Searching for a stranger [Quest - Done!]

[Tigeress]

The doe strode purposefully through the palace, keeping Bernard's directions in her mind as she wove through corridors and around corners, up a flight of stairs. It was a bit dizzying, and she obviously still hadn't entirely grasped the layout as of yet. One thing she needed to work on before many others, or else she'd find herself lost and quite useless. The daunting amount of travel didn't bother her, she'd been working herself to the bone lately, but it had her in quite excellent shape.

Shinrai, a newly accepted Queen of the courts, a stallion or so she'd heard. Bright green and with a rather intriguing whip and hat, unlike any of the current high fashions, he shouldn't be a hard one to spot. In fact, luck was in her favour, for just as soon as she strode past another impressive looking set of rooms, a door opened in the center, a visitor or messenger of some sort rushing out and giving her a momentary glimpse inside. Which was just enough time for her to turn and knock on the door after waiting a few moments. Hopefully he hadn't seen her about to walk past, it would be embarassing to admit she'd almost gotten lost.

"Your majesty Shinrai, might I enter? I am Sekhmet, we made an appointment a while ago, I hope I am not too early." She had arrived a touch ahead of shedule, but it seemed his last appointment had ended just in time for her hastiness to come in handy. She took a large breath in and out, a serene but anticipational smile on her face. She didn't know exactly what to expect, as Bernard hadn't really gone into detail about the new queen, but she could only assume he would be a wise choice for her to follow.

[seraaches]

Contrary to wot the woman thought, his previous business was not, in actuality, concluded. But that was fine, since the woman's voice interrupting his thoughts gave him a sudden and absolutely brilliant idea. Oh, yes. This would take care of all sorts of issues. Or cause many, many more. A small smirk briefly touched his lips. He always loved a good political incident.

"Come in, Sekhmet." The cool and low voice rumbled easily into the hallway and all it took was a swing of the door to reveal the new Queen of Hearts.

Despite the newness of the title, Shinrai had all of the confidence and authority of his rank slung about him like a well-used cloak. He didn't need to try to show off; it was obvious in his very demeanour that he knew he had power and was willing to use it. It'd take very little to guess just who he had learned that particular trait from.

The grey-green gaze gave no indication of his thoughts as she stepped into the room. Rumours had flown before this little interview and he knew exactly why he was conducting it instead of Queen Serafino. She was a pretty little creature, but that gave no indication of her intelligence or political know-how. That was fine, he was going to test exactly that.

There was no evidence of the man's hat, though the whip lay coiled at his side and his bone gauntlet, per usual, graced his left hand. The small sitting room was not devoid of other people, however; standing off to one side and looking very annoyed was a Morganberry ram in bipedal sporting a brilliant and lovely black eye.

Rai watched the woman calmly, but said nothing for several long minutes as the other man in the room stared at the floor in an almost belligerent stance. The stallion waited for the woman's response to wot she saw, remembering his first meeting with Queen Serafino.

[Tigeress]

She entered the room with an even stride, her eyes hooded but calm. For some reason, she had an urge to survey the room before addressing the Queen once more, and she knew exactly why she had the second her glance strayed from the green stallion. She blinked once at what she saw, apparently his business had not been finished? She seemed to be rather good at interrupting the royals around the palace lately. "Thank you, your majesty." She said calmly, wondering idly what this ram had done to deserve the treatment, but she was sure whatever it was, it was being used to taunt her. That or he, like Queen Serafino, simply couldn't care less what others thought of his personal business being displayed so openly. Admirable and unnerving, but it would make sense for the two Queens to share such similar traits when it came to their ruling, as presumably they'd spent much time together recently.

"Please, if I am interrupting I can most certainly wait until you're finished your previous business, majesty." She didn't offer to leave the room, that might be seen as cowardice. She knew too well what things went on behind these walls, and while she didn't approve with a lot of it, she was beginning to realize how eerily necessary it was. He would ask her to go if she had arrived too early and he had things that needed to be done out of the eyesight of potential witnesses. After all, a Jack/would-be King not yet appointed to a Queen could be a dangerous liability in such a situation.

