[Elektra]

“My most sincere apologies…” Reed said, frowning.  He had known that Arya was incredibly disagreeable, but to be interfering with people such as the two in front of him was surprising.  It was obvious enough that they had an immense amount of power, and while it might not have been quite as much as Arya’s natural amount, they had been refining it for who knew how many more years, and he had no doubt that if it came down to a straw, Arya would lose.  Her style of fighting was powerful and explosive when she wanted, or quiet and deadly at other times, but she never took the time to think about what she was casting or how her foe would respond.  And he was sure that these two strangers would.

However, he could also understand her interest.  He didn’t necessarily agree with her plans and usage, but he knew that what she wanted was information on these strangers’ magic.  Spells, ingredients for different mixtures, their style of combat – it was all of interest to her.  And partially to him.
Not only that, but the way that these two held themselves, but also the way that they seemed slightly on guard was interesting.  Normally, Reed would have just opened a small portal and dragged Arya through it, but seeing as he wasn’t with anyone and he had quite the interesting pair of people in front of him, he decided against it.  At least for the time being.  After all, it wasn’t a difficult task to escape should he sense any threat.

“So, sir, might I ask who you are?  I can assure you that my sister, despite her volatile behavior, can be of interest.  After all, what she wanted from the beginning was not information on you and your history, but instead, your magic.  She has this ludicrous plan that she can become the ruler of our kingdom should she become more powerful enough to bring the different relics of our ancestors back to life, but our magic can only activate some of the many needed.  I’d be happy to explain more, provided that you’d be willing to help me out with her wish.  After all, I must insist on a fair trade.  And honestly, she’ll probably go into a blind rage if I didn’t at least offer.”

Arya nearly did just that when Reed began to talk about her plans, but her eyes widened as she realized that he knew more than she had realized.  She cursed herself over and over as he explained further, searching for different parts of her plans and research in the past that could’ve been discovered by Reed.  She couldn’t have been so sloppy as to forget to cover her tracks, and she knew for a fact that Reed hadn’t been trailing her for the last six months, so that left only one possible conclusion: he had been looking for the same things.  The annoying part was that it might have been for the same reason she was looking.

“You finished?” she hissed, glaring daggers at her brother.

“I suppose that I am.  It’s up to these two kind strangers, who you should be thankful didn’t actually try to kill you, to decide what they wish to do now.”

[Shieba]

Bentner and Morwena shared a look. The story Reed had provided them with sounded not too much different to what they both were doing as well, though it was pretty unclear if what Arya was doing - and Reed seemingly at least tolerating to some point - was what their kingdom deemed the right thing to do. Morwena looked at Bentner with big eyes; of course she'd go along with whatever he decided. Since this talk had turned strangely buisness-like, she knew this was where she had to shut up and have her Dear do the talking (unless this princess dressing like a harlot would say or do something not to Morwena's liking again, that is).

Bentner had, at this point, decided that he didn't want to deal with Arya much and more with Reed. "Your proposal might indeed be of interest to me, though I am not sure yet if I want to take it up. You see, I am not quite sure where you stand. From what I gathered from the talk you had with your sister, your parents are both very much alive, and yet your sister is trying to seize the throne. You, on one hand, try to stop her here, and yet you seem to support her as well in this task. I am not aware if your kingdom is in Evelon or in a different world, either - surely, you understand that we don't want to get dragged into a rebellion here, especially since your sister...doesn't seem to be the most level-headed leader to begin with." The fact that Arya could listen very well to what he was saying didn't bother him at all. "You see, in our kingdom, the two of us aren't exactly unknown, either, and we just had a rebellion at home a few years back. The two of us here come to Evelon every now and then to learn more about magic that might be unknown in our home, but we enjoy it a lot that no one recognizes us here. If someone did, things could become more difficult for us. With your sister's temperament, I'm therefore quite unsure if I can trust you - and her - enough with information about us, for we are powerful enough that telling you more about our magic would make us recognizable to one from our home, should you happen to run into someone from there in Evelon."

