Closet Raiding

"Thank you for your patience, My Love." Robin has a warm smile for her strength and her rock. "Now for the strafing of Soren. Since he's not in the room..." she looks around to confirm that that is still so, "we should probably leave the room with a little fuss as possible."

Robin's green eyes take in the crowd of very alert and sensitive Lords of Order. "I... have no idea how to do that." She shakes her head. "Less-civilized me would just climb off the balcony. But last time I did something like that, people really noticed. Would you have a suggestion, oh most wonderfully decorous one?" She smiles up at her Love.

Vere smiles and pulls her arm a little closer, leaning towards her he says quietly, "Allow me to demonstrate, my love. We gaze at one another lovingly, speaking quietly as is the way of lovers, as we wander aimlessly through the room." He suits his actions to his words, winding a path between the various groups of talking relatives, the very picture of oblivious young love.

"Walking so, very clearly with no definite goal nor purpose, other than to be with each other," he laughs softly, as though she had just told him a joke, "We find ourselves eventually near the door," a soft tug on her arm, and they are out the door and into the hallway, "And if anyone did notice, then, ah, the lovers, so clearly they wish to be alone for a short while."

Robin has no difficulty at all with playing the part of a young lover. Watching her Man in action lights her up from the inside and she is practically glowing as she tips her head in to catch his quiet words. Fond memories of the dance at the Masquerade lurk behind her smile.

Once in the hallway, Robin is a much less civilized young lover as she backs Vere into a wall for a fierce kiss.

When Robin can catch her breath again, "You are sooooo beautiful when you do that, my Love. And dead sexy."

"Okay, okay. Business. Soren's office is this way. Let's try there first." Somehow in Xanadu, where Robin can Hear the Rhythm of the Land, she isn't disoriented - even when in a Castle that's mostly underground.

"Business it is," Vere says agreeably, and allows Robin to take the lead.

Soren is closing up his office when Vere and Robin approach him. He's on his way down to the studio to talk to some people, but he'd be pleased if Prince Vere and Sir Robin accompanied him, since they are anxious to talk to him.

Vere nods. "We wondered whether you know if the king will be returning tonight," he asks. He looks at Robin to see if she thinks it advisable to add anything.

Soren leads them towards one of the longer central stairways of the castle and heads down. "I wonder the same thing. The King has clear plans for breakfast tomorrow and I thought that he and the Queen would be attending tonight's gala, but I only heard secondhand that he was going to Rebma with the Queen. Gilt knows more, but I don't think much more.

"The King follows his own plans, and we normally just adapt.

"I can have Gilt send a page when his majesty awakens, but he might not be seeing visitors before breakfast, either."

The way down, unlike the steps to Amber's lowest chambers, is well lit with electrical lights. They have a slight smell of tiny burnt toast, but are otherwise cheery.

Robin's nose wrinkles at the odor, but not in a bad way - more in a 'that tickles' way.

"Soren..." Robin decides to take the bull by the horns. In a very quiet, non-carrying way, she continues, "I have good reason to believe the King to be in danger. And I'd really like to contact him. But I got the impression that he wasn't going to be answering the Family calls this evening. So I'm trying to figure out how to contact him in an emergency. Would you be good for that? Gilt? Someone else?"

Vere looks as though he is about to add something, then changes his mind and remains silent.

Soren stops. The stair they are on is in a particularly empty part of the castle.

"I can't make him answer a Trump, if that's what you're asking. I can't really make him do anything. But he listens to me. And a few others. You know why? He trusts us because we haven't led him wrong before. So I need more. I can't tell if you mean he's neglecting to use sunscreen or Garrett's mother Anna is coming back up here with a knife to cut off his balls for the good of the country.

"So, tell me what you've got and I'll consider how and when I'd bring it to Syd."

Vere looks silently at Robin, raising an interrogative eyebrow.

Robin nods while Soren speaking: yes, yes and hell yes.

"My Beloved here," she indicates Vere with a thumb, "who is way more trustworthy than myself, just recently returned from Tir-na Nog'th. While there, he spoke to the ghost of Princess Cambina. She told him that she had gone there with the Queen and that while the Queen was walking the Pattern, the Queen of Air and Darkness held Cambina still until dawn rose and she fell to her death.

"Our concern is that the Queen may not be... wholly herself right now."

Robin trusts that Soren will mostly know what she's talking about. And that if he doesn't, he'll ask whatever questions he needs to. Because if the King trusts him, she does too.

