seen. The Seat of Calandae was as good as blind to that world, although his contacts were not. The only Head that wasn't really aware of the possibility of spying or assassination was Tsuko. He believed in the goodness of people too much. If only he could understand what Blyth's world, the real world, was truly like.

Blyth raised his head from his thoughts and scanned the room again. A face jumped out of him. It was the face of the woman who had confronted Valandil in Olencia. The style of her dress, pretty but toned down gave her away immediately. He walked across the room as if he was going to refresh himself. He walked around and came up behind her.

"Now who do we have here?" he whispered in his most menacing voice.

Iffalna followed Endarron to the great hall, stomping all the way. 'A great adventure'? What a strange child! Iffalna had seen some married couples in her day, and it hadn't looked like much of an adventure at all. Some were good and kind and loving to each other years into the whole affair, but others made her glad Slayers didn't marry. ESPECIALLY not Ablests. But Ablests didn't go abdicating in favor of taking a crown, so...

She frowned again. She'd covered her mark up with makeup. It looked like a birthmark, or a bruise. Nothing disfiguring, just something that polite people would make a point of not staring at. She'd hoped these nobles would be polite; it would keep them from getting a look at a mark they had a much higher chance of having seen than the average Olencian. Some nobles were really painfully polite (as she was beginning to suspect the young bridegroom was), but others were nothing but snakes with two legs and a moutlh unfortunately suited to talking. She'd figured she'd act crazy to the impolite ones and wait for Blyth to rescue her.

Speak of the devil! She spotted him, picking on some poor girl, sneaking up and whispering her ear. Iffalna scowled, throughly ticked off he had abandoned her to walk around scaring wedding guests. Maybe there were assassins among the crowd, but they could cross that bridge when they came to it, and until then it did not seem prudent to Iffalna to walk around alterting them to their presence. Stomping off, not caring if Endarron followed her, she reached Blyth and, reacting as she would to any wayward apprentice, grabbed him by the ear and yanked.

"Look, What's-your-name, your crazy old aunt has been looking for you. Now damn it, PAY ATTENTION TO ME AND DON'T RUN OFF AGAIN!"

Tsuko looked at the noblewoman (noblemaiden? nobleyounglady?) long enough to assess that she was quite pretty, and then immediately stopped. It wouldn't do if his wife saw him openly assessing a pleasant looking young woman. Oh, she knew that he'd never desert her, of course, but Emeila had always been more than a little jealous. Not something that was negative in a wife, of course, but somewhat grating all the same.

Still, Tsuko was able to notice a few things. The young woman standing before him was tall and slim, and her blonde hair and blue eyes screamed that she was the get of House Ghayth. She wore a greenish dress and green jewels all over her body... including a few places that Tsuko tried to skip over. Did she have any shame, to wear green to a wedding? Well, he supposed she was attractive enough to wear such colors in public, but still... this was a wedding. And that of Tsuko's own son, at that. Things must be perfect for his son's wedding.

“Good day, Lord Tsuko Theras,” said the woman cheerfully, bowing moderately low (though not moderate to the point of rudeness), continuing “I do apologize if I am keeping you, but I must congratulate you personally on the success of the wedding. Everything has gone perfectly so far. You must be very excited. The ceremony will begin soon, isn’t that so?”

Tsuko smiled back somewhat weakly and said, "Yes...ah..." What was her name? He knew he had been introduced earlier, but he could not remember it. Kyra? Kiria? Kyria? Never mind. "My lady... the ceremony will be soon. There is still some time to make merry before the marriage itself begins, but we hope to start before too long; it would do no good to keep everyone waiting." What was her name? She looked about the age so that Tsuko must have seen her somewhere when searching for wives for his son and his nephew.

"What do you think about..." Tsuko started, thinking to ask about her opinions of the wedding. But then... Khira! Ah, that was her name. Suddenly Tsuko remembered that she for some reason was not available to be married. Something about her aunts... Tsuko figured that perhaps her aunts were preventing her from marriage for some reason. So then she would not like to discuss marriage... maybe that was why she had such a smile on her face, she was inwardly upset about not being able to marry and was trying to hide it as best she could! How brave of her to attend. Tsuko tried to smoothly pivot his question to something that would not disturb her more, "...the city of Taye? Have you been here before?" Perhaps that would be a better topic of conversation.

He recalled a time when he had announced to an entire ballroom of Calandae nobles that he was sick of smiling at everyone. That had been several years ago, when he was young, ill-tempered, and new to the unwritten laws of high society. Silva had outgrown his childish temperament. He still refused to wear a mask of a smile, but he was polite. He tilted his head to every noble he introduced himself and his sister to, and walked over to the next important person to acknowledge. He avoided staying in one circle for too long, as he did not wish to exchange pleasantries with anyone he would one day have to shove aside on his way to the throne. Earning favors too early was a fool's plan. Any so-called alliances he could make now would easily be destroyed once His Royal Majesty died.

"My dear brother, you ignore every woman we meet. This would be the perfect time to find a bearer for your heir." His sister sounded serious, not at all teasing like she usually did when she brought the same topic up. Silva gave her a small frown, and then answered when he returned his gaze forward.

"Will you always insist on that?" he murmured as quietly as she had. "I will have time for that when I have reached my goal. If you are so eager to protect the continuity of our line, I will arrange a marriage for you." He did not know if Silfene knew of her real lineage, but no one from the House would say otherwise if he said she was of House Calandae.

He glanced at his sister, who was staring at him in faint horror. She knew that every word he uttered was in all seriousness. Admitting defeat, she pursed her lips and looked away.

"I will be with the Ladies of House Taran, if you will need me." she said, walking away from him.

Silva allowed himself a smirk. It was a small victory, but it was his first against his sister. It seemed he found her weakness.

