Poison is Just Stronger Medicine [Finished]

[seraaches]

"No, of course not," Ira answered the question easily, apparently completely unperturbed by lovely Aunt Phoebe's reaction to the news of their parentage nor Aunt Rhea's rather abrupt-- and perhaps unwanted-- question. Still, his reply was immediate and swift. "I have no reason to take The Queenship when that's where more of the barbs will land." The power behind the power; a potentially elusive goal and perhaps not one the King was actually aiming for at all, though it could be sound in theory.

"Another of our sibs just might aim for that role," he continued almost offhand-ishly. "Yet another Yarrows, though sadly male. He requires a delicate touch to control." Further insinuations in those words and tone. A more demanding role, then, to hold the reins of an impulsive and potentially stupid male, with the underlying disdain for one who held both that gender and that level of insanity in his being.

[Kiki]

Bee and Sera receive 1 token each, to be redeemed in Ashwin's Shoppe. This will automatically be added to your recorded totals in the shoppe. Congratulations, and keep up the good RP!

[Bee]

Rhea grimaced. "A man from the Gardens," she muttered. "That my niece let that boy live...my assistant Aurelie gave birth to a son two years ago. She nearly wasted away of shame. She was fortunate, though. The little abomination died suddenly; happens sometimes with infants, you know." Something about her tone was off--too conspiratorial, too smirking. Iphis set his little cake aside. He felt a bit ill, all of a sudden.

She laughed. "At least you intend to keep your brother nicely on the leash." Holding power from behind a figurehead seemed to be a viable political solution to her; there was no sense in setting oneself up as a target when one had a perfectly disposable brother. "I think I should be happy to deal with you, then, my dear grand-niece. That is what the Court of Hearts wishes, correct? To obtain another supplier for more deadly substances?"

[seraaches]

Ira's dark smirk in response could do little more than support all of the woman's suspicions. The idea of a baby being killed brought forth no echoes of sympathy and perhaps no real sense of pleasure or excitement. It wasn't even really a wasted death, as so many could be. A baby held no real taste; it had no experiences and, thusly, no flavour. A waste to eat.

"Oh, we can't be looking for poisons." The disdain was back in his voice, a low, subtle thing slipped in through the veil of sarcasm. "Public image and all of that. No, the Court of Hearts is officially looking for another supplier of such herbs, plants, and other substances that may or may not be called forth throughout the course of the day-to-day activities of that Court." It sounded as though he was spouting off a legal document. Ira winked suddenly at his great-aunt. "Though, of course, we all know wot that means." Which was just as she had stated.

[Bee]

Rhea seemed quite taken by Ira's charm, Iphis noticed: her demeanor softened microscopic amounts with every word he spoke, and it did not seem to take long at all for a total stranger to become a favored relative. It was an odd process to watch. Phoebe, meanwhile, disappeared neatly into the background, a spectator; she faded away with such ease that she must have spent a lifetime perfecting the art. But her eyes were watchful and calculating.

Aunt Rhea smoothed her skirt. "Of course," she said smoothly. "We can't have royalty taking ill. And I'm sure you know that my plants are second to none. I have my own networks for transporting goods; we need to discuss meetings and aligning my circles to yours. I trust the Court has resources considerable enough to make this process simple and seamless." She smiled mirthlessly. "And I trust my payment for services rendered will be more than adequate."

She poured herself a cup of tea. "Ah, and another thing. I do think I would like to...keep in touch, outside of business." She cast an appraising eye on Ira. "You remind me a bit of your mother before she went stark mad. I don't think you and your lovely sisters would find it too much of an inconvenience to pay a friendly call on your great-aunts?"

[seraaches]

Ira smiled kindly back at their Great-Aunt Rhea, though he wouldn't make the mistake of referring to her as a Great-Aunt-- oh, no. And given a chance to explain it would be something along the lines of her being too grand and young to be referred to in such a potentially insulting manner. "The Queen would never hesitate to make certain that you are quite comfortable in your alliance with the Court of Hearts," the equine answered lightly.