Vere nods and looks back to Soren.

Soren looks very concerned, his eyes large despite the plentiful light in the stairwell. "Well, that does sound urgent, especially as the Queen is with child. Prince Vere, could you have been fooled? Could the Queen of Air and Darkness have impersonated Cambina and said this to damage the Queen?"

Vere nods. "Oh, yes, that is most certainly a possibility, and one that is a great concern to me. It would require a great deal of information on my abilities and my relationship with Cambina, and her relationship with her brother and lover. But is not something that, for example, a Lord of Chaos who had consumed Cambina's memories would be unable to do. But if the Queen of Air and Darkness is capable of that sort of thing, she is equally capable of possessing and/or controlling our Queen. Either way, you can understand why we think it is vital that we have a private audience with Random before the family gathering tomorrow morning."

Soren bites his lip. "I'll see what I can do. Don't tell anyone else about this, please. The last thing the Kingdom needs is a rumor that the Queen is possessed by some sort of Witch-queen from Tir. It may not be until late. Very late. Make sure you can be found, and fetched, quickly."

Soren hesitates. "I am loathe to ask, but is there more I should know, or the King?"

"Edan acted as my anchor on my trip to Tir and heard my side of the conversation. I have asked him to say nothing. I have told Brennan and Jerod, who agree this information should not be made public before Random has heard it." Vere considers for a moment, then says, "There is nothing else I can think of that is vital." He looks questioningly at Robin.

Robin purses her lips in thought but shakes her head. Nope, that about covers it.

Soren doesn't seem pleased with the number of secret-keepers. "I'll do what I can. I've got to go deal with the previous unexpected surprise," he says, looking downwards, but not explaining.

Conner stands in one of several game rooms that Random had scattered around his castle. A pool table dominated the center of the room while the corners held carved wooden tables at the perfect height for cards. Flip down panels in the walls hid well stocked bars in easy reach from any gaming station. All that was missing was the neon signs on the wall and Conner was sure those were being worked on.

Conner looks over the room with an attention to detail usually warranted only by a visit from Aunt Florimel. One of the card tables was set up with a several bottles of various spirits, two glass tumblers and an ice bucket. There was really nothing left to do but wait for Raven to show up so to keep his mind busy Conner racks up the balls and selected a cue. Calculating the force vectors on the balls as he plays helps to steady his mind.

Raven is along a few minutes later, thanking the page that showed her the way before she ducks through the door. She makes sure the door shuts properly behind her, because this is going to be awkward enough without anybody that walks by wondering what's going on.

"Has anybody counted how many rooms around here look like they belong in some kind of club?" she says wryly, by way of greeting. Her hands automatically go into the pockets of her coat, her shoulders squaring slightly with the motion. "Sorry if I kept you waiting. Ain't been around here long enough to learn my way out half the time, much less anywhere else."

Conner looks up from the bank shot he was lining up. "I'm still exploring the place myself and the decor certainly matches the owner," Conner smiles and puts the cue down on the table. "I have been waiting but only because I arrived early as host. Please come and sit." Conner walks over to the table and pours two glasses of the brandy on the table before sitting. "Now, I believe you had a question for me?"

"Aye," Raven agrees. She slides one of the glasses closer, but doesn't actually pick it up yet.

"I guess..." She pauses, then shakes her head and snorts. "Look, best as I can tell, there ain't a way to ask this question without it sounding like I want to know way more about what you do in private than I actually do. But did you ever sleep with a woman named Scarlett?"

"Straight to the point I see." Conner chuckles. "Please forgive an indulgence. I was curious how you would broach the issue." Conner runs one finger around the rim of his glass and watches it.. "You see, I happened to take lunch at Scarlett's today and she also bid me walk down memory lane." Conner looks up from his glass. "Yes, I used to visit Scarlett at the Red Mill back when I was a young officer in the Navy and to answer the question that you really want to ask," Conner pauses for a second, "that likely makes me your father."

Raven scowls faintly and shakes her head. "I don't know why I'm surprised she'd tell someone else more than she told me." She sighs and sits back, finally offering up a wry smile. "She and I get on like oil and water. The most I've ever got on who might be my father is 'a sailor with dark hair,' and that was only after I got back. She come out and say it, or...?"

