Thanks to TehGramerPolise and MasterofBones for their help with this chapter

Journal Entry 281

The viper's nest in question was a series of glorious mansions that composed the Harkin estate.

Yes, I said mansions, plural.

You see, it's fair to say that Merchant Nobility were wealthy, in fact, oftentimes they were much more wealthy than the average member of the High Nobility. However, that all went out the window when it came to the Lord Electors of the High Nobility. To say they were wealthy and powerful was to say that water was wet.

Lusban, his face once more back in the guise of Dudley, drove us through each of the three gates that protected the estate, showing the invitation at each checkpoint. Each time, it was scanned with a handheld device, each time the armored attendant handed it back with a gracious bow until we reached the last one.

The attendant there, a grizzled man with a large axe strapped to his back, pointed to the central building after he handed back the invitation.

"You may drop your passengers off out in front there." He told Lusban, "You will then be required to park in the lot behind the West Wing, there you and the car will be subject to a security check. After that is concluded, you will be directed to a dining hall where the servants will stay until they are contacted by their masters."

Lusban tipped his hat graciously, "Thank you kindly, have a nice night."

"You as well, sir." The man replied and waved us by.

We pulled into four lane circular drive that was under a massive, ornate overhang. Lusban exited the car and helped us out before closing the door behind us.

Before he drove off, he leaned over to me and whispered, "Remember sir, should you require it, I've broken into far more secure locations before."

I nodded to him, "Thank you, but hopefully that won't be necessary."

Lusban bowed in reply, got back into the car, and drove off.

As one, Neo and I turned toward the giant staircase that led to a series of double doors that were open wide, smartly dressed servants stood like statues, welcoming a small crowd of gorgeously dressed young men and women inside.

"Well… here we go." I said, my throat tight.

"Back to the simpler vocabulary huh?" Neo asked under her breath as we walked up the stairs.

"Only so that you can understand it." I answered back, keeping my face neutral.

Neo chuckled as we made our way past a pair of servants that bowed while murmuring polite nothings, and into a world of splendor.

There's only so many adjectives even I can use to describe the grandeur of the Harkin estate. We passed by statues wrought of precious metals, elegant portraits adorned the walls as we walked through the hallway whose velvet carpet alone was probably worth enough lien to feed all of Mantle for a week.

We went from that hallway and into a massive ballroom, the ceiling stretched off into the distance above our head, massive crystal chandeliers hung there, like twinkling forests of light. The expansive floor was made out of an elegant hardwood that I was sure cost some thousands, if not millions of lien. My attention however, was seized entirely on the gathering of noble men and women in front of us.

The fashion present was a fantastic array of color, some wore vibrant reds, greens, and even some yellows, yet others were more somber, with grays, blues, and blacks. Beyond that were the styles, here were the tucked in, tight lines of Origiani, the famous tailor homegrown from Mantle itself. Over there were the far more loose and flowing styles of Adriana, the woman from Mistral who it's said could make even wool flow like silk. A few were wearing the simple, comfortable, yet elegant styles of Ruthenberg, a Vale tailor that was rising in popularity. Spread out here and there amongst the crowds were even more exotic styles that I knew were from Vacuo, though I did not recognize their creators.

So enraptured was I, that Neo had to physically shake me to get my attention. I let out a start and saw her looking at me with a tint of anger and embarrassment in her eyes. I looked past her to see a servant waiting patiently, his hand extended.

I barely managed to keep my face composed as I handed him our invitation. He nodded his head in thanks as he accepted it. When he looked down at the names written there, his eyes widened, but otherwise he showed no reaction as he cleared his throat. "Baron Rowan Laisren, first of his name, Master of Laisren Aerial Manufactory, son of Merchant Elector Ciara Laisren. Accompanying him is Neopolitan Gialatta, first of her name, yojimbo to Rowan Laisren." The room went abruptly quiet and I felt every single eye on Neo and myself. I waved to them, an arrogant smile on my face.

