[ CATCH-ALL ] the wishes I've made are too vicious to tell

[wiedzminka]

Who: Ciri & various
When: late Oct through end of November
Where: Free Cities, Nocwich, who knows
What: some post-event follow-ups and whatever happens in Nov
Warnings: nsfw, warned for in thread



(( ooc: if you want to do any plotting with Ciri, hmu on plurk @ belleteyn or @ lenafish#3861

happy to write a starter for you if you want one, just lmk! ))

Comments

[wiedzminka]

Come in.

[ Ciri calls, getting up to move toward the door and greet her. She seems a bit reserved in her demeanor, not exactly skittish but perhaps on edge. ]

I'm going to need you to explain some things. And then we're going to try to get on the same page.

[ Geralt had told her Yennefer didn't really understand what she can do, and Ciri's only told her so much because of Yennefer's own limited understanding. It's all frustrating, confusing, and she can't help but feel she shouldn't have to do this -- but of course, there's no one else who can.

It still stings, after all this time, that Yennefer doesn't even remember her. Sometimes, she can gloss over it, and it's easier. Lately, it's been eating at her more and more. ]

Sit. Drink?

[vixening]

[ and yennefer does come in, stepping the rest of the way through and closing the door behind her. she notices that edge in ciri even before she starts speaking, but the words are what truly solidifies the tone of this meeting.

geralt had said that ciri was upset, understandably so, but yennefer is still working on defining exactly what the list involves where it comes to what ciri is upset with her about. istredd, yes, but there is a kind of feeling here that there's a great deal more.

so when ciri says I'm going to need you to explain some things and yennefer doesn't still, exactly, but she does feel some part of her pull back together. ]

Alright. [ and, at the offer of drink, yennefer nods and moves towards the table with the pitcher and glasses, pouring them both one and offering ciri's to her. ] Where would you like to start?

[wiedzminka]

[ Ciri takes it, sits across from her. No preamble. ]

Istredd said you knew each other from your academy days. Made it seem you were close. He also made it clear he's a historian [ this is said with clear derision ] interested in royal bloodlines or some horseshit.

Long story short, he somehow figured out and made connections that he shouldn't have.

We need to make sure we both have a shared understanding of what you know. Because, frankly, I'm not sure at this point.

And I want to know why you thought it unimportant to mention there's someone else from the Continent here, someone you know.

[ Geralt hadn't mentioned it either, and Ciri wasn't happy with him over it, but at least he's apologized. She won't bring him into this, considering he and Yennefer are always so damn "complicated" but she can't help but feel hurt that neither of them thought this information worth sharing. Even if the man was an ally or a friend. It feels relevant to know someone from their world is here. ]

[vixening]

[ yennefer nods with each piece of information, keeping much of her reactions schooled until ciri is finished with what she wants to say.

why hadn't she mentioned istredd's presence? it's hard for her to pinpoint an answer when the truth of it had been that she'd simply not thought him important enough to bring up to ciri or to geralt - which sounds much more malicious than it really is. it leans much more that yennefer had assumed those parts of her life were separate, a thought that was proven over and over again to be incorrect. geralt and istredd knew each other, had been investigating monoliths together. and then istredd, who knew more about cirilla than he had any reason to.

the pause between ciri's questions and yennefer's answer is barely a second, a moment, before yennefer nods once more and straightens. ]

Istredd is an archeologist, and a historian. His focus had been monoliths and some long-held belief that they were connections to an ancient history of the Continent, but truthfully, I couldn't tell you what. He is also a member of the Brotherhood, and we did meet during our academy days. He specializes in telepathy magics, with the least proclivity for politics of anyone I have ever met. [ there is something of a huff around that piece of information, something exhausted and annoyed, but also...not quite fond, exactly, but familiar, but as she begins her next answer, that feeling fades to something a bit colder. ]

I did not mention him to you because, honestly, I hadn't thought him a threat, or an ally, and was waiting to figure out for myself which he would be. The Istredd I knew preferred the company of his rocks and his books to any living creature, which I thought would be useful in terms of the Singularity and little else. Since he has arrived, I've found that to be incorrect; and he's let me know some of the information and connections he's made, which I wasn't yet sure were truth or some grand theory of his.

[ truthfully, yennefer had been trying to figure out how she felt about the whole thing, herself. the extent of what geralt had told her, and what ciri had explained, during a time where they were speaking more often, was simply that ciri held great power that the queen could, and would, want to exploit. through their lessons, yennefer had learned some of the extent of the amount of power, but.

her fingers tap at the base of the mug as she considers a few things - specifically, how long she's felt behind, how much of what geralt, and jaskier, and ciri all seem to know and share, that she has no concept of. how, even through of all this, yennefer doesn't feel any kind of resentment towards ciri herself. ] I did not mention him to you, and I should have. He knows a great deal more than even I did. I hadn't meant to keep it from you, either, but not an excuse. [ she takes a breath. ]

I am sorry, Ciri.

