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Post by Father on Jun 24, 2020 23:15:24 GMT 1
A pleasant evening at The House of Delights suddenly takes a turn to tension as a sinewy septon, the only hair evident on his head besides his eyebrows is a black circle surrounding his mouth, olive skin marks him as a Dornishman, his black unadorned robes and fiery eyes marks him as surely none other than septon Oberyn, candidate for promotion allegedly. A number of followers file in after him, threatening to make more than enough trouble to keep the bouncers on edge, though for now they appear to do nothing that stare in the belief that their stern gazes will make those partaking of the fine fare and entertainments fear for their mortal souls.
"Shame!" Oberyn bellows angrily. "Here, brothers! There is none to be found! Here the decadent feast and indulge their every craving! Here they give in to SIN!"
"You should all be ashamed, you should all be cleansing yourself, cleansing your homes!" And then, he makes note of Laena, and it is as if the fire in his eyes burns hotter, hot enough to rival that of any dragon. "Brothers, we should not be surprised to find ourselves the bastard here? Born of lust and sin! Sired by an adulterous false king, spawned from an adulterous harlot brought to the abomination like a profane offering to a heathen idol made flesh!" Most would probably think septon Abelar is quite enough, this one might seem cut of the same cloth, if not quite so adept at working the crowd, which apparently is his own coterie rather than the paying customers. "She abandons her duty as a mother to seek the impure pleasures of decadence and sin, when playing with cards one stake one's soul in a game rigged by the spawn of hell, for all eternity it will be confined to the fiery realms below, and the creatures of the night will not yet claim her body for it serves as the vessels to tempt others to their downfall!"
"If the world is to be set to rights, the likes of her shall no longer be tolerated to roam free, but confined to a septry where she might be purged of all impurities and sinful thoughts and acts, so that she may be restored to the ranks of the heavens in time, and others be shielded from her malign influence upon the world"
It might perhaps be wiser for Laena to treat this outburst as nothing but hot air, to repay this insult with the insult of being ignored. Although hot-blooded dragons have been known to lash out at much less.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jun 25, 2020 10:54:12 GMT 1
Laena, while frequently smart, is only intermittently wise. So, she dismisses the option of ignoring the septon out of hand. However, she is not so hot-blooded as to overtly lose her temper, either. Instead, she casually keeps eating grapes as the Septon raves, taking a moment to finish chewing and swallow as he finally pauses. When she does respond, she uses a well-practiced trick to speak softly, yet have her voice carry across the quiet room. After all, like the Septon, he's not the true audience she's speaking to.
"My mother was sold by a man sworn to protect all women, to a man sworn to protect all women, in front of a court sworn to protect all women, with no choice given to her, and you call *her* an 'adulterous harlot'? Never mind that you need to be married to commit adultery, and no man would have her after what her uncle and my father forcibly inflicted on her. Repeatedly.
"Until
"She
"Broke!" Her mask cracks for a brief but visible moment, showing grief, before she hides it again with a light sniff.
"And now that she cannot defend herself, you come in here, and you spit on her memory for cheap political points. Clearly she has not suffered enough already, in your eyes. Claiming to be better than those men, while continuing their victimisation. You are more similar than you would ever admit." Her lip curls in contempt.
"Or maybe you don't know the first thing about her. Do you even know her *name*? You have a wide audience with your power. Surely you would not throw about words to destroy a lady's reputation without knowing the first thing about her?
"Or would you? Do you actually not care one whit about the guilt or innocence of those you accuse, so long as you can use their suffering to increase your own temporal power?"
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Post by Father on Jun 28, 2020 11:56:50 GMT 1
"And did she take holy vows to escape? NO!" Oberyn appears neither sympathetic nor inclined to even admit a single word of error on his part. "She stayed and let it happen, and brought forth not only one bastard but TWO! Nor did she give them over to the faith to have them properly turned away from their sinful nature! His voice is building up to a thundering crescendo. "Instead they indulge in decadence and lust, abandoning her children to traipse about in search of pleasure and companionship, how many of The Seven's Flock will not be lead astray by such a visage!"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jun 28, 2020 15:25:36 GMT 1
"So, you don't even know her name, then." Just to make sure the point was not missed by her true audience. "Truly, the Father must be proud of you." Sharp enough to sting, not sharp enough to provoke a duel.
