☼ s e r a p h i n a ☼
hate to see you lose you in illusion
don't forget who's watching you
“Safe? Surely Solterra’s charm has never been in its safety, Madame.”
She arches her brow, skeptical and unimpressed, at his laugh. Seraphina pauses for a deliberate moment, running her tongue between her teeth, and meets his stare very calmly. “Surely not…” Of course, Solterra’s appeal was hardly in its safety; that has never been why she has loved her desert homeland, though, now that it has forsaken her, she bitterly wonders how much she loves it. “…but I do wonder what would motivate a man to return to his homeland just as a dictator has taken office. Is it the danger that attracts you?” Or something else? A thrill-seeker, or a man with some sort of ulterior motive? (Perhaps both.)
His next question is met with a prick of her ears and a thoughtful stare. “The most fearsome of monarchs have yet to manage to tame this land into something so pretty. Why ever would I fear this dangerous King more than any monarch past?”
Well. He is wrong about one thing – Raum does not wish to tame Solterra, into something pretty or otherwise. He wants to see it broken.
“I don’t think that you would fear him even if I told you why he is dangerous, nor do I think that you should.” At the core of it all, what is Raum? Weaker than he would like to think. Mow that she has magic, she has no reservations about her own capabilities, and she is more than certain that she could slaughter him with a clinical ease and precision if they crossed paths again. (And, if she had her way, they would.) Volatile, temperamental, and unable to responsibility for his own actions – not admirable traits in anyone, but least of all in a leader. He commanded fear, but not respect, and not affection, and fear could only bring him so far – and, with time, fear would always be a monarch’s downfall. She certainly does not fear him. She loathes him. He disgusts her. And every time she thinks of him, she thinks of her own weakness, her own culpability…but he was no more dangerous than any other creature that had brought her to her knees in the past, and he was hardly the first man to leave her for dead.
He had left her alive. A foolish, petty decision – and one that she would see he regretted, with time.
“…but, if you insist on remaining in Solterra, you might as well be prepared. Raum is a madman, no more or less than Zolin…” Her voice trails for a moment at the mention of the former monarch, a hint of disgust curling at the edges of her charcoal lips. “…but he was not born with a crown on his head, nor does he have anything he loves – he has shown himself all too willing to kill or betray everyone and everything he has ever cared for. Zolin wanted to remain in power; he was monstrous and destructive, but he had things he wished to preserve. Seraphina was no real threat unless you provoked her – Solterran hierarchy did not conform to her easily, nor did she have any blessing from the gods besides. Raum has shapeshifting magic, a basilisk who can turn anyone he pleases to stone, and the aid of what appears to be every bloodthirsty leech on this continent, and he wants nothing more than to see every living creature in Solterra suffer.” That was the danger of Raum, if she had to pin it down. If a man cared for something, it could be used against him; if he cared for something, he could be stopped. The only way to stop Raum was the sharp end of a blade.
She meets his gaze, her eyes cold steel and a hint of something like a threat on her tongue. “If his followers are naïve enough to believe that he’d think twice about throwing them under the knife the moment that it suits him…” And perhaps she is not speaking of Raum’s followers, though that is certainly what she thinks of them; perhaps she is speaking of him, this desert wanderer, who is so intent on walking into a burning kingdom. “…they’re more foolish than I anticipated.” This observation is more of a promise than anything. If you prove yourself to be among them, I will hunt you down. “You won’t be able to avoid him, one way or another, when you’re in Solterra. If you’re really determined to stay, I’d suggest you consider very carefully what it is worth to you to remain – and where your allegiances lie.”
But she doesn’t offer him any more. Not yet. She’ll wait to see what he has to say for himself.
“Truly, Madame Fia, the pleasure is mutual.” He is all courtly airs and charm, but she does not trust him yet; there is some mocking insincerity in those bright eyes. Unsmiling, she offers a nod of agreement, though she still hasn’t decided whether or not it is actually a pleasure to meet him.
Her ears prick up at the mention of relatives. Not really, she almost replies; the girl is an orphan, and she has made no family to speak of. However, this is a thread she can tug at, a way to get more information about this mysterious Anatoly, and she does. “Distant relatives, you say? Who are they? Perhaps I’m acquainted with them.”
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tags | @Anatoly
notes | sorry this took so long! <3 love anatoly
hate to see you lose you in illusion
don't forget who's watching you
“Safe? Surely Solterra’s charm has never been in its safety, Madame.”