With all of his introductions to the higher nobles of all possible houses in Olencia, the High Seat of Calandae strode to a corner and leaned back on a pillar, watching other people socialize. He was simply too tired to meet the ones who had just come in. Perhaps later. In the meantime, he would try as he might to avoid being noticed and allowed a minute of peace. There was already someone else in that corner: a Lady in a blue dress, perhaps one of the minor nobles. He turned in her direction and acknowledged her with a nod, though did nothing more and returned his gaze to the crowd. She would not mind if he shared the corner with her.

Life was good in Seyira’s corner. She was happily collected random bits of nonsense, purely for fun, and rather thoroughly enjoying herself. Her corner had been invaded, by none other than the High Seat of House Calandae himself, but he had made no move to engage her in conversation, so she respected him and did the same. No doubt he’d already been in more conversations than he’d wanted to be, just because of who he was.

And then, all of a sudden, she was being accosted by some strange man she'd never met before in her life. At least, she didn't think she'd ever met him before. Her memory was in rather excellent condition, so if she had seen him about somewhere, even once, his face should have been at least remotely familiar. It wasn't, and yet he seemed to know her, as his actions implied as much.

Or, of course, there was always the option that he was simply an insane young man who regularly went around threatening unassuming young women with whom he had no connections. But somehow, she highly doubted that.

And then, before she could even blink and think up a suitable response - because, really, what did one say to that sort of thing - a woman suddenly marched up, grabbed the strange man by the ear - the ear! - and started yelling at him. The scene was so out of place in a formal situation such as this that Seyira could do nothing but stare at the two in astonishment. Her assessing personality had been knocked off it's pedastal, and for the briefest of moments, there wasn't a single thought running through her head.

Then, the world went back to normal. At least, as normal as it could be with two people yelling their heads off right in front of her. This was not normal. And because it was not normal, she had to analyze the situation, since it was definitely important. Abnormal equaled important, maybe not right now, but definitely later.

The man. Obviously, he knew her from somewhere, and obviously, she had done something he didn't like, if his malicious behavior towards her was any indication. And she didn't believe for an instant that this woman was his aunt. There was no way that those two were related. The way in which the woman spoke to him was just too bossy, as if she were trying to fit in a role, but her only way of playing it was to overdo everything. Seyira had aunts, and she knew what they were like. Her aunts were nothing like this woman was, and she had quite possibly the maddest bunch of relatives there ever were. The fact that the woman also hadn't called him by name suggested something as well. 'What's-your-name?' Unless this woman had a gaggle of nephews and nieces numbering over fifty, she would likely know the names of her nephews. Something was not right here, and she was determined to find out why.

Right now, however, she had more pressing matters to see to.

She stared at the man frostily, acting every inch the haughty young woman she was purported to be. Two could play at this game, and she’d had years of experience. She could deal with him.

“I am Lady Seyira Vivienne, though I fail to see how that is any of your business.” Every word was dripping with ice and sarcasm, silently fueling anger within her. If she was going to do any good, she was going to have to feel her part as well as act it. Her wariness was gone now, replaced with indignation and annoyance. “And who might you be?”

((OOC: I apologize for posting out of turn. I didn't realize who Blyth was referring to till Seyira posted, and this is a reaction to that. Which is also why this is short. :look))

Silva watched the man's approach out of the corner of his eye, but ignored whatever the stranger said or did to the woman. Whatever two people did in a corner of a room was none of his business, and he currently had no interest in anything but being temporarily invisible, despite his princely clothing. However, the...noise...that insued was difficult to ignore. The golden-haired noble watched in suprise and stared with an eyebrow raised. Whatever the man did to merit such a scolding, the old woman should have exercised restraint in a formal gathering. She was sure to draw eyes in her direction--which was, unfortunately, dangerously close to his.

"There's a veranda there if you expect a scuffle." he told the three dryly, nodding to an archway with parted curtains on the wall to his right.

Distracted was exactly the right word to describe the High Seat. It was understandable of course, a wedding was always a big event to organize and there were many things that you needed to take care of, not to mention the emotional upheavels one could have when relatives are being wed. And there were of course many nobles present too who needed attending to. It was no wonder the High Seat was distracted. Khira had just expected a bit more effort in trying to hide it.

But the High Seat was the High Seat, and Khira was not in the mood to make enemies. She kept her wide smile as the Lord apparently tried to recall her name, even though she did feel a bit disgruntled for not being remembered. Her parents would not be happy if they heard about it. "My lady... the ceremony will be soon. There is still some time to make merry before the marriage itself begins, but we hope to start before too long; it would do no good to keep everyone waiting."

Khira nodded along. She was eagerly waiting for the ceremony to start, because after it everyone would be less official and there might be more chances to get acquainted with other nobles, but there was always a chance that some would leave straight after the ceremony. And she wasn't too optimistic about meeting the High Seat again during her visit to Taye, so she did hope that she would have enough time to chat properly with him before the Lord was needed for official business again.

"What do you think about..." Khira carefully kept her face polite as the High Seat searched for words. He wasn't acting very gracefully. It was a bit unsettling, because nobles of Ghayth were seldom distracted. Khira wondered if all nobles of House Marlas were similar to the High Seat. "...the city of Taye? Have you been here before?" Khira's smile turned from polite to genuinely pleased. Just thinking about the city made her feel happy.

"It is my first time here, and I have to say that I am enjoying myself greatly," she said with a touch of enthusiasm in her voice. "Taye is a wondrous city to say the least. I do hope that I will have a chance to explore further after the wedding, but I am not sure how quickly my parents wish us to depart. But I have been very pleased with everything I have seen so far. My aunts always say that no one can rival the craftmanship of Ivria's jewellers, but I found a beautiful sapphire necklace here which is quite unique compared to the supply of Ivria's jewellery." It truly was magnificent piece and unlike any other she had seen.

