Ariana's log, Chapter 116

"I had a chunk of Hendrake in my bag. It seems to have escaped."

Sunday, August 20, 2994

Dinner. Brand, Clarissa, Ona, Gérard and Felix are absent. Ronan is drunk and obnoxious. He loudly asks why Ariana isn't happy. She ignores him. He's served water. Ariana and Whimsy make it something stronger, hoping he'll pass out. Meyrem knocks over Ronan's drink with her fan and makes him leave to change. Whimsy toasts the rescue party. Ariana gives Jalana a "see?" look. Jalana looks at the uneaten food on Ariana's plate. Nicholas stands and explains that Zane did not attack them. Instead, they were both attacked by an unknown third party. Once the attack was going well, and the Jewel had been wrested away by the leader of the third party via sorcery, the leader's people turned on him and attacked Ygg, opening the chasm. The leader either died, or was trapped on the Amber side of the chasm. Five years later, Nicholas took the Logrus, and Deirdre was lost. During their time in Chaos, they planted the seeds of rebellion against Zane. The best plan of action is to get rid of the chasm, so they can go to Chaos and deal with Zane. Whimsy asks if this can be done. Yes, by regrowing Ygg. Fiona isn't certain if this will bring back old magic. They think the Plane of Magic is destroyed, since it didn't come back on either side. Benedict seems to be thinking. Ariana asks if the third party's forces were faerie or human. They appeared human. Whimsy asks who could use the Jewel, figuring that could narrow the list of suspects down. It wasn't used after it was taken, so there's no proof that the leader knew how to use it. Whimsy asks how it got to Amber. Brand brought it. He claimed to have taken it from an individual. He will be questioned. Dinner continues. Whimsy still isn't happy with Adam Helgram for betraying them, no matter what his reasons were. Ariana argues that he might not have actually been planning to leave them to the Hendrakes, since his people took care of the Hendrakes outside of the dining room. Besides which, they can use all the help they can get against Zane. Whimsy admits this is true.

Ariana watches her kids play for the rest of the evening. Jalana watches her. She's worried about Ariana. Ariana puts the kids to bed, then heads down to the practice room. She finds Ishmael with a sword, fighting Whimsy who's using conjuration to throw things at him. Ishmael turns, and gets nailed by Whimsy. They ask if Ariana wants to join them. Definitely. Ishmael gives her a workout. She retires an hour later, drinks some wine, and goes to sleep.

Monday, August 21, 2994

Breakfast. Ariana overhears Ishmael make a comment to Whimsy about her looking fertile. She leaves. Jalana follows her. Ariana sends her back to the dining hall, saying she's just getting something from their quarters. Then she goes to her quarters and cries.

Jalana returns to the dining room looking upset. She leaves again after a bit. Whimsy follows her and asks where Ariana's quarters are. Jalana is reluctant to say, since she doesn't really know Whimsy. Whimsy says she's going to apologize to Ariana. Jalana says she's worried about her mother. She wants to know if Whimsy can get her parents to stop fighting. Whimsy says that happens, sometimes. Jalana says that her mother doesn't eat when she's upset, and this isn't healthy. She knows something happened, but her mother won't say what. She shows Whimsy to the door, then takes off.

Ariana is covering up the evidence of her tears when Whimsy knocks at the door. Whimsy asks to speak to her. Ariana asks where Jalana is. She left. Whimsy apologizes for what Ishmael said. They talk. Whimsy asks about Nimue. Ariana explains that she's a Pattern child, then explains what those are. She mentions the Pattern's effect on fertility. Whimsy isn't worried about this, since she can't have children. She had a stillbirth and it damaged her so she can't have more. Ariana looks like she understands. They discuss Brand. Ariana eventually explains that he raped her and left her pregnant, and that the child was taken by Chaos. This is the thing she can't explain to Jalana. Why? She thinks it will hurt her. Plus, Ariana hasn't wanted to talk about it to anyone. Whimsy says she's sorry she made her speak of it. Ariana tells her not to be. She intends to tell Nicholas about it, so if she can speak of it to Whimsy, she can manage it with him.

