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 Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:42 am
 Thanks to Lyti, Naaja was going to get married, and she was so excited about it. Of course there were a few details to take care of. For instance, she had to pick a date (as soon as possible, but after Lyti's wedding), decide on a guest list (everyone), oh and get her father to arrange the marriage, which meant she had to get someone to suggest it to him first. So it was also kind of Lyti's fault that Naaja now had to seek out one of the scariest lions in the pride and convince him to play matchmaker.
Fortunately, Naaja was accustomed to dealing with important people. She was her father's daughter, after all, and her father knew lots of important people, and sometimes they came over to talk to him in his den, and when they did, Naaja knew how she was expected to behave. She was about as comfortable in the presence of her father's intimidating allies as anyone was, she figured. Which is to say that she wasn't at all comfortable around them, but she could be talk to them politely without quivering.
The warlord's daughter took a moment to compose herself outside Thorgrim's den before calling in polite tones, "Captain Thorgrim, I would like to speak with you if you aren't otherwise occupied."pinchmonster Woo. Initiative. I took some.
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Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 11:27 am
 Thorgrim had not been pleased to find that Ruzanski had returned to the pride; he didn't think that the dark lion would cause trouble for him, but the thought was always there. Lurking and lingering, and causing Thorgrim's thoughts to veer into places filled with darkness and murder. There would have to be a way to force Ruzanski to prove where his loyalties rested. The sudden voice that disrupted his thoughts was a welcome distraction from where his thoughts had taken him, and Thorgrim rose to his feet to gaze upon his savior. One of Njal's girls. Thorgrim smiled, the gesture a little stilted. They were pawns in a game, but this one was not a pawn he was ready to play just yet. "I should hope I always have time for the daughter of our Warlord," Thorgrim gestured for Naaja to enter his den. He hoped this wasn't something silly or stupid. He didn't have time for silly or stupid.
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Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 1:35 pm
Naaja was both relieved and disappointed that Thorgrim was home. It was better for her purposes, of course, that he be home, but that only made one portion of her task easier. The rest of it was still brutally difficult, although it would have been more difficult had Thorgrim not been present. It was, after all, next to impossible to ask a favor of someone who wasn't there to be asked.
It was awkward to do this with her customary white shadow lurking just out of her peripheral vision, watching over her while managing to exude hatred all at once. Burzum had made clear his thoughts on the likelihood of her marriage to Captain Ruzanski, and the likelihood of Thorgrim helping her bring it about. Thankfully, Burzum had fallen silent once they arrived at Thorgrim's den and had remained so. Naaja was glad to leave him outside. He would not follow her in there unless she called for him. He never followed her into anyone's den unless summoned.
"Thank you, Captain. My father has a good friend in you. There is something important I would like to discuss with you," she said, doing her very best to sound confident and mature, while simultaneously ladylike and demure.
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Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 2:27 pm
Naaja's flattery would take her far, but her politeness would take her even farther. Thorgrim had a keen appreciation for a well-spoken, polite Freeborn lady, and Naaja was proving to be exactly that. They were and would forever be his weakness, especially one that came with the title of The Warlord's Daughter. "I am... all ears, my dear," Thorgrim settled back on a rich pile of furs and gestured with a paw that she should seat herself on the smaller pile across from his. "Tell me what is on your mind, and I will do my best to assist you in some sort of resolution."
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2014 4:29 pm
"Thank you," she repeated.
Naaja took a few moments to make herself comfortable on the furs Thorgrim indicated. This involved, among other things, taking care to tuck her tail under her forepaws and her forepaws under her body to prevent them from visibly shaking with nerves. She was unaccustomed to asking for what she wanted. She could make demands and express desires, but the actual process of asking was not one she had gone through very often.
A human would blush here, but with her tail tucked beneath her only Naaja's ears and whiskers could give away her discomfort at discussing something like this with someone like Thorgrim. "I have been thinking about how I can contribute to the pride, and I believe it is obvious that my duty is to marry well and raise strong sons. Since my parents have not arranged a marriage for me, I wondered if you had any suggestions for suitable lions?"
She was really hoping that he would come up with Captain Ruzanski on his own, but if he didn't, she had given herself a way to bring him up as a potential suitor.pinchmonster Sorry for the delay. Stresssss.
