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[Prince and his Consort]

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Prince Jean Pierre Auberjean and his consort Lady Jacqueline Wair made the rounds of the party that they threw once a month for the elite of the city.? There were some regular here and some that were new to his fair city. He was surprised that Mr. Vincent St. Claire and his lovely lady Chantel had not made an appearance tonight. Jacqueline tended to enjoy Chantel's company and he often enjoyed his talks with St. Claire about commerce in his city and the control of the human population.

He also noticed that there were some people here from the America's. What did his Jacqueline say their names were...Deveraux? Yes, he was sure that was what she told him was the names of the three gentlemen standing off in the corner talking to Lord Laurent. She also informed him that another gentleman by the name of Nicolae Bartholomew was here, and a Mathias Phillips was here with his lovely wife Esmeralda. He wondered if this Mathias Phillips was any relation to Lord Draven Phillips...the American Liberator. At some point in time tonight, he would have to make his way over to them. He often enjoyed conversing with dignitaries from across the pond.

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Being at the party, he was not aware of the carnage Draven was waging in his city. And his people were making a point of keeping it from him. Their Prince hated to be interrupted with unpleasantries at his parties.

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“Excuse me, my lady,” one of the men said

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“Yes,” Jacqueline said. She bent her head and listened to the report her men gave her. Frowning, “Does anyone know who this man is?”

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Her man shook his head. She looked over her shoulder at her Prince as he talked. She could not leave him or alert him to what was going on. “Find out who is doing this, capture him and put him in the catacombs until after the party.?

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(The Dragon, Angus)

The Dragon was waiting for Angus to bring Mikayla to him when he suddenly felt a tingle of magical energy that was seeping through the very walls of the keep.? It puzzled him at first.? He wondered if somehow Mikayla had suddenly mastered one of the spells in the book he'd left with her, though that seemed most unlikely.? There was a confidence present in the spell, but also something else.? Something familiar.? The tendrils of magic flowed directly to him, and before he could protest they began to flow over him, engulfing his entire body from head to tail, imbuing the very scales that covered him.

He began moving, pulled forward by some force that now controlled his very movements, taking him out of the open room and down the adjoining corridor.? With each step, the sense of familiarity grew, but at the same time failed to coalesce in his mind. It was hard for him to focus on that though as at the same time he felt himself changing.

"What... what's happening?" he roared, even as his legs kept moving against his will.? "Angus!? Come to... come to... me?"? His voice was suddenly strange, like the deep reptilian rumble was being drained from it with each step.? And he found his stance changing as well, shifting until he was walking on his hind legs only.? His body felt like it was on fire, his joints burning, his muscles contracting painfully.??

Suddenly he found himself standing before a door, dimly aware that he'd been here before. And recently.? It took a moment before he realized that his perspective had changed.? Everything seemed... bigger?? The corridors usually left him feeling cramped, but now there was so much more space surrounding him.? And he felt strangely cold.? Stumbling uncertainly, he fell against the door, barely having time to notice the bronze plate with the name "Jerusha" on it before the door swung open, causing him to fall into the room beyond.

As he picked himself up off of the stone floor, he was aware that his arms and legs were no longer those of a dragon.? He stared in puzzlement at human hands and feet that apparently were his now.? That were his... once again?? Like the rest of his naked human form.? _His_ human form, the familiarity of it pulsing painfully in his head, like waking from a long hangover.

He also became aware that he was not alone in the room.? A woman was there, standing before the opened book on the reading stand.? Mikayla... and yet not Mikayla.? The face was Mikayla's, but the blue fire in the eyes was someone else staring at him.

"Who..." he stammered, the room starting to spin around him dizzily. He fell to his knees, the stones of the floor impacting them painfully.? A blackness began creeping inward around the edges of his vision.? "Help... help... me..." he managed before collapsing completely, the last of his consciousness gone.??

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- Mikayla -
The woman watched him fall. Moving from her place at the dais, she approached. Watching him lay helpless on the hard cold ground. Did he remember her? Did he know himself? Without a word, she knelt beside him. Gently moving his now wet hair for his damp forehead, she placed her forehead against his.

"Remember" she whispered

Mikayla sat with her head resting up The Dragon's large strong, scaley, meaty paw. Currently, he lay in the nest that she and Angus had built in the large foyer of the castle proper. She was worried. It had been nearly a fortnight and he still had not awakened.