"I'm here in hopes of obtaining a rank as King, and if you found me suited, I would be honored to serve you, your majesty." She didn't know if he truly remembered her beyond a name, certainly as the newest Queen she could only assume in the past week since she'd spoken to his attendant on the phone, he'd seen many faces and heard many requests. It seemed safe to remind him without making it seem like he'd forgotten, perhaps he hadn't forgotten a detail at all. So far he seemed to be a rather interesting person, not as blunt and unpleasantly moody as Serafino could be, but similarily confident and intimidating. Good qualities of a leader, and... well, she certainly wouldn't want to be caught under a weak Queen if things hit the fan, so to say.

She waited patiently for him to invite her closer to sit, or to address the rather frustrated looking male who averted his gaze from the both of them. Either way it was of little concern to her so long as it didn't affect what she'd come here to do. Though the entire scene was a bit off, which was unsettling, but she had anticipated her quest to become King to be significantly more difficult than that of a Jack. Whereas a Jack seemed to be the quest to find oneself, she could only assume a King was the quest to prove oneself.

[seraaches]

Rai gave the impression of lofting a brow at her swift response; well, it was smooth, at least. "I know why you're here," he retorted lightly, but was there a hint of reproof in his voice? He was silent for several more beats before continuing as though there was nothing wrong. "Fortunately for you, this just became your business."

He turned to the ram, who seemed only to want to sink into the floor. The yellow-tinged, red man reluctantly stepped forward when the Queen gestured for him, however, giving another bow to the Marshdweller.

"Relay the message again," the stallion said easily. The man sent him an imploring look that was met with a stern admonishment before the ram cleared his throat uneasily.

"When I told him your message, sire...." the man glanced briefly towards the doe, then dropped his eyes to the floor and continued sullenly. "He replied by punching me in the face and saying... ah... saying... '*#$% you.'"

The stallion leaned back, steepling fingers with an amused air. "He did, did he?" came the thoughtful question, though it was obvious this wasn't the first time the ram had delivered his message.

"Yes, your Majesty."

"Wot rank are you, Samid?" the stallion asked, as though this wasn't seared across the man's chest.

If he could have gotten any redder, the ram just might have. "A Ten of Hearts, sire."

"Very good, Samid. You may go."

The ram bowed to the Queen again and headed for the door, only to be stopped by the stallion's voice. "You deserve a week off, Samid," the Queen said quietly, eyes staring thoughtfully towards the ceiling. "You weren't the first messenger I sent, but you've received the worse treatment. Make sure my aide knows."

Samid half-turned in surprise then inclined his head towards the Queen and hurried out. Rai pursed his lips thoughtfully and seemed quite content to simply contemplate the ceiling for awhile.

[Tigeress]

She let a glimmer of interest flicker across her carefully neutrally lidded orbs before considering the ram yet again. As soon as the Queen spoke, she could tell she was meant to listen to the exchange of words between the two, and she did so, hands clasped politely in front of her abdomen. Interestingly enough, she'd expected his wounds had come from an outside source, though she couldn't place why. It seemed as if his majesty had a little... problem that his assistants were having trouble setting right.

Ah. A test of power perhaps? It seemed like his intent might be to sic her upon this... ignorant traitor and see if she could succeed where the others had failed? It would be a suitable test considering her ambition to serve under him. But it might not be as simple as all that, after all, the ram was roughed up quite nicely, and she couldn't tell yet if all of the previous attacks were magical or just physical like this one. His majesty seemed to want Sekhmet to pay attention to the ram's rank, a ten, only one below her and he couldn't take care of his Queen's business. It was slightly intimidating, but she certainly had no intentions of turning back, or failing.

