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[He'd referred to Yennefer as being a terrible patient to Kyle and she's only proving his point with returning to her duties as soon as she is able.

Lucifer is hardly one to judge her, and anyway he doesn't show up to give her a hard time. Doesn't even ask how she's doing, or all the needless concern he's sure she's used to answering by now.

Right back to business--that's the only kindness he can offer her.]

At the time I didn't think I'd care about what Ikorr had to offer. [That's his greeting.] But vitality sap, well, I suppose I could've used that. I heard you were providing lessons about it?

[ whether or not she will admit it (read as: she will not), yennefer does appreciate the approach. all business is all she really wants to deal with, and she's been tired of the ceaseless worry since the first day she woke up.

lucifer picked a good time to approach her as well, as yennefer's entire demeanor has actually gotten much more manageable the longer she's out of the infirmary. so, as he finds his way into the office space she's settled into, her brow arches. ]

I am providing lessons, yes. [ the urge to push back is still there, of course. to ask him how his lullaby research is going. but yennefer does believe there is use in knowing this, especially for the summoned, so she walks around the desk towards him. ] Have you studied alchemy before?

Studied? No. [He hasn't studied anything though.] Dabbled? Yes.

[ at the mention of 'dabbling' in alchemy, yennefer's brow arches. ]

Dabbled in what way? I wouldn't want to bore you with the basics.

Oh, everything. Natural, more than learned. [Still not helpful. Ugggh.] Spellwork, components. I know how to throw together a potion based off instructions but I suppose not the chemistry behind the workings--especially not here, where nothing is like home for the materials. [Look, even willing to admit his lack of experience.]

[ the carelessness in which he describes his studies has yennefer snorting, once, though there is something akin to relief in it as well. if only because it appears he does have some understanding.

she nods once, then turns back to her desk, continues to organize and put away, to set up, like his presence here has not changed what she was already doing in the classroom. ]

And do you want to know the chemistry of it? Or are you just looking to understand the sap from Ikorr enough to use it on your own?

Maybe the chemistry can come later. [Part of him thinks he should learn it, after coming to a loose term with his limitations.

But that's not what he's here for today.] For the moment, simply understanding the sap is what I'm looking for.

[ yennefer gives lucifer a look at that - a bit like he's asking for the answers to something without putting the work into learning the foundation - but then she shrugs. try as she might to be an intimidating instructor, her true self has always pushed back against the traditional ways of teaching. ]

It comes from a tree in Ikorr, flowering, and rare. Nothing like it can really grow here in Thorne, which limits our supply until we can get back. [ she pushes off the desk and walks back around to her set-up, to the alchemy at work. she keeps talking, even if her attention seems to be on the experiments more than directly him.

he wanted to know the basics of how it works, right? she can explain that and do other things. ] When mixed with blood, it has healing properties that we haven't had access to before now. It also, apparently, can boost energy levels, including that which relates to magical abilities. We're working out the exact amounts now, but- [ she picks up a vial, mixing the liquid inside before she watches the effects and then sets the vial back down again. ]

Some of our research is showing that it can help with food stores and strengthen wards, but again, working out the specifics.

[He wonders what would happen if he mixed it with grace, but he's got a limited supply of that and he's not desperate enough for experimentation.

Not yet, anyway.

He'll have to test his own limits with the sap--and the wards are even more curious.

He keeps watch of what she's doing, eyes keen. For as much as he seems to be a chump about learning, he's being observant.]

How big is the supply? Enough for all your research and supplying the town? Who are you running your experiments on, anyway? Many of the Thorne Summoned have rapidly different physique. [Herself included, but he doesn't dare mention that.]

