RP:Bishop's Gambit... Queen's Dead?

Synopsis: The Lowells are under investigation, as Lanara Lowell was presumed to be the last one to make contact with the Queen of the Fae through written word. Lanara and Tiber plan an alibi for their interrogation and go willingly to the Kingdom of Enchantment. The public accuses them in the streets before they are taken by guards to the castle for investigation by the guards--a risk of bringing out the possible truth in the lycans. One thing Tiberius and Lanara do not think out? Lanara's potential "surprise" with the Queen the day Lunalesca went missing. Lanara expresses that she wanted to tell Queen Lunalesca about the "miracle child" she is having with Tiber, but had a "miscarry" due to a faulty alibi. The guards are ruthless in the gambit as they go through criminal histories of the two lycans... The interrogation is intense and shocks both Tiber and Lanara to the core.

Part of the Waxing Crescent, Wayward Course Arc

Corrine and Nick's Cottage: Sage Forest

Tiber :: Four more days have passed since the planning of the Pack meeting. The fabricated alibi. What was left of Tiber’s face was a nasty scar above his right brow, but the bruising was mostly faded. Faint blue rested underneath that same right eye, but the cuts on his lips and swelling went down enormously. His ribs were still aching, but for the most part, it was getting easier to move. The concussion dissipated, and Celeste gave Tiber the full go of trekking to Enchantment, but he would wait on Lanara’s account. She was worse off. Those four days were spent rehearsing their alibi and resting. The day had come, however, as Celeste hesitantly gave Lanara the clear, of course Lanara’s burns were still there as it would take time to heal, but they could not waste anymore time. Tiber slipped on a loose cream-colored tunic to give his ribs more comfort, and a pair of khaki pants. “I don’t know if we should go in there armed… They might search us for weapons. If they try to throw us in the clink, are we going to be stand-by prisoners…?” He looks into a mirror where he stares at the Kelvarian. “Are you ready for this…? Greyson has horses ready from the Sanctuary, so you don’t have to push yourself to Enchantment. I know it’s not far, but… who knows… it might make for an easy getaway if it comes down to it.” Horses per the Alpha’s request, he knew Lanara still was in a rough state… and… well, he was not gonna be locked behind bars and let Franz win. The Catalian turns around and stoically stares at his wife. He is trying to hide the nervousness of this plan. The queen’s guard was not one to mess around with.

Lanara is dressed simply today, in clothes that definitely aren’t her own, but she finds them to be comfortable as they are loose on her petite frame. Corrine is not her friend by any means, but she’s thankful that the woman has a decent fashion sense. A tank denim sundress with a chunky belt around the middle provides just enough support to her broken ribs while the rest of the dress allows her to move freely. A pair of Violet’s sneakers are on her feet and the girl neatly folds down the socks, as she has been helping Lana to get ready. The witch feigns a reassuring smile to the teen, “Thank you. I’m sure today will go smoothly and we’ll meet up with you all tonight at the search party and prayer service.” The girl doesn’t respond but she exchanges a look with Celeste, who also is feigning optimism today. She doesn’t think that their Luna should be going anywhere and especially not on horseback, but it’s not her place to argue with their Alpha. Lana slowly walks over to Tiber as he looks at her through the mirror and she nods, “We’ll be fine. I just want to get this over with and figure out the next steps.” She flinches as she brushes her long hair and gives up halfway through, abandoning the brush for a scrunchie. “Can you put my hair up?” She waits for Violet to pull her hair into a low ponytail and she gives her husband a nod. It’s time to go. Greyson is waiting outside with a steed from the sanctuary and with a familiar mare that Lanara may be over the moon to see. Sansa. The black horse that Tiber gifted to her on their wedding day!