Whimsy and Ariana return to the dining room. Jalana isn't there. Ariana goes looking for her. She finds Jalana back in their quarters. A page knocks at the door. He gives Ariana a note from Benedict asking for the return of the Takaran daggers as soon as possible. Or, if she prefers, the page will take them to him. Ariana opts to return them herself.

Ariana talks to Jalana. She admits that something happened. Does it have something to do with the illusions she's using? In a sense, but it's not why she's upset. It's nothing Jalana or her siblings did, either. She knows. Ariana wants her to stop worrying about her. Jalana says that Father isn't there to watch her, so Jalana has to. Ariana looks briefly bitter. Jalana notes this. Ariana says she doesn't need to be looked after. Jalana can't help it. She's tried not to, but then she can't sleep. Ariana observes that she probably feels guilty for not looking after her, and that's what keeps her awake. Jalana nods. Ariana understands this. She resigns herself to the inevitable and suggests they find something interesting to do together. Jalana suggests sewing. Ariana suggests they shapeshift into birds and fly around the city, this being something she's never been able to do before. Jalana likes this idea.

Ariana gets a Trump call. She lands and takes it. It's Vixen. She needs to talk to Vetch. And? Does Ariana know where he is? No. Ariana asks if she's tried Trumping him. She doesn't have his Trump. Ariana lends Vixen hers. Vixen is unsuccessful at reaching him. Ariana returns to her flying.

Lunch. Ariana asks Vixen if she had any luck. No. Vixen asks if she wants the Trump back? Only if Vixen doesn't need it anymore. Vixen opts to keep it and keep trying.

Ariana returns Benedict's Takaran daggers. She asks if he knows where she can get any, since she's lost hers. No place specific. He's been building up his collection for a while. She asks if he really sent a page to retrieve them. Yes. Ariana observes that would be a good way for someone to collect Takaran daggers. Benedict describes the page. That's the one she saw. Not that this means anything, since any shapeshifter could have taken his place.

Dinner. Whimsy and Ishmael sit across from Alex and stare. Ariana asks Whimsy what's up. Whimsy explains in a stage whisper that Alex has the hand of Lord Hendrake. Everyone hears this, of course. Ariana realizes that the Hendrake commander was actually the Head of House, and finds it ironic that she's now beheaded two of them. Ariana talks with Whimsy and learns that Ishmael knows how to create Takaran blades. She asks if he'll teach her. Maybe. Caine comments that Whimsy seems downright whimsical around Ariana. Whimsy throws something at him. Caine looks amused. Whimsy animates Caine's pheasant so that it walks away. Caine throws a dagger into it. Flora looks disgusted. Vixen and Ronan leave. Ariana's kids seem to admire Whimsy, so Ariana watches them closely. She catches Vincent stealing a fork. She smacks his hand and tells him to put it back. What? The fork. He says shit. She smacks him again. He puts it back. Morgan tries to distract her so Vincent can do it again. She drags them both out by the ears, with the rest of her kids following.

Ariana returns to her quarters and asks the boys what they were going to do with the fork. Nothing. She pinches Vincent's ear. He yelps and admits they were going to add it to their collection. She makes them show it to her. It's full of bright, shiny objects. Ariana isn't pleased. The boys try to escape. Ariana turns them into stone to stop them. She asks the girls if there are any more collections. Nope, nope, nope. Ariana begins sorting through the objects, trying to determine where they came from. Some of them seem to date back to their time in Bedlam. Ariana notices that Ana looks afraid of her and tries to reassure her. Ana bursts into tears. Jalana comforts her and assures her that the boys are still alive. Ana doesn't believe her. Ariana offers to prove it, locks the door, and releases Morgan. He continues along his original path and careens into the door, then stops and looks surprised. He sees his brothers, and says that was mean and nasty. Way to go, Mom! Ariana unfreezes the other two, and watches them crash into the wall. She tells them that they'll be returning the items in their collection to the proper owners. She doesn't want them stealing anymore, either. Why not? They don't need to steal. They're disappointed and argue that it's good practice. She finally says that they if they take something, they have to put it back. OK. She'll be checking on them. Aw. She mentions that since they don't listen to her, maybe she should emulate their father. They don't want to be afraid of both of their parents. Then they'd better behave.

