Prepare for the #LodanRespawn2024 Existing characters may choose to be displace from/have memories of different timelines, thereby allowing returning members the option to retcon their whole character. These changes are the result of the "Unnatural Fog" plot device that is running between now and the Respawn. The plot is simple: no matter where your character is, that place is shrouded in a thick fog that suspends time, but not thoughts or memories, so even if they're repeating the same day over and over again, they continue to remember, so each time feels like a new day. For those retconning OCs; this is where new versions of themselves have the opportunity to replace the old versions. Official lore and tree updates will be announced asap
Ikuze sat in the living room of the house, sighing as she practiced for the umpteenth time how to "correctly" drink tea like a proper lady, her maid watching her carefully. "Still can't believe there's a dratting "correct" way of taking a drat drink..." grumbled the thief as Linda corrected her posture once more. "A lady doesn't slouch milady... even if she is tired of the exercise." said the maid, earning a scowl from the blue-haired girl. "Starting to wonder who came up with all these damned "rules"... cus if I ever meet them, I'm going to kill them." sighed Ikuze before she looked at Linda. "Did you manage to send the letter by the way?" she asked, taking a sip of the tea, this time with no corrections from the maid.
Linda nodded her head. "Yes milady I did..." she said, Ikuze raising an eyebrow at the tone of her voice. "But?" she prompted, the feline maid sighing. "It's not my place to say milady..." the maid tried to evade before catching the young ladies glare and relenting. "But, it's not exactly... proper for the bride to be the one arranging such matters." Ikuze looked at Linda for a moment before shrugging. "Don't give a toss about being proper right now Linda... Anyway, no doubt knowing her she'll try for some stupid way to enter for the dramatics... make sure the windows are unlocked would you please? I doubt grand-father would be impressed if we had to replace them again..." she said with a chuckle.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 15:48:18 GMT
This was a bit of a surprise. Being asked to go to someone's estate by letter was definatdefinitely something Danny had never expected. Well, since they were so kind to find a place To deliver it, it'd be rude not to show up. The boy stopped by one of the fountains to scrub his face then began his march to the Storm residence...
At the door, Danny opted for the more appropriate approach, given this was a formal invitation and all. He knocked on the door and he waited. While waiting the boy's thoughts were circling each other. What could The Storms want with him? If the old Crow needed him, it'd be just as easy to meet at M.I. headquarters... so not M.I. business. But it was Linny, not George who delivered the letter... wasn't it? Did the crow use Linda like that? Maybe Ikky? But what for... Maybe she ... no. THE Rogues'd help her get out for a spell if that's what she wanted... What could that little blue haired woman want?
There was a knock at the door which made Ikuze raise an eyebrow before she nodded at Linda. The maid curtsied and went to answer the door. "Ah please do come in. Lady Storm is expecting you." she said, inviting Danny inside before escorting her to the living room where Ikuze was sitting. "Thanks Linda. Want some tea?" she offered to Danny, gesturing to the set on the table. "Please, have a seat. We need to talk." she said, waiting till Danny was seated before she began. "Linda, can we have some privacy please?" she asked, the maid raising an eyebrow before nodding and leaving the two alone. Once the maid was gone Ikuze slouched into the chair with a relieved sigh. "By the Gods, it is a pain in the back having to have "proper" posture the whole damned time." groaned the thief before she regarded Danny.
"Alright, so you're probably wondering why I asked you to come right? Well... here's the thing..." began Ikuze with a sigh. "I've wound up getting married to Sourpuss." she said, deciding to just be blunt and outright with it all. "You can thank his dad and my grand-father for that little surprise..." said the thief, keeping an eye on Danielle in case she decided to explode or something. "I know you and him have a thing going on... and well... To be honest, I'd be completely fine with it if you decided to be his Mistress or whatever..." Ikuze rambled as she rubbed her forehead.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 16:13:47 GMT
Danny waved at Linda as she left and removed her hat and scarf once the maid was gone. She grinned at Ikuze. "S'why bein' rich sucks. An' thanks, I s'pose tea wouldn' be a bad idea." She took a small sip of the tea. Even though she was a street rat, the girl had decent manners. Danny quietly listened as Ikuze continued speaking. She stopped her tea cup halfway to her lips when she heard the bit about marriage and set the cup down. The girl looked up from her cup and her face was a blank mask...
