Art of subtlety [Cel, Namiko, Closed]

[King Cel]

If Ren had been so wise to know the game the king was playing then he should’ve been wise enough to know what the king was doing was just that: a game. Instead, Ren reacted with the tact of a twelve year old and began to mouth off to arguably one of the most powerful faerie in all of Alanor. As Ren’s voice rung out and Cel registered his crass tones and invading body language a wicked smirk twisted itself into the otherwise inviting lips of the Unseelie monarch. He listened to Ren speak but did not turn to look at him, he merely watched Namiko.

He watched the girl process the situation, the naivety evident in his thought process. Namiko’s ignorance, the fact that she was so oblivious to Ren’s reasoning for his outburst nearly coaxed a fit of laughter from the king. In any other circumstance he would have delighted in explaining to Namiko the reasoning behind Ren’s caustic glare and dangerously foolish words. Yet the King was not in the mood to make a joke of the situation any long. Ren had crossed the line and Jun had pledged his loyalty to the court. Cel was no fool, he was aware that no matter what one promised blood always superseded any oath of loyalty to a crown. Yet if Jun had any aspirations politically then he would need to recognize his brother’s insubordination in this situation. If he did not the King would cut his losses. He had a Niceven. Saalyn’s worth afforded him with the ability to be very selective when it came to other advisors. He was able to sacrifice quantity for quality because of her.

Slowly he turned to face Ren with that same smirk on his face. His voice came as a mere whisper but his eyes held something more. The burning blue irises seemed to vibrate out of some hidden emotion, likely fury or rage. Either way, Cel already short fuse had been blown. ”You would know if my intention was to cause you pain.” He stepped even closer than Ren had; personal space was not an issue for the Prince of Darkness and Flesh. Not only did he command the realm’s magic but this proximity gave strength to his more malicious hand of power.

”What I have to offer should be evident, nimbus.” The Unseelie’s magic crawled to life. The distant slithering of the rose vines and the rustling of their crimson flowers filled the vastness of the throne room. A chattering that could not be ignored surrounded them. King Cel offered any who came to his realm solace from the Seelie, protection from the human world that would sooner drain of the fae of their magic than allow them to thrive. Ren was mistaken in believing that the Darkling Throng needed him. It was the backing of the Unseelie Court that would bolster Ren not the other way around.

"Bow to me. Now." He hissed.

[Jun]

Jun maintained his grip on Ren’s arm as the boy moved. He slowly slid his hand upwards till it dropped off of the brace and met flesh, his own fingernails digging into Ren’s skin so harshly that blood swelled. While Jun retained his natural expression – a soft, glowing smile – his eyes narrowed dangerously. The Nimbus was not known to lose his temper, but at times like these, when Ren was so out of line that he threatened not only his own life but the life of those around him, Jun couldn’t help but adopt the fatherly image he had once portrayed.

Sadly, over the years Jun had been far too lenient on Ren. Upon Ren’s birth, Jun had been set to dispose of the boy without a second thought. Ren was a stain on his family blood, the shame of Jun’s family. Yet, Jun had fallen in love with the child the moment he had delivered him from his mother. He had grown so attached to Ren that when it came time to choose between Alanor, Jun’s home and love, he ultimately sacrificed it all to secure Ren’s safety. Unfortunately, Jun had not been ready to be a father figure at the time. He was too softhearted, his punishments for bad behavior dealt by words and not by the sword. Jun had tried hard to contain Ren’s unwieldy and unpredictable behavior, but had ultimately failed. There was too much of that Sidhe’s blood in Ren – he had inherited next to none of his mother’s personality.

”Ren.” Jun’s voice was soft, warm, but there was a veiled threat lacing his words, ”Get a grip.” His nails dug in even deeper, the tattoo of his mantel writhing in a display of the inner turmoil Jun dare not reveal in front of Cel. He said nothing else, his eyes completely focused in on Ren despite the fact that the boy was not looking at him. He would not command his brother to do what Cel asked – that would ultimately be up to him.

[Ren]

Ren was a brash creature by nature. While Jun was right – he held none of the tact and grace of his mother – he was neither as suave nor as brilliant as his father. Of course, Ren was still young in comparison to the Sidhe man that had seduced his mother; perhaps over time he would grow to display these traits. For now he was a hotheaded fool. His superiority complex was blinding, carefully cultivated over hundreds of years of dominating humans on earth with his faerie prowess. He had grown cocky, arrogant, and as a consequence he knew not how to hold his tongue nor stay his temper.

It was a wonder that Cel had not destroyed him then and there. Of course, when Ren had spoke he had been referring to mental anguish, yet now, with Cel so close to him, the threat of his hand of power was very real. Ren’s tension was palpable. For the moment he seemed immune to both Jun’s grip and Namiko’s soft caress. He could only meet Cel’s eyes, his body quivering with indecision; a strong desire to punch the King in the face versus self-preservation. It was no stroke of clarity that brought him back down to earth – instead it was a sudden moment of insanity, a vivid hallucination that forced his mind into submission faster than Ren could even notice.

For a split second, Ren was not alone in his own mind. There were voices, many of them purling through his thoughts and suffocating his ears with their deafening roar. There was nothing subtle about this assault on Ren’s brain. His body, subconsciously sensing the foreign feeling locked up, his muscles tensing to the point of rigidity, until it appeared almost as if Ren would fall over if pushed.

