Apologies and Questions [Private/Lagi]

Ariella wandered down the pathway of the Palace Gardens, idly examining each of the flowers in turn. With her recent stretch into life magic, she found herself looking at plants in a new light, different ways they could be used to heal, hurt or entertain. The palace had a wonderful collection of exotic plants from all over the world. As she moved down the paths, she found herself in the center of the gardens where a table with tea and cookies waited. She gracefully took a seat and awaited the arrival of the King. She needed to apologize for the night of the ball, vomiting on a country’s ruler was generally frowned upon. She also wanted a chance to ask him if he had found out any other information about the killings that had taken place that night and the councilor’s being slaughtered.

She poured herself a cup of tea and nibbled at a cookie while she waited, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere around her.

Lagi was in his quarters when he was informed that someone had wished to meet with him. It wasn’t entirely an audience, it was more like a personal matter that was more or less to be handled discreetly. It was because of that fact that lagi decided to meet with this mystery person. Lagi dressed in his kingly clothes, his angelic brace and ruler gem belt in hand. He left his bow; there was no need to be so heavily armed, even though he would be lowering his means of self-defense if there was a ruse. When Lagi entered the palace guardians, he immediately recognized the girl. “Hey, I remember you!” Lagi would say a bit loudly, he was kind of startled at the fact that it was the same girl that threw up on him. “You are an associate of Ayero right?” lagi would say in a casual tone after he calmed himself down a bit, there was no need to freak out.

Ari arched a brow at the tone from the King, gracefully rising from the chair. Using all of her years of socialite training, so dipped into a perfect curtsey, her eyes on the ground respectfully before rising up and nodding.

"Yes, I know Ayero. My name is Ariella Negri and I wanted to come to apologize for my behavior the night of your coronation. Countless glasses of wine and the scent of charred corpses do not mix, apparently. It was quite rude of me to lose my dinner on your shoes, my King. Please forgive my behavior."

She would offer another graceful curtsey, making sure that her speech was impeccable and her posture was perfect. When one was apologizing to the leader of a country, you behaved with only the utmost respect until given permission otherwise. Even then, it was best to remain formal and polite.

“Ahh, no no…” Lagi was saying as he waved his hands a bit frantically. “Its fine, I was just shocked that you was the person that wanted to see me. I realize that the party was full of mysterious and unfortunate accidents. I just wish that I was able to prevent them, the safety of my guests is important to me. At least I kept the party going; I increased security and made sure that everyone was well protected. So if those unfortunate events inconvenienced you in any way, I do apologize for that as well. Lagi would say with the most sincerity, he really hoped that this wasn’t the daughter of the people that were killed or something. That would be a pretty harsh way to start his Monday.

Ari offered a polite smile and nodded at his acceptance of her apology before waving to the other seat.

"Please, sit and have some tea with me, if you have a few moments to do so. I quite enjoyed most of my evening of the ceremony, despite the way the night ended. I do believe my brother carried me out like a sack of potatoes to keep me from further embarrassing myself. I was later told the poor diplomat and his wife both ended up perishing that night. Apparently, the assassin went back for the diplomat after Marquis Niraj's resurrection. Such a shame that people would want to ruin such a celebratory event. My father was even trying to liven things up with fireworks just before the commotion struck. My parents were part of the diplomatic envoy from Magnostadt, you see."

She nibbled at the cookie again, delicately brushing crumbs from her dress as she eyed the King. She had heard various rumors and tales about the man, but thus far he seemed to be a perfectly enjoyable man, if a bit informal. He did not seem like he had quite adjusted to being in a position of such power yet, the mantle of responsibility weighing heavily on him, as was apparent by his attempts to keep the ball going that evening.

"So, aside from the rather unfortunate events, have you been well, King el Nagi?"

