Preparations Underway [Finished]

[The Jenn]

Sultana chafed at her restraint, pulling and jerking the leather leash at every opportunity, making Serafino hold his arm stiffly as he waited for her to calm down. An unexpected lunge could be hell on the shoulder. Until she showed some measure of restraint, he wasn't taking the chance.

After what seemed like forever, but was probably only two or three minutes, the brightly-colored bandersnatch stopped her struggling to sit moodily on the ground next to him. He could tell by the hunker of her shoulders that she would be sulking for the entire walk. She was angry with the world in general. Frankly, he couldn't blame her. He would be pissed as all hell if he wasn't allowed to leave his suite for nearly two weeks.

He caught her attention with a light noise and tugged on the lead. Sullently, she stood and followed him out the door, deigning to be docile on her lead while he took her through the halls and into the rose garden. They passed hordes of people on the way, workers and decorators and tailors and who knew what else, all bustling around in what looked like a chaotic tangle. The Harvest Festival was nearly upon them and last-minute preparations were being made, everyone on overdrive to finish before the festivities began. They wanted to be able to enjoy them as well.

At least the edges of the garden nearest the wall were relatively free of people, an occasional wanderer passing the Queen and his pet. Slowly, the female began to take more interest in her surroundings, almost despite herself. Her mood wouldn't last another five minutes, not until they went back inside again.

[Vyn]

Not long after that trying encounter with the Lowland vermin, Mephitisia was back to the Court of Hearts. The cunning little deer had slid past the guard's gaze and gained herself access to the gardens even if she was sure she wasn't supposed to be here. People were rushing around, struggling to get decorations up for what appeared to be the quickly approaching Harvest Festival. Mephit was not a festival sort of person, gala events held no dazzling allure for her, she was merely glad that it was distracting everyone else from her curious snooping.

To those few who did stop to justify why she was in the gardens by herself, Mephit countered easily: she was a Heart, where else should she be?

As she walked, the usually tense deer's shoulders seemed to relax and for the briefest of moments an unwitting onlooker would get to see the hint of a child in Mephitisia's actions. The roses were brilliant and the sweet smell rose around her like a fog and, in that rare moment, left a small smile upon her maw... That is, until a jingle caught her attention. Abruptly Mephitisia tensed, spun and found herself staring dead at the Queen of Hearts himself. The bell had announced itself too late.

The child nearly cast an accusing glance at the bell, but instead she bowed her head low -though her eyes remained trained to Seraphino with unwavering intensity- and forced respectful words through her maw.

"Your Majesty."

Despite her attempt at being polite, Mephitisia's words were as icy and unemotional as ever. She showed no incline to fawn over him and no quake of terror, there was nothing but vague curiousity in those frigid orbs staring up at him.

[The Jenn]

Fino glanced over at the palace, amused as he saw several avians and avian bipeds flying around to decorate the harder-to-reach locations on the structure itself. None of that much concerned him beyond giving the final seal of approval to their designs and making sure he wasn't repelled by what they had in mind. Thankfully, the decoraters had worked with him in the past and knew his tastes well enough that nothing merited outright rejection.

A jingle and tug on the leash made him look back, down at his bander and then ahead where she stared. A child was in their path, a youth really, several feet ahead. Her prominent black markings denoted her as either Corvistowne or Torquehelm, but he saw no binding and her blue was extremely vivid so he assumed the former. It spread in such a particular marking, however, that he couldn't help but assume an Avington mix. Yet another deer...after meeting Dymphna's sisters, he seemed to be seeing them more and more in the area. It was an interesting trend. He could only remember one Avington deer in recent memory, however.

Her greeting was...polite...and yet it held a coldness that made his lips purse slightly in annoyance. Had he met her before, or perhaps her parents spoke poorly of him? It wasn't especially uncommon. Still, such parents usually had the good sense to caution discretion. He didn't see any animosity in her expression. Didn't see much of anything, really. It was an unusual expression on one so young. He wore it himself often enough, but that was more due to his serpentine heritage and learned behavior than anything else. He hadn't usually bothered to keep himself so restrained until it had proved itself necessary from fifteen on.

When she didn't say anything else, he looked at her cooly. "Yes...can I help you, child?"

[Vyn]

The unemotional chill that haunted Mephitisia's vocals were not meant to be disrespectful, they were just...her. It was, in fact, far more likely that a warmer tone of voice would've been an insult. Nevertheless, regardless of warmth or chill, there was something more than her detached lack of interest in her eyes this time. That curiousity was growing as Mephitisia realized she was being given the chance to actually interact with the Queen of Hearts himself.

