Written Wonderland

Jett touched Adrianna's wrist with a shadow, and Adrianna immediately gestured for the caravan to stop. A black swan landed in the clearing before them, swirling just as suddenly into formless smoke. Adrianna did let surprise show on her face, though she turned up a pleasant smile as she understood. The smoke coalesced into the goddess' human form, and she, too, greeted the caravan with a smile--perhaps just a dash more pointed than Adrianna's own.

"Greetings, goddess," Adrianna dipped into a practical but graceful curtsey. It was enough like a gesture she would make at court to please her courtley companions, and enough like a sensual dance to please her own aesthetic and kinesthetic sensibilities--and, she hoped, the goddess', in intent if not in form.

She was sure that Jett would follow her lead and bow behind her, though she doubted that the shadowmancer would muster much in the way of sensuality. Elegance, to be sure, though any flair that Jett might miraculously summon would no doubt be overshadowed by her very plain, very black attire. Jett at least wore a fitted jacket with some silver embroidery that acknowledged that she would be seen, and that she wished the sight of her to be enjoyed; this was certainly not a mission for dissappearing into the shadows. It was out of Jett's comfort zone, but Adrianna trusted the shadowmancer to serve her role here well.

Adrianna herself wore tall boots and fitted slacks with a blouse and capelet--practical for trekking through the woods, but still decorative and flowing. While most of her outfit was also black, gold accents on her boots played with the matching lining of her capelet, and a luscious purple decorated the pattern of her blouse, all of it bringing out the rich honey goldenrod of her eyes. This would not be her very first meeting with the goddess, but the first time she had been trying not to make an impression. This time, however, she wanted the goddess to remember her well.

When Adrianna straightened, she gently touched the necklace resting on her chest--a cluster of purple stones forged together, a token from the queen. Perhaps the silver of her necklace clashed in some sensibilities with the golden flares to her outfit, but Adrianna wanted to show some of her own colors, not just the queen's.

"How fare you?"

Adrianna studied the goddess closely. It may be a risk not to get straight to business--if the goddess was meeting them here, it seemed plausible that she may be in something of a hurry. But, how much of a hurry was difficult to guess, and it wasn't as though the goddess herself had opened conversation in haste. Better to at least ask a pleasantry, surely, that they might establish some personal rapport outside of mere business. Perhaps it was hubris to hope that the goddess might have genuine interest in such a thing, but, well, this whole mission was built on a healthy dose of hubris to begin with. Adrianna was here to negotiate more of a relationship with the goddess one way or another; may as well make an attempt to start there and at least find out where they were at.

"Greetings, goddess," the figure in the front of the group said, dipping into a slow curtsy. Not the queen or king themselves, then, the goddess thought, feeling slighted. Still, the motions of the woman intrigued her. Something about the woman's appearance flickered in the goddess' memory--yes, this woman had been part of the company in a previous entourage to visit the goddess. Moving up in the world, then. Or this is a worse slight than I realized, the goddess thought, crossing her arms.

One of the guards--themselves full of shadows--curtseyed as well. Ah, perhaps this would be interesting. The other guard, stalky and obedient, bowed deeply over his weapon. Their gilded uniforms glinted in the dim light of the moons.

The other aristocrat was hesitant to curtsey at first, though she dipped briefly into a mild one after a delay. This woman has not been properly introduced to her body, Dehaljadrun thought.

Both of the high-caste individuals wore traveling garb, though their capes were well-made and adorned. The first woman--the goddess did not yet want to search for her name--had a short cape of black and gold with a purple blouse, and the second had a long cape of dark blue. Interesting choices pitted against the queen's silver charm that lay on the first woman's breast, laden with history and meaning. Dehaljadrun remembered when those had first been created, several hundred years prior.

Deftly, the first woman--Adrianna, her mind finally supplied anyway--touched the charm hanging around her neck to draw attention to it. Ranked highly enough to carry the mark of royalty, at least, the goddess thought.