The odd references to mother and father seemed to slip right past him-- at least, they would for anyone acquainted with his odd way of referencing his parents. "How could it ever be an inconvenience to visit such lovely ladies?" Ira exclaimed lightly. "Though I fear that the visits may not necessarily be all that often. Unless you would like to visit us in the Capital." It sounded quite as though he wasn't hiding anything.

[Bee]

Rhea smiled thinly. "That would be quite impossible, I fear. The Capital crawls with far too much testosterone for my tastes. As do most other places, really. Besides, Phoebe and I must tend to Tethys. You'll need to meet her, one of these days, when she's feeling well enough; it would be quite an experience for you, I think." She looked Ira up and down. "And perhaps we can do a little something to enhance your femininity. You're both lovely girls, but maleness swimming around in the genes causes all sorts of unfortunate oddness...."

"I think my sister's beautiful," Iphis said serenely. This was an insult--however small--both to his brother and his own artistry with make-up and clothing. Iphis was annoyed with very few things in life, but this would not stand.

"Yes, yes," said Rhea, as one placating a small child. She seemed to have formed the impression that Iphis was long on pretty and short on brains. "As I said, very lovely. Pheobe, do gets us some wine. Thank you, darling. Now, a toast, to our new partnership and my charming nieces." She raised her glass.

[seraaches]

"We would love to meet Tethys," Ira answered with the same, half-smirk half-smile. Actually everyone from Daddy Darling's family was proving to be quite interesting and with their Great-Aunt's request, Ira had already made up his mind to find a way to spend more time down here.

Her words didn't offend him at all, and it wasn't until Iphis spoke that he even realized there was an underlying insult there. So his ears tilted back just enough to give him a slightly annoyed or pained expression, then he gave a bright laugh, "I fear Aunt Rhea's correct on this one." Almost self-effacing, as though through old pain, he pushed on. "I fear the Queen's genes are a bit strong in me." He had the air of one who didn't want to talk about it, though still eager to learn. "Actually," he continued on as though this admission hurt but should be aired for others' amusement. "I'm often mistaken for a male." He looked absolutely disgusted for a moment, before shuttling the thoughts away, to push hurriedly into their toast.

It was exceedingly awkward to lift a glass when all you had was hooves, but Ira had been practicing this particular trick as well, so he managed it with the natural aplomb of one who had hooves for his entire life. "To new partnerships through old ties, and to our gorgeous Aunt Rhea and Aunt Phoebe--" Ira carefully tilted the cup in the other woman's direction as well. "Who make a difficult trip a little bit brighter."

[Bee]

"My, but you're an adorable kiss-arse," Aunt Rhea said, looking quite pleased by this, and it was strangely comforting to Iphis to see that Rhea, like the rest of his family, placed high value on the oddest of traits. They toasted, drank and ate. With official matters settled, they chattered on about lighter matters--how the Gardens were running, the exact reasons that anything of the male sex needed to be exterminated immediately and with vicious prejudice, how much time Iphis spent making such lovely dresses. The small things.

Eventually Aunt Rhea stood, arranging herself smoothly and neatly; she did not like to have anything out of place, near as Iphis could tell. "Come, let us continue this little talk outside in the sun. I think my servants should be quite through setting up our little party. People will beginning arriving soon--you can meet a good sort."

[seraaches]

Ira was certainly just as pleased as Iphis, but for other reasons. He proudly went to his great-aunt's side and gave her another little curtsy before escorting her-- rather ironically-- towards her garden.

The place was absolutely beautiful: the decorations were light, delicate, and airy; the dainty scent of the food and drink wafted through the garden with a temptation of delight; the servants stood respectfully back, each one decked out in a cute uniform.

Ira's pale eyes immediately skimmed around for any sort of threat. His body didn't tense, but for several long moments there was an air of readiness about him. He continued onwards into the gardens, chatting about nothing and everything with his Great-Aunt Rhea. It was small talk and purposefully said nothing of importance; they would get to that later this week. For now, however, he was determined to enjoy himself and pay close attention to how the women now surrounding him acted.