Wesley hated himself for how much fun he was having. This Igeyorhm was even more guilible than Jaakuna ever could be. Even on his worst days, Jaakuna never would behave in such a manner that the Martyr was, yet each word that Wesley and Grant spoke, it was obvious that he honestly believed them. Wesley had half of a mind to continue if further until such a point came when he would break down. Honestly, Wesley knew that wasn't far away, so maybe one final push would be enough.
"You know, I'm actually feeling sorry for Igeroyhm. To think someone so obviously-tactical might lose his command to someone like Keiran or.." Wesley paused for suspense, "gods-forbid, Lola!" Wesley stated rather dramatically.
You truly are having too much fun with this. Hashmall made a gesture similar to the visual action one of the rolling of one's eyes.
After the preferred absence of Cassandra and the rather surprising exit that Isaiah felt was appropriate, the group, after a brief reprieve, found themselves back and refreshed as if all of them were given a full-revive. And of course, the next item on the agenda would doubtless be the hottest topic on the agenda because, in Jaakuna’s mind, it was the one thing that could make or break this treaty.
Jaakuna nodded, looking at everyone, as he centered upon Reia’s tired face. No doubt she, like everyone, wanted to get this out of the way, “Reia, I trust you went with your best judgement regarding the Marriage Act in the treaty?” Jaakuna asked her.
“I only reworded it to be more comprehensive,” Reia said, for once being serious. “As we know, political marriages have, in the past, been used as a literal way to unify countries. These will serve as a symbol of the treaty, and momentary unification.”
“And as history shows us, Ivalice doesn’t have a good showing of these marriages succeeding. Half of them have resulted in wars between our three nations. For that reason, I found it best to arrange these marriages not only for country unification, but because these individuals are also highly-public figures.” Jaakuna explained to the group.
Most of them, anyway… Emiri couldn’t help but lament quietly.
“Trust is a common denominator of those failures--or rather, the lack of,” Reia commented. “It would seem Jackson took the liberty of choosing who goes where, starting with the Dalmascan-Rozarrian unification between Wesley Alexander and Nadeline Roselia.”
“That seems appropriate,” added Alistair, giving this motion a nod of approval. “It is known that Wesley and the Princess Nadeline are involved, plus Nadeline has quite the positive reputation among the Dalmascan people. That is surely to tie together Rozarria and Dalmasca wonderfully. However, I am concerned about the Rozarrian Royal Council,” Alistair shifted his gaze to Reia, “Empress, I might be wrong - and feel free to correct me if I am - but your council, at least according to their negative reputation among the land, are very possessive of the Royal Family, are they not? I suspect it’ll be difficult to make them see to this arrangement, especially if Nadeline will technically be a Dalmascan in the case of her marriage to my king.”
“Saying they have a ‘negative’ reputation is putting it very lightly,” Reia couldn’t help but scoff lightly, though she meant no insult to Alistair at all. “However, Nadeline is no mere puppet princess whose strings must be pulled for her to take action. She has always taken matters into her own hands, often seeking out her own ways to fulfill her royal duties. If she had the choice, I assure you, she would have wanted to participate, but instead chose to return to Stigma specifically to facilitate the ease of the treaty by consulting the Council ahead of time so that when I bring the treaty back, it will go much smoother than they would like it to be.”
“Clever girl,” Roman colored himself impressed.
“I suppose the short of it is to say: the Council is no match for Nadeline. They may have years beyond them, but her wisdom surpasses even theirs. That, and she is wholly dedicated to Wesley romantically. She won’t let politics get in the way of that, I can assure you,” She summed up her point in case Jaakuna didn’t get the gist of what she was trying to say.
“I see,” Alistair simply said, “my apologies, I didn’t mean to imply she couldn’t handle herself,” Alistair admitted. “I suppose I was worried for my future queen, is all.”
“Worry not,” She assured him, though it was slightly hypocritical as she would decide to continue the discussion. “The second unification would be that of Cassandra Alexander and...Roman Balefor-Darcone--” She looked up to see Roman choke on his tea. “I suppose if you die, you’ll die knowing it was your beloved tea that did you in. How beautifully tragic.”
Emiri gave Reia a look as she would pat Roman’s back, the man recovering. “I--Could you repeat that last part?” He asked, breathing slowly.
“You handled her well enough before,” Emiri offered.