Lusban and I had carefully selected those titles. We had decided to make the formal claim to the company itself, but leave the idea of Electorship vague for now; simply reminding everyone of the Laisren family's past power and position. Claiming it now would instantly make me isolated amongst enemies from the Merchant Nobility who were close to the title, as well as any High Nobility endorsing them. Whereas if I simply left myself open as a candidate, I had more room politically.

Neo and I walked past the servant and further into the room, which grew louder as conversation resumed. Suddenly there was a hand at my shoulder and I turned to see the servant from before holding out a pair of masks. One had a swirl of green, yellow, and purple on its forehead, with a wide, almost sinister smile. The other was a plain white mask, one side of its face was quirked up in a smile, and the other in a despairing frown.

"Would you two be so kind to put these on?" The servant asked pleasantly.

I looked blankly at the masks, then looked up to see that indeed all of the gathered guests were indeed wearing similar masks, although almost all differed from each other. I had been so enraptured with the clothes that were present that I hadn't even bothered looking at the faces.

"Wait, isn't this a banquet?" I asked him.

The servant bowed, "Indeed sir, observe." He pushed on both sides of the mouth on the half-smile, half-frown mask and the parts of the mask around the mouth retracted, leaving a rectangle shaped hole.

"Well that seems hardly worth the effort." I muttered as I took the half-smile and half-frown mask from him and put it on.

Neo gave me a concerned look as she put the other mask on, her multicolored eyes clashing with the swirling colors of the mask. Now we wouldn't be able to tell who was who. Which meant we would be walking into a political minefield…

I took a deep breath, and with our masks firmly in place, we walked into the crowd.

For a while we weaved our way through the guests, making small talk as we went. Neo leaned in close, "So, I thought that this banquet was supposed to be where younger members of the nobility formed alliances." She said, keeping her voice low.

"That's correct." I replied.

"So, don't these masks make that a little… difficult?" She asked.

I did my best to keep my voice calm and nonchalant, "Once again you're correct," I told her, "I believe that this is the first time that this event has been a masquerade."

"Mmm…" She put a finger to her mask's wooden lips, "And this is the first year where you, who has no allies or even contacts to really speak of, has attended. I'm guessing that's not coincidence."

I grinned behind my mask, "Remember, what I told you the true nature of this Banquet was." I told her, "Someone has decided to take a subtle jab at me… the question is… who and why?"

Neo cocked her head slightly slightly, "Aren't both of those, obvious?"

I shook my head, "Not necessarily. While this is Lord Elector Harkin's party, it's hasty to assume that he is the one who is behind it. We may be watching a coup in action, whether from amongst the Harkin family, or from an outside source. If that's the case, I sincerely doubt he'll admit to it openly. It's not worth admitting you don't have total control over a party in your own house for an event like this. As for the 'why'…"

I tapped on my mask, "Keep in mind; the only thing that these masks do is maintain a brief anonymity, as soon as you ask someone's name and title; odds are they won't be bold enough to lie." I rubbed the back of my neck, "The interesting thing is that it in no way applies to us." Neo seemed to consider that for a moment, then her multicolored eyes widened. "Exactly, your eyes are a dead giveaway to anyone who knows about them. The truth is though, whoever is behind the masks may not even have any malicious intent towards us. They could be judging me by seeing how I react to a situation like this. On the other hand, they could have far more malicious intentions in mind… we'll have to be cautious."

Neo's eyes narrowed and she began to say something when her stomach growled. I chuckled as even through the mask I saw her face flush red.

"Come on." I told her as I led the way to a long table where various ornate snacks were laid out. "It'd be horribly embarrassing if I allowed my yojimbo to starve to death in the middle of a banquet."

She said nothing, but just huffed in reply, her gaze downcast. I grinned and was about to say something further, when two figures stepped out in front of us.

I frowned at first, then raised my eyebrows as I recognized them, their cat-like eyes very much visible behind their masks. To my surprise, they bowed politely.

"Rowan Laisren." He said, in way of greetings.

"Neopolitan Gialatta." The woman said similarly.

I bowed in reply, "Menek and Jocasta Rashin." Keeping my tone light. "It is a pleasure to meet you again."

"We are honored that you say so." Menek said, although his eyes belied the statement.

