faderift | Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

WHO: Select Orlesian and Fereldan Nobility and the Inquisition
WHAT: Josephine and Vivienne have orchestrated a good-will soiree in response to this dastardly rumor.
WHEN: Drakonis 15, Evening
WHERE: Skyhold Great Hall
NOTES:
- A list of nobles in attendance can be found here. The list was provided by the mods but there will be no npc support for them. Play away.
- A secondary outside party is being held in the valley in the tent town for anyone who couldn't/wouldn't attend and/or behave in the fancy pansty party.
- The goal of the evening is to clear up a spurious rumor about Cassandra and Leliana, with secondary goals of establishing the Inquisition as a respectable presence in Thedas (and fish for more money). Any major disruptions that would Game Over the court approval should probably be brought to the advisors and/or mods.

To say that Josphine has far outdone herself with this little soiree would be the understatement of the year. The Lady Ambassador has pulled out all the stops in providing a festive and yet elegant stage for this political intervention. Because sometimes gossip can be more deadly than a sword.

The Great Hall of Skyhold has been converted into a grand receiving hall, glittering with hundreds of lights around the room, in addition to the repairs accomplished to the original chandeliers. Of course, there has been artful placement arranged so there are a few shadowy corners for rendezvous of the more suggestive nature. Just in case. The majority of the floor has been cleared for dancing, and a fine troupe of musicians have been installed for the bulk of the evening's entertainments. Some members of the Inquisition have plans to entice attendees with their own artistic performances in addition to the group of mages performing illusory tricks to oohs and aahs.

For those who feel their energy flagging, there are chairs set against the walls, with a few tables interspersed between. Servers hired for the evening circulate the crowds with wine, fine Orlesian and Nevarran reds as well as crisp whites from Antiva. Refreshments are set out on buffet tables, tasteful and extravagant nibbles, including imported cheeses, spicy saucisson, dried fruits and nuts, and the highly sought after deep mushroom and anise petits fours that are all the rage in Orlais.

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Beleth approaches Cade carefully. And by carefully, she moved silently, coming at him from the side, angling people between the two of them. She didn't want him to spook, and she didn't want anyone to try to stop her until it was too late to interrupt without making a scene. In this manner, she seems to apparate in front of him as people swirl past. She's dressed differently, a mask on her face, but purple eyes staring at him from the mask, with vallaslin curling out from under it, framed by copper brown hair, shouldn't make guessing who it is particularly hard.

Her expression is hard to puzzle out as she looks over him. Then she lowers herself into a curtsy, bobbing her head to him. "Ser Cade. You look well." When she pulls herself up, she holds out a hand, a thin smile on her lips. "Dance with me. I'd like to speak to you, without eavesdroppers. I've already asked Ser Nerva if it was okay."

They needed to talk, and this was the best opportunity. With plenty of people able to watch them, without being able to overhear, they could speak without anyone accusing Cade of any funny business, and Cade wouldn't have to worry about her attempting to retaliate at him.

If she didn't want him to spook, it didn't work, but being walled in by other people was enough to stop anything too dramatic from happening. In truth, Cade was easily spooked tonight.
He almost didn't know who he was talking to, but when it dawned on him-- that voice-- he was immediately so mortified and so flustered that he looked like he wanted to melt into the floor.
Briefly at a loss for words, he eventually bent down slightly to anxiously murmur, "are you sure?" He sure wasn't.

Well, she spooked him in a way that he was unable to run away from, so, job accomplished either way. Go team. But he's there, he recognizes her (at least, she thinks that he wouldn't have quite such a panicked look when asked to dance with most people), and he's not getting out of this so easily. She stays calm, the out stretched hand never wavering as she waits for him to accept.

"I'm positive." Is her firm reply. "I'd like a chance to actually speak to you, Cade. Without people breathing down our necks. Up until the ball, no one has allowed me to speak to you, as if one or both of us might burst into a fit of vapors at the very sight of the other. I intend to prove them wrong."

Not that...Cade is making a very strong argument for himself.

Cade looks at her for a long moment, then looks at Nerva, then his eyes rove over every Templar or Seeker or otherwise disapproving soul in the room. He can't handle another public calling-out, or another reason to draw icy looks. But when he looks back at Beleth and sees her hand still outstretched, he gingerly takes it and steps forward, leading her onto the dance floor like a proper gentleman of status.

