Reception or Deception? (Complete)

[Razielle Alastor]

There came a time when sitting around being an ornament lost its appeal. That time had come for Razielle. She had been successful in leaving the palace on a few occaisions, but the security had been increased severely in the days following the royal masquerade. It seemed that the palace guards were on high alert looking for someone they wanted for questioning, that was what her maid, Lira had reported to her. They didn't even really have a description.

So she had put her time to very good use and like any good student, she studied. She learned the rotation of the royal guards, in specific, she learned what time the General could be found with a moment to spare. Her maid had reported to her in great detail his likes and dislikes from the kitchen staff, the fact that he had his own private stock of wine deep in the cellars and which type of music he had an ear for.

In short, the Princess had a surprise awaiting the General, if he could spare the time from his extremely busy schedule to meet with her. Putting the finishing touches on her makeup, Razielle backed up to check her appearance in the mirror. The red satin dress hugged her exactly where it should, her hair was pinned up, a few stray curls left to fall along the back of her neck, and she had recently dabbed on her recklessly expensive perfume, which would cling to the envelope of the note she had written and sealed herself.

General DeSang,

I fear we haven't gotten off to a good start. I wish to explain my behavior of recent nights and make ammends for my antics which have no doubt troubled you military precision. I request the pleasure of your company for a quiet dinner in my room after your shift ends. I understand that it will be quite late. My maid shall attend us so that we have a suitable chaperone. I shall await your company.

Yours, Razielle

The bait was set, now she just had to wait and see if her prey would nibble.

[Dalamar DeSang]

General DeSang,

I fear we haven't gotten off to a good start. I wish to explain my behavior of recent nights and make ammends for my antics which have no doubt troubled you military precision. I request the pleasure of your company for a quiet dinner in my room after your shift ends. I understand that it will be quite late. My maid shall attend us so that we have a suitable chaperone. I shall await your company.

Yours, Razielle


Dalamar caught a whiff of jasmine from the hard press of the envelope. Hmnn her antics? They only left me with questions but not really suspicions.

Dalamar smiled inviting a vampyre to your room was never a wise thing. But then it had been a long time since he had given into his more darker impulses. Those urges long since had ceased to control him instead it was the other way around. But, he had to admit there was something tantalizing about the young lady that had arrived. A darker side he would have to say...

The Queen also had seemed to liven up a little at her prescence something that Dalamar had approved of. Even he was begining to get tired of the restrictions he had to put on her movements for safety sake. Having to look over his shoulder at every moment.

He looked at the messenger who was still waiting. "Tell her that I will be there promptly at midnight. thank you."

Dalamar laid out the blue silk top with the silver dragons running up the sleeve's. Everyone knew from his old time in the "Eye of the Dragon" and his dragon swords and buckles that they where somewhat of a totem for him. He had his black boots shined and made ready for his meeting. He then left and attended his rounds the left gate still needed reinforcing and he had told the builders that he would be there to go over the plans. He nodded to the many castle servants. By now many where well aquainted with the General's rounds.

But before he knew it he was dressed and outfitted in the proper clothe's and walking toward Razelle's quarters...

[Razielle Alastor]

The General was shown in and handed a glass of his private wine by a smiling Lira. "Welcome, General DeSang. Dinner is being served on the veranda. Her Highness wished to make use of the moonlight."

As if on cue, the curtains blew back from the open double doors. There was a small round table set with prisitine white linens. Razielle had gotten the Queen's permission to use "the good stuff" etched with the emblem of the royal family and so shined, that it cast a glow of its own. Two elegant tall tapers were softly aglow, but they were for enjoyment only, there was plenty of light.

Razielle was simply enjoying the night. Wishing nothing so much as to go out into the city. But her boredum was at least at and end. He was here. She turned as the General stepped out onto the veranda and smiled.

Moving to pull out the General's seat herself, she thanked him for arriving. "I know my request is unseeming. Thank you, for allowing my..eccentricities.

[Dalamar DeSang]

Dalamar was shown to the balcony where Razelle was waiting. She motioned him to sit by pulling out his chair. It was a nice night with a slight breeze and the veranda was an ideal location to look over the city. Razelle spoke in a soft voice as she also sat. "I know my request is unseeming. Thank you, for allowing my..eccentricities.

Dalamar looked over his glass and smiled. "You are royalty your highness. I have yet to meet royalty with out certain eccentricities." Dalamar had never really looked at the Queen's friend before. Deeming her automatically to young for him. But now he saw none of that. She was a woman, a dark and sultry woman.

He nodded and head and raised his glass. "To a beautiful evening and even more beautiful company."

[Razielle Alastor]

Lira moved to fill Razielle's own goblet with sparling white wine, specifically chosen to draw attention to the deep dark red of the General's own. After replacing the bottle in the cooling bucket, Lira dipped a small bow toward the table and dissapeared back into Razielle's bedroom. She was a chaperone not a fly on the wall and she would give her mistress a decent amount of privacy..