And then they were gone.

Ren was left with no sense of relief. Rather, a tingling sensation of fear crept of his spine, erupting his skin into a pattern of goosebumps that both Namiko and Jun no doubt felt. It was this fear that cleared his glazed eyes and calmed the noise in his ears. Ren was suddenly fully aware of his surroundings again, not an ounce of his previous anger still harbored in his body. While his frame was still tense, it was from the lingering sense of fear, not fury. In fact, as he gazed upon Cel, his eyes somewhat complacent, the rest of his body returned to normal, semi-languid.

What had he been doing? The pain of Jun’s grip and Namiko’s wavering voice caused Ren’s gut to wrench in guilt. Had he not been still suffering from that freak incident, he would have quite possibly responded in a bout of anger towards his brother. Instead, he wrenched his arm from Jun as he continued to gaze, unblinkingly towards Cel. His bleeding right arm moved to clasp over Namiko’s hand, encasing it in his own as his mantel writhed and hissed silently. His itched to reassure her that he was fine – he, in a sense, had a grip now – but Ren knew this wasn’t the case. Something had happened in those few seconds, something that troubled him far more than Cel’s simple command.

Drawing back slightly from the King, Ren released Namiko’s hand after he gently removed it from his arm. The fire in his eyes was still there, diminished but present, a bright window into his conflicted soul. He did not relish complying to Cel’s command, but, as of this moment, Ren knew he had no choice.

For Namiko’s safety, for Jun’s career, Ren dropped down onto his knees, his head bowed in submission. His hands, lightly clenched atop his thighs, dug into the fabric of his jeans as he sought to release what little anger he had left onto something inanimate. Exhaustion enveloped him, though he refused to let it flicker across his stone-faced visage.

[Namiko]

The girl's heart was racing, this seemed like an unavoidable catastrophe. With the one person in the center who she cared about more than anything else, even if she hadn't admitted it to him and perhaps never would. Her touch and Jun's were two sides of a calming storm, his demanding Ren's attention and hers lightly begging for it. Both actions seemed to fall on numb senses, Ren was somewhere else, far from both of them.

Cel was so close, impossibly imposing, and luckily Namiko was too terrified to fall under the thrall of his Sidhe beauty. He was demanding Ren to bow, and Namiko wanted to throw herself over him and beg that the King punish her instead. She would humiliate herself, endure his pain, because she would bow in the end and Ren would not. The outcome was staring her in the face, and she felt like she was watching things in slow motion.

Unexpectedly, Ren's eyes started flittering as if in REM state of a dream. His gaze was lowered slightly but she could see in his peripherals, something was happening to him. Her own eyes were wide with worry, her mouth parted to say something... but what to say? She was speechless. Suddenly he became still, and she felt like she was holding a doll. His face was smooth but with a certain seriousness that she hadn't expected.

The only comfort she had was in the brief moments where Ren enveloped her hand in his and gently removed it from his body. Strangely, she didn't feel fear, something about his controlled movements told her to just trust him. Letting her hand fall into her lap, she watched as he went into a mechanical bow. Her hand drifted to her mouth to hide the gasp of surprise, though there was a soft watery look to her eyes. She knew how much this meant, how hard it was for Ren to do this, and that he wasn't doing it for himself. If he had been, things would have ended very differently.

Not fooling herself, she knew it was probably mostly the influence of his older brother... but, there was a part of her that recognized that he had never let her down. Whenever she'd been in the lightest trouble, he'd sacrificed time and gone out of his way, even his comfort zones, to ensure he could help her. This was no different. In that moment, more than in any of her daydreams or fantasies, she was dying to kiss him.

Her eyes slowly returned to Cel to see his reaction, hoping it had been enough. She and Jun had both promised to give what they could (though she was lacking in comparison to Jun's offering), and Ren had bowed to Cel's command to make amends for his outburst. Surely things would be okay... She just kept telling herself this.

[King Cel]

”Good dog.” He said condescendingly as a satisfied look came over him. He chuckled lightly, puffing his chest out as his stomach vibrated with a small fit of seemingly forced laughter that was added for a demoralized affect. He had put them all to the test and Ren had been the only one to fail. He had claimed no stake on Namiko, he did not declare her as his and even as Cel approached Namiko he remained silent in his want for her. Ren was not wrong in wishing Namiko was his, but all he had to do was voice that he wished it to be so. Was this how Ren behaved with all the time? Like a spoiled child? If so Cel felt for Jun, the brother who obviously was the caretaker in the pairing.

He stepped back from the group and assessed them with an assured expression and calculating eyes. ”Expect to hear your names upon judgment. The next time I call the courts will favor some of you more than others.”

Cel bowed and made a hasty retreat up the stairs where he would deliberate with Princess Saalyn. Cel already knew who would ascend to the ranks of his advisors, who would be recognized as a warrior and who would remain in the doldrums, the day’s events had reassured him of such things. But all Cel left the trio with was a sense that one of them may be cast away while the others elevated to new heights. Which one would be left behind was only up for debate between them.

OOC: Crappy post, but I needed to end this on my end. I want to get a judgment up and this was what was stopping me.

[Jun]

OOC:

No problem.

Closing this thread. I'll be moving Jun & Ren to a new one to take place right after this (Nami included of course)

Don't know why I feel the need to do so, but yeah. Haha