"After all." Jocasta's eyes flicked back and forth between us, "Imagine our surprise to find that we danced against the scion to the House Laisren and his yojimbo."

"We are pleased to see that you escaped unscathed from the… incident… at the Festival." Menek said.

"It was most unfortunate, what happened to Beryl." Jocasta said.

Something in me bristled at the words, as her tone somehow managed to both utterly lack any kind of remorse, and hold every kind of accusation. I began to say something when graceful music started to play. I turned to see a small orchestra in the corner of the room, a man in a dark suit and a mask with an impish grin conducting them.

"Well, that is most fortuitous." Menek said.

I frowned as I turned to them and suppressed a shudder as I saw the two Faunus looking at me with an almost feral look in their eyes. "What do you mean?" I asked him.

"You bested us at the Festival of Lights." Jocasta replied, "We had wished to challenge you once more… merely a friendly competition you understand." Her gaze flicked between the two of us, "After all, here we may be judged amongst our peers."

My heart sank slightly as I saw that space was being cleared on the central dance floor, far too quickly to be spontaneous, the Rashin twins had prepared for this. A myriad of expectant eyes turned in our direction and I kept my posture composed as I turned back to the two Rashin once more.

I bowed, "I did not know that the Rashin relished in defeat so much." I said casually. Their eyes flashed dangerously, "We accept your challenge." I said smoothly before they could speak.

Menek smiled and he offered his arm to his twin, who took it without looking. The two gave us a look of haughty disdain as they made their way to the dance floor.

Neo abruptly stepped forward and took my arm, "C'mon champ." She whispered and she pulled me gently forward, "Time to back up what your mouth spat out."

I winced, but otherwise kept my expression and posture one of utter confidence as we made our way to the dance floor.

We stopped and turned to face across from the twins; we bowed to each other and then stepped back. The orchestra paused for a moment, the room was silent as the conductor tapped his baton against the stand. Once… twice… then the band struck into a graceful melody.

Neo and I began with a careful waltz, gauging the music; I glanced over to see the Rashin doing the same. I bit my lip as I quickly realized that I had no clue what to do, what were the rules? How would we be judged? My heart sank as I realized that the Rashin twins had no such questions, they had probably done this a hundred times before. Why had I gone and opened my fat mou-

I gave a start as Neo quickly kicked my shin, "What are you looking at them for?" She asked me under her breath. She smiled, and her eyes twinkled, "You've got all you need to win right here."

I laughed at that, and suddenly I realized that she was right. Screw the world, screw everyone here, screw the playing field that meant that we were always behind one way or another, Neo and I were together.

So we were invincible.

I didn't know how dances like this were normally judged, but that didn't matter. Just like at the Festival of Lights, this was a crowd.

All we had to do was play to it.

We began to dance.

Twirls, spins, steps, counter-steps. We were motion, we were movement.

We were fantastic.

The guests applauded and cheered, I was vaguely aware that it was as much for the Rashin twins as for us. They were no slouches, that was for sure, we were going to have to do something extraordinary…

My gaze drifted upward, and suddenly an insane idea came into my head. I looked back down at Neo, "Have you ever wanted to swing from a chandelier?" I asked her.

Neo's eyes widened and then suddenly, she smiled, a devil-may-care smile that I have to imagine matched my own.

I grabbed hold of Neo's waist and with all of my strength, threw her up into the air. There was a grasp in the room as she vanished, and then reappeared. She swung from chandelier from chandelier, and there were shouts from the servants as they began to scramble.

Even as I watched her, whirling underneath Neo as she swung, the music never stopped. A detached part of my brain was vaguely disappointed, as it wondered whether the conductor and his musicians had seen crazier things.

Suddenly, Neo let go, flipping high into the air; she fell straight down towards me and with a spin, I caught her and brought her gently down the floor, where we froze, the music coming to a slamming halt. The sound of the final echoing cymbal clash echoing throughout the room.

Everything was silent for what seemed like an eternity, then the entire room burst into thunderous applause. Neo and I stood up, then bowed deeply, "Never… let me do that again." Neo whispered to me.

I smiled at her, "No promises." I said.