Tiberius watches Violet pull Lanara’s hair into a ponytail. His gaze turned soft, but there was a hint of sorrow due to Lanara’s dependence. She could not be locked in a prison. Not in her state. The man turns away and meets Greyson outside and waits for Lanara to come out in the clear. “Here, I’ll take lead.” Tiber takes the initiative to get on the horse first and lifts himself onto the saddle. Greyson then moves. “Here, Lana,” the Beta insists on helping the healing girl onto the steed. If Lanara takes the assistance, Greyson would then stand back and look up at the two. “I will be lingering in the proximity of Enchantment in case you two need me. Signal me if things turn south,” the blue-eyed man says slowly. Tiberius stares down at the Beta before nodding firmly. He then looks over his shoulder at the Kelvarian, “Your ribs are going to hurt… I’m sorry, but we can’t risk physically running. I’ll make sure Sansa keeps at a slow pace. A nature trot.” And on Lanara’s go, they would be off through the woods.

Gateway to Enchantment

Lanara squeals when she sets her big brown eyes on the majestic mare and if she wasn’t in so much pain, she’d have sprinted across the yard and hugged Sansa as tight as possible. Instead, she settles for standing in front of the horse and stroking her cheek, “I’ve missed you and our morning rides.” It’s the first true smile that she’s given in the past week and she’s grateful that Greyson knew to bring her beloved mare. If she spends the rest of her life in prison this could very well be the last time she sees Sansa. As Tiber tries to mount the horse Lana speaks softly in Sylvan, because Sansa isn’t fond of anyone upon her back that isn’t the little witch. She behaves because her mistress wills it, and she drops her front limbs into a kneeling position so that Greyson doesn’t have to hoist Lana up so much. The twinge in her ribs is nothing compared to the constant burning sensation in her heavily bandaged arm, but she grinds her teeth together and doesn’t voice a complaint. Both men can see the immense pain in the woman’s eyes, but at least she’s able to stand on her own today and she’s made great progress in the past few days. In another week or two she’ll be mostly back to her old self, hopefully. “It’s okay. Sansa won’t hurt us.” She cradles her injured arm against her side as she coils her left arm around Tiber’s waist, making sure not to jostle him too much in the saddle. They head to Enchantment at a slow trot and pause briefly before the gates, “Hey… I bet they will separate us when we are questioned. It will be okay as long as we stick to the script.” Should she say goodbye now, in case it’s the last time they see each other? Is this the end?!

Tiber takes in the air around them. It had been a minute since he had breathed fresh air for more than five minutes. The man takes in the noises of birds around them. The different shades of leaves above them. Tiberius is quiet for most of the trip to the Kingdom of Enchantment. Sansa behaves well for him, as Lanara worked her empathic ability on the black mare. Tiber makes sure to stroke the horse gently on their trip. To build that bond. He pulls on the reins gently to slow the creature down as the gates are in the distance. “Remember what we talked about. We went to Cenril for a getaway. I mean, we used to live there. I was a drunken idiot who messed with the wrong person and I put us both in extreme harm's-way. We got back, found Lunalesca missing and that’s why we are here. We’re concerned.” He inhales sharply which brings a sting to his ribs. He looks over his shoulder before he leans in to kiss the Kelvarian. Long, slow. Passionate. There was an underlying stir of want, especially when going into the unknown. He does not like the idea of them becoming separated through the process, but as long as they both stuck to their faulty excuse, things would be okay, right? He pulls back slightly and stares into a sea of chocolate. “I love you,” he says breathlessly, as leaning made his ribs ache. The man then turns his back towards the Kelvarian. “Let’s go.” He then squeezes the sides of the horse to let Sansa proceed forward to the gates where the guards wait. Would the guards automatically recognize the Kelvarian? Such a familiar face in Enchantment? A friend of the Queen?