"I'll drink to that." Smiling she lightly tapped her glass to his. "You are correct though, we all have our own little quirks. For example.."

Rising, Razielle moved the bottle of the General's wine far away from the cooler it had been set next to. She slid it beneath the glow of the candles where it could expand a little under the soft glow.

"As I understand it, you enjoy your wine quite... warm.

With a smile that could be described as a near-smirk, she moved around the table once more, to remove the covers from their dinner plates. "Well I hope you brought your appetite. I hear this is a delicacy and one of your favorites? I took the liberty of ordering the same. Imported Plicto steaks, rare.."

[Dalamar DeSang]

"As I understand it, you enjoy your wine quite... warm. Well I hope you brought your appetite. I hear this is a delicacy and one of your favorites? I took the liberty of ordering the same. Imported Plicto steaks, rare.."

Hmnn Dalamar thought to himself he must be getting careless if his habits where that easily picked up. But he was thankful nonetheless. As long as she didn't tie those simple clue's together and reveal his true nature.

"Yes, your higness it has been a while since I've had one. It is very nice of you to go to all this trouble with the Wine and the Steak. I know with all the upheaval you've been going thru from your own home I hope you find Onderon more to your liking?"

[Razielle Alastor]

Commencing with cutting her steak into dainty, bloody little tidbits, Razielle nodded, somewhat solemnly at the question. "Yes, I feel quite at home here. Her Majesty has always been like a sister to me. Residing in her home until my coming of age was a wise choice, one I am greatful our parents decided upon."

"It wasn't much trouble to bribe the kitchens with a few hours off this evening in exchange for a list of your room service requests." With a twinkle in her eye she took a bite of the juicy meat and gave an 'mmmmm' of delight.

"At any rate, why I requested your presence was to let you know that I wouldn't do anything to harm Adraudia. You need never fear that from me. She is as close to me as my own dearly departed sister was, rest her poor soul.. I just don't think she would much approve of my selection of beau's. So I thought a bit of discretion wise."

[Dalamar DeSang]

"At any rate, why I requested your presence was to let you know that I wouldn't do anything to harm Adraudia. You need never fear that from me. She is as close to me as my own dearly departed sister was, rest her poor soul.. I just don't think she would much approve of my selection of beau's. So I thought a bit of discretion wise."

All very plausible, all very believable. The Dark Lord smiled, it was a knowing smile. His dark blue silk brought out the paleness of his skin and the redness of his eye's. He looked into Raz's eye's and she could feel the weight of age of knowledge, secret knowledge old and deep. The night darkened noticably and there was a certain chill in the air. He spoke and his voice was low and deep. "Yes, discretion is wise." the sound of his words carried on in the night in a hypnotic tone. "Is there anything else that needs your skills of discretion?"

[Razielle Alastor]

Her fork paused in midair on the way to her mouth. She thought about the question. What did Razielle have to be discreet about? She hung her head solemnly as if she had the weight of all three moons weighing down her soul. After a while she looked up and met the General's disturbing gaze.

"General DeSang, may I be open with you? If you want a confession, some of my more shocking habbits may shock you, if you base me on the preconcieved notion of how a royal Princess should behave.."

When he nodded his assent and offerred for her to continue, she did.

"I.. was allowed a lot of free reign on Davora. I find the contraints of my station a bit much at times. I hate to wear shoes. I would almost always rather be barefoot. In fact, if my dress is long enough I have been known to go without." She went on..

"I know I spend too much on frivolous things like perfume and dresses. I think its a way of coping with the loss of my former life. I feel as though I can replace what I lost with new things and build a life around them, but I can't. They are material.." Her voice dropped for the worst of all yet..

"and.. I think I am becoming a lush. I find the taste of wine quite agreeable and desire to have it each night to ease the pain and help me to sleep. Do you think me wicked?" She peeked up from beneath her lashes and took the bite of steak between her teeth.

[General Devious]

"and.. I think I am becoming a lush. I find the taste of wine quite agreeable and desire to have it each night to ease the pain and help me to sleep. Do you think me wicked?"

"No, Miss Razelle I do not find you wicked. I have seen true wickedness and your little weakness's do not qualitfy. As for the rest every one deals with grief in there own way. Even taking to strong drink. Of all those that is the only one that I warn you against. We should never let anything control us." Dalamar paused. "As for the rest you are a princess do what you want and to hell with anyone who disagrees." Devious said the last with a smile...

[Razielle Alastor]

"That is the most tantalizing thought I've had all evening. To not care what anyone thinks? What freedom that would be!" She laughed and continued eating her steak. Razielle was not the type to sit and nibble at food for the sake of appearing a dainty female.

"I'll have to give the matter some further thought.."

