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Post by Ry on May 20, 2008 6:58:15 GMT -5
The shy mouse stared at the bright green equine uncertainly. In color and appearance she looked nothing like Mnemosyne. In fact, despite the dress, the strong lines made the mare appear mannish. Had the rodent not known any better, she might have mistaken the Card for a man.
But Souris could hardly insult the Misses Eumeleia thus. Instead, the mouse bit her tongue, and uttered a soft, polite,"Hullo" to the Josiggy mare, and the glass-winged albino that accompanied her.
Esme, never as soft-spoken as her daughter, stared openly at the strangely coloured Equine/Canine mix. Now that one was Yarrow Gardens, through and through. The colours and markings, faint though there were, set him apart from the Josiggy equine, as did the pink feelers, and shimmery wings, and made him beautiful. She inclined her head slightly at him, offering him the formal salutation,"Greet you", a clear rebuke to her daughter for not doing the same.
(Note: Esme is NPC.)
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Post by seraaches on May 20, 2008 11:49:35 GMT -5
The pale eyes that swept over the pair of women were purposefully light and innocuous, his cunning carefully hidden beneath the guise of a carefree party-goer. He picked up on the light reproof from the mother-- well, he assumed they were related by the similar appearances and the overall demeanour of the older woman-- so he was careful to respond in her manner.
"Greet you," he intoned formally, giving a slight incline of his head, one befitting a titled (or nearly so) King of the Court of Hearts to someone worth respecting but still, obviously, lower than him. Nevertheless, he popped a swift wink at the younger mouse where her mother could not see. "Welcome to Rhea Eumeleia's garden party. We are pleased to see you here, Misses. . . ?" He let the words trail off questioningly as he quirked a welcoming brow towards them.
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Post by Ry on May 21, 2008 6:18:52 GMT -5
Reine laughed softly, amused, as Esme, her ermine body stiff with anger, nevertheless had to swallow her pride, and bow her head and acknowledge the equine as ranking her. Not that she had any choice. Her sister's daughter had never formally joined the Courts, and the equine, although mannish in appearance, was a Face Card, and she merely a Nine.
Esme, tight with fury, smiled back brightly, her head politely bowed, as she retreated, leaving Souris, as the youngest, and lowest, in both Suit and Rank, to the introductions, as a deliberate, but subtle slight on her part, although perfectly acceptable in protocol, thereby silencing Reine.
Souris, her eyes snapping with mirth, stepped forward eagerly, not noticing her mother's small power play. She thanked both the equine, and his companion, for the welcome, filling in the blank smoothly,"...Rosier." Technically, she wasn't sure she counted as a Rosier, her being estranged and unacknowledged, not to mention her mother never having married her father, but, Reine had insisted she take the family name on official records, so...
(Note: Reine is NPC, too.)
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Post by seraaches on May 21, 2008 8:53:30 GMT -5
"Well, Misses Rosier, I'm certain my lovely aunt is pleased by your attendance today." Actually, there was a good chance that was a blatant lie. Further actually, it was a blatant lie. Ira had no such assurances of Great-Aunt Rhea's good graces towards anyone, much less these particular ladies. Though, to be honest, he also didn't necessarily care. The Gardens was filled with politics, just like the Court, so whether or not someone actually was happy about someone else's attendance-- or even existence-- they would never commit such a faux pas as to actually say anything.
"You'll have to forgive my ignorance," he continued lightly, making sure to still keep his masculine patterns and behaviours very well in-hoof. Not, he knew, that there was necessarily such a difference in said patterns and behaviours; it was all in perception. "Which business is your family in?"
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Post by Ry on May 22, 2008 7:19:59 GMT -5
Esme just about choked at that statement, banal and irrelevant though it was. The ermine had long struggled to acquire Eumeleia mentorship, but now the great-nieces Eumeleia would take precedence. She wisely held her tongue however, and left Souris to fill the conversational gap, pushing off the less pleasant social obligation onto her daughter, who was happy to oblige.
The mouse listened to the equine carefully, noting wryly that, Josiggy coloration aside, she conducted herself well, as a Yarrow Gardens female would. Her eyes widened though, at the ingenuous question. The Rosier holdings, although neither extensive nor vast, was still sufficiently varied that she couldn't immediately frame an answer. Reine, ever practiced, stepped in smoothly with a bland "Botanical pharmaceuticals", just as Souris blurted,"Addictive poisons." The ocelot looked annoyed for a moment, before letting the mouse slide, as the ermine watched, her expression sardonic. The mouse had committed a serious gaffe.
