regency au } { of new siblings and clandestine meetings

[wellread]

Patience: [is unsure about her status here, given that no one is supposed to know she's Mercy's daughter but Mercy and her son. As far as everyone else is concerned, she's just a visiting lady, being fostered by the duchess for the summer. Mercy seems happy to see her, but she's never really known how to balance that presence either. She's also never truly felt this alone somewhere, away from the things she knows and away from the pack, but she's doing her best to make the most of it. She's currently exploring, doing her best to learn her way around and hoping that she's not stepping on any toes]

Jason: [enjoys trees. They provide shade, which comes in shadows. No one really looks up into them, so it adds to his being hidden. Plus, the right limb is wonderful for sitting on and reading while he is watching the world around him over the top of the book. It helped with the training that the Queen's man had been giving him between his lessons. Right now, he is watching his half-sister, studying her and trying to learn about her beyond what her words say.]

Patience: [she also likes books, and there is one tucked under her arm as she makes her way around the gardens, looking for a quiet place to sit. Being from a werewolf household, she's used to people being in trees, but she doesn't expect it from a non-werewolf family, so she will pass under Jason's tree without noticing him. She will get distracted, however, by a small bush of yellow flowers, and move closer to investigate]

Jason: [and he will look straight down, his eyes on her as he stays silent...until the pollen cloud from that flower reaches up to him and he has to sneeze into his sleeve]

Patience: [her eyes open, blink once, before moving upwards towards the source of the sound and seeing Jason sitting above her] Apologies, my lord. I didn't see you there.

Jason: You don't need to Lord me, Patience. [he just smiles, covering up his disappointment in himself] And no need to apologize.

Patience: I wasn't sure. It isn't as though we've spent a great deal of time together.

Jason: No, but that is through no fault of our own.

Patience: No, it is not. [she swallows] Do you spend a lot of time in trees?

Jason: Only when I'm reading during the summer.

Patience: My cousins are quite fond of them all year round. Many, many snowballs will come at you from above in winter.

Jason: Don't they get cold? I mean, you're up in Norway.

Patience: There wouldn't be snow if it wasn't cold. [but she knows that isn't the point he's trying to make] But we're used to it. And sometimes mischief takes precedence over comfort.

Jason: Mmm, I'm fonder of comfort. [lie]

Patience: [her eyes narrow just slightly, because while she may not be a werewolf and cannot hear the flutter of his heartbeat, she's gotten good at studying people.] Then I'm surprised you find yourself in trees at all.

Jason: This is a comfortable spot!

Patience: [she laughs] I will take your word for it, then. Personally I never find trees all that comfortable.

Jason: You haven't sat in this tree yet.

Patience: No, and I do not intend to. I wouldn't want to steal your preferred spot.

Jason: Well, I do appreciate that.

Patience: Good. [she nods] I do not intend to steal anything of yours, I hope you know.

Jason: And what would it be that you're afraid of stealing from me?

Patience: [she gives a small shrug because she knows the horrors that tend to come with bastard children. The assumptions people tend to make.] Your mother. Your inheritance. ... I don't know.

Jason: Well.... [he is going to put his book into his vest pocket and then swing down to stand in front of her easily. Well, mostly easily. He has to keep balance] I'm not worried about that. Mother and I have our own relationship. I don't think your presence can destroy that. As for my inheritance. [chuckles] You're a Hale. You have ten times the amount of money my father does.

Patience: Perhaps. I'm just used to people assuming the worst of me.

Jason: I base my assumptions on the person, not the reputation.

Patience: You are very different from most people I've met in court, then. And forgive me, but given we haven't met before, I ... find myself often preparing for the worst when it comes to new people who are not family.

Jason: Good thing we are family then.

Patience: Are we? We were not raised together, and I do not expect you to owe me any loyalty because of it.

Jason: No, but that isn't either of our faults.

Patience: No, I suppose it's not.

Jason: And while you may not expect loyalty, you will find it. I have few I trust, but I find that it is better to give trust and friendship until proven wrong than suspicion and lies.

Patience: Then you are far more generous than most. [including herself at times] I do apologize for misjudging you. My years in court have not been kind.

Jason: So I've heard.

Patience: Sometimes when you do not have many defenses, it becomes habit to expect the worst.

Jason: Then how about we spend this summer learning what to actually expect from each other.

Patience: [she nods with a small smile] I would like that very much.

Jason: [smiles and nods] Good.

Patience: Would you like to begin by escorting me to places you enjoy in town? [she doesn't want to be cooped up on the property all the time - she wants to see London - but she wouldn't say no to a guide]

Jason: It would be my pleasure.

Patience: [and she smiles wider] Then the honor would be mine for your company.

Jason: I will then arrange for us to get a carriage for an outing to London. Do you have a preference of when?