"What makes you think that you and he getting married is any of my business? It's not like there was really anything going on. And even if there was, Daddy's got such a tight lock on little Stephen that he'd never allow his son to marry a full blooded cat from the slums. There wasn't anything going on. Yeah We would meet up every once in a while... but as friends." Danny's face and voice might have beenconvincing if they didn't sound so dead. But the girls eyes had a watery film that she was continually blinking back. "About your comment of being a mistress? That's not fair to you, and not fair to me. I'm all or nothing, even if I did like the guy."
The thief winced as Danielle spoke, even more so when she noticed the waters she was trying to hold back. "Danielle... drat it... If there was some way I could get out of this I would... hell, if I thought we'd get away with it, I'd trade places with you and have you be the one up on the altar instead of me." said Ikuze. She set her own tea down, got out of her chair and went over towards the girl, kneeling down in front of her. "Look, its just us two in here... Be honest here, not just with me, but with yourself... Cus I've seen the way Stephen acts whenever you get brought up in conversation. The idiots head over heels." she said, looking up at the girl.
Ikuze went to try and gently rub a finger across one of Danielle's eyes. "And if your voice won't be honest... then listen to your body." she said, holding up the damp finger as proof. "We can figure this out..."
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 16:37:28 GMT
Danny smiled at Ikuze that kind of smile you give to someone when you have to tell them their puppy died. "I am being honest. It was never going to go anywhere even if I wanted it to. This is just part of life. I've been through worse, so you don't have to worry about me, yeah?" Danny closed her eyes and took a deep breath before retreating into the comfort of Daniel. "C'mon Ikky, le's be serious 'ere fer a minute. Me an' 'im'd never work out anyways. YerYear a noble, e's a noble. Didn' I call it this way when we was reintroducin' yeryear gran'daddy? Toldja this'd 'appen, so don'don't' worry 'bout me none, yeh?" Danny reached down to pull Ikuze up from her knees. "C'mon, don' go ruinin' yer dress jus' cause ya think ya 'urt my feelin's. Dontcha know who yeryear talkin' to? I'm Danny Hepburn, Monster Cartographer, Mage Extraordinaire! Ain' nothin' I can' 'andle. C'mon, don' go frettin' bout this. Jus' le's get back ta 'older times when ya was jus' a street rat like me, yeh?"
And just like that, Danielle had retreated behind her male persona. "Oh for the love of... Danny, not now!" she said, aiming to slap her right across the face even as she was pulled to her feet. "Ah'm tryin' tae be serious here Danielle. And yet there ye go, hidin' behind the boy ye've made fer yerself." she said angrily, her own eyes watering at the circumstances. "And Ah refuse tae accept that yer just gonna let 'im go from ye... And cus of what? Blood?" asked the thief before turning around to the table and slamming a fist into it, leaning over it with her eyes clenched tight. "I hate this... this whole damned thing is just one big bloody mess... You two love each other, and here I am, the bloody reason you can't be happy..." she said, her eyes catching the glinting metal of a butter knife. "Maybe it'd be better if I wasn't around..." she said quietly, her thoughts taking a twisting turn down a dark road.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 17:37:33 GMT
"So am I." Danny stood up and brushed the front of her coat off. She'd just let the slap slide. "I'm just going let him go, as you put it, because that's what I've always done. If you get too attached to someone or something you'll just end up hurt. That's why I can just shrug this off. Because I learned this lesson before a long time ago. The only person you can rely on, can trust, is yourself. You'll be the only person who never leaves you." Danny walked next to the girl and looked where Ikuze's eyes were. "Even with you out of the picture, the paradigm's changed. It won't go back to the way it was. And you'll be laying the guilt of your disappearance at the feet of me. It wouldn't be Stephen's fault. It'd be mine. And you can't do that to me." Danny looked up at the ceiling. "Besides, love's a strong word. It's one I don't like to use." Danny ran her right hand through her hair. This wasn't quite what she had expected... "So you just go ahead, do your thing, and don't worry about what I think. You're one of the upper crust anyways... shouldn't concern yourself with hurting one little slum orphan's feelings."
