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THE BOUQUET ESTATE - MORNING
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Narrator: The meeting with Enver had proven one thing to Teis, at least - Don't tell Jax 'Nobody should see me'. Be more specific. With that in mind, Elizabeth has been whitelisted ahead of her next visit. While the ongoing tutelage has been nice, Teis today isn't sure if she'll be up for it. The hour approaches none the less, regardless of if Teis is truly ready or not.
Teis has cleaned herself up a bit, enough to what one might consider to be normal, though it's a far cry from the amount of effort that she's previously put in for Elizabeth. She awaits in the manor's break room.
Elizabeth arrives with a quiet knock, her usual impassive demeanor broken just slightly by curiosity. She is dressed in her 'casual' purple dress that's just short of a ballgown, although down the months in Respite she's started to care just slightly less about the hems getting dirt on them - dirt is a fact of life down here, after all. She notices Teis finally, smiling: "Ah, Miss Teis. Good to see you again."
Teis manages to at least weakly force out a smile. "Good morning, Lady Catherine." Teis greets, waiting for her mentor to take a seat across from her as per the usual before continuing. Her smile fade, an apprehensive expression taking over, "Um. Would. . .It be alright if we just. . .Talked today?" She questions.
Elizabeth nods with a smile after sitting down, though it's obvious she's curious for the reasons from the usually excited-to-put-things-in-practice cat: "Oh, certainly. I do not mind just telling you whatever knowledge I can impart upon you. Any particular reason or topic in mind, then?"
Teis nods. "Yeah. . .It's. . .Um. Well. . .I um. I did something that has. . ." Teis pauses, struggling to find the words. She attempts another angle, for her own benefit. ". . .Have you ever done something that you regret? Like. . .A lot? To the point where it taints everything you thought you knew about yourself?"
Elizabeth blinks at the weariness and worry of the feline, then her expression darkens upon the questions: "...yes. Several times." She looks aside at her hand, where no more magical runes will ever dance again.
Teis nods yet again, having expected that answer, clasping her hands in her lap. "Well. . .How have. . . You dealt with it?"
Elizabeth gives a weary shrug: "Running away, mostly. I can not show my face in any of the big cities in Sarn again." She takes a breath: "Beyond that... leaving my past behind me. What's done is done no matter how much it haunts me."
Teis: "Oh." Teis replies, perhaps now, at least on a basic level, understanding why it is that Elizabeth is here in Respite. "Um. What did you do?" Teis initially questions, though then hesitates and backtracks, "Wait, no. Sorry, that's rude of me. . ." Teis takes in a deep breath, sighing it out.
Elizabeth gives Teis a glance is about to offer a rebuttal, but then glances at her hand and sighs. "I guess I might as well tell you, since it can't really hurt me anymore, unless you're about to run off to Sarn to yell in the marketplace about it." She takes a deep breath: "...might honestly do me good to let some of it out."
Teis nods in acknowledgement, listening attentively despite her evident sorrow.
Elizabeth glances at Teis before continuing: "Well, you sought me because I know magic. That much has always been true." She sighs: "Dark magic, at that. Curses, hexes, generally draining others to make myself more powerful. For years... many years, I subtly gained power and control by manipulating people and events to my favor."
Elizabeth muses darkly: "Over the years, I was basically on top of the social pecking order of Policaster, wife to a fashion magnate and socially speaking could make anyone do my bidding." She frowns: "Of course, hubris eventually caught up to me, I bit more than I could chew, magically speaking."
Elizabeth looks aside, her expression darkening: "Things fell down quickly after that, rumors move faster than news, and in a matter of days I was a wanted woman, a witch to be hanged or shot on sight."
Elizabeth: "I made a lot of lives miserable, and didn't see it because I chose not to."
Narrator: As Elizabeth speaks, Teis' expression continues to sadden further. When Elizabeth finishes, Teis simply nods three times in a row, before she finally isn't able to dance around the subject any longer. "I killed someone." Teis suddenly blurts out.
Elizabeth blinks in surprise, looking up: "You killed... you? How?"
Teis: "Well, I mean. . .Not directly. . ." Teis sighs again. She recounts the story, from start to finish, of what happened with the Elemental in Erika's garden, what Tarbin had tried, how he expressed it was based on something Teis had done, emphasizing her own guilt in that she should've known better, and that she also shouldn't have diverted Tarbin to bring the Elemental to the manor.
Elizabeth listens, sighing at the end: "The road to downfall is paved with good intentions. But if I understood correctly, it wasn't YOU who actually did anything...?"
Teis: "But. . .I should've known. I was the most qualified individual there. . .And I just. . .Watched as she died." Teis sighs, flipping her paws over to look down at her spft palms. "Like. . .What use am I. . .?" Teis questions.
Elizabeth looks at Teis with concern, but her voice is stern: "No use to that situation anymore, you are right. But you have a gift of magic, you are plenty capable of helping others in other ways, should you choose to. Do not be like me and keep all that to your own benefit."
Teis weakly clenches her fingers twice, before flipping her hands back around and resting them atop her legs, looking up at Elizabeth. "I. . .Will try." She sighs, "But. . .I just. . .I don't even want to use my magic. How do I get past the guilt? Or. . .Disassociate it from my magic? From me?"
Elizabeth shrugs: "It's different for everyone, but magic has a tendency to want to manifest. It likely won't ask nicely if you keep bottling things up, either."