Lifting out of her low bow, the little doe peered up at Serafino with a searching gaze before her thoughtful posture eased. She was relaxed here, surrounded by roses and royalty.

"No, I don't need anything. I had just wanted to get a personal look at the gardens, some say they're overwhelming..." The Corvistowne/Avington mix scanned the gardens with a contented look that was oh-so rare for the unusual femme. "...but I rather enjoy them."

Her gaze returned to Serafino, piercing with curiousity and then dipped down to Sultana with a growing smirk of approval that in turn revealed those budding serpent fangs. Her half brother had a Bandersnatch and she wanted one as well, though only if it had more personality than Seki's boring little lump. Mocha was as unlike a bander as it could get and honestly Mephit was ashamed of it even if Seki wasn't.

Sultana, though, Sultana seemed like an impressive example of a Bandersnatch.

"I intend to live here one day, when I am of a more suiting age and rank." There was no uncertainty about her voice, and indeed she spoke as if she was quite sure she would gain Jackhood and more. Then, something slipped in the young female. Her head tilted to the side and curiousity touched her expression in a far more obvious moment. "Your bandersnatch is gorgeous, very impressive... What's her name?" As it had before, the slip came and went rather quickly once her gaze lifted to Fino and he was met with nothing more than her icy words and matching gaze only holding that faint hint of curiousity.

[The Jenn]

Fino listened to the girl's assessment of his gardens and let himself smirk the tiniest bit when she complimented his flowers. Overwhelming, yes, some people said that. They didn't appreciate the grander picture painted by the beautiful flowers, their heady blooms, and the thorns that wrapped around everything within their beautiful confines. As pretty as they were, few who fell into a rosebush emerged without scars. He found the metaphor a rather whimsical one, but it still pleased him.

As her attention turned to his pet, Sultana tensed at the attention and sneezed, raising her body on her toes and arching a little to make herself look bigger. She didn't like the girl's eyes on her like that and made no bones about showing her displeasure. Her general moodiness didn't help much, either.

Crimson eyes caught the sight of fangs in her mammalian maw and blinked. Those were decidedly not the teeth of a deer. What on earth was she mixed with? He had only seen one other deer mix recently. And, come to think of it, that one had been an Avington and Corvistowne mix as well...

"Such aspirations seem to run in your family," he observed with a curious glint in his eye. "Do I detect a touch of serpent in you, child? Perhaps I'll exchange her name for yours, as you are no doubt familiar with mine and I wish a name to go with your face."

Compliments to his bander and his garden...well, no one ever said that flattery got you nowhere with the Queen of Hearts. The fact that she wasn't fawning about it made the difference, he supposed.

[Vyn]

Mephitisia blinked slightly, studying the male towering above her lithe deer form. She longed to be human, or bipedal at least...something higher up than this lowly animal form. His words along with his request for her name left her thinking that someone else had come, someone...like Severus. The boy had vanished recently on Ophelia and left her in quite a state of concern. Of course, Mephit knew better. He was fine, but Jack Quests weren't easily obtained. Even Mephitisia knew that Ophelia was aware of this more than either of them.

"Not the entire family, I would say... but Severus, and I... Yes, we aspire for greatness beyond the humble lab Ophelia works in." Although she admitted they were family, Mephitisia did none of the things children often did. She did not call her Mother thus, nor did she call Severus brother. It was a weird habit of hers, but her family seemed to have slowly become callous over it. After so many years, one would expect that. "I am Mephitisia and, yes, you do. Ophelia has done genetic experiments upon herself, spliced herself with a serpent, and three of her offspring have thus-far shown reactions to it. Severus, whom you appear to have met, and then Xylia and myself. Xylia and I only have the fangs, however, and I would believe Severus is Ophelia's "golden child"."

She spoke like a true Corvistownian. It was a length explanation, more talking than she was accustomed to, but she had explained a few times before. Ophelia adored her work and, to Mephitisia, that was all it was: work and little more. Not her heritage for she had never felt 'part of the family', but simply Ophelia's work.

[The Jenn]

The wordy explanation was more than he had expected, especially from a child. Then again, she certainly didn't seem like many children he had met. He reminded her vaguely of the young Severus he had met in Bernard's company, but even there, the sheer icy nature of this girl surpassed his cool exterior. And yet bits and pieces of a curious child poked through, almost seeming to consume themselves as soon as they appear.