“That--admittedly, I wasn’t exactly expecting this,” Roman admitted as he regained his composure.
Reia looked at Roman in complete silence, and then would turn herself so she was facing Jaakuna. “Really now?” She asked, awaiting an explanation.
“She wasn’t your first choice.” Jaakuna stated rather abruptly.
“Now that’s just hurtful,” Roman said, frowning. “Who was her first choice, then…” As the words left him, he could feel the absolute hatred radiate off of Emiri. “I...see...forgive me for asking…” He laughed nervously, not wanting to incur her wrath.
“And so the task falls to you,” The brunette replied, sighing.
“Despite her attitude, I’m very sure she would make any man happy,” Reia pointed out.
“Is that why she kept flirting with Jaakuna?” Roman suddenly realized. “Goodness...I’m being asked to take on quite a task.”
“You’ll live.”
“You wound me, my lady…”
Jaakuna couldn’t help but snort at Reia’s comment about Cassandra since he knew all too well how assertive she was about her…desires, not to mention how brazen she was towards him while in front of Emiri. “There isn’t any pressure or anything on you, brother, but just know that if you don’t do this, or if somehow you aren’t able to satisfy her, the entire treaty will crumble, and it’ll be all your fault.”Jaakuna would casually mention, sipping his assam tea. “But, again - no pressure!”
“Satisfaction is the least of my worries, I can assure--oh you meant...my apologies,” He stifled a cough. “She may be young, but as Alistair mentioned, what she needs now is kindness. I can promise you, I will do my very best to care for her the way she deserves to be.”
Unless by ‘deserve’ you mean ‘treated the same way she treats everyone like they’re trash’, I doubt it, Emiri couldn’t help but scowl, though she frowned at Reia’s chuckle, as if the empress had read her mind. “A-Anyway...that would bring us to the last item on the agenda,” Emiri hurriedly pushed forward the conversation.
Reia frowned, a genuine frown with no ill intent behind it--and Emiri had a really bad feeling about what she was going to say next. Without any hint of sarcasm, she would speak, “This was actually one of the points I would like to discuss at large. Unifying Rozarria and Archadia through marrying Jackson and Emelia, I don’t think it will have as much an impact as the rest of the marriages,” She said, confirming Emiri’s suspicions.
“The hell it won’t!” Jaakuna retorted back. “Emiri is the daughter of the late Lady Justine, sister of Lorenzo’s wife, Lady Karolina, and General Andre. As for me, I’m the motherfucking prince of Archadia. That, in itself, should be enough.” He defiantly stated with a scowl.
“Actually, you are precisely the issue,” Reia would explain herself. “You aren’t just an Archadian prince when all is said and done, you will be in your rightful place as the true Emperor, and not a stand-in like Roman. Your position heavily outweighs that of hers. And as for her own position…” She trailed off, hesitant.
“I’m a commoner,” Emiri decided to finish her sentence. “At the end of the day, I’m not worth anything--less so before an Emperor.”
Now it was Roman’s turn to frown. “But with the strained relationship between the two countries it would be enough, no?” He asked.
“When all the other marriages involve direct royalty--even you, Roman, despite your bastard status--it isn’t enough,” Emiri reminded him. “It’s not a question of character, it’s a question of bloodlines.”
Jaakuna pouted rather noticeably, glaring nastily at the lot, though he knew they were right. If this treaty was to succeed, the unities of royalty needed to be preserved. But the question that he found himself asking was one he’d state out loud to the group. “If not myself and Emiri, then who?” Jaakuna asked. Jokingly he thought of the worst possible choice. “Grant and Savayna?” He said with a laugh, knowing that would be completely absurd.
“Savayna? You mean General Glacie?” Roman asked, surprised.
Emiri’s eyes widened. Oh no.
“Hmm...well, ironically enough, if Nadeline marries Wesley, and I’m more than certain I’m going to get thrown off my throne any day, that would make Grant Emperor soon enough,” She mused out loud. “It won’t be right away, but…”
“The House of Glacie carries much military presence here, which is to say they hold much influence,” Roman told Reia. “At one point, she was married to Jackson. If the people saw her marrying Grant, I believe it would put much weight into the marriage.”
