The Perfect Couple

The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:30 pm

Traditions were somewhat rare in Myrken Wood. A lack of stability over the years had something to do with that. One day you would be enjoying your weekly catch-up with Goodwife Nell, and the next, she had been eaten by a giant wolf. For some, however, traditions were forced for that very reason, to impart some order and sanity on an insane, chaotic world. That was, not, however, this tradition. It was born of affection and intimacy, not in the face of chaos and insanity, but in the face of activity and bustle, of responsibility.

It began when they were younger, a mapmaker and a trader girl eating where they could afford to eat, holding hands under the table. Then, when he was part of the government and both of them were under a drow curse, they'd make something of a spectacle of it, he moving up in the world and she lewdly dressed. After losing her hand, it was a more personal and reserved thing, quiet lunches in a few trusted places. After her hand was restored, it became a matter of politics, how best to make a statement or influence a business owner. And finally, after her last change, it was something of a celebration. He was the Governor and she was Rhaena in all of her glory. The hero and his princess, her dresses lavish and his clothes smart and expensive. It may have become an extravagant thing, but throughout all of the changes, it was still lunch.

Most days, Glenn let Rhaena pick the restaurant. She was the one with the business sense, with the more refined taste, with the knowledge of cultural trends and really, his sense of taste had been rather blunted since his return from Underdark almost three years before. Today had been one of those days. The Governor and his lady were rarely together in public outside of these lunches. Those who were familiar with him in a professional sense rarely saw him with her, but when they did, it may have struck them at how different he was, warm, doting (even coddling), and affectionate. He was young but only ever acted it around her. There was nothing strange about that, though, right? It was natural for a man with such weight upon his shoulders to be so different around the love of his life, wasn't it?
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:30 pm

Tradition. For these two, at least. Tradition and inviolable. Her time at the schoolhouse, lessons with Genny (and Gloria, now), all the other things that need to be done, none of them were allowed to interfere with this ritual.

The restaurant today was one the pair frequented often, particularly after Rhaena had lost her hand. The place grew louder in the evenings, but in the middle of the day it was the quiet sort, good (though simple) food. It was not a place for the gowns Rhaena favored these days, but then, where in Myrken was? Kelsaen House, maybe. Such things did not bother the Governor's lady in the slightest, though. She greeted the owner charmingly, asking after the man's family, the little details that Rhaena made it her business to know, all the while pressed close to Glenn's side, her fingers entwined with his. The little conversation meant it would be a minute or two before the two could sit, but it was a minute or two well-spent, and soon enough she was pulling him towards her favorite table.

"You know, I'm really quite amazed at how well behaved Roschen's son is."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:31 pm

There were levels of conversation between the Governor and his lady. Everyone knew it, though perhaps not everyone believed it. They were always connected, always with one another. This physical closeness, this shared experience, was hardly necessary as every experience they had individually was truly a shared one. It meant so many things. He had been connected to all of her changes and she was aware of all of his professional decisions. Did she just ignore them? Did he shield her from them somehow? Did she find some way to rationalize all of them, to see them through a rosy lens? Or in truth, did she just not care? Glenn Burnie was creating a better Myrken, a Myrken that Rhaena would like more. She may not agree with the means, but would she object to them?

Not to look at them now, fingers intertwined, a warmth in him that was lacking at other times.He was poised, but to her, he was open. She was pressed close to him and he would welcome that closeness.

"It could well be that they are hard upon the boy. Can you imagine misbehaving and being punished by Jirai for it? He's also a boy. You know how Drow feel about them, even if Suede," first name basis, perhaps strangely so, "would buffer that somewhat."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:32 pm

No, being together physically was not necessary at all. It was nice, though, and Rhaena made no secret of her enjoyment. Oh, outwardly she was perfectly proper - or nearly so. Propriety would probably frown on this hand holding and closeness from two who were not technically married, but it did not bother Rhaena.

Throughout all of Rhaena's changes, one thing had remained the same - and that was Glenn Burnie. Throughout everything, even the loss of their link for those long months, he had remained. Ever since Catch had done... whatever it was he had done... Rhaena had seen the Governor and his actions in the absolute best light possible. Some few things - Golben, for example, she had seemed to be completely unaware of. Lately, though, some of that had begun to change. Sometimes she was a little more aware of things she had either ignored or not noticed before. Aware enough for the occasional comment - but still, nothing negative. It was the end that mattered, after all, wasn't it? A better Myrken for everyone.

She moved the chairs a little closer so that when they sat they could continue holding hands. That wasn't necessary either, not as it had once been, way back in the beginning. But she liked it.

"I feel bad for the child, truly." And she did not like his mention of drow. The boy was alway's Roschen's child to her, not Jirai's. That way she didn't have to think about drow. "I hope that spending time with normal children will be beneficial to him." With that came the unvoiced thought, the potential for Rhaena herself to take certain steps with the boy. She'd done it before, sometimes unintentionally, other times deliberately. It would be better for the child, after all, wouldn't it?
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:33 pm

It wasn't just that it didn't bother, but that it was secretly enjoyable because they defied convention. Of course, they had for years and much more brazenly, but it seemed to matter more now. Maybe that was because Rhaena was actually helping to define that convention. She had gone from a cloistered, handless trader, to the very height of Myrken society; of course, there were noblewomen who had that position before, who had objected and held her back socially for months and months. It was surprising then, over the last few weeks, when they started to follow her lead in things more and more. Social trends were so malleable. If enough of the movers and shakers believed the same thing, it became truth. The trends were starting to follow Rhaena now. It made for a very different Myrken when it came to the great and the good.