Lanara nods in agreement to Tiber’s words, “I won’t forget.” They had a solid alibi and she’s certain that they won’t get tripped up, even if they are questioned separately. As husband and wife she’s shocked that they will even be questioned at all, but it’s the -queen- that’s missing and so she knows there’s a lot at stake. “I love you…” She breathlessly returns the sentiment and seals their bond with a searing kiss that awakens her inner wild spirit. It’s been so long since they’ve had a moment's privacy, been able to touch, to kiss, and she doesn’t want their time to end. A few guards at the gates wait expectantly for the couple to enter and there are tears in Lana’s eyes when Tiber pulls away to steer them into the magical land. All at once they are approached from every angle, mostly be guards, but there’s also a few citizens that blame Lanara for Lunalesca’s disappearance. Capendor, the usually jovial pixie that manages the Green Fairy, flings rocks at the couple, “What did you do with our Queen?!” Sansa dances unsteadily on her hooves and her eyes roll in her head as she’s struck with surprising force from such a small combatant. Lana nearly falls from the saddle as the horse rears up on her back legs when a man lunges at Tiber with a frying pan and tries to beat his legs, “Traitors! After all she did for you? This is how you repay the Queen?!” A sobbing fairy angrily flaps her wings and glares at the couple, “She officiated your wedding! A day of -love- and you went and -murdered- our leader?! I hope you both hang!” The guards are having a hard time controlling the rioters and Sansa is about to flee, so Lana slides from the saddle and lands with a painful thud on the ground. “I would -never- hurt Queen Lunalesca! Tiber and I have come here willingly to answer any questions and we are hosting a search party and vigil tonight in honor of the Queen. How dare any of you accuse us of such horrid things! We adore the Queen and only want to help!”

Tiber puts on a very hard face as he enters the gates. The people swarm, and he remains expressionless as he is confident that he did not do anything. Why would he need to justify himself for someone else’s actions? Though… Capendor throws rocks at the two, and the more people yell cruel things, the more mental guilt flows through Tiberius’ mind. Maybe he did do this. Maybe this -was- his fault. Franz. His past. This was how the Queen got hurt. How he had to keep her locked away in a cottage. Lanara was suffering too on top of that. Sansa is struck which causes Tiber to follow suit with the Kelvarian and stumble onto the ground. “Lana, get her out of here.” He is talking about Sansa. Greyson had to be back somewhere to find the mare. Another rock is chucked and strikes one of his ribs and he hisses and hunches over for a moment. He then stands up straight before putting his body in front of the Kelvarian to guard her. “This is a misunderstanding. These are false accusations. We would never harm the Queen.” Some guards eventually break through the crowd from the castle from the word of rioting and clutch onto the Catalian’s arms. “Bring them in the castle for questioning. Let’s get this over with.” One guard is pompous enough to have the attitude that the Lowell’s did it as he grips onto the Alpha. Tiberius is willing as he knew this was how the process would be. He does not fight, but only gets dragged out of the crowd. He stares back at Lanara and gives her a look. A knowing look, but also one of solemn–apologetic before he dragged off. Another guard reaches for her to guide her off to the castle, as well.

Entrance to the Enchanted Castle

Lanara (Post 1 of 2) Lanara shouldn’t be using her magic when she’s so weak, but she manages to control Sansa and send her running back the way they had come. Clouds of dirt are visible as her hooves smack against the ground and the powerful mare doesn’t stop galloping until she locates Greyson and his horse. Tiber is roughly grabbed by a pair of guards and Lana’s pulse races with worry. He’s hurting and innocent in all of this, and she doesn’t want to be separate. Asha growls and yearns to be set free and Lana honestly doesn’t know if she can contain her if things get too crazy. She doesn’t have the strength to be doing this today. A few of the people that were yelling fall silent as the couple says their piece, as though they hadn’t thought they’d come willingly and are wanting to find the Queen. The crying fairy sniffles and shrugs, mumbling, “Maybe they are innocent…” A stern guard grabs Lana by the wrist, thankfully her uninjured wrist, and escorts her to the castle. Once they step over the threshold of the magnificent palace, the couple is forced to part ways. The burly one holding onto Lana shouts to the others, “Alright. We will meet up in thirty minutes and swap rooms. Shackle him to a chair and get me one of those bracelets for her ankle.”