"How fare you?"

The goddess exhaled in a short huff, the stones on her gown clicking lightly together.

"Inconvenienced," the goddess answered, uncrossing her arms and setting her fingernails against her palms gently. "And you?" the goddess asked sardonically with a small thrust of her chin.

"Inconvenienced," the goddess answered after a short huff, uncrossing her arms and jutting her chin a bit in Adrianna's direction. "And you?"

So, the goddess was feeling a bit combative, but not unwilling to engage. Adrianna felt optimistic that she could work with that.

"Hopeful, goddess," Adrianna replied with a warm, honey-sweet voice and a matching smile. "The queen hopes to ease your inconvenience. She sent me to you as soon as we realized this charge--" she gestured lightly to the carriage "--had wandered astray. She would have come herself, but did not want to draw undue attention to this meeting. I undertand that you don't presently care to deal with any more fae than you must."

Adrianna allowed just a dash of acidity to enter her voice at the last, an acknowledgement of one aspect of their present relationship that she wished were different. It would be her first tip-of-hand, her first offering of desire to the goddess, and she paid careful attention to how it landed.

Adrianna, who was clearly the one calling the shots of the four dark fae, was not put off.

"Hopeful, goddess," Adrianna said, her voice betraying nothing of irritation, though there was a coldness nonetheless. "The queen hopes to ease your inconvenience. She sent me to you as soon as we realized this charge--" she gestured lightly to the carriage "--had wandered astray. She would have come herself, but did not want to draw undue attention to this meeting."

With added bite, Adrianna said, "I understand that you don't presently care to deal with any more fae than you must."

The goddess scoffed slightly, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

"Not among your court, certainly," the goddess said, taking a small step forward. She looked at the other woman and the guards, quickly learning each of their names. "Present company excluded, of course," Dehaljadrun said, her voice dipping toward irony as she looked back toward Adrianna.

"Now, what do I owe for such a kindness?" The goddess liked that this woman had at least gotten quickly to the point.

"Not among your court, certainly," the goddess said, taking a small step forward and eyeing each of Adrianna's companions. "Present company excluded, of course." Her voice dipped toward irony as she looked back toward Adrianna. "Now, what do I owe for such a kindness?"

Adrianna was quiet for a moment, not afraid to show that she was thinking, weighing what the goddess had said. She understood that the goddess was likely to pick up emotions--desires especially, of course--and in that, the goddess would almost certainly pick up curiosity, and a yearning for deeper understanding. The rift between the goddess and the dark fae--or Melisande's court, in any case--was still rather a mystery to her. Oh, she understood well enough that Puck's recent party had deepened the rift, but it spanned back farther than that, and was difficult to get information about. This was an area where Adrianna still felt awfully young--perhaps naive, even--but she hoped in some ways that would work in her favor, here, to be separate from whatever history put distance between the goddess and her court.

"Repair, or freedom. Your choice." Adrianna finally answered, her expression soft and serious--earnest, as much as any dark fae could be trusted to be. Then, she tipped her lips back up into a soft smile. "And of course, a few casks of wine."

It was in Adrianna's favor if the goddess agreed to terms that vague, but of course she didn't expect that outcome. Still, she left it there, inviting the goddess to clarify what she cared to. Perhaps a bit risky on the goddess' mood, but Adrianna felt she had some wiggle room still.

Adrianna was quiet as she thought, and the goddess took another step forward. She tried to glean something from the woman's thoughts and found only a hungry curiosity--this woman wanted information from the goddess. She wanted to understand the goddess. Good fucking luck, the goddess thought.

In the time it took Adrianna to respond, Dehaljadrun turned her attention to the other dark fae in attendance. The shorter, somewhat squatter woman was looking up at Adrianna, and her thoughts indicated that she had little of her own agenda here, at least, other than making a good impression. The guards held themselves still and at attention. One of them was doing a good job hiding the admiration he felt for the goddess, at least in his outward appearance. Perhaps she could use that later, if it came down to it.