“Ah, I forgot Archadia does hold the military to a higher standard. Still, we could use the expertise all things considered,” Reia seemed to agree, much to Emiri’s horror. “And having Grant take an Archadian bride would be more readily accepted, I think.”
Emiri looked at Jaakuna, a terrified look on her face. What have you done?! She screamed mentally.
So it turned out they weren’t joking. Or that his joking wasn’t a source of laughter for them. Grant and Savayna were taking the place of he and Emiri in the treaty. And as great as this meant for the treaty, Jaakuna couldn’t help but think of how Savayna would react. Despite being a mistress of ice, she, ironically, wasn’t known for having a cool head, especially when it came to her decisions being made for her. If she somehow found out that she not only was going to be forced into an arranged marriage to Grant, but it was for a treaty, Jaakuna feared what she might do.
“Well, yes, this on paper is great for the treaty, but has any of you considered how Savayna’s going to react? Honestly, everyone here knows how she can be. I was married to her, so I know how she’s like. Roman dealt with her in Bhujerba, so he knows how she’s like. Emiri has felt her wrath on more than one occasion, so she also knows what my ex-wife is like.” Jaakuna was delirious right now. “Asking her to marry Grant for the sake of a treaty is just as bad as asking for war between the three countries. On top of that--” Just as Jaakuna was going to finish that sentence, he was interrupted by the sound of the door being forced open.
[color-lightblue]“Hot damn, it seems everyone is here!”[/color] Savayna stated with a surprised grin, “Ya hear me, big tits! They’re all in here like you said they would be.” She yelled to Shion.
“My apologies, I thought the Archadian would know Archades better than I did,” Shion stated, offering a wave to the royals and Emiri sitting in the room. “Forgive our tardiness.”
“No problem, we were just discussing the matters of the treaty,” Alistair informed them, offering the two ladies a wave of his own. “Actually, it centers around one--” Alistair suddenly felt a stiff kick in the shin from Jaakuna, causing the man to wince.
Savayna raised one of her eyebrows. “Something wrong, Sir Alistair?” She asked, suspicious.
Jaakuna was going to speak, but he suddenly found his mouth dry. Reia narrowed her eyes at him, motioning for him to continue. Shion thought their actions weird, though it would seem as they were addressing one of them. Considering their relative position in the country, she safely assumed it was likely about Savayna, and would also look at Jaakuna. Roman had to restrain himself from laughing at his younger half-brother, showing no sympathy. The bastard.
“Nothing’s wrong!” Emiri blurted out much too quickly.
“Actually, that’s not true..” Despite what his gut was telling him to do, Jaakuna knew he couldn’t keep quiet. Please, Gods, don’t let her kill me too much.
No promises. Belias would state, apparently speaking on behalf of the gods.
Savayna looked at Jaakuna specifically, her eyes squinting at him. “Just tell me what’s going on before I smack you.” Savayna nastily demanded.
Jaakuna let out a sigh, eyes nervously looking at Savayna. “The thing is, there’s a clause in the treaty that’s paramount to it succeeding; it’s a unification between certain, high-prolific figures of Dalmasca, Rozarria, and Archadia.” Jaakuna informed Savayna.
“Makes sense. Our relationship was a way for House Darcone and House Glacie to become bonded.”
“Yes, which brings me to my next point - the point we were just discussing.” Jaakuna coughed, looking to everyone as if trying to get a bit of help from them. Sadly, no one would even return his gaze. Gee, thanks for nothing. He mentally scowled. Reia grinned at him. “Nadeline and Wesley will marry, unifying Dalmasca and Rozarria. Roman and Cassandra will be the unification between Dalmasca and Archadia.”
Savayna nodded,[color=lightblue] “That only leaves Rozarria and Archadia.” She mused aloud. “I imagine that’s going to be you and Emiri.” She was guessing.
Reia nudged Emiri. Emiri nudged her back. The two stared one another down, though Reia’s rather domineering glare won, ending with Emiri hanging her head in defeat. Raising her view, she inhaled and shook her head. “Unfortunately due to my status, or rather lack of, our marriage won’t do us any good,” Now that she actually put it out there, it made her feel crappier than usual. For now, she would have to deal with it. “Meaning we’ll need another pair to signify the union between Rozarria and Archadia. Another pair who happens to be from the two same countries. Who also happen to love one another.”
“Way to be subtle,” Reia commented dryly.