Patience: [she shakes her head] I do not have many plans, only certain dinners I believe your lady mother wishes for both of us to attend.

Jason: Well, I believe tomorrow is a free day. Is that too soon for you?

Patience: Not at all. Just let me know when I need to be ready.

Jason: Have breakfast here, and then go out for the day?

Patience: Sounds perfect.

Jason: Then it shall be an adventure. [he grins, pleased at the idea of spending time with her]

Patience: [smiles brightly in return] Good. I've always loved a good adventure.

Jason: Good. Well, I will leave you to your explorations and go about making arrangements for tomorrow. [bows to her in departure]

Patience: [nods and heads back to go back to her room and see if she has something appropriate to wear because she is that girl!!]

Jason: [and after breakfast the next day, he is waiting in a traveling suit, the horse carriage sitting with the door open at his side]

Patience: [and she is wearing something appropriately lovely as she makes her way out to climb into the carriage] Ready when you are.


Jason: You look beautiful as always, sister.

Patience: Thank you. You look lovely as well.

Jason: [smiles, and holds his hand out to help her into the carriage]

Patience: [which she takes and settles across from him, rearranging her skirts with a smile] Do you go into London often?

Jason: I do. Someone has to be present at court, and Mother doesn't care for the other courtiers.

Patience: I've had similar experiences. I wouldn't blame her.

Jason: [there is a look of sympathy from him before he signaled the driver to go] So, what do you do with your siblings while taking carriage rides?

Patience: Depends which sibling I'm with. Miranda likes to gossip; Talia likes to sew. Clara and Thomas are still young so they usually have lessons to do. But the little ones also don't travel much. Thomas is too young for tournaments and Clara is too young for the pressures that come with being a woman at court. [also she's a baby werewolf and it could be bad if those pressures happened to overwhelm her]

Jason: You've never played Do You See What I See?

Patience: [shakes her head] No, I haven't.

Jason: My tutor used to play it with me. [he shifted to sit on the same side of the carriage as her] So, we both look out the window, and one person picks an object, and the other asks questions to guess what it is. You can only answer yes or no.

Patience: Alright. You go first. [so she can see how it's done]

Jason: Hmm. [he looks outside the carriage and sees a scarecrow in a field in the distance] Do you see what I see? [he's smiling]

Patience: [leans over to try and see from his angle] Is it ... that tree? [she points]

Jason: No.

Patience: Is it any other kind of plant?

Jason: No.

Patience: [well that narrows it down] Is it an animal?

Jason: No.

Patience: Is it the scarecrow?

Jason: Yes.

Patience: [and she smiles] Interesting. And we just keep going until we arrive?

Jason: Or we get bored.

Patience: Then let's see how long it lasts us. [and they'll keep going for a while, probably?]

Jason: [totally. Until they arrive at London]

Patience: [and Jason can take her to his favorite places]

Jason: [including the bookstore where he knows the proprietor]

Patience: [and she will ... probably pick up a few books, look, her father raised her to be his daughter]

Jason: [not surprised at all. Might be the reason he took her there. Then it's off to the artisan markets]

Patience: [which she also has a great interest in, and will wander through the various stalls until something catches her eye]

Jason: [and he will follow her like an obedient brother, letting her enjoy herself while he 'protects' her from anyone getting any stupid ideas]

Patience: [that's very sweet of you. she'll just chat with the various vendors politely and comment on the beading work of the dress and how lovely it is, though she will try and engage him on occasion with] Do you know what your mother would prefer? I'd like to get her something as a thank you for having me.

Jason: She is very fond of the color blue. She enjoys beauty, but wants it in simple things. It's not the spectacle that a piece has, but the story behind it.

Patience: Mmmm. [her eyes wander for a moment, before she comes across a lovely glass broach of yellow roses. Her hand lingers, before she lifts it and goes to purchase it]

Jason: [smiles, and as she is making her purchase he takes a quick scan around the market to check for anyone familiar or any threats]

Anastacia: [maybe not directly familiar in terms of a friend, but he will know her face, given that they've been wandering in the same social circles as of late. The gregarious "French" courtesan has a way of making herself known with her infectious laugh and sense of humor, and she and one of the local earls are down the street, half-chatting, half-flirting]

Jason: [oh yeah, that totally is someone he knows and he doesn't want to get Patience caught up in that part of his world and turns so that Anastacia can't see his face]

Anastacia: [that would be all well and good, Jason were it not for the fact that ...] Lady Hale!

Patience: [turns at the sound of her name and laughs in response] Ms. LaRoche. Finally broke free of Mystic Falls, I see?

Anastacia: For the best, really. If I stayed any longer I might have given them all heart attacks from my wild indecency.