Someone seemed to be yelling somewhere behind her, but Khira tried to ignore it as well as she could. It did distract enough to stop her rambling about the city of Taye. "Taye is a remarkable city, although I would never say a bad word against Ivria. Have you visited Ivria often?"

"Look, What's-your-name, your crazy old aunt has been looking for you. Now damn it, PAY ATTENTION TO ME AND DON'T RUN OFF AGAIN!"

Damnit. Not again. Attention did not need to be drawn to a situation like this. Iffalna was blind to subterfuge. Even so, she was his teacher and so he must suffer her. What really made him angry was the woman was on to him again.

“I am Lady Seyira Vivienne, though I fail to see how that is any of your business. And who might you be?”

Anger. The woman knew exactly who he was. But she didn't know his face. Too forgettable. Just another face in the crowd. Still there might be some time to forge a relationship here. You could never have too many double agents in the House of Ghayth. They were too hard to come by. Something about the level of trust. Zero as far as he could tell. Although he may still have a friend in Valandil. Hopefully, anyways.

"Aunt Iffalna, this is my good friend Seyira. Please let us converse elsewhere. Go chat with that lovely young lad Enderron. I need to talk to her about private matters. Enderron will make sure you won't be picked apart by the other nobles. He is very bright. You might talk to him about plants as I have no doubt that he will know something of the subject."

He lowered his voice to a whisper, "My name is Blyth, Seyira. No doubt you have heard it before. And it deserves every bit of its reputation. Now let's find somewhere where we won't be overheard. I think we can use Tsuko's room. He wouldn't mind. Go out the hall and to the left. Up both sets of stairs. I will find you as soon as I can after I am done bringing the situation under control."

((Pardon my horribly late entry. Silva, you don't mind being bumped into, do you?))

Well, the wedding was about to begin. Ith all the hustle and bustle of other things, Xavier had quite forgotten that the whole reason he was here was because of the wedding. Yvette had been so ecstatic to leave home that he had quite given in to her pleasure and temporarily forgotten about the main reason he was here. The two had come here well advance of the wedding, of course, but they'd been so busy in those days that Xavier felt sure that they had seen everything there was to possibly see in Taye and that they were ready to leave. Without having even attended the wedding. And that would have been horribly rude, not to mention a little disappointing.

So he was. slipping through the grand doors unnoticed, with Yvette practically bouncing at her side. She was too mature to do such a thing, of course, and could hold her impulses in check remarkably well, but one could practically see her eyes shining as they took in every small detail. She was gushing something now, about how she was so grateful that he'd brought her here, how she wished they could have brought the whole family around - an impossibility considering the state the rest of them were in - etc, etc.... He wasn't paying much attention to the words she said, though he understood the gist of it, that he was surprised when she suddenly flung her arms around him.

"Thank you so much for bringin me along with you, Xavier," she whispered, letting go of him quickly, as if realizing they were in a formal situation. "I know I should have been at home, taking care of Father and Asher, and I-"

He interrupted at this point, not wanting anything to spoil their lovely evening. "Don't be silly, Yvette. The last thing I want is for you to be trapped at home, especially at your age. You should be out at social functions like this, not stuck at home taking care of our father. Now, go and enjoy yourself. That is an order."

Yvette stuck her tongue out at him, surprising him for the second time that evening, but flounced off like he'd told her to. Now it was time for him to enjoy himself.

Drifting through the crowds, Xavier idly watching this couple and that, looking for something to amuse himself with. Maybe someone, if he could find someone he recognized. And there, he stumbled on a stroke of luck. Standing in the corner, partially hidden behind a scuffle, was none other than the High Seat of House Calandae. A man he certainly recognized, but had never had a chance to talk to.

Stepping up to the man, he bowed, and did his best to be polite. "Good evening, my Lord. Are you enjoying yourself so far?"

If Iffalna had been thirty years younger, she'd have called upon her magic to detatch the largest chandelier from the ceiling and almost--not quite, but almost--drop it on Blyth's head. Thirty additional years of life gave her only the wisdom to take a deep breath as Blyth told the girl, Seyira, to go to High Seat Tsuko Theras' rooms and mention something about bringing a "situation under control".

Then she lost it. Iffalna was having a REALLY BAD DAY. Her apprentice was ignoring her, she was stuck with half-crazy, inbred noble lordlings and a High Seat that disliked her entire Order and might attempt to harm herself or her apprentice if he found out what they were. Yes, Blyth apparently had connections to Tsuko, but despite his charitable leanings Iffalna suspected Tsuko was at best a utilitarian and at worst a cruel man. She hadn't dealt with him enough to know exactly how precarious their position was at this wedding. Iffalna's uncertainty with regards to Tsuko was swiftly combining with the suspicion that a plethora of assassins (including her apprentice) was present and her own personal concerns about her new status and duty as the Ablest to make her very, very on edge.

Add a too-long dress, etiquette concerns, and being ignored all day long, and Iffalna was really starting to go crazy.

She finished exhaling, closed her eyes, collected some of the energy from a few of the high-bred horses in Tsuko's stables (goodness only knew Dragon Horses had energy to spare), and whipped it through the air over Blyth's head, creating a very quick, very local, and very powerful burst of wind. She, from a safe distance of a few feet, felt a breeze slide through her hair and ruffle her skirts, but the wind where Blyth was standing generally had the potential to knock a Great Horse flat. Granted, her apprentice probably had better balance than a Great, and better luck, but Iffalna did not doubt it would at least get his attention.

Of course, if she opened her eyes to find him flat on his back staring dazed at the Hall ceiling, she wouldn't be at all upset. Served him right for being a surly one, too.

