exitus acta probat

“You mean that I should take guards, I assume,” she says with a nod. “Do you have any recommendations as to whom? I do not know the ones that joined us very well.”

as  the  eldest  child  of  the  late  queen  of  eryndor ,  saranya  had  grown  up  with  jewels  given  to  her  throughout  the  centuries .  many  precious  stones  that  were  heirlooms  of  the  nymerion  royal  family  that  had  been  worn  by  past  queens  and  monarchs  before  her .  there  had  been  times  as  a  child  that  she  had  mentioned  to  her  mother  in  passing  how  beautiful  a  necklace  or  a  bracelet  was  and  the  woman  had  simply  taken  it  off  her  neck  and  instead  slipped  it  around  her  much  smaller  neck .  the  woman  had  been  generous  and  loving  towards  her  children ,  especially  the  eldest  who  would  one  day  inherit  all  her  power  and  responsibility .  " i  do  not  see  anything  wrong  with  it  either ,  i  know  not  everyone  is  blessed  to  be  able  to  afford  expensive  jewelry  but  it  does  not  mean  they  should  not  be  able  to  wear  what  looks  beautiful  on  them . "  the  queen  did  not  take  for  granted  that  she  was  blessed .  it  was  no  easy  feat  being  queen  but  for  all  her  responsibilities  she  was  at  least  allowed  to  rest  in  luxury .  the  queen  tilts  her  head  at  the  shorter ,  eyes  falling  upon  the  notebook  she  had  pulled  back  out .  it  amazed  her  at  times  the  lengths  violante  went  to  when  it  came  to  her  research,  both  of  a  scholarly  nature  and  in  this  case  towards  material  goods  and  the  practice  of  making  them .  " i  am  impressed  even  after  all  this  time  how  inquisitive  your  mind  remains . "  but  that  was  just  as  important ,  their  lives  were  long-lived  and  it  was  important  that  in  the  centuries  to  keep  themselves  occupied  so  that  it  would  not  lead  to  madness .  " i  see ,  fortifying  our  own  economy  by  taking  the  best  knowledge  here .  it  is  a  smart  thing  to  do . "   to  keep  their  people  fed  and  housed ,  then  money  needed  to  continue  to  flow  and  it  was  important  not  to  fall  into  simple  old  ways  to  ensure  so .  the  queen  smirks  slightly ,  " and  if  the  blacksmith  is  also  quite  pleasing  to  look  at ?  well  that  would  be  an  even  greater  boon ,  yes ? "  she  lightly  teased  knowing  that  most  blacksmiths  were  in  great  shape  due  to  the  nature  of  their  work .

“That is what my big eyes are for, both to acquire as much information as I can manage and to appreciate the beauty found in my journey for it,” she admits with a short giggle. “It is both about enjoying the journey and the destination.”

The joys of married life, indeed. [x]

the  scent  that  greeted  her  nostrils  had  her  gaze  turning  in  the  direction  as  indeed  a  fae  had  walked  near  the  lounge  quarters  that  had  been  given  to  the  valmores.  shayre  had  spent  a  great  deal  of  time,  since  arriving,  learning  the  important  names  of  the  royal  families  and  their  inner  circles  and  their  nobles.  it  was  a  work  in  progress  still  but  she  has  royals  memorized.  perhaps  some  of  the  faces,  but  she  had  yet  to  pin  point  which  belonged  to  the  inner  circle.  "not  at  all.  I  was  about  to  spend  my  afternoon  wandering  this  maze-like  palace,  alone...again."  she  pouts,  feigning  a  rather  innocent  expression  as  she  peered  at  the  fae  woman  from  beneath  her  lashes.  the  other's  words,  however,  have  her  gaze  rise  fully,  "odd?  sounds  intriguing."  lapis  lazuli  blue  hues  gleamed,  but  shayre  was  careful  to  ensure  it  had  a  friendly  sparkle,  as  if  to  not  frighten  off  the  fae  that  had  approached  her  with  little  reservations.  it  had  been  near  a  battle  to  speak  to  them,  most  moving  away  when  they  found  shayre  or  her  siblings  within  in  their  vicinity,  it  was  become  irritating  and  rather  tiresome.  the  vampire  princess  was  hardly  the  one  to  chase  others,  back  in  her  home,  humans  willingly  sought  her.  her  gaze  subtly  studied  the  redhead,  her  disposition  and  surprised  to  find  a  rather  earnest  curiosity  in  the  other's  bright  eyes.  the  looks  she  and  her  siblings  received  were  all  forms  of  odd,  most  staring  as  if  they  were  pariahs  (  which  likely  was  the  case  considering  they  had  no  clue  her  kind  existed  ).  "i'm  charmed  to  finally  meet  a  fae  who  wishes  to  speak."  she  ponders  on  the  answer,  drawing  her  response  out  for  another  moment  or  two.  "I  will  make  you  a  deal,  I  can  answer  your  odd  query,  if  in  return  you  offer  some  of  your  time  to  me  in  exchange.  perhaps  show  me  around?"