Lanara (Post 2 of 2) Lana is led into a small room with a table and two chairs sitting opposite each other. There’s a notebook in the center of the table, a quill and inkwell, and a pitcher of water with two glasses. One for the interrogator and one for the presumed innocent until proven guilty. Tiber’s room is likely identical to this one, and Lana shudders at the chill in the air. She takes a seat and blushes when the man lifts her dress to clamp a metal cuff around her ankle that silences her magic. The guard then pours her a glass of water and takes a seat, as he readies his writing instrument. “First we’ll go over the basics and then we'll talk about what happened on that day, okay?” The questions are endless, stemming from her childhood up to the trial that was held in Enchantment a few years prior. Next, he goes into depth about her relationship with Tiberius and he asks a few questions about Lana’s sister. How is Talyara relevant? Lana does her best to not look nervous as she answers each inquiry, but when they get to that specific day of the incident, she realizes there’s one thing they forgot to rehearse. The guard leans forward, “We have your letter here that was sent to the castle, received by one of the queen's guard and then a messenger brought it to her chambers. What was the surprise you had for Queen Lunalesca?” The witch fights the urge to repeat his question and worriedly taps her foot against the floor. How could she have forgotten to mention this?! They don’t have a rehearsed answer! Lana rests hands on her lap, just beneath the table, and pinches her burned arm so forcefully that it has tears springing to her eyes. Just the touch that she needs for him to buy this story! “So, as most have learned this from my trial… I cannot have children.” She lifts her sad eyes to lock with the guards menacing glare, “I thought it was some sort of miracle, but I found myself pregnant! I don’t know -how- but I was so thrilled and I wanted to tell Lunalesca before I told anyone, as she’s my dearest friend. But… It turns out that I’m not pregnant. I miscarried after Tiber and I were attacked in Cenril that night…” The tears fall and the witch dissolves into faux-sobs.

Tiberius is forcefully pushed into a chair. Instead of shackling the man’s ankle, they go to shackle his upper chest and both of his legs. The glass of water is poured for him and they put his chair in just enough arm’s reach for him to take a sip if he wanted to. The guard plops himself across from the blonde Catalian. “We know some of your history, Lowell. You’ve been in jail before for attacking that Nick Backstreet Bard fellow, haven’t you? You have quite a bit of a temper, don’t you Tiber?” Tiberius frowns, but he is relieved to know that they do not have the Franz tie background knowledge. “You obviously didn’t get the full context,” Tiber shifts uncomfortably before he goes on about the night Nick Garter attacked Lanara, previously Banks, out of jealous spite. Several questions flow and ask about Tiber’s history of the orphanage growing up, and also his relationship with Lanara. “She’s my wife. We met over three years ago,” which goes into his line of work. “I gamble.” Not a full lie. “I invest what I earn. I’m not a saint, but I would never go as far to hurt the Queen. She married Lanara and I. Lanara’s my world. The Queen helped with that. There would be no reason for such catastrophe.” Beat. The guard goes into the next question. Their alibi of what happened that day. Tiber explains it as rehearsed prior to, but there is one thing he did not think of. The letter. Lanara’s surprise. Tiber rolls his head back as… he is putting on a sleazy show. The roguish personality came out to play into his ‘careless’ personality if anyone knew him. “How am I supposed to know? The Queen and Lanara are close. Do I look like a chick who is all giddy-giddy?” The guard stands and bangs on the table. “Enough, Lowell! This is not fun and games, and I know just the little punk you are, so act straight. This isn’t some slum of a place. You’re inside the Kingdom of Enchantment, and you best act like it.” Tiber stares at the aggressive guard. “Okay, okay. Seriously… I don’t know. Lanara is very good with surprises with her friends and me,” beat. Think, Tiber. Think. He can hear Lanara’s sobs in the room across the hall. “Normally she tells me if it’s for someone else. I don’t know why she didn’t tell me this time…” His face is straight and he stares head-on towards the guard without a blink.