[ oh, well that would be interesting indeed. maybe he should let yennefer know what this grace is - she might have a few ideas for it. ]

The supply is adequate enough, especially with Ikorr's continued interest in seeing what we can make of it. [ lucifer should know, just as everyone else does, that it was yennefer herself who took the meeting and yennefer who - in that way - secured the sap.

at the mention of experiments, though, yennefer snorts. ] The University here has its own testing methods that have worked for them in the past. I don't care much for its use with them. For the Summoned, though, it has been volunteers. We've had no adverse effects as of yet, but if you're worried about your physique, no one would blame you for refusing a potion.

[He is absolutely not telling anyone, Yennefer included, about what grace is.

Especially with the mention about Ikorr.]

And their interest is purely... mmm, just that? [He tilts his head, voice low.] I assume Ikorr and Luna gave gifts to the other factions? Do you think the Nocwich types are playing sides to the newly kicked-off war? Testing the waters?

[ she snorts, shaking her head once. ]

Ikorr and Luna gave gifts depending on the Summoned who met with them. I think they've spent decades, centuries even, staying out of the games of men that these factions have been playing, and now that the Summoned have become a piece of that game, they're curious what all we can do to change things.

[ her room is warded, though not nearly as tightly as kylo's study. still, she's not worried about talking politics - these are things she would say, though in very different tones, to the queen herself if asked. ]

I think they want to know just how powerful these new pieces are, and if they should be more interested in this war. If they were taking sides, it would be much more than just this. [ she gestures to her experiments. ]

Is there a particular reason you went with Ikorr over Luna? [Curiosity, always.] Other than... for this I assume. [A similar gesture to her experiments.

But sap has its clear alchemical uses and that falls nicely in line with Yennefer's specialties.]

From all that we knew of Ikorr at the time, their interests aligned more closely with mine. This- [ a nod towards what he'd been gesturing at. ] -as well as in general. I wasn't really interested in dancing around a bonfire under the full moon.

[ that's not to say she can't. but she is more skilled in ballrooms and politics than werewolves, even if she wouldn't have minded the vacation. ]

That's fair. I didn't participate in most of the partying. The ceremony was... interesting. [Or more that he had some interesting conversations around the pond.

She doesn't need to know that.

He acts like he is highly invested in what she's doing; and don't get him wrong, he is, but it's more watching that she isn't doing anything that might get ruined when he continues.] Before everything went up on end. I assume someone [Istredd] told you about the spell they had us perform? [which he hopes she understands that by saying this he did do it] What it consisted of?

Interesting? How so?

[ she has been somewhat distracted lately, enough that she hasn't bothered asking after the other ceremony at all. the attacks and then ensuring retaliation had taken priority, but maybe that was a mistake on her part.

and when he continues, yennefer stops what she's doing, her brow furrowing as she turns back to look at him more directly. no, whatever it was she was doing did not get ruined, but she has made the decision to stop working on whatever it was. ]

No, they have not. [ oh, istredd is going to get an earful. ] What spell did they have you do?

Something of power came out of it. Nothing grand, nothing that couldn't have been more than a simple... I don't know, influence to... name magic. Maybe just willpower. [He wishes he could explain more but the name on his lantern was someone that had died.

He doesn't know who put his name down and he still doesn't know how to interpret what he felt.

It's Complicated, as most things.

He is surprised when she expresses not knowing about the spell. Whoops. Sorry, Istredd.] We were given a package from a... courier or something. [which was suspicious enough as it is] with a note and a blank tarot card. [He explains the contents of the note: that there was a potential, unknown threat to the delegates and that the spell was meant as a defensive, protective precaution.

He swipes a clean sheet of parchment and holds it between two fingers as though it was a card.] The card needed to be heated until the image was revealed and left fifteen minutes for the ink to dry and hid somewhere facedown discreetly. No rips, burns, anything to mess up the card or the spell wouldn't work. No information about what it was meant to achieve either.

[He opens his fingers and the page flutters down to the table. His voice is very, very quiet. Someone that hopes beyond hope that Yennefer's workplace is damn secure from eavesdropping and scrying but still trying to keep as subtle as possible.] I just think if they can meteor-strike a city that they should be able to give a less-flimsy protection spell, regardless how short notice it may have been. [It's clear that he blames Thorne itself for what happened to her. There's enough note of warning to his voice that he hopes she's considering the officials to be just as dangerous, if not more, than whatever the queen is saying about any other faction.

