Noblesse Oblige [Znt/SI]
EvilPorygon
Cookie Monster
- Location
- a phone
Shade is a man grown, with a heart as dark as the night sky and a resolution as bitter as a cup of coffee robusta. He'll deal with it.
I'm not quite understanding the Karin hate here. She's not rubbing it in; she's trying to justify the fact that this is an opportunity in and of itself. Being a prince consort is no small thing in actuality; Henry might be the king, in all but name someday. Hell, he has the possibility of being an actual king even, like King Henry de Tristain who rules in Marianne's stead.
Karin tossed a wind spell at a wall to make the point that there would be no more discussion that night, and then sent Shade to his room at the end. It's abrupt, but I don't see anything wrong with it from an IC perspective. Karin will probably have a hard time sleeping this night, with the words freedom of choice lingering at the back of her mind.
On another note. . .
Camille at least, will dab at her eyes with a silk handkerchief and sigh forlornly when she hears the news.
"Oh Henry. Only a princess could be worthy of stealing your hand... and someday, your heart... "
>sniffles
I'm not quite understanding the Karin hate here. She's not rubbing it in; she's trying to justify the fact that this is an opportunity in and of itself. Being a prince consort is no small thing in actuality; Henry might be the king, in all but name someday. Hell, he has the possibility of being an actual king even, like King Henry de Tristain who rules in Marianne's stead.
Karin tossed a wind spell at a wall to make the point that there would be no more discussion that night, and then sent Shade to his room at the end. It's abrupt, but I don't see anything wrong with it from an IC perspective. Karin will probably have a hard time sleeping this night, with the words freedom of choice lingering at the back of her mind.
On another note. . .
Camille at least, will dab at her eyes with a silk handkerchief and sigh forlornly when she hears the news.
"Oh Henry. Only a princess could be worthy of stealing your hand... and someday, your heart... "
>sniffles
@shadenight123
So...if Isabella is as bad as some perceive, any chance of pulling off a near identical cousin swap when nobodys looking?
You can at least get the less crazy one then.
So...if Isabella is as bad as some perceive, any chance of pulling off a near identical cousin swap when nobodys looking?
You can at least get the less crazy one then.
In what sense?
Blowing a hole in the wall and then claiming Henry is the one losing control wasn't the greatest look for her. I don't hate Karin, but Henry was trying to have a discussion about this and she cut him off for no reason. Why exactly shouldn't there be any more discussion that night? Henry shows he was ready to talk about it. If Karin wasn't ready to talk about it, why didn't she get ready before she told him?
I kind of think Henry needs to make it clear that he is not impressed by his mother's attempt to intimidate him with wind magic. He just spent a semester willingly getting beaten up to try and gain power. If Karin thinks that the threat of being tossed around a little is going to frighten him into obedience, she needs to learn that's a losing strategy.
- Pronouns
- she/her
...But he wasn't accepting it? Henry opened the discussion by trying to arguing against the marriage:
He was trying to start a monologue about freedom when she cut him off. Heck he walks out of the room thinking this isn't over.
That said... probably would have had more success arguing against it if he'd started by listing downsides instead of all the supporting points for it. The info dump was great for readers, shit for convincing anyone in-universe the marriage was a bad idea.
- Location
- America
In the sense that he'd probably do the bare minimum his job requires and then go off and do something else.
He'd marry her and then bed her once to produce and heir and then go off elsewhere, possibly to raise chickens and hippogriffs on a farm somewhere in southern Galia.
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
You need to realize that Karin is largely best described as a retired murderhobo adventurer. Even if she has a good heart, her initial reaction to an obstacle is "How to I make this problem go away?" And when you are extremely strong, need fear no soft consequences save from your boss, and most people shut up when you make a show of force, this becomes your default response when dealing with subordinates.
Basically, she was in no way ready to be a mother, and she had the very bad luck of her first child responding relatively well to the "I demand perfection" thing (Eleanore). So she thought that worked, and began to apply it to her other children--and when those measures fail, she shifts back to her default responses.
