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Post by Laena Pyre on Jun 7, 2021 19:29:00 GMT 1
Previously, on 'Laena poking her nose into things which are none of her business...': Though only silently remarking on Laena's hairstyle, Lord Marq does give her something more interesting in the form of a cryptic suggestion that there is a matter in Lord Tyrell's court that he tries to keep under wraps...some might suggest that The Longthorn simply hopes that the whole thing will fade like a bad dream, but surely the man does not lack the courage to tackle things that brings discomfort head on. So the problem much be of such a character that a wise lord will treat it with the utmost discretion. He will speak no more of it, to a casual eavesdropper, it even sounded like a random remark, perhaps an attempt to impress the Great Bastard with such insights into the Rose Court, leaving her hungry for more, he does have a well-earned reputation for using words and manners to make a lady intrigued without her being certain if she is being wooed or not. This could be all it is, or it could be something Laena would deeply regret being surprised by if she does not investigate and this she cannot know in advance without looking into it. [Chronologically, this occurs shortly after The Appleton Feast, before '4 Weddings'] Laena knows better than to dismiss Lord Marq's words out of hand, and has enough faith in his goodwill that the matter will prove worthy of following up on. So, as soon as she can, she travels to Highgarden to do precisely that. While not really knowing what she's looking for hinders her somewhat, she points her network at Lord Leo and hopes they dig up whatever it is Lord Marq suggested she find. With the utmost discretion, of course. Longthorny Issue - Deception (Disguise), Knowledge (Streetwise): 2#6d6k4 19 17
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Post by Father on Jun 15, 2021 11:42:10 GMT 1
There is something, a rider delivered a letter to Lord Tyrell that appears to have caught considerable interest, many would pay good coin for knowledge of it's contents, but simply sniffing out in disguise in the regular haunts reveals little more. Apparently the matter is sensitive enough that only the inner circle of Highgarden is made aware of it, but Lord Marq must have learned of it from somewhere, unless he simply learned as much as Laena just did and hopes she might uncover the secret.
The fact that those who dwell in the shadows of Highgarden have caught it's scent does suggest that the lord's inner circle is too big to properly keep such things secret, perhaps the likes of Janna Hightower or Alicent Yronwood would have sufficient access and trust to find out, or she might trick a Tyrell or one of the knights on the council to spill? She could try Butterbumps, but what the dwarf is like without an audience is anyone's guess.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jun 15, 2021 13:34:51 GMT 1
Laena ponders carefully who to approach. Lady Margaery Tyrell was right out - even after all these years, Laena still felt like that woman could see right through her - a thoroughly unsettling experience. Lady Alicent Yronwood was a possibility, given their shared agenda for House Cordwayner, but she was a definite Player, and her agenda was otherwise unknown to Laena. Janna Hightower barely knew her at the personal level, and the reverse was also true. Lord Leo himself liked her, but approaching him was so ... public... However, as she was considering the matter, she considered herself: she had a firm public history of supporting Lord Leo, and a motive for helping him. What if she approached someone who would not be able to make her a deal? What if she approached someone who would not be seen as a credible source should she try and sell the information? What if she approached Butterbumps? A wicked man, who had certainly embarrassed her a fair few times during her teenage years, but certainly loyal to his lord, for his fortune depended entirely on Lord Leo's whims. Should she present herself as simply a lady, looking to repay a debt to his Lord, that *might* work. Her lack of current connection to him, and no recent audiences with anyone 'of worth' made her subsequent actions entirely deniable. A piece falls into place in her mind. And in seeking to discredit the Cordwayners, this fool may be the best ally possible.
Or I may be the biggest fool of all.The idea scared her, thrilled her, intrigued her. In the end, smart or not, she couldn't resist at least trying. Longthorny Issue - Butterbumps Audience: 7d6k5+7 22 Pretty sure I couldn't fail, but every king requires that petitioners approach him with due respect, even a king of fools.
