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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 10, 2018 20:01:21 GMT 1
Laena nods. "Ser Quentin has suffered enough at his mother's hands, let us not add to his suffering, if we can avoid it.
"There is logic in speaking with Lord Ilyn, but it will not be easy. Firstly, Lady Maegelle is likely keeping a closer watch on him after he made the betrothal decision, to ensure her power is not eroded further. Little scares the powerful more than seeing the first drop of power lost, for fear that more will follow. Secondly, he quite possibly doesn't even know if Ser Quentin is truly his. Thirdly, even if he does know, he has no motive to reveal his son's true parentage - in terms of martial accomplishments, Ser Quentin is a man a father can be proud of, and it is better to be believed a good father, than known as a cuckold. And fourthly, Lord Ilyn's betrothal decision was his big moment. He stood up to his wife, and made a decision for himself, with his own power. Such a moment would be like a man in the wastes finally drinking a single drop of water. To then be asked to turn around and undo it ..." She shakes her head. "It was his one moment of freedom. A legacy of defiance. A monument with the inscription 'I was here' carved into it..." She sighs. "I do not know what we could possibly offer to make him do such a thing. Else I would have likely already done it."
She sighs again, and rubs her forehead. "Well, that's not quite true. If we could get Lady Maegelle sent off to a septry, and Ser Roland to return and replace Ser Normyn as Lord Ilyn's right hand, I think he'd be more than happy to undo the decision, since he then has all the freedom he desires. But that's a level of manipulation far beyond my capabilities. For her to agree to take vows requires that she have already lost her power, which requires Lord Ilyn to stand up for himself, which I don't see happening until she's taken the vows.
"So, that is as far as I have gone in my thinking. If you can cut through this knot with your sharp wit, I would be most grateful."
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Post by Father on Oct 10, 2018 22:29:07 GMT 1
"But if the lady has taken her vows, and with Ser Normyn having found service elsewhere, would there then be a need to cancel the betrothal?" He asks. "Wasn't her presence and disposition the main reason for concern?"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 11, 2018 9:50:04 GMT 1
Laena sighs, and pinches the bridge of her nose, taking the time to make a snap decision. "Sorry, long day. Yes, I forgot to mention that part: not only do we require Lady Maegelle gone for Lord Ilyn to stand up enough to push her away, but should we get to the point where we *can* cancel the betrothal, at least by that method, there is no longer a need for the cancellation."
You may not want to marry, Ashara, but you will be hard-pressed to find more freedom than in a house containing Ser Quentin, Lord Ilyn, and Ser Roland, and no Lady Maegelle. If that situation arises, it is almost certainly the best offer you will get.
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Post by Father on Oct 11, 2018 12:05:22 GMT 1
"Ah, well, I know not how she can be removed without being found to be unfaithful, and let us not even consider the most extreme solution" His mind is churning. "What we will be needing, I think, is to separate Lord Ilyn from Lady Maegelle and whatever agents she may have. Take the measure of the man, see if we can learn anything about his motivations. Perhaps not pressure him too much about the rumors of his wive's infidelity, but an off-hand mention would not hurt" He leads on into the maze, apparently knowing where he is going, though Laena cannot remember anything of interest in this direction, the moon gives off enough light to see where one is going. "We need to establish how all the characters on the stage can fit into the narrative we are building, what do we know of Ser Roland and Lady Denyse?"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 11, 2018 16:46:10 GMT 1
Laena lets herself be led without comment - if he was plotting to kill her, she'd misread the man so badly that she'd *deserve* to die, and there was a septon following - she subtly glanced behind her to confirm he was still following - so he likely did not intend more amorous pursuits, but he clearly had a plan. So, she let the anticipation build, and waited for the purpose to reveal itself.
She nods at his suggestion that they approach Lord Ilyn away from his wife. The difficult part, is of course, how. "Not much, yet." She responds to his question. "I've not met the woman, but according to Lady Ashara, while Lady Maegelle was courteous enough to at least attempt to hide her distaste for her, Lady Denyse did not, and was quite open in her hostility. Whether that reflects an overall lack of manners, or an excessive hatred for the Dornish is yet unclear, however. I have interacted with Ser Roland. He is either a good man, or a fantastic liar, but I believe him the former. From my read of him, he takes his oaths seriously and is a deeply honourable man. However, I have literally met a man born a commoner who has a better mind for politics than he has, and he seems like a man who could be persuaded of near enough anything, provided you throw around the words 'honour' and 'duty' enough, and it is not against his moral code." She gives both his positive and negative traits in an equal tone; reporting, not judging.