She tilts her head slightly, and casually raises a finger as a thought seems to come to her. "Still, don't think I didn't notice that compliment at the end, there." She gives an amused smile. "A couple more lines like that, and I might start to believe that under all that bluster, you're actually sweet on me." Provoking him may not be wise, but were he to lose control and act rashly in public, it would likely cause him problems.
"But let's not pretend this has anything to do with my natural-born state. After all, you have publicly condemned Ser Daemon Blackfyre and King Daeron Targaryen both, using language I will not repeat, and only one of them was born out of wedlock." Her tone clearly implies criticism of either to be ridiculous. Whichever side of the divide her audience was on, they were unlikely to look fondly on someone speaking ill of their 'leader'. And with him nicely riled up, he would hopefully be more than willing to openly expound upon his views on the matter.
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Post by Father on Jun 29, 2020 20:14:28 GMT 1
"Both carry the taint of incest in their veins, as do you!" Oberyn does not so much "loose it" as he seems to be in a continual state best described as having over-imbibed potent aphrodisiacs and somehow having an entirely different urge stimulated than ordinary men. "A child cannot be blamed for the circumstances that led to it's conception, but the taint places responsibility upon those who carry it to cleanse this mark of sin from the blood of man! The Father judges that those of impure blood will help cleanse away this sin by holy vows, celibacy, contemplation and prayer! Those who instead propagate and spreads this sin further into the river of life shall be judged harshly by The Father and consigned to purification by fire, purged and cleansed by the roasting pits of the seven hells!"
"The day will come when the reign of The Seven will return under a godly king and this Den of SIN will be cleansed by fire, as will all those who corrupt his fellow man through his sins!" With that, he turns briskly and walks out, whether to avoid any further snappy remarks or because he has said all he pleased, who can say? His followers file out wordlessly, with the occasional glance of contempt. At least there is no sign of a zelous mob with torches to effectuate the prophesy.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jul 1, 2020 23:44:42 GMT 1
Laena doesn't try and draw the man back in, but as the last of his people leave, she speaks to her audience, before the relative quiet fills up again. "He talks of purifying King Daeron and Ser Daemon with fire. He talks of having a 'godly' king - by which, if you didn't know, he means one not chosen by the Father though being the firstborn son, but rather one chosen by a council of 'pious men', who seek to put *their* choice above that of The Father's. And he talks of burning down this establishment and all within it.
"And this man seeks to join the Most Devout.
"My good Sers and Lords, it is not for me to tell you what to do, but if you do nothing to oppose this man, and he succeeds, and the next time you frequent this establishment, or one like it, you find yourself becoming rather too hot, and unable to escape, and fall to your knees, asking the Father 'how could this happen?'
"Know that you already have your answer.
"And it has nothing to do with The Father's judgement. And everything to do with one man's ambition."
She casts her eyes about the room, meeting whoever's gaze she can to reinforce the import of her words, until her gaze lands back at her table. She smiles, and speaks just to them. "Now. I believe it's my decision, and I will ... fold." Her smile become apologetic. "Sorry, it's a long wait for such an anticlimax, but the cards are just not with me at the moment."
And the game continues.
[/scene?]
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Post by Father on Jul 23, 2020 16:17:43 GMT 1
"If my lady were to ask me, I would suggest that he comes here to be as close to our back rooms as he can allow himself to be seen, he is in dire need of release that one." Laena knows the proprietor, Madam Millaeve, though until now mostly formally, like any shrewd and skilled host, she has personally seen to the needs and desires of the most valued customer (being the most valuable one probably also factors in), but given the septon's intrusion, she has judged it prudent to apply a more personal touch, it might be readily transparent under normal circumstances that her swift order of a bottle of the finest vintage is merely a ploy to make her remember the fine service rather than the rude interruption, but to one susceptible to such tactics to begin with, such nuances might go ignored or commanded to be so. "Not in his hearing, of course, I do not have the protection of being the daughter of a king should he, rather than in the arms of a woman, chose to find his pleasure by burning sinners at the stake as he so frequently speak of doing"
She doesn't have the status to turn on the charm of decadent Laena for simple intrigue, and I am not bothering with a full intrigue. Could try and strike up conversation on camera if interested, or just call it a scene.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jul 27, 2020 23:47:53 GMT 1
Laena assumes the gift of wine to be thanks for focusing the septon's wrath on her, rather than the establishment, and accepts it gratefully. "You may be correct, good madam. It does frequently seem like those who project the greatest virtue either conceal or require the greatest vice. Certainly, I will nearly always trust a man with a modest, harmless vice" she makes a broad gesture towards the room, "over one who appears to have none.