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Post by Father on Jun 27, 2021 15:59:17 GMT 1
The dwarf's quarters are long and narrow, squeezed between two floors so that Laena cannot stand upright, no wonder they were given to Butterbumps, the wicked little man once having boasted that every visiting lady would have to lean forward to give him a nice view down their bodice, it is quite clean and tidy, serving as both a place to sleep and one to study. "Aha, we have a most esteemed visitor...no doubt brought by our charm, oh yes!" He bows theatrically to invite Laena in, the room offers little amenities, he has a desk and a chair made to his height, a shelf with a few books and scrolls, several vax tablets arranged neatly in a stack and a comfortably enough looking bed.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jun 27, 2021 19:43:32 GMT 1
"Thank you, Master Butterbumps." She combines a curtsey with ducking into the room. Without hesitating, she walks past him, 'unintentionally' staying ahead of him so as to not give him a good look down her bodice, before tucking her skirt under her knees, and gracefully kneeling down in a position where they may comfortably talk with the dwarf on his chair, with her back straight. Her mind flashes back to the lesson she taught Mikel back during the Black Tourney, on controlling the location to distract and unsettle your opponent, and how to counter it. The same lesson she was taught under this very roof, the same lesson this dwarf had no doubt heard many, many times, while observing from darkened corners. Her body language clearly pointed him towards his chair, without being so crass as to explicitly offer him his own chair, meaning he had the option between taking the chair, and starting this conversation by subtly obeying her, or not taking the chair, and being less comfortable. Not an important thing, by any means, she was more interested in how he reacted to it, subtly physically and mentally bracing herself should he decide to be ... unpredictable.
"Indulge my curiosity a moment, if you would." She begins with a light icebreaker, wanting to try and get his measure a bit before broaching her main subject. "You are undoubtedly skilled in shocking and scandalising the young ladies growing up here. But I am curious .. how do we Great Bastards compare with the trueborn ladies, typically? In terms of how easily shocked and scandalised we are? By reputation, one might imagine that where trueborn ladies would be scandalised, we natural borns are taking notes, but that's not quite how I remember it during my time here."
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Post by Father on Jul 17, 2021 18:58:37 GMT 1
"Great Bastard or not, no lady is the same" The dwarfs shrugs as he seats himself, mostly ignoring Laena's little game. "But where a trueborn lady is expected to be a polite and pretty bird that will make a good little wife to her noble husband for the sake of house politics, her natural sister will learn that if she wants anything, be it influence, a good husband or simply not be thought of as a bastard anymore, she must earn it the hard way. Sometimes this makes them as prim and proper as the Most Devout, other times, they are cynical to the bone" He ponders for a while before continuing. "Tell someone that they are great and special for being spawned from the seed of a king, nevermind that hardly being special considering the king....and any impulse to be of an independent mind or reach towards the Ice Dragon in the sky is nurtured greatly, you will still find Lady Gwenys among such individuals, but when expectations are set and encouragements given by speaking of them as great ones..you will much easily find interesting specimens among their numbers"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jul 18, 2021 22:25:48 GMT 1
A small smile passes Laena's face. Not only for having her curiosity appeased, but also because the dwarf answered her question seriously. "Thank you, Master Butterbumps." Inclining her head towards him in a small show of respect. "Now, I wish to discuss a matter of some import. It could be that by doing so that I may dethrone you as the greatest fool in the kingdom, but I feel compelled to try.
"Let me lay out what I know: a while back, Lord Leo recieved a message from a rider, of a matter most troubling, which he has yet to resolve. He has tried to keep knowledge of the matter from spreading, but it has slowly begun to leak among those most well-connected within Highgarden. Meaning that it were best if it were resolved swiftly, before it can spread further. Best also if he can wash his hands of the whole affair, and honestly declare that neither he nor his family spoke to or made any deal with anyone to solve it. Protecting him and his from the consequences. For who would think back to the Black Tourney, and remember a desperate young woman coming to him for help, which he granted - no pleading required, no deals or debts demanded, justice recieved simply for the asking? And who would think that young lady would hear of this situation, and, rather than seek advantage, simply seek to repay a debt perhaps she alone considers real?" While her voice is soft, she is not pleading. No emotional manipulation, simply a calm statement of facts as she saw them. Even attempting such tricks may put him on guard, and her best hope was for him to see her as a natural, if unconventional, ally.