Jett on the other hand, was much more difficult to read, though Dehaljadrun had noted an air of discomfort after making her comment about not enjoying interactions with the court. Very loyal, that one, the goddess thought. Rare trait among the dark fae. Then again, Jett might well be more than fae, tangled as they were with shadows.

"Repair, or freedom. Your choice," Adrianna said softly, pulling the goddess' attention back. Afterward, the woman smiled slightly and said, "And, of course, a few casks of wine."

What in the realms did the dark fae mean by that? Had they become even more insufferably vague since she had last interacted with them?

The goddess laughed darkly, looking down and shaking her head. She took a few more steps forward, the glittering black diamonds of her dress catching the purple light as she did so.

"Always the wine," the goddess said, a smile on her face. She may as well enjoy this, since it was happening anyway. She had an impulse to caress Adrianna's cheek, to pull her thoughts closer to the surface--conversation was slippery, but the images of the mind were honest. Still, the goddess enjoyed a good back-and-forth and so stopped within two arms' lengths of the party.

Taking another moment before responding, the goddess weighed the value of simply leaving Raccoon in their care. She had, of course, stopped them from proceeding to the palace. She would be left in peace to ready herself for the other volunteers. Or, she could force Adrianna and her companions to comply. But Evan soon came to mind--both his loud scream of "Raccoon, run!" and the distraught state she had let him in after she had told Philip to... No. She couldn't leave Raccoon, and she could not make Adrianna do anything--not without further risking standing with the court. Fine, then. The long way.

The goddess finally rolled her eyes, though she was still smiling playfully. "Repair what? Free what? You dark fae should know better than anyone that you need to be specific to get what you want."

The goddess laughed darkly, looking down and shaking her head. She took a few more steps forward, the glittering black diamonds of her dress catching the purple light as she did so.

"Always the wine," she said, a smile on her face. Good, then; Adrianna's gamble had paid off. In fact, if she wasn't mistaken, she detected hints that the goddess might be interested in playing an even more intricate game with them--with her--as a sweet caress of intent tingled against her cheek. She smiled even as the goddess stopped out of arm's reach, a small thrill twirling in Adrianna's chest. Oh, she knew better than to think the goddess was simply flirting. No doubt the emotions the goddess could glean from them would be all the easier to read with touch; perhaps it would have other effects, as well. Some thrillseeking urge deep within her longed for the goddess to touch her, then, but Adrianna was well practiced at keeping that part of herself thoroughly out of sight.

The goddess finally rolled her eyes, though she was still smiling playfully. "Repair what? Free what? You dark fae should know better than anyone that you need to be specific to get what you want."

"You acknowledge a rift between yourself and Melisande's court," Adrianna stated with a fresh earnestness and seriousness to her voice. "This grieves her--it grieves all of us, goddess. The queen desires repair--this charge, an offering toward that end. If there is no path to that, though... then give us the knowledge we need to seek out what we yearn for from other gods. Teach us how to create our own portals, and set us free."

The commanding dark fae woman was quick with her response as though she had expected the goddess' questions. This unnerved Dehaljadrun a little, showing in the way the smile faded from her face.

"You acknowledge a rift between yourself and Melisande's court. This grieves her--it grieves all of us, goddess. The queen desires repair--this charge, an offering toward that end. If there is no path to that, though... then give us the knowledge we need to seek out what we yearn for from other gods. Teach us how to create our own portals, and set us free."

This was not at all what Dehaljadrun had expected. She was, in fact, rather stunned. Before she could help it, one of her hands flew to her chest as through trying to comfort the immense pain that had erupted there as the goddess weighed Adrianna's words. They had been pointed and painful but not untrue. The goddess deserved every one of them, she knew, even better now that Evan had been with her. If she was truly going to change, to make herself worthy of being a goddess, it could not end with Evan. It would need to filter out to all the beings she had been entrusted with.

