Who? @chancellorxlaer​

TATI GABRIELLE Filmed by Robert Marrero for Wonderland Magazine (Winter 22/23)

wintersaurora​:

Sympathy and pity came to Aurora in droves, and if she’d had even half of the arrogant pride that she’d possessed only months before, it would have made her sick. Now she was too tired to care, too knowledgable of how easily it was to lose all of it - all of them. The last time something similar to this had happened to her, Aurora had spent so long cold and dead to then all but explode with vengeance towards Titania, spurred in that direction by Fen’harel and her own bubbling resentment and overwhelming grief. But she wouldn’t allow herself to make that mistake again. When her time to explode came, it would be in a rage directed rightfully to Ayi’ig. She could save it until then, let it fester in her chest as she went absently through the motions of surviving each day.

Robin’s appearance was reminiscent to her of Fen’harel, the other Autumn Chancellor that had come to her in concern for her well-being. How so much had changed. Aurora had been looking out at the Winter fey working on bringing down that ridiculous statue that Laer had encouraged them to put up. She’d probably have them store it in some cave. But now she turned her attention to Robin as she came up the steps and spoke. “Sure,” she replied softly. No joy but no annoyance either. It was inevitable that they spoke. “… Though I know you’re sorry for what happened and I appreciate any concern you might have, I would prefer not to dwell on my state right now. I promise you enough other people are caring.” 

...

Aurora’s permission is all she needs to walk to the other’s side and set the basket delicately by her side, occupying her hands on opening the cork. The movement pulls slightly at the new scar that occupies her stomach, but not enough for her to show any sign of pain. It has been long enough that the scar is almost fully healed, long enough that it will soon enough be nothing but a reminder of humanity’s worst. A reminder that trusting humans is a foolish endeavor and to believe on her instincts rather than on her whims. A reminder that as a Chancellor, her own desires do not matter, she must destroy anyone who wants to harm her people before they can attempt to do so.

“You have no idea how much I wish I could use sarcasm the human way right now,” Robin offers flatly as she uncorks the cider and hums a melody to create two glasses, filling them up with it and offering one to Aurora. “Are we not friends? Are we not fellow Chancellors? Do I not have the right to be concerned? Or do you not consider my concern as truthful as you would want because you only see me as Fen’harel’s failure of a replacement, Aurora?” The last question is asked flatly. All she had wanted was to ensure that her friend was alright, and yes, she understands the distress Aurora has suffered is unspeakable, but she has always been confrontational and the sense of betrayal is too fresh, the thought of her weakness too heavy, for her not to default into her old instincts. She regrets the words as soon as they leave her lips, though, and she sighs, a hand raising to rub her eyes tiredly. “Apologies, everyone is on edge right now, including me, but I should not have said that.”

zahryaofspring​:

✿*° ‘° ･

He understands after hearing Robin’s words why so many of the fey struggled to accept his viewpoints on their lessers. They probably thought like her, drawing distinctions between insignificant lifeforms. There were allies and special considerations, dangers and risks. How burdensome it must be to place more stock in those beneath them. If only they could see them as Zahrya had for nearly a thousand years, nothing more than puddles of viscera between Asterion’s jaws. The lessons his warder taught him still rang true today: mortals would only ever be violent creatures, and sometimes the only answer to their violence was violence of your own. “The blessed children can have a chance to return to us, but those who don’t take our side deserve their fate. We’ve been at war since before I was born, it’s due time we bring it to a close.” What more was there to say? Clearly he was the only Chancellor who understood loyalty. He made a vow to Titania and he would enact her will even if he had to go about it alone. He was done with these games of politics and passivity. He was a force of nature, now more than ever. If he’d acted on his own sooner, then surely many of the cruel fates the eladrin faced recently would’ve been avoided. “I will not be defined by cowardice. If you are content being afraid of your inferiors, then I will let you rot like the leaves in autumn. Destroying the Eye, destroying the Asphodel, destroying the realm, it’s all the same. We should only worry about protecting those who stand with us. I have no love to spare for those who’d do us harm, either through action or inaction.”

@thegoodfellow​

...