Her hand shot to her mask and pushed the button to retract the part around her mouth. She stuck out her tongue at me, I too opened up my mask and mimicked her. The two of us grinned and pushed the buttons once more before straightening, and we waved to the still-applauding crowd.

The Rashin twins walked up to us, then bowed deeply, "We know when we have bested, Baron Laisren." Menek said gracefully. "You two are indeed impressive."

I bowed to them, the meaning of the inclusion of the title not lost on me, "You are worthy opponents, we should create more opportunities for such competitions."

Jocasta grinned, "Indeed, although I think we have mostly exhausted dance, perhaps more… relaxing… pursuits."

I smiled, "I look forward to it."

At that moment, a bell rang from the far end of the ballroom, "My lords and ladies!" A servant shouted, "Your meal awaits!"

We were escorted into a long dining hall dominated by a massive table, already piled high with delicacies. Servants escorted us to our seats, although how they decided on the seating arrangements eluded me, as they did not ask for our names before seating us.

Neo and I ended up being sat next to each other towards the middle of the table; as I sat, I quickly glanced over those around us.

To our left was a slim woman with long silver hair, her face covered with a fox mask. Directly across from us was a man and a woman, he had an owl mask; while she had a mask that resembled an ancient Vacuan death mask. It was a flat golden color, save for the black ridges that ran down its length.

To Neo's right was a short man in an owl mask, his black hair in a ponytail down his back. Across from him was a man in a plain gray mask with dark black swirls at each cheek. I sat down, saying nothing, and for a short while, the whole room was quiet, save for some places where people who knew each other had begun conversing casually.

I steeled myself to take the plunge, when suddenly the woman in the fox mask next to me spoke. "That was quite the performance you two put on." She said and she offered the back of her hand.

I pressed my lips gently to it, "Thank you Miss…?"

"Zheleznaya; Camille Zheleznaya." She replied.

I frowned, I didn't recognize that name from the guest list, then again, there had been a lot of names and I could only be so confident of my admittedly stellar memory. "Forgive me; I am unaware of that House." I said.

Camille nodded, "We are a relatively newer Merchant Nobility House, we deal in the shipping industry."

Not exactly what I had been after, but now that I thought about it, if she was making up the name, then did I really expect her to just admit it? I clapped my hands together, "Well, I suppose now that we've started introducing ourselves. My name is Rowan Laisren, and this is Neopolitan Gialatta, my yojimbo."

Neo bowed her head to the guests around us and the two across from us responded in kind. "A pleasure to meet you." The man across from us said, "My name is Kollane Gage, and this is Rosa Fairfax, my fiancee. We are engaged to be married in the summer."

"Congratulations you two." I replied smoothly, both of them were of the High Nobility, but of the kind of bottom feeding houses that still retained the noble titles. However, they possessed none of the power and wealth that one might have expected from them. They were essentially minnows in the great sea of Mantle.

I turned to the two other men to my right, the short man waved to all of us, "Please to meet you all, my name is Rudas of the House Fitzroy."

Fitzroy, a family of the High Nobility, with some renown as diplomats and bureaucrats. I bowed slightly to him, "Pleased to make your acquaintance." I told him.

He answered with a small bow, "Anyone who can make the Rashin humble is alright in my book."

I grinned and turned to the man in the gray mask, who remained haughtily aloof from our conversation, preferring instead to listen to a conversation to his other side.

Rudas rolled his eyes, "And this talkative fellow is Bailus of the House Drummond." He said.

My eyes narrowed slightly, the House Drummond were a prestigious line, but they had fallen on hard times as of the last decade or so when they had lost their Electorship status. Their title had been usurped by House Pomeroy after a series of faux pas by then Lord Elector Vern. It appeared though that at least Bailus Drummond had lost none of the arrogance that had led his House to fall from their once lofty heights.

Ignoring him, I instead turned to the others just as servants began coming around with silver platters piled high with delicacies that made my mouth water just looking at them.

For a time we conversed with small talk, remarking on how exquisite everything was, from the food to the murals on the walls that detailed various pieces of House Harkin's history. It was after the remnants of the main course were carted away that Camille turned to the group and asked, "So, what do you all make of the latest news with Alsius Academy?"