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:48 pm
Princess_Feylin Awwrr, let me know if you need to talk! Always always here for you. emotion_bigheart Thorgrim's ears perked, and curiosity filled his eyes. He waited and watched as Naaja situated herself. Ah, freeborn ladies. They were always such a treat - especially old blood. "Ah, I see." His bones creaked softly as he made himself more comfortable on the plush furs he rested upon. "I can think of three or four right off the top of my head, my dear. All of them suitable for a female of your stature. Three of them are related - all of the Grei brothers. Now, now, I know you're probably thinking that they're distasteful; they're a bit peculiar, my dear, but harmless. Any one of them would make you a fine husband, I have little doubt of that. The fourth is Ryskios; old blood, but a freeborn." Thorgrim paused and smiled. "Taraxa has a son who is wifeless, and some nephews, as well. All good choices, as well." He leaned back, satisfied with his matchmaking skills.
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2014 7:48 pm
Did his bones just...creak? Ew! Old people were so gross. She was not going to be creaky when she got old. Maybe she just wouldn't get old. Maybe she'd fling herself off a cliff, like reavers did when they got too old to seek a glorious death in battle. She'd have to do it before any of her bits got saggy. She smiled as pleasantly as she knew how to cover up for her thoughts.
She should have waited until she heard his suggestions to put on her I'm not thinking things I shouldn't be thinking smile. How could he possibly suggest any of the Grei brothers? They were degenerates who barely won fights. Ever. Maybe a good woman could reform them, but Naaja wouldn't be that woman. Ryskios wouldn't be awful, she supposed, but he was only a freeborn, as Thorgrim had said.
A small gurgle of dismay escaped her when Taraxa's family was mentioned. She would rather marry one of the Grei family. To cover up her dismay she coughed delicately and composed an appropriately polite response that wouldn't involve telling Thorgrim he knew nothing of love. She didn't think love had even crossed his mind.
"So you don't think I ought to marry a captain? Someone who is more respected in the pride? I know there must be a few of them who are unwed."pinchmonster My thanks. I will try not to need to talk though. Talking tends to remind me of things to worry about that I'd forgotten (or repressed).
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 12:07 pm
Thorgrim was old, yes, but he wasn't stupid, and he knew when a game was afoot. While Naaja was a pretty little thing, Njal's daughter to boot - well, Thorgrim's brain wasn't dulled to the point that he no longer realized when he was being coerced. Narrowing his eyes at Naaja, the large lion idly tapped a foot upon the furs that cushioned him from the hard floor. "If you have a captain in mind, speak up, my dear. I do not have the patience to mince pretty words, especially when it's apparent you've got your eyes on someone in particular." The fact of the matter was he didn't really know if she had anyone in particular in mind; rather, he was merely taking potshots in the dark in hopes that his words might ring true. If he'd been unwed and twenty years younger, he might have taken a lioness much like Naaja to wife. Pity he didn't have any unwed sons laying about.
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 12:38 pm
Oh. Um. Well. Naaja hadn't expected him to be so blunt with her. Had he somehow guessed what she was thinking about getting old? It wasn't like she thought he ought to throw himself off a cliff. That was just what she planned to do.
"Actually, you're right. I was thinking that it might make a good match if I were to marry Captain Ruzanski. It might put some of the...talk to rest."
Now Naaja was the one shooting in the dark. She didn't actually know what kind of talk surrounded the captain, but she supposed there must be some. If Burzum was telling the truth about the captain's previous relationship with Aesir's daughter, there probably would be talk that he wasn't on board with the new regime.
Really, though, she was hoping that Thorgrim would have a better idea what was going on and agree that her reasoning was sound.
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 1:57 pm
Thorgrim didn't mean to laugh. He really didn't. It was disrespectful, and he knew it, but he couldn't help it. The sudden bark of laughter looked as if it surprised Thorgrim himself, not that he'd admit such a thing. The instant that it happened, he clamped his mouth shut and merely stared at Naaja. And stared. And stared some more. "Well, no. No, it wouldn't make a good match, not at all. Word has it that he's got a horde of bastards running around the forest, born out of Aesir's daughter. It's also been mentioned that he's got female Reavers, my dear. It's all rumor, but you certainly deserve better. And it's a little... ah, unseemly that the Warlord's daughter is attempting to marry herself off, Naaja, my dear. And to Captain Ruzanski?" Gods, he was going to start laughing again. "No, no. One of the Grei boys will do fine, I think. Do you have a preference?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 2:15 pm
It was the surprise of the century, but Thorgrim's laughter didn't upset Naaja particularly. Compared to the laughter she had just faced talking to Burzum, Thorgrim sounded downright good-natured. Sure, it was derisive, but when it came to being scornful and hateful, nothing the captain did could begin to compare to the emotional abuse Naaja received from her thrall.
