My Broccoli Eats Your Face [CLOSED]

[seraaches]

Her quiet padding down the hallways of the palace was accompanied by the rhythmic tap-tap-tap of her talons, marking each step deeper and deeper towards a suite of rooms that most sane Cards would avoid. There was no telling, after all, which of the seemingly innocent plants actually was not so innocent.

This was just one of the many lessons Medea was coming to learn from her most wonderful and amazing GrandMnem-- descriptors all kindly given to her from her GrandMnem, though the name was of her own making. Grandmother Mnemosyne, after all, did not look old enough to be a grandmother, yet such honourable veneration deserved some sort of recognition. Medea fully planned on forcing her two siblings to learn and respect the term.

There had been a brief spate of time when Medea had been concerned that Sophrosyne might actually be prettier than her; GrandMnem had swiftly disabused such a notion and now Medea was confident in the knowledge that the strange look she occasionally caught from her father was awe that he could have father such a wonderously beautiful child.

Medea lifted a foot and politely scratched at Mnem's door, waiting entrance into the hallowed rooms of her grandmother's suite.

[Bee]

Under ordinary circumstances Mnem's rooms were a Child-Free Zone, with this status enforced by malevolent shrubbery, snakes, and her own withering glare; excitable little urchins like Mirriam were promptly disposed of and the servants' offspring didn't even think about attempting to come and bother her. She had very little patience for Nephele and Sophrosyne, except when telling the former that it was really time to think about gender reassignment surgery or the latter that Medea was her superior and she needed to obey her always.

Medea, however, she let in without a fuss, merely offering a "Welcome, sweetheart" and informing her that she had prepared sweet tea and cakes. Medea carried herself well for such a little girl--poise that would only refine itself as she aged. And with that face and hair (and Mnem's careful tutelage), she would be unstoppable.

"I trust you've been keeping your brother and father in line?"

[seraaches]

Medea smiled up at her grandmother, trying to keep the adoration to an acceptable level. "Thank you very much, GrandMnem." She was careful to be on her very best behaviour since there was no one else in the world she wanted to impress more than her wonderful grandmother.

The question was one that actually presented a bit of a fine line for the girl. She still desired her father's love and attention, but her grandmother so obviously did not like her dad. "I'm doing the best I can," she answered as she settled into her chair gracefully. "Father is rather doting and Nephy follows what I tell him fairly well." She tilted her head thoughtfully and decided to be entirely truthful with her grandmother-- well, in at least one aspect, anyway-- to be certain she was doing the right thing. "Nephy does my homework now, and works up study cards for me."

[Bee]

Mnem was satisfied by this report. She suspected that Medea, with enough practice, would be able to bend her father to her will much better than Thalia--the bespectacled twerp adored her, too, for some goddess-unknown reason, but Thalia was far too earnest and rather too stupid to even notice she could manipulate, let alone manage to actually do it.

"Good," she said, approvingly, reclining easily back in her chair. "As long as you test high. One should always spend as little effort on the means as possible to achieve the best ends." It was a philosophy that had served her well in life. Knowing what was even worth the effort was most the battle. And very little was worth the effort.

Additionally, it pleased her that Nephy had stepped so readily into line. It gave her hope that the little boy might one day be persuaded to procure some breasts.

[seraaches]

Medea felt relief at GrandMnem's obvious approval at her tactics towards studying. She enjoyed knowledge, but she certainly didn't enjoy having to learn it. It was easier since Nephy was not only easily swayed but already a bookworm. She took the canine's words to heart, however; she would not falter in her grades simply because she had study aids.

The girl had to lean back awkwardly so she could gracefully grasp the tea cup. She sipped at her tea-- a drink she really didn't enjoy yet, but was determined to learn to love-- taking only the tiniest amount of liquid each time. It wasn't because the tea was hot; the beverage was actually nearly the perfect temperature. Medea, however, could not figure out how to drink a normal amount without making a mess. She had practice and practiced and practiced the move that allowed her to pick up a tea cup with her taloned foot, but that was about as far as she'd gotten. She couldn't wait to have hands.

[Bee]

She admired the effort and dainty grace that Medea put in to attempting to drink her tea as though she had hands--they would have to work on her magic so she would acquire a new form quickly. Mnem was positive she'd learn to do it more quickly than either Sophy or Nephy would. She picked up a small lemon cake and chewed on it thoughtfully. If Medea was going to get a new form, she would need to practice magic, and to practice magic she would need to rank...