"Now, Blyth," Iffalna said, quietly but intensely, keeping her eyes closed in an attempt to remain calm, "If you refuse to let me follow you, I'll be very, very, VERY upset. You don't want to see me upset. I'll rip the Hall down if you make me. I'm having a very bad day, and I need you to humor me right now by telling me EXACTLY what you are doing and why. Is that unreasonable for an aunt to ask her nephew?"

he felt the wind blow hard from his back almost toppling him over. He turned his head and there she was looking all innocent. Ha, Iffalna innocent.

"Now, Blyth. If you refuse to let me follow you, I'll be very, very, VERY upset. You don't want to see me upset. I'll rip the Hall down if you make me. I'm having a very bad day, and I need you to humor me right now by telling me EXACTLY what you are doing and why. Is that unreasonable for an aunt to ask her nephew?"

"No, it's not. I'm sorry for leaving you by yourself all day. Really, though, I had been expecting that you could entertain yourself by walking the garden or talking to someone you didn't abhor. And what do you think your doing, using that in a place where someone could recognize it. The move could turn out to be very costly for the both of us if you've alerted any rogue agents to our presence. Follow me, we need to go somewhere private to continue this."

He had had enough. Was it so ridiculous to ask that she just leave him to his business on this day? He was already on pins and needles with the relation to the nobles. Adding to that was the stress that there might be a murder at any moment. He needed to think. He began down the hall not looking back to see if Iffalna was following him.

Things weren't as bad as he had expected. Aside from the coincidental gust of wind, no one was hurt. Yet. Where that wind had come from was a curiosity, though. Perhaps the veranda. Silva rolled his eyes and made to move from his invaded spot, though before he could, someone found him. A pity he had to go back to speaking to other people again. That was what came from being so easy to spot. Not many nobles, even most from Calandae, had so pronounced elven features. The only way his father could have looked so much like his Sun Elf ancestors was through inbreeding.

"Good evening, my Lord. Are you enjoying yourself so far?"

He was sorely tempted to answer with a flat, "No." but thought against it. He was still not that annoyed to forget his basic etiquette. This was someone from his house, if he remembered correctly. Silva might have been the High Seat, but he distanced himself from his own House's nobility almost as much as he did the other Houses.

"I'm afraid weddings do not fit my idea of enjoyable." he said levelly. "Although, all is pleasant so far." As pleasant as any social gathering would be. "Forgive me, I do not recall your name." he added after a short pause.

Khira appeared polite and well schooled in the way of manners, so her response seemed calculated to please Tsuko the most. "It is my first time here, and I have to say that I am enjoying myself greatly," she said with just the perfect amount of enthusiasm in her voice. "Taye is a wondrous city to say the least. I do hope that I will have a chance to explore further after the wedding, but I am not sure how quickly my parents wish us to depart. But I have been very pleased with everything I have seen so far. My aunts always say that no one can rival the craftmanship of Ivria's jewellers, but I found a beautiful sapphire necklace here which is quite unique compared to the supply of Ivria's jewellery."

Jewelry. So typical of women. Why is it that they always seemed to demand pretty jewels at the most inopportune times? His wife had been dropping hints for the past month about how she so needed a new set of jewelry to match her beautiful gown that she had bought. Needed the jewelry, not just wanted it. As if he had time in his schedule to go out and buy some fancy strand of pearls or brooch of opals or whatever it was she wanted! Well, he had gone out and bought both the strand and the brooch, and an ornate golden ring just to make sure she was pleased, but that did not mean she had any right demanding jewelry. Still, Tsuko nodded at the young lady's remarks, which were kind enough. He did supposed the jewelers of Taye were quite practiced at their art.

"Taye is a remarkable city, although-" suddenly Tsuko's attention was distracted by a ruckus behind the Lady Khira's back. Tsuko had noticed his good friend Blyth seemed to be attempting to camouflage himself to match the wall behind him, but suddenly he was being yelled at by some crazy woman that Tsuko could not recognize. "PAY ATTENTION TO ME AND DON'T RUN OFF AGAIN!" sliced through the contented babble of the crowd. Blyth and the crazy lady seemed to be engaged in some sort of pitched argument. This wasn't out of the ordinary on its own, but they were doing it just before the commencement of Enderron's wedding. And that could just not be tolerated.

So Tsuko gave his best trying to catch the attention of his good friend without making it too obvious, and attempted to draw his friend over too him, while simultaneously answering the Lady Khira's question... something about... uh... Ivria? "Yes, Ivria is a lovely city. Its... uh... art... was delightful..." said Tsuko absently. Curse that Blyth! Friendship or no friendship, this behavior must stop immediately. He barely noticed his hands clenching into fists at his side.

Seyira was furious.

She's gone from simply annoyed to downright angry, and personally, she thought she had every right to be. Not only had she been nearly attacked by a virtual stranger while standing innocently in a corner, having done absolutely nothing to offend anyone, she was now being ignored by that same person who had tried to threaten her only moments before. Ignored! The nerve of the man! Who did he think he was, to simply forget her like that? It wasn't as if he were some lofty Lord who was so high and mighty that he could simply forget the existence of mere people like her. And even if he was such a Lord, which she highly highly doubted, he still should had the good manners to at least take his leave of her before he started walking away.

Had he done that? No. Had he even so much as spared her a glance before he'd started to leave?

No.

She was not going to take this treatment. She was no dainty miss, to sit around and shield her eyes while an argument was taking place, and her ego demanded that she make some sort of response to his actions. Her tongue was quite sharp (metaphorically speaking) and she was possessed of a rather vast amount of sarcasm, and Seyira felt that this would just be the perfect moment to unleash her anger. Perhaps she would make a scene, but - oh, guess what?- they were already making a scene.