"I'm sorry," he whispers anxiously, more over her head than to her face as they position themselves, "I..." Didn't mean to? Irrelevant. "...I hope you're not badly hurt." His voice, low as it is, quavers wretchedly each time he speaks. He can't stop glancing around like a nervous bird, looking for danger in every corner.

She follows him to the dance floor, and a small smile tugs at her lips as she slides a hand onto his shoulder. It's probably...cruel, being amused by how twitchy he is, but it offers her some comfort, for how she's spent the last half month jumping at everyone who makes any sudden movements near her. This smile is soon followed by some attempt at comforting, however. Because it really is kind of sad. "No one is going to attack you while you're dancing with me. If you don't trust me, trust that none of them would risk Madame de Fer coming after them for making a scene at her soiree." It's said with that small smile, even if it is truth. Certainly, Beleth can think of a few deaths she might prefer over risking Vivienne's anger.

"I'm fine." She says in response to Cade's statement, and it's said so automatically that Cade can probably safely guess that she has had people fussing over her for a while now.

She lets silence fall after that, paying more attention to the dance than her partner. But after a few twists and turns, she finally summons the courage to say what she had brought him out here to tell him. She looks up at him, eye to eye, unwavering. "I want to apologize to you, Cade." A beat to let that sink in, as she's quite sure he wasn't expecting it. "This...mess. This entire thing. It was caused by me behaving like a child. I was angry, I acted out on it, and even after you told me to walk away, I kept pressing on you because you hurt my pride and I thought that being rude to you would make me feel better. If I hadn't been such a petulant child, neither of us would be in our current positions." She wonders if that's true, really. Cade had been a ticking time bomb, Beleth had just been the one unfortunate enough to light the fuse. But...she still has to take responsibility for lighting that fuse.

"So...I'm sorry, Cade. What I did to you was wrong. And I'm going to keep working on making it right." Speaking to the Seekers had been one part of that--Certainly, it didn't mean not letting him get punished. But Beleth's focus was on making it right by putting him in a position where he can, perhaps, heal. Something he wouldn't find on a battlefield. "I promise you."

Cade is mostly silent as Beleth speaks, his shaky demeanor in direct counterpoint to how confidently he dances. There are several Orlesians looking askance at them, but for at least this part of the evening, he's too deep in his own head to notice the stares.

"It's not your fault," he says in a near whisper, several moments after Beleth has finished speaking. "...n..nothing about it... nothing you did deserved what happened." He speaks of the incident as though it was an event he witnessed, rather than an action he took himself; perhaps it's because he doesn't remember it entirely, or perhaps because it's too painful pairing his identity with that of the animal who beat her down.

"...and there is nothing you owe me." He finally looks at her face, but only for a moment, before he directs his gaze outward again. He seems to finally notice the people around them, and whether they're merely looking in Cade and Beleth's vague direction, whether their expressions are disgusted or benign or bored, he feels the weight of their disapproval, imagined or not. He can't tell the difference anymore.

"What I did was wrong, regardless of your response to it." It's hard to read her expression--even with her eyes being visible, all the visible parts of her skin through the holes have been painted black, and her lips are a stubborn, neutral line. They only change to a smile as she notes their audience, moving closer to Cade. She's not just doing this to talk to him, after all. She's doing it to make a statement: She has put the whole matter behind her, and expects everyone else to do the same.

She wants to be seen dancing amicably with him.

She does, however, lower her voice. No need for any of those spectators to hear her words.

"Even though you lashed out...disproportionately. It does not change my actions leading up to it." Beleth continued. The way she speaks sounds...rehearsed, really. Like she's practiced having this argument before she ever stepped near Cade. "I'm not trying to write off that your actions were even near appropriate, but...no one is arguing that they were. And you've received your judgement for it." She hesitates, focusing on the dance when the steps get difficult. She's been practicing, enough that with Cade's more confident steps leading, she manages to not make any obvious missteps. Cade can probably hear her counting under her breath until the dance reaches an easier piece, though.

"...All I'm saying is that my conduct to you was not acceptable, either. That your behavior was less acceptable does not magically outweigh my behavior."

