Video )

[faileas]

Name: Nerissa Bell (andernach) & Mhairi Ainsley (fearolc) Date: Septeril 1st Format: Video The video starts focused on a familiar face, close up until a differently familiar hand comes into the shot to set the watch down. Claws click on the outside of the surface, followed by both parties leaning back - then taking a proper step back to ensure both are in view. Miss Nessie looks as chipper as always, evidently still Delighted about this whole watch business, though there's a tightness around her eyes; Mhairi looks tense and decidedly displeased. It's more emotion than she's shown to the group at large, ears back and hackles raised, arms folded with a militant discipline behind her back. "Hello, dearests! We hope today finds you well." Nessie grins a little wider, though it softens after a lengthy pause. "While we'd love for this to be purely for pleasure - believe me, we both would - we've some things to discuss today, we do. After the full moon last month, a missive arrived from Morgie - that is, Morgana Drummond, the head of the Coven over there in Dorchacht - asking about our..." She pauses again, briefer this time, her lips thinning as she continues. "Our 'lost luggage,' as she so kindly put it." At her side, Mhairi's low voice outright growls, "After much back and forth, and discussions amongst Parliament, we've come to a decision that Drummond has... agreed to." Nessie's smile continues to wane, and she leans against Mhairi. "And we're quite glad that she has, considering conflict with Dorchacht is not exactly ideal at the present moment." With a deep breath, the Turnskin pulls back her disdain and focuses on the task at hand. "The Parliament has requested that the Coven send a group of dignitaries to Dorchacht to negotiate, and hopefully deescalate the situation. While we may not be able to immediately bring change, should things be as terrible in the waking world as it was in the dreamscape that you unfortunately faced, our best attempts will be made." She pauses, and displeasure is obvious in the way she lowers her gaze and turns her head to look at Nessie. "... your best attempts. Because we don't know what may happen, or what hand Drummond and the Coven of Dorchacht might turn, I will be remaining here. Those that wish to do the same are welcome to, and I will do my utmost best to assist you and answer any questions you may have." "While my lovely Mhairi does that, I'll be attending the meeting with Morgie - though I'm sure that's not a surprise at all, is it?" Nessie pulls away slightly, stepping forward in frame just a bit to spread her arms. "The dignitary group'll be handling all the real fun stuff - talking, seeing if there isn't anything to be done about this queer little situation that's come up, apologies when necessary, so on... I'd like to ask Morgie myself about how she's running her Coven, thinking on it," she pauses, then lowers her hands and steps back again. "And I know a few of you've been worried about it all, and wanting to help, so if any of you dearies would like to come along and play diplomat - show her things are right as rain and all, that we can all get along just fine even without what laws they seem to have in place - then I won't say no." She pauses again, tilting her head. "Might help, even." "Relations between Aefenglom and Dorchacht are... tense," Mhairi adds, wryly. "Per their insistence and refusal, there's no means of direct transport between the two cities, teleportation included. We've tried to get an alternative up and running, something that has been in the Coven's possession for quite some time. The device is a little too risky for us to consider, however, as it's theoretical in execution. Perhaps a project for the more technologically inclined of the mirrorbound at a later date." "I'd appreciate it, at least. That thing's one of our seven wonders in the Coven, it is." "On the fifth, any who wish to join Ness and a handful of our finest Witches should meet at the port." Mhairi reaches and, finally unfolding her arms, curls her hand at Nessie's elbow. "My best wishes, travelers. Be safe." Nessie returns the gesture, hand settling on Mhairi's; it's a little hard to tell, but she's rubbing the side of it gently. "Take care until next we speak, dearests." NOTE This post will NOT receive any responses from Nessie and Mhairi. You can, however, use this post to interact with one another in the meantime.

Comments

voice

[fifty]

Usually there's rules about how you're supposed to act at a diplomacy meeting. [America doesn't sound very optimistic about how this is going to go, which is an unusual level of realism for him.] If they specifically want us, it's like they want us to mess up so they can have an excuse to do something to us.

voice

[fiddlestick]

Wow. You actually put it better than I could.

[ELLIOT IS CONFUSED AND IMPRESSED]

It does feel like a set up. Most of us don't have any diplomatic experience, and we're not even from Aefenglom.

[fifty]

Getting a bunch of the people she's mad at in her own city where she's got all those weird mind control spells... [This is a bad situation! He really doesn't like Dorchacht at all! He hates that even he knows immediately fighting is a bad idea.]

I guess people who have actual experience should go, huh?

[fiddlestick]

Oh right the mind control....I'm sure we can learn defense spells against that, but I can't say it'd be strong enough to defend against a Coven leader.