Lagi sat down quietly as he reached over for a cup of tea. The aroma would find its way into Lagi’s nostrils before he took a sip. Afterwards, Lagi would taste the tea for a few moments before adding one sugar cube in. “Ariella Negri….correct?” Lagi would say as he took another sip from the tea, fully satisfied as to how it tastes now. “So you are the offspring of the diplomatic envoy from Magnostadt? I see, and then it really is a pleasure to make your acquaintance today. I must say, there were things that even led me to be surprised that day. However, I do appreciate your fathers attempt to lighten up the situation, be sure to send him my regards. “

When Ari asked Lagi how he was doing, he merely shook his head. “Well, I’m still left in the dark about the black birds around me that magicians can see, still have no clue what that means. I ended up accepting the challenge of the man out of respect, and I lost. Near death experiences really do shed some enlightenment of the sort, thought the whole fight seemed punishment for things I haven’t even done, or done yet. Who knows….” Lagi would say as he took a small sip and continued. “Shylock was murdered….. So was Ten Long, and I wasn’t there to prevent that. It kind of pisses me off that I wasn’t able to change the fate of their deaths, they didn’t deserve to die like that. That leaves both sides of kou and reim without financial advisement form each respective country, something that has to be rectified. On top of it all, it could be the same group of people that was committing the murders at my party. I have no proof if its connected, but I wouldn’t be surprised if each person that died is causing a chain reaction towards something bad happening. “

Lagi would take a deep breath after that. “But that’s enough of my problems for the time being. Was there anything you needed to discuss with me Ms Negri?“

Ariella gave a hum of acknowledgement before smiling kindly at the King.

“I think I can help shed some light on the ‘black bird’ situation, if nothing else, King Lagi. As magicians, many of us can see rukh. This is the life force of… well… everything, basically. It is how we cast spells. We ask the rukh to help us make magoi do certain things, related to our magic types. Generally speaking, rukh takes on the appearance of small white butterflies or birds. This indicates an agreement with fate. When someone becomes dissatisfied with what fate has granted them in life, they tend to curse their fate, or reject it. This causes the rukh to become stained black. That is what the ‘black birds’ are, that some speak of. Simply the life force around you showing that you have rejected or cursed your fate.

Some of the less educated magicians see this as a bad thing, and in great concentrations, it can be. It tends to breed discontent in those around you. But in Magnostadt, we are taught that all rukh is simply another form of power.”

She set her cup of tea on the table, looking to see if he understood what she was saying. Having black rukh was not a bad thing, in and of itself. It was only when it came in great multitudes that it would affect those around you. When he mentioned the councilors dying and him not being able to save them from their fate, she saw the fluttering of black rukh around him. When he asked if she had any other purpose, she frowned slightly.

“Actually, I did have another reason for coming by, but I fear you may have already answered my suspicions. The night of the coronation ceremony, my mother disappeared during the commotion. We still have not located her. At this point, I fear the worst, that the person that was killing that night may have taken my mother hostage or killed her. Now you say the two councilors were killed, probably by the same person. It does speak of a larger plan coming into play and I do not like the idea that my mother may have gotten tangled in it. I would like to offer my assistance in locating this killer. I may not look like much, but I actually have spent a great deal of time working with Marquis Niraj and have some training of my own. Please, allow me to help you root out the cause of these assassinations in hopes that I may find more out about my mother.”

“Another form of power, I see..” Lagi was starting to get the most of the situation now. The black rukh was a chain reaction of accepting the dark metal vessel, which led to Lagi continuously cursing his fate in the process. However, this wasn’t something that bothered Lagi in any way at all. Power was power, and the most important thing about power is having it under your control. “Well, that explains a lot. In that case, I don’t think that I have anything to worry about. “ Lagi would say as he made a small hand gesture. “I really do appreciate you explaining that for me. “

“Lagi would then frown a bit as soon as Ari mentioned that her mother was missing. He was also slightly surprised that she was associated with Azix as well. “I wouldn’t want you to be in danger. But if you are willing to take the risk in assisting me find out who the killer is, I will gladly accept your help . Any leads? Theories that you might have?”

Ari shook her head at Lagi's question, frowning slightly.

