RP:Lovely Little Songbird

Part of the Mearcstapa Arc

Summary: After the Vailkrin Blood Bowl match, Yozenra and Brennia visit Reginae in the healer’s tent as she recovers before her meeting with the Countess of Castle Blackwell.

Onsite Healer’s Tent

After the duel with Mathollak, Reginae's pulled off the field by medics in a hilarious state. Not only is she missing a tooth but she's being slowly knocked off balanced by the two barbs that wedged themselves into her vambrace AND he literally jumped off her coiled tail to continue the fight after exhaling flaming wraith dust in her face. And her mouth got cut, that also happened. The fragments that Reginae remembers of this time are few and far between but when she wakes up enough to be conversational, she's a little out of it. Her state of mind has altered itself from the serious or flirty versions of Nico. It's now a rebooted version of Reginae herself, minus a few good life experiences. Regi may or may not have dreamed that Mathollak brought her tooth back to her in a glass jar of milk.

Yozenra had been staying with Brennia until Regi was fit to see anyone. They'd been staying in a room provided by the arena for travelers. It wasn't the same thing as being home but it wasn't too bad. Not enough bathing pools, if you asked the Queen's guard. The Queen almost bursts out laughing when Yozenra appears through the healing tent curtains, with Brennia close behind. The rest of the tent is unoccupied. The arena shut down until the next fight. It gave the party a couple days to rest. Yozenra starts the exchange a little stone faced. "Your majesty."

Reginae scuffs and beckons both women inside, closer. "Already with the face." She rolls her eyes at Yozenra before turning to take a look at Brennia. Her face grows into a warm, almost familiar smile. "What a beautiful creature you've brought with you." Yozenra's face remains unchanged but she steps back to let Brennia approach Regi's bed side. Reginae's long, white snake tail is laid out, where humanoid legs would be before cascading down the side of the table into a neat coiled pile. "Lovely thing, you are."

Brennia is anxious to see Regi this way and her heart is thundering with fear that she will be on the attack again, but she can't stay away. Her hair is still straightened in the high ponytail which accentuates her angular features, like her overly long tapered ears, large teal eyes and cheekbones, but the weight of the ponytail lazily whips to and fro with every turn of her head. The laugh makes some of the barbs to her feathers stand on end because she cannot tell if it is more of a humorous action or a cackle of madness. She swallows hard as they are summoned to come closer and there is finally enough room to separate from her space at Yozenra's back. It seems Regi's team picked out an entire wardrobe of gold and white outfits for the avian to wear, but it does look quite striking against her bronze tattooed skin, shiny black hair and black velvety wings. Today she is sporting more of a gold cocktail dress that is cinched at one side to accentuate her narrow waist with a silky white shawl to drape around her slender shoulders along with diamond jewelry to accent. Her heart nearly leaps out of her chest with the way Regi is looking at her and the smile that follows making her own spread across her lush lips which pokes dimples in her cheeks. The compliment makes her face feel like it is on fire, but no one can tell she is blushing unless they spot the tips of her ears turning a shade pink.

The avian cannot remember the last time she has seen beautiful Regi's face and her true form like this up close. It is, without a doubt, breathtaking. Then it hits her that this woman has no idea who she is while Brennia is approaching her bedside and concern knits her brow together even though the smile remains when she glances over to Yozenra. "Thank you, your majesty," her soft and slightly raspy timbre starts as she gives a bow. "I'm Brennia my Queen," she offers tentatively in aims to re-inform without upsetting her fragile mental state. "I performed for you at your coronation," it is a reach to see what she does and does not remember, but that was Brennia's first time in Alithrya and meeting the fine people there. "You performed fiercely at the duel, your majesty."

Reginae takes Brennia's hands and shakes them together. "A beautiful name that still fails to capture such a beautiful woman." Yozenra stays silent. When Bre clarifies she'd played at her coronation, Reginae looks further impressed. "Was that you? Aramoth above, Yozenra. You didn't tell me this lovely little songbird was going to visit?" The Queen's azurite gaze takes in Brennia's festive dress. "And dressed in Alithryian colors, what a darling. I could just eat you up." She smiles, showing off her missing fang. As a joke. Probably. "Thank you so much for coming and saying so. Please, won't you stay around with us a bit until we head back to Alithrya?" Regi looks at Yozenra like a co conspirator. "There'll be a little party to celebrate the occasion. You have to say yes." Brennia would feel Yozenra's stare heavy against the back of her head. The avian really didn't have a choice.