“Do tell me more about this war of yours, this war that Titania did not acknowledge, this war that you seem so sure we are fighting when few others are,” she insists in an attempt to understand the man’s motivations, voice soft as she tilts her head to observe the Spring Chancellor with consideration. “Perhaps it is my age, but I had the understanding that the Eye did not become a more overt threat until recently, and that the only war the fey truly worried about for as long as you have been alive was the inevitable fight against the drows?” The Spring Chancellor had always fascinated her, the oddness of his actions clear even when compared to other’s his age. Fen’harel, Laer, Revas, her parents, they all comported themselves rather differently than the Chancellor before her, and while she understands that she is in dire need to begin separating herself from her own affections towards humanity, she is always surprised at Zahrya’s rancor for the species Titania helped create as he worships the former Queen. “You call it cowardice, but you are wrong, Chancellor,” she offers, words firm. “Destruction is not a domain usually associated to Spring, thus you must fail to understand that not being wary of your enemies will bring your downfall. It’s those who are not wary of the storm that are struck by lightning, and overconfidence is dangerous when dealing with the creature’s whose creation Titania blessed.”

wintersaurora​:

❅

Aurora gazed sidelong at Robin, feeling the way her tone almost taunted. She decided she wasn’t going to be baited, not now. Only inhaling from her nose and quieting as she drank. She wasn’t going to plead for information or guidance in a matter that she had already begun tonight and concerning a person that she had known since he was tall enough to reach her knees, when she had firm doubts that her friend knew his name or his story. Important as Raja had always been, Aurora had honored her promise and kept him far away from anyone in her world, save for herself. It had worked to keep him safe this long, at the very least.

She is taking a drag of her drink as Robin bows, putting on a show of annoyance. And she was abruptly forced to remember that, despite having known her for ages, Robin does not spend much time in her Court and none in her counsil. “Did you take my demanding tone for an order? Do you forget I don’t beat around the bush - if I wanted to use influence on you in any way, Robin, I would have said so very plainly and with indisputable meaning. And why would I do so when I’d known you long enough to ask?” She sighs and puts her empty glass on a passing server’s tray. “‘That is all’ is that is all I have to say and what you may do for him. As he’s my nephew and is not wholly aware of the circumstance that he’s in, that is my jurisdiction to decide. If you have a differing opinion, share it with the consideration that I will only hear nothing of him being harmed. Otherwise, share it. By all means, I have not stopped you from being honest as you know better than to stop me.” She beckoned another server with a full tray of drink. “I’m not your cousin, or aunt, or whatever Fen’harel is to you,” she said, glancing back at Robin as the server changed course towards them. “You don’t need to go trying to read between the lines.”

...

“Why else Aurora? Politics. I am well aware how things work, and I realize we are in a fairly tentative era for the Courts. It would not be unwise to ensure your position is cemented on people’s mind, simply to make it stronger,” the explanation leaves her with a shrug, as the spite leaves her as she puts the logic into words and it clicks as a possible reason. Robin is not quick to anger, but she is not one to back down in an argument, out of instinct. She enjoys arguments, enjoys arguing and teasing out ideologies and beliefs out of others and striking them down if they are wrong. And yet, she also enjoys being proved she is wrong and learning from it. This is not a fight she wants to have, not when she still doesn’t know what is happening in the Courts or in Rome. Not when in all things that matter, she tends to agree with Aurora. “I do apologize for the my reaction, the years apart have not made me any less confrontational.”

She follows Aurora’s lead, grabbing another drink and throwing it back before switching it with another. It won’t get her drunk, but the shock of alcohol going down her throat is enough for her to collect herself.

“And I am sorry for overstepping. The party might be a delight but I almost got a heart attack when I saw there were multiple mortals in a supernatural party,” her admission comes with a sigh, mind wandering to the mortal she had met a few years back. It is likely she would have the same reaction if she found him at the party, but what were the odds? Unlikely, as it was full of supernaturals in the first place. Then Aurora keeps talking and she snorts. “Read between the lines? I need to bring a damn microscope every time I want to try and talk to them. There are layers underneath the layers, and while that is sometimes fun, sometimes is plain annoying.”

who? @wadecalhoun where? by the dance floor

"Do they teach you how to dance in the fancy farm of yours?" She asks as she slides next to Wade with a chesire grin on her face. Bumping her shoulder good naturedly against the hunter's, she basks on his presence, wondering why does it feel like it's been far too long since the two of them spent time together. "I sure hope so, you won't be impressing anyone if all you know is square dancing."

who? @wadecalhoun​

where? the last bean

“I hear that the Senate and the Eye are working together to take Asphodel, congratulations on the gig,” Robin says as she appears next to him on the line for the counter. Just as she had told Flora, she cannot allow Wade to realize that there is anything different between the two now that he has apologized. Although hiding all of her resentment would be more suspicious than anything. “Good for you, salvaging your morals for a little bit longer. How does it feel to know that the Eye did have fey on their laboratories while you thought they didn’t?”