She arches her brow, skeptical and unimpressed, at his laugh. Seraphina pauses for a deliberate moment, running her tongue between her teeth, and meets his stare very calmly. “Surely not…” Of course, Solterra’s appeal was hardly in its safety; that has never been why she has loved her desert homeland, though, now that it has forsaken her, she bitterly wonders how much she loves it. “…but I do wonder what would motivate a man to return to his homeland just as a dictator has taken office. Is it the danger that attracts you?” Or something else? A thrill-seeker, or a man with some sort of ulterior motive? (Perhaps both.)
His next question is met with a prick of her ears and a thoughtful stare. “The most fearsome of monarchs have yet to manage to tame this land into something so pretty. Why ever would I fear this dangerous King more than any monarch past?”
Well. He is wrong about one thing – Raum does not wish to tame Solterra, into something pretty or otherwise. He wants to see it broken.
“I don’t think that you would fear him even if I told you why he is dangerous, nor do I think that you should.” At the core of it all, what is Raum? Weaker than he would like to think. Mow that she has magic, she has no reservations about her own capabilities, and she is more than certain that she could slaughter him with a clinical ease and precision if they crossed paths again. (And, if she had her way, they would.) Volatile, temperamental, and unable to responsibility for his own actions – not admirable traits in anyone, but least of all in a leader. He commanded fear, but not respect, and not affection, and fear could only bring him so far – and, with time, fear would always be a monarch’s downfall. She certainly does not fear him. She loathes him. He disgusts her. And every time she thinks of him, she thinks of her own weakness, her own culpability…but he was no more dangerous than any other creature that had brought her to her knees in the past, and he was hardly the first man to leave her for dead.
He had left her alive. A foolish, petty decision – and one that she would see he regretted, with time.
“…but, if you insist on remaining in Solterra, you might as well be prepared. Raum is a madman, no more or less than Zolin…” Her voice trails for a moment at the mention of the former monarch, a hint of disgust curling at the edges of her charcoal lips. “…but he was not born with a crown on his head, nor does he have anything he loves – he has shown himself all too willing to kill or betray everyone and everything he has ever cared for. Zolin wanted to remain in power; he was monstrous and destructive, but he had things he wished to preserve. Seraphina was no real threat unless you provoked her – Solterran hierarchy did not conform to her easily, nor did she have any blessing from the gods besides. Raum has shapeshifting magic, a basilisk who can turn anyone he pleases to stone, and the aid of what appears to be every bloodthirsty leech on this continent, and he wants nothing more than to see every living creature in Solterra suffer.” That was the danger of Raum, if she had to pin it down. If a man cared for something, it could be used against him; if he cared for something, he could be stopped. The only way to stop Raum was the sharp end of a blade.
She meets his gaze, her eyes cold steel and a hint of something like a threat on her tongue. “If his followers are naïve enough to believe that he’d think twice about throwing them under the knife the moment that it suits him…” And perhaps she is not speaking of Raum’s followers, though that is certainly what she thinks of them; perhaps she is speaking of him, this desert wanderer, who is so intent on walking into a burning kingdom. “…they’re more foolish than I anticipated.” This observation is more of a promise than anything. If you prove yourself to be among them, I will hunt you down. “You won’t be able to avoid him, one way or another, when you’re in Solterra. If you’re really determined to stay, I’d suggest you consider very carefully what it is worth to you to remain – and where your allegiances lie.”
But she doesn’t offer him any more. Not yet. She’ll wait to see what he has to say for himself.
“Truly, Madame Fia, the pleasure is mutual.” He is all courtly airs and charm, but she does not trust him yet; there is some mocking insincerity in those bright eyes. Unsmiling, she offers a nod of agreement, though she still hasn’t decided whether or not it is actually a pleasure to meet him.
Her ears prick up at the mention of relatives. Not really, she almost replies; the girl is an orphan, and she has made no family to speak of. However, this is a thread she can tug at, a way to get more information about this mysterious Anatoly, and she does. “Distant relatives, you say? Who are they? Perhaps I’m acquainted with them.”
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tags | @Anatoly
notes | sorry this took so long! <3 love anatoly
I'M IN A ROOM MADE OUT OF MIRRORSand there's no way to escape the violence of a girl against herself.☼please tag Sera! contact is encouraged, short of violence