Morwena glanced at Arya to see how she would react. She was aware that the princess had already gotten a bit of information, but that Reed obviously didn't know as much as his sister yet. It was pretty unclear how close the siblings were and how willingly Arya would share what she had already learned with her brother. This situation was more dangerous than it seemed just now, especially since there was still Reed's man around - and who knew if there weren't more? Morwena tried to carefully sense for more people while still paying attention and being able to react immediately if the situation would require it. She was pretty sure that her Dear wouldn't even give out his full name as long as so many people were listening, so she had to be on guard.

(Sorry for the extremely crappy post, ffff.)

[Elektra]

Arya couldn't help but be a bit miffed at the idea that Reed had just arrived on the scene and stolen the show, but that tended to happen among people such as Bentner and Morwenna, seeing as they were much calmer than she ever was.  Still, she hated the idea that somehow, Reed had actually managed to get information out of the two within minutes of meeting them.

She stood by idly as Bentner replied, only to unintentionally raise her eyebrows in surprise as he explained his own situation.  

While he brought up good points, especially the one about their parents.  Sure, the timid fools were still alive and well, but they had no back bone, and no ethic.  Many times they'd been threatened with war or rebellion, and their response had been to talk it out.  What they didn't know was that often times, in the dead of night, Arya had a tendency to take the matters into her own hands.  Killing off a couple of radicals on night, threatening some foreign kingdom the next night.

It was because of her that they didn't have multiple wars and multiple deaths on their hands.  And after every incident, they never failed to remain completely oblivious to it all.  

In her honest opinion, those kind of people didn't deserve to be on the throne.  And despite what others seemed to think, Bentner and Morwenna included, she had quite the calm and rational side to her.  She just didn't delight in showing it, for many in the past had seen it as a weakness, rather than a strength.

"I see..." Reed said finally.  He had to admit that this was quite the interesting scenario that they'd stumbled upon, and he even gave credit to Arya for not irritating them to the point that they left.

"Well, I can certainly understand your suspicions, and even I have to admit that while her plan isn't as refined as it could be, I will personally vouch that her irrational temper only comes into play when she feels threatened by others.  And she can be quite the convincing and charismatic leader, as insane as that might sound." Reed said as quickly as possible, knowing that within seconds of what he said soaking in, Arya might try to kill him.

Despite his misgivings, Arya stayed put, her face changing rapidly from a half calmed state to an unbridled anger, but she made no move to attack him, not at that point.  Because he was trying to vouch for her, she figured that it was best to settle that little remark later, and remain as diplomatic as possible for the time being.

"So, while it is up to you, I will say that your identities and any information is safe with both myself and my sister her.  We both aren't fools, and we can see your own potential magic stored inside of you, and it is a fearsome amount that neither of us are foolish enough to reckon with.  I suppose that is all I can say to sway you one way or the other, so I will leave you with that." he finished, stepping back beside his sister, with not a single emotion on his face.

[Shieba]

Bentner managed to conceal his frustration well; Reed clearly was as cautious as he himself was. The man hadn't managed to answer a single question Bentner had asked. It was hard to blame Reed, though, for Bentner would have acted very much the same. However, the stalemate they had reached right now helped neither of them. He glanced at Arya again, noticing how her emotions flickered over her face. "Being convincing and charismatic doesn't make one a good leader", he simply stated. "I know that from first-hand experience, let me assure you." And quite frankly, even though Bentner hated how the prince of his home had killed the king that Bentner had served so loyally and had seized the throne, Bentner considered even that weak, soft failure of a new wannabe-king probably more adept at the job than Arya - at least from what he had seen of her. The fact alone that her brother could rile her up so easily spoke volumes in his opinion.

Bentner looked back to Reed. "If you two can keep informations to yourself, the state of your kingdom and what you do indeed hardly bothers Morwena and me. We have enough other problems. However, you said you want to learn about our magic. Clearly, if that involves learning about it to a point where you can use it - and maybe must use it to reach your goal - this is something that others from our home would recognize, if they came in contact with it. You failed to tell me where your kingdom is, so unless I know specifically how and where the informations we give you might be used, I am afraid I will not tell you more." He frowned. "Then again, it is hard to say if any information we have might be of use to you at all. We are at a point here where we barely know anything about another, yet try to haggle over something we don't know the worth of."