"Pretty much." Conner nods. "Once you were revealed to be of the Family the field of possible parentage shrunk considerably. Unless we have another unknown Royal hiding in the Navy or your mother's memory is being selectively faulty, I am the most likely candidate. There is a test my mother can perform that will confirm it one way or the other." Conner pauses to take a sip of his brandy. "However, when I mentioned this to Scarlett, she said that you needed to tell me everything before taking this to Princess Fiona. I presume you know what she was referring to?"

"...Yes," Raven says slowly. "And she's probably trying to stick her nose places she doesn't need to put it. She say anything else about that?"

"Not about that." Conner replies. "But her parting shot was," Conner pauses for a moment and when he speaks again it is an almost pitch perfect impersonation of Scarlett, " 'I hope he's not as much trouble to you and to th' King as he were when he was my charge. And that's all the suggesting there might be two sides to things I'm going to do before you introduce yourself to our child.' " Conner takes another sip from his glass but says nothing more.

"You know, all I've got to do for that voice is go visit her," Raven says dryly. She reaches for her glass, taking a healthy drink. "So the everything she's talking about - well. How do you feel about having a daughter that's been passing as a man most of her life instead of a son?"

Conner leans in a little closer and examines Raven for a moment. "Well, it doesn't really change too much on my end." Conner leans back in his seat. "The shock of an unknown child is beyond gender. Is this a deception you intend to continue?"

Raven makes a face. "Ugly word for it." She taps a finger on her glass and, after a moment, shrugs. "I'm still working that out, I guess. Always figured I'd stay in the Navy for a while, until I screwed up enough or got tired of it, and then figure out what to do next. All this..." She jerks her head in the direction of the door, mostly because the rest of the castle is out there. "Suddenly being a Royal, having all kinds of family I didn't have before... kinda messes with that and kinda doesn't. I mean, I still want to stay in the Navy, and that ain't gonna work if I suddenly announce I've got tits."

"Well that depends on what 'in the Navy' means to you," Conner replies. "If the King and Admirals say you're a Captain, then you are and any tar that has a problem with that will find themselves scraping barnacles off the Amber docks with a dull knife." Conner chuckles and then sighs. "But it won't be the same its true." Conner takes another drink. "The Kingdom will always need skilled sailors but I think it is time to think broader."

"Won't be anything like the same," Raven agrees. "Saying it's so and punishing those that disobey won't change anything. Just pushes it below the surface. Seen it a time or two." She pauses, then shakes her head and adds dryly, "Might've been part of it once, 'cept I'm not sure it counts as under wraps when you get disciplined for losing your temper and breaking someone's nose." There's a slightly rueful smile that goes with that statement. "What do you mean by thinking broader?"

"You have already moved from Navy Captain to Royal Troubleshooter if your arrival tonight was any indication, but you have the opportunity to learn and put into practice any skill you like." Conner points out. "Either by seeking a trainer among the family or heading out into Shadow to seek one there. Medicine, mastery of the blade, music, art. Whatever takes your fancy or seems useful." Conner gestures at her with his glass. "However, to address one of the elephants in the room," Conner reaches up and twirls a lock of hair around his finger, "you are a Redhead now." Conner grins at her. "That opens advanced Pattern theory and Sorcery to you, if you would be interested."

Raven blinks a couple of times. "Don't know," she says, after thinking about it for a minute. "At least, don't know yet. Only seen a little sorcery, about half of which was blowing things up, and you don't really need magic for that. And can't say as how I'd be sure what the other one involves. Either of those something you know?"

Conner nods. "I am a better Sorcerer than Pattern expert but you can't be Fiona's son without picking up a thing or two." Conner reaches over to refill his glass and offers to top off Raven's. "I would be happy to teach you if you decide to learn. While Sorcery is quite useful for blowing things up, it has a myriad of other uses. I often use it for communication and transportation when Trumps are not available. It does not work so close to a Pattern of course. Else I would demonstrate."

"Brita turned a bird back into a boy," Raven says as she pushes her glass over to be filled. "Seen that, anyway. And I guess this means she's my aunt." She snorts in amusement and shakes her head. "Great. Accidentally started a bar riot with my aunt. What other elephants you figure are in the room with us, besides what I'm supposed to call you?"

Conner fills Raven's glass. "You can call me whatever you feel comfortable calling me, Raven. I'm not going to demand a title I don't think I've earned." Conner sets the decanter down. "And I wouldn't worry about the bar brawl. Knowing Brita she'd think it good family bonding time." Conner smiles warmly. "Turning your question around, it is my intention to announce that I am 99% certain you are my child and officially claim you as such before the Family at tomorrow's meeting. Are you prepared for that and more to the point, should I be introducing you as my son, my daughter or simply my child?"