She poured another glass of wine and swished the contents about in her glass, watching the way the candle light turned the white wine golden. After taking a sip and setting the glass back down, Razielle leaned forward and invited the General to speak more freely.

"So tell me a bit about yourself, you are something of a mystery to everyone it seems. I went to great lengths to dig up what information I could for tonight."

[General Devious]

Dalamar smiled again. "Miss Razelle I sense that a man of mystery is exactly what you want. Your mind probes for the unknown. It would explain your unnatural attraction to Salem."

"But since you asked I will give you one tidbit." He pulled his sword off his hip and set it on the table. The Black and silver handle gleamed in the dim light. The pommel was shaped like a dragon. "This was given to me by my Father. Its a Death Dealer Blade given from Father to Son. It has been used in my family before memory. I don't know how there made but they never need sharpening and can be used in saber combat. They go as far back as the history of my family goes and beyond. They are rare and valuable and there is maybe only a few samples of these swords existing anywhere."

The Vampyre smiled. "Does that slate some of your thirst for the unknown."

[Razielle Alastor]

Her fingers twitched on the table. "It makes me want one.."

If the General had done his homework on learning about his Queen's new ward, he would know about her talent with a blade. But would he see what every one else saw, a parlor trick? A pretty girl playing at danger to amuse men with drinks in their hands. Her heartbeat quickened and she had no idea why the stupidity of it all still bothered her, but it did.

"But then, obviously I would need one much smaller. I think that one would topple me off my heels.." She grinned and took another sip of her drink.

[General Devious]

The vampyre saw the desire in her eye's and he slid the blade towards her. "It is lighter than you would think. Take it for yourself and feel." She reached for the blade and his hand touched hers. She was warm and soft. Like silk he saw how beautiful she was. The heat of her body enticing him to touch to feed. His hand slid down and grabbed the sabre allowing her to slide the blade out. Like a silver snake it uncoiled from it's sheathe and into her hand..

Devious smiled at the obvious delight on her glowing face. Like a child with a new toy he found her quite beautful. He only said one thing "Try It."

[Razielle Alastor]

The seconds ticked by while Razielle was obviously weighing protocol versus temptation. She should absolutely not pick that sword up. But she wanted to.. The corner of her mouth lifted in a smirk and she rose, taking the weapon with her. In truth she was rather amazed at its lightness.

Stepping away from the table, she brought the tip of the blade up vertically before her and smiled at the General over the edge. Razielle moved, going through the motions of some very routine sword positions and footwork, nothing too showey. She loved the way the blade emmitted a hum as it moved through the air. Whoever had made it for the DeSang bloodlines had done a remarkable job.

Tossing it into the air, she caught the heirloom sword and tucked the blade beneath her arm, offering the pommel back to its rightful master. "Thank you.. It's beautiful.."

[General Devious]

Dalamar sheathed the blade. Then with Vampyre quickness pulled Razelle close, her body pressing against his. She was warm and soft and dark and beautful. The night grew quite. "Your skill with a sword is impressive Razelle." He said softly as he held her close he could feel her heart speed up slightly. "Now tell me something about you Razelle. Is there anything you would like to do in the cool of Onderon." Her dark hair and pale face stood out starkly in the dim light.

Her perfume wafted on the wind soft and gentle. A animal howled in the darkness Dalamar knew how he felt. Wild and powerful strong and free.

[Razielle Alastor]

What the hell had just happened? She had not even been that close to the General and now she found herself securely locked against his person. Half of her said, this is exactly the sort of attention that would win her the information she wanted. The other half sincerely wanted to gut the man with the flatware. She had just been thoroughly compromised and treated like a serving wench. The snobbish side of her flared up in anger.

Razielle wanted to hit him, hard. Instead she acted exactly as her Master would have wanted, like a Princess. She numbed herself completely and focused her rage constructively. Her intentions were better served by patience. She leaned forward and whispered.

"Get your damn hands off me." She shoved off his lap and walked warily around the table. Her behavior clearly stated her mistrust and sense of being wronged.

"Just because you have seen evidence of my weakened character flaws does not give you leave to paw at a Royal Princess. You sir, take advantage." Lira came immediately at the sound of Razielle's raised voice. She stood wide eyed as Razielle brushed past. Before disappearing into her room and slamming the door she made her last rebuttal for the night.

"and I already have a lover... "

[General Devious]

"Forgive me lady for going to far." he said at her hastily slammed door. As the maid rushed him out. He allowed her out right pushing even when she slammed the door leaving the vampyre out in the hall.

Dalamar could restrain himself no more he grabbed his gut and laughed. "Think harder then before you try to pull me into Salems little games beautiful one." The new princess was no end of amusement to the General.

Did Salem think his relationship with the princess was unknown to him. He knew everywhere that the spider had dipped his fingers. What did he hope to gain? Did he think him so weak? He would learn...