As the ram departed, her eyes did not follow him, but rather rested on the carefully considering form of the Queen. Better to let the ram escape with some of his pride intact, she'd seen him blushing enough to warm the whole room and she didn't need to stare. She'd been silent throughout the duration of the little scene, lost in her musings, though she figured the scene hadn't been open to interpretation. Not out loud, anyway. However, it seemed as if he was expecting some sort of reaction from her and so she would have to speak up eventually.

"I am at your disposal, majesty. I would be honored to take care of this... ignorant fool who seems so unreceptive to the words of a Queen." Her tone held no hints of anger, still as calm and neutral as ever, though her words were laced with disdain. Her eyes glittered with curiosity, the only giveaway of her interest in what truly lie at the heart of the matter. It may have seemed blind to so willingly follow a Queen whom she knew so little about, but first impressions were important, and she knew Bernard had been wise in his choice. With this in mind, following her words she bowed low and quietly waited for the Queen to instruct her further. She wondered idly, why the ram and others had not struck back at this contact for his insolent responses thus far, in the name of their Queen. With this in mind she began to again reconsider what her role in this might be.

[seraaches]

Rai's ears flicked back deliberately when the woman spoke and grey-green eyes flicked down to the doe with a calm, vaguely interested expression. His ears came back up at the words 'ignorant fool' and the first glimmer of amusement flickered across his face.

"That's one of the most accurate phrases I've ever heard for him," the man said idly. He found the woman's tone very... interesting. Very interesting, indeed, and he wasn't certain who he felt worse for: the king-wannabe or the man she was being sent for. All he knew for sure was that this would be one fun quest and he could only hope that anyone else applying for Kinghood through him could have an equally awesome quest.

"There is a man in the Marsh whom I need here at Court with me. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to agree with my estimation. I will need you to go out and fetch him."

The Queen lofted a brow at the woman, as though waiting for her reaction, though she certainly wasn't dismissed yet.

[Tigeress]

The Queen's amusement was noted a glance of equal interest, it seemed they both found intrigue in each other's company, which seemed to be a good thing for her thus far. She had assumed that the Queen would have held a dislike for the man, and wasn't surprised when he agreed with her assumption of the man's general personality. It did, however, make her wonder why he was spending such time and effort to get this man in his presence. A personal punishment perhaps? That brought about a different set of questions, however, she paused in her pondering to pay specific attention to his instructions. She'd never been to the Marsh before, but she'd heard enough to know it wouldn't be a walk in the park finding him, let alone getting a private audience. Or not private, depending on what his majesty instructed.

"Gladly, your majesty. If I may ask, is this man to be harmed in any way or is it required that he be left untouched?" Not that she was so bold as to think she could run in, guns blazing so to say. But if it came down to it, she wanted to make sure she was allowed to protect herself, and not just defensively. She'd learned early on the necessity to incapacitating your opponent as opposed to focussing on protecting yourself. Not to mention, she had an inexperienced reputation to make up for, so she needed to score some extra skill and loyalty points in order to be considered by the stallion further.

She didn't leave when he became silent, knowing better than to excuse herself from the presence of royalty. He seemed to like toying with her like this, going silent and waiting for her to continue the chain of interaction. It was good, it kept her on her toes, and she needed to be challenged and tested if she expected to deserve her Kinghood. She had a few questions left to ask, but she didn't want to seem too eager, it was better to wait and let the Queen set the pace of information she would receive. She assumed she would be told a name, and general appearance, but as the Queen was tactfully baiting her, she would have to trust her patience would pay off.

[seraaches]

The stallion sat silently for a few minutes as his mind went to the quandary presented to him now. This doe Sekhmet was only a single rank higher than Samid, but surely the fact that she was a Face Card would carry the weight his own command evidently could not. Maybe. Perhaps. Grey-green eyes dropped back to muse on the woman as Rai hoped he was making the right decision in this. He might look a fool if he attempted to change her quest now. He thought she had a serious chance, though. If she didn't want King more than his missing companion desired to remain out of the Capital, then she evidently didn't want it as much as he had and he didn't want someone less determined than him by his side.

The rumours surrounding her were worrisome as well and he had a difficult decision before him no matter how the quest fell out. Very difficult indeed; he was too 'young' as a Queen to make mistakes.