Those don't actually work though unless your children are perfectionsts in their own right though and rarely require said shows of force. She's gentle with Cattelya only because Cattelya is physically incapable of meeting her standards, so she gets slotted to "Dependent" rather than "Subordinate". Note as well that the massive shows of force never came along when Henry was incapable of meeting her standards, and how Louise is still relatively happy rather than the neurotic blob she is in canon. She's not heartless or merciless, it's just that these measures work for her, and get her the results she's looking for. She just doesn't have the social awareness to realize she's making them miserable, and her husband isn't willing to call her out on it because he's at least a little bit intimidated by her.
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As they say, that's explanation not an excuse. She'll only change the behavior if Henry makes it clear it won't work.
I don't think she's unstable enough to actually hit him with something lethal, so if he essentially dares her to shoot him she'll have to back down. Dramatic opening of shirt to bare his chest and ask her to make it quick optional.
EvilPorygon
Cookie Monster
- Location
- a phone
Nothing left to talk about, really. He's gotta do this; Noblesse oblige.
Karin was indeed a kettle calling back the pot with her 'keep control of your emotions' line though. Henry's more like her at times than she realises.
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Pretty much, yeah. She'd never actually hit him with any real force intentionally, but she doesn't realize that the threat is bad enough.
To be blunt though? If you look at it from a highly achieving society's viewpoint where they're okay with wrecking some children if it means that the majority largely excel? Karin is an excellent parent. Sure, she got one dud out of it who's a pile of nerves who's constantly requiring validation to be functional, but she also got one amazingly achieving child out of it, and the other gets a pass because she's physically incapable, and she gets considerations to make things comfortable.
It's just terrible for us from a western mindset.
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I honestly see Isabella and Henry bonding over their mutual disdain for their lack of freedoms, or Isabella and maybe Charlotte/Tabitha using him as an anchor in the paranoia inducing tempest that their lives are possibly becoming. Shade could also completely derail canon and be a positive influence on Joseph and avert half the EvilLulztm things he does to feel things. Possibly by getting him addicted to coffee so he can sit at a cafe and be depressed while smoking and drinking coffee like the fantasy Frenchmen he is.
There are a lot of range between "do it" and "don't do it".
If Henry decides he's really, truly, opposed for example, he doesn't necessarily need to oppose outright. Instead he could take the strong position that the marriage needs to wait until they're both 17 and hope that the intervening eight years changes the political situation enough to escape. And that's just one strategy. There are plenty of others.
Chapter Thirty
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
Chapter Thirty
It was early in the morning, and the typical cold breeze made me shiver. The manticore beneath me was like a furnace with legs, emitting enough body heat to keep me warm. There was no softness however. Below the fur, only hard taught muscles and bones could be felt. The wings by the sides of the manticore were like those of a dragon, and the lion-like face held on to peculiarly intelligent eyes. The tail swished back and forth with a soft hissing noise to it, even though it was mainly the sharp spikes embedded into the flesh that glinted, ready to be unleashed at a command.
There were no reins to hold on to, but simply a saddle with stirrups. When you can cast a levitation spell to avoid death by splattering to the ground, silly things like safety belts no longer made sense, did they?
"A Manticore isn't gagged differently from a horse, because its fangs are a useful weapon in battle," Karin spoke by my side, her manticore easily standing tall and proud, with quite the worthy scars on it. Compared to the one I was sitting on, it was the clear difference between an old war veteran and a young, excited puppy seeking approval. "It claws can easily rip away a breastplate, and the spikes can perforate metal two to three inches thick. Whatever you do, ensure you have a proper balance at all times and one hand on the pommel of the saddle. If necessary, you may cast a spell to glue you to your seat for the first time, but then we will go without such a crouch henceforth."
I shook my head. "No, I am fine, mother." I swallowed, clenching with my left hand the pommel of the saddle as hard as I could. "Also...I wanted to apologize. I spoke out of turn last night."
