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Post by The Jenn on Nov 14, 2010 12:15:11 GMT -5
Only a moment or so after Mikael entered his carriage, a male servant climbed in after him and made polite greeting before settling himself on the opposite seat. Donnie was likewise joined by an attendant, a woman she trusted to be polite and adaptable, and also not to bore her to tears with mindless nattering. The Mayor of the Selkie would doubtless provide for their every stated need, but they were traveling in an official capacity and she didn't want someone else's servants picking through her rooms while she stayed as a guest.
Two guards joined them, sitting up front with the drivers, one to return with the carriages once they were met by the Mayor's representatives and one to continue on with them to the Lakelands. The little Avington/Selkie messenger also hopped into Donnie's carriage by invitation. Everything in order, they set off. It would be a bumpy ride for Miss Sophie as soon as they hit the main thoroughfare.
They would be riding straight to the Capital, which would take them the entirety of the night.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Nov 14, 2010 21:09:50 GMT -5
Bumpy didn't even begin to describe it. At first, Sophie was fairly certain that it wasn't going to be very bad, but after several hours on the unpaved roads leading into the Capital, she thought perhaps that her limbs were going to fall off. That was to say nothing of the heavy luggage, which sometimes jerked awkwardly and bumped into her.
Luckily, Sophie was a stoic creature, and she swallowed back any yelps that might have attempted to worm her way out of her throat, trying to shift her body to get as comfortable as she could manage. In time, exhaustion got the best of her, and against her will her eyes slipped shut.
Tucked away in her mother's luggage, a little stowaway, Sophie napped the last few hours into the city. She napped past that time, stirring only when she heard them open the rear door to take the luggage out. That was fine. At this point, her mother would have to take her along, right? Slowly, the girl opened her eyes and prepared herself for the yelling that was sure to come.
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Post by Nako on Nov 14, 2010 21:49:03 GMT -5
Mikael had made a point to have conversation with the servant, mostly to appease his own anxiety and to pass the time. The man appealed to his need for conversation to a point, but it wasn't long before the topics fizzled and the sun set. He allowed himself to doze off, and to his chagrin, had fallen quite soundly asleep until the carriage came to a complete stop.
"Sir. We have arrived."
Grumbling in disjointed sentences that sounded like an odd combination of poorly spoken Bog and common, Mikael forced himself to wake. Because of his odd position, the sleep he'd received hadn't exactly been of the highest quality. He stepped out of the carriage, giving his cramped wings a mighty stretch. Already, the luggage was being removed, and Mikael stepped closer toward his Queen's carriage so that he could greet her when she stepped out with the most jovial 'good morning' he could muster.
That was... until a flash of fur and feather caught his eye in the boot of the carriage. His eyes widened, hackles raising in a moment of panic as he realized exactly -who- was sitting there amongst the luggage. Perhaps... being in Donnie's way before finding out about the stowaway wasn't the best of ideas. Looking this way and that for a distraction, he decided that turning around and stupidly facing the opposite direction would suffice. Sure... this potted plant -sure- looked interesting, alright...
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Post by The Jenn on Nov 15, 2010 0:50:16 GMT -5
Half of Donnie's ride had been spent uncomfortably resting. The other half had been making idle conversation with her companions. She'd gleaned a bit more about the area around the oil discovery, as well as the area around the Mayor's home. Not as much as she would have liked, perhaps, but it was good to have some idea what sort of environment she would be walking into.
When she was woken from her restless half-doze by the announcement of their arrival, the Queen couldn't stop a grimace of discomfort upon her exit. Sore muscles were stretched carefully and she had to refrain from taking her biped form, as she would have dearly preferred. She could wait until they got to their rooms to relax, though. It wouldn't be so very long.
She slowly rotated her shoulders and sighed before straightening up. "Thank you," she murmured absently to the hotel employee who had scuttled out to see to their bags. A quick morning meal, a long rest, and then a quick bath before they went to meet up with more of the Mayor's staff. That sounded like a good plan.
A startled stammer from the hotel worker alerted her to a potential problem and she turned, just in time to see a small body emerging from the back of the carriage. A very colorful, very familiar body, and one that should not have been present. Her jaw clenched convultively, half in worry and half in anger. What?!
"Sophia," she began carefully, "what. Are you doing here?"
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Nov 17, 2010 1:19:24 GMT -5
As each second went by, Sophie felt herself becoming more and more tense. Everyone was off of the carriage now, milling about as they gathered up their belongings and made idle chatter. There was Mikael, acting... particularly strangely. Had he seen her, perhaps? Why wasn't he saying anything...?
Before she could consider it too deeply, she was discovered. Not by her mother, but by one of the attendants, who stared at her with open-faced surprise. The hybrid returned the look with a flat one of her own, shook herself off, and leapt down from the carriage in one smooth movement. Slowly, she turned her head to look at her mother, her ears drooping even as some of her feathers fluffed out. She could see the familiar clenching of her mother's jaw, and knew what that meant. Yes, she was in big trouble for this...
...but it was still better than being at the Court, surrounded by those haunting voices.