Jaakuna let out a sigh. Truly, he loved her, but sometimes he wished she would not be like him sometimes, especially when his beautiful face was at risk. It wasn’t too much to ask, was it? Just slightly hint, Emiri; don’t flat-out tell her with the words ‘we need you and Grant’ in neon letters.
“Oh, I see,” Savayna wasn’t sure what that meant, though as her facial expression hinted at deep thought, the sudden change from neutral pondering to the realization only spelled bad things were on the horizon. All in which seemed to be focused entirely on Jaakuna.
Shion would cautiously step away from the scene. “I see you’ve--”
“You bastard!!” Savayna blurted angrily. She closed the lengthy gap between her and Jaakuna, and picked him up by his red jacket, pinning him against the wall. “You want to auction me off to Rozarria as some kind of fucking bargaining chip!?” Her anger only intensified as she spoke.
“N-no, it’s not like that.”
“Isn’t it, though?” Alistair chimed in. He obviously wasn’t helping Jaakuna’s case.
“Okay, yes it is just as you’ve said, but you see, we had no other choice.”
“There was another choice. This one was just a better one,” Reia admitted.
“Come now, the great Treaty Creator has all the foresight in the world!” Roman gleefully added.
“Well...I mean, it was Jaakuna’s idea--” Emiri said slowly, though she realized the implications of her words far, far too late.
“Oh, well that changes everything,” She smiled and laughed. Instantly, Jaakuna knew that spelled bad things for him.
Jaakuna looked at all of them, mouthing “I hate you all” with his mouth, though Savayna’s spleen would not be quelled. On the contrary, it seemed to only increase and had better guidance.
A few minutes would pass and as the others would finish up the final, miscellaneous items on the treaty, the sounds of Jaakuna’s painful grunts could be heard as Savayna repeatedly bashed in his face, punching and kicking him. At one point, as he had fallen to the ground, Savayna had kicked him in the face, legs, arms, stomach, and most notably, his Archadian Jewels with the tip of her heels, making Jaakuna actually cry. The next Emperor of Archadia and one of the manliest men to ever exist in Ivalice, let out a cry that rivaled a newly-born babe, fresh from its mother’s womb.
“I think that concludes this meeting,” Alistair commented as he had finished signing his name on behalf of Dalmasca.
Reia would grant her own rather elegant signature on the parchment, satisfied. “Indeed,” She stated.
“I’m so sorry…” Emiri whimpered, reaching for Jaakuna.
“Good to see us all come to a peaceful conclusion!” Roman said cheerfully. “Would anyone care for some tea?”
“I’d like some..” Jaakuna said, though Savayna put that desire to rest as she kicked his stomach and continued his beatdown.
“Roman, how about tea out on the balcony? It’s such a fine day.” Alistair suggested.
Emiri let out a whimper of regret, to which Roman would pat her hand gently. “That is a splendid idea! The view of the city is simply divine, please, let us relax,” He urged them. “Lady Glacie, will you join us?”
Savayna wouldn’t respond, instead her foot began burying itself in Jaakuna’s backside.
“She seems occupied! Come, Lady Reia!”
As Reia would gladly take Roman’s offer, Emiri approached Savayna and the fallen Jaakuna nervously. “D-Don’t you think he’s had enough…?” She asked nervously, half-afraid of incurring her wrath, though as Savayna’s head immediately turned around and she shot Emiri such an icy glare, one could’ve sworn a breeze of icy wind passed through the entire floor. She wasn’t entirely sure how she remained standing. She foolishly decided to try to appeal to her once more. “If-If you’re going to be mad at someone, be mad at me! It’s...it’s my fault, anyway!”
Savayna stopped kicking Jaakuna’s ass and looked at Emiri with the same icy glare. “You’re not the one who wrote the treaty. So, unless you want to get your ass beat too, go have tea!” Savayna said with such a sinister glare, the temperature in the room dropped nearly half what it was before.
Shion carefully sidestepped the trio, not even bothering to look back as she casually strolled over to the balcony. Emiri watched her, though she let out a sigh. “I’m serious, though,” She told Savayna, knowing she’d probably get yelled at, but at the very least she’d state the truth. “Our marriage was supposed to represent the alliance, but...I don’t have enough pull to make it worthwhile. I just...thought you should know,” She muttered, deciding to follow Shion.