Patience: Some things never change, I suppose.

Jason: [crap. He takes a deep breath and is all smiles because this is going to be interesting, taking Patience's package and then turning to join the ladies]

Anastacia: [she lives to make things interesting; you should know this] What are you doing in London? I didn't know it was tournament season already.

Patience: Oh, no. The Duchess of Concord has agreed to take me in for a time while my intended is studying at University. I'm just visiting.

Anastacia: But that means you'll be here for some time then. Long enough that I might be able to have lunch with you, free of your handsome but lurking escort.

Patience: [turns and glances to Jason] Oh, my apologies. Duke Walters, this is Ms. Anastacia LaRoche. We met last Christmas when she was visiting Mystic Falls.

Jason: [his eyes beg her not to out him as he bows to her] My lady.

Anastacia: [she won't, she's a professional] Your Grace. [she'll even throw in a curtsey of her own]

Jason: [to Patience] I have the gift you purchased. Do you wish to continue on our way?

Patience: [nods before turning back to Anastacia] I will write you this week for lunch.

Anastasia: Lovely. I am looking forward to it.

Jason: [and she will get a quick look from him, a practiced "I will find you later" look] It was nice meeting you.

Anastacia: [sure they will]

Patience: [says her goodbyes and off they go]

Jason: [and once they are walking away] So how well do you know Lady LaRoche?

Patience: [thinks on it a moment and shrugs] Socially, mostly. She spent some winters in Mystic Falls with her ... employer and I was one of the few people who didn't shun her at the outset.

Jason: United in the face of idiots.

Patience: Mystic Falls knows better with regards to me at this point, but they're not the kindest people, no. She's rather engaging, I think.

Jason: I am sure she has many stories to tell.

Patience: She does. Not all of them proper, of course, but that's part of the fun. [at least for her, Anastacia is someone she doesn't always have to have her best manners for]

Jason: [gives her a fake shocked face, smiling] Sister!

Patience: Oh, come now. You don't think men had the monopoly on that sort of thing, did you? [they definitely do not] I'm sure the ladies at court here have more than a few stories about you. [that's mostly teasing]

Jason: [he gulped at that] I really hope not.

Patience: [she glances back to him, curiously] Did I overstep?

Jason: [sighs, shaking his head] No. I'm just happier when no one pays me undue attention.

Patience: Anastacia wasn't simply being kind when she said you were handsome. I'm not sure you blend in as much as you think, being a single, attractive young man of some wealth. That's what society teaches us to look for.

Jason: [chuckles to himself] My luck, right?

Patience: It's not your fault we've been told that the only way we can aspire to be better is to marry up.

Jason: Some people above your station aren't always better.

Patience: We're aware of that as well. The fact that your also kind likely tips things in your favor as well. If you want to stop garnering the ladies' attention, perhaps you should try being more of a scoundrel. [she's kidding, please don't do that]

Jason: Who says I'm not one?

Patience: [gives him a bit of a look, because a scoundrel would likely be less kind to her]

Jason: I'm joking.

Patience: [she smiles, before turning her eyes back to the road] The unfortunate truth of it is that you are a unicorn. And until you are married ... and possibly for some time after ... the ladies of court will be making an effort to vie for your attention if it means they won't have to marry someone old or cruel or a combination of the two.

Jason: [sighs] It's a shame then I don't really want to get married.

Patience: How fortunate for you to have the power to choose. [it's not meant to be cruel, but it's also true]

Jason: What I want and what I have to do are two different things, Sister. At least you get to marry for love.

Patience: And you don't think you will? Has your mother brought a match to you already?

Jason: No.

Patience: Then it sounds as though you have time to determine that road for yourself.

Jason: Not all thing are as black and white as it sounds.

Patience: I suppose not. [a pause] I know that I am very lucky. To have a good suitor, despite everything. I just wish that things were better for other women as well.

Jason: Perhaps one day.

Patience: One can only hope.

Jason: So what else shall we do?

Patience: [takes a deep breath as she looks around] Something to eat, perhaps?

Jason: Food would be splendid. I know a place.

Patience: Lead the way.

Jason: [and off they will go to eat, and then more touring until evening and back home for dinner]

Anastacia: [and then later, likely at the corner of some formal event, he will track down this one?]

Jason: [that or at court, on a day where Patience is with their mother and not him]

Anastacia: [and she sidles up to his side] I didn't know you and the Lady Hale were acquainted.

Jason: I could say that same for you. [he doesn't move from his spot on the wall]

Anastacia: Does it bother you?

Jason: No. It makes sense, in a way. Someone who can look past her status and see just her.

Anastacia: Then why hurry her away so quickly?