As Beleth speaks, Cade listens. He's adept at not saying anything, especially in the presence of a stronger personality, but this is also quite important for him to hear. He finally stops glancing around at the crowd to look down at her, meeting her eyes, his expression fraught with several conflicting emotions.
"I suppose you've made up your mind," he says with a note of wary observation. He's no good at arguing, and won't even do it in his own favor. When someone else is arguing with him in his favor, he can't fully comprehend it. In an odd way, her reassurance does make him feel better, even if it doesn't change the mess he's mired in otherwise.
"Is there anything I can do for you?" he asks at last, glancing up just long enough to whisk her around in a neatly-stepped turn. Even if she says it's all right, he's not a person who can settle for verbal assurances. If she doesn't give him a way to personally atone, he'll find one, and it's likely to be far less merciful.

Beleth just gives a wry smirk when he makes his observation. Yes, that was one way to put it. The guilt has been eating at her, and no one seems willing to do anything about it. It's not how things work for her, she expects to be lectured and told off, she doesn't know how to deal with the feeling that she did something wrong, when no one will acknowledge that she was anything but an innocent victim.

She doesn't answer him right away when he asks, though it doesn't seem to be quite as much about focusing on the steps now. Can he do anything for her? Fix her nose, fix her mental condition, fix her. She's pretty sure all of those are beyond his ability. What even is within his ability? What skills could he possess outside of combat that she could call on to appease the debt he owed her?

"An apology," She finally states, after the thoughtful silence, "would be nice."

The music winds down with perfect timing, and Cade gives a solemn nod before breaking their dance formation and leading her away, off the main floor. Never one for public displays-- or one to not panic over them-- he brings her to a less populated spot near the wall, and without any preamble, takes a knee before her in a deferent bow. Though he looks down at the floor, he speaks loudly enough that she'll be able to hear him.

"I apologize for what I've done to you," he says, his voice trembling with sincerity, "...for the all the pain and trouble I caused."

Beleth bobs her head to him as they end their dance, and allows him to lead her off. It's probably a bad idea, to allow him to take her anywhere that's not filled with plenty of armed people. She's sure she'd be scolded by various people if they found out. But there are still Templars charged with watching him within view, and Beleth is, quite frankly, tired of being afraid. Even more so, she's tired of being treated like a delicate flower, easily crushed by any weight.

Despite all those very noble and brave sentiments, when he gets on his knee, her eyes widen in alarm, and her head jerks around as she glances at all the people nearby. While Beleth has taken steps to learn human customs, some of those lessons have come from books of suspect quality, and this particular gesture is only done in them with one very specific purpose. She has just enough time to think, Are you out of your fucking mind, and My entire clan would kill you, and probably learn necromancy so they could kill you repeatedly.

But then he apologizes, and...nothing else. She waits for a moment, for any And I'll regain your honor or I give myself to you or some other weird shem bullshit. And relaxes when she realizes that there is, at least for the moment, no more weird shem bullshit. Thank the Creators. Moving on.

"Ser Cade Harimann," Her voice is somber, but focused. "I accept." And...that's it. She feels a little bit of tension leave her as she replies. It's over, right? That entire damned incident was over, surely, and she could move on with her life.

Edited 2016-03-18 02:43 (UTC)

He's walking along the sidelines when he sees her, swaying on the dance floor. Good, she needed to have fun. Course before Sam moves to leave Beleth is being led off the floor by... Cade? He hasn't met the man yet, but he's heard enough descriptions to know who it is. Hadn't he been the Templar that beat Beleth up - not that she would say a word on it.

Eyes narrowed Sam follows behind a bit, losing them for a moment, but finding them once more by the wall. He simply plans on watching, to make sure that nothing happens, but then his eyes widen some when Cade suddenly goes down on a knee. Of course there are certain things running through his head - it's not what he thinks though right?

'I accept'.

"WHAT?!"

Cade only has a few blessed seconds to appreciate their truce before he nearly jumps out of his skin. He stumbles quickly to his feet and automatically slaps his right hand against his left hip, but of course there's no sword to draw. It's just as well, because the person who yelled appears to be just... some mage staring at them. ...and... pretty much everyone who was over in this corner, who were stopped dead in their conversations by his yell.

Completely lost and looking for all the world like a frightened rabbit, Cade mentally scolds himself for daring to think the night was in an upswing.