"Take the rest of this day at your leisure," the Queen said abruptly. "Prepare for your journey to the Marsh and I will be certain to send someone to aid you in packing the correct things. You'll receive your final instructions before you leave." With those words came the dismissive tone and the stallion would only wait long enough to hear her closing remarks before turning his attention to the papers at his side.

(( Feel free to jump to later that night; the aid will come then to assist. ))

[Tigeress]

((Thanks love, will do!))

She was relieved to hear she'd have some time to prepare, perhaps she'd even be able to get in a few sparring matches today after all. After her pregnancy, she'd been nonstop trying to get back in shape again and stay there. As it was, she was even more fit than she'd ever been, and the muscular tone was becomming impressive. Which, might be useful for the upcoming confrontation. "Thank you, your majesty. I look forward to when we meet again." And strangely, it wasn't a lie. Perhaps there was hope for a truly satisfying life for her yet... that was, if she could manage to impress the stallion. Taking a deep but quick bow, noting the papers he was beginning to turn his attention to, she headed for the door, strong fluid steps taking her out into the painfully bright light beyond.

-----

Pacing was unbecomming of a lady, but she couldn't help it. She'd been ready for over an hour, having woken up and speed bathed only to jump right into planning. The nap hadn't been necessary, but she'd rather not chance being even the slightest bit tired, as she had no idea how long this would really take. That little bit of extra awareness and extra chance to react might save her a great deal of trouble. She hadn't meant to, but she was anticipating conflict, mostly because she wasn't blind- she'd seen how he treated the Queen's messengers. She had one small dagger hidden on her person, though the clothing she wore was uncomfortable as it was, only because she wasn't used to wearing anything. But, court modesty seemed to like clothing on one's body, furred or otherwise, so she would have to get used to it eventually. Plus, it was inconspicuous armour, supple leather that looked just like an absent-mindedly chosen outfit, nothing planned about it, surely not.

She tapped her fingers against the bedspread of the guest room, making wavering circles as she followed the designs, her fingers expertly feeling along the ridge of the thread. Any minute now the Queen's chosen aide would come and the packing would begin. She wondered what exactly she was meant to carry, another concealed weapon might be nice, but other than that she had no idea. Perhaps it was part of the message the Queen's assistants had been trying to deliver. She had known for many hours now that she would succeed where they had failed, there was no room for error here. She'd made sure that the outfit she'd chosen left a gaping space above the 'J' on her chest, just a little incentive for this man to cooperate.

A little intimidation never hurt anyone, and if she could get the upper hand by making this contact uncomfortable in her presence, she might be able to make things go over more smoothly than if his arrogance took control of him. She moved off the bed to pace closer to the door, every sound making her perk her ears through a mess of carefully arranged fiery locks that piled atop her head. Another safety precaution, though she doubted hair pulling was this man's preferred way of abusing messangers.

[seraaches]

When the knock sounded at the door, it held a slight hesitation, as though her guest wasn't certain of whether or not they were at the correct place. When the portal was open, it revealed a rather chubby Selkie Lakes raccoon who gave a small, half-grin and an equally small wave with his free hand. He carried a spear Slightly chubby, his Ten was still emblazoned obviously across his chest.

"H-hi," he said a bit shyly, not looking like a threat at all. "I'm Lawrence. You c-can call me Larry, that's wot everyone calls me. I'm not really sure why, because Lawrence is still a good name. Do you think it's a good name? I guess it might be easier to say Larry, but you can call me wotever you want, because you're applying for Queen Rai's King. Right? That's wot somebody told me that, should I have not said anything?" The raccoon seemed to wilt slightly when he realized that he may have offended the woman.

The poor man also seemed exceedingly nervous. His eyes would jump up to Sekhmet's face then dive back down to the floor. Once his gaze slid over the woman's body, but he flushed darkly and didn't repeat that little trick a second time. Man, Queen Rai's potential King was -hot-.