"Upper crust? Please... we both know I'm just a doxy's child playing dress-up. Doesn't matter if my grand-father's a noble, that's how it feels..." said Ikuze after a moment of silence, her mind going over what Danielle had said before she sighed. "You're right though... I can't do that to you..." she said before a truly twisted and evil idea came to her mind. The thief turned around and smirked at Danielle. "But I'll be damned to hell if you aren't there in one way or another. You're a part of this even if both of you want to deny it. Bridesmaid or best man?" asked Ikuze, still smirking at Danny.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 18:17:31 GMT
Without missing a beat Danny replied. "Best man." Her eyes were half lidded and gave no indication of the seething anger that welled up in her. How dare she do that? After Danny tried her best to make The blue haired devil feel better... how DARE she? Danny clenched her toes inside her steel toed boots to hide her anger. Better the toes than a fist, right?
Ikuze knew that this was beyond cruel to Danny, but there was a reason for her decision. It was a long-shot but it was her best play... right up until Danny said she'd be the best man. "...Well drat it..." she said before she sighed. She went back to sit in her chair and sighed. "Alright, I'll be honest here... I was hoping you'd say brides-maid." admitted the thief, pouting at the cross-dressing mage. "The best man coming out at the "any objections" part of a wedding would be a trifle too scandalous I think for the upper crusty's to handle... although it would be amusing as hell to watch them try to figure out what was going on." said Ikuze with a small chuckle before she sighed once more and took a sip of her tea. "You're really not even going to try are you?" she asked after a moment, her voice sad whilst her eyes looked at Danielle. The thief sighed and shook her head. "This is starting to sound worse than some Shakespeare play rip off." she mused.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 18:40:51 GMT
"It's already happening whether I do anything or not." Danny shrugged her shoulders. "Besides, I wouldn't cause a ruckus on your wedding day. We're friends, right?" This was better all around. "Besides, can you imagine me in a dress? I doubt I'll even wear one when it's my turn at the altar." Danny sat back down and picked up her cup of tea. She followed Ikuze's example and took a sip before lapsing into silence. After a moment she spoke. "And how do you feel about this?"
Ikuze looked at Danny for a moment. "I dunno... think you'd suit one more than me... Least you'd have more options." she said, fingering a lock of her blue hair. "First and only time I went to the dress-makers with Linda... well... the owners were trying to figure out what the hell went with blue hair. Blonde like you... you'd get away with a lot more." said the thief before she thought about her question.
"I honestly don't know..." said Ikuze with a sigh, running a hand down her face. "On the one hand... I feel trapped. Can't exactly call off the wedding without causing a massive scene, and I'd wind up getting married off eventually at any rate... On the other... I can see what you like about Stephen." she said before quickly holding up a finger. "That doesn't mean I've fallen for him, or am falling for him before that idea gets wormed in there. I just mean I can see why you like him." said Ikuze.
Post by Danny Ravensdale on Sept 16, 2014 19:18:09 GMT
"Uh-huh. I'm supposed to believe that when you don't believe what I've been saying? C'mon, Rikuzeyah Storm. You wouldn't even give him the time of day if ya didn't think ya might actually enjoy this arrangement. You're too drat stubborn to do anything else." Danny took a sip from her cup.
"Since I'm being forced tmake part, when and where will it be? What about color scheme? Theme's involved? When's the bridal shower? And should I throw Stephen . Bachelor's party since I'm probably best man? What about you? Bachelorette party?" Danny laughed a little. "If I'm lucky, maybe I can swing by both..."
The thief pouted at Danny for using her full name. "...Okay, maybe I like the attention alright?" said Ikuze, still pouting at the girl. She thought about Danny's questions. "Apparently its happening the day before Hallow's Eve, at the Leland place. Haven't got a clue about the rest of it though... although knowing grand-father he'll have tried to swing Daddy Leland around to the idea of it having a "spirit of the coming holiday" to the wedding, just so he can stretch what remains of his wings or something and have an excuse for cover." she said before shrugging and chuckling. "Throw them if you like."
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