“I am happy with those terms,” she says. “I do must confess that while I have a general knowledge of the castle, I am not from Aurelion, however, so I will not be able to show you much beyond what I know of it.”

“In this case, I think I will leave the choice in your hands,” she admits, eyes meeting his as she offers another shrug and bites her lower lip nervously. It’s a habit by this point, and one she doesn’t dissuade because it works well enough as a grounding method when she gets too into her head. “My aim is to discover what it feels to be bitten by a vampire, as well as the effect of our kind’s blood on them. Admittedly, rather risky, but logic says that they must be able to feed without killing. And, well— considering the state of the bodies that have been found, it is clear feeding was involved in the victims' demise, so I aim to understand more on the matter.”

the  strangest  thing  to  occur  shortly  after  the  vampires  appeared,  was  the  uptick  of  visitors  in  the  library  outside  of  the  scholars.  locating  his  mother  here  wasn't  a  surprise,  and  the  young  lord  has  a  skill  sniffing  out  his  parents  when  they  were  holed  up  in  their  respective  space  of  choice  for  their  tasks.  the  last  time  he  spoke  to  his  father,  zander  had  to  ask  the  elder  man  if  he'd  remember  to  eat  and  it  seems  he  would  be  doing  the  same  with  his  dear  mother. zander  was  well  read,  but  outside  of  shadowing  his  parents  and  furthering  his  horizons,  he  wouldn't  say  the  library  was  his  favored  location  of  spending  time.  lately,  he  was  taking  to  it  as  well  if  only  to  aid  them  and  his  court  in  discovering  more  answers  of  the  vampires.  although  it  was  a  task  those  creatures  would  not  make  easy  considering  they  held  little  to  no  material  of  these  bloodsuckers.  "don't  you  dearest  me,  mother,  not  tonight."  his  forrest  green  hues  eying  his  matriarch  with  a  frown,  though  his  words  appeared  harsh,  it  contained  exasperation  more  than  anything.  "first  father,  and  now  you.  the  lengths  at  which  you  two  disappear,  I  fear  the  vampires  may  have  gotten  to  you  two." 

“Shall I try darlingest, perhaps?” She says wryly, even as she nods at his concern, an apologetic look crossing her features as she begins closing the books strewn around her with particular care. “For what it counts, I am sorry. I meant to return far earlier, but I got absorbed by my reading. I will pay more attention to the time from now on.”

“So I want to offer myself to get bitten by some of the vampires staying at the castle to figure that out. I just wanted to know how to proceed so as to not cause an international scandal.”

