RVA: Shadow of the Future
Oct. 6th, 2014 04:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jeriendhalStarting in the middle with the immediate sequel to Shadow of Her Sins, since the opening I've got half-written needs to be fixed up.
* * *
“Salli, could we speak to you for a moment?” her mother said, then glanced at Alinadar briefly. “Alone.”
“What’s the matter?” Salli asked.
“It’s a family concern,” her mother replied, her tone brooking little argument.
“I’ll just wait outside, Salli,” Ali said, turning slightly to duck her head at Salli’s parents.
“Stay close,” Salli told her.
The heavy office door closed with a muffled thump as the younger vixen stepped out into the secretary’s office. She looked at her parents, raising an eyebrow at them both. They sat behind their respective desks, both angled slightly towards her. She wondered why it was making her think of old fashioned fortress walls. “What’s the matter?” she asked.
“Salli, what are your intentions towards your bodyguard?” her mother asked without preamble. Her father, to his credit, made a little wince at this.
“My intention? My intention is to marry her,” Salli said, feeling her tail stiffen. She managed to will her ears not to turn back defensively. I knew this fight would be coming, she thought. Ali had all but begged me not to start it.
“Salli, you do understand how unacceptable that idea, I hope.”
Faced with several options with her reply, almost all of them bad, Salli opted to play innocent for the moment. “Why? I’d hardly be the first noblevixen to marry a Commoner. Though I’ll admit most example have put in time in a more conventional Military path.”
“The vixen was never Military,” Salli’s mother said sharply. “She’s a pirate, a convicted pirate.”
“Convicted, and serving her sentence under my supervision,” Salli noted, adding, “Given that the length of her sentence is for life, it would simplify things enormously if we were married as well.”
“Wouldn’t that place you in a conflict of interest?” her father interjected mildly, then shut up again at a quelling look from his wife.
“Salli, if this was a Summer Romance, something I thought you would have enough to sense to walk away from, then it almost might be acceptable,” her mother continued. “But you’re talking about marriage, a wife and partner to raise cubs with, to raise the next Countess for our district. This vixen is a cub murderer.”
“Yes,” Salli agreed flatly.
Her mother stared at Salli, her expression somewhere between exasperation and appall. “And you’re all right with that?”
“Alinadar murdered, by own accounting, at least twenty-three children,” Salli said. “She committed those crimes before she was sixteen, when she was the slave of Bloody Margo, one of the cruelest and most infamous of the so-called Pirate Lords. If Ali had refused to commit those murders, she would have been killed herself. Indeed, she almost was killed, when Bloody Margo recaptured her, shaved her pelt off, and left literally hung outside to die of hypothermia and an infected wound. She was judged for those crimes and found innocent, for she was without agency and under the threat of death herself.
“The rest of her crimes were committed under the command of the Red Vixen, the same pirate who kidnapped Rolas almost two years ago. While I’m loathe to call the Red Vixen morally superior to her brethren, she at least attempted to minimize casualties in her attacks against ships. She also attempted, in her own flawed way, to bring Ali back to something resembling sanity.”
Salli clamped her mouth shut before she offered more unsolicited opinions concerning her very troublesome in-law. Mother and Father, only knowing the public persona of Lady Melanie Darktail nee Lovejoy, thought the world of their daughter-in-law, whom as Lady Melanie had bailed their family out financially after her alternate persona, the Red Vixen, had taken Rolas hostage. Salli, privy to the entire truth, including Melanie’s idiotic initial attempt to throw her and Ali together, tried to keep as much distance between herself and her brother’s wife as she possibly could.
“It’s Miss Blacksailor’s sanity that has us worried the most,” her father said cautiously. “Forgive me, dear, but going by the psychological reports that were offered by her defense team at her trial, the young vixen sounds dangerously unhinged.”
Salli offered her father a brief nod. “True. Ali is not, by the most generous definition of the term, sane. Then again, neither am I. But we are both recovering, step by step, and we are both standing on stronger ground than we were before. And when that ground slips under our foot pads, we each can offer the other a strong paw to hold onto. That’s the best definition I’ve been able to come up with for our relationship.” She prudently didn’t add, And the sex is fantastic. “At any rate, I intend to consult with Dr. Kwan as soon as possible, to arrange for a psychological counselor from Earth who specializes in childhood abuse cases to help Ali, much as Melanie found Dr. Kwan to help me.”
“Well that’s a good idea at least,” her mother agreed. “But as for the rest; Salli, you’re going to have think again about marriage. I understand you have a… deep bond with Ms. Blacksailor, but she’s completely unsuitable. I’m sorry, she just isn’t going to be accepted as the mate to a Countess’ heir.”