"You did not speak out of turn Henry," Karin said, her voice softening as she shook her head lightly. "I acknowledge you thought about it, and I may even accept your displeasure towards it, but you are betrothed to marry the future Queen of Gallia. To speak ill of such a fate, even in jest, even in passing, even when you think you are among trusted people-that is folly, Henry. I cannot make you change your mind, and I will not try. You might one day come to like your future wife, and if not love, at least tollerate her, but keep your thoughts to yourself."
"Are you saying I shouldn't trust anyone about my thoughts?" I pointed out. "Not even my family?"
"I am saying that Eleonore is my eldest, my most precious daughter-but she too makes mistakes. Some mistakes, they can be solved easily with the wave of a wand. Other mistakes, they bring about great pain to all those involved. When you speak ill of royalty, you speak ill of the Founder," Karin's eyes softened up, her smile slightly bitter on her face. "To protect my family, even if I need to be harsh, even if I need to be unjust, then I will gladly accept it."
"Who'd try to challenge you, mother?" I asked. "You're the Heavy Wind."
"Even then, I am not getting any younger, Henry," she replied with a small smile. "I must not think only about the now and here, but also about the day when I won't be here any longer. Who will protect these borders? Who will keep my children safe? That's why, if it's my son, I know he'll do a good job at keeping my family safe in my stead."
I swallowed noisily once more. "I see," I said. "I am still of the opinion I will summon a hen as my familiar."
"Then on that night we will have chicken for dinner," Karin replied quite firmly, with a tone that brokered that no further nonsense would be tolerated. "Now, a manticore is a inherently intelligent and proud beast. You are not standing on a horse, but on a companion. For the first time, just fly and try not to fall off. If you do fall off, try to chant a levitation spell. If you fail at that, do not worry, I will endeavor to catch you."
I nodded, and then gingerly patted the back of my manticore's head. "Hey...listen, I don't know if you have a name or not, but I'm sure you do. I'm being told you're intelligent, so...how about you spread your wings and we get to know each other better in the air? I promise I'll just hold on to the pommel and try not to bother your wings too much-"
"Henry," Karin said flatly, "I said they were intelligent, not that you should initiate a conversation with them."
Sheepishly, I coughed in my free hand, closed in a fist in front of my face. "Could you please fl-" the next, I was no longer on the ground and I was screaming.
Screaming was apparently a no-no, because the manticore decided to get rid of the annoyance by twisting in mid-air, throwing me off the saddle within seconds. The only reason I didn't hit the ground hard and break something was because a cushion of soft air blocked my fall an inch away from the ground.
The manticore flew around a bit, and then once it realized it had lost its passenger returned back down, stopping right next to me and giving me a glance over with its golden lion-like eyes. In the meantime, I managed to get myself back on my feat from the cushion of soft air, sighing and shaking my head.
"You should hold on with both hands at first," Karin said. "Are you sure you do not wish to glue yourself to the saddle, Henry?" she asked next, "also, are you keeping your legs tight against the flanks of the manticore?"
I climbed back on the back of the magical creature and exhaled, patting the creature's head. "Don't worry," I said to it, "It's my fault for being silly and not holding on properly."
"Henry, are you apologizing to the manticore?" Karin asked, only to be sure she was hearing correctly.
"Only because I prefer hippogriffs," I answered in turn, "I am not such a cold hearted person that I would inherently dislike other creatures. I am sure he'd rather prefer to be free to fly around at his whims rather than wait at my beck and call, so...yeah, I'm apologizing to it. I would apologize to a hippogriff too though, or a griffin, because if it weren't my familiar then he wouldn't be willing, and that would be slavery, and you know how slavery about the unwilling is-"
"Henry," Karin said flatly. "You are doing this on purpose."
"Mother," I answered back, holding on to the saddle with both hands, "the Zerbst border is that way, isn't it?" I asked as I pointed in the direction of the Zerbst border, and then I gave hasty pat on the back of the manticore, who took off immediately in the direction of my choosing.
Karin sprung into high gear within seconds of course, and aimed straight for an interception course in the direction of the Zerbst lands. Unfortunately for her, I was a liar, and had aimed in the exact opposite direction. "Go, go, go, go!" I yelled to the manticore's ears. "I got you, mother! I got you! You fell for it! Ahahahahahah!" the next second, my laughter became a quite quick oh shit.