Teis: "So. . .I don't have a choice." Teis grumbles, with a sigh, coming to the conclusion that she'd had a vague inkling of all along. Magic is just simply a part of who she is, and always has been.
Elizabeth looks at Teis, shaking her head: "You do have a choice in what to do about this all. Sulking down and closing from the world isn't a very productive answer." She realizes the slight hypocrisy of that since all she's ever done is run from her problems, but opts to act wiser than she is.
Teis nods yet again, sitting in contemplation for several moments, processing, evident by the way her gaze drifts around without really focusing on anything too much other than her own hands. Then, the silence breaks, ". . .Am I likely to be involved in another preventable death in the future?"
Elizabeth tilts her head at Teis, looking at her oddly: "I've never had any powers to predict the future, certainly do not now."
Teis: "No. . .No I suppose not." Teis sighs her response. "But. . .Thank you. Talking is. . .At least comforting in some small way." She slightly diverting topic. "I'm. . .Not going to stop being your student, nor ask for a break. . .Even if my heart may not be in it at the moment."
Elizabeth nods slowly: "I understand. I will help where I can, still."
Teis weakly smiles in appreciation. ". . .Shall we begin, then, Lady Catherine?"
Elizabeth gives a small smile as she leans back on the seat: "If you are up for it, let us."
Teis affirmatively nods, preparing to do magic for the first time since the incident.
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THE BOUQUET ESTATE - LATE MORNING
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Emmeline waits in the sitting room near the entrance of the grand house, having only been told that Rondelethia will see her 'soon'. She's dressed in one of her more professional looking dresses, in a darker muted green with a matching hat and complenting scarf in pale yellow.
Rondelethia comes inside, she had prepared herself carefully before hand. Her Father had always taught her that it was important to be able to discuss all the relevant matters without needing to consult notes. Though, not to say she hadn't brought any notes. They were for Emmeline's benefit, not hers. Emmeline was left seated comfortably, in front of a small table. Rondelethia takes her seat at the other side, an identical one (It was set up like that. There were a number of seating arrangements, depending on the client. It was actually a compliment, if Emmeline knew the intricacies of seat politics) "Ah, Emmeline. Thank you for meeting with me. I hope you were not waiting too long"
Emmeline blinks at the amount of paperwork and notes that the rabbit has brought with her, still not quite used to business on that sort of level yet. She stands and gives a small curtsey, only taking her seat again after her host is seated. "Not too long, no. Thank you for seeing me so quickly." She looks down at the table before taking a quiet breath and then looking up at the rabbit with a serious expression. "Before we begin any formal negotiations, I feel like there are a few things you should know. While we would be more than happy to work with as illustrious a family as yours, there has been some... perhaps overenthusiasm on Teis's part with this project, I think?"
Rondelethia considers many responses to that, and in the end goes for the 'diplomatic' one "This is just about how the profits would be divided, once this hits market, how exactly it gets there is our problem. You have the patent, for want of a better term, of a vital part of what we plan to sell, and such, we're looking for how much you would want for it" Rondelethia suppresses a sigh. All she wants is to conduct simple business, and manage the money. She was taught how to handle finances, not how to be a therapist for her sister.
Emmeline cocks her head and sighs. "As would I, but we're not alone in this endeavor." She folds her hands on the table in front of her. "Since you seem to be in the dark about this, let me explain briefly: No permission was sought from Jennica to modify her creation and while Teis is its rightful owner, Jennica didn't find out about Teis's tinkering with it until she saw her bauble..." She pauses for a moment, searching for the right word. "Vivisected on the workshop bench. Jennica puts a lot of care into her creations, so it shocked her deeply to see it in that state." She frowns for a moment, but then resumes a neutral expression as she waits for the rabbit's reply.
Rondelethia: "Ah" Well, that tracks as the kind of thing Teis would do "In which case, I believe that the next person I should speak to is Jennica herself. I'm not comfortable with laying out the financials to you, when Jennica may not be comfortable with moving forward in the first place. I don't know your financial position, but I don't want to put pressure on you. While I'm sure that you would be perfectly willing to respect her wishes...." She motions with her hand gently "It is easier when that is in the abstract, rather than a hard figure"
Emmeline nods. "Jennica is feeling hurt. She's willing to move past that for the sake our business, but that doesn't take the hurt away. You talking to her would likely help a lot in that respect." She turns to look toward the door. "I could bring her here, or we could go see her together?"
Rondelethia: "I think I would want her to come here. That way she has a chance to decline to see me. This is a delicate matter, and I wish to respect her. If she does not wish to see me, then I will understand, and I would not let this close any chance of future business"
Emmeline smiles at Rondelethia. "All right. Should I extend your invitation or do you want something more formal?" The cow is relieved that the concerns are being taken seriously, but is now worried that this opportunity could go up in smoke due to a misunderstanding.
Rondelethia: "I think we'll keep things informal for now. Less pressure that way" She would like to smile, but she's not up to it, and doesn't want to fake it "We'll see what can be done to smooth matters out"
Emmeline gives a little nod and then moves to stand up. "Thank you. I'm sure you have other matters to attend to, so I'll go talk to her right away." She waits for permission before doing so, though.
Rondelethia: "Of course, thank you for being so forthright" She nods to her, acknowledging her departure, and waiting for her to leave, before slowly putting her head in her hands, and allowing herself the smallest little growl of frustration.