"You." she hissed, taking a few steps towards Blyth, so he would get it through his thick skull that he was the one she meant. The older woman certainly had done nothing to deserve her anger, and the Calandae High Seat had been so unlucky as to be in the wrong spot and the wrong time. Her anger wasn't directed to either of them. "Stop right where you are. I demand an explanation for your behavior, and I would like it now."

The tone of her voice gave no room for argument.

((Sorry for the shortness, just had to move before we talked.))

"Stop right where you are. I demand an explanation for your behavior, and I would like it now."

By the gods, people were so hot tempered today. First Iffalna, now Seyira. He hadn't meant to offend. He just needed to take care of the problem of Iffalna.

"Very sorry to be so rude. I promise that you will have a full explanation, but as might have gathered, I cannot give it to you here. Follow me please and I will explain everything."

He left the hall and climbed the staircase to the third floor. He proceeded directly to the study which Tsuko had shown him earlier. He moved to the middle of the room and waited for Iffalna and Seyira. Hopefully, they would follow.

Khira might have been able to ignore the noise, but the High Seat was clearly distracted by it. Khira felt annoyed at not being able to entertain the High Seat well enough to hold his full attention. She hated the feeling that someone or something was more interesting than she was. Khira was a remarkably interesting woman, and any man should be delighted at the chance to engage in a conversation with her. But someone still managed to yell enough to catch everyone's attention. Khira would not have it. She stubbornly refused to look behind her and see what all the fuss was about and looked at the High Seat expectantly.

He did manage to answer with a clearly absent manner that infuriated Khira. "Yes, Ivria is a lovely city. Its... uh... art... was delightful..." Khira did not wish to approach the topic of Ivria's art now that the High Seat clearly had other things in his mind. He kept looking past Khira and clenching his hands. Khira pursed her lips in an annoyed manner, but the High Seat did not seem to notice. Khira's good mood was all gone now.

She wondered what she should do. She needed to get the High Seat's attention back. If she didn't succeed... she wasn't sure if she would be able to stay through the ceremony. She just couldn't stand the feeling that someone was drawing more attention than she was.

Khira coughed politely but very meaningfully trying to catch the High Seat's attention again. "It's unfortunate how some people just don't know how to behave at weddings," she said just a touch haughtily and indicated at the people behind her back with a wave of her hand. "And just before the ceremony!" The yelling seemed to have stopped now, which was a good thing. She smiled sweetly. "But matters will undoubtedly be resolved. Nothing for you to worry about, I'm sure, High Seat," she said a bit meaningfully and tried to start a conversation again. "Ivria is truly renowned for its art as well as its jewellery. Are you keen on art, perhaps?"

The High Seat was clearly in a bad mood, no matter how much he tried to mask his annoyance. Xavier didn't know the man very well - which was odd, actually, considering - but he couldn't really fault the man. Weddings were big, fancy social events, and not everyone loved those types of things. He didn't, though that was more because he often had more pressing matters to do than to attend silly little gatherings, thus never really had a chance to work on his social skils. Not that he lacked any of the social graces, but he wasn't exactly renowned for his loquaciousness either.

But, compared to the High Seat, he supposed he was better off in that area. Which was not something he should have been thinking. At least it was only a thought, and not voiced out loud.

Which reminded him, he still needed to introduce himself. The High Seat dd not know who he was, and that was something that needed to be addressed immediately.

"Xavier Keldaris at your service, my lord." No need to add his title. The High Seat would only think that he was trying to show off, anyway. "I'm here with my sister. The rest of my family, unfortunately, was unable to attend." For reasons that he would not explain. Though, if the High Seat had even heard of him, he could probably guess why. Now was not the best of times to bring that particular subject up. It wasn't a subject he wanted to talk about with anyone, really.

"Forgive me if I seem rude, but if you dislike weddings, why are you here?"

The man's name was familiar. A marquess, Silva remembered now, and belonged to same bloodline as his, naturally. The High Seat had heard of Lord Keldaris and his...condition. A family trait, he supposed, which affected Silva's own father as well. That was an interesting coincidence. Though he was sure they had nothing else in common. The mere fact that Xavier approached him first was proof.

"Forgive me if I seem rude, but if you dislike weddings, why are you here?"

A good point, he had to admit. Silfene was very...insistent...that he bring her there. She could very well come on her own, but she just had to drag him along. Such a nuisance, his sister, always finding a way to annoy him. People would be surprised what she could blackmail him with. But he could not tell the marquess that. Silva would not want anyone else to know his sister could bully him into doing things he didn't like.

"Yes, you did sound rude." he answered calmly. Coldness was for people who were really rude. He simply did not want to answer the marquess. "But I will let that pass."

Tsuko must not have been very successful at his attempt to inconspicuously signal Blyth, because the Lady Khira's voice soon took a determined note. Great gods, did she expect every moment of attention to be focused on her? Everyone knew this wedding was about Tsu-- err, Ender-- wait, no, that would not be publicly appropriate... Jenin. Jenin, that's it. Not about some pretty little maiden from Ghayth.

So, she coughed, of course. A very polite, perfectly measured cough. At least they taught good manners in Ghayth. Not so in Calendae, or so he had heard... by any measure, the High Seat of House Calendae had delayed much too long in getting himself married. To the point of certain rumors being spread regarding his interest in women (or lack thereof). Tsuko found that almost as sad as the Lady Khira's poor situation with her aunts depriving her of her freedom to marry. Shame, shame.