Morwena kept watching Arya and Reed from the sidelines. She knew that this was what her Dear expected of her right now; to learn about them and their weird relationship. Since Morwena's soul was bound to the one of her Dear, she could sense his mood rather well and could tell that while he wasn't completely opposed to giving Reed information, he clearly didn't exactly want Arya to know (which Morwena agreed with, simply because she always agreed with her Dear and also because Arya had been stalking Bentner half-naked) at this point. So she concentrated on finding out if, should her Dear decide to talk to Reed, he was likely to give any information out to Arya later. As someone who had been a royal advisor once and had then been branded a criminal by the new king, her Dear clearly was unhappy with people who wanted to seize thrones without seemingly being made to rule. And Morwena, being biased when it came to Arya now, clearly agreed. She had very little opinion of Reed yet, so she continued to observe for the moment while leaving the rest to her Dear. She feared, though, that her Dear might order her to get Arya away to speak with Reed in private. The idea to spend time with the woman didn't sit well with Morwena, but as always, she would listen.

[Elektra]

"Arya.  Why did you come here in the first place?" Reed asked, turning to his sister.

At first, she had a confused look on her face, and she just looked at him, wondering what his point was.

"To relax in the hot spring, of course." she said finally, seeing what he was getting at.

"Well, why don't you go and do that?  You've already caused enough trouble.  If you truly want to prove that you are more fit a ruler than you appear to be, than trust me on this one.  For the two of us to rule side by side, we must be able to have some sort of trust that requires no explanation.  And this is one of those times.  Please?" he said neutrally.

In all honesty, Reed didn't expect her to listen.   He knew that asking her to do this, even if it was for their cause, would still cause some injury to her pride, so when she nodded, he was indeed surprised.

"I suppose that I'll take your advice here, brother." she said, picking up her bow and quiver which she had sat down long ago and heading toward the spring.

"So, sir, if it would not be to much of an inconvenience, would you be willing to go a little further away from this area, just for a more private conversation?  I can assure you that any questions you feel you need answered before proceeding any further will be answered, for this is an important matter for me as well." Reed started, looking at his sister, trying to give her a look that said to keep her cool before continuing on.

"And, perhaps, if it isn't to much trouble, your partner might stay with my sister.  Surely with such an able mage around, there would be no way for Arya to try anything to interrupt or eavesdrop on us." Reed suggested before allowing Bentner a moment of silence to think his offer over.

Arya was handling the news that she might have to spend her relaxation time with that shrill woman quite well.  Her face was emotionless, but inside she was ready to start shooting at the other mage.  Perhaps if she found a way to make sure she couldn't talk the two of them might actually get along.  And with that thought, she felt a small, calm smile on her lips as she too waited for a reply.

[Shieba]

Morwena had to clench her teeth to not start groaning when Reed even ended up being the one suggesting what she had feared her Dear might have in mind. Just wonderful. As such, it didn't come to her as much of a surprise when her Dear nodded without needing much time to think about it.

"I think this is an excellent idea, actually." Bentner liked Reed's approach - he was cautious and didn't want Arya to ruin things. Also, the information that Reed wanted to rule along with his sister was interesting. Bentner definitely trusted Reed more with informations than Arya and maybe he and Reed could come to an agreement that only Reed would keep some information from Arya. Morwena was hardly a help in these matters - not only had she already proven during all of this that she tended to talk too much, but she also had no experience in such delicate negotiations. "Morwena, you will keep the princess company! After all, you were thrilled by the hot spring, weren't you?" Bentner's tone was neutral, but there was no mistaking that this was an order.

Morwena considerably cheered up when she was ordered around (because it obviously meant that she could please her Dear by fulfilling his wishes). "Of course, Dear! Anything you want!"

"Very good, then." Bentner nodded towards Reed. "Shall we leave the ladies, then? I would also appreciate it if your man - or men, if there was more than the one your sister attacked - would come with us." The last thing he wanted was if Morwena would start killing men staring at her while she took a bath. Arya was bound to rile her up anyway. "I have seen a little clearing on our way here. I believe it should be far enough away that indeed even your sister, with her enhanced hearing, will not hear anything anymore." He took a few steps towards the path he and Morwena had come to lead Reed if the other man would follow. "Morwena, behave!"