“If I’m married to her, people will have to accept her, whether or not they like her. And given we’ll spending most of our time at our colony on Greenholme, my interest in what other people think of our marriage would be at best academic.”
Her mother’s expression grew pained. “We have to take interest, Salli. My dear, I’ve just been jumped up a little over a year ago to a Countessship, and you and your brother are now Vicountesses. The majority of the Council voted for our elevation, but a significant minority did not, and we have to deal with them. And even some of those who did vote in our favor are now looking in askance at us, as we now have Greenholme as a personal fiefdom. There are just three other countesses who can claim the same, and they’re all part of the Ten. Any weakness on our part, any hint of impropriety, is going to be pounced on in an attempt to cut down our power.”
That set Salli back. Temporizing for a moment while she gathered her thoughts, she asked, “Have things grown that bad?”
“Not… yet,” her father told her. “But there have been hints here and there, around the edges. That perhaps such a newly elevated family won’t have the resources to handle a colony world on their own.”
“We’re getting shipping the Greenholme through Melanie’s company, and the Lovejoys are vassals to Countess Brighttail. Surely that’s sharing the wealth enough to satisfy the other Countesses,” Salli pointed out.
“Satisfy some, but not all,” her mother said. “We dare not give them any more ammunition than we must.”
Salli took in a deep breath. The look on her mother’s face was extremely unhappy, but also firm. If Salli chose to push things, it was entirely possible that Mother would outright forbid the idea of she and Ali marrying. And as her mother’s liegesworn daughter and heir, such an order would be quite legally binding.
“I will… have to inform Ali of the situation,” Salli finally said. “She’s a sensitive vixen. I have to make sure she understands this isn’t her fault.”
Her mother and father both relaxed, the tension in the room dissipating palpably. “Of course, Salli,” her mother agreed. “Go talk to her.”
Salli accepted the dismissal with a nod, turning away and managing to close the door to her parent’s office without slamming it. Ali, sensitive to her moods, immediately came to attention, stepping away from where she’d been leaning against the wall. She followed Salli at a silent gesture, breaking into a brief jog as Salli’s strides lengthened down the hallway.
“Didn’t go well, did it?” Ali asked, matching pace with her.
“No, it did not,” Salli admitted, slowing down as they came to the foot of the stairs, trying to moderate her anger. No need to give the servants more to gossip about.
“Told you it wouldn’t.”
“You were right.”
Ali began to follow her up stairs. “So what now?”
“I don’t know…”
* * *
“Salli, could we speak to you for a moment?” her mother said, then glanced at Alinadar briefly. “Alone.”
“What’s the matter?” Salli asked.
“It’s a family concern,” her mother replied, her tone brooking little argument.
“I’ll just wait outside, Salli,” Ali said, turning slightly to duck her head at Salli’s parents.
“Stay close,” Salli told her.
The heavy office door closed with a muffled thump as the younger vixen stepped out into the secretary’s office. She looked at her parents, raising an eyebrow at them both. They sat behind their respective desks, both angled slightly towards her. She wondered why it was making her think of old fashioned fortress walls. “What’s the matter?” she asked.
“Salli, what are your intentions towards your bodyguard?” her mother asked without preamble. Her father, to his credit, made a little wince at this.
“My intention? My intention is to marry her,” Salli said, feeling her tail stiffen. She managed to will her ears not to turn back defensively. I knew this fight would be coming, she thought. Ali had all but begged me not to start it.
“Salli, you do understand how unacceptable that idea, I hope.”
Faced with several options with her reply, almost all of them bad, Salli opted to play innocent for the moment. “Why? I’d hardly be the first noblevixen to marry a Commoner. Though I’ll admit most example have put in time in a more conventional Military path.”
“The vixen was never Military,” Salli’s mother said sharply. “She’s a pirate, a convicted pirate.”
“Convicted, and serving her sentence under my supervision,” Salli noted, adding, “Given that the length of her sentence is for life, it would simplify things enormously if we were married as well.”
“Wouldn’t that place you in a conflict of interest?” her father interjected mildly, then shut up again at a quelling look from his wife.
“Salli, if this was a Summer Romance, something I thought you would have enough to sense to walk away from, then it almost might be acceptable,” her mother continued. “But you’re talking about marriage, a wife and partner to raise cubs with, to raise the next Countess for our district. This vixen is a cub murderer.”
“Yes,” Salli agreed flatly.
Her mother stared at Salli, her expression somewhere between exasperation and appall. “And you’re all right with that?”