"It's unfortunate how some people just don't know how to behave at weddings," said the noblewoman, in an appropriately disdainful tone. Tsuko nodded emphatically. "And just before the ceremony! But matters will undoubtedly be resolved. Nothing for you to worry about, I'm sure, High Seat," she continued. This received a slight frown from Tsuko. Anything in his son's wedding was his business! But Khira seemed bound and determined to guide the conversation back to something that concerned her. "Ivria is truly renowned for its art as well as its jewellery. Are you keen on art, perhaps?"

"Ah, Ghayth art, yes. I have several pieces throughout the halls of House Marlas. Perhaps you've seen some of them? I particularly like the one... ah..." Tsuko struggled to remember where the Ghayth art was throughout the manor. Perhaps the one by the fireplace in the grand dining room was a Ghayth piece? "...by the fireplace, in the grand dining room. The one to the right of the fireplace, of course. It is immensely better than Calendae art, of course." Tsuko scowled. What was the High Seat up to? Tsuko tried looking around the hall to find him again. He felt he might as well try continuing the conversation the Lady Khira had stabled him into. "I'm rather partial to Marlas art, of course. Have you enjoyed much of it?"

((I'm almost thinking we should just let this continue on forever and then just set up a separate thread for the actual ceremony/assassination. I think once the assassination happens all our characters will be too busy running around to have this fun, quirky conversations that we're doing! :lol: ))

(AAHHHH, BLYTH, IFFALNA, I'M SORRY!!!!!!! v.v)

Seyira sniffed inwardly. Well, at least the man had the politeness to apologize for his ill-mannered behavior. But, really, what had he been thinking, sending out such mixed messages? She started to shake her head in outrage - and froze. Oh gods. She was turning into one of them, one of the people she so despised. Those haughty, uppity, self-centered lords and ladies she vowed she'd never be, simply because of the fact that she wasn't a noble. Oh, sure, she might have been masquerading as one tonight, but...she was going too far, turning the mask into reality. And that was the last thing she wanted.

True, she was haughty (occasionally), and rather arrogant at times, especially when she thought she was in the right, and she was certainly never afraid to express her opinions, but the fact that she was nothing but a mere commoner seemed to make it all right. Looking back now, she realized how horrible she sounded, so full of hot air. She really was no different from those she tried so hard not to emulate. Maybe the man had been a bit abrupt when addressing her, but that was absolutely no reason for her to snap and yell at him.

Oh gods.

Feeling suddenly deflated, Seyira nevertheless managed to keep her posture upright and still stiff. This was not the time to be depressed. She had a job to do, and one was them was to find out exactly what this man wanted of her. He was significant, somehow, some way, and she would have rather died than backed out from any sort of challenge. Because that was exactly what this was.

"Very well, sir. Lead the way."

And he was gone, walking away to some location that Seyira could only guess at.

'Gods, this is so boring. I'm tired of the nobles. Hello, good luck, fortunes to you were all nice greetings but trying to string any hint of a conversation together with them was impossible. No one wanted to talk. I am second to Jenin in interest and that outburst put me into a sad third. I'm sure the day will pick up after the wedding. The reception is bound to be interesting to say the least.'

***

Enderron strode to his father's side. His father was speaking with a young girl. Not young now that he thought, only a few years younger than he if anything. She could be his sister. She was beautiful. Her bright eyes were lit up and it was clear that she was enjoying herself. She moved in all the proper ways, as if she had been drilled for this party for months. Her hair was done up beautifully laced with emeralds and she wore a brilliant emerald necklace around her neck.

"Father, the wedding is about to start. Perhaps you should have the guests move outside to the ceremonial area and begin to get them seated."

Well. It was very clear that the High Seat did not wish to partake of pleasant and polite conversation at the moment. That was completely fine. The High Seat was not exactly famed for his amazing conversational prowess. In fact, he was famed for the exact opposite.

Oh well. No point in trying to talk to a man who was obviously not willing to talk to him. Xavier held no sort of grudge against the High Seat for doing so - not that such a thing could hardly be safe for his health in any case - and empathized with the man. How, he wasn't quite sure, and he really thought that the last thing the High Seat needed was his pity, but as long as he didn't make a fuss over it, things should turn out just fine.

Now, how to come up with a good getaway? He could hardly just walk away with the man, and he'd be lying if he said he saw someone he knew in the crowd. Not to mention that the High Seat was five times as important as anyone he might see. But it was clear that the High Seat required privacy - or as much as one could get when being stuck in a crowded ballroom - and the last thing Xavier wanted to do was deny the man that.

Ahah.

Maybe he could go look for his sister, despite the fact that she was more than able to take care of herself. But he was an older brother. He had rights. And one of those rights was being allowed to annoy as much as he pleased, whenever he pleased.

"Thank you for being so gracious, sir. Now, if you will pardon me, I need to go look for my sister. She seems to have disappeared in the crowd, and the ceremony looks like it will begin shortly."

Success! The High Seat seemed a bit more concentrated on her again. Whatever the yelling had been about, it seemed to have stopped, so Khira was sure that she would finally be able to continue the conversation. "Ah, Ghayth art, yes. I have several pieces throughout the halls of House Marlas." Khira nodded along with appropriate smiles she associated with any conversation that covered Ghayth's excellence. "Perhaps you've seen some of them? I particularly like the one... ah..." The Lord seemed to struggle with his thoughts again, but this time he looked like he was trying to remember something instead of thinking about something else entirely. Of course it wasn't good news to see that the High Seat couldn't remember where the Ghayth art was located, but it still meant that Khira had been able to catch his total attention. "...by the fireplace, in the grand dining room. The one to the right of the fireplace, of course. It is immensely better than Calendae art, of course." Khira nodded happily, even though it wasn't really much of a compliment considering the Marlas and Calandae relationship. Khira was still pleased.