Ariana puts her kids to bed, then goes down to the practice room. Ishmael fights hand-to-hand with her while she uses her sword. They discuss Takaran weapons. Ishmael asks why she wants one. To defend against shapeshifters. Not all, just those attacking her. Not to use against her husband? No, she couldn't succeed if she attacked him, anyway. Gavin enters, forestalling further conversations. He watches them spar. Vixen enters with Rénard later. Ishmael switches to swords. Ariana livens up her match by occasionally dropping through the floor and popping up elsewhere, once through the ceiling. Not that this helps much against Ishmael. Vixen practices throwing daggers. Rénard wants to do it, but is less than successful. Vixen lets him keep trying. Ariana and Ishmael switch to hand-to-hand after a while, and Ariana finds that she's stronger than Ishmael. Vixen and Rénard continue throwing daggers. Rénard eventually just picks up a dagger, walks up to the target, and places it in. Vixen leaves to put him to bed. Gavin leaves as well. Ariana and Ishmael spar into the wee hours.

Tuesday, August 22, 2994

Ronan's two men are buried in the morning. Ariana makes her four eldest attend the funeral. Ishmael slips Vincent a fork during the ceremony.

Lunch. Ariana knows Vincent is hiding something. She looks at him. He claims he's innocent. Ariana says it will go worse for him if she has to find out the hard way. They'll discuss this after lunch. The boys giggle throughout the rest of the meal.

Ariana questions Vincent after lunch. He admits that he was given a utensil. From who? He won't say. Is he sure it's a utensil? Yes. How does he know? He tasted it. Ariana wants to know if he gets more. Why? Because it's weird. He admits it is kind of strange. Ariana tells the boys to start returning things. They're still trying to remember where it all came from.

Ariana talks to Jalana. Jalana is worried that her father isn't going to come back, and that her parents are going to split up. Ariana reassures her that she still loves Lucien, even if she is angry at him. They discuss why Ariana had to rescue Nicholas. Jalana thinks that because Ariana could have gotten killed, it means Nicholas is more important to her than them. Ariana tries to convince her otherwise, but Jalana doesn't really understand. Ariana mentions that she's going to get tutors for the boys, since being grounded has left them with too much time on their hands. They're bound to rebel, of course, and Ariana isn't looking forward to dealing with that. Jalana suggests threatening them with what Lucien will do to them when he returns. Ariana likes this idea.

Gavin knocks on Ariana's door. He wants to learn conjuration, and Random directed him to her. She says she'll teach him, but he owes her a future favor in return. He agrees. She begins teaching him. He doesn't seem to be genetically inclined towards the skill, so it could take him a while to learn.

Deirdre's funeral is in the Great Hall. There is much ceremony. Many nobles from Amber and the Golden Circle are there. Nicholas recounts Deirdre's last five years, and how she died. She was the one who made it possible for all of them to escape after he took the Logrus, and he'll always remember her. The mood is somber. Deirdre was apparently well regarded. Whimsy scans the area. Gavin's cat and Driscoll's pin give off power spikes. The cat goes psychic neutral as soon as it notices it's being scanned, so she can't identify what kind of magic it contains. Whimsy points the two objects out to Ishmael. Ariana notices this, and scans the area herself. She notices the magic on the cat. It reacts to her scan the way it reacted to Whimsy's. Gavin notices Ariana scanning the cat. Vixen returns Ariana's Trump of Vetch. She hasn't been able to reach him. Ariana hopes it wasn't important. It was, but there's nothing for it now. Ariana talks to Whimsy about the cat. She reveals that it's Gavin's. Whimsy makes note of this.