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Post by Father on Oct 11, 2018 17:29:54 GMT 1
"The realms would be better with more knights such as him, if only there were no wicked ones to take advantage of their innocence and sense of guilt and need to right as many wrongs as they can." He notes dryly of Roland. "The Lady Denyse would be of interest to us as well, as I recall she had poor luck with the selection of knights asking for her favor, and even less with the one who did, I suppose the rumors concerning her were part of it, but how she reacted was most telling. It is as if she had sought to rival such ladies as Lysette Starling and Daena Roxton, but found herself lacking in comparison. Perhaps my lady ought to seek her out also?"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 11, 2018 19:17:14 GMT 1
Laena frowns in thought. "Few women can match those two in desirability. *I* couldn't match them! Likely I couldn't even were I still a maiden. A pretty face and ample bosom may interest men, but nothing excites them quite like having a house attached, which she doesn't." She sighs.
"How do you feel I should approach her? Whatever the reason, she was openly hostile to Ashara, and I can hardly claim to be completely unrelated to her. She will be guarded at best, and equally hostile at worst. The knight who rode with her favour is hostile towards the Starkwoods, and was knocked out of the joust by a knight riding in my honour." She purses her lips. "Lady Lysette owes me a small favour over settling a personal matter. I wonder if it would be best to call in that favour for this."
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Post by Father on Oct 11, 2018 21:54:25 GMT 1
"My lady is the blood of the dragon whereas the Lady Ashara is a daughter of a lesser house and with the blood of the Rhoynar in her ways, this might make for all the difference in the world" He ponders the question of Lysette. "Is the Lady Lysette someone you would think a good judge of character? Someone you would entrust to possibly manage to ferret out anything we might use against her or the Lady Maegelle? Someone you would be inclined to share the motive behind the encounter with?"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 12, 2018 9:05:55 GMT 1
"Hmmm." She considers the Lysette question for a good few moments, before finally sighing and shaking her head. "She's book-smart, certainly, but she's been protected her whole life. That she's finally trying to stand up on her own is admirable, but she's still .. soft. Too soft."
They walk on a few more paces as she thinks. "From what you said, Lady Denyse wants to be widely admired, and that desire was stymied. She ..." Laena stops dead, one foot still slightly in the air, mouth wide, as she *finally* puts the pieces together. She turns to Bryce, and buries her face in his shoulder nook in embarrassment. "By the Seven!" Voice slightly muffled by his body. "I promise, I'm not always this slow. You led me *right* there! I even picked up on the connection! I just didn't make the final step!
"Lady Denyse wants to be desired, like the ladies who have houses attached are desired. Should Ser Quentin be set aside as illegitimate, it's not Ser Roland who's next in line, it's her! Sons before daughters, daughters before brothers. She just needs to make sure she's not wrapped up in the same claim, and she has everything she wants. It's not like Ser Roland will dishonourably push his claim." She thinks a moment more. "Lady Maegelle has pressured Ser Quentin until his personality is completely crushed. It stands to reason that she placed similar pressures on her daughter as well, but she's no puppet. That means it's likely there have been some blazing rows between them, as Lady Denyse refuses to bend and fails to break. It's quite likely there's some real bad blood there. Not certain, by any means, but worth investigating the possibility."
She draws her head back and looks up at him. "That's what you were nudging me towards, weren't you? Played right, Denyse stands to be our greatest ally in this." She frowns. "Though if we encourage her to follow through, that still hurts Ser Quentin, which we are trying to avoid. So, focus more on the 'liberation' angle, keeping the 'inheritance' angle downplayed unless we have no other choice? But you did say she likely can't be removed without infidelity, which would be hard to make stick without an issue to display. Sooo we could let her make her attempt to denounce her brother as illegitimate, then spin it back on her as her trying to pre-emptively protect herself, and ... urgh." She shakes her head. "My head's spinning, and this idea is getting way too complicated to be feasible. The best plans are simple ones."
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Post by Father on Oct 12, 2018 15:18:39 GMT 1
"If she had such inclinations, if there had been such conflict, my lady, someone will know about it" He doesn't seem too convinced. "I have been leading my lady nowhere but to her own conclusions, if that speculation turns out to be true, I would have loved to take credit for it, but no, that possibility had not crossed my mind, and there is a whole army of if's all required to be confirmed" He lets a finger run alongside her chin, not at all minding her drawing close. "We can have theories, but we must always be aware of what must be true for those to be actionable, I would prefer to know more about Lady Denyse and Lord Ilyn before starting to make too many speculations, if you believe something, you are more likely to search for confirmation until you find something, however flimsy, that might serve, many will put greater value upon being right the first time than learning what's really the case, often to the point where they ignore clues not fitting with their convictions."