There were also more practical and immediately workable skills, like lying and manipulation, that could use some polishing. There were plenty of servants to practice pushing around and duping. There were also a few more children running about...She thought that perhaps Medea might have fun getting Mirriam to do her bidding. That mad little thing still thought she was a superhero.

"So," she said, conversationally, "after we finish tea and cakes, what would you like to do for the afternoon?"

[seraaches]

Medea started, her claws clasping tightly on the porcelain, before she quickly loosened her grip before she could accidentally break the little handle. "Oh, uhm. . . " She growled angrily in her mind at herself for sounding so dumb. She couldn't be as stupid as her siblings! She couldn't let down GrandMnem!

She carefully set down the teacup so she could shift her seat to one a bit more comfortable and give herself a chance to think things through. The coward's way out would be to say 'whatever you think is best, GrandMnem', a reply Medea was pretty sure would pass muster for either of her other two siblings, but not for herself.

No, she needed something clever enough that her GrandMnem would be proud of her, but not something so difficult that she'd fail miserably. What could she say then?

"I think," the girl finally answered slowly. "I would like to learn more about your plants." She smiled up at her GrandMnem as she said it.

[Bee]

Ah! An excellent idea, actually. This would provide both a teachable moment and a nice segue into other activities if there was still room left in the day, which there certainly would be.

"Well, then," she said, rising. "Off to the garden."

She was still overjoyed by the relocation of her precious plants, though it had been years and years ago--while the greenhouse and threats of death had helped keep them alive in the apartment she shared with Minh, and indeed a few of them were still there, they thrived best when they didn't have mad scientists bothering them or crazed bandersnatches eating them or children knocking them over.

She led the girl into one of her greenhouses, to search for things both pretty and practically useful. She gestured to a cluster of small, poppy-like blossoms with purple gradation--dark indigo at the center of the flower, trailing out to a gentle lavender at the tips. But the blossoms weren't the useful part.

"These we call purple poppy for simplicity, though they won't give you a high. Grind enough of the leaves into a tea and you can put someone into an incurable coma." Ah, what good times! It seemed like only yesterday she had slipped such a brew to an enemy and watched them drop into the realm of the permanently insensate. She smiled fondly at the memory. "Boiling the exact right amount for the right amount of time, however, just makes the drinker extremely open to suggestion. Perhaps we can try it out later..." she said, more to herself than Medea. Plenty of servants around, and other children...

[seraaches]

Medea quickly put down her teacup, but she was just a tiny bit too rushed. It clattered on the saucer and the girl flushed in embarrassment. She flapped a bit to get down to the ground from her chair, but she was determined to be both graceful and independent.

She was more than a little happy to follow her GrandMnem to the greenhouse. She loved it in here and her hair wiggled cheerfully. Her tail wagged as she followed her grandmother, looking around at all of the different plants.

She re-tucked her wings close to her sides, too wary to chance hitting something potentially very dangerous. She slipped closer to her canine grandmother and pricked her ears forward as Mnemosyne began to explain about the purple poppy. She found the idea fascinating, though she certainly couldn't think of any way for those uses to be, well, useful. "That sounds like a good idea," she agreed with her GrandMnem, trying to think of a way to use the purple poppy. She was drawing a complete blank, though.

[Bee]

"Indeed," Mnem said. She tucked a little purple poppy in Medea's hair and continued ferrying her grandchild through the greenhouse, a little guided tour of the plants she thought the girl mind find the most interesting visually. That was how one usually kept the attention of a child, right? Shiny things? Although, she was certain Medea was intelligent enough to handle more advanced fare. She had a hunch that while that blasted boy was going to be booksmart, Medea was going to be clever, and in the end, that would get one father in life. "We'll get the pestle later and have you practice grinding them up."

Then, of course, would come the coma. Probably it would take a lot of time and careful instruction to get Medea over some of the hang-ups that less responsible adults instilled in their children with regards to shamelessly using others, but there was a lot of time to teach her. And when it took her fancy, Mnem could be a patient woman. They wore on the day that way, what by Mnem's definitions could be called bonding time, until she was finally obliged to send the child off.