Jason: Because I don't like being taken by surprise in an environment I can't control. [he looks at her] I'm sure you understand that

Anastacia: [a soft laugh] Then perhaps you should find a different line of work, for ... no environment is truly one you can control. [she pauses to take a sip of her wine] Particularly where the Hales are involved.

Jason: That's why we are in London, not Norway. I know this city better than most. If I lose control here, I know my escape vectors. There, I don't.

Anastacia: Still. [she turns to face him, more, leaning her shoulder into the wall] Why so worried about little ol' me?

Jason: [sighs] Patience is my half-sister. She doesn't know who I really am, and I would like to keep it that way. [he looks at Ana] You are part of that hidden life.

Anastacia: I've been meaning to speak to you about that, actually. It's possible we might want to make part of that relationship more public. [if only for the sake of their covers when they're having conversations like this one. if she's surprised by the fact that Patience is his half-sister, she doesn't show it. It's fairly public knowledge that Patience is not Elena's by blood, and that just filled the answer to why Jason was spending time with a young woman who was already engaged]

Jason: Which part?

Anastacia: That we're friends? Acquaintances? [she'll leave it to him how far he wishes to take it] People capable of having casual conversation with each other every once in a while?

Jason: I am fine with that. How will we frame how we met?

Anastacia: Mmmm. A poker game. I do happen to be a terrible gambler. [she's not bad at reading people, but more getting over eager when it comes to placing her bets, and sometimes she has to throw a game to appease someone's pride]

Jason: And I'm known to play a game or two when at tourney.

Anastacia: Gambling friends then. You don't take me for what my current beau happens to be worth because you are a gentleman.

Jason: And I value women more than just as a prize.

Anastacia: Which is why I like you so much.

Jason: But we keep our friendship under wraps, as not to upset my mother.

Anastacia: [she smirks] Anastacia LaRoche - the death to all well-meaning mothers everywhere.

Jason: [chuckles] And a joy to the father’s pride in their sons? [teasing]

Anastacia: Only if their fathers haven't had me first. [because she knows how to give as good as she gets]

Jason: Or me. [said with a straight face as he sipped his wine]

Anastacia: [glances over at him, because the men she knows who are into that particular ... proclivity ... are not the nicest] Or that. [a beat] Perhaps we should get some air.

Jason: You know, I could go for some air. [he held out an arm to her]

Anastacia: [takes it with a nod] Lead the way.

Jason: [and they will walk in the gardens for a bit until Jason finds a spot that he can see in all directions] Here is good.

Anastacia: Are you alright?

Jason: Of course I am. [he offered her a miniscule smile, an eyebrow raised]

Anastacia: Just checking. [because she doesn't want anything to happen to him, regardless of all outward appearances] Sometimes there can be some tough crowds.

Jason: Yeah, I know. But no one said being in service of the Queen was an easy job.

Anastacia: Perhaps not, but there are still lines. So do be careful. And learn how to extract yourself when people feel the need to cross them.

Jason: Why Ana, you sound like you're worried about me. [his smile grew]

Anastacia: I would hate to have to break in a new partner. Especially if they happen to be less charming than you.

Jason: It would be hard to fill my particular shoes, that is true.

Anastacia: If nothing else, stay away from Lord Elmore. He's started ... taking notice, and he's not worth the effort to turn him.

Jason: Plus I heard he isn't really good in bed, so not even worth the effort for fun.

Anastacia: I'm serious, Jason. [from the stories she's heard, it's not about him not being good. it's him not hesitating when it comes to taking what he wants] Stay out of his crosshairs.

Jason: [he saw the concern in her eyes and nodded] I will.

Anastacia: Good. [she takes a sip of her glass] Anything new for me?

Jason: [and he will tell her the latest news he's received at court both here and Norway, at least what Patience has told him]

Anastacia: [and she will trade him what she has from France and Austria, and once they're all finished] And I should return to dancing with my escort. Lovely doing business with you, as always.

Jason: Ana, Patience knows nothing about my duties to the Queen. I'd like to keep it that way.

Anastacia: Of course. My lips are sealed. That's not my secret to tell.

Jason: Thank you. [and he will take her arm to guide her back to the party]

Anastacia: [and she will go back to her date and do a fair amount of dancing, drinking and flirting]

Jason: [and he will continue to circle the party, dancing just enough to keep up appearances]

Anastacia: [and eventually she and her date will go ... elsewhere to do other things]

Jason: [and while he would like to as well, he does have a reputation as a gentleman]

Anastacia: [this is why her job is better, tbh. she gets to have more fun, sometimes]

Jason: [well, if she didn't have an escort, he might have visited his partner later so they could both have fun]

Anastacia: [maybe another time, then. Because she wouldn't object to that either]

Jason: [so he will just head for his carriage to take him home alone.]

Anastacia: [poor Jason, going home all by himself]