Karin the heavy wind was literally breaking the sound barrier. I realized it when the soft popping sound I heard made the windows rattle as she abruptly turned from an interception course to an outright I am going to catch you, and then we will have words.
"Listen here," I yelled to the manticore, "Just keep running circles. You're young, you're fast, you're light. She's got the older version-she can't do much better than-" a hefty weight of air settled on my back as we suddenly lost altitude, even as I gritted my teeth and clutched my wand. "Winds of the northern current, winds of the southern continent, from east and west I summon you forth, grant me tranquility, and make the currents cease!" as I pointed my wand against me, the heavy pressure of the air that slowed me down ceased. I turned to quickly catch a look at where Karin was, and then my eyes widened.
My mother wasn't just behind me.
She was above me, her manticore somehow flying upside down, and her wand was pointed straight against the tip of my nose. "Since you seem so keen on getting your training started so soon, Henry," she spoke crisply, but there was a certain tone of pride in her voice that simply made me dreadfully fear even more for my life, "I will begin immediately. The first lesson you must master is the following," her eyes narrowed down. "Age means experience."
I nervously smiled.
She had heard.
And she was offended.
I wasn't going to get off with a light rustling of my hair.
And, point of order, I didn't.
My manticore and I simply ended up landing down in the blink of three seconds, the beast's body hitting the ground hard enough to make it roar slightly in pain, myself not faring much better due to the sudden weight on my shoulders and back.
Karin then landed with her own manticore by my side and lifted the spell, making me gasp in relief in tandem with the panting of my mount.
"You need to consider changing altitudes while running away from a flying foe, not just right or left, also by shifting your body so visibly, it is easy to know where you are going to turn, and thus anticipate it," she glared at me, "And for making such an ill-fated joke about the Zerbsts, you will not have lunch until you manage to do a flawless side roll."
I stared at her, and then at my manticore. Didn't we have, like, six hours before lunch? Wasn't that going to be enough?
As it turned out, they weren't.
It was early in the morning, and the typical cold breeze made me shiver. The manticore beneath me was like a furnace with legs, emitting enough body heat to keep me warm. There was no softness however. Below the fur, only hard taught muscles and bones could be felt. The wings by the sides of the manticore were like those of a dragon, and the lion-like face held on to peculiarly intelligent eyes. The tail swished back and forth with a soft hissing noise to it, even though it was mainly the sharp spikes embedded into the flesh that glinted, ready to be unleashed at a command.
There were no reins to hold on to, but simply a saddle with stirrups. When you can cast a levitation spell to avoid death by splattering to the ground, silly things like safety belts no longer made sense, did they?
"A Manticore isn't gagged differently from a horse, because its fangs are a useful weapon in battle," Karin spoke by my side, her manticore easily standing tall and proud, with quite the worthy scars on it. Compared to the one I was sitting on, it was the clear difference between an old war veteran and a young, excited puppy seeking approval. "It claws can easily rip away a breastplate, and the spikes can perforate metal two to three inches thick. Whatever you do, ensure you have a proper balance at all times and one hand on the pommel of the saddle. If necessary, you may cast a spell to glue you to your seat for the first time, but then we will go without such a crouch henceforth."
I shook my head. "No, I am fine, mother." I swallowed, clenching with my left hand the pommel of the saddle as hard as I could. "Also...I wanted to apologize. I spoke out of turn last night."
"You did not speak out of turn Henry," Karin said, her voice softening as she shook her head lightly. "I acknowledge you thought about it, and I may even accept your displeasure towards it, but you are betrothed to marry the future Queen of Gallia. To speak ill of such a fate, even in jest, even in passing, even when you think you are among trusted people-that is folly, Henry. I cannot make you change your mind, and I will not try. You might one day come to like your future wife, and if not love, at least tollerate her, but keep your thoughts to yourself."
"Are you saying I shouldn't trust anyone about my thoughts?" I pointed out. "Not even my family?"