"Not yet, but I do have a couple of sources, both political and other wise that I may be able to ask about this. One of the advantages of being a diplomat's daughter, I grew up in political circles and have met many of the diplomats both from Magnostadt and abroad. I hope that my father may be able to point me in the correct direction, as he would have a better idea than I about who would want to rile up already heated tensions. Have no fear about my safety, your majesty. I am better equipped than I look to take care of myself. Plus, I will have the assistance of my father behind me, deterring anybody politically. He is a battle mage and a highly esteemed diplomat, that alone is enough to make people cautious about harming me. I just wanted to be sure you were aware that I intended to look into this, in case anyone brought it to your attention that some girl from Magnostadt was asking questions. I do not wish to cause you any further trouble, I just want to find my mother and hopefully, avoid putting this country through war. Kou is not likely to overlook this as just a slight fumble and I have helped this country through Azix enough that I truly do not wish to see further strife amongst the people."

She took another sip of her tea, hoping her father would be willing to provide her with information on where to start. He was likely to be stubborn about letting his daughter investigate, but she would do her best to persuade him.

“Well, this is your mother that’s missing. If we were to take it in a literal sense that shes a talented mage as well, she would be on the same level as your father perhaps. If she was that’s experienced, it wold have to take someone of equal experience of better in order to subdue her, which is something that discourages me greatly when it comes to getting you involved. “ Lagi would say as he took a sip of his tea. “ Right now, I was originally expecting to have this chat with your father after you brought it up, I would be enraged if someone took away someone I loved from me. I guess that’s a fine line between professionalism and letting your emotions get the best of you. But for the sake of seeing that kind of compassion, I would be more on board. “

Lagi would twiddle his thumbs for a minute. However, a king never goes back on his word. I allow it, investigate as you wish, I’ll give my guards full notice to assist you if you so happened to need it. I don’t have that kind of family relationship, but it would be great for you to find your mother again. If I could help it, I would want to prevent another causality. If you truly think that your involvement in this case could bring about change for the better, then I appreciate your help. I’m sure that Azix would vouch for you if he was here, if the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree…. In terms of skill. “ Lagi would say as he takes another sip from his cup.

Ari would dip her head in appreciation, smiling.

"I appreciate it, your Grace. My father, I feel, will be taking a slightly less professional route. And while my mother may be a talented mage, she did not have her wand that night. My father and brother both had brought theirs, but she left hers at home. It would have left her nearly defenseless. But I do appreciate you accepting my help. It is my hope that my mother will show up unharmed and uninvolved with all of this, and I will just be helping you catch an assassin. Perhaps if I hope hard enough, that will be the actual outcome."

The sad smile on her face showed that was not the outcome she expected. Someone killing political figures would not hesitate to kill her mother, she was well known in the diplomatic circles. If she were very lucky, her mother had been taken hostage, if she weren't, her mother would be dead and her father would be out for blood.

“Time is not our friend…..” Lagi would say simply as he finished his cup and proceeded to stand up. “We have a lot of work to do, I’ll keep my eyes open if I hear anything at all that can assists you. “We are not sure yet if this is a simple kidnapping or this could be used as a bargaining chip for something else. In the off chance that this might have nothing to do it me in particular, try to think of the people who would find some benefit in taking your mother hostage. I’ve been searching for a connection between your family and the murders, but simply going over them in my mind isn’t giving me much to work with. We need confirmation that’s she’s still alive, but please prepare for the worst case scenario. “Lagi would say as he gave her a serious look. “ At the very most, we can preserve the body until Azix returns and bring her back. But remain in high spirits, let us not consider the worst so soon, just ….you know..“

Ari would stand as well, nodding in understanding.

"Do not worry, I shall keep an open ear and a cautious mind when it comes to matters regarding this. I truly appreciate you helping me out with this, King el Nagi. If there is anything I can do to help you in the future, please do not hesitate to ask. For now, though, I believe I have some people to talk to about an assassin."

She would give another curtsey as was appropriate before leaving the garden, trying to decide how much help her father would offer her in regards to her investigation.

[exit]