video; un: eraserhead

[eyedrop]

[ Aizawa's lolling against some tree somewhere. Terrible, slumped posture; hair wild about his face. His expression is neutral, bordering on irritable, and his voice is an exhausted monotone. He sits with one leg folded over the other, idly tossing a cat figurine from hand to hand. ]

Hey. Myself and a few others did some looking around. Apparently, both the sea clan and the mountain clan have their allies--but they're not within easy reach. In the case of the sea clan, the empress's brother is married to some far-off queen. The mountain clan's allies aren't too nearby, either.

[ He shifts minutely. His eyes flutter briefly shut, and he sighs. ]

Point being, war between these two would be irrational. The old man we spoke with said no one really wants to start anything, but I don't know how true that is. I haven't tried to approach the nobles.

[ He really doesn't look or act the part, and he knows it. Nor does he have an escort. ]

If you've spoken to any of them, what's the mood? What do they want?

[ He cards a hand through his hair, frowning slightly. ]

They're the key to this, I think. Certainly the key to actually meeting that empress of theirs. So if you've got info, or if you've made any connections, spill it.

Comments

[healstaffs]

[ That is a lotta big words and she is but a feeble-minded fifteen year old, give her a sec to take it all in and process everything that's just been said to her. (Where's Maribelle when she's needed, really.) ]

Wow, we're really lucky to have you on our team then.

[ There's no way anything can go wrong if this princess is here! But she speaks of tyrannical empires, and Lissa's curious as to the ending of that story. ]

What happened with the tyrannical empire that you fought against?

[juniberries]

[To be fair the 14/15 year old girl Allura knows has a Bad Habit of saying all sorts of big words she doesn't understand so...

age is really just a number.

But Allura's bright expression dims a bit, and she frowns.]

It...remains a complicated issue. We had defeated the Emperor thanks to the help of our friends and allies, but his son had taken over in his stead. Now-- I am not sure. It is the uncertainty which brought me here.

[to strengthen herself. to help others and to gain allies along the way so that her own battles can be won.

She gives Lissa a reassuring smile.]

But I am certain we can resolve the issue on this planet. This is a matter of diplomacy; we are preventing a war.

[healstaffs]

[ Lissa's own expression sobers as Allura's does. Maybe the intricacies of an intergalactic conflict are lost on here, but there's never anything good about a ruler that only cares about getting more and more power. She thinks about Gangrel, about Emm's struggles, and resolves to be more like this princess and more like her sister.

There's just one problem, as her eyes dim and her gaze darts away. ]

I'm not very good at diplomacy....Chrom always says I should stop sticking my foot in my mouth.

[ Which is rude tbh, but also true. ]

[juniberries]

[she doesn't know who this Chrom is but wow. rude boy.]

I will admit, I still find diplomacy difficult, especially when you must deal with all sorts of personalities in one room.

Having a great advisor is vital, and it seems like you do have people here who can help. Most great diplomats do not act alone, after all.

[healstaffs]

[ That gives her some hope. Maybe she won't be a lost cause forever. ]

You're right, everyone here has been really helpful.

[ It's such a drastic change from the way things are at home that she still can't believe it sometimes. Surely they wouldn't have all banded together to play the world's biggest joke on her? ]

But what do you do when all your advisors start disagreeing? How do you know who to listen to?