Preparation for my Reputation [FIN!]

[Lucca]

Colin could have said so many things at that moment. Internally he felt...complete, satisfied, excited in a way he hadn't since his break up (which hadn't been as long as it felt to him). There was also, of course, the slight tremor of worry: would what he did be good enough for Her Highness? It had certainly taken a lot more work than the Cardinal had expected to make the days of two rather disagreeable Cards 'better', and his own day, he would say, had been rather frustrating. But through all of those confusing emotions, Colin managed a calm expression through his years of training, and a very simple answer.

"Okay." He inclined his head at her in a gesture of respect, said a quiet prayer to anyone that was listening that he'd never see her again, and then turned and walked down the hall, back towards the King's office, heart fluttering around with the nerves he wasn't allowing himself to physically show.

Upon reaching the Ferret's office, he took a deep breath and then lifted a claw to knock lightly on the door. "Is this a good time, Your Highness?" he called.

[Greenie]

Vessatha glanced at the time piece on her wall and raised an eyebrow. It had been a few hours, but he was well within his time limit; quite frankly, she'd expected it to take a lot longer, and was mildly impressed. Hopefully he was returning with success and not to give up. Her people were known to be hopelessly disgruntled... She wouldn't be surprised.

"Enter," She called out in response. "Your timing is fine." She lied quickly. She had two reports she needed to write up in the next hour and a half, but the quest took precedent. The ferret eyed him in much the same manner as when he'd originally walked through the door. He didn't look so nervous now, but he didn't exactly look supremely confident either.

"Report." She stated as soon as he was in the room, in a mildly officious tone.

[Lucca]

Colin steeled his nerves, and walked into the office, his expression carefully neutral so as not to jump the metaphorical gun. He bowed before saying anything, and then quickly went on to do as she asked. "Your Highness, I believe I have completed your quest to specifications. I found the two Cards in question and helped them both have a more pleasant day." In a rather backwards sort of way, he added privately. If she needed him to, the Cardinal would of course give more information, but lest he stir up the frustration he'd felt with the both of them while actually trying to find some way to make them happier, he didn't volunteer the information.

He bravely met the Ferret's eyes while waiting for an assessment, though he kept his head slightly downcast as a gesture of respect. It would not do to insult one's future boss, after all! Oh, how he hoped that this moment would bring fruit, instead of leaving him sinking back into misery! After the way today had gone, he really needed some good news.

[Greenie]

Vessa watched his expression carefully, and was very curious about his reply. He offered absolutely no detail; had he actually been on some sort of mission for the Court, that would be one terrible report. In general, you needed to spill everything that had happened.. good or bad. In this case, though, she didn't particularly need to hear about Geoff- he tended to do the exact same thing to everyone. Her maid, though, was probably a bit of a challenge.

"The housekeeper?" She asked, one eyebrow raised. It wasn't that she didn't believe him, precisely, but moreso that anyone that believed Ylsa to be that pleasant had to be lying somehow. Partial-truths, at the very least. Vessatha leaned back in her chair and watched him through slitted eyes, wondering how bad the temptation to lie was for the Cardinal. She knew from personal experience how hard it was to tell your boss exactly how "well" things had gone, but the punishment for lying, even partially, tended to mean your job.

But perhaps she was just cynical and pessimistic and expected everyone to fail. That way, when people succeeded, it was a nice surprise!

[Lucca]

So she did want more detail. Of course she did, it was only proper, and he knew the information he'd given hadn't been a full report in any sense of the word. The inner excitement dimmed a little, but the Cardinal carefully let none of this show on his face. He wasn't ashamed of what he had done, because it had been what he had to in order to finish the mission. And really, Colin hated lying. He didn't mind glossing over the truth if it was harsh or unbecoming, but outright lying made something in him twitch. The reason for this was, quite literally, written all over his feathers: he did tend to be very forthright, all other things being equal.

"She was...in a bit of a bad mood, Your Highness. So I approached her very...diplomatically. But she seemed most suspicious of me and my efforts to ascertain how to make her day better. Even now, I fear she thinks I am insane. But she understood that I wished to merely help her, for which reason I gave that it was to alleviate my guilt over an argument, and so..." He paused, and allowed just a bit of his nervousness to show on his face. "I swept a room for her, at her request. She seemed to think I had done an adequate job." Hopefully, it would be enough. Far be it from him to ever question a superior, but he did have to wonder at why the nature of his quest had been so nebulous.

[Greenie]

Vessatha listened, and added his comments up with her knowledge of Ylsa, and nodded. Ylsa was suspicious and probably did think he was crazy, but he'd accomplished his task as best as possible under the circumstances. Room sweeping wasn't exactly what she'd had in mind, but it was a solution, at least.

"Step forward," She said as she rose from behind her desk, and went to crouch in front of him so they were roughly at the same level. Vessa frowned as she placed her hand over his chest and focused tightly on his rank marking. He would feel a mild burning sensation for a moment until she removed her hand, and went to sit behind her desk one more, a satisfied look on her face. If he looked down, he would now see a black "J" versus the "10" that had been there before. It had been a while since she'd had a quester successfully complete their work, so the spell had taken her slightly longer to remember than normal.

"For now, officially, you are going to be our messenger for sensitive Court documents. You can fly, so it makes sense logistically to use that ability of yours, and if you play your cards right that's all anyone will ever think of you." She paused to make sure he was listening, and not gawking over his new rank mark. "Unofficially, you are to listen and learn how to read people. You're friendly and have a decent improvisational ability, but I want you to improve on both of those skills. I want you to learn how to stand in the middle of a crowd and not be noticed by a single person. I also want you to learn how to gain information from people without asking any questions. Understand?" The ferret clasped her hands in front of her on the desk. She hadn't discussed Colin with Donnie at any length yet, but felt she was making a good decision with the bird. They didn't have anyone that blended well enough to be socially invisible, and if he could gain that ability, he'd be invaluable to the Court.

[Lucca]

Time seemed to freeze for a long moment after he spoke, and as it started back up and the bird was issued an order, he complied with the automatic movements of one in a dream. For him, that was what this was. Colin resisted the urge to look down at the burning on his chest and to make sure that this was all real, that this really was happening. He knew there was a J there, and he didn't wish to make himself appear over-eager by immediately staring down at his own Rank. There would be plenty of time for that later, in the privacy of his own room, where there would be only Arpeggio to join him.

But if Colin thought he had been happy before, it was nothing compared to the surge of gratitude he felt when the Ferret told him what his role would be. This was all he ever could have hoped for! This was amazing! He bowed, again, and let just a hint of his inner excitement show on his face. "Yes, Your Highness. I will commit myself to this task, to better myself, and it shall be done just as you command." After all, learning to mingle in high society had been his entire life, other than music, up until recently, when information gathering had become his other main interest. And then there were the months that he was dating but...he was trying not to think about that right now.