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Post by seraaches on May 22, 2008 10:41:29 GMT -5
Ira gave an inner smile at the conflicting answers, but he kept his own expression tightly under control. He was well-used to striding through deep waters in which he had no answeres and certainly no lifelines. He found this particular family interesting, though; it was almost like seeing Daddy dear separated out into a few of her more precious characteristics. Of course, no one was screaming hate and threatening death yet, but, really, he expected it to only be a matter of time.
He sent a swift glance off to check on Iphis, but-- unsurprisingly-- the other male seemed to be holding a little court of his own, filled with flattery and female things. Ira's lavender eyes slipped back to the women before him. "How convenient to cover more than one market," he said in response, seeming to not notice the family conflict. Well, almost. His gaze went slyly to Reine before slipping back to Souris. Her family seemed to be waiting for her to explain, so he waited for her to do so.
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Post by Ry on May 24, 2008 0:41:31 GMT -5
Souris immediately seized upon the answer he had conveniently provided her, desperate enough to be grasping at straws. "Indeed,"said she, quickly, "The Rosier business and holdings intentionally cater to multiple markets," deliberately avoiding the ermine's incredulous stare.
No wonder, for she herself couldn't believe her statement. Nevertheless, she continued,"Botanical manages the selection and gardening in the Yarrow Gardens, Pharmaceuticals, together with R&D, work on the discovery and development of drugs." Doubtless, over-summarising the entire process, but she didn't want to sound like she'd swallowed the entire prospectus. "The process is occasionally outsourced to reputable Corvistowneians" she added.
"Marketing covers medical prescriptions in Corvistowne," Strange as that would doubtless sound, "chemists and pharmacies in the Capital City, with particular emphasis on contraceptives and abortifacients."She finished honestly, to see the ermine look completely outraged, for her admission had been extremely indiscreet.
Nevertheless, having already admitted thus, the mouse could see no other alternative. She looked at her Grand-Aunt, to see how her admission was going to be taken, but Reine wasn't paying her any attention, for she looked back at the bright green equine mildly enough, completely ignoring the ermine-rodent by-play.
Clearly, the ocelot had noticed her stare, but would settled in to wait until the equine chose to reveal her hand, before she responded.
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Post by seraaches on May 25, 2008 17:43:52 GMT -5
Ira's face remained a bland mask though he tilted his head thoughtfully towards Souris with a hint of disapproval in his gaze. He, at least, was actually greatly amused by her swift attempts at explanation, even though it was obviously not true; her relative's stare gave proof of that. Nevertheless, the woman should learn to be a bit more circumspect about what she said to random strangers. Not that it really affected him one way or another; whatever the woman wanted to tell others was none of his affair and certainly wasn't interesting to him. His position, however, said that he had to at least pretend it did.
"Corvistowneians, heh?" He flicked his tail lightly as he affected a pose of disinterest. "How interesting; it seems as though they would be in competition with you, not working for you." There was a slight bite to his words, something that could be insulting, but might not be; it would depend on what the listener was waiting to hear.
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Post by Ry on May 26, 2008 3:56:31 GMT -5
A light silvery laugh floated on the air, as the ermine caught the disinterested pose, the light tail flick, and the slight bite in the equine's words, together with the disapproval in his gaze. Esme, her face alight with happiness, smiled, the first truly genuine smile since having encountered the younger Misses Eumeleia. She did enjoy seeing her daughter try, and fail, to succeed, socially.
Souris, her face pale beneath lilac, yellow and white pointed fur, struggled to block out the unnerving laughter, and master her sorrow, but couldn't. She had wait until the delicious, pervasive, persuasive laugh died away, before she was sufficiently composed to answer.
(OOC: Laughter being a small ability her mother has, affecting Cards rank 8 and below. Induces emotions a Card consciously associates with her. Only works if s/he knows her well.)
"Truth be told, the Corvistowneians do try to compete." But not successfully, she implied. "But, oh! I have let you distract me." She tried to change the topic. "I meant to introduce myself." And she gave him her name,"Souris", even as she signalled her handmaid. "Would you like a drink?" She certainly did.
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Post by seraaches on May 27, 2008 11:52:50 GMT -5
Ira could taste the magic in the air, but he was wholly unaffected by it. The mouse, however, tensed up and remained very still until the woman finished her little fit of giggles.
He sent her a droll glance, ears flicking purposefully backwards for a moment before he let her change the subject. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Souris Rosier. I am Ira." Just that, as though that were enough for everyone, especially the Rosier family.
"A drink would be wonderful." He turned to watch her interaction with the handmaiden, letting it appear as though his attention were wandering again.
"I've never seen many of these flowers before," he said thoughtfully in such a tone that there might be a deeper meaning behind the words. "They are lovely to look at, but seem very. . . deadly as well."
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