The most important thing to remember about me is that I often hit on "plot" on accident. I am a Very Bad Planner, honestly, and it's something that I've had to work on as the years pile on. I start with characters, and then I figure out a Situation, and that's usually all I have when I start.
I'm working on fixing that, but sometimes I still fall back into my old habits.
.
There was little doubt that Kisara had an easier time talking to her mother than to her father, but it was equally notable that she had the easiest time with her siblings. She and Rhett would fall into a kind of dance when dealing with the little ones. The St. Vincent children were clearly used to listening to their elders; if Seto had to venture a guess, he would have supposed that Henry and Zelda were often busy, and so their eldest two had eventually fallen into surrogate-parent roles as they'd grown older.
Seto didn't like that, but he also had no intention of saying anything about it.
It wasn't his way to critique the balance of another family; and besides, it wasn't like he had room to throw stones, anyway.
Mokuba fell into step beside his brother. "Noa says he'll be here soon. Bakura's really interested in whatever's happening." He glanced behind them, eyeing the family that followed them through the park. "Is it just me, or is Kisara's family kind of . . . weirdly calm right now?"
"Kisara is anything but calm," Seto noted, "and the others . . . well, I don't think they fully understand what's going on." He frowned thoughtfully. "Of them all, I think Zelda is the one who's closest. She seems to know the children better than her husband, and she's keyed onto Kisara's nerves."
"Hm," said Mokuba. "What do you think is going on?"
"Something," Seto said, "or somebody, knows that Kisara's woken into her power. Whether they know how strong she is, I haven't the faintest idea. But I think they definitely know enough. I'm not sure if they intend to kill her to be rid of a potential threat, or if they want to force her into doing something for them."
"Does it matter either way?" Mokuba wondered.
"If they want to use her," Seto said, "then her family is safer. They're more likely to try abducting them, or else let them be. They'll know that killing the St. Vincents is only going to turn her against them."
"What if they snatch Kisara up first? They'll probably take out the rest, right?"
"Not if they're smart," Seto muttered, "but since when have we ever dealt with smart enemies?"
"Isn't it tactical to leave no witnesses? That seems smarter to me."
"Why do you think we're here today?" Seto asked, smirking his usual smirk. "There are too many eyes on them, on us. It'll be impossible to make an earnest attempt at anything unless they tend to use magic. In which case . . . well, that's what the queen's guard is for."
"Queen's guard," Mokuba repeated, looking at Elko.
Seto stopped. Mokuba, still watching the centaur, very nearly bumped into Vorse Raider as the beast-man fell to one knee in front of them. "My king, my prince," he said. "Your enemies prepare for an assault. We are forming a ring of steel and magic all about your court."
"Good," said Seto, his eyes narrowing. "Let's see where this goes."