A sense of disgust and self-recrimination settles in the back of her throat every time she thinks of Lain. Their encounter had been inevitable, it had been a reminder. For all the lycan was fun and interesting, he was mortal as they come. Alive one moment, gone the next. A passing fancy that could not grow beyond that for the pure and simple truth of inevitable with death. She knows that it is inevitable that she will mourn him when his time comes, but she cannot love him. Not when his lifetime will be the blink of her eye, and she needs to ensure she is a source of steadiness for her people.

It is this truth that stays her hand, that keeps her from seeking Lain as soon as the war ends. But their encounter is not inevitable, so when her clairvoyance tells her of his attempt to contact her, Robin does nothing but sigh and follow the direction her magic takes her towards. She gets close enough to hear his attempt to manifest her from thin air, and she cannot help the giggle that echoes through the woods as she steps into the clearing that Lain had found himself in. Her brow is raised as she takes in the lycan, but she shows him her hand to show him that she is not going to attack.

"That is one way to summon me, dearest wolf," she mentions, fondness undercut by the quiet apology on her tone. "What would have happened if I had not been on my way to meet?"

For: @thegoodfellow

Where: The Forest, outskirts of Lupercal 

Notes: sorry I tried to kill you, can we still be friends at least? 

He had selfishly avoided this confrontation for weeks.  The elves were a capricious bunch, it was possible that Robin might decide to finish the job her changeling had started the moment she saw his face.  But it was worth a shot.  She deserved closure, as well as an apology for his actions.  As terrible as Lain saw himself, he drew the line at hurting the few people he cared about. Species that lacked the heightened sense of smell that lycans were gifted with could have easily gotten lost in the expanse of the wilderness, but Lain could easily visualize his own scent trail that would lead him back home.  He kept rehearsing what he was going to say to Dawn chancellor when he finally found her, but knew that there was no way he could articulate his feelings as perfectly as it all sounded in his head. “Robin!” The lycan called out, “I just want to talk!” He stopped walking, focusing on listening for the faint indicators of any signs of life that were not his own that the sound of the leaves crunching under his feet obscured. Lain could pick up on the quick thrumming of multiple heartbeats, but all of them sounded far too small to belong to anything humanoid sized.  Likely just a rabbit or a squirrel. Fuck, where was she?

Happy Birthday Tati Gabrielle!

Rumors are a currency, both inside and outside the Eye. Rumors she had heard, regarding Aurora, Farenduil and a pair of faiman twins. Nothing concrete, but enough to pique her curiosity. Enough for it to rise without her permission, enough for her to be interested.  The rumors involved two of her dearest friends, after all, and she had always been one desperate to know more in hopes of using everything she has to protect those she cares. That is what draws her to the blonde faiman when she sees her, that and the tug of her gut urging her to go on.

“Perhaps,” she says with a nod, choosing for a direct approach rather than subtlety. “I am a friend of Farenduil and I only wanted to confirm if you were his child.”

@thegoodfellow​ location: royal wedding notes: one starter of robin being a snoop, as requested

The bar was fully loaded though she got a weird look when she asked for something without any blood in it. Considering the crowd, Emma imagined that was an uncommon request tonight. Still, tequila made its way towards her and the faiman tipped it to her lips and emptied it down. Aware only when it was gone that someone was hovering, Emma looked towards the eladrin and cocked a brow, “Can I help you with something?”

who?@yaviefey where? the cemetery

"Oh look, my favorite pumpkin fellow!" She finds him in the cemetery, close enough to the RaveYard to hear the music but not dancing. An exaggerated pout overcomes her face as she sidles next to him and points at someone they can barely see from the distance. "I must warn you, dearest, there is a spirit wandering around going as the Headless Horseman and his pumpkin is scarier than yours."