He doesn't even trust what happened to Grigory not to have been staged, but he doesn't dare say that part aloud.]

[ yennefer's eyes do narrow at his explanation, because there is something both familiar and entirely unfamiliar about what he's trying to say. willpower has always been, and will always continue to be, an active and important part of control where it concerns chaos and the magic created from it.

she intends to ask more about it, the details and what about it made it so interesting, but there are more pressing matters here and they involve, very specifically, each of the summoned's apparent involvement in her near-death. because she had her own theories pieced together from what she's learned - the corrupted protection spell, thancred coming to apologize for not taking part in their piece of the magic, the delegate from solvunn untouched. she hadn't been told the details of said spell and what each of the summoned had to actually do. there is a flash of a kind of...not anger, exactly, but bitterness at how easy their part had been and how little it had actually done for her when the shift in lucifer's volume pulls her attention back again.

her classroom is of course warded, but it is not nearly as safe as somewhere such as kylo's study room (if lucifer ever gets bored and wants to drop in a few more protective wards, she won't say no). but it is safe for now, or at least safe enough, though her eyes flash to the door - which remains closed - before turning back to him. ] The notice has a larger impact that you might think. The retaliation- [ he can read the sarcasm in her voice how he wishes, but if he's good enough at it, he may be able to pick out just how she feels about being used as a martyr to start a war. how she feels that the queen would wait for this before launching what she has very obviously been planning for some time. ] -would require an excessive amount of time to prepare, and would have been ready for whatever first strike would be made. Anyone can collect power to that degree with enough time, but it does not surprise me that Ambrose's mages were unable to come up with something more concrete in terms of protection.

[ yennefer lets out an annoyed sound, clearly picking up on lucifer's meaning. of course thorne is to blame for what happened to her, of course the officials aren't to be trusted. for all that yennefer knows how to play these games, she gets so tired of the repetitiveness of this.

but then yennefer seems to have an idea, as she blinks and something else settles over her features. she turns and puts out any open flames, anything she was working on, and picks up a stack of notes and a book, much like she's preparing to leave. ] Walk with me. [ she states, not exactly giving lucifer the option to say no as she walks passed him towards the door and out into the hallway. ]

Edited 2022-11-30 21:40 (UTC)

[He's hardly going to tell her no, especially with whatever she's decided. He likely wouldn't have ever told her no since their first meeting. He's worked with enough people that have a certainty about their power--and while at the time many were still nothing compared to him, there was an accuracy to how they felt settled in it.

He follows without another word, a deference few people are allowed, and won't speak again until she's taken them to wherever it is and she continues with their discussion.]

[ as they walk, yennefer retains the same kind of presence as she normally would around the castle - no matter the topic of their talk, she smiles and greets those she recognizes in the hallways. makes comments to lucifer like they'd been discussing something mundane and altogether unimportant.

it is noted, though, that he does follow without question. something yennefer remembers.

the whole facade drops as soon as they step inside kylo's study, a place that is the safest and most warded in the castle. when the door is shut and the wards return to their position, she turns back to lucifer. ]

What do you know about the first few groups of Summoned who arrived here?

[It's interesting to observe her in her element. He understands that more than anything, the masks they were in different environments, different people. It's how he's operated under the radar so much in Thorne, but if that's the topic she's leading with then it's likely a bad sign.

He should know more. But digging too much is dangerous and he hasn't been able to settle into as safe as a network as he would prefer. He needs better defenses before he pokes into Thorne's closets himself, hoping instead to encourage others.]

Not much. Many got put unceremoniously in the dungeons.