"So rather than having a serpent in your lineage, you inherited it from your mother's experiments. That is...interesting. Very strange, but interesting. I don't often understand the science so idolized by residents of Corvistowne." He shrugged his shoulders. "Magic is much more my forte, and that of my family. We've specialized in that vein of research for many decades, though I prefer application to research myself. Much more satisfying to throw a summoned axe at someone's head or incinerate an entire row of enemies with an unexpected wall of flame." Of course, he preferred most things to research. He simply couldn't stand it.

Sultana stood beside him and glared balefully at the girl, ready to punish something for her continued restraint and not yet willing to risk the anger of her Person. If the other one was just a bit closer, she would reach out her neck for a good bite. As it was, the effort would be futile. She wanted to save the energy.

When she bit somebody, it was going to hurt.

[Vyn]

O! At last! Someone to treat her like an adult, who wouldn't squander their words on 'helping her understand'. Fools, every last one of them, but this Serafino was someone she could respect. Or tolerate at very least.

"Yes, that would be it. And I agree: her vein of research is of little interest to me. I prefer a more hands on science. Poisons, to be percise..." The female flashed a serpent-fanged smile, her still-growing teeth glinting with immature poison. "...and the applications of it."

Honestly, there was far more to the strange female than just an interest in the chemistry of poisons. No, Mephitisia's forte was more along the line of pain and near death, the meanings of existence. Xylia did the main work in poison, but Mephitisia put those wicked chemicals to work.

"Summoned axes and walls of flame..." Mephitisia cocked her first true smile up at Serafino, obviously impressed. "I dream of the day when I am high enough in rank to make true use of our Suit. An 8 knows so little of the natural magics, especially in comparison to a great Queen."

It was idle chatter to her, not an attempt at flattery. In fact, if one judged the variant of her icy vocals just right they might note a little personal fervor in her words. She wasn't speaking in complete compliment of him, Mephitisia -regardless of her growing respect for Serafino- was instead dreaming of her own grandeur.

Once more her attention shifted to the moody female, studying her thoughtfully with what once more appeared to be that brief childish curiousity that was just as quickly swallowed up once she spoke again. "She looks restless. I imagine she must not like all the hustle and bustle in her territory, does she?"

[The Jenn]

As she mentioned poisons and bared her small young fangs, Fino was suddenly struck by another scene from long ago, so far that he could barely remember it through the haze of earliest childhood. It and one other were the only memories of his grandmother to stay with him, rather than impressions or feelings.

Her serpentine Highland body, rearing, towering over the mouse attendant in front of her. She had assumed her full animal form, pupils slit and trained on the rodent before her, who cowered and offered apology after apology, the words tripping over themselves and ending up a pleading jumble. Ignoring the sounds completely, she drew back her gums to reveal fangs dripping with poison, then darted forward faster than he could see to sink her jaws into the now screaming man, slowly injecting him with enough venom to sent him into cardiac arrest in under a minute.

Fino, no more than two-and-a-half, buried his feathery serpentine head against his then-human mother's dress, but she carefully disentangled him and turned him back to watch the man spasm and twitch, caught between the reigning Queen's jaws. The maw of certain death. His mother had inherited that poison. He had not. Both women were very disappointed.

"Poisons... really..." he murmured, voice soft. He caught his own comment slipped back in and thought it rather clever for someone her age, but kept the observation to himself as she continued to speak.

Her words caused him to smirk, dispelling the wisps of memory that clung to his mind. "Our suit is capable of powers such as you can only imagine," he agreed, smirk widening. "Most powerful. Most violent. Most warlike. What more could you ask for, truly?" Whether she spoke of his own powers or of her hopeful future - he was astute enough to catch hints of that - her words rang true.

Observations on his bander caused him to look down again, the red form arched and antsy and looking for trouble. "No, Sultana is decidedly not happy right now. She has to be confined for the duration of the festival preparation or she's liable to maim some hapless decorator who steps on her by accident."

[Vyn]

Mephitisia's eyes glinted, her grin growing and her fangs becoming more and more visible. Power, violence, war... They all appealed to her so, sending thrills of pleasure through the usually emotionally devoid doe. "Mmm... Not much." She admitted honestly, returning her thoughts to the present and leaving the thrilling thoughts of the damage she could do one day to another time.

For now, she actually had some considerably decent company to keep.

As Fino explained the little Bander's irritable state, Mephitisia nodded with sagely understanding. Banders were not her forte, but they had attracted her interest with their violent personalities in comparison to their sizes.

"Perhaps we should continue your walk? If you would be inclined, I'd be interested in hearing more about her... I've thought about getting one myself someday."

With faint embarrassment, Mephitisia had to admit that Bander's were the one thing that often distracted her from work. Perhaps because of the deadly reputation their wild cousins had and formidable state of even the most domestic ones.