Rather than argue with him when he pressed his suit for the Grei brothers, she side-stepped the issue. It would be impolite of her to argue, since she had ostensibly come to seek his advice. It hadn't been polite of him to mention the seemliness of her attempts to find a mate for herself, but still. She was going to be above that. He was old after all, and allowances had to be made. Maybe he was becoming senile. Recommending the Greis!
"I didn't know that Kazul had survived, nor any of her cubs. Do you mind me asking where you heard otherwise?" She didn't expect he would tell her. It would probably be none of her business. "I wouldn't like people to get the idea that they could, I don't know, rally behind some fabled bastards of Aesir's line."
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 2:24 pm
"You know how rumors are in the pride, my dear." Thorgrim waved a paw. "And besides, he couldn't be trusted anyway. Carrying on with Aesir's daughter, it's shameful. It really is. I cannot approve of it. At any rate, I do not think Ruzanski is a good match for you. I have someone in mind for the good Captain, at any rate, so consider the topic dropped and we won't speak on it again." It was the most polite way he could think to say that it wasn't any of her business, and she seemed keen enough that she would catch on. "What of Tallskog? He was just on his first viking, and with your brother, Bruten. Old blood. A suitable match, my dear, far more suitable than the one you suggested." He was getting too old for this sort of thing.
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 2:32 pm
Naaja nodded in silent agreement. She certainly did know how rumors were, since she tended to listen to them avidly whenever she thought she could get away with it. Not that she always believed them, but she loved to listen to gossip. Other people's lives seemed so much more interesting than hers, after all.
"Tallskog?" she repeated. The lion was not unfamiliar to her, but they had never gotten along very well. Their first meeting had not gone well at all, and ever since they had tended to avoid each other.
Actually, now that she thought about it, Tallskog didn't really have a problem with her. It was Burzum he had a problem with. Perhaps if they were engaged, she could convince her father to find some other way to make Burzum miserable. Some way that kept him far from her. The idea made her smile. This could work. She had forgotten that time when she told Lyti she would rather marry Burzum than Tallskog.
"I had not considered him, but he is old blood, as you have said, and I'm sure he'll quickly become a captain." She really was set on the idea of marrying a captain, at least. She was the daughter of the warlord, and that meant she had to have a quality mate. Or at least an important one.
"Thank you." She turned one of her sweetest smiles on the captain. It was true she was disappointed not to have gotten her way, but at least he wasn't touting the Greis anymore. "I don't suppose you could bring this up to my father? As you say, it wouldn't be at all proper for me to do it."
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 2:41 pm
"Yes, Tallskog will do fine. From my own family, that one. My grandson." He liked the thought of that pair, truth be told. It benefited him, tightening the bonds between his family and Njal's. A good decision. He had little doubt that Tallskog might balk; honestly he'd be shocked if he didn't. They always did. "He'll become a captain, and if he doesn't have the inclination, he'll have a wife to motivate him, I think." Thorgrim smiled stiffly and rose to his feet. "And rest assured that I will speak to your father of this as soon as I can, my dear, and my grandson as well so that there are no surprises for the boy; though I can't help but think he'll be very pleasantly surprised at having such a young, beautiful lioness as yourself as his wife." Gods, he was tired.
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Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 3:13 pm
She stood a moment after he did and inclined her head graciously.
"You're too kind, Captain," Naaja replied, forcing a smile. Honestly, being called beautiful by old people was just creepy. "I think I had best be going now. I have already taken up more than enough of your time."
Tallskog wasn't as good as Captain Ruzanski. He wasn't as handsome or as exciting, but he definitely came with a number of benefits that the captain lacked. There would be no competing with dead lionesses for his affections, for one thing. So suck on that, Burzum!
"Do not die in bed!" she bid Thorgrim as she departed. When she realized that she had said that to an older lion who might well die in bed she winced, but her face was already turned away and with luck he would not see her react to her verbal faux pas. By the time she emerged from the den she was smiling brilliantly. Let Burzum wonder.
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