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Post by Father on Jul 25, 2021 19:00:19 GMT 1
"Sticking my head into the Longthorn's affairs, hmm? Why my lady, I might then loose it, and what if I can't find it again after?"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Jul 26, 2021 15:10:27 GMT 1
Laena feels a small shred of relief. While obviously objecting, he was at least willing to hear her out. Still, she nods. "It is impossible to deny that doing nothing is safer - at least in the short term. No-one would expect you to act, so no-one would be angry at you for not acting. But that does not mean that you would definitely escape consequences should things go badly. While everyone has eyes on the contest for the throne, that is hardly the only position at risk. Lords Florent and Peake at least ever eye your lord's title of Lord Paramount hungrily, and are eager for your lord to fall into an untenable situation. A possibility increasingly likely as tensions mount. He carefully walks a knife's edge between two factions, and should he fall? .. It is not only him who will bleed.
She straightens her back. "Now, if the only person you care about in your life is 'you', you would indeed likely be best served by being very small, and very quiet, and hoping disaster falls on taller heads than yours.
"I am here, speaking with you, because I have a suspicion - just a suspicion, mind - that you have played a grand prank on the whole Reach. That underneath your wicked barbs and vicious wit, is a *man*, who actually *cares*." She gives a small shrug. "And what good is a jest if nobody gets the joke?" She feels nervous - she could be horribly wrong. Dwarfs were notoriously twisted in spirit as they were in body, punished by the Seven. But if this seemingly twisted and cruel little man cared for anyone, it would likely be his lord, and maybe the lord's family.
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Post by Father on Aug 1, 2021 11:35:23 GMT 1
"And yet, who would be so desperate as to ask the fool for advice, or listen to it if given anyway?" Butterbumps cocks his head..."Maybe a clever little jest to make the man realize the obvious, yes? But perhaps one has to be a fool to believe that one can be such a brilliant fool?"
The man does not seem to bite the bait.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Aug 7, 2021 18:41:07 GMT 1
Laena blinks a few times as she tries to figure out exactly what the dwarf is trying to say. When she speaks, it is slightly hesitantly, clearly not entirely sure she's understood properly. "Yet what is a fool but a man who can say things no-one else can say? Do things no-one else can do? When the possible - no, when the *allowed* answers are all .. unworkable, the only possible workable answer is one that is ... not allowed. To most, anyway."
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Post by Father on Aug 7, 2021 21:54:53 GMT 1
"Maybe the hallmark of a fool is a man who says out loud what other people thinks wiser to mention not, hmm? Butterbumps tilts his head to the side. "But little people might easily loose their heads if big people likes it not much, fools with long and illustrious careers knows not to offend the hand that holds the axe too much.
"Breaking the rules whenever they hold one back sounds more like what a dragon can do, not great little fools"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Aug 8, 2021 14:28:52 GMT 1
Laena gives a small smirk. "I can't really argue with that. Though I admit to being a bit confused. Is the problem that you don't know the situation - which I find rather surprising, putting it mildly. I always thought every wall in Highgarden had ears, and half of them were yours. A disturbing mental image, to be sure." The last bit said in a light tone. "Or is the issue that you know the situation, and what needs to be said to try and resolve it, but fear the consequences of saying it. Because if that's the case, you have already aptly just described a way around that particular problem."
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Post by Father on Aug 10, 2021 13:07:44 GMT 1
"If a great little fool happened to be supremely reckless, did not know the problem exactly, but had a very good idea and really had a need to know, he might have approached the big man himself pretending to know and thus make him admit the rest since he thinks it is no longer a secret" Butterbumps suggests, clearly disinclined to spill the secrets himself. "But like I said, only the truly desperate would take the advice of fools"
"The ladies of court might now, them and all their gossip, but they will surely want something in return."
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Post by Laena Pyre on Aug 12, 2021 21:11:02 GMT 1
Laena wrinkles her nose. "Also poor repayment to trick the man. If that were my inclination, I probably would have tried to trick you first." She ponders a few moments, considering various angles, but couldn't see any. He, probably quite reasonably, saw speaking out as putting his life at risk, and quite reasonably from that, couldn't be persuaded. She had nothing to offer him worth more than his life, and no way to persuade him it wasn't at risk.
Still, at least as far as she was aware she hadn't alienated the dwarf, leaving that door open for future opportunities should they occur to her. She sighs. "Trading with a lady it is, then." She pauses a moment. "While I have an idea or two, are there any ladies you would recommend approaching? It's been a while since I lived here, and you are a perceptive man. You have to be, in your position. You may think of someone I've overlooked."
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