"I remember what actually feeling prepared was like," Raven says dryly, with a hint of a smile. "Pretty sure that was before my ship got lost. I'm guessing it'll happen again sometime." She takes a sip of her drink, then sets it down, fingers tapping restlessly against the glass again as she thinks. "There's precious few that know that I'm not actually a man." She blows out a breath and shakes her head. "Thinking about telling a whole group at once... it ain't anything but weird. And there's part of me that wants to say no. But it's probably better to just rip the damned bandage off and get it over with before it's even more weird. So - daughter."

Conner smiles warmly. "Good. I think that will be the best option in the long run and when you are as long lived as we are, that is important." Conner nods. "The only person I have spoken to about being your father is Mother. She has suggested that we meet before the Family conclave as we will no doubt be scattered about on missions afterward. We could do an introduction before the Clarissians and you'll walk into the Family meeting with a new crew. Sound good?"

"Aye." Raven sits back in her seat, taking another sip of her drink now that she's made that decision. "So this's turning out to be a whole lot about me. What do I need to know about you? I mean, besides that I'm pretty sure this was a surprise."

"It certainly was." Conner nods and takes another drink. "Before I talk though something to keep in mind, it is standard protocol in the Family for younger members to give their news and answer questions in conversation first. Most of my generation and younger don't hold to that too strictly but the Princes and Princesses certainly do. Think of it like reporting to the Admirals and you won't go too far wrong." Conner pauses long enough to drain his glass and refill it.

"Right," Raven says, nodding. It's very much the kind of 'right' that suggests that she's been told this before and kind of forgot or wasn't sure if it applied here.

"So the short version of my life story." Conner hums. "I spent my early years being trained in various shadows and disciplines under my Mother's tutelage. She made sure I had well rounded education: horsemanship, fencing, science and mathematics, metaphysical theories and practices." Conner smiles at some memory. "Then she brought me to Amber and hid me under the nose of the Family. In the Navy." Conner grins wider. "I served under Prince Gerard and rose to the rank of Captain. The Light of Cabra was a fine ship and I enjoyed my time on it. When I resigned from the Navy, I went into the diplomatic corps. I served in various Shadow embassies before being posted to Rebma's Embassy as First Secretary. My time there overlapped with the time Random was under house arrest. I got to know him and Vialle a bit as a result." Conner pauses there to let Raven comment if she wishes.

"I recall the Light," Raven offers. "She seemed like a good one. If you don't mind me asking, why'd you resign?"

"It wasn't really my choice." Conner admits. "I was being groomed for bigger and better things. Once it was clear I had learned the ways of the Navy and command on the battlefield, the next step was to learn the ways of the diplomat." Conner shrugs. "I don't think I would have stayed much longer had the choice been mine. I've always been a scholar more than anything else. If I'm not in a position to learn something new, I get antsy."

"Huh." Raven thinks for a moment, then nods. "That makes sense. Not a lot changes from one ship to the next, I guess. Sorry, didn't mean to stop you - just was curious."

Conner waves off the apology. "Not a problem. After all, it bears on your own upcoming decisions." Conner pauses for moment. "I remained in Rebma until after the Sundering. Being the diplomatic envoy of a country you can't reach to a monarch and people that half suspect there isn't even an Amber anymore is a dicey situation. On the other hand, I had a lot of free time as there was minimal business to discuss. There is a sizeable story around my flight from Rebma and perhaps I'll tell it another time. Suffice to say I was run out of Rebma under the threat of false charges and fled through a little known part of the Faiella-Bionin to where I now know is the land of Avalon. I found a ship in shadow and sailed us to Amber. As it was pretty obvious that only Shadow shifting could have brought me Rebma to Amber without the stair , that is when I revealed myself as Fiona's son to the Family. I did a bunch of odd jobs as part of the Regency Council. Largely I kept all the Golden Circle diplomats calm since I knew exactly what anxieties they were going through. I also led trade missions and got to know my new family better. Brita was a huge surprise. Mother did not see fit to let us know we each had a sibling in shadow."

Raven snorts in amusement. "Is there a way for meeting Brita the first time to not be a surprise?" she asks dryly. "I mean, I met her and she sniffed me, then said I was family."