She had been resting in a deep sleep when Angus's loud banging on her door caused her to come awake with a start. He explained that he had found The Master, passed out, outside very close to the edge of the property. She didn't know what to make of it, but Angus had been so distraught, she rushed there with him. It had taken them all day to get him in the wagon. And another day to get him to the castle and another day to get him inside.?Together they tried to keep him comfortable. They didn't know what was wrong. He didn't appear to have any injuries. But he wouldn't wake up.?

(Andrew)

?"Aye, my love," Andrew murmured, kissing her back with equal passion. "You've my word on it.? The ring and the knee when we reach France, with wedding shortly thereafter."? He grinned as he added "I'll have to invite the crew, of course, but I'll insist on their very best behavior."

?Two days later, they were underway, the Elusive heading out to sea once again, a stiff wind whipping at the sails above them.? Andrew ordered the crew to keep a sharp watch for any ships that might appear on the horizon.? For the first five days, no ships of any kind were sighted.? A couple of ships were sighted after that, but were obviously headed in directions that would not bring them any closer.? On the seventh day however...

?"Captain," the first mate said, coming close enough to be heard but quiet enough not to be overheard, "I think we're being shadowed.? I keep seeing something on the horizon, but only for a moment and then it's gone.? But it keeps coming back, and always in the same place.? Shall I order more sail to be put on? I'll wager the Elusive can outrun them easily."

?"Not just yet," Andrew said after a moment.? "But change our course a bit.? 30 degrees east-southeast." He smiled thinly as he acknowledged the man's salute and departure.? "Let's see what they do, if anything."

?He wondered briefly if he should let Evone' know of their possible shadow, but decided against it.? Not just yet, he thought to himself.? Not till we know for sure we're being shadowed.

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?- Evone'-

Evone' sat on a pile of rope, looking out into the beautiful open sea. The clouds were large and billowy. The sky was bright and blue and the water was soft. It was a perfect day. They were traveling to France to see her father. She wanted to make sure he was okay after all her ass of supposed to be dead ex-husband said he was not well. She was grateful to Andrew for taking her there. She was worried that he would be found. Yes, she knew she shouldn't be worried considering he said she shouldn't be but she was. He was a pirate after all.?

Looking out into the water, she saw the ships pass by them. Some close some not. She hadn't been paying much attention to the ship traffic to determine if any were following them or not. So she did not have the same concern he did.?

Jaimie, Callum)

?Jaimie had? managed to distract the other guest, the one called Branson, who'd gone down to the kitchen to get something for Scheherazade, luring him into the pantry and then locking the door to keep him there.? He looked at the tray, then added the pot of hot broth the man had been preparing to it before carrying it up the stairs.? He glanced back in annoyance that the sounds Branson was making banging on the pantry door.? "Och haud yer wheesht, ye silly jimmy," he muttered.? "Nothing's aff tae hurt ye in thare."

?Jaimie blinked when Scheherazade opened the door to her room before he'd had a chance to.? "Sorry, mistress," the young ghost said, ducking his head in apology, but keeping the tray in his hands steady.? "Ah didnae mean tae friten ye." ?

?"Ah brought ye something tae taps aff yersel' wi'," Jaimie said, coming into the room.? He looked around for Callum but didn't see the laird anywhere.? He hoped nothing bad had happened, but focused on tending to Scheherazade.? "Ah will juist set it 'ere fur ye," he said, setting the tray on the night stand near the bed.? "Ye kin dram it while ah stoke th' fire up a bawherr."? With that, he began tending the fire in the fireplace, careful not to stand where the mistress might see through him in the brighter light. ?

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- Scheherazade

Sam smiled. “It’s okay,” she stepped back allowing the younger man access to her room. “You didn’t have to go to all the trouble. I know where the kitchen is I could have gotten something for myself, but I thank and appreciate your thoughtfulness all the same..”

Sam moved to sit in one of the two chairs surrounding the hearth. She picked up the cup and sniffed. “Chicken noodle soup. Umm, this was my favorite as a child. My mother and I would make it from scratch together. Thank you Jaimie this is really sweet.” Picking up the cup, she first blew on the liquid then sipped. “So tell me about yourself, Jaimie. I know you said your family has worked here for generations, but what makes you decide to stay?”