She sighed and looked at the ground, where the black, calf-high grasses blew in the light breeze. Suddenly, the goddess longed to press her fingers into the soil below her feet, but she refrained.

There were risks on either side of the bargain, to be certain. Who knew what repair with the fae really entailed--more embarrassment, likely. But teaching them how to create portals? Unthinkable. They did not need any other gods.

Set us free, Adrianna had said, and Dehaljadrun's chest ached even more deeply. Had the goddess trapped them here like she was trapped? No, they had their fae gates, and it was not her fault the portals had become the only reliable way to traverse the realms. Still...

Absurdly, she wanted to give Adrianna everything she asked for. Both. All of it. And yet that felt impossibly stupid. What sort of precedent would that set with the dark fae if they found her to be an open, bleeding heart now?

Suddenly, she wanted to yell, scream, thrash. They want to talk about freedom? the goddess thought viciously. She knew an awful lot about how it felt to be trapped. Her fists tightened but then soon relaxed at her sides. She knew she was being defensive. Gods, what power did she have left if not her anger, her impatience, her action?

Love, she thought bitterly. And it was true. She genuinely did love the dark fae and every being that had made her realm a home, even if they drove her near madness sometimes. She would miss them terribly if they left entirely. Well, maybe not Puck. And, come to think of it, if they had full run of the human realm, what might that put in danger with Evan and his army? No, she could not let that happen, not with everything as precarious as it was. And yet... she could not force them to stay. The thought of doing so was like ash in the goddess' mouth.

What the fuck was she supposed to do, then?

Dehaljadrun looked up at Adrianna, her eyes narrow and cruel as she gazed at the woman. She searched the woman and her desires, stalling for time. This woman wanted the goddess to be a good adversary. She could feel it. At that, the goddess relented slightly, shaking her head, regaining her smile. Could she really be that and more to this woman? To all the dark fae?

"That lonely, are you?" The goddess asked, her voice soft, gentle even, as she placed a hand on her hip. "And what would repair look like? Attending more parties? Specially curated dreams?" Despite her sarcasm, a thought burst through her mind of living among the dark fae, dancing and singing with them. It had the flavor of a memory, but she could not recall when that would have been. Before her exile from the upper realms? Impossible.

Darkly, her eyes on the ground again, the goddess said, "I do not imagine things will go back to the way they were."

One of the goddess' hands flew up to her chest as Adrianna's words landed, and, had Adrianna slipped in the slightest, a victorious smirk would have tugged at her expression. She was at the top of her game for this encounter, though, and she kept that impulse buried inside of her--a pleasant thrum of friction deep within her chest, muted beneath layers of practiced, disciplined calm.

She was patient as the goddess looked down to the ground in thought. That the goddess needed to think about it seemed like a very good sign indeed, and far be it from Adrianna to interrupt. Even when the goddess' fists tightened, they soon relaxed, and Adrianna just kept trust falling into the hubris she needed to believe that this had worked.

There was a sharpness to the goddess' eyes when she looked up, however, that sent caution pricking through Adrianna's chest.

"That lonely, are you?" The goddess asked, her voice soft, gentle even, as she placed a hand on her hip. Adrianna indulged in a subtle, playful smirk--a silent, good-natured touché. "And what would repair look like?" the goddess continued, "Attending more parties? Specially curated dreams? I do not imagine things will go back to the way they were."

"No, things never do." Adrianna replied smoothly, her tone a gentle acknowledgement--and, perhaps buying her a moment to double-check her next words against her understanding of the queen's desires.

“The queen desires collaboration. Regular meetings where mutually beneficial agreements can be reached. Not to return to the past, but to build a better future. A future where you are properly worshipped, goddess, and where we can properly thrive.”