"And I find no fault in your courage for not opposing the man openly. Given how he feels about my family - and how far to the periphery of it I am - I am highly unsure as to how much in the way of protection even that grants. It is likely that even for me that it would have been wiser to lower my eyes and feign repentance than stoke his wrath even higher; but I have witnessed first-hand the cost such men can inflict on the innocent when unopposed, and I do not wish to see eyes full of loss in someone I care for again."
She takes a gulp of wine to clear the memory from her mind. "While I feel I did a fairly good job of focusing his wrath on me, it may be that he decides to strike here anyway. While it is entirely your choice as to what to do, I would suggest that you spend some of the coin you have earned to pay for lookouts, extra guards, and preparations for a bucket chain. And whatever other protections you feel make sense. Better a lesser profit safely than risk losing it all though lack of preparedness." A friendly smile. "In my opinion, anyway. I quite like it here."
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Post by Father on Jul 29, 2020 16:55:57 GMT 1
"Or merely suppress it" Millaeve notes with a wink. "Which brings forth a great swell of envy those who indulge themselves, even in moderation"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Aug 2, 2020 0:48:18 GMT 1
Laena gives a small sigh. "Agreed. We ask much of those sworn to oaths - knights, lords, septons, maesters; and some drive themselves to insanity trying to hew perfectly to the exact letter of their oaths, when all we really expect, in our hearts, is for them to follow the spirit. Seven knows there's enough knights who don't even attempt that much.
"In troubled times, the only truly *important* question is 'If I ask this knight for an escort, will he protect me, will he take advantage, or will he slit my throat and steal everything I own?'. So long as the answer is the first, few - and none with any sense - would complain if he's rather coarse, or gambles, or whatever other minor folly he may have. So too is it with the others.
"Almost everyone knows this, yet none are willing to stand openly and say it, for fear of ostracization. So we continue to have men like Septon Oberyn twisting themselves into petty balls of hate over the whole matter.
"And good people continue to pay the price."
[Don't actually have an objective here, now that I've warned her to beef up security. Happy to carry on if there's a particular point you want to get to - Laena's happy to talk to a woman who gave her something good to drink - but also happy to just 'fade to black' it, if you'd rather spend your time on the various warfares going on elsewhere.]
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Post by Father on Aug 4, 2020 18:58:11 GMT 1
One should always ensure that people that care about you know that this knight offered the escort, and make him aware of this fact, or just pay someone to slit his throat should you fail to arrive safely.
Millaeve doesn't actually think the oaths are all that severe, if all these lords and knights could just find themselves some sweetheart in their castle town, like the scullions and stableboys do, but no, they must marry for dowries and alliances and ambitions that ultimately means nothing in the grand scheme of things, history being but a long succession of castles changing hands, new castles being built, others torn down, and the land they command rising and swelling. Occasionally a great many lives are ruined in the process, but nothing actually changes.