[ there is a flash of her anger that shoots across her eyes, then, equal parts in relation to the dungeons, and the way he says unceremoniously. her arms cross. ]

Ambrose claims he made mistakes, in those first few Summonings, and those mistakes were to remain in the dungeon, where any and all connection to their abilities - magic, chaos, anything about them that could make them a thread - was cut off from them. Many of the Summoned who were not imprisoned were working to change this decision, lobby the Crown, the High Mage, the people of the court; but there was no implication this decision would be changed. After all, why would the High Mage want reminders of his failings to be walking amongst the castle walls?

[ yennefer's tone, usually, has always taken an unimpressed, angry tone whenever she's mentioned ambrose in the past. this time, though, there is something of a shift. something much sharper, much angrier, curling beneath the surface of her words.

it probably won't take much for lucifer to put the pieces together, if he hasn't heard it whispered around the castle before now. how yennefer was one such imprisoned, how she remained in that dungeons for months.

she lets out a breath of air, as if to push herself out of that mood, as she continues. ]

That was, until we were broken out. [ she'll pause here, briefly, as if to check to see if this is new information, or if it's something she can skip through. ]

[So then she's about his same level of doesn't take well to being caged.

Good to know.

He's starting to think he needs to stop finding similarities between them because turns out that may not ultimately be a good thing, for either of them.

For Yennefer, caged as she was, to be in the position she is now, so close to the queen...

It was an impressive feat. And meant that she would do anything. Anything. To survive.

Hm.

From moving locations and her sudden... openness... he assumes they can talk freely here. He holds back the question on the tip of his tongue for later, because this is new information for him, and only inclines his head for her to continue.]

[ in seeing that he's listening - that he understands what it is she's saying in its full - yennefer lets out another breath. it's annoyed, angry in a lot of ways. it is a new wound for her, no matter how long ago it might have taken place. just so lucifer can have a small taste of the truth of yennefer's ire - she does not forget.

still, there's quite a bit of ground to cover, so yennefer doesn't spare much time to this. ]

Two beings - Oliver and Elizabeth - were able to place a hold on the entirety of Castle Thorne, all but the Summoned. They were able to create portals from the castle to the other factions of the continent and we were all given a choice to leave or stay. Once the natives were freed from the spell here in Thorne, those of us who chose to remain were given a pardon by the High Mage and the Queen, as well as a personal apology by Jolene. [ another brief pause, where yennefer waits to see if lucifer makes any mention of already knowing jolene, before she lets out another sigh. ]

I won't make assumptions of you Lucifer, and frankly I don't care. But it's worth making sure you understand that Thorne has never been of a single mind; there are separate factions within these walls that have vastly different goals where it concerns us, and even more ideas on how to accomplish them. The Queen herself has made it clear she will use Summoned to protect her own people, even at the cost of our lives. [ yennefer is in enough control of herself not to let her own tone change at that mention, no matter whatever other knowledge she might carry about it. ]

Thorne was never going to protect any of us.

[At first he thinks I know before her words truly sink in. Any of us. He'd known for the most part that they were all fodder, but he had believed that those like Yennefer had enough value that they'd be protected as an asset. Even Lucifer isn't someone to bother losing his best assets; isn't going to start over again every time when he could have just spent a little extra effort.

But then that was in Abraxas, wasn't it? Before here, before his power cut, he'd operate the same way as the crown.

It meant even if he got himself to Yennefer's same level of recognition, he'd still be someone to throw away. There was no level of value he could provide that would be worth more than the Queen's people.

He knew Thorne would always be a stepping stone; he had just hoped maybe he could lose some of his extra caution eventually.

She's given him a lot. A lot that matters; her words have notably made an impact, if by a shift in his eyes alone. The different factions within the city is incredibly important and something to poke into at some point. But he focuses on one part.] This Oliver and Elizabeth--what of them? Executed or escaped?

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hilariously I didn't know Yen was thrown in the dungeons LOL but he prob did

HE ALSO MIGHT NOT HAVE it's not something she shares/that she likes being shared around the castle.

TRUE ENOUGH