"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
Though still entirely uncertain how, or when, or why she'd developed an affinity for wish-granting, the Queen of Loess had taken up the task of perfecting it secretly. To grant a wish was a powerful thing, and perhaps the most important aspect was finding it within herself to deny a wish whenever possible. Ever dedicated, Ledger had taken to helping her in this endeavor. Hours spent in their stone grotto and by the creek that runs through Loess so that the waters may drown out the sounds of their voices, the one-eyed stallion would berate her with wish after wish.
Rarely, and with intense concentration, the Genie could resist a wish. She had come to learn that it was much easier looking for a loophole than it was to entirely ignore what it was he wanted. But the long hours and excessive use of her new magic caused bone-aching fatigue, and so after a few days' rest, she decides to fulfill her promise to Obscene and take a visit to the Pampas, though not without informing Tarian, Ledger, and Cheri of her trip. Nevermind that she had promised her Champion she would bring someone along when she took the journey to the South's subsidiary; they'd already had the opportunity to discuss politics with their respective diplomats present. Now she wanted to speak with the Fae Prince one-on-one.
With the acceptance of whatever Genie DNA had decided to mingle with hers came golden strands that now twist around her ankles. They glint in the bright sunlight just as her coat does and tinkle gently as she walks the familiar pathways through her home, heading in the direction of the Pampas. Nerves dance in the pit of her belly at the prospect of speaking with Obscene once again, and this time in the comfort of his own home, but she comes more prepared this time. Ledger and Cheri had spoken with her about what it is a Fae can - and can't do, and the universe had gifted her with her own new art.
She has changed her appearance today, though not in subterfuge. Instead, she has willed into existence a set of double-wings upon her back and the impression of a gilded chaplet around her throat. The combination is regal, both gleaming in the sunlight, and once she is certain she is satisfied with the final touches of her appearance, Oceane tests out another bit of fun she'd recently realized was tied to her magic.
Pop!
Into the Pampas she teleports, I Dream of Genie style, directly into Obscene's periphery. She shakes the odd, tingling sensation of it away and unfurls the double-wings at her sides to stretch the muscles briefly. They flap lazily over the Pampas grass and make the wildflowers dance as her molten amber eyes find the long-eared Fae nearby.
“Obscene,” she greets him warmly and with something closer to a smirk than a smile, “It's nice to see you. Do you have time today for a tete-a-tete?”
TW: This post and moving forward will contain references to some possibly heavy drug use just fyi
I can see through you, see your true colors Cause inside you're ugly, you're ugly like me
Aela had caught some of what had been discussed between he and the Loessian Queen but when they do finally return to the Pampas he is quick to fill her in on whatever she had missed. It was not the answer he had been seeking and definitely not one that made the golden Seneschal happy. He had made sure to phrase his response to Oceane carefully when she had made it clear that she wished for no trouble outside of his realm. One that did not necessarily hold him to a truth one way or the other or agree to her terms specifically. “Expansive yes. But we all crave a change of scenery every now and then.” He found that he liked Oceane considerably more then he did Sabra and her weeping stick but there had still been that nagging in his head, as if he could still hear the creepy pastel mare whispering in his ear how she had seen great things in him. When you had Aela whispering on the other side of all the things they could do, it was hard to resist.
They had left Loess with a clear understanding that they would like to remain stagnant and quiet. And as that was the boring choice (and he refused to be anything but boring) he granted Aela a wish of her own. Not made of magic but a promise, something to satisfy the Fae-like nature that he had come to inherit. What Oceane didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her, he decides. And he is keen to keep her in the dark as long as possible until she might possibly come to see their way of thinking. It was disappointing that she hadn’t come to that conclusion already. A united South against the other kingdoms would have been a better strategy but one must do what one must do. And at this point there is much he would do to keep Aela happy.