Conner chuckles. "It does tend to be bear hugs and loud pronouncements." Conner agrees. "Her senses come in very handy though. Somehow, she can sniff out who is Family, who is from Chaos or the deep Green. With so many creatures of power able to take on basically the same forms as us, it is good to have one of us that can discover them instinctually."

"I can see how it'd be useful," Raven says, nodding. "It was still... well, not what I was thinking would happen, for sure."

"I can imagine." Conner smiles. "Did you never suspect you were more than your peers?" He asks. "One of the tricky balances I had in the Navy was making sure I didn't show off my strength or knowledge to the point that people would suspect my true heritage."

Raven shrugs. "Maybe? Can't say I thought much about it. I mean, once I got old enough to know I was different, I was always doing something to blend in. I got pretty good at ending fights fast, but if I wanted to keep hands off where I didn't want them to be, I had to. That kind of thing. Nobody else was quite like I was. How was I supposed to know what was just my being a girl being a boy and what wasn't normal?"

Conner nods. "Fair enough. It was merely something I was curious about. Now I believe I was talking about myself." Conner chuckles. "On the topic of things you should know about me. One of the biggest and most recent is my dual vassalage." Conner flutters the fingers of his right hand for moment as if gathering his thoughts with them. "I don't know how much you've heard about events in Rebma but there has been quite a bit of upheaval there recently. Here is the short version. An army under the control of Llewella's daughter Khela marched on Rebma to overthrow Moire and free the Tritons from her service. An army under the control of Huon of the Horn marched on the city in search of the Pattern Blade of Rebma. Queen Moire fled in the face of both forces and her whereabouts is still unknown. I allied myself with Khela's faction and with a combination of strength, power and luck Huon's forces were routed. Khela became Queen of Rebma, briefly." Conner takes up his glass again and drains it. "But that is another story." Conner says with a thin lipped smile.

"I pledged myself to Rebma's crown and her Queen, first Khela, then to Celina." Conner stands so Raven can see the sword on his hip. "And this was my reward and my obligation." Slowly, Conner draws forth the emerald blade and places it flat on the table. "This is Halosydne, the Pattern Blade of Rebma thus making me Rebma's Knight and Warden of the Kelp Forest of Nedra."

"Why - no, never mind." Raven leans back in her seat and looks up at Conner. "What's a Pattern Blade? And why's it - and I'm guessing those titles - an obligation? Kinda looks like... well, a sword."

Clearly, this was not the reaction Conner was looking for. His proud smile slips to half wattage then brightens again as he begins to explain. "Look closer at the blade." Conner encourages as he slides it towards her. "You will see echoes of a familiar design there. Through mystic arts that only he understands, a being named Weyland Smith crafted the Pattern Blades, one for each Pattern Realm. Somehow, the same power and design that resides in the Pattern was forged into the blade itself. Though you may not have heard the term Pattern blade before, I'll bet you've heard stories of two of them. Bleys's sword Werewindle is the Pattern Blade of Amber and Corwin's sword Grayswandir is the Pattern blade of Tir. Traditionally, the one that accepts a Pattern Blade is sworn to the protection of the Pattern it is tied too. Partly this is enlightened self-interest as I am bound to the sword and its Pattern."

"Ah-ha." Raven sits up and looks the blade over with more interest. "Sorry, didn't mean to seem like it ain't a great honor for you and something pretty damned interesting. Just trying to understand, I guess?" She smiles wryly. "'What it means to carry around a special named sword' ain't exactly something I've needed to keep up on."

"No need to apologize." Conner replies. "I forget how new most of this is for you. So the important point is I have pledged a oath of loyalty and service to both King Random and Queen Celina. Both know this of course and so long as this era of Family cooperation exists, it is no more than a footnote. Similarly, you will see that the Redheads tend to stick together as well. It is a web that could get sticky if people start drifting apart. So far so good though. The various outside threats seem to have kept the infighting at bay."

Raven snorts in amusement. "Not so different from a ship, aye? As long as there's something to do, nobody's thinking too hard about who owes who a bit of coin and who insulted who." She reaches for her drink again. "Is Huon still after it? Since you said he was before."

