The Deck, Sunday Morning

[bitchprince]

After spending a full day keeping Rhys busy (and running him through his swordcraft training, and dealing with his still-abominable tracking skills, which had also ended in a lesson, god help him) getting fifteen minutes to himself while the boy entertained himself elsewhere seemed like the greatest kind of luxury.

Not to say he wouldn't check on Rhys soon enough again, because Arthur was nothing if not dedicated. Right now, though, he would collapse in this seat on the deck with a glass of water and a small plate of cheeses and bless the silence.

Rhys could be out here any minute again. He was somewhat faster with his food as a result.

[[ open to all, including kidlets, woo ]]

Comments

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

A little girl who had been playing quietly by herself jerked up at the mention of a title. "The known universe?" she repeated. "That doesn't leave a lot of room for everyone else."

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"Unless you count all the universes available," Victoria said cheerfully. "Then there are plenty of room for everyone. Where are you from?"

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"One of those universes," she decided. "I'm the Daughter of the Nine Moons."

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"All of them?" Victoria was suitably impressed. "I feel rather boring, in that I'm only the daughter of two human people. Do you have to address each as 'mother'?"

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

Kore blinked. "Oh, no! I have a mother and a father too. That's just my title. It's a very old title."

That no one had ever explained to her.

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"Oh, that's a very nice title," Victoria said, nodding her appreciation. "And how odd that I assumed the moons were female. No reason to think they might not be male, I suppose. What part of the known or unknown universe are these Nine Moons in?"

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"I always thought they were female, too," Kore admitted. "Women are very powerful at home. I'm from Seanchan. We rule half of the world."

And she was very proud of that.

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

Victoria bowed her head respectfully, to show proper courtesy to the other Royal child.

"Perhaps moons are female, then," she decided. "If you're their daughter, you would know better than most, even if the title is simply a title. Who rules the other half of your world?"

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"It's not entirely clear," she replied. "There was a big war and many leaders died."

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"It seems as though that would make it easier to expand your half into the whole," Victoria suggested. "If the other half is warring amongst themselves."

She played chess with her family. Military tactics came along for the ride.

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"We tried," Kore admitted, "but we had to shore up our own borders as well. There were a few attempts at toppling our rule before I was born. So for now, we wait for the others to exhaust themselves, and then we will launch the Return again. It is our land. It was promised to us long ago."

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"Then I hope it returns to you quickly," Victoria said, solemnly. Destined lands were a very serious thing indeed. "There is always politics, unfortunately. Sometimes the greatest threat comes from within one's realm, and not without."

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

Kore nodded, equally solemn. "But in times of turmoil comes great opportunity."

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"The greatest leaders are those who take advantage of those opportunities," Victoria agreed. "It seems a shame that so many let them go to waste."

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"The Empress, may she live forever, seldom lets opportunities go past," Kore replied.

And what a lovely way to refer to your mother!

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"May she live forever," Victoria nodded, as that seemed a proper reply. "Nor does Father. I believe it's for the best that our universes don't overlap, lest their empires might bump up against one another's."

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"And I would hate to watch you be destroyed," Kore said with a nod.

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"It might be intriguing," Victoria allowed, "to watch you regret those words."

No malice. Merely a love of battle, and a greater love of winning.

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

Finally, someone who understood how things were supposed to work!

"You'd be waiting a very long time," Kore replied.

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

"I have great patience," Victoria beamed. "Especially when it means watching those who stand against House Atreides walk towards their doom."

Oh, she liked this girl very much. Victoria felt she would play excellent chess.

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

Kore examined her elaborately lacquered nails as if bored. "The Paendrags can trace our lineage back to the great Artur Hawkwing," she said, nodding towards Arthur, who was close enough to "Paendrag" for her ten year old brain.

[atreides-heirs.livejournal.com]

Victoria looked over at Arthur, not terribly impressed. "House Atreides started on this world's Greece, with Atreus and Agamemnon," she said quite primly. "And before that, Tantalus, sired by the gods."

If one believed in such things. Victoria's mother seemed to, but Victoria herself was undecided.

[9moonsdaughter.livejournal.com]

"The Emperor was friends with the Dragon Reborn, who fought the Dark One," Kore tried.