Lanara sniffles after she cries for a believable amount of time. She slightly lifts her gaze to see if the guard has softened and it seems that he finds her explanation to be truthful. He jots down a few notes and rises from his chair, “I’m sorry for your loss.” He clears his throat and can only imagine what the witch had gone through as his sister had died during childbirth. It’s not the same, but losing any relative takes a toll on one's mental state. He gives a parting nod and leaves the room to speak with the others, before he heads into Tiber’s room. Will he ask the Catalian about the unborn miracle baby? Lana desperately wants to nibble on her nails out of a nervous habit but she refrains from doing so as she doesn’t want to look guilty of anything. The guard that had originally questioned Tiber plops into the chair and glares at her for a long moment, his gaze trailing down her frame until he spies the heavily bandaged arm. “So, you and your husband were in some sort of bar brawl and it escalated on the beach, later that night?” He points to her right arm. “How did you get those burns?” The gauze is specifically used to treat skin abrasions and burns and there’s no hiding it. Lana takes a sip of water and sniffles as she looks up, “The bastard pushed me into the bonfire.” He makes some notes and carries on, “Didn’t you murder a dozen children all snug in their beds? And then set fire to the stables that had animals trapped inside at your workplace? Oh. And lets not forget the train of murders that occured in Venturil, Cenril, and Gualon that have your handiwork attached!” The witch testily replies, “I was cleared of all charges. You see, a shade took over my body-” He slams his fist on the table, causing some water to spill from the overfilled glass, “I don’t want to hear your excuses. You are a cold blooded killer and your husband is going to face a life sentence in prison! And you? You claim to love the Queen? Her disappearance is on -your- hands, Lanara Lowell. It’s a good thing that you like the fire, because we just may burn you at the stake if you don’t fess up to what happened!” His threats do nothing to sway the witch from her script, though she does hope he’s fibbing about the part where Tiber has to spend a lifetime behind bars! “I swear. I would -never- hurt Lunalesca!” This time, she doesn’t need to fake the tears that spill.

Tiber (1 of 2):: Tiberius can feel his palms sweating, so he reaches for the glass of water in front of him. He was forming a cottonmouth, so he took a sip of the water. The questioner takes a pause as the other interrogator wants to have a brief discussion to come up with more questions. Tiberius is left alone in the room for a moment, and it gives him a moment to breathe. He takes the time to scramble out information internally before the guard comes back in. His interrogator looks almost reluctant, but he knows he has to press the Catalian. “Is it true that you and your wife cannot conceive children?” This throws Tiberius for a whirlwind at this question. Where was this leading? “... Correct. Lanara cannot have children.” The guard takes these questions slower than the others. “Were you aware that your wife was with child the day the Queen went missing, and that was the surprise she was going to tell the Queen?” Tiber looks blank at that moment. A long visual pause from the Catalian, and for some reason, his heart thumps a little quickly. “No, sir…” Tiberius seems breathless for a moment. Was this panic, or was this excitement? Acting? Tiber’s head feels light at this moment. Surely Lanara would tell him of a pregnancy, right? Surely this was false. It was false. “Were you aware your wife had a miscarriage the day you and her went to Cenril and were attacked?” Tiber has no way to suppress his reaction, but scratch his head. His heart is pumping loudly in his ears, and the confusion on his face says it all. He did not know either way if it was a lie or not. There was only shock on his features. “No, sir…” Tiber says softly. There was no way she could have been pregnant, right? They did not want kids, right? This was a lie, right? But what if… it was a miracle…? Key word… was. Tiberius feels mixed in this moment. If it was a lie, he would be shaken. Would Lanara go to such extremes? She could have. The guard watches Lowell closely before scribbling down notes.