"I am saying that Eleonore is my eldest, my most precious daughter-but she too makes mistakes. Some mistakes, they can be solved easily with the wave of a wand. Other mistakes, they bring about great pain to all those involved. When you speak ill of royalty, you speak ill of the Founder," Karin's eyes softened up, her smile slightly bitter on her face. "To protect my family, even if I need to be harsh, even if I need to be unjust, then I will gladly accept it."
"Who'd try to challenge you, mother?" I asked. "You're the Heavy Wind."
"Even then, I am not getting any younger, Henry," she replied with a small smile. "I must not think only about the now and here, but also about the day when I won't be here any longer. Who will protect these borders? Who will keep my children safe? That's why, if it's my son, I know he'll do a good job at keeping my family safe in my stead."
I swallowed noisily once more. "I see," I said. "I am still of the opinion I will summon a hen as my familiar."
"Then on that night we will have chicken for dinner," Karin replied quite firmly, with a tone that brokered that no further nonsense would be tolerated. "Now, a manticore is a inherently intelligent and proud beast. You are not standing on a horse, but on a companion. For the first time, just fly and try not to fall off. If you do fall off, try to chant a levitation spell. If you fail at that, do not worry, I will endeavor to catch you."
I nodded, and then gingerly patted the back of my manticore's head. "Hey...listen, I don't know if you have a name or not, but I'm sure you do. I'm being told you're intelligent, so...how about you spread your wings and we get to know each other better in the air? I promise I'll just hold on to the pommel and try not to bother your wings too much-"
"Henry," Karin said flatly, "I said they were intelligent, not that you should initiate a conversation with them."
Sheepishly, I coughed in my free hand, closed in a fist in front of my face. "Could you please fl-" the next, I was no longer on the ground and I was screaming.
Screaming was apparently a no-no, because the manticore decided to get rid of the annoyance by twisting in mid-air, throwing me off the saddle within seconds. The only reason I didn't hit the ground hard and break something was because a cushion of soft air blocked my fall an inch away from the ground.
The manticore flew around a bit, and then once it realized it had lost its passenger returned back down, stopping right next to me and giving me a glance over with its golden lion-like eyes. In the meantime, I managed to get myself back on my feat from the cushion of soft air, sighing and shaking my head.
"You should hold on with both hands at first," Karin said. "Are you sure you do not wish to glue yourself to the saddle, Henry?" she asked next, "also, are you keeping your legs tight against the flanks of the manticore?"
I climbed back on the back of the magical creature and exhaled, patting the creature's head. "Don't worry," I said to it, "It's my fault for being silly and not holding on properly."
"Henry, are you apologizing to the manticore?" Karin asked, only to be sure she was hearing correctly.
"Only because I prefer hippogriffs," I answered in turn, "I am not such a cold hearted person that I would inherently dislike other creatures. I am sure he'd rather prefer to be free to fly around at his whims rather than wait at my beck and call, so...yeah, I'm apologizing to it. I would apologize to a hippogriff too though, or a griffin, because if it weren't my familiar then he wouldn't be willing, and that would be slavery, and you know how slavery about the unwilling is-"
"Henry," Karin said flatly. "You are doing this on purpose."
"Mother," I answered back, holding on to the saddle with both hands, "the Zerbst border is that way, isn't it?" I asked as I pointed in the direction of the Zerbst border, and then I gave hasty pat on the back of the manticore, who took off immediately in the direction of my choosing.
Karin sprung into high gear within seconds of course, and aimed straight for an interception course in the direction of the Zerbst lands. Unfortunately for her, I was a liar, and had aimed in the exact opposite direction. "Go, go, go, go!" I yelled to the manticore's ears. "I got you, mother! I got you! You fell for it! Ahahahahahah!" the next second, my laughter became a quite quick oh shit.
Karin the heavy wind was literally breaking the sound barrier. I realized it when the soft popping sound I heard made the windows rattle as she abruptly turned from an interception course to an outright I am going to catch you, and then we will have words.
