[closed] mommy dearest

[altusimperius]

WHO: Benedict, Gareth, and D'Artagnan
WHAT: visiting House Artemaeus for baby Bene's birthday
WHEN: backdated to after Brandgate but before Modplot pt 2
WHERE: Minrathous
NOTES: it might get weird

It's been a harrowing visit, and Benedict is in need of a break. It's no surprise that he had plans to visit his family mansion before the Inquisition took their leave, and that he should do so right around the time of his 23rd birthday, and this is what brings him and two chosen companions to the gates of House Artemaeus on one balmy afternoon.

They've taken a carriage, of course. He ensured that both Gareth and D'Artagnan were washed and dressed properly, and left no room for the possibility that anyone could track mud on his parents' spotless floors. He tips the driver-- perhaps a little too much-- as they reach the front entryway, and Benedict can hardly contain his excitement as they step inside.

The foyer is sprawling and ornate, blacks and golds and reds in luxurious fabrics and metals adorning every corner, statuary and tapestry of prowling spotted cats and magnificent tropical birds decorating banisters, doorways, tables, and anywhere one might think to look. A great stained-glass oculus beams sunlight down from the ceiling over the grand stairway, casting an intricate jeweled pattern on the marble floor.
Home sweet home.

"Hello?" Benedict calls as he enters, smiling, and is quickly answered by a well-dressed elf who comes to take their cloaks.
"Young Master Artemaeus," he says, looking more frightened than glad to see him, and glances to a second elf who stands in the doorway to the parlor. She shrugs helplessly; they seem decidedly unprepared.

Comments

[altusimperius]

"Well," Calpurnia breathes, "there's no reason to let that stand in the way."
Just as abruptly, she releases D'Artagnan and takes a step back, her dark eyes calculating and pensive. She picks up a glass of wine and sips from it, still regarding him with an uncomfortable intensity, but then, whatever her thought process is, she decides he doesn't need to be present for it.
"Go on then," she says with a wave of her hand, almost warmly, her eyes still boring into him. He's being released for now, but this definitely isn't over.

"Themes?" Benedict asks Gareth, pleased by the question nonetheless and clearly basking in the compliment, "you mean like how it'll be organized?"
At that moment, a soft knock comes at the door, and he turns to see a plain but kind-featured middle-aged woman in the doorway, wearing a tentative smile. "Micaela!" Bene breathes, and immediately forgets Gareth to go and embrace her, a gesture which is emphatically returned, only after his initiation.
D'Artagnan is likely privy to this as well, should he come up the stairs and down the hall at that moment.