Tiber (2 of 2):: Next questions then come forth moving on from the miscarriage. Tiber seems disoriented as they come flying at him. “You like petty crime, don’t you Lowell? Stealing from the innocent? Pawning for fortune?” Tiberius looks at the guard in that haze still from the previous questions. Did he cause turmoil with Lanara besides the burns? “Years ago, yes. When I was younger and trying my best to survive.” Lies, but he had to get through this all the same. “You get into a lot of brawls, don’t you? I mean, it seems to me like you were the one that caused this miscarriage to happen,” ruthless interrogator, “Irrationally going after people without a thought, it seems. Unaware of consequences? Would you say that is true, Lowell?” The guard waits with a quirked brow. Tiberius narrows his gaze. “I try to protect my wife to the best of my ability. I wasn’t expecting anything ruthless in Cenril, but I also did not like the way he was looking at Lanara. There’s a lot of cruel people in Cenril, sir. And if you are talking that I blindly went after Queen Lunalesca, you’re wrong. I haven’t seen her since our wedding.”

Lanara continues to cry through her answers as this interrogator is downright ruthless and each delivered line is more brutal than the last, “I heard you were pregnant but you killed that too, didn’t you? Why? Did Tiber not want a baby and he smacked you around a bit? I bet you ran to the Queen for help and when she couldn’t help you… You struck her! Then you killed the two guards and left them there to be eaten by wild animals. -YOU- are an animal! You better tell me, Lanara! Where did you bury your child and the Queen?!” The witch is shaking from head to toe, because she -did- kill her daughter two years ago. It’s causing flashbacks that she doesn’t want and she shuts her eyes and shakes her head from side to side, over and over. Natianara with a pair of shears through her chest. Casting a spell on Kelvar so no one can ever enter or exit the land. Returning home and fighting for her life. Unable to bear a child for Tiber. “Stop it!” Lana lifts her glass of water and hurls the contents at the guards face and they both gasp as he’s covered in liquid. The guard jumps to his feet and lifts the pitcher of water, preparing to smash the woman in the face, when the door flies open. It’s Benedict, the Queen’s most trusted guard, who has just returned from a vacation away from the lands. “What the hell is going on in here?” The man strides into the room and snags the pitcher from the guards hands, scowing at him as they maintain eye contact, “Questioning is over. Lanara, you are free to go.” He doesn’t even spare a glance at the witch because he’s so intent on delivering a hellish punishment to the lowly guard that battered the woman's emotions. Lana waits for her the ankle monitor to be removed and then she exits the room and waits for Tiber to finish up. At long last, he’s also free to go, and Lana bursts into tears and presses her face against his chest. She forgets both of their injuries as she tries to curl into the males embrace, “I want to go home! I want this to be over. That was awful!” Nearing hysterics, she clutches Tiber’s shirt and refuses to pull away from him, just in case that nasty guard comes back and delivers on arresting him.

Tiber :: The guard presses onward, as the interrogators had somehow ended up with the same mindset. A ‘break them’ mindset. Their questions would be framed almost similarly. The guard continues, and Tiber sits there staring across the table with a defeated look on his face. “Are you sure you did not know about the baby? Or perhaps you knew and did not want anyone to know. Maybe you set the Queen up -and- your wife. Murdered the only person your wife fully trusted, so you didn’t have to provide for a kid you didn’t want? Your temper got out of hand, right Lowell?” Tiberius grinds his teeth, and Luca growls at his point because the Catalian had the opposite effect. Tiberius screams at the guard from across. “I didn’t know she was pregnant, you piece of sh*t! I didn’t do -anything-!” The Catalian’s eyes light up in a blaze and there is a glossiness that forms over them. Benedict then blows through the door after letting Lanara free. “Yerald, what the hell. You’re -done-. This is -done-. Let Tiberius go, -now-.” Tiber blinks away tears that briefly shred. His lips are tight and once he is set free, he barges out the door where Lanara clasps onto him. She knocks the breath out of him, and he feels shaky. His hands clutch around her, and he holds her close and presses his mouth to the top of her hair. “We’re going home, Lana… We’re going home…”