Corisande: The Twins Dinner

As the adults allowed the children to move ahead a bit, Crispin sidled up to his sister. Any repentance or anger was once again gone.

"I got something at the Mansion," he whispered. "In my pack. I had an idea."

"I should hope you got something," Cori whispered back. "After all that ... what is it?"

"Another journal." He rushed on before she could comment. "It's the last one, during all the troubles. I thought..." His voice lowered again, nearly impossible to hear. "I thought that maybe dad was with mom before the war, and maybe Brand knew her. He might have written about her."

Cori sucked in a breath and was silent for a moment as she considered her brother's words.

"I want to read it when you're done," Cori whispered back. "If we have to sacrifice something, in case the other two get it pulled out of them that we had a book, I've got something I can give up. OK?"

"Okay," he whispered, then brightened as they came into the dining area. It was set up for just family, in a U-shape. Scanning the settings, Corisande could guess children were on the inside: no wineglasses.

Crispin took a seat across from their father. Crispin was all light and forgiveness now, apparently feeling managamous about the Elders daring to catch them.

Cori put on her best face as well. She looked around to see who else had arrived before finding a seat.

[OOC: I'll settle in if we're the first.]

She caught sight of Lillith and Dulcifera in a corner, and Keenan and Dante (with parents trailing behind) coming in the door. As she settled into her seat, she was aware of a presence at her left.

"Corisande!" Flora's trim hand brushed over the girl's shoulder. "Oh, Mirabel will be furious... She's taken ill and couldn't come."

"Aunt Flora," Cori replied. Well, it turned out she had learned something from her aunt after all. The ability to smile apparently wholeheartedly at someone you didn't like at all. "How lovely you look. I'm sorry I missed Mirabel. I'll have to send her a note and tell her how much I regret her not being here."

And it was true. Mirabel could at least keep Flora out of her hair.

Dulcifera approached. She was in a white dress with lace at the edges. Her hair was up and it was clear that she was trying to act dignified. How do you do Aunt Flora?, she said, and shot an excited sort of smile at Cori before politely facing back to her aunt.

"Dulcifera!" Flora moved an appraising eye over her niece, apparently approving after a pause. "How lovely... Are you girls spending the night here? I'm certain Mirbel will be better by tomorrow. She always seems to get these night bugs... Perhaps shopping in the city?"

Crispin, next to Corisande, was usually deft at rescuing Corisande, usually by proclaiming that he would have to go along as well. Flora was about as fond of Crispin as Random was. Crispin's attention, however, was focused utterly on Lillith, fetching in a low, slung dress and kohl liner.

Dulce said brightly, "I don't know what Mother's schedule is. But if I'm here, I would love to go shopping."

Cori managed to not roll her eyes at her twin's hormonal preoccupation with Lillith. She smiled at Dulce. "Oh, that would be a lot of fun, Dulce." To Aunt Flora, she added, "I'm not sure what Father's plans are. Perhaps we should ask him."

Unfortunately, Bleys, her other occassional savior (especially when it came to Flora) was tied up with Corwin. They spoke softly, their wine glasses just high enough for occassional sipping and obscuring their lips. Flora started to say something when her eyes dropped to Seramina... and the large black wolf sniffing her all over.

"Sera!" she shouted, and was off to rescue her daughter in.

Cori turned back to Dulce. "That's Wolf," she said, indicating the wolf. "He belongs with cousin Harri. I like him."

"I see." Dulce says nodding, "You've met them? He's friendly? That's a silly question isn't it. He wouldn't be here in the dining room if he weren't well behaved. But you've met them?"

[GM skimmed - no tag needed for me.

Dinner post tonight]

"Yes, I've met them. She's quite nice too. We were out today, Alexius and Crispin and Harri and Wolf and I. The boys like Harri a lot," Cori added with the mildest hint of exasperation and the slightest roll of her eyes.

Dulce processed this information. "Hmmm," and commenced to scrutinizing Harri for clues to her attractiveness. "Is it the blonde hair? Or that she's got a wolf - that is neat, having a wolf. Or how she behaves? She doesn't look like the flirty type; is she?"

"No, but she doesn't have to be, with those two," Cori opined, with a touch of annoyance. "I mean, look at Crispin now, with--" She frowned at the girl in the one-armed dress. "Lillith."

She glanced at Wolf and Harri, over where Sera had been before Flora dragged her away. "She's not a flirt, though. She's fun. You'll like her."

"Good. Maybe she wants to come shopping too. I know Lillith. She's living with Mother and me in the tower, taking sorcery lessons. Maybe you've already heard. Uncle Benedict sent her to us to keep her away from her boyfriend. It is such a sad story. She was really distraught, and her beloved, Alex, that's his name, he's maybe going to die in battle. I think she's cheered up some... I think she has a new determination," Dulce observed, looking at Lillith and Crispin benevolently.

"I was hoping her brother would be here. Uncle Benedict brought him to the tower and he was all bloody and we had to operate on him. And his mother died. It was so tragic. You can not believe how tragic it was. So, I wanted to see how he was doing." Dulce looked about by spinning on the toes of her slippers a bit.

Cori kept her thought that Lillith seemed quite consoled by Crispin's attention to herself. "I didn't know about Jack's mother. That is sad," she agreed, glad to have found a point on which it was easy to concur with her young cousin.

"Maybe Lillith and Harri can come shopping with us too."

"Yes, maybe. Lillith seems to have a great love of jewelry. You know what, I just want to go over and say hi to Keenan before the dinner starts. I was in class with him once. I'll be back, okay?"

"Okay. See you later," Cori replied, and watched Dulce scamper off towards Keenan. She saw the younger girl pass by Dante, who was coming this direction, probably towards Crispin and Lillith.

This ought to be entertaining.