A Breeze on the Water

[Regulus Grey]

“I fear it is a currency that is all too quickly lost. Booms are what I would be seeking...and the higher you rise the greater the fall can be due to some small social misstep.”

Regulus let’s out a short bark of laughter, making a far too elaborate bow at the waist to Christine.

“Oh fair maiden, would that I could. I believe my lady awaits over the yonder Hill..” He grins, Christine can see the similarities between the wolf and the man perhaps most clearly in that moment.

“I confess I do hope to flatter the prince, but only for information about the shared history of our clans. And...quite frankly I find Lady Leroux to be a ruler I could fight for. One who might actually earn my loyalty rather than renting it as done with Beuclair.”

Regulus inclines his head, a slight smile on his face.

“Thank you Ms Melody. I will try to introduce you to her in the near future. I think she would appreciate your art.”

Tapping his chin, Regulus hums.

“Perhaps it’s time I hosted. Lord knows my home is large enough, and as you say...I have barely seen hide or hair of the other Neonates since Christmas. What happened at Katherine’s party?”

[Christine Daye]

"...yet if you do not rise, the greater the risk that you will be crushed at whim, simply because there are none to care if you live or die... but then... this is the society in which we exist... play the game and win... or die... and the deck is stacked against the young... so be it..."

She tilts her head, regarding Regulus.

"...but you have not done so badly for yourself, Mr Deputy Sheriff... play true with Maestra and she will reward you... her loyalty is hard to win... but all the more valuable for that..."

A pause for thought.

"... perhaps it would be good if you did indeed host... though be sure to make it very clear the... rules of the occasion... neonates squabble something fierce... more's the pity...

"... and Katherine's party... oh... there was a game of Are you there, Moriarty? ...where the participants were armed with horsewhips..."

She shudders in horror.

[Regulus Grey]

“The deck is indeed stacked against the young, so those of us without the protections of blood or age must find our own ways to protect ourselves. Finding a patron, such as Maestra or Lady Esme is possibly one of the most effective solutions.”

Regulus bares his teeth in a grin

“It’s a fool who lies to a Nosferatu. I’ll play it true with Lady Leroux, I’ll try to ensure she remains in power so that when I grow old enough I hope my service will be remembered. Besides, of all the Elders she is I think the only one I would like to see in that position.”

He inclined his head

“Thank you Christine, I hope to prove a measure of worth in that role. And I should face it, I enjoy the prospect of testing myself against others in combat.”

Nodding he hums a few lines of ‘The maiden and the selkie’

“I shall establish some clear and simple rules. Ahh...that is a game that seems to distinctly favour Malkavian’s...although the concept is interesting...”

[Christine Daye]

"...good.... good..."

She's pleased by his professed loyalty and candour about Erika, favouring him with a bright smile.

"...combat... now that is never something that I can see the appeal of... but then I am just a weak and fragile creature... born for music, not war..."

A slight frown, which she deliberately shakes off with a smile as she hears him hum.

"...I confess that I fled to the library when the horsewhip came out... and I do not see how it is a game that favours Malkavians... for we have not the strength of the Brujah, nor the speed of the Toreador, nor the resilience of your own blood... one strike... and I would be lost..."

Another shudder, a memory surfaces, and she hums to herself.

...just close your eyes... the world is burning down... you'll be alright... no one can hurt you now... come morning light... you and I'll be safe and sound...

[Regulus Grey]

“Combat is not wholly about physical duelling. Else the Brujah would hold the power within the Camarilla. But it is true that not all of our kind are suited to combat, much as not all mortals are not suited to every challenge.”

Gently he pats Christine on the hand.

“Unless I have misunderstood the game, the heightened senses of Malkavian would be of use in locating where your opponent stands? Forgive me, but challenge has always appealed to me, and my specific tastes are...odd.”

Regulus grins at Christine.

“But combat is a boring topic, do tell me...you say you have been reading the writings of madmen?”

[Christine Daye]

"...oh... yes... heightened senses.... that would be an aid when blindfolded indeed... and it's not like one can refrain from using them... unlike... say... the speed of the Toreador... but still... it is a game that... well... I was happier in the Library with the latest issue of the Strand!"

She obviously appreciates the change of topic.

"...yes... the writings of madmen... for that is the main component of the Library I have available to me... I am researching the Seers... do you know anything about them...? I am trying to figure out how a soul can resonate with another... across the miles and the centuries..."

[Regulus Grey]

Regulus shrugs, resting one hand lightly on hers where their arms are hooked together.

“I fear I do not. My knowledge of the Gangrel’s history informs me that there have been prophetic Gangrel in the past, and during general studies I found some texts that related to the oracles of Athens. But as with so much to do with our kind I am uninformed.”

He hums a few more lines of ‘The Maiden and the Selkie’.

“Perhaps I will ask Lady Esme when I next see her what she knows.”

Regulus pauses

“I suppose it could be that if the theory of reincarnation is true...one who shared a connection with you in a past life could seem strangely familiar?”

[Christine Daye]

"...not just in the past... or so it seems... but we are all searching in the dark... trying to understand..."

She sighs, then looks at him, curious.

"...and what reason will you give for such questions...? Or is she a Seer herself? Or a scholar?"

She nods as he mentions reincarnation.

"...that souls exist and we possess them... that is true... though..." a wry smile "...I am not sure if I do... for mine were those who stood apart when Lucifer rebelled... too bad for Heaven... too good for Hell... but I digress...

"... if it is reincarnation... then the souls that come back are much reduced, it seems... reduced in power... for some have not even awoken... or remember only fragments... and it does seem to be connected by blood... mortal bloodlines, I mean... perhaps that is why the connections are so weak... the bloodlines are too diluted? Oh, I don't know..."

She hums a moment.

...I remember tears streaming down my face when I said I'd never let you go.... when all those shadows almost killed your light...

"...I have a theory... harp strings... they will sing of their own accord... even without touch... if I sing in the same room as them... the notes of my voice... strike the same notes of the strings... making them sound.... perhaps it is like that... the people here now... they are not the reincarnations of the Seers... but somehow they are... resonant... to the Seer's soul...? ...oh... I don't know... I feel like I am playing with pebbles on the beach... while all the while... the ocean waits for me to notice and understand it..."

[Regulus Grey]

He laughs lightly, giving her hand a quick squeeze.

“It can seem like that can’t it? Millennia of history and knowledge behind us. All of it a tangled web that must be unwrapped in order to get at the knowledge within. I am no Seer Ms Melody, the concepts are ones I can not grasp.”

Regulus tilts his head.

“Ms Melody, I haven’t ever heard of such a third group during the times of the cataclysm. Would you be able to tell me more?”

The Gangrel’s expression is hopeful.

[Christine Daye]

Christine looks surprised.

"...oh... I thought you knew! ...oh... um... how to explain... um..."

She takes a deep breath.

"...oh, there is no way to explain... so I shall just come out with it... and it matters not if you believe me or not... because it is the truth..."

Another breath.

"I am a Changeling child. One of the Tuatha de Dannan, the people of the Goddess. Also called the Daoine Sidhe, the Good Folk, the Fae. We stood apart when Lucifer rebelled, and were banished for it. And we are fading... as the old stories are forgotten... as the old ways fade... the willow tree bended.... the willow yields in the strongest wind.... but the oak tree tumbled... rent asunder limb from limb... and it seems like thunder... looks like rain..."

Another breath.

"...but the time will come... when the Host shall ride once more... and they will find me... their wayward changeling child... lost to the world to sing their songs and remember them... and we will ride in glory... and all who see us will love us... and despair..."