"If he is, he's playing a long game." Conner replies. "After his failed attack on Rebma and the failed attempt to capture and hold him," Conner pauses for a moment to take a drink himself, "Huon retreated into Shadow and then sent Silhouette to Random as his envoy to negotiate a peace with the Family. His stated reason to want the Paxblade," Conner gestures towards his sword, "was to pursue a long standing vendetta against Uncle Bleys. He needed a Pattern Blade to best a Pattern Blade. As part of the agreement Huon swore, he and Bleys are to officially end this Vendetta. Huon has also been sentenced to 22 years of service to Rebma starting with rebuilding what his war damaged. His desire to return to the Family appears genuine and so he plays nice. I was inclined to be harsher but if Aunt Llewella can accept this state of affairs, then who am I to lay down heavier burdens?" Conner's smile grows wide at some remembrance.

"Uh-huh." Raven, on the other hand, frowns slightly. "She tell you I've got a brother? Well, half-brother. Max. Last time I talked to him, kid was dead set on getting revenge for his father's death. Pretty sure if someone explained what a vendetta is to him, he's going to swear one, too young for it or not."

"He will need to get in line behind Princess Florimel," Conner observes. "Yes, Scarlett did mention Max to me. Largely to gauge my reaction I think. I, in turn, warned her that Aunt Flora would be likely be here for the Mandatory Fun. In matters of Lucas's children, I would not expect her to be a hands off grandparent."

Raven makes a face, shaking her head. "Don't know that I really understand what that means, about not being a hands off grandparent. Not that I can't make some guesses, but... pretty much until I got lost, it was just me and Ma - well, and whatever girls were around wherever she was working. Really, so long's Max comes out of it safe, not murdering anybody until he's old enough to get what he's about, and with a better clue at what the hell he's been born into than I had at that age, I'm all right with letting Ma and whoever else have it out about how to raise him without me."

Conner nods. "One thing you will learn about Princess Flora is that she is very particular about the way things should be. It would not surprise me if she made an offer to foster Max in Paris." Conner chuckles. "Still, Scarlett will match her in stubbornness. I am content to stay out of the middle of those two unless drawn in."

Raven snorts in amusement. "I bet Ma'll try to pull you in, if she thinks you're even a little game for it. She'll leave me out of it unless I make a point of jumping in, and I don't want to do that unless Max is having a problem with what's going on." She pauses, then offers up a wry smile. "And so's you know, I got plenty of stubbornness from her."

"Good." Conner matches her smile. "You'll need it in this family. Though it is well you have the Naval training to respect the chain of command, so long as they are around anyway." Conner chuckles. "Well we should go get ready for the mandatory fun of Edan's event, I suppose. Wouldn't do to miss it. I'll spread the word to the Redhead clan and see about an after party or Family breakfast for introductions. Knowing Uncle Bleys, after party seems more likely."

Raven nods. "And the test thing before that, aye? Just track me down and let me know when and where."

Folly finds directions to Brij's rooms are in the Family Wing, but not the Royal Wing. They're... not bad. There's a small outer salon and a door further into the suite. There's a maid or secretary in the salon when Folly arrives. It's hard to tell. She's not a castle page, so it's unclear. She may just be a friend of Brij's.

She tells Folly that Brij is in the game room, to meet Dr. Suon's new relative. She will likely return before the Celebration tonight, if the Princess wishes to leave a message.

Folly knows where the game room is. Next to the studio, down stairs.

If there's a piece of paper and a pen available, Folly scrawls a quick note in her unmistakable angular hand: "Home again. On my way to dinner in a few minutes. Maybe I'll see you there before this evening's shindig? -F"

She thanks the secretary... maid... person and asks a few friendly questions -- her name, how she knows Brij (and her role in the castle if it's not obvious from the previous question.)

The best you can come up with is "social secretary/personal assistant/posse/and maybe confidante". Her name is Victorie and she came with Brij from Paris, because she wanted to see Xanadu. She's pleased to meet Folly and inquires after the Prince and her daughter.

She'll make sure Brij gets the note, but she's probably dining in the card room with the boys. Monsieur Winter was very clear that family events were not to be interrupted, even by close friends.

Folly thanks her, then heads down to the game room -- not just to find her mother, but to find out what this "new relative of Dr. Suon" thing is all about.

Folly takes the stairs to the basement and then down the hall to the studio. Just outside, where it only acts as a diversion if it's allowed to be, is the game room. There's a large pool table, a couple of pinball machines (in a soundproof booth), and at the back are a pair of saloon doors leading to the poker room. The doors swing open and Folly gets a good look around: Brij, Kyril, a new woman wearing a uniform, Soren, and Haven.