Glenn held her human hand but he seemed just as fond as the other. She wasn't marked by it. It was just another thing that made his beloved special, one of a thousand.

"You can do whatever you think is best, of course," and he felt that way, always. Without doubt. "But remember, Suede and Jirai will respond to any insult they perceive in kind. Perhaps you should see the boy as a long term project."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:34 pm

It was surprising, perhaps, to most people. Not to Glenn Burnie, though, and certainly not to Rhaena Olwak. She had ignored such things for so long, the whispered comments and snide remarks, more overt insults, they had all passed unnoticed, or unacknowledged. It was more than time that things changed. And change they had. It would be better for Myrken, this way.

"As long as we can afford to, at least." He was right, it would be better that way. For now. She wanted nothing to do with Jirai, or any other drow. That was settled, then. Conversations could move quickly when each spoken word was accompanied by a dozen that went unvoiced.

"I spoke to Kacela." He knew that already. Knew her confusing mix of feelings, happy, so happy for her brother, that he had found someone. Hurt by his thoughts and actions about Glenn. The latter she did not think much about, overlaying it with the former, but she could not ignore it completely - not the way she was completely unaware, even now, of some of the actions the Governor had taken regarding her brother and his now-wife. It was a problem that would not be easily solved, if it ever was.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:16 pm

Glenn hadn't said a word, not directly at least. Oh, he would be more friendly to the rather anemic Myrken nobles once they started to accept Rhaena more. He was always somewhat connected to them. At one point he had been one of the foremost acquirer of books in the province and in that role knew them before he became Governor. There was some noble blood in him, but it was foreign and unproven and he was never really accepted either; begrudged, allowed, but never accepted, not until recently. He did not question this. Was he even aware of anything but the effect of it?

Were it not to do with her own safety (and yes Myrken's as well; Roschen had a vengeance for this sort of thing) would he notice any of this at all? Would he care if he did? He wanted to make her happy, dearly. Usually, he was able to make that dovetail with what Myrken needed. The Foundation had been proof of that, giving her purpose when she needed it the most. Later, it was the school.

"Kacela holds a grudge from our early scuffles. I've been very good to her since, you know. I inform her when there is something she should know. I provide her assistance when she needs it, whether she asks or not. I'll look after her for Kals' sake, no matter what either of them thinks." He'd put Kals in danger recently, but it was a mutual danger and he thought Kals' mentalism would PROBABLY protect him. And that had been in the name of reconciliation for Rhaena. He'd convinced himself of all that at least. "She'll never be a proper lady. If she would have it would have been by now." Burnie had even hired a tutor for her in her early days in Myrken, at his own expense.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:17 pm

Rhaena was friendly to everyone and anyone. Always. It was a simple thing to let that bleed over a little more than it should. Simple. Subtle. Unlike her brother. Subtle was not a word one could use in the same sentence as her brother's name.

"She likes me, at least a little." That was something. It would have been all too easy for Kacela to simply lump Rhaena in with Glenn, after all. "She's just as stubborn as Kals is, though. I suppose that's why they get along so well." She really couldn't think of another reason. Rhaena had absolutely no awareness of even the slightest involvement of Glenn with the arrow incident. All she knew was how Glenn had gotten her brother to the Rememdium as quickly as possible. "At least one of them will talk to me." Her estrangement from her family, courtesy of her brother, bothered her. There was no real way to solve that problem though, so she did not dwell on it.

"Razasan."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:30 pm

"Of course she likes you." Honest affection, youthful too. He was years younger with her than with anyone else. There was a twinkle in is eye even if that measured control seeped in more often than it ought to have. Propriety was one thing but affection should be at the forefront, not just slipping out now and again. "Everyone likes you. How would anyone not like you?"

Not liking the Governor was another story. He made hard decisions. He made decisions where someone won and someone lost. Often times when the people of Myrken won, that meant that any number of specific stubborn people lost; sometimes it was Kacela or Kals.

"I'm loathe to send you away, of course." At one time, that distance would have been too far for them to feel each other. Now, though? Now after Burnie had bulked up so much mentally, after he had gone through so many trials, after they had grown so closer, now that they were more equal partners of the mind, it would not be like that at all. "But I think if you brought a few of your newer friends, you would have access to the salons and tea gatherings of their families. There are things you can learn that I cannot."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:31 pm

She smiled at him, delighted. "How kind of you, Governor." She said, and laughed lightly, bronze eyes dancing with amusement. And those feelings for him would continue, silently, even as she spoke on another subject.