“Alinadar murdered, by own accounting, at least twenty-three children,” Salli said. “She committed those crimes before she was sixteen, when she was the slave of Bloody Margo, one of the cruelest and most infamous of the so-called Pirate Lords. If Ali had refused to commit those murders, she would have been killed herself. Indeed, she almost was killed, when Bloody Margo recaptured her, shaved her pelt off, and left literally hung outside to die of hypothermia and an infected wound. She was judged for those crimes and found innocent, for she was without agency and under the threat of death herself.
“The rest of her crimes were committed under the command of the Red Vixen, the same pirate who kidnapped Rolas almost two years ago. While I’m loathe to call the Red Vixen morally superior to her brethren, she at least attempted to minimize casualties in her attacks against ships. She also attempted, in her own flawed way, to bring Ali back to something resembling sanity.”
Salli clamped her mouth shut before she offered more unsolicited opinions concerning her very troublesome in-law. Mother and Father, only knowing the public persona of Lady Melanie Darktail nee Lovejoy, thought the world of their daughter-in-law, whom as Lady Melanie had bailed their family out financially after her alternate persona, the Red Vixen, had taken Rolas hostage. Salli, privy to the entire truth, including Melanie’s idiotic initial attempt to throw her and Ali together, tried to keep as much distance between herself and her brother’s wife as she possibly could.
“It’s Miss Blacksailor’s sanity that has us worried the most,” her father said cautiously. “Forgive me, dear, but going by the psychological reports that were offered by her defense team at her trial, the young vixen sounds dangerously unhinged.”
Salli offered her father a brief nod. “True. Ali is not, by the most generous definition of the term, sane. Then again, neither am I. But we are both recovering, step by step, and we are both standing on stronger ground than we were before. And when that ground slips under our foot pads, we each can offer the other a strong paw to hold onto. That’s the best definition I’ve been able to come up with for our relationship.” She prudently didn’t add, And the sex is fantastic. “At any rate, I intend to consult with Dr. Kwan as soon as possible, to arrange for a psychological counselor from Earth who specializes in childhood abuse cases to help Ali, much as Melanie found Dr. Kwan to help me.”
“Well that’s a good idea at least,” her mother agreed. “But as for the rest; Salli, you’re going to have think again about marriage. I understand you have a… deep bond with Ms. Blacksailor, but she’s completely unsuitable. I’m sorry, she just isn’t going to be accepted as the mate to a Countess’ heir.”
“If I’m married to her, people will have to accept her, whether or not they like her. And given we’ll spending most of our time at our colony on Greenholme, my interest in what other people think of our marriage would be at best academic.”
Her mother’s expression grew pained. “We have to take interest, Salli. My dear, I’ve just been jumped up a little over a year ago to a Countessship, and you and your brother are now Vicountesses. The majority of the Council voted for our elevation, but a significant minority did not, and we have to deal with them. And even some of those who did vote in our favor are now looking in askance at us, as we now have Greenholme as a personal fiefdom. There are just three other countesses who can claim the same, and they’re all part of the Ten. Any weakness on our part, any hint of impropriety, is going to be pounced on in an attempt to cut down our power.”
That set Salli back. Temporizing for a moment while she gathered her thoughts, she asked, “Have things grown that bad?”
“Not… yet,” her father told her. “But there have been hints here and there, around the edges. That perhaps such a newly elevated family won’t have the resources to handle a colony world on their own.”
“We’re getting shipping the Greenholme through Melanie’s company, and the Lovejoys are vassals to Countess Brighttail. Surely that’s sharing the wealth enough to satisfy the other Countesses,” Salli pointed out.
“Satisfy some, but not all,” her mother said. “We dare not give them any more ammunition than we must.”
Salli took in a deep breath. The look on her mother’s face was extremely unhappy, but also firm. If Salli chose to push things, it was entirely possible that Mother would outright forbid the idea of she and Ali marrying. And as her mother’s liegesworn daughter and heir, such an order would be quite legally binding.
“I will… have to inform Ali of the situation,” Salli finally said. “She’s a sensitive vixen. I have to make sure she understands this isn’t her fault.”
Her mother and father both relaxed, the tension in the room dissipating palpably. “Of course, Salli,” her mother agreed. “Go talk to her.”
Salli accepted the dismissal with a nod, turning away and managing to close the door to her parent’s office without slamming it. Ali, sensitive to her moods, immediately came to attention, stepping away from where she’d been leaning against the wall. She followed Salli at a silent gesture, breaking into a brief jog as Salli’s strides lengthened down the hallway.
“Didn’t go well, did it?” Ali asked, matching pace with her.
“No, it did not,” Salli admitted, slowing down as they came to the foot of the stairs, trying to moderate her anger. No need to give the servants more to gossip about.
“Told you it wouldn’t.”
“You were right.”
Ali began to follow her up stairs. “So what now?”
“I don’t know…”