It is a few days after their interesting return from Sylva that he finds himself relaxing among the remaining blooms of the wildflowers. He is satiated from time spent with Revelrie, an interesting twist that he had not seen coming, and Aela and Wherewolf are out scowling and prowling into whatever mischief they might get up to. His mind drifts, as it often does, to a crystal adorned mare and he snorts angrily as he pushes the image of Cheri firmly from his mind. He had not seen her since that day by the water with the peasant mare and the memories from that encounter are hazy and covered in fog. He knows the snake had become present but can’t remember when or how. He hides his distress with the help of the powdery pollen, indulging in far more then he usually does as he tries to chase away the disturbing images that randomly pop in his mind. Sprawled out amongst the tall grasses, his red gaze follows the patterns in the sky and a loose grin hangs on his lips as he finally finds some peace amongst the loudness in his head.
It is with a loud pop that his peace is disturbed and suddenly there is the Loessian Queen, adorned in all the bells and whistles. “Obscene” she greets him with a warm smile and he raises a brow as he takes her in. He hadn’t been expecting her of course and was unaware that she had this ability to simply “pop” up wherever she pleased. Something to warn the others about, he thinks. However his expression is smooth and his words are as true as they ever are as he flashes her a grin as she asks for some of his time. “For you? Of course.” His red eyes take in the double wings with appreciation and linger on the golden adornments along her neck and hocks with a Fae’s delight. “This new look suits you.” He admits and wonders what it was she saw in the grizzled one eyed man that Aela had informed him about. Dirty things in the mind of that one, she had said with a laugh.
Glancing about him in the crushed grasses, he gestures towards one of the infamous red petaled flowers that the Pampas had come to be known for with a lifted hoof, making no move to get up from where he was lounging. “Join me, will you?”
Obscene’s expression does naught to betray whether he is surprised by Oceane’s unexpected arrival. Lazily upon the verdant Pampas grass he lays, trademark grin seeping across his lips. There is something different about his crimson eyes, and it takes a few moments for the Loessian Queen to realize that they are rimmed with the evidence of his powdery pastime. Though she’s never been one to scoff at the vices of others lest they endanger the well-being of those surrounding them, she does find herself wondering how this development will affect their discussion today. Working diligently to match the Prince’s demeanor, she offers a matching grin and a pleasant bout of laughter before spinning in place with her double-wings held unfurled at his comment so that he may see all of her. The sunlight gleams across her opal skin and gilded adornments. “That’s kind of you,” she asserts warmly at the compliment as she comes to face the Fae once more, her molten amber eyes finding his hazy red ones with warmth and amusement..
At his proffered carmine bloom, Oceane bobs her lavender head to acquiesce and lowers herself to the long grasses without hesitation. She lounges near the gold-smeared man, making herself comfortable with a quick adjustment of her four wings and a shifting of her hips upon the soft earth. But before she partakes in the sugared powder that adorns the Pampas’ flora, she does have business to attend to ─ and while she makes no judgment of the Prince’s current state, she intends to discuss diplomacy with a clear mind.
“There have been some changes since you and Aela visited Loess,” she begins casually, her amber eyes searching the contours of his face and the movements of his over-long ears as she continues to speak.
“You remember Cheri,” a statement, certainly not a question. Oceane’s young charge had filled her in on the recent past she’d shared with Obscene. Information that would have been beneficial before the Pampas Prince had visited Loess, no doubt, but better late than never. “Shortly after your departure, she agreed to lead Loess at my side.” Her smile turns warmer, more excited and less amused, as she pauses for Obscene to share in this excitement with her. If, in fact, it is excitement that he will feel at the news. After a few moments, she continues onward with a lazy flick of her ears. “It is my intention to abdicate entirely when she has found stable footing─” Though she hardly doubts Cheri will learn quickly enough that it will soon make her own role obsolete, she refrains from mentioning this to the Fae, “─so what I’m seeking to receive from you today is your word that you will operate with only Cheri’s best interests in mind going forward.”
There is more she intends to add, but for now she pauses to allow for Obscene’s reaction while she turns her nose to the bright red blossom before her and inhales deeply.