Everyone stops talking but Soren, who slowly notices that everyone's attention has turned to the door.

"So, I have no fscking idea what to d--"

He turns around, and sees Folly and drops his drink, which he rushes to clean up. Haven laughs at him, but helps him clean up. "Sorry, but it solves your problem, doesn't it?"

"Hi, honey, I'm home!" Folly says, and although it's not entirely clear which 'honey' she means, she's looking in the general direction of Soren and Haven. "Er, dare I ask what problem just got solved?"

"Hello, I've missed you, we're going to have a quick chat in the control booth." Soren is up and drags Folly by the hand off towards the control room.

Brij waves as she leaves. Folly's mother is wearing one of Folly's tops. She looks nice.

Folly gives a little wave back and holds up a finger in a 'sorry, just one minute' sort of way.

From the apologetic look on her face, she's expecting it to be more than just one minute.

Soren says "Wow, I am so glad you're back. Two of your cousins tell me that Vialle is possessed by the Queen of Bad Shit and they want me to arrange a meeting for them with Syd."

Folly is perhaps not the only one glad that the booth is soundproofed, given the loud and creatively colorful expletive that is her immediate response. Then, "That's exactly what I--- And that's probably why the Royal Wing---"

She spits out another expletive and then takes a deep breath, trying to force her thoughts to line up and march out in some semblence of a reasonable order.

"Do you know when he'll be back?" she asks. "He... ah... doesn't seem to be answering my calls at the moment. But I'll do whatever I can to help -- did you have a plan in mind?"

"He's been acting weird. Weirder than normal, around her. My new plan is 'talk to Folly'." His smile is tight-lipped, but Folly knows he's glad she's here to share the problem with.

"And... did my cousins give areason for their suspicions?"

"Yeah, Vere went to the spooky floating city and Cambina told him about it. Apparently Vialle convinced Cambina to take her up there, and the Queen of Tir paralyzed Cambina until the sun rose and she fell to her death."

He looks at the darkened tracking room, as if making sure no one is there watching them.

"Vere said something else I was pretty sure was important but that I didn't really understand. What does it mean to 'walk the pattern'? Because Vialle did that."

Folly blinks, momentarily stunned. "That's bad," she says.

Then the words start tumbling out: "Remember I told you, before you came to Xanadu I think, that members of this family have a ritual we go through to come into our power? That's it. And only family should be able to do it. And moreover, Syd in his capacity as master of this realm should be able to sense whether someone can. And I've never heard the slightest hint from anyone that that might be the case for Vialle."

She leans in close and takes one of Soren's hands in both of hers. She hadn't been speaking loudly before, but now her voice is a low murmur barely louder than a whisper. "Rumor has it that the Sky Queen who paralyzed Cambina has been looking for a way to... recorporealize. So, yeah -- not unreasonable that she's somehow possessing Vialle, and that's why she could do the walk."

She hesitates, winces, then adds, "The fact that Vialle disappeared to Tir and then became unexpectedly pregnant already had me worried that the pregnancy was... not normal, somehow. Martin said Syd seemed surprised by it, and that's not what I would expect based on my understanding of how this place and his powers work together. It makes me think maybe it's not his child at all -- maybe it's how the other Queen is growing herself a new body."

She looks like she has more to add, but pauses to give Soren a chance to react to all that.

Soren, normally not much of a drinker, pulls a bottle from the ice chest. He hands it to Folly and opens another one for himself. "So, we're what? 'Screwed as screwed can be?' Do you have a plan yet?"

"Yeah, I'm... working on it." Folly frowns, chews her bottom lip, takes a long pull from the bottle. "How hard would it be to get into his room?"

"Not at all. I'm the only guy in the castle who outranks his personal secretary, and we're pals.

"What will be hard is getting into it when he's both in it and alone in it."

Folly taps the lip of the bottle against her chin, thinking. "We wouldn't even have to catch him alone, necessarily, if we could just find a way of leaving him a message that he would notice but no one else would. Normally we could count on the other resident of that room not being able to see, but under the circumstances I don't want to make that assump---AAH!"

She casts around the booth until she finds a notebook and a writing implement. She flips to a blank page at the back, scribbles something, and then rips it out and hands it to Soren.

It's the little riff Syd used to play to alert them to impending trouble in the venue. The rhythms are spot-on, but she's added unexpected dynamics: a long decrescendo with a sforzando at the end.