That silly game of thrones, their constant need to take power from one another, that is what allows Millaeve to live a comfortable life without having to spread her legs for anyone, oh, there are wealthy merchants and captains, sure, but lords and knights do make for more glamorous company. Men are simple creatures, some are true knights, most can only find the strength to live up to their ideals if they are otherwise successful and receive recognition for their power or accomplishments. And a great many of those, once having a taste for such honors, feels entitled to treat other rewards as justly deserved. The majority are those with neither great lands or tourney wreaths, those whose egos require a greater amount of tender love and care, which does happen to be priced by the hour.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Aug 10, 2020 4:05:22 GMT 1
One should always ensure that people that care about you know that this knight offered the escort, and make him aware of this fact, or just pay someone to slit his throat should you fail to arrive safely. Laena waves a dismissive hand. "Oh, of course, under *ideal* circumstances, you'd arrange all that, but then it hardly reveals their character if you leave them but a single option. I was referring to those desperate times when you can't arrange things as you would like. That's the problem with practicalities. Sometimes, they're just not ... practical." Millaeve doesn't actually think the oaths are all that severe, if all these lords and knights could just find themselves some sweetheart in their castle town, like the scullions and stableboys do, but no, they must marry for dowries and alliances and ambitions that ultimately means nothing in the grand scheme of things, history being but a long succession of castles changing hands, new castles being built, others torn down, and the land they command rising and swelling. Occasionally a great many lives are ruined in the process, but nothing actually changes. "Now, I can agree that from the outside, nothing significantly changes as a result of the Game." Once again, Laena's fear that her family would lose their grip on the throne soon, now that dragons were extinct, reared up; but she wasn't going to discuss that with this woman, wine or no wine. "But to us on the inside, it can make a huge difference." She holds up a finger. "For one key reason: legacy. What kind of life I will leave my children with. "Do you have children? Because if you don't, let me tell you: parenthood changes you. Death is the one constant: no denying it, little delaying it. The Stranger will *always* get Their due. But then there is this ... piece of your flesh. Swollen in your body. Grown in your image. Which will - Mother be kind - live on when you're gone. Your little slice of immortality. The eternal victory of the Mother over the Stranger. "And what kind of life they will have, what kind of legacy you leave behind, it not only matters, it's the *only* thing that ultimately does. Everything else the Stranger will take from you at the end, but not that." Men are simple creatures, some are true knights, most can only find the strength to live up to their ideals if they are otherwise successful and receive recognition for their power or accomplishments. And a great many of those, once having a taste for such honors, feels entitled to treat other rewards as justly deserved. The majority are those with neither great lands or tourney wreaths, those whose egos require a greater amount of tender love and care, which does happen to be priced by the hour. Laena's mind goes back to a few of the men she's known over the last few years, and a small, wistful smile crosses her face. "Most of them, maybe, but a few may surprise you." She says quietly, more to herself than the other woman. |
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Post by Father on Aug 26, 2020 20:16:02 GMT 1
Millaeve has seen enough of what happens to the children of those plying the trade of the night to be happy not to have any of her own, she puts her faith in her account in the Hightower Bank to see her through old age in reasonable comfort, it goes a lot further when it only needs to spend for one. And Oldtown is a nice place to profit from the games of nobles, she intends to make a killing at the tourney the Hightowers are throwing for the upcoming wedding, though she does not exactly look forward to hosting one repeat customer in particular, she will very much like counting his coin when the tourney is over, she'll have to pay the girls triple for those nights, but they could demand their regular take a dozen times over and still she would come out with a month's profits from just one night.
It is not so much fleecing him, Millaeve thinks, that man seems to revel in making people grovel because of his money and power and is satisfied if one makes a decent attempt at pretending to like him in order to have a taste of his bounties, but she wouldn't recommend believing for a moment that one has him fooled. Her attitude towards Lord Piggy appears most cold, as if she only cares about whether that man is good for business or not.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Sept 9, 2020 1:05:52 GMT 1
Laena casually nods. "If you truly believe that nothing of value will be lost from the world when you pass from it, that is an eminently sensible approach. Sad, but sensible.
"And again, I find no fault with your approach to that man. It is dangerously easy to deny the capabilities of one you hate, but it would be especially dangerous with him. If one simply must endure his company, doing what is necessary to gain the maximum compensation for it is only sensible." She taps a finger against her cheek. "While outside your usual services, somewhat, have you considered the possibility of using a portion of your funds before said wedding to procure a .. special woman? Someone beautiful and well-trained enough to enthrall him for the evening or evenings he attends? If successful, it would not only reduce the .. strain on your usual girls, but potentially make the time pay off even more than normal, even accounting for the initial outlay." She shrugs, and waves a dismissive hand. "I freely admit I know little of how such things would be arranged, and have no wish to seem like I'm telling you how to do your job. It was just an idea that I saw no harm in offering - use it or not, I take no umbrage either way."
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Post by Father on Sept 17, 2020 17:31:29 GMT 1
Well, now that Laena mentions it, Millaeve does have something special in mind, sure to catch his interest, perhaps that of others. Whether that will shield her regular girls from his attentions? Unlikely.
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