"I'm rather partial to Marlas art, of course. Have you enjoyed much of it?" Ah, wonderful, the High Seat was making conversation! "I do enjoy art, and some pieces of Marlas art can be found around our manor. Wonderful pieces, all of them. We do have an abundance of our own art decorating our rooms, but the Marlas art always catches my eye," she started with a wide smile that withered slightly when she noticed a young man approaching them directly. Enderron Kelesi had such a unique look among the House Marlas that it didn't take Khira long to recognise the High Seat's son even though she had never seen him before. The hooked nose was a give-away along with his high cheekbones and pale skin. Khira knew that he had no title, but he was one of the grooms today, so he was to be respected.

Nevertheless, Khira was annoyed at the interruption, especially since the man didn't offer any apologies to Khira but talked straight to the High Seat. "Father, the wedding is about to start. Perhaps you should have the guests move outside to the ceremonial area and begin to get them seated." Khira knew that she had no place in this conversation anymore, but she would make the best of it as long as she had the chance. "Ah wonderful!" she said happily, her annoyance carefully tugged away. "I shall not keep you away from your duty, Lord Tsuko Theras. I do hope the ceremony goes as planned." She nodded quickly, if a bit stiffly, to Enderron and glided back to the crowd. There she settled next to a wall and smiled widely, waiting for someone to approach her.

THAT LITTLE....! Iffalna just barely restrained her cry of rage. Her apprentice was ignoring her again! Iffalna Briarose would NOT BE IGNORED!

The twit! The wurm! The...The...&!&^%&%#!!!! Iffalna scowled and stamped her foot. She reached out, rather violently, with her magic and found her apprentice. Snarling and muttering like the lunatic she was pretending to be, Iffalna darted after her apprentice, stepping on her skirts and stumbling all the way.

Finally, she caught up with him. "Where the HELL are our rooms?! I don't care if it's impolite, I need my armor, and I NEED IT NOW!!! Where are you taking us and what do you want with that little girl? I'm sure she's up to no good, but so are half the people at this damned affair and you don't need to let her know you have an eye on her! We can keep our blasted eyes on her until she slips up! Now she'll just be careful about whatever in Valleran's name she's supposed to be doing and it'll be twice as hard to catch her, you dolt! I can't believe I apprenticed myself an idiot!" Iffalna wailed.

"Always angry at me, aren't you? Two people is not nearly enough to watch this event. We need all the help we can get. She happens to be in contact with one of my "friends". She knows how to play the game and hopefully she will help us or at least find us someone who can. Now I would appreciate it if you would stop looking for trouble. That outburst in there was not positive to our image. We want to keep attention away from us. Plus, anger is not good for a person at your age."

He did so like Iffalna. She was so down to earth. But unfortunately, stealth was not a priority for her. He needed more knowledge of magic. He didn't have nearly enough to protect all the people at the wedding that needed protecting. Even with all the precautions, something was sure to happen. He hoped that Seyira hurried so that they could make it back in time. It had looked like the wedding was about to start.

"Mistress, I need your help. All the cracks need to be sealed with magic. This discussion cannot be overheard at any cost or our mission might end in failure. I cannot stress this enough. I think that Seyira could be a great asset, not only for us at this time but also for the Slayers in general. I want to tell her about our magic."

The small trio quickly and quietly exited the ballroom, with the two 'relatives' in front and Seyira bringing up the rear, several feet behind. It was clear the two had something to discuss, and though she really should have been taking every chance she could to find out what exactly it was they were talking about it, for once, she just wasn't in the mood. Hang Altariel, hang the world, Seyira just wanted her life to be normal for once. Hah. As if that could ever happen. Today was a normal example of how her life usually went, and today was nothing if not abnormal.

Well, today hadn't exactly been an average day in her life, but it certainly hadn't been the most outrageous in her life. It only seemed so bad because she'd been actually enjoying herself for once, pretending that her biggest worry in life was going to be whether she would offend someone or not. Seyira rather liked that carefree feeling. And now it had all been ruined, and there was simply no going back.

After a few minutes, she judged it safe to interrupt their whispered conversation, and called out, softly, "Are we going to wander all day? Because if I recall correctly, the ceremony will be starting shortly, and I'm sure the High Seat would like everyone in attendance."

(OOC: Meh, short, but there really wasn't much to say.)

Oh, the girl had a point. Best get this done quickly, then.

"If you EVER make a comment about my health EVER AGAIN, you won't eat for weeks!" Iffalna snapped to Blyth. "And yes, I'll help you with your plan, but only because you asked and we can't exactly tell this girl to go away and forget all about us. What a foolish thing to do, blow our cover to a stranger in the middle of the High Seat's own residence!"

Iffalna dropped back, continuing to follow Blyth, and turned to the girl. "I'm Iffalna, his crazy aunt, and I don't know where we're stopping because I'm following him. How do you do, and what's a little girl like you doing spying at a wedding like this?" She smiled conversationally. If Blyth was going to try to make an ally of her, then she might as well be nice.

((OOC: Also short. Sorry!))

The Lady Khira seemed taken by Tsuko's brave stab at conversation. A good sign, perhaps? "I do enjoy art, and some pieces of Marlas art can be found around our manor. Wonderful pieces, all of them. We do have an abundance of our own art decorating our rooms, but the Marlas art always catches my eye," she said, preening under Tsuko's somewhat-more-fixated gaze. Tsuko smiled and nodded appreciatively, about to say something to the extent of "Yes, we are the best", but the conversation was interrupted by the intrusion of his son.