[So yeah. This is. This is bad. He has very little hope this will work out well]

Yeah, I think so. I wonder if there's anyone that does have that experience.

[fifty]

Did you see those, uh--the drawings--the runes! The runes the people fighting back in Dorchacht used? I bet I could draw a pretty close copy! I can't do any magic, but maybe someone in the Coven who knows more about that stuff could go from there and we'd have those to work with.

And, uh--I've got experience. Not here, obviously, but, I guess it's sort of my job back home. [Feel free to just really process the idea of America as A Legitimate Diplomat.]

[fiddlestick]

Oh yeah, I think I do remember something like. I couldn't draw them from memory...but if you could, we could look into them!

[ . . . . ]








What? Really?

[He blinks. Clearly his brain fritzed and he misheard that]

[fifty]

Yeah, like at home I'm--uh, it's complicated, 'cause even back home I'm not human just in a different way, but going to world meetings and stuff like that is part of my job.

[fiddlestick]

I have so many questions....

[What do you mean you're not human?? how are you a diplomat?? what is the truth??

Then again...Prince Olivert is both very influential and very odd, so maybe it takes...odd ducks]

Well, do you think your experience can help here? If you did go to world meetings, you're more experienced than me.

[fifty]

I'm a nation, which is basically like the spirit of a country. [Does that help at all?] I'll see what I can do!

[fiddlestick]

A spirit of a -- [??? ??? ??? ] What?

[NO IT DOESN'T. But he's trying to wrap his head around it]

I-Is that like a water or wind spirit but....for a country?

[fifty]

I don't really know what it's like being a water or wind spirit, but basically when a bunch of people get together in a group someone like me shows up, and then we live as long as that group of people is still, like, a group of people. [A culture spirit, or something.]

voice

[rightfoot]

Agreed. They're definitely looking for good reason for us to fail.

[fifty]

Oh yeah, totally. And then they'll be like oh, see, your city is out of control, that totally gives us an excuse to mind control all the monsters, and also pay us a lot of money and maybe give us some stuff too!

[On the one hand, America is pretty childishly putting on a ridiculous voice for how he imagines Dorchacht's representatives talking. On the other hand, he's talking like he's seen this song and dance dozens of times before, so maybe he has experience. This contradiction is the life of America.]

[rightfoot]

The monsters here could be in real danger, then. I mean, they could try and take them to sell with the slightest indication that our attempt at diplomacy isn't perfect.

[ He huffs. The annoyance is obvious. ]

[fifty]

I think it depends on how much they're okay with making Aefenglom mad. Like, is kidnapping or killing us on the table? [America would prefer to think they're not, but also, they could be.]

[rightfoot]

Eh, probably. I can't imagine it wouldn't be on the table, least of all kidnapping. [ Like, he knows what they did there... he can't imagine they'd take exception with doing anything else. ]

[bloodyuseless]

...Didn't we already mess up?

[fifty]

We got accidentally pulled into a dream about Dorchacht and had a totally reasonable freak out about how messed up it was. Anything we did was an accident, but they're the ones with this horrible city! So the way I see it, they're gonna try to intimidate us and be like oh you did bad stuff, but who's the one intentionally mind controlling monsters?

[bloodyuseless]

Um, yeah. They're doing terrible things. [He pauses. Just barely audible shifting can be heard as he fidgets through his thought process.] So they don't need us to do terrible things in order to do more terrible things to us, right?

[fifty]

It's not like they need an excuse, and even if we're perfect we should still be super careful, but this is politics, y'know? If they can come up with an excuse that all the other covens in all the other cities will accept, then I bet they'll totally use it.

[bloodyuseless]

[No, actually. Mary does not know politics.]

So if they can't find a good excuse, nobody else will listen to them when they say we deserved it? That's what you mean?

[fifty]

Right, we want as many people as possible to be on our side. That way it's way riskier to hurt us and to keep hurting all the monsters who live there.

[bloodyuseless]

[Ooooh, okay. That does make a kind of sense. People who care about that sort of thing tend to be very loud about it. They're hard to ignore.

So when this guy says "they want us to mess up," he means "they want us to make enemies."]

We just have to make people like us then.

[fifty]

Yeah! [Though that can be pretty difficult, actually...]

But I think we should be prepared to fight, too. Like, hopefully we don't have to? But we can't just be not ready.

[bloodyuseless]

Wouldn't it help more to be prepared to run then?

[The question isn't facetious in the least. Mary has always been a bigger fan of running away than getting into a fight. Fighting just makes everyone more tired and cranky.]