[Semi-Closed Post: Aornis Is a Real Headache]

[timebethine]

Somewhere around midnight, a migraine descended on Laertes like a thunderhead, and he still hasn't come out from beneath its anvil. He's spent most of the day hiding in bed with the curtains drawn, feeling as though he's about to be sick--and that feeling's only grown worse as the sun has drifted sluggishly to a low apex in the sky.

It isn't until mid-afternoon that he feels well enough to make progress on all his plans. He needs to speak to SecUnit about its drones, to Dionysus about whether Avernus (that is her name, isn't it?) is a goddess, and to Nightingale about whether he can offer magical support in case their confrontation goes sour. He needs to talk with Claudius about what to say when he does speak to her.

So it is that he starts making his rounds through the mansion and its grounds, seeking out friends old and new, clinging grimly to the thermos of coffee that smells sickeningly strong but also helps drive back the pain. His face is wan, his eyes shadowed. He would rather be doing anything but this.

Comments

[vineleaves]

Dionysus thinks for a moment. To be honest he was fairly occupied that night. "I think I remember someone who would fit that description, though I never quite made it over to introduce myself unfortunately."

[timebethine]

"Could you tell, if she were a goddess?"

[vineleaves]

Normally if someone is asking if a beautiful, well-dressed woman is a goddess or not it's because they're infatuated, and exaggerating. Considering this conversation started off warning of danger though, that's definitely not where this is going.

"Generally, yes. I think so." There's always a chance someone is more skilled at disguises than others, not to mention the whole multiverse situation might throw him off, but he is judging based on the rules from his home right now. That's all he can do. "What happened?"

[timebethine]

"Perhaps nothing," says Laertes hastily. "She claims that she is a kind of constable of stories, tasked with returning characters to the tales from which they came--but she has done nothing of the kind here, nor even tried to enforce the laws of her world, and so I must wonder if she is being truthful. And some friends of mine have been plagued by nightmares that feel as though they were sent by some outside force, and those few here have the power to compel dreams have one by one been discarded as suspects. If she has power over dreams, she may have other powers of the mind--and if she is not truthful about herself and her origins, I would know all I can of the extent of her abilities. If she is a goddess, I fear she is beyond our reach."

[vineleaves]

Dionysus listens, growing more and more worried as Laertes goes on. So it is something serious.

"I know several people who might be able to do what you're describing. The nightmares and mind powers part, anyway. But I trust I would have recognized them, had they been present at the party. I -- I still want you to be careful, Laertes." The last thing he wants is Laertes getting returned to the tale from which he comes. That's not even getting into the implications regarding 'mind powers' that Dionysus is all too familiar with.

[timebethine]

"Have you any insights? Any senses that I lack that might divine her nature and purpose?"

[vineleaves]

"Not -- not without talking to her, I suppose. I'm sorry, my dear, I know this is probably not the answer you wanted to hear. Has she made implications herself about what her goal might be? Or what all she might be capable of? Or has she only mentioned the fictional character thing?"

[timebethine]

"I've not yet spoken to her myself. That was why my friends thought I would be the best choice to learn more of her--I had not yet made an impression of any kind."

[vineleaves]

"Please be careful, my dear, I -- I really don't like the idea of you getting messed up in something like this. Even if her only power is sending people back to where they came from -- well, we would all miss you terribly." Among other reasons. "But if she can really mess with people's minds, that's another reason to stay away. Madness is... a terrible thing to experience. Trust me."

He reaches for a glass of wine to sip, realizes he's only made bottles and not glasses, and gives up. "I should be the one to talk to her. Even if she is a goddess, which I doubt, not even Hera can harm me in that way anymore." He's a little bitter there towards the end.

[timebethine]

"But you are not at the beginning of a famous story, following a course that will never return you to it." Laertes gives him a wry look. "It must be me, if we are to tempt her."

[vineleaves]

“What?! No. You can’t be bait.”

[timebethine]

"Why not?"

[vineleaves]

“Because!” He lets out an exasperated noise. “What if something bad happens to you?”

[timebethine]

"Then perhaps those I love will be preserved by it."

[vineleaves]

"I'm sure we can figure out some way to resolve this that doesn't involve you being put at risk."

[timebethine]

"Wiser men than I have tried," says Laertes doubtfully. "But if you have a better plan, then I'll hear it."

[vineleaves]

"I -- well, I just found out about the situation, I haven't had time to formulate one yet. I still like the idea of me talking to her instead of you, though. You might be better bait, but I'm better equipped to actually handle the situation should anything go wrong." Somewhere in the middle of all that, he started fidgeting with the hem of his peplos.

[timebethine]

"If you wish, you may try," says Laertes. "But you are not less dear to the general company than I. Have a care, sir. I would not draw you into harm in my place."

[vineleaves]

"Any chance she's just making everything up?"

[timebethine]

"Oh, ay. Perhaps a strong chance. But even should she not intend to return me to my story, that does not mean she will not torment our dreams. This, she does in secret--if indeed she does it at all; we suspect her less because she has given us cause to doubt than because we have eliminated all others from consideration. There may be much she can do that I cannot guess."

[vineleaves]

"What if the nightmares are simply being caused by the mansion spirits?" He's not trying to be contrary, he's just trying to get as much information on the subject as he can. "It seems like they can do whatever they want, nightmares seem pretty in line with other things. Were you able to rule them out?"

[timebethine]

"No," Laertes admits. "But I know not how we would oppose them if they did mean us harm. And it seems easier to rule out one of our number than something so ... numinous."

[vineleaves]

"That's fair, I suppose. Next question, what is it about the nightmares that has led people to assume they are being given in the first place, rather than coming naturally?"

[timebethine]

"There are some here who have received divine visions, and others who have the ability to enter and alter dreams--and others still who have been given dreams before by those with the power to work them. I know not the details; I was told of them indirectly, by other parties. But these dreams seemed to those who knew better than I less like divine visions than like dreams given or altered."

[vineleaves]

"I suppose if it's happened before, you'd know what signs to look for when it happens again, yeah. That, unfortunately, makes sense. Who all has been suffering?"