Elenwen glared at him, nostrils flaring as she advanced.
“Accusations, is it? I have a letter of resignation that could easily have been forged, one dead mer that may or may not have been killed by your people, and a missing Justiciar who may have gone to find herself, but could also have been made to 'disappear'! And so far, no one is giving me anything in the way of straight answers!”
Madanach glared back, every muscle indicating what he'd like to give Elenwen, but before he could react, Keirine had risen to her feet, the First Matriarch of the Forsworn drawing her illusion cloak about her in such a way that the usual grandmotherly facade got just that bit thinner.
“Brother, there is no point hiding it any longer. We may as well admit it. It is not like we have done anything wrong. Ambassador, Sabrinda is at Cwm Prendwemyn. I have a training institute there, but there's a religious aspect to it as well and Sabrinda's there, communing with the old gods while she decides where her life is going. I hope she stays, she's a talented mage. Of course it's not the most family-friendly place so Ancalime is going to live here, but we plan to arrange regular visits. But don't take my word for it. I was heading back right now, did you want to come with me? You can see for yourselves that she's fine.”
Mollified, Elenwen stood down and acquiesced, falling in behind Keirine as the First Matriarch of the Forsworn swept out of the Keep, nodding to her brother and simply saying welcome back to Liriel.
“You have not heard the last of this, Reach-King,” Elenwen snapped as she passed... then she stopped and inclined her head. “If that's still your title.”
“You can call me sir or my lord, I always answer to those,” Madanach said, gritting his teeth as he stared her down. Elenwen's eyes narrowed, fury oozing out of every pore, but she said nothing, just sweeping out after Keirine, her guards in tow.
It wasn't until she was gone that everyone finally relaxed.
“I knew she'd cause trouble, I just knew it,” Liriel sighed. “What happens when she gets to Deepwood and finds no Sabrinda? Or worse, if Keirine actually takes her to Baila Siantri?” Unlikely, but Liriel really wasn't sure she could rule it out... at least until she saw Madanach smirking and realised perhaps she didn't need to worry quite as much as she thought.
“Don't worry, cariad. I don't think you need to worry about Elenwen ever again. You just let my sister deal with it. She's an old hand at this sort of thing. And speaking of sneaky, treacherous blood kin of mine...” Madanach had folded his arms, glaring up at Eola. “Daughter, you asked me to track Liriel down. I have done so, brought her here and restored harmonious marital relations. I have comforted and reassured our children. I have done all this and successfully avoided falling prey to cravings. That done, could I possibly have my throne back?”
Eola got up, making her way down the steps, Cicero skipping behind her and the surrounding ReachGuard standing to attention as she did so. A true Queen in waiting and while Madanach was certainly proud of her and loved her, no king could ever really be pleased to have such an obviously competent heir around. She finally came to a stop in front of Madanach, Miraak's robes rather too big for her but still looking good regardless.
“I don't know, I'm starting to get comfortable up there,” Eola mused. “Especially in these – do you know, everyone reacts so differently when I wear these. First sign of the blue and gold and everyone's so respectful, almost to the point of terror. No wonder the Thalmor have robes this colour.”
“They're used to seeing me in them, it's conditioned them to panic,” Madanach growled. “Pity they didn't have the same effect on you, you ungrateful wench.”
“I know, I'm completely undisciplined and unruly,” Eola said, shrugging. “I blame not having a father around in my formative years, what do you think?”
Re: Thicker Than Blood 13.6
“Accusations, is it? I have a letter of resignation that could easily have been forged, one dead mer that may or may not have been killed by your people, and a missing Justiciar who may have gone to find herself, but could also have been made to 'disappear'! And so far, no one is giving me anything in the way of straight answers!”
Madanach glared back, every muscle indicating what he'd like to give Elenwen, but before he could react, Keirine had risen to her feet, the First Matriarch of the Forsworn drawing her illusion cloak about her in such a way that the usual grandmotherly facade got just that bit thinner.
“Brother, there is no point hiding it any longer. We may as well admit it. It is not like we have done anything wrong. Ambassador, Sabrinda is at Cwm Prendwemyn. I have a training institute there, but there's a religious aspect to it as well and Sabrinda's there, communing with the old gods while she decides where her life is going. I hope she stays, she's a talented mage. Of course it's not the most family-friendly place so Ancalime is going to live here, but we plan to arrange regular visits. But don't take my word for it. I was heading back right now, did you want to come with me? You can see for yourselves that she's fine.”
Mollified, Elenwen stood down and acquiesced, falling in behind Keirine as the First Matriarch of the Forsworn swept out of the Keep, nodding to her brother and simply saying welcome back to Liriel.
“You have not heard the last of this, Reach-King,” Elenwen snapped as she passed... then she stopped and inclined her head. “If that's still your title.”
“You can call me sir or my lord, I always answer to those,” Madanach said, gritting his teeth as he stared her down. Elenwen's eyes narrowed, fury oozing out of every pore, but she said nothing, just sweeping out after Keirine, her guards in tow.
It wasn't until she was gone that everyone finally relaxed.
“I knew she'd cause trouble, I just knew it,” Liriel sighed. “What happens when she gets to Deepwood and finds no Sabrinda? Or worse, if Keirine actually takes her to Baila Siantri?” Unlikely, but Liriel really wasn't sure she could rule it out... at least until she saw Madanach smirking and realised perhaps she didn't need to worry quite as much as she thought.
“Don't worry, cariad. I don't think you need to worry about Elenwen ever again. You just let my sister deal with it. She's an old hand at this sort of thing. And speaking of sneaky, treacherous blood kin of mine...” Madanach had folded his arms, glaring up at Eola. “Daughter, you asked me to track Liriel down. I have done so, brought her here and restored harmonious marital relations. I have comforted and reassured our children. I have done all this and successfully avoided falling prey to cravings. That done, could I possibly have my throne back?”
Eola got up, making her way down the steps, Cicero skipping behind her and the surrounding ReachGuard standing to attention as she did so. A true Queen in waiting and while Madanach was certainly proud of her and loved her, no king could ever really be pleased to have such an obviously competent heir around. She finally came to a stop in front of Madanach, Miraak's robes rather too big for her but still looking good regardless.
“I don't know, I'm starting to get comfortable up there,” Eola mused. “Especially in these – do you know, everyone reacts so differently when I wear these. First sign of the blue and gold and everyone's so respectful, almost to the point of terror. No wonder the Thalmor have robes this colour.”
“They're used to seeing me in them, it's conditioned them to panic,” Madanach growled. “Pity they didn't have the same effect on you, you ungrateful wench.”
“I know, I'm completely undisciplined and unruly,” Eola said, shrugging. “I blame not having a father around in my formative years, what do you think?”