Beleth moves quickly--She's had to deal with Merrick getting jumpy before, and Cade's tension at the shout is enough to get her into that frame of mind. She steps solidly between Sam and Cade (or as solid as a small elf between two larger men can be), and holds up a hand to Sam, to try to calm him down, and then puts her other hand grabbing Cade's right arm firmly--even though there's no weapon for him to grab, she's moving on instinct in dealing with a man who could fight viciously without his daggers.

She's not sure what Sam's so upset about--probably that she was talking to Cade at all, as predicted. "Sam, it's alright." Her voice is quiet, and firm. "I have everything under control. Let's just all calm down." She glances over her shoulder at--Oh, right, it's not Merrick that she's stopping from beating up some human. She releases Cade's arm, and gives him a little, awkward pat.

"Stay with me," She tells Cade, speaking more like you might to a spooked halla than a human being. "Just focus, okay?" Because the last thing she needs is for Cade to have an episode and lash out--at Sam, or her, or the pottery, or whatever. "Everything's fine."

Sam winces slightly at his own volume, head turning a bit to look at all the turned heads looking at him, which don't stare for long, quickly going back to what they were doing. When he turns back to Cade and Beleth he blinks, finding Beleth standing between the two of them. Leaning to the side a bit, Sam can see where Cade's hand had gone, familiar with the stance and raising a brow.

At the way Beleth talks between the two of them it has him raising the other brow. Calm down? Well that was going to be a bit hard. "Did I miss something? It's only been maybe... a month?" At most? "This is... a little surprising is all..."

Cade doesn't know what's going on, but Beleth is ...shielding him? And touching his arm, trying to calm him, and he has the sudden nauseating thought that something has already happened. Or it's about to, and no one can stop it.
"Um," he says distantly, then pulls away from her, looking frantically around for Nerva, who it seems is out on the dance floor. Rather than make a scene by rushing out to her, he makes a beeline for the nearest set of Templar armor, which happens to belong to one of the younger knights whose name he doesn't know.
"I have to leave," he hisses, barreling over the youth's confusion, "now." Then he turns, heading for the door to the garden, which will take him out above the cloisters and to his room. The young templar trails after him, shooting a bemused and slightly sarcastic look back at his comrades. He'll be back soon enough.

Cade doesn't slow down until he's safely in the dark hallway, where he cradles his head in his hands, knotting his fingers in his hair. He makes it to his chamber, in which there sits Hadrian, a Tranquil, reading a text by candlelight and awaiting his return. Cade slams the door in the Templar's face and sinks to the ground, where he presses the heels of his hands to his head and tries not to throw up.

"Your bedclothes are laid out," Hadrian informs him.

Beleth opens her mouth to speak to Sam, but then Cade is darting off. Beleth doesn't try to stop him, but scowls as he hustles off with some Templar. So much for trying to work this out. She decides that she'll visit him tomorrow to apologize, and turns to Sam, crossing her arms and staring at him reproachfully.

"You scared him," She says, like Sam might have missed that update, or like Cade isn't scared by loud noises, sudden movements, and the very act of existing. "That was going so well--And what does it matter if it's been a month? Is there a necessary waiting period for humans?" Sounded like a human thing to do. Or at least, Orlesian. Stew in your guilt for exactly 99 days before repenting. Fucking shems. "Because as far as the Dalish are concerned, the sooner you get it out of the way, the better." That's what her mother always taught her, at least.

"And even if it isn't a human or a Dalish thing--" She scowls, puffing up at him. Because she's tired of other people getting to decide what's appropriate for her. "--I'm a grown woman, Samouel, and I can make my own decisions. And I've already made mine."

And then there goes Cade.

Sam's mouth drops open a bit in surprise, eyes narrowing in confusion as he watches the man stumble and then take off out into the garden. That was... well he was rather skittish. Had he really scared him that much?

Rubbing the back of his neck he turns back to Beleth, lips thinning out some at the look she is giving him, looking a bit guilty that he had indeed scared the other man. No, he had not known that any of those things would've sent Cade flying - this was the first time meeting him after all.

Then there are the questions, and Beleth seems to get madder with each one, which has Sam's back straightening a bit more. And suddenly there was the thing about 'Dalish' and 'Humans' - that certainly has him frowning. Since when had he been one to judge?

"Aaaaalright... make your own decisions, I'm not stopping you from doing that, I'm just... surprised. Him? I mean considering everything, yeah, a month seems a bit soon. Are you sure?"

Edited 2016-03-18 05:13 (UTC)

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Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

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