Or maybe that's a long arrow pointing to which members of the band he should talk to: sf.

"And if we're not sure where he's likely to go first when he gets in, we can leave copies in more than one place," she opines, with a little nod out toward the studio, and his drum kit. "Then he can find a way to come find us. Hopefully. And anyone else who sees it might just assume it was a little something he was working on and wanted to jot down for later." She looks at Soren for his opinion.

"Well, we're the only ones here who are likely to leave this exact message, but it's not very proactive, and he really ought to hear the story firsthand at some point from Robin and Vere.

"But if it gets him to come to us, that's at least a start."

Folly nods, frowning in thought. "Well, the most proactive approaches I can think of are calling him, except he didn't answer last time I tried -- but maybe we can try again, or you can try -- and making an educated guess where he's likely to show up first when he gets back, and try to wait for him there. Do you know if he's had a chance to get trumps of Xanadu yet? I painted some while I was away, but haven't had a chance to give them to him yet."

"Those are your fold-spacetime Fantasy Magic gates, like the one your cousin made to the old city? Yeah, I think he must. He has a disturbing habit of just appearing places from around a corner.

"But if you want to know where I expect to see him next, it's at Edan's dance thing, replacing a drummer on the sly."

Folly can't help but crack a smile at that. "Yes, that would be exactly like him," she agrees. "Which I guess means I should head down there eventually. I just... might want to check on a thing or two up here, first. Besides you, me, Robin, and Vere, who else knows about what they told you?"

"Edan, Brennan, and Jerod. So, as secrets go, it's totally set up to leak, and soon. I don't know if they reported it to Caine, who sent him up there. Oh, and while I'm not actually freaking out, you were only middlin' pregnant when you left, and Syd told me you'd been somewhere where time went fast, whatever that means, but you are going to be a shock to Tjaden and Haven if you show up looking like you might've miscarried."

"Oh... yeah, about that...." Folly gives a sheepish smile. "It was a REALLY fast-time place." She finishes off her beer.

"So you lived for five years without any of your bandmates and we just went on our way with five weeks of rehearsals?" He hands her the rest of his beer to finish. "Hope you still remember the words."

She grins and taps her temple. Some things are etched pretty deep.

"Soon as we can, soon as we possibly can, we've gotta play together again. The band has a hole without you." He looks... agitated.

"Hell, if we don't get to Syd before his big pow-wow, we just call a rehersal of the no-refusal type and we throw you into the drum booth to tell him..."

"I am highly in favor of this plan," Folly agrees, nodding vigorously. From what she felt in her stroll through the castle with Lark, the band isn't the only thing with a hole in it -- but they can talk about that later.

"Which reminds me, I should probably go ahead and send my mum on down to the shindig with Lark, while I borrow back some of my good clothes and we maybe leave a couple of these notes around---" she gestures toward the scribbled music notation "---in case Syd makes it back up here before one of us catches him."

"You should tell your mom to find Ash and introduce your kid to his wives."

"Yeah, something tells me that will happen whether I tell her to or not."

She hesitates, thinking, then digs out her trump case and hands him a card, face-down. "Do you know how to use these?"

He looks at them. "You tried to show me before, but I don't think we actually got around to trying it. I've been a passenger, but I haven't flown solo, as it were."

"It's not too hard. You just concentrate on the picture and sort of... will it to make the connection. Kind of like that old pay phone at the dive bar on Elm that only worked half the time." She grins, then gestures toward the card. "Go ahead, try it. If it works, you can use it to get hold of me if you find Syd before I do."

"Do you get charged long-distance if we use them, or can I give it a try?"

"Free to use," Folly says, carefully neglecting to mention the price some people have paid at the hands of trumps. "And anyone can make a call, but only one of our family should be able to receive one -- so if you ever feel a tickle in your head like this when you don't have a card in your hand, either something has gone very weird and possibly dangerous, or there's something Syd neglected to mention to you about your family background." She gives him a thumbs-up to give it a try.

He connects first thing, and speaks out loud instead of just in her mind.

"Yeah, that works," she says, with a bit of relief in her voice. "Presumably Vere and Robin will be at this shindig thing, so if Syd shows up there I'll try to get him connected with them -- and if he shows up here, you can send him to me and I'll get him to them. If he gets in after the party is over, we'll have to play it by ear -- but my guess is I'll end up back here" -- she gestures to the studio -- "which is maybe not a bad place to catch him, either. Sound like a plan?"