Anger from all sides, and more ‘you should haves’ than he could count. Amalia stepped forward, and after Rory’s anger her own was only to be expected. A part of him almost smiled at being told that running away wouldn’t solve anything, a humor as black as the bottom of the spire bubbling up as he met her eyes with deceptive calm. He had run away for more years than he had stood and fought. Only Rory was privy to that shame of his life… but it was one he had a great deal of practice living with. It wouldn't be so hard to fall back into that habit again. He pulled the mask tight, though, keeping any betraying change of expression from showing, fitting it over his face like the second skin it was, and when Deimos spoke up he only shook his head.
”There was no plan beyond staying in Edy’s good graces long enough to get her to agree to asking Ronin to be king as well,” he said quietly. He looked around the room, but found no support… and not much in the way of understanding, either. He swallowed through the tightness in his throat, trying one last time. ”So I could follow his lead, once he was in power. Believe me or not, I didn’t go to the Manor today intending for any of this to happen. Clearly I made the wrong call…” He found Rory’s eyes briefly before dropping his own, knowing there was too much to be said in front of others. ”Several of them,” he amended quietly. ”And I am sorry for that, and for betraying your trust.”
He nodded at Ronin’s calming words, even as the ‘could have/should have/would haves’ continued, as if each person felt the need to repeat what others before had said. And perhaps they did, for they didn’t seem to trust him anymore. And not without reason, given how badly he had miscalculated from start to finish. Kiada had brought up a good point earlier, and Ronin had as well, and Jigano shook his head regretfully. ”I could not have. Not there. She thinks that Zariah can hear what is said within the Manor, so we couldn’t talk freely and she has to be careful not to behave suspiciously. As for what she will do when Zariah returns…” He looked at Ronin, giving a helpless shrug. ”I think that she will hand her crown back to Zariah. From what she’s told me in the past of how the Launceleyns are raised, I’m not sure she can disobey her. It’s too ingrained… and I don’t know that she’s made any other connections here strong enough in the past year to overcome the rest of her life’s conditioning to obey the head of her family. She’ll regret it, and she might try to help and protect us to a degree… but if Zariah directly orders her to burn people down? Do you, who have known her far longer than I, think she will choose friends over family?”
He drew a steadying breath. ”That being said, Edy doesn’t want to rule, and I don’t think she wants Zariah running roughshod over everyone, either. While Zariah is gone - if she’s gone,” he nodded acknowledgment of Ronin’s point, one he had brought up with Edy as well. ”I think she’s rebelling in the ways that she can, short of disobeying the Tyrant’s direct orders. I don’t know that she’s thinking that far ahead… but she believes beyond question that Zariah will return, and that when that happens, if Edy isn’t in position to hand her crown back over, that the punishment will be worse than death. So she won't just step down without a fight, even if she would prefer to.”
He exhaled slowly, a wry, grim smile finally finding its way onto his face. ”But it’s all conjecture and gut feelings from how she was acting when we spoke, her tone and body language, what wasn’t said as much as what was. So I won’t blame you for not taking my word on it.”
Jigano stood, looking to Ronin, and his smile faded to solemnity. ”But here’s the thing. Edrei made me king with little more than words. Not a duke, not a prince, not a ‘sub’-King, but a King equal with her, whether she realized it or not. She put no limits on the authority she gave me… and therefore, I can do the same.” He looked around the room, from Amalia to Deimos to Rory and Kiada, and then to Remi and Ronin. ”She already agreed to his nomination. I can make Ronin king here and now. As has been pointed out, he was the one who stepped forward before, he was the one we chose.” He nodded at the star-touched man, blue eyes tired. Amalia and Rory knew how recently he had broken, knew how fragile the patches still were. Something that had been broken twice was so much easier to fracture a third time under pressure. ”Take the time to think about it, talk to Edy and whoever else you need to. The offer will stand for as long as I have the power to make it.” And it wasn’t likely to be long, with how he already wanted to retreat from his friends and family, and never mind the Launceleyns.
”There was no plan beyond staying in Edy’s good graces long enough to get her to agree to asking Ronin to be king as well,” he said quietly. He looked around the room, but found no support… and not much in the way of understanding, either. He swallowed through the tightness in his throat, trying one last time. ”So I could follow his lead, once he was in power. Believe me or not, I didn’t go to the Manor today intending for any of this to happen. Clearly I made the wrong call…” He found Rory’s eyes briefly before dropping his own, knowing there was too much to be said in front of others. ”Several of them,” he amended quietly. ”And I am sorry for that, and for betraying your trust.”
He nodded at Ronin’s calming words, even as the ‘could have/should have/would haves’ continued, as if each person felt the need to repeat what others before had said. And perhaps they did, for they didn’t seem to trust him anymore. And not without reason, given how badly he had miscalculated from start to finish. Kiada had brought up a good point earlier, and Ronin had as well, and Jigano shook his head regretfully. ”I could not have. Not there. She thinks that Zariah can hear what is said within the Manor, so we couldn’t talk freely and she has to be careful not to behave suspiciously. As for what she will do when Zariah returns…” He looked at Ronin, giving a helpless shrug. ”I think that she will hand her crown back to Zariah. From what she’s told me in the past of how the Launceleyns are raised, I’m not sure she can disobey her. It’s too ingrained… and I don’t know that she’s made any other connections here strong enough in the past year to overcome the rest of her life’s conditioning to obey the head of her family. She’ll regret it, and she might try to help and protect us to a degree… but if Zariah directly orders her to burn people down? Do you, who have known her far longer than I, think she will choose friends over family?”
He drew a steadying breath. ”That being said, Edy doesn’t want to rule, and I don’t think she wants Zariah running roughshod over everyone, either. While Zariah is gone - if she’s gone,” he nodded acknowledgment of Ronin’s point, one he had brought up with Edy as well. ”I think she’s rebelling in the ways that she can, short of disobeying the Tyrant’s direct orders. I don’t know that she’s thinking that far ahead… but she believes beyond question that Zariah will return, and that when that happens, if Edy isn’t in position to hand her crown back over, that the punishment will be worse than death. So she won't just step down without a fight, even if she would prefer to.”
He exhaled slowly, a wry, grim smile finally finding its way onto his face. ”But it’s all conjecture and gut feelings from how she was acting when we spoke, her tone and body language, what wasn’t said as much as what was. So I won’t blame you for not taking my word on it.”
Jigano stood, looking to Ronin, and his smile faded to solemnity. ”But here’s the thing. Edrei made me king with little more than words. Not a duke, not a prince, not a ‘sub’-King, but a King equal with her, whether she realized it or not. She put no limits on the authority she gave me… and therefore, I can do the same.” He looked around the room, from Amalia to Deimos to Rory and Kiada, and then to Remi and Ronin. ”She already agreed to his nomination. I can make Ronin king here and now. As has been pointed out, he was the one who stepped forward before, he was the one we chose.” He nodded at the star-touched man, blue eyes tired. Amalia and Rory knew how recently he had broken, knew how fragile the patches still were. Something that had been broken twice was so much easier to fracture a third time under pressure. ”Take the time to think about it, talk to Edy and whoever else you need to. The offer will stand for as long as I have the power to make it.” And it wasn’t likely to be long, with how he already wanted to retreat from his friends and family, and never mind the Launceleyns.