Adrianna allowed her mind to imagine attending such meetings with the goddess--allowed her genuine, palpable desire for it to warm her chest and pool in her eyes, echoes of the goddess' attention tingling her skin. It was a risk, perhaps, but one that felt worth taking. If she was going to talk about worshiping the goddess, she had to believe that she had it within herself to give the goddess at least a taste in enticement.

She also had some optimism that it would harmonize well, actually, with what was likely to come from Jett behind her. Of all the fae Adrianna knew, she was not sure that any longed more soulfully to worship. Jett had very nearly settled for worshipping Adrianna herself, she suspected, but she had no illusions that she would overshadow a goddess, if the opportunity truly presented itself. Jett's own longing had surely flared some to envision that future, though Adrianna expected the shadowmancer would still be keeping their guard up about it.

"No, things never do," Adrianna replied, not wasting a moment. She moved on quickly. “The queen desires collaboration. Regular meetings where mutually beneficial agreements can be reached. Not to return to the past, but to build a better future. A future where you are properly worshipped, goddess, and where we can properly thrive.”

More meetings, more deals, more asks, the goddess thought, not thrilled about where that all might lead. But, Adrianna opened her mind more fully then, notably so, and the goddess, obligingly, looked. The woman ached for being present at such meetings, the desire pooling golden in her chest and behind her eyes. Dehaljadrun made a sound halfway to a scoff, loud enough for Adrianna to hear. Fascinating for Adrianna to fantasize about the very thing happening now.

Not just, a voice in the goddess' mind reprimanded. The goddess shook her head to clear her thoughts. Still, though, she knew what the voice meant. It was the longevity that Adrianna wanted. The regularity. The relationship.

The goddess looked over the woman's other companions. The shadowmancer, dark and shadowed even in the dim moonlight, craved the goddess' attentions as well. The other guard's eyes were wide with awe and interest. The shorter woman's brows furrowed, looking at Adrianna--anxious about how to add anything useful, no doubt. Perhaps that would be of use to the goddess.

"And you, noble fae," the goddess said, speaking to Colleen, "which would you prefer, crafting portals or regular meetings with me?"

Surprised, Colleen brought a hand to her collarbone and took half a step back, inhaling slightly. Colleen couldn't help a quick look to Adrianna. Still deferring, then. Interesting, the goddess thought.

But Colleen was not about to keep the goddess waiting, "P-portals," Colleen said, her voice still catching up to itself after some time of disuse. She demurred slightly after that, looking down at the ground, briefly. "Many fae went missing after travel became complicated." After a moment, Colleen hastily added, "Not that we don't enjoy your company, goddess." She curtsied then, her face reddening slightly.

Dehaljadrun brought her attention back to Adrianna. "I doubt any of you have any idea what you're asking for in making portals. None but me have been entrusted with the task in my knowledge. I'm not even fully certain it is possible for someone of the fae to even attempt it." The goddess took a step to the aside and brought one hand to her chin, pretending to be in thought. "It could be dangerous," she added, a glint in her eye.

Then again, the goddess thought, it is easier to make the portals with another being present. The goddess smiled mischievously, looking Adrianna from head to toe with a raised eyebrow and a tilt of her head.

"If you send me someone each time the dark moon fills to half, I could make portals with them. The process would be safer in my presence. And, should there be any additional business to attend to, we can discuss it then." That still left openings for the fae to intervene in Asphodel, however, which the goddess could not allow. The last thing she needed was a fae wild card in the middle of a human war--which was exactly what they would be drawn to, the goddess was sure. But, Dehaljadrun knew better than to forbid the fae from doing anything. They'd find a loophole faster than she could flap her wings and go straight there. No, perhaps it was better not to mention it.

"I don't want to begin for three full moon cycles, however," the goddess said, looking again at Adrianna. "By my account, that is more than what you have asked for, except for the wine." Dehaljadrun allowed a sultry smile to cross her lips. "You would need to sweeten your side of the bargain for that."