I can see through you, see your true colors Cause inside you're ugly, you're ugly like me
Oceane was a beautiful creature and he doubts that even a blind man could deny it. So he watches her appreciatively as she spins before him, noticing the way the blue and gold whirl together into something beautiful and ethereal and the Fae in him responds with a delight gleaming in the dark red hue of his eyes. “That’s kind of you.” She says as she comes to a halt and he merely chortles in response. He can’t think of the last time anyone had ever seen him as kind, let alone voiced it. It makes him extremely uncomfortable and so he merely dips his muzzle back into the blooms of the red petals if only to settle himself in the wake of being complimented in this way.
He doesn’t fully expect her to take his invitation but as she comes to lounge beside him, he finds that Oceane is full of unexpected surprises. First this new look, new magic. Now this. It makes him insanely curious as well as extremely wary. He doubts that the Loessian Queen had merely come out of pleasantries and when she speaks of changes he merely smirks and nods knowingly. “I suspected as much.” He says with a sigh and then waits for whatever she has come here to say. Probably something to do with Aela and her scheming or their visit to Sylva. Perhaps she had grown wise to them after all.
What he doesn’t expect is this to be a conversation about Cheri.
First Reave, now this.
He was growing sick of talking about beloved, perfect, can do no wrong Cheri.
His long tipped ears begin to twitch backward at the mention of the black and onyx mare but he catches them in time and instead swivels them pointedly towards the Queen. He means to lazily drawl that of course he remembers her, the pampered princess was infuriatingly hard to forget. But before he can, Oceane surges forward. And his words die on his tongue as he stonily stares at the opalescent mare and a swirl of bitterness, anger, and perhaps a small hint of pride begins to fill his lungs. Despite his heightened state of inebriation, dark scales begin to scatter along his smooth dark coat and he glances away from the other to the sky as his gaze turns wine-red, as if this news wasn’t annoying or anything important and the birds flying overhead were much more interesting. “Is that so?” He finally says, his tone even and indifferent despite the smattering of scales now patterned along his black and gold figure. Of course. Of course Cheri is handed a kingdom on a silver platter. He should have seen that coming, it was only fitting that the rich get richer while the rest of them struggled and suffered and toiled through a an unkind world. Admittedly he had claimed this place with infinite ease but Cheri had always had her beloved family to shelter her from the reality of the cruel world around them, had the likes of Targaryen and Oceane now to guide and protect her. The anger and bitterness in him intensifies and the snake within him begins to slither so he shoves his muzzle further into the flowers and does his best to calm himself. Not now. Anything but now.
She finally continues on, mentioning abdicating in time when Cheri was more prepared to lead on her own and as she asks for his word for his assistance in supporting her, he finally turns to look at her just as she presses her own muzzle to the flowers and begins to inhale. Full of surprises, this one. There is a darkness in his eyes that he cannot fully hide thanks to his current state of mind and body but the charming smile lingers on the corner of dark lips. “It would be foolish of me to agree so readily without consulting my own council. Or hearing how Cheri plans on operating with our best interests in mind.” He may be drunk and high and a thousand other things but Obscene had at least always been clever. A ruler was nothing without the support of its people and unfortunately for all of them, the Pampas was a subject of Loess. For now.
He can't help but ask suddenly, unexpectedly "What do you see in her that makes her fit to be Queen?" He has other questions of course, questions about her abdication and things regarding Oceane herself. But this is a nagging thought that he can't help but ask aloud. Why her? Why is it always her?
He is still despite the rising flames in his belly battling against the weight of intoxication that dulls his senses to an extent, wondering when Cheri would flaunt this new rise in her station to him. That should be exciting at least, he thinks. He’s never made a Queen cry before, it should be easy when it comes to Cheri. Better yet, perhaps Aela might have some sort of idea to one up her. Something that might benefit them all while at least making him her equal again (although being better than her for once had been so much fun). That thought alone cheers him up immensely and the scales begin to die back beneath the surface of his skin, slowly, as he waits for Oceane's response.
![[Image: Obscene-Pixel.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/fTkjKh9Q/Obscene-Pixel.png){kind=tracking}