"Yes, Dear!" Morwena called, not happy to be separated, but knowing that her Dear could handle all problems well since he was amazing and great and wonderful. She herself was now stuck with this annoying woman now. Deciding that she could still make the best of this situation, she turned towards the hot spring, willing to take a bath. Glaring at Arya once on the way, she then started to strip. If anything, she could still make the little princess jealous by showing her that she wasn't even half as beautiful as Morwena and would surely never get to sleep with a man as amazing as Morwena's Dear.

[Elektra]

"I'm glad to hear that." Reed said with a small smile.  He turned to Arya, and mouthed 'Thank you' before turning to the hunter who had shown up a little while ago.  

"Please, return to the palace.  And there is to be no mention of this.  That is an order." he said calmly.  The other man made no sound, but got up onto his feet, albeit a bit unsteadily, and nodded before vanishing.

With that done, Reed looked toward the two women one more time before following Bentner, and explained himself quickly.  "I hope you don't mind my choice to send my man back to our world, but I would rather it just be you and I, due to the information that we wish to get from each other.  I can assure you though, he will not mention anything that he has seen since he came to find Arya; he's a loyal part of my personal guard who I trust with my life.  It was not actually my mother, but me who chose to send someone out to find Arya."

The prince was thrilled to have some time alone with the man, for he hoped to learn more than just what Arya needed to know.  The power that he sensed coming from both Bentner and Morwenna was more than impressive, and he wanted to know what they were capable of doing with that power.  However, it wasn't fair for him to get such information without giving Bentner information on himself.  Hopefully some information about his family's ruins would suffice, or he might have to resort to the tome that he currently had with him.  

It wasn't that he really minded the idea of showing the mage such a powerful item, he just wasn't sure what might happen if the relic was brought into the presence of an equally powerful mage.  Reed wasn't weak in the least, but he evoked only a small reaction from the ancient gauntlet, and Arya was only able to do slightly more.  The goal was to awaken it, and the other fifteen items of the royal familie's past, which included multiple tomes with forbidden spells ranging from black magic to the most powerful of healing spells, an ancient set of armor scattered throughout the kingdom from their first true war, and three powerful weapons, each enchanted and then sealed by the past queen, who had reigned before their mother.

To gather them all was indeed a feet to behold, but Arya had gotten the Bow of Iraganth, made by a famous craftsman for the royal family, and the Lance of Blorgane, a weapon their own grandfather had crafted.  And although he had yet to tell Arya, Reed had managed to find three ancient tomes, two of which contained a lethal black magic spell, and an advanced healing spell that would drain many users powers.  The other he was not sure about, for he could not read it completely, but he supposed he would figure out how to deal with that later.  After all, having six of the ancient items was impressive enough, especially after such a short time.  And for now, Reed had to be sure to get everything out of Bentner that he could.

As the men left, Arya's gaze lingered on her brother for only a second before she turned to find Morwenna stripping in front of her, almost teasing her.

"If you think that I'm going to be so amazed that I'll bow at your feet and jump into bed with you or that other man, you're wrong." Arya said, allowing the cloak Bentner had thrown at her when they first met to drop to the ground, revealing her now dried slip top and shorts.  She set her bow and quiver down beside the cloak and walked straight past Morwenna, rolling her eyes at the woman.

Although, she did have to admit that there was a slight twang of irritation when she realized that the other woman had a slightly more curvaceous body than she herself did.  However, it was gone in a flash as she reasoned with herself, saying it was due to the intense training and exercise that she often put her body through while on missions with the guard.  After all, from what she had seen - much to her disgust and irritation - she appeared much more muscular while still retaining her feminine appeals, where Morwenna was all curves.  And while she wouldn't say this - at least not yet - those curves would eventually disappear and turn into limp, disgusting skin that no man would want to go near.  Not even that hundred year old man that she fondly clung to.

And when that happened, Arya would be the one laughing.  But for now, the young princess just slipped into the spring, trailing her fingers along the surface, and did her best to ignore the other woman.

[Shieba]

"I am very much in agreement with you", Bentner assured Reed as he led the other man through the forest. "And I suppose I will simply have to take your word for it. I tend to trust no one, personal guard or not, but I do know the worth and need to have men able to fight well."