fucking  vampires.  her  mind  reading  abilities  had  never  been  more  coveted  by  the  shadow-born  spymaster  than  it  was  now.  her  elder  brother  was  the  only  one  who  knew  how  much  she  had  resented  her  rare  affinity,  for  signa  it  had  always  been  the  root  of  all  of  her  problems  since  she  was  a  child.  signa,  like  most,  had  also  been  shocked  to  see  a  group  of  these  blood-sucking  creatures  approach  aureth,  and  with  them  human  companions  who  were  their  food  supply.  signa  couldn't  promise  to  not  attack  a  leech  if  they  came  anywhere  near  her  with  their  fangs.  she  had  began  doing  what  her  queen  asked,  spying  on  them,  which  was  proving  to  a  harder  task  given  how  care  the  vampires  were.  it  was  almost  as  if  they  knew  there  were  mind  reader  fae  (  yet  one  more  disadvantage  the  fae  had  against  them  ),  and  seemed  to  kept  their  mental  shields  intact.  she  dusts  off  her  dress,  some  of  the  lose  petals  on  her  path  way  had  fallen  on  the  fabric.  it  was  then  she  realized  another  had  joined  her,  turning  to  the  familiar  sight  of  the  fae.  "for  a  group  of  creatures  who  asked  for  our  aid,  they  aren't  behaving  very...friendly  or  socially.  who  do  you  make  of  them?"

“You would have to ask me again in a few days or so,” she says slowly, graphite tapping against the page of her sketchbook in consideration. “I am planning on approaching a few to ask them about an experiment of sorts. I am rather curious about the effect of a vampire’s bite on a fae and the effect of fae blood on a vampire. After all, it is rather relevant to our current concerns.”

the  queen  has  many  jewels ,  precious  stones  in  necklaces ,  rings ,  and  earrings ,  some  of  which  were  gifted  from  her  mother  or  inherited  after  her  death .  saranya  does  well  to  take  care  of  them  especially  those  her  mother  had  once  worn ,  helping  her  feeling  close  at  times  to  the  woman  so  many  of  them  miss .  she  is  not  alone  in  that  when  it  comes  to  her  siblings  and  her  people  with  the  memory  of  the  queen's  death  barely  a  few  decades  passed .  the  queen  takes  notes  of  her  head  scholar  as  she  speaks  on  the  necklace  between  elegant  fingers .  " i  trust  your  discerning  eye ,  violante .  i  have  heard  that  some  markets  are  producing  very  realistic  fakes  that  people  do  not  realize  until  they  take  their  jewels  home  and  that  merchant  long  gone . "  while  it  would  not  hurt  the  crown's  coffers  in  such ,  she  can  only  imagine  someone  with  a  set  amount  of  coin  thinking  they  bought  something  beautiful  and  rare ,  only  to  have  it  be  a  disappointment  and  a  waste  of  their  hard-earned  coin .  " a  shame  really ,  i  hoped  for  quality  pieces  in  aureth  but  nothing  truly  compares  to  our  home's  jewels . "  she  tilts  her  head ,  " what  are  you  looking  for  in  the  markets  today ? "

“Market research mostly. I wanted to compare the wares here to the wares in Emberfall. Knowing what is fashionable in other countries would allow us to create specialized merchandise,” she says with a small grin as her enthusiasm picks up. “I am also interested in the smelting techniques, as I know some of our researchers are working on improving ours. I am hoping to visit a few blacksmiths as well to see the work there.”

in  all  honesty  with  their  newly  arrived  guests ,  the  castle  had  begun  to  fell  a  bit  cramped  for  the  monarch .  she  needed  to  get  out ,  the  gardens  were  not  enough  anymore .  and  so  the  queen  had  decided  to  venture  out  into  the  city  a  bit ,  finding  herself  within  the  markets.  of  course  her  royal  guard  were  in  tow  ensuring  her  safety  above  all  things .  there  is  no  rush  in  her  step ,  gliding  through  the  various  stalls  and  with  the  energy  of  her  guards ,  most  leave  space  around  her  to  allow  her  to  pass  through .  the  commonfolk  may  not  know  her  name ,  but  they  recognize  she  is  someone  of  importance .  saranya  stops  at  a  stall  selling  trinkets ,  baubles ,  jewelry  as  it  catches  her  eye .  she  picks  up  a  necklace,  eyeing  the  ruby  pendant  upon  it ,  " i  usually  can  discern  if  something  is  real  or  fake ,  but  i  must  admit  i  am  a  bit  puzzled  on  this  one . "  she  says  lazily  to  the  one  already  at  the  stall ,  " may  i  ask  your  opinion ? "

“I would say it is real, Your Highness,” she offers after a moment of observation. “But not of the grade nor purity that could be found in the upper markets of Emberfall.”