Private Tales To Bite the Hand That Feeds

[Zeraphine Batahlia]

The air outside the lecture hall carried the fragrance of early spring blossoms—a blend of lilac and jasmine that floated amid the gentle breeze. The sky above had taken on an equally lavender hue as dusk settled.

"Quite an enlightening presentation, wouldn't you say, Kaisa?" Zeraphine remarked.

As she strolled beside Kaisa, she probed the depths of her companion's understanding, intrigued by the theories and interpretations Kaisa harbored regarding the impending arcane storms. Despite the scholarly context, Zeraphine couldn't shake the gravity of these newfound revelations.

The implications were far-reaching, disturbingly tangible despite their theoretical nature. The aura around them held an air of curious morbidity—a mix of fascination and concern among those who'd witnessed the revelations.

These were discussions she'd soon engage in with her betrothed, Quintus. The implications transcended mere theoretical discourse—they had real implications for their people, the future of House Batahlia, let alone how it may effect the far reaches of Alliria. The troubling uncertainty gnawed at her, as such phenomena weren't to be taken lightly, even in the abstract realm of academia.

As they rounded the corner, they crossed paths with Eden Sinclayr, who seemed focused and engrossed, clutching pages of intricate sketches. Zera quickly smothered her eager sneer. Instead, Zeraphine's greeting to the Councilor was steeped in a careful veil of polite interest. "Ah. Good evening once more, Councilor Sinclayr. The lecture was quite the revelation, don't you think?"

Kaisa Eden Sinclayr

---

The Triennial Syzygy: The preliminary thread for those interested.

 

[Eden Sinclayr]

Pulled from her thoughts, Eden looked over her shoulder at the person who'd just spoken to her. Of course she recognized that voice, but still she feigned pleasant surprise. She let her face pull into a smile of recognition, a well-practiced facade of emotion.

"Zeraphine," she greeted the councilor's wife. Turning round to face the two women, Eden shuffled the loose papers she'd been peering at into a neater pile. "A revelation, indeed. Apologies if I seemed distracted, back in there. I was born on a Syzygy, you see. It has... interesting implications for me."

Though she and Batahlia were more rivals than friends to confide in, Eden was being completely honest in her confession. She had her own motivations for telling the truth.

Her eyes turned to the other one next to Batahlia. Bowing her head, Eden shifted her papers to be tucked under one arm so that she could press her other hand against her chest. A polite gesture. "And who is your friend, I do not think I caught their name...?"

Kaisa Zeraphine Batahlia

 

[Kaisa]

“ Quite. If concerning. “ Kaisa responded in a smile, still a touch baffled with just how easily she had seemed to secure any which amount of regard from one as Zeraphine Batahlia. Nothing to complain about, naturally, as she rather enjoyed the vicinity of an imposing figure — there were so many perks to being small and seeming insignificant in comparison. And all that appreciation was without considering the favour the woman had rendered her in form of her fancy magic tricks.

All that for a chestnut. No underestimating the value of a well-placed gesture, no matter how small. Or that of a smile, the warmest of which she had chosen to don for the time her eyes scanned the notes. Meticulous.

A skill much too useful, fabrication. If only she were in possession of a like power, she would’ve been— well, insufferable probably.

Zeraphine’s voice brought her back from her humming and hawing, vibrant stare quickly fixed to the one mentioned by name. Swiftly like a common soldier, Kaisa straightened her posture in a click of heels and jewellery, fingers seizing their leafing. Quietly as the two exchanged, she hooked away her small magnifying glass and rearranged the notes to be held at the end of a loose grip at her side.

Once she herself was addressed, with delightful decorum no less, she gave a smile and a curtsy. It was with a flourish, one leg kicking behind the other and tip of the shoe tapping the tile pointedly. To it’s wake, she flashed her widest smile.

“ Matilda Laakso. “ She introduced herself, head tilting. “ I’d congratulate you for your fast approaching birthday, good Councillor, but in light of what we’ve just learned it appears a little— “

Glancing at Zeraphine with acknowledgement, she let a bit of lamentation creep into her look.

“Uncouth? “

Zeraphine Batahlia Eden Sinclayr

 

[Zeraphine Batahlia]

"A revelation, indeed. Apologies if I seemed distracted, back in there. I was born on a Syzygy, you see. It has... interesting implications for me."

Zeraphine reacted with mock incredulity, "My, what a prolific birth. Must have been an awful surprise once they all discovered the more nefarious implications it would have on your..." She paused with a bored smirk, "—charming disposition."

She rearranged the draping cloth of one of her sleeves dismissively as Kaisa spoke. "Yes, as my new friend Matilda has so astutely pointed out. In light of the lecture, I imagine you'll be taking your findings to the Council, yes?"

Kaisa Eden Sinclayr

 

[Eden Sinclayr]

Matilda Laasko. A newcomer with such a pretty smile and a perfect curtsy. Eden made a note to check that name against the records when she got home.

“ I’d congratulate you for your fast approaching birthday, good Councillor, but in light of what we’ve just learned it appears a little... uncouth?"

"Ah, well, we usually do something the week after, when I'm feeling more myself," Eden stated mildly, with the affectation of someone embarrassed to be such an inconvenience.

"Surely I will make my report, but it is likely to fall on deaf ears. The council does not regard me as much of a magical expert. My seat has to do with regulating the purity of precious metals. It was only personal interest that had me come to this lecture."
Eden nodded down the street, indicating that they should venture a little further from the planetarium's entrance, lest some dowdy scholar come shoo their group away.

"Going this way?" A click of heel against cobblestone, and she began walking at a leisurely pace, to no destination in particular. If they followed, she would continue:

"Might I ask what got you two interested in the topic?" Her features fell, lips a flat line and brows a scour, a truer reflection of her mood. "Aside from our mutual impending doom, of course."

Kaisa Zeraphine Batahlia