Sophie was not a good liar. She was well aware of that fact, and also of the fact that lying would only make the Queen that much angrier. So she hunched her shoulders in a sign of shame, looking up at the woman imploringly. "I'm sorry, Mother," she said in a soft voice, some quiet emotion creeping into her tone. "Something strange was going on, and I couldn't let you go without making sure you would be safe. I won't get in the way. I promise."
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Post by The Jenn on Nov 17, 2010 14:57:46 GMT -5
As Donnie stared down at her daughter, she had to fight the urge to roar. Or yell. Or something else equally undignified that she did not want to do in public, or towards her children. She could she shame, but she doubted very greatly that the girl was contrite in any way. She wouldn't have come if she was, especially when nearly the first thing out of her mother's mouth after announcing the trip was that she could not accompany them.
The skin around the Queen's eyes tightened slightly. "We will discuss this after we rest and in private," she said in a very quiet voice. "Come inside and follow me up to my room. Do not say anything."
Then she turned, gave a withering look to whoever caught her eye, and walked swiftly into the hotel. The desk clerk directed her to her room without delay, the same footman with one of her bags also leading them. She was on the ground floor, which she preferred.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Nov 18, 2010 2:15:07 GMT -5
Uh oh. There was going to be big trouble for this one, Sophie could tell the instant her mother's eyes took on that odd look. She'd only ever seen it once or twice before. Her ears drooped a little further, and she looked at the ground.
As her mother instructed, the girl didn't say a word. She only trotted after her mother without making eye contact with anyone who passed by them, not even her half-uncle. Really, she couldn't blame him for not getting involved. It wasn't his fault she chose to disobey, even if her reasons for doing so were noble. This was for her to deal with on her own, as she'd made the decision to follow them in that manner. A spanking would be tolerated, as long as she wasn't sent away.
Hopefully her mother wasn't that angry.
Even if she didn't understand what was going on, Sophie did understand one thing: She could not be at the Courts. This was where she needed to be, and she had no intentions of leaving until she'd figured this out. Even if it meant going behind her mother's back for a second time.
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Post by The Jenn on Nov 18, 2010 9:15:06 GMT -5
After a late-night ride like that without stop, rest was all that Donnie craved. Four or five hours were all she needed, and then it would be close to lunch time and they could go out for something to eat. The representatives from the Selkie Mayor were set to meet with them in the early afternoon, as per his communication, so she felt no terrible rush. She indicated shortly that her daughter could take the other side of the admittedly large bed and then took her biped with a grateful sigh. Then she was out.
Her dreams were mildly restless, though she didn't remember any of them when she woke. Sophie would be treated to tossing and turning on the other side of the bed, enough at first to make sleep uncomfortable for another person but then not so much. Her body ended up keeping her under until a little after the five hour mark, at which point a polite knocking and call at the door roused her into a grumpy wakefulness.
Bathroom. Wash the human face. Brush the human teeth. And hair, too, though it was more of a habitual soothing gesture than strictly necessary thanks to her transformation. She glanced out the lit bathroom door to eye her daughter, weighing her options. As she had hoped it might, sleep had cooled the worst of her venom into a chilly disapproval and distaste for the entire scenario. Though she had to admit, she may have done the same thing at that age if given the option.
Her gut growled and made its priorities known. "Lunch first," she told the girl evenly, and then left the room, trusting that she would be followed. She would ask the hotel concierge for a recommendation. She didn't know this area of the Capital as well.
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Post by Nako on Nov 18, 2010 20:29:41 GMT -5
Even after a nap, Mikael couldn't help but have his tail between his legs when he met up with the Queen and her daughter. He too couldn't help but give the girl a long stare behind the Queen's back, trying to decipher just what this kid was trying to do. Sure he'd gotten in his fair share of trouble... but not exactly like this. "Defacement" of property was more his style. If by "defacement" you mean "epic artz of win".
Being on the Queen's tab was a bit of a bonus though; while Mikael wasn't poor by any means, most of his money went to paying off student loans, and he couldn't eat at nice places very often. The little bistro they found themselves at was indeed quite nice.
Regardless of the atmosphere at the table, Mikael seemed dead set on enjoying his meal, no matter how slow and arduous a process it was with a mask. Well, at least a fruit salad was served bite size. .
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Nov 18, 2010 21:08:19 GMT -5
This was awkward, yes, but at least Sophie had not yet been exiled to... Well, back to home. She didn't want to go home, not until she'd figured out what was going on. A rest would probably be good for all of them, especially since it likely would help put her mother into a much better mood.
Partway through their shared nap, the hybrid wormed her way to Donnie's side, resting her head against the large and furry biped's belly, making a sighing noise as she did. Even if the Queen was furious with her, there was still something comforting about getting to sleep beside her parent. It had been years since that had last been allowed to happen... Partially because Sophie generally had no interest in it. With everything that had been going on, however, it was a welcome relief.
As was the offer of food, once they'd both woken up. Keeping true to her word from earlier, the girl didn't make a sound, just nodded and set off after the Queen. It was a nice little cafe they'd ended up at, and she ordered herself a hamburger with fries on the side in a quiet voice, not wanting to interrupt the others. Mikael was giving her a very odd look, and as she munched on a fry, she stared placidly back at him.
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