"I would not mind a trip to Razasan, in truth - though I'd much prefer it if you could come with me." That would not be possible, though, not with things as they were. And if they could maintain their link, that would be sufficient. "Agnieszka might help. Or not." Rhaena wasn't sure which. Not that her new friends were not fine, of course, but Agnie was Agnie and her dearest friend. But perhaps Agnieszka could not be spared either, not with Derry and Thessilane. Speaking of which... "It would slow the trip down, but perhaps some of our newer guests might better prefer Razasan to Myrken Wood?" The refugees had strained resources, arriving as they had in winter, rather than during the fall when more hands might have made the harvest larger. Now, there were simply more mouths to feed.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:36 pm

"I am rather kind, aren't I? I do have such a muse though." The words were sweet and they came quickly and naturally, even if there was some element of play between the two of them. On the one hand, it was a shame that they had not been able to get married, but part of the reason for that was that their bond was far stronger than marriage already, and far more durable. It would have just been a formality at this point. A party. Of course, Rhaena Olwak did love parties.

Agnie. She would likely have to stay for the same reasons he did. Moreover, there were connections she had in Razasan that might best be ignored right now. "I imagine she, Ariane, and Kerrak will speak to me in unison soon. Present some sort of direction that we'll have to agree upon moving forward."

These were all topics they knew, instantaneously, between one another but it was useful to say it. Sometimes when you wrote something out, you saw it from a different angle. It was the same with speaking. It was also a pleasant exercise, like taking a walk with someone even when you didn't have to. "It would garner support, but might also rouse the warhawks at court," against the Hawk, ironically enough. "Do you think you could manage the one but not inflame the other?" These are questions he might not have asked of her a few months ago. Did he know something was going on or had she simply ensured, in her own way, that he would trust her with more things, even if they were framed in the manner that would be better appreciated by her princess-like self.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:36 pm

Rhaena Olwak dearly loved parties. And dancing. And music. She always had. They had just had the one for Agnieszka and Aleksei, though. Not that one could ever have too many parties, of course. Speaking of... "We could throw a party for Kals and Kacela." She was joking. "They'd hate it, of course." Rhaena laughed.

Agnieszka would stay, then, and that was probably for the best. "It will be interesting to see what they agree on." Interesting if they -could- agree on anything.

She thought about his question for a moment, running through several possibilities before finally settling on the answer he would be aware of before she spoke. "Probably. But I cannot guarantee it." Probably she could manage it through words alone, even. But there were too many unknowns to say for certain. Unknowns that Agnieszka and Kostroma had raised. She hadn't ensured anything, when it came to Glenn Burnie. Or if she had, she was utterly unaware of it.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:37 pm

"She'd eat the band." There was a loose smile upon his face, but Glenn actually rather believed it was a possibility. "Unless we made it seem like a holy ritual. In that case, she'd wait an hour or two and then eat the band." There was no controlling Kacela. Most likely she'd made Kals more feral, not the other way around. There were rumors but Burnie didn't give them much heed. There were rumors about himself and Rhaena too after all.

"Kerrak is leaned towards Thessilane, Agnie towards Razasan. Ariane, despite her title, is neutral. All of them, however, would choose Myrken first if they had to. Kerrak has a child, and then there's Lamai. Agnieszka has her belief in the Bright, as nebulous as that is. Ariane," And here he'd shake his head. They did not speak of Ariane much. "There is three of them at least. I would never create a committee with Agony on it that needed consensus."

The issue of the refugees, then. "I trust your judgment, of course." How much could be done to the Governor now without one's full attention, even by one who practically lived inside his mind? Could she subconsciously sway him? Look at how he doted upon her, utterly indulgent. Would she even have to so long as it did not go against his goals? "If you think it best to take some, then I'm sure you can find a number willing to travel with you."
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Jirai » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:38 pm

Rumors in Myrken Wood did not matter. Rumors in Razasan were another matter. While Glenn believed it possible that Kacela would do such a thing, Rhaena did not. After all, if Kacela would, then what did that say about her brother? No, that was something Rhaena would rather not think about.

Then there was the matter of the committee. "Ariane will balance them better than sera Sundance did." Renea had been too closely tied to Thessilane. That was really the only input Rhaena could offer on the matter.

As close as the two were, it was unlikely that she would need to do anything, consciously or not. They had the same goals, after all, each devoted to the other as well as their shared goal. "I will think about it some more." It's not as though she would leave tomorrow. These things would take some planning, matters to be arranged ahead of time.
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Re: The Perfect Couple

Postby Glenn » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:40 pm

"Renea had her charms." She balanced Agnie well; with the two at each other's throats it was relatively easy for Kerrak to chime through as the voice of reason. Now, though the entire dynamic was different. "We'll see how things are moving forward. I find Kerrak rather reasonable, but we all know his past." If things pushed him too far, there was no saying how it could all end.

"I feel like this will be a very different sort of visit to Razasan for you." This was the way of Rhaena. The longer she was in a situation the more competent she became. Now, she was competence under a layer of frills and grace. She was always endearing, but Glenn was more taken by her everyday. Of course he was. Before she had been flighty. Now she was regal and everything he wanted for Myrken. She was increasingly becoming the very spirit of the New Myrken, even as Agnie was rather the symbol of the old. His two Princesses.
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