There is a feast after the funeral. Gavin asks Ariana what she thinks about the cat. She finds it interesting. Did he find it, or did it find him? She found him. He admits that they cooperate, that he doesn't know about her past, and that she won't reveal her name. Ariana points out that faeries tend to guard their names as well, and the cat does have a lot of faerie magic in her. He doesn't think she'd hurt him. How did he meet her? When his foster parents died. The universe hates him, you see. Did this start when he met the cat, or before? When he met her. Gavin still trusts her, though. She knows he's malevolent, see. Malevolent in what sense? Malevolent towards those who cross him. He's not too different from most of the family in that regard. Ariana still thinks he should look into where the cat came from, though. He's not eager too. Did she forbid him to? No, he just thinks it would destroy their relationship. Given Gavin's bad luck, Ariana doesn't think he should walk the Pattern. Especially since he doesn't need to. She's proved that he's family, and he is able to move through Shadow via other means. Gavin tends to agree with this. Ariana doesn't trust the Pattern, anyway.

Gavin and Ariana overhear Teresa commenting rather loudly about Ronan's symbol appearing on the rebellion pamphlets. Ronan tells Gavin not to laugh too hard, since his symbol is on them, too. Gavin tells Ariana how he first met Ronan while he was meeting with the nobles. Ariana doesn't think the nobles would go for a democracy, since it would make commoners their equals. Gavin thinks Ronan was trying to get them to form a parliament. That might work, if done properly. Gavin reveals how his symbol came to be on the pamphlets, and that the woman who rescued him was the one who's printing them. They discuss the state of the medical facilities in Amber. Ariana admits that she's thinking of advancing some of the medicine. Whimsy joins them as the session ends.

Quotables:

"Bruce goes over to your bed, lifts up his leg, piddles all over your mattress, and leaves." -- GM to Ronan
"Well, at least he's not stopping you from leaving anymore." -- Kris

"Oh look, (Bart's) mind's just like a walnut, you crack it open and all the yummy stuff is on the inside." -- Whimsy to the group

"I'm all battered. I think I'll go home." -- Whimsy to GM

"Between the workout and the alcohol, I should be able to sleep." -- Ariana to GM
"I could have just hit her on the head, if I'd known that's what she wanted." -- Ishmael

"Ronan, you wake up to the smell of piss." -- GM
"For a minute, I almost think I'm home." -- Ronan

"Stuck? That isn't the sort of word you want to use in the Pattern room." -- Ronan to Fiona

"I had a chunk of Hendrake in my bag. It seems to have escaped." -- Whimsy to Lyss

"How are you going to defend yourself with Pattern against a sword?" -- GM
"I don't know. I'm hoping." -- Alex

"I'm not judgmental in the least." -- Ronan to the group

"I didn't make myself immortal just to be offed by your mother." -- Caitt to Alex

"If I want a husband, I'll conjure one." -- Whimsy to the group

"What wee lass?" -- Matthew R.
"The leader of the rebellion that (Ronan) incited." -- Matt S.
"I did not!" -- Eric Braun

"I'm comforted that the Court assassin appreciates my sense of honor and decorum." -- Ronan to Eric

"If I want to be beaten and humiliated, I can go to Eric." -- Vixen to the group

"This is the same man who put out Corwin's eyes. He can't possibly be having qualms about a little petty arson." -- Eric Bruan
"Corwin was his brother." -- Dan

"Just like the two Morgans were a coincidence. Your son, my whore." -- Jen to Kris

"Treason like that could get a man hung." -- Whimsy
"Or married." -- Meyrem

"Outrageous Fortune"
Game Logs for Sessions 1-115 | Character Logs for Sessions 116+

Last modified on September 12, 1997 by Kris Fazzari.