"I suppose you mean 'Atlas Academy' now." Rosa scoffed. "Really, with how hard they fought for the change in that title, you would think they would have selected something more… creative."

"Here, here darling." Kollane said.

"Well, after all, the name itself barely matters." Rudas said. "The crux of the matter is that it was changed from a name Mantle had chosen and to one Atlas has chosen."

An astute observation, it appeared that Rudas Fitzroy had inherited at least some of the shrewdness that had served his house so well. I filed that away for future reference.

"So what's the news?" I asked Camille.

Her eyes twinkled, "You didn't know? Apparently the eldest of the Schnee daughters, Winter, will be attending it in the fall."

There was a shocked silence, then Kollane snorted, "What tomfoolery is that? Doesn't Baron Schnee realize how bad that will look to all of the other Houses? It's long been accepted that the schooling at that Academy is by far inferior than that offered at Kronos. Which she certainly could've gotten into if half of what I heard about her ability is true."

Camille's eyes twinkled mischievously, "That's just it…" She leaned in close and whispered conspiratorially, "Word has it that she went against her father's wishes."

There was a shocked silence around the table, "He hasn't… disowned her or anything, has he?" Rosa asked.

Rudas shook his head, "There's no way that'd be the case… his other daughter is nowhere near old enough to succeed; the risk would be far too great."

Camille nodded, "I haven't heard anything about that yet, but I can't imagine that the Baron is all too happy with her."

I opened my mouth to ask where she had heard all of this, when suddenly the gentleman sitting across from her spoke up, "Really, speaking such gossip about your betters, have you nothing better to do?"

I looked over at him to see a brown-haired man in a bird mask with a long, hooked beak. Three separate things about his interjection irked me, first, he interrupted me, men and women have died for less. Second, his arrogant and condescending tone left no doubts that he considered himself superior to all of us; we all have our delusions, but that was unforgivable. The third, was that he had just implied that the Schnees were somehow superior to me as well… second verse, same as the first.

So I responded a tad bit more… recklessly, than perhaps the situation warranted. In hindsight, my choice of words could probably have been more… considered. "Why don't you keep your freakish nose out of other people's business?" I asked him before turning back to Camille.

The shocked and awkward silence that suddenly engulfed our immediate area told me that I had messed up. Although I noted that Camille's eyes glinted with something I couldn't quite place before quickly being replaced with shock that didn't seem quite genuine.

"What… did you just say to me?" The man asked slowly.

I turned to face him once more, and as soon as I saw the looked in the man's eyes I knew who this was. What I also saw in those eyes was that even if I backed down now, saying I had been only speaking of the beak on the mask and apologizing for my words; there was no escaping what was to follow. He had been looking for a fight, and now his wish had been granted.

Feeling resigned, I cocked my head at him, "You heard me." I said.

The man slowly reached up to his mask and removed it, revealing the features of Yarrow Ronston. "I believe," He said deliberately, "That you leave me no choice." And I kid you not, he reached into his pocket, pulled out an actual glove, and threw it at me. I caught it deftly, which only seemed to make him more upset and he pointed to a man wearing a bear mask to his side. "This is Aster Beaumont," He said, "He will duel in my stead."

I jerked my thumb at Neo, "This is Neopolitan of the House Gialatta." I stated, "She will duel in my stead."

Yarrow smiled, "Excellent, I shall crush two Merchant Nobility dogs with one stone. I shall speak with our host about the arrangements. Of course, you could flee now and spare yourselves the humiliation." He said, his tone mocking, "Your kind always do reek of cowardice."

I removed my mask and smiled, "I believe that your prodigious olfactory organ is malfunctioning." I told him, "Because all I can smell is your defeat."

His face turned red with barely suppressed rage and he quickly stood up, "I shall be right back." He said stiffly, and his yojimbo casually followed him, his gaze fixed on us appraisingly as he followed his master.

Neo punched me lightly on the shoulder once he was out of sight, "Well, good going, now look what you've gotten us into."