Prologue: a triumvirate of tasks, Part 2
13 Gennaio 794
In Lady Calliope Cagliari's mansion (situated in a discreet if somewhat lowly rung of the Coronet district) there are many rooms. Where she chooses to entertain her guests is a good indicator of her mood, and this afternoon you are not in the Delightfully Teal Salon (only Kyra and Violetta have been permitted to cross the threshold of that sanctum sanctorum) but instead are taking tea in the Muted Pink Living Room.
(It could be worse - after the debacle at New Year that left Sasha's dress in tatters, a number of you endured several uncomfortable hours in the Ghastly Yellow Drawing Room being told by Lady Calliope that she was more disappointed than angry, and that you had not merely let her down, you'd let the House down and worst of all you'd let yourselves down.)
As one of the trusted footmen pours jasmine tea from the pot into the tiny china cups that Lady Calliope favours, and one of Lady Calliope's many long-suffering ladies in waiting circulates with a plate of warm pastries, the social niceties are observed as Lady Calliope takes time to ask after each of you with some polite (and possibly pointed) questions.
After half an hour or so of idle chit-chat, she places her cup back on its saucer, idly smooths out her dress, and gets to the point. "I have some concerns about the Bakers' Guild. As you know, they feel - correctly or not - that our recent rise was partially at their expense. Ill-feeling left unattended will fester, which is not what we want. Also, I don't - or shouldn't - need to tell you that our House depends more than most upon the goodwill of the citizens. If our word is no longer good currency with the guilds, then we must remedy that as swiftly as we can."
She gives you a bright smile, and signals for the footman to recirculate with a fresh pot of tea.
13 Gennaio, 794
Sasha doesn't really care for the pink decor. It reminds her of an old remedy Amelia used to give her when her bowels decided to go crazy. Still she actually sighs a breath of relief when they are invited into the Peppermint Palace as she refers to it in her own head rather than that dangerously cheerful chamber of dandelion colored doom that Calliope last called them into.
She still didn't think what happened was her fault. At least she is pretty certain it wasn't. Unfortunately, things are still a bit blurry in her memory. She really, honestly can't recall how she ended up in the prince's rose garden with the ambassador. She didn't even like the odious little man for Lady's sake. Was it her fault her knife could have nicked his manhood when he tried...shoving thoughts of the ball out of her mind, the ambassador was fine. He'd limp for a few weeks, but the other women of Ilrein were not denied his potential affections, unfortunately.
Sipping her tea, Sasha focuses her attention back on Calliope when the woman dispenses with the chit chat and gets down to why she'd brought them here. Sasha wasn't surprised about the Baker's Guild feeling a bit out of sorts. Whatever deal they'd had with Elanda was likely better than any being offered by the sellswords of Al-Mari who now controlled the Granary. An unfortunate situation for the Bakers to be sure, but at the time a few eggs needed to be broken. Even if money wasn't the issue, few people really liked change and Bastien had certainly caused a good deal of that in recent days.
"Any idea what might appease their wounded pride, my Lady?" Sasha says, uncertain at the moment where Bastien might be able to leverage a little bonus goodwill for the makers of the city bread.
13 Gennaio 794
Kyra takes a pastry, but does not eat it. The sight of the delicate, flaky dough baked to golden perfection and the smell of buttered mushrooms and herbs is tantalizing, but already her mother has been making cutting remarks about maintaining one's silhouette and sudden ill-fitting gowns. The food at the New Year's gala had been out of this world, and Kyra supposes she did overindulge a little bit.
Instead, she takes polite sips of the fragrant tea while the wheels of her mind are turning. Lady Calliope's choice of words snags her attention; often with people it was more about perception than reality. Even if the truth was that the Bakers' Guild had been slighted or shortchanged in some way, Kyra's first impulse is to try and reframe the situation to House Bastien's advantage without actually giving away anything of substance. If that didn't work, or was unlikely to work, they would need to figure out what was the bakers' greatest perceived loss: money, status, influence, something else? And conversely, what were their goals in the short term that house Bastien could assist with.
Lady Calliope's choice of other words - 'goodwill, our word' - unfortunately seem to indicate that Kyra's preferred approach of buttering them up with pretty words would be insufficient in this case. Some loss of trust has occurred, and that needs substantive action to remedy. As she waits for Lady Calliope to answer Sasha's question, she idly wonders if the grain smuggling her protégé had uncovered is anything that the guild would like addressed, or if it's their own doing.
13 Gennaio 794
Tea with Lady Calliope is a ritual that Violetta subjects herself to partakes of on a regular basis, especially when she is feeling less than sharp. To simply survive in the Jackal's presence requires her to be alert and on her best, so while it is exhausting it is also useful. Fortunately when the rest of the Hand are there they attract the majority of Lady Calliope's attention and Violetta can enjoy the tea (exquisite, as always), the pastries (passable but put in to warm too long) and the conversation (at least when Kyra talks and Elisabetta doesn't).
Once Calliope finally gets down to business she sets her tea cup down and focuses - this task seems more straightforward than Cesare's. At least it has a clear motivation and goal, and better yet Bastien should be seen to be doing this one. Sasha asks the pertinent question so Violetta keeps her own peace and starts considering what might be done to ease the Baker's hurt feelings.
They'll want one of their rivals taken down a rung or two I imagine. If they feel particularly vindictive they'll try and turn us against one of our stronger allies, but that provides leverage. This will work, as long as the Prince didn't set plans going in the opposite direction.
13 Gennaio, 794
Lady Calliope gives a nod at Sasha's question, although she doesn't address the Eye directly, preferring to pretend the query came from someone she would rather talk to. "As a matter of fact, I have. As you may or may not be aware, there is a quarrel between them and the Arborist Guild over a plot of land adjacent to the Arbor." She announces this in a tone which suggests she doesn't expect that you know anything of the sort. "The Baker's Guild wishes to get permission to use the site for their own purposes, while the Arborists are trying to expand the size of the Arbor to encompass the same land." She pauses, to allow you to join the dots for yourselves, before adding: "Given that the Arborists have greater political connections, I would expect their claim to prevail, all else being equal. If we tip the scales the other way, I would think that goes quite some way to ameliorating any displeasure that the Bakers may feel towards us."
Once she has answered any remaining questions you may have, she gives you a bright smile. "Well. Don't let me take up any more of your valuable time." She signals one of the footmen. "Do be a dear and show these guests out, would you?"