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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 16, 2020 16:51:23 GMT
She reached a gentle hand up to Justine's face, a sad look in her eye. "I know you're not. You've just seen more than your share of trauma, and that makes you see things differently than others do. But this isn't exactly off the wall - I've certainly heard of familes destroyed in trade wars. And you know I'll help you however I can, but we'll need quite a bit of evidence."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 16, 2020 17:28:20 GMT
Justine smiled at last. Someone else believing her, someone who had never been in an insane asylum...that finally felt good. She put her hand over Ceutinde’s on her cheek and leaned into it. “Thank you. I owe you so so much.”
“I was hoping you might go to the Governor’s library. There might be more records of the Spice Wars and more recent ledgers on the families involved. There was nothing but torn and blank pages about the Lockharts in recent years. Maybe there will be untampered books there.” She looked hopeful now. “I’d go but it was strange enough going to the Silver Library. I don’t want to draw too much attention. Not yet.”
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 16, 2020 17:40:23 GMT
Ceutinde wanted to point out that odds are no one was tracking Justine going to and from a public building, but perhaps a little paranoia was justified at the moment. "Just a trip to the library? I'd love to. Carl doesn't want me going out without bodyguards just at the moment, but it won't be any trouble. I'll clear out an afternoon and get some reading in."
(Justine's probably met Carl at some point, he's Ceutinde's advisor on the shady side of things)
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 16, 2020 19:42:12 GMT
Justine looked concerned. “Why bodyguards? Did something happen? I’ve noticed you seem busy lately, but I assumed that was just the regular day to day of your job.”
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 16, 2020 19:58:42 GMT
"It is, after a fashion. Silvia discovered some problems with the ladies we rescued from the pirates. We're looking into it. I doubt there'll be any actual trouble, but Carl is sometimes an overly cautious man."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 16, 2020 20:03:56 GMT
“Are they having a hard time adjusting here? I would hope most of them would have family...if not in Bastion than within a decent traveling distance.” Something in Ceutinde’s eyes made Justine realize that the problem was a bit more dire than that. “Or they’ve found themselves in the same situation here in the city?”
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 16, 2020 20:08:47 GMT
"Not yet. She found out how they were captured in the first place. So we're digging up the root of the problem. Just a greedy man working for pirates, nothing too dangerous. Actually, odd coincidence - my sources tell me he was looking into buying land near Lockhart Asylum."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 16, 2020 20:42:34 GMT
“Who would ever want to be near that horrible place?” She could hardly believe Konrad had grown up so close to it. She felt like the place poisoned all the land it touched, like salted earth or tendrils of Mist radiating out from the Asylum to contaminate and ruin anything in the vicinity. She shuddered.
“Do you think all these things somehow tie together? The magistrate, your greedy rich man, the Lockharts...all these people reaching and reaching.”
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 17, 2020 6:07:39 GMT
"I'm not ruling it out. But it might just be that it was decent land at the right price. Best not to ascribe everything wrong in Bastion to some secret cabal until we've got some more proof."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 17, 2020 13:47:27 GMT
Justine shrugged. “Well the Lockhart family is pure evil. Every one of them. I wouldn’t be surprised if their corruption has spread to other houses who are in contact with them.”
She would burn it all down if she had the chance. And laugh and toast sausages in the fire. She and Juliette could be friends again over that.
She shook her head, trying to clear it and focus on the situation at hand. “Do you think you’ll be able to get to the bottom of it all? With Silvia, I mean. I wouldn’t like anything to happen to either of you.”
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 17, 2020 16:35:50 GMT
Ceutinde patted Justine's knee. "We'll be fine. I'm far more suited to intrigue and politics than I was to sailing halfway around the world and fighting monsters." The hand slid up Justine's leg just a bit. "And I'm certainly not going to let anything keep me from coming back here to you."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 17, 2020 18:19:59 GMT
Justine smiled, genuinely. “And your patients too...but I always do enjoy our time together.” She leaned in and caressed Ceutinde’s cheek, kissing her first there and then, gently, teasingly, on the edge of her lips. “I’ll fight all the monsters for you, if only because you help me fight the one in my mind. You always do take such good care of me,” she whispered.
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 17, 2020 18:31:20 GMT
"Someone has to." Ceutinde replied, tilting her head up to kiss Justine on the forehead while a finger drew shapes on her thigh. "You remind me of why I started all this. Who I started it for. I just couldn't fight off his monsters."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 17, 2020 18:49:16 GMT
“Who was it?” Justine asked as she climbed into the chair with Ceutinde, one knee pushing between her legs. “They must have been well loved to inspire all of this. To look after every need a person could have: physical, mental, emotional...Ive never seen the like.” She put her arms around Ceutinde’s neck, running small hands up and down her back.
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Post by Ceutinde on Sept 17, 2020 19:10:02 GMT
Before replying, Ceutinde frowned, then smiled, then settled somewhere in between. It was that kind of memory. "You know they call me The Widow. He's the husband that widowed me." She nuzzled into the crook of Justine's neck, and Justine could feel a few tears run down it. "A warrior. Fought with Leuwinmorgh. But a little bit less of him came back from the Mist every time. Eventually, all of him was gone."
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