"Listen here," I yelled to the manticore, "Just keep running circles. You're young, you're fast, you're light. She's got the older version-she can't do much better than-" a hefty weight of air settled on my back as we suddenly lost altitude, even as I gritted my teeth and clutched my wand. "Winds of the northern current, winds of the southern continent, from east and west I summon you forth, grant me tranquility, and make the currents cease!" as I pointed my wand against me, the heavy pressure of the air that slowed me down ceased. I turned to quickly catch a look at where Karin was, and then my eyes widened.
My mother wasn't just behind me.
She was above me, her manticore somehow flying upside down, and her wand was pointed straight against the tip of my nose. "Since you seem so keen on getting your training started so soon, Henry," she spoke crisply, but there was a certain tone of pride in her voice that simply made me dreadfully fear even more for my life, "I will begin immediately. The first lesson you must master is the following," her eyes narrowed down. "Age means experience."
I nervously smiled.
She had heard.
And she was offended.
I wasn't going to get off with a light rustling of my hair.
And, point of order, I didn't.
My manticore and I simply ended up landing down in the blink of three seconds, the beast's body hitting the ground hard enough to make it roar slightly in pain, myself not faring much better due to the sudden weight on my shoulders and back.
Karin then landed with her own manticore by my side and lifted the spell, making me gasp in relief in tandem with the panting of my mount.
"You need to consider changing altitudes while running away from a flying foe, not just right or left, also by shifting your body so visibly, it is easy to know where you are going to turn, and thus anticipate it," she glared at me, "And for making such an ill-fated joke about the Zerbsts, you will not have lunch until you manage to do a flawless side roll."
I stared at her, and then at my manticore. Didn't we have, like, six hours before lunch? Wasn't that going to be enough?
As it turned out, they weren't.
Dakkan Sall
Random Encounter
- Location
- On the world map
I thought Joseph offed his brother because Charles didn't try to lay claim to the throne, and due to his overall emptiness/jealousy did so to provoke some emotion in himself.
If she were even to summon Julio, since the Pope is running his own schemes I kinda doubt that he'd just let someone else (who isn't even a void mage himself) play with all the shiny toys that have been collected.
Not exactly something Tiffa would do normally, you'd need to keep her on hand for whenever Wales is supposed to cast void magic without raising suspicion, and I imagine that the other extant Void mages (which for those who would particularly care one way or the other amounting to mainly the Pope, and Joseph if he isn't dead at the point in this particular plan) would catch on due to Wales having access to normal magic and them knowing better on that count.
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
One thing I always found amusing is how much the fandom's divided over Karin, all without considering one fundamental aspect of her character:
She is old.
Eleonore's 27, and imagining the less squicky possible idea, she had her at 20, thus making her effective age 47 by the time canon starts.
However, she states 'it has been a good 30 years' since I last served at the castle.
So, theorizing she stopped because she got out at 20 due to a desire to put up a family, she had Eleonore when she was 23 and her age is now 50.
At a minimum.
You may call your anime-shenanigans, but the fact remains:
Karin is old for the standards of the time, where 60-70 is the norm of life she has left to live.
She is old.
Eleonore's 27, and imagining the less squicky possible idea, she had her at 20, thus making her effective age 47 by the time canon starts.
However, she states 'it has been a good 30 years' since I last served at the castle.
So, theorizing she stopped because she got out at 20 due to a desire to put up a family, she had Eleonore when she was 23 and her age is now 50.
At a minimum.
You may call your anime-shenanigans, but the fact remains:
Karin is old for the standards of the time, where 60-70 is the norm of life she has left to live.
Dragonskyt
Ashen one, hearest thou my voice, still?
- Location
- Kiln of the First Flame
So umh, yeah let's get this over with.
"Do a Barrel Roll!"
Alright, moving on.
"Do a Barrel Roll!"
Alright, moving on.
Dragonskyt
Ashen one, hearest thou my voice, still?
- Location
- Kiln of the First Flame
Bah, I'm fairly sure she'll stave off Death out of sheer spite until she's held her first grandchild.