Regi looks back at Brennia, shaking her head again. "My, you really just are stunning." Brennia looks like a queen in her own right. She holds herself so perfectly straight and tall. Royalty is glittering off Brennia's skin. It's a whole vibe. "Yozenra, would you get Lady Brennia's dress measurements before she leaves. We must have the tailor make something for her, for the occasion." Bre still hadn't had a chance to agree. Yozenra flashes back to the tailor's black oozing eyes when Reginae'd killed him for hurting Emilia. "At once, your majesty." Though there was no need. They'd already crafted this beautiful dress for her to wear, along with a closet of others. "Don't worry about a thing, my dear." Regi squeezes Brennia's hands a little tighter.

Brennia is lucky her wounds from the thorns healed nicely thanks to Nadia, but the same couldn’t be said for the faint one left on her cheek. The way Regi is looking at her, like she could devour her is making her blush spread down her neck and across her chest, but luckily the tattoo pattern on her bronze skin there makes it less obvious. When the queen admires her short dress, she subtly tugs at the hem in poor attempts to hide the old welts from when the goblins would use whips on their mindless workers. Unfortunately, her long legs are accentuated by the dress and that leaves most of those old scars to be seen. Even though Brennia doesn’t let it bother her most days, there are times it makes her self conscious, but this time is more of trying to hide memories tied to Regi.

She respectfully takes her place and gives Regi a couple steps of distance while being showered in compliments. Her heart is thundering away again and she gracefully dips her head in acceptance, “thank you my Queen.” Then, there are talks of a party and internally she is thrown off balance because who is to say the Queen will still be so pleasant by then or even herself. Yes, she can feel the eyes boring into the back of her head and she keeps her composure as her wings seemingly preen behind her because of all the flattery. “Oh, I would be delightfully honored your highness, of course,” but then those compliments just keep coming.

Regi wouldn’t be wrong at all about Brennia. She was groomed to accept the highest leadership role on Vere, a Countess, but she couldn’t find herself worthy and fled the island. That was so long ago and so far away now. Her gaze studies Yozenra, understanding what the word ‘tailor’ meant and Brennia gently clears her throat to help break the stare so she could answer Regi. Then she steps to Regi again to offer her a goodbye and the naga is taking her hands once more to give them a squeeze, “you’re too kind, Queen Reginae.” The name gets tangled up on her foreign tongue as usual and then she bows her head for a second time, but this time she adds a curtsy before being shown out. Once they are out of earshot from the Queen, she looks at Yozenra and asks, “what do we do now?”

If Reginae saw the scars on Brennia's body, she made no mention of them and certainly didn't act like there was a single flaw to be found on Brennia. She smiles warmly when Brennia calls her 'my queen'. Was this lovely woman Reginae's? Perhaps she was, dressed in their colors. A beautiful little songbird to keep her company. It had been quite lonely since Muzo'd gone. But time found the scientist gone and back again more times than she could count. Any unease that might shine through Brennia's composure is also lost on the delusional Queen.

Yozenra bows to Reginae, who was commenting on the softness of Brennia's face while touching her cheek briefly. The Queen looks very pleased as they leave her. The Queen's guard stops outside the tent, holding the flap open for the healers to go tend to her wounds again. Her amethyst eyes look conflicted. "For now, we should stay close by. I haven't given it to her yet but a missive arrived for the Queen. A Countess requested an audience with her. The reason is obscure, I don't understand it." Yozenra sighs. "We'll be here roughly a week with her injuries and this possible meeting. If you have affairs to get in order, I will escort you."

Brennia allows the Queen to stroke her smooth face which is enhanced by Vinabre Flawless Foundation and that is a good thing at the moment because her whole face is probably red by now, but surely the Queen can feel the warmth of it. It has been some time since she heard the term 'Countess' and she freezes, "Countess? Di… did it say from where?" Fear grips her heart that it could have possibly come from Vere, but that is impossible! Then it is revealed that the meeting is for here in Vailkrin and she lets her breath go, "right." Silly birdy. "There is a guild meeting and it would be odd for me to miss it being a former leader and all," but there is no way she could try and lead again because it just put far too much stress on her health. As if her current situation is any better! "Are you sure, Yozenra? It will be kind of boring," she warns in an attempt to dissuade her, but it is a long shot and she knows the naga must stay close.

Yozenra nods dutifully at Brennia's inquiry. "It would encourage the Queen to rest, I think, but I will be acting as an extension." To both keep Brennia safe, because who knows how Reginae would react if something happened to the avian, and keep Brennia in their custody. Out here, there was no way to censor the woman's words, like she could get her guards to do with her letters. It would be a difficult situation to navigate but if it kept Brennia happy, that kept Reginae happy and made Yozenra's life that much easier. In a flash, the naga woman shifts to sport humanoid legs to stride alongside her charge. "Lead the way."