"Father, the wedding is about to start. Perhaps you should have the guests move outside to the ceremonial area and begin to get them seated," said Enderron, barely even glancing at the Lady Khira. Tsuko frowned at his son, and whispered sharply, "Where are your manners, Enderron?" But the Lady Khira paid no mind. "Ah wonderful!" she exclaimed, looking for all the world like Enderron had been talking directly to her rather than completely ignoring her. "I shall not keep you away from your duty, Lord Tsuko Theras. I do hope the ceremony goes as planned," she said, and without a further word nor gesture she rushed away, off to meet someone else most like.

Tsuko blinked. Well that was rather swift... and somewhat rude... still, the girl was young, so she should be forgiven the insult. What life must be like for the poor girl, to be so isolated from other people that not even her aunts would consider marrying her off. She still had some time left, yet, but if she were a male... oooh, that would be torture.

Turning to his son, he admonished, "Why, yes, it is almost time for you to get married, but I do not see you wearing your wedding clothes. Go off and get changed before we begin officially." The silly boy, he must have forgotten in all the excitement. "Be quick about it. We wouldn't want to delay the ceremony," said Tsuko. Then he raised his voice, getting it to carry across the hall. "Attention, honored guests. The ceremony is about to start. Please start moving outside." He waved his hands in the direction of a couple arches that opened to the outside. The sky was gray and cloudy, but did not seem to forebode rain. He lowered his voice again, and said to his son, "Remember how we practiced. Just wait behind the arch on the right until I signal you to enter." Tsuko moved to hug his son, then awkwardly changed the motion to a swift pat on the back when he noticed guests looking in his general direction. "Oh, good luck, son! I'm so excited for you!" And with that, he began moving outside.

((Time for one more conversation outside if we can squeeze it in. So everyone rotate conversationalists ;) If we all think that we're ready for the ceremony to start, though, feel free to just give a 'I'm walking outside and am waiting for the ceremony to start.' post, and I'll take that as a cue to start the ceremony.))

Finally, Silva had been wanting to be left alone for nearly an hour since his arrival, and was thankful for the marquess' perceptiveness. Such a graceful way of taking his leave, as well. Interesting chap. More interesting than most, anyway.

"Yes, we wouldn't want our little sisters going off on their own." he replied with mild sarcasm. Indeed, the servants' activity was starting to be directed towards somewhere else.

"Attention, honored guests. The ceremony is about to start. Please start moving outside." he hears the Head of Marlas announce.

Wonderful timing. There wouldn't be any chances for uncomfortably long conversations during the ceremony. The wedding wasn't about him, but people had an annoying habit of searching for important people during gatherings. It was as if all the Heads of Houses' attendance was noteworthy for some reason he would never understand. However, all the attention would be on the couple during the ceremony.

"You will excuse me." He gave Xavier a nod and went to find his sister.

(Short post number 3. :P )

Despite the tumultous events of the last few hours, or perhaps because of them, Seyira found herself immediately liking the older woman in front of her. All her senses screamed at her to be on guard, to hide herself and retreat back into her mask of coldness, but for once, she decided to throw caution to the winds and just be herself, consequences be damned.

This woman had a sharp mind and wit, a tough outer demeanor and yet still seemed to exude an air of warmness and kindness. She was the sort of woman Seyira would have looked up to - had they been on the same side. It was possible that such a thing could occur. Right now, though, the line was muddied, and the difference between friend and foe was dangerously thin, and there was no safe ground. No connections with Altariel would save her now, and all she had were the skills that had been drilled into her since birth.

"A pleasure to meet you, Lady Iffalna. I'm doing just fine thank you, although the recent events" meaning, your "nephew" "have left me somewhat staggered. I confess, I had been hoping to remain at the wedding undisturbed so I could carry out my work in private, but obviously, that won't be happening." Seyira gave the woman a fleeting smile, and turned to the man.

"But since my work has been disturbed, I would like to know why. Would an explanation be possible?"

((I realize Blyth won't be able to reply for a few days, but I figured I should get this out there))

((Cough ... Back))

"Explanation is going to be difficult and take a lot of explanation. I assume you have heard my name before. My name as in Blyth Snowstar rather than Alarion Quint. That is the name I go by in the underground. Right now, you have three choices. You may help me and be rewarded for your services. I have heard about your struggles in the High House and I can honestly say that I know how it feels. I will help you 'reconnect' if you will. Your second option is to step out of this room brainwashed so you remember none of this event. But remember, magic when used on people can have dire consequences. Your third option is to die, here and now. Don't be stupid. I will kill you slowly and painfully if you choose this last option. If it were me, I would strongly recommend the first option. I'm extremely sorry that I was pushed to these measures in the first place, but I am not operating under ideal conditions as of now. I want to be a friend to you and I definitely do not want to hurt you. But if you give me no option, then I will have to do things I don't want to. Oh, and by the way, this is my aunt Iffalna. I'm sorry for not introducing you politely."

The man offered an interesting proposition, though the effect of it was ruined somewhat by his immediate threats of brainwashing and death should she choose not to comply to his terms. Seyira also tucked away his name for future reference. Blyth Snowstar was not a name that immediately registered with familiarity in her mind, but something about it sparked a memory, so she felt it would important to remember that name.

Under different circumstances, she might have accepted the man for who he was, as well as his offer, but times were tricky now, and giving her such a proposition while she was working for her mistress at a very important social function was not the best of ways to secure her cooperation. She didn't know how much the man needed her help - or what, even, she was supposed to help with - but she was determined to find out before she got herself into a sticky situation.

"Before I agree to anything, I would like to know what I'm getting myself into. I do currently have obligations elsewhere, as I'm sure you know, and if I do need to break those, I would prefer to know that it be for a good reason."

If he couldn't tell her, or if that path would lead to death, then she was fine by that. Both her parents had been taken by Valleran at an early age, and she'd always assumed that the same would happen with her. Death didn't scare her, though the thought of it did leave her with a few regrets.

(Meh, short, but it's a reply.)