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 12, 2018 18:54:58 GMT 1
She sighs, seemingly unconsciously ever so slightly leaning in the stroke of her chin, before she pushes herself away so they can resume their walking. "You're right, of course. Gather information, then make conclusions." She taps her thigh with her fingers for a few moments as she considers new avenues of approach. "Alright, so, speak with Denyse, and hope to glean some idea of how to isolate Lord Illyn for a quiet word. In his case, offering him an elbow and guiding him to the maze is unlikely to work, I suspect." she notes, dryly.
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Post by Father on Oct 12, 2018 23:06:25 GMT 1
"Who knows? With a wife like Maegelle, he might be quite eager to join a woman with only half of my lady's beauty for a moonlight walk among the hedges" He is highly adept at striking just the right sort of tone to make a girl swoon at his words. "Alternatively, deceit, distraction and diversion often works quite well"
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 13, 2018 11:36:52 GMT 1
Laena snorts lightly, flushes, and casts her eyes down at the flattery, but doesn't deny it. After a momentary hesitation, she asks quietly. "On an unrelated note, now we're alone, I don't suppose you happened to pick up exactly what drastic action Lord Peake is planning to turn things around for his faction, and would be willing to share? My talents only extended so far as picking up the plot's existence, not any details as to what he was planning."
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Post by Father on Oct 14, 2018 11:27:27 GMT 1
"I would not be surprised to find tomorrow's drawing in the joust to be rigged so that the final eight will only have a single man known to be loyal to King Daeron in it, and only because they cannot find some way to rid themselves of both Breakspear and Stormbreaker without risking their own favorites." He ponders for a moment. "And I also believe that if Ser Roland, Prince Maekar and the Stormbreaker does not band together in the melee, Blackfyre's victory will be assured. Though I must admit I do have a mind to seek to join the winning team while Gormy and Bittersteel play their games, Lord Marq would probably join me, but you can never know for sure with him."He thinks about it some more. "Gormy is dangerous, callous and could, but clever enough to never show it. Without his guiding influence, Bittersteel and Fireball would have just been a pair of rabble rousers and frauds that the king would have been able to send to the wall on some pretext if he were so inclined, he might perhaps be disinclined to intervene should the likes of Ser Balon itch for more Dornish Blood, though he knows better than to directly allow or suggest it, but make no mistake, I am quite certain that he has men in his service who have killed, or hired others to do the deed, on his behalf."He halts. "But enough such dreary talk, I had a mind to let my lady in on a little secret that she probably does not know about" He draws his dagger and uses it to push a few branches away, sticks his hand in and finds a handle to a hidden door leading into a square room with other doors leading out into the maze. "Only the knights in the service of Highgarden are supposed to know about these places, not even tell their squires, that did not stop me from learning about it." Obviously meant as a way for defenders to find some place to retreat or hide from enemies so that may be ambushed. He guides her hand to rest on a sliding bolt, obviously making it her choice. "I had a hunch that my lady might want to lock the rest of the world out so that there would be just Bryce and Laena left in it" his voice now a soft whisper, the sort to resonate with the heartstrings of a woman, his other hand playing with her neck as if to fret on the very same strings. Cashing in on his earlier advances: 8d6k5+3 20 Intrigue is never mind control, but he did get into the category of people that can simple intrigue her due to drawback, so this might be where things fade to the black.
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Post by Laena Pyre on Oct 14, 2018 12:52:20 GMT 1
Laena breathes a relieved sigh at his analysis. "Doesn't sound nearly as bad as I was fearing, then."
When he reveals the hidden area, her jaw drops slightly as a few mysteries from her teenage years suddenly find answers. Her second thought was how someone who knew of these might make use of them for nefarious purposes in the upcoming foot-race - hiding assassins in, for instance. Her third thought was the realisation she'd just been propositioned.
She glances around to make sure the septon who followed them was keeping a discreet enough distance that he wasn't in sight before she's led into the sanctuary. With her hand on the bolt, already melting at his touch and voice, she knew she had to make one thing clear. "I may no longer have my maidenhead," she whispers back into his ear. "But I have my pride. It takes more than a few pretty words and showing me your secret chamber for me to permit access to mine. This decision, right here and now, is because *I* chose *you*, and you alone, and you have continually met or exceeded my hopes and expectations.
"Don't disappoint me now."
Locking eyes with him, she gracefully slides the bolt home.
Click!
As discussed in the private thread suggesting this, I do want a post-coital conversation (albeit a single question, so not a long one), but I thought I'd give you a chance to interject before I moved on to that.
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