He looked around when they reached the small clearing. It was still quite a bit away from the main paths of the forest, but Bentner didn't like unnecessary risks. "I hope you don't mind if I put a field up to make sure no one can overhear us." It wasn't a question and Bentner didn't even wait for a response, but simply chanted his spell. For a second, a slight dome of light that suddenly surrounded the clearing was visible before it seemed to vanish. "No sound shall travel out of here now, but we will be able to hear everything from outside." Almost casually, Bentner looked around more and saw a few rather large rocks, slightly overgrown with moss. "Let us sit down, shall we? In my age, I tend to appreciate such little things." He led Reed over to the stones and sat down.

Then, he regarded Reed with a calm look for a second, wondering how old the other man might be. Different races tended to age very differently sometimes. "Now listen to me, boy: You said you want information not about me, but about my magic. And yet I cannot possibly give you such informations without providing you with informations about myself. Surely you understand that - you yourself said something about relics of your ancestors and learning about such relics will automatically provide me with informations about your world and maybe yourself. These things cannot be separated. As such, any information that may possibly be exchanged will be delicate - and it will have to be an even trade for both sides so that we both end up with something the other doesn't want spread around." Bentner studied Reed's face closely to see how the young man reacted. He himself wasn't quite sure if he wanted to go through with this. It was quite the risk and the portal to Evelon and the freedom it had brought him and Morwena was a welcome blessing he didn't want to gamble away easily.

"Since one of us must begin, let me tell you a bit about my world and why I am maybe willing to give you the benefit of the doubt and help you - or the opposite. You will not get any names out of me yet, though", he finally began slowly. "We live in a world where the dark god and the white god still wage war to decide the fate or the world. Our kingdom is far away from the battlezone, where no life can exist, but it is deep in the territory of the dark god. We are the only kingdom left for a long stretch because, while most of the dark god's demons are with him in battle, a few minor ones always roam the land and those are bad enough to bring devastation to us. Because of that, we were ruled by a great king. His rule was strict, but we needed the manpower to defend ourselves. Slacking off leads to death in such a world. However, under such circumstances, sacrifices have to be made and the weak often get left behind because it is necessary. Many called our king a tyrant, a murderer and worse and in the end, it was his own son who led a rebellion six years back and who killed his own father to take the throne. Our new king is weak; one who talks too much and acts too little and in my opinion, it is only a matter of time until we will all perish. Just a few of us, like me and Morwena, still are loyal to the old laws and who wish to return the kingdom to what it once had been. Do you understand what I am telling you?" Bentner looked at Reed. "You are telling me that you and your sister want to take the throne of your very much alive parents, just like our new king once did to his father. I value loyalty highly and am not liking your plan because of this. And yet, at the same time, I am now in a position myself where I want to topple a government. Quite ironic, isn't it? So, boy, you will need to convince me that this is for the good of your kingdom - not because I care, because, like I said, I really don't. But because I have met your sister and I believe she would make a poor ruler who will handle neither sensitive information nor a kingdom well. And I cannot give out information to anyone who doesn't handle information with care."

Well, that had been quite the speech. Now it would been up to Reed. Bentner knew very much that he was in the better position - Reed was the one who wanted these informations badly. Bentner was interested as well, yes, but he would survive without knowing about Arya and Reed. In his age, safety tended to come first.

Meanwhile, Morwena had entered the hot spring as well. She really still couldn't believe how horrible this day had turned out. At first, things had been so amazing, with them finding the hot spring and her being able to sneak glances at her Dear and maybe (even though she knew it would have never happened) her being able to take a bath with him. Well, now she was taking said bath, but instead of her gorgeous Dear, there was only some irritating harlot princess with her.

And 'irritating' was quite the right word. Morwena had prepared to maybe trade snide remarks with the woman and would have probably even enjoyed it, given that she tended to be quite the sadist with both words and sometimes her magic, too, when it came to enemies, but of course, the first thing the princess had to say was something that insulted Morwena's Dear!

With almost a hiss, Morwena turned towards Arya. "I will have you informed, deary, that I will never sleep with anyone but my Dear for as long as I live, no matter what you and quite a few others might wish. But I'll give you that you've got guts to say into my face that you obviously think of me as more amazing as my Dear and making it sound like only my beauty would make sleeping with him bearable! I don't know if you are blind or dumb, but quite frankly, you are probably both and not just a bit! My Dear is way beyond me and sleeping with him is the greatest pleasure one can have! But I understand - you might be not all that bad-looking, but even with you being a princess as well, no man or woman probably ever touches you, given that ugly personality of yours!" Morwena felt really like maybe zapping the princess with some lightning, but she had promised her Dear to behave, so she wouldn't kill the woman. At least not yet. If Arya ended up badmouthing Bentner too much, she was obviously an enemy and Morwena was allowed to get rid of enemies, after all.