[wiedzminka]

[ To her credit, Ciri listens patiently and does not interrupt while Yennefer speaks. There are a few times when she covers the way she rolls her eyes slightly or wrinkles her nose by taking a swig of her wine. No, it's very clear that Istredd wouldn't have much talent as a court mage. The man had barely been able to hold a conversation without rambling on. At first, Ciri had found it amusing; now, with her newly forged bias against the mage, it becomes not only an annoyance, but a stark liability.

But finally, at Yennefer's apology, Ciri sets her cup back down on the table. There is a long beat of silence, her eyes on Yennefer's. Then, she nods. ]

All right. Well. We're all appraised of the situation now, I should hope.

Let's figure out the rest.

With Istredd knowing far more than he should already, it no longer makes sense to approach this on the basis of keeping the information in as few hands as possible. You need to understand what he knows, and why it's a problem.

[ She crosses her arms at the edge of the table, leaning forward. ]

I told you, long ago, that my magic allows me to move through worlds. I told you there are those who have attempted to use it for their own. I did not explain the... reason behind that, mostly because it doesn't matter to me, and it's not something that would be understood in this world. But apparently that's how Istredd figured it out.

I'm a direct descendant of Lara Dorren. It is the Elder Blood that gives me those powers.

And if the Singularity is a gate, the way the monoliths on our sphere are... it will allow me to use it. Or. Destroy it, the way I did the monolith at Cintra.

Which Istredd knows about as well.

[ Her jaw tightens, the syllables harsh around the mage's name. ]

So now, you see the problem. "Elder Blood" means nothing to the people of this continent. But my ability to destroy a monolith such as the Singularity is something they can't learn about.

[vixening]

[ there is something about that exchange - not so much the apology, but ciri’s frank acceptance of it. her nod. the way she pushes the conversation forward. it reminds yennefer, unconsciously and unintentionally, so much of geralt, that she has to take a moment to simply let the familiarity of it pass.

it lasts all of a second, possibly not even that long, before yennefer’s attention shifts instead to the topic at hand. let’s figure out the rest. it feels…well, to put it lightly, good. and yes, there is that smallest hurt in her chest at how behind she continues to be, over and over again, there is no blame attached to it. definitely not at ciri.

so yennefer sits up, listens when ciri starts talking, and— she blinks, once. lara dorren. the elder blood. oh. pieces of what istredd has told her fold into the things she’s learned here, more and more of the picture slotting together.

it is interesting, how ciri says if the singularity is a gate, meanwhile istredd’s conviction of it. it complicates this all further, which is as yennefer assumed, but- ]

Power to that degree on a Continent that depends on the monolith for its magic…yes, I see the problem. [ yennefer thinks back to those early months, how they had lessons about controlling chaos, how yennefer had been going off the basis that ciri had been strong, yes, but this… this was something else entirely. ]

It’s no wonder the Singularity has altered your chaos the way it has. I’m sure some part of it was acting in defense.

[ which…isn’t the point. yennefer shakes her head. ]

No, the factions can’t learn about it. Certainly not with tensions the way they are. Istredd is a liability, and him having this information at all complicates matters. He’s not one to use it to any end, but. [ a beat, and then- ] Who else knows?

[wiedzminka]

[ The truth is Ciri just... doesn't know what to do with the apology. She'd wanted to hear it, but now that she has, it's difficult to tell if she accepts it or not. That may take time. It's not because she doesn't believe Yennefer; she does. It's that distance again, the reminder that their worlds remain apart, that Yennefer really had no reason to think Istredd important for Ciri to know about because he's someone from Yennefer's past, who should be entirely unrelated to her. She doesn't think Yennefer was intentionally hiding anything from her; they don't really have the kind of relationship where they share everything with each other, and that's fine. It was just frustrating being blindsided like that.

Ciri takes a breath and pushes it aside, if not entirely away. ]

No one can learn about it. [ She clarifies softly; it probably doesn't need to be said, but there is an important distinction to her. ] None of the other Summoned either. Not even those you think you trust.

[ She's already explained to Yennefer that she can travel between worlds. Between her powers and the Singularity's ability to connect to the home spheres of all the Summoned, she doesn't need to spell it out. It wouldn't take much for someone to decide she's their key home. That she could save their life, change their future, fix some problem or other in their world. Istredd seems to think that already. ]

People have a way of finding their morals loosening for the so-called 'greater good.'

[ Ciri sighs, taking another drink, then answers Yennefer's question. ]

Only Geralt and Jaskier.

[vixening]

[ it does leave them in a strange middle ground, doesn't it? because yennefer has apologized, and she has meant it, because she knows what it feels to have information about your life, your own self, passed around without your knowledge. yennefer should have told ciri the very day she found istredd in the halls of castle thorne, the moment he mentioned ciri's name, but she hadn't. and for all the excuses she could bring to mind, it doesn't really matter.

the clarification, while yennefer understood it, does remind her where ciri wishes to draw this line. yennefer isn't worried about it, knows that it isn't something she would even come close to crossing, but she does nod. confirming for ciri that she understands. ]

No one. [ she repeats, just for good measure, before she gives a small huff at the mention of the greater good. yeah, she does understand that. in more ways than one. ]

Then it will remain between us.