[Elektra]

“Well, I do wish that you had such trust in your own men, for it is a rewarding relationship should it prove to be true.  But perhaps  it is not my place to say such things, for your story must not be one of great spirits to have affected you as it must have.” Reed began, automatically going into a more diplomatic manner of speaking.  When the time came, he would be able to show Bentner anything he might have wished to learn, but until that point arrived, he would be sure to handle their negotiations with the utmost care.  At this point, he couldn’t even imagine failing to get information, for Bentner had proven to be ever so interesting.

Reed watched with interest as Bentner prepared to cast a spell, taking into consideration his movements, his expression, his magic level.  While Arya didn’t really bother to listen when learning about more mundane uses of their royal magic, he had been quite curious as to the different uses, one of his favorite – and his opinion, one of the most helpful – was the ability to focus in on their own magic energy, and by doing so, they could sense their own magic and its levels when casting spells.  And, if one trained his or her mind for long periods of time, they could begin to sense other mage’s magic levels as well. From what Reed could tell, Bentner used little to no energy to cast the spell, though he wasn’t familiar with whatever the mage had recited, so perhaps his magic, whatever it was, worked in a different way, which might also affect the amount of magic energy used to cast.

Theory after theory began to pop into the prince’s mind, and he just nodded as Bentner confirmed that no one would hear them from that point on.  When Bentner sat down, Reed did the same, taking a cue that it was alright to be a little less formal than he normally would have been in such situations.  However, that didn’t mean he was going to throw caution to the wind when talking about himself or his kingdom.  At least, not yet.  And apparently Bentner thought the same thing as he began to explain himself and his own attitude toward their exchange of information.  

“I agree, and realize this fully, sir, and I also realize that my word in such situations as this one will not necessarily be enough.  And I am prepared for that.  I am willing to tell you things about my own magic if you have not encountered it before, I can tell you about the relics my sister and I seek, and I can tell you our plan.  Although, I do expect that this will be kept in confidence provided that I do the same for anything you disclose to me.” Reed stated, nodding his head.  Bentner was certainly a brilliant man, and Reed certainly appreciated his way of getting straight to the point.  He didn’t want to waste time trying to skirt around subjects, and he assumed that Bentner felt the same way.

“I agree with your idea that a ruler must be strict at times, but the problem is that I cannot respect a person who is willing to leave others behind.  That is one of the reasons that I myself do not agree with my mother remaining on the throne.  There was a point in time where my father and mother were equal, but our father went to battle when a civil war broke out, hoping to avoid the deaths of his citizens.  It turns out that the war itself was not even started by a citizen of our own kingdom, but of a demon from another world that we believe wandered into a portal that eventually led to our world.  And, seeing as our world is not a large one, and that demons will be demons, he saw it fit to cause problems for our people.  That aside, near the end of the war, my father confronted the demon, who had become the head of the rebellion, and while he did manage to slay the beast, in its death, the demon cast a weak but effective dark magic spell.  Ever since then, my father has slowly begun to lose his magic energy within.  For someone who had used magic ever since he was child, especially someone of the royal family, losing his magic was like losing an essential part of him.  Despite our best efforts, he just barely manages to keep his sanity, and his authority as king is equally elusive.  In all honesty, I never believed that my mother would become someone who enjoyed power as much as she currently does, for if I had, I might have done something more to ensure that things did not escalate to the point that it is at now.  Arya’s dislike, to put it politely, toward our mother stems from the queen’s treatment of her that began about a year after our father’s health began to decline.”

“Despite what some people think, as a child, Arya was not nearly as powerful as she is now.  And while she trained day and night, my mother insisted on personally training her to be a ruler, and a fighter.  But her idea of a ruler is not exactly the same as my own, or yours, most likely.  She believes that a ruler must do what is best to protect the royal family and their heirs, regardless of what that might do to the people.  And in order to be a ruler that could cast aside a life so easily, she had Arya train against her friends that she had made outside of the royal estate’s walls. Arya never really forgot the bonds that were forcefully broken during those years, or the injustices that our mother committed in her attempts to become a strong ruler.  And she dreads the idea that one day, her fate could become another child’s.  So she believes that she must remove our mother from the throne, and I agree.”  Reed paused, allowing everything he said to soak in, although he didn’t really expect Bentner to be satisfied with his explanation for Arya.  If anything, he might have caused him to be more wary of the princess.  However, that was what he planned to address as soon as he caught his breath and gave.

“Arya is a brilliant young woman, and while I’m sure you’re worried about the idea of her ruling, I will explain briefly her plan should we succeed.  She doesn’t want to be in the spotlight if it means that she cannot be herself, which she could not, but she does want to rule.  So, we have decided that should our plans go through accordingly, she will act as the head of the guard and royal hunters, but have equal say in all matters that affect our kingdom.   I understand your reluctance due to the similarities compared to your own experience, but this is something that we feel in our hearts must be done for ourselves and for the kingdom.  If it makes any difference, I will say that unless something should go completely awry, we do not plan on taking our mother’s life.  The whole point of this is to avoid any more bloodshed and heartbreak.”

Back at the hot spring, Arya glared at Morwenna, annoyed and amazed that this woman managed to twist just about everything that was said so that it came back to her 'Dear'.  "Dear dear dear..." Arya muttered sarcastically.  She rolled her eyes and whispered a basic water spell, creating a tiny whirlpool that lifted out of the spring slightly and floated toward Morwenna, lightly spraying her with water before disappearing into the spring again.

"Oops!  I'm so sorry!  I didn't mean to get you with that." Arya said quickly, not even trying to act as if she meant what she said.  In fact, a small smile played on her lips, taunting the other woman.

[Shieba]

Bentner shook his head. "Those of power should never trust others. Power is one of the things that attracts the most begrudgers and invokes betrayal easily, for such is the way of humans. I therefore believe in loyalty, but not in trust. Maybe it is something that you will have to learn when you get older, or maybe your race simply has it better than mine." Bentner could tell that Reed had at least some experience with diplomatic meetings, which was both good and bad. He liked to talk to people who knew what was going on, but having an advantage when it came to such things also often proved to be vital. Reed was perceptive, though - Bentner could tell he was watching him closely, both during talking and also when he had chanted his spell.

He nodded when Reed was able to grasp fully what Bentner wanted to hear. "Indeed. As long as the information we exchange are crucial enough for both sides so that we can each assume that the other will keep them a secret, we have arrived at a point where we can go more into details about what is interesting for the other. Though there is also the point of discussing what of this you will share with your sister and what not. You have proven that the two of you disagree in quite a few points, after all, or she would have not attacked you earlier."

Bentner listened silently to what Reed explained to him about his world. While Reed's story brought quite a few questions to his mind, he quickly got the idea that he and the young man would end up disagreeing on quite a few points. "As a mage, the fate of your father bothers me greatly", Bentner said after Reed had stopped speaking. "I do not know enough about your magic or said demon, but I wonder if there was no way to remove the spell, since you even called it 'weak'. As for your mother..." Bentner sighed. "I will truthfully tell you, boy, that the king I served under seemed to share many points of view with your mother, if one can judge it from a distance like that. The two most powerful families which now oppose the new government with me and which had been governing the kingdom under the old king share her view that the family and heirs must be protected at all costs. And quite frankly, I wish Mylord would have done something like making his son fight his friends from the city so that he could have never staged that rebellion of his." He looked at Reed, wondering how he would take that. "Our points clearly differ there. As for your sister, hearing something like 'she wants to rule, but not if she cannot be herself' makes he sound spoiled and not able to grasp reality. Those who rule always need to make sacrifices. It makes it seem like she uses you to do the part she does not want to do and you are blind enough to go along with her wishes and be her little puppet." He frowned. "You are a smart young man, I can tell. Our political views might differ, but in the end, your kingdom really isn't mine. However, I do not like your sister and if you are nothing but her marionette and babysitter, running after her while she takes her hot spring holidays and everything she wants, then you are not equally in charge. And if you stand below your sister like that, I will not give you any information if you will pass it on to her."

Back at the hot spring, Morwena had, of course, felt Arya chant the spell, but refused to do anything about it. Ending up with water all over her because of it, she gave Arya an understanding smile that was as obviously fake as it could be. "That is quite alright, deary. I wouldn't expect someone like you to be in full control of her magic. Your brain is probably already busy enough with breathing and blinking." Despite seeming calm, Morwena was rather irritated - she had been somewhat attacked right now and really felt like making sure that hot spring got maybe slightly boiling hot around Arya with her magic, but she didn't want to displease her Dear. Also, she probably should be more mature than that dumb harlot and simply ignore taunts...but that wasn't really in Morwena's nature. Casting a small spell, Morwena heated up the water around Arya - not enough to injure or hurt the princess, but enough that a normal person would be horribly uncomfortable and probably try to get out of the water. "Or maybe the warm water is just getting to your head." Morwena's smile widened even more.

[Elektra]

"Well, I suppose that we differ in quite a few ways.  However, let me make it clear that I will not argue over ideals.  I am willing to give you information about our lifestyles, our unique abilities, both commoners and royals bloodline traits, and information on the artifacts my sister spoke of when we first began to discuss things.  I can see that you are a brilliant man who loves knowledge.  I am the same in that aspect.  So while we differ, we also have similar traits.  I only wish to focus on those that we have in common, and the exchange of information."

Reed paused momentarily, his mind working at an incredible pace, planning his next words, analyzing Bentner's reactions, and trying to keep his goal at the front of his mind.  He wanted this for himself for his sister, and for his people, and all of those who were to important to let down when he had gotten so far.

Normally a temper was Arya's way of reacting, but now, Reed found himself feeling similar things as he listened to Benter's accusations about Arya and himself.  Arya was powerful, and no matter what someone might say, she was brilliant.  However, she deserved to rule as she wanted, so long as it was plausible and would help their kingdom to thrive.  And what she wished for was certainly in those boundaries.

Not only that, but Bentner was implying that Reed was no better than Arya in his eyes.  That Reed was to weak to rule or two keep his own kingdom under control, and would be completely dominated by Arya's will.  Even though all of this was coursing through his mind, Reed just narrowed his eyes as a small frown appeared on his lips.

"Your claim might be valid in your own mind, but I will never allow them to be the truth.  Arya is a brilliant woman who deserves a chance to live the life of a princess, and a balanced, strong one at that.  I don't wish to coddle her, nor does she wish for that.  Our people need a leader who knows them and will connect, not a beast who will toss their needs aside to better their life or the lives of those who they feel are more important.  I respect that your world might have needed such a ruler due to the circumstances, but for our world, for my people, that is not what will help them to thrive.  I go down into the city occasionally, and it is nothing like what it was.  People have lost hope.  They no longer see a reason to even try.  But when I walk by, just for a moment, they come back to life.  They remember my father, and Arya, and all of the prosperity that they once experienced.  If we remove my mother, we will be able to live once again.  And live a life that both royals and commoners can have hope and joy in.  I must ask that even if you do not agree, you at least try to look at it from my point of view.  Surely a mind as great as yours can see the truth in what I say."




|~~~~~~~~~~||||||||~~~~~~~~~~|




Arya was going to laugh as Morwenna spat out insults, but suddenly it seemed as if the water around her was quite a bit warmer than she was comfortable with.  No doubt it was Morwenna, but the princess refused to show her growing discomfort until she thought of a way to react that would be able to one-up the mage.  That was when it hit her.

If Morwenna was so obsessed with her old lover, than how would she react if someone decided that they wanted Morwenna?  Especially if that someone was a woman.

Deciding that even if this did backfire, it would be worth it, Arya tensed as if really just noticing how hot the water had become.  She shifted around uncomfortably, and then suddenly moved to get away from the heat.  However, she moved toward Morwenna, still frowning, and accidentally brushed over the mage's breast.  She settled with her hand on Morwenna's leg under the water, and a blush on her pale face.

"Oh, I'm so sor..." Arya started, but trailed off as if she realized something now that she was uncomfortably close to the other woman.  At least, Arya was betting it was uncomfortable for the mage.  Hell, it was almost uncomfortable for her.