Topic: Conspiracy

Prince Maksim

Date: 2016-01-18 18:10 EST
((A direct result of An Unsavory Plot.))

June 1st, 1615

The migration of the Pomeran court, from the king's summer estate in Dareth Fall back to Berengaria for the summer session, was a cumbersome affair. It took days for the goods and chattels to be transported, not to mention the High King and Queen themselves and those guests who had been invited to spend a month with them in relative privacy. As the court settled back into its accustomed routine in the capital, however, life seemed to take on a more interesting feeling. A note was passed to Stephan under cover of the more hectic preparations for the new session's beginning - Maksim needs to talk to you. Invite him to dinner. F.

No sooner had they returned to court that it seemed the political intrigues that had turned quiet during the colder months made themselves known once again, and the note passed on to him by his youngest brother was proof of that. Inviting Maksim to dinner had turned out to be as simple as sending him a message. It was a well known fact that Stephan was fond of his brothers, and there was nothing suspicious in inviting one or the other to dine with him and Marianne.

Which was precisely why the invitation had to come from Stephan, and not from Maksim. Everyone watched the dances at court, even moreso around the Crown Prince since it had become obvious that his little wife was carrying heavy with her first child. The physicians maintained that she would not go into her confinement for at least another month, and yet Marianne seemed very round for someone still so far from the moment of birth. Still, the prospect of a new arrival into their family was all the pretext either of Stephan's brothers needed to spend time with him and his wife, and it provided a cover for Maksim to make himself known at court once again. In Stephan's private chambers, there were no unfriendly ears to hear them - it was a peculiarity of Pomeran politics that privacy was inviolate. All the same, however, Maksim did not even touch on his real reason for being there until the plates had long been cleared away.

He lounged comfortably in one of his brother's chairs, one hand on Marianne's belly to feel the babe inside moving as he grinned. "He's going to be huge, I can tell," he teased the prospective parents, toasting his brother with his wine glass.

A lesser man might have become jealous of the intimate way Maksim was touching his wife's belly, but Stephan was secure enough in his marriage to know that his brother meant no offense and was only being his ridiculously affectionate self. It didn't help that he'd had enough wine to cloud his senses. "Let us hope for a boy, then," Stephan remarked, as a girl should, by rights, be small and delicate.

Marianne glanced between them, and rolled her eyes. "I am touched, gentlemen, that you will happily wish on me an enormous child to birth," she told them in a drawling tone of voice, more amused by the brothers than anything. She had begun to settle into the Pomeran way of life, comfortable to tease and be teased within the family she had taken for her own. One hand, however, poured water into Stephan's wine - she'd noticed the wild look around Maksim's eyes, and thought that sobriety might serve her husband better than merry good humor. "Would you like me to retire, Maks?" she asked her brother-in-law gently.

Maksim's smile faded to a concerned frown as he drew his hand back, glancing to his elder brother. "I think what I have to say will directly concern you, little sister," he said solemnly, "but Stephan should make the decision there."

Stephan was smart enough to know this meeting wasn't merely about having dinner with family. There was something preying on Maksim's mind, and from the look on his brother's face and the tone of his voice, he could tell it was something serious. "It if concerns Mari, then, by all means, she should be here to hear it," he told his brother, noticing that the wine had been watered down, but making no comment on it. If this was so important, then Maksim, too, needed to be sober enough to tell his news.

Now that the talk had turned, Maksim set his cup aside, casting one glance about the room to be sure no doors stood open or windows cracked. "Your life is in danger, Stephan," he told his brother bluntly. "There is a cabal, here at court, among our father's most trusted advisors. They plan to replace you with a young man who is your mirror image, and have him publicly assassinated. The money and the plan itself originate in Coimbra."

Stephan's first reaction was a simple arch of his brows. The fact that his life was in danger came as no great surprise. As Crown Prince of Pomerania, there was a target on his back, and he knew it, but was careful to take all necessary precautions to keep himself and his wife safe from danger, at least as much as was humanly possible. But to learn he not only had enemies here in his father's court, but a plot to replace him, came as something of a shock. "Surely, your sources must be mistaken, brother. Father would know if there were a traitor among his own men, would he not?" Stephan asked, hoping this was some sort of sick prank, instead of the truth.

"My sources are not mistaken, because I am my sources this time," Maksim admitted reluctantly. He was expecting his brother to throw a punch when he gave up this next piece of information. "They plan to kill Felipe as well, to leave our father with no choice of heir but me. And in gratitude for their help in attaining that status, I am to appoint all of them into my privy chamber and my private council. They've already approached me, Stephan. The idiots actually think that I'm disloyal to my own family, just because I frequent bawdy houses and taverns."

To his credit, Stephan did not throw a punch, but waited until his brother had finished his story, his expression darkening as the story unfolded. His hands curled into fists, brows furrowing in anger - not at this brother who had brought the plot to him, but at the plotters themselves. "And what of Marianne?" he asked, wondering if they planned on killing her, too, or using her and their child in some other way.

Maksim winced as he offered this piece of information. "They are hoping that the sight of your doppelganger's death will cause her to miscarry," he admitted, glancing worriedly at the young woman in question. "Or, if she does not ....that I will kill any male child born from her womb at the moment he draws breath."

Marianne gasped, her face pale as she shrank back in her seat, her hands curling protectively to the child in her belly. "You wouldn't!"

"No, of course he wouldn't," Stephan assured her, eyes narrowed at his brother before turning to his wife and gentling his expression. He reached over to lay a protective hand atop hers, silently promising no harm would come to her or their child. It was logical to assume that if Maksim truly wanted this plot to succeed, he would have kept it to himself, but despite Maksim's indiscretions, Stephan had no doubt where his true loyalties laid. "Does Father know?" he asked, leaning closer to Marianne, as if his presence alone could protect her and their child from harm.

"I would never bring harm to you or your child," Maksim promised them, watching as Marianne drew closer to her husband, clearly frightened by what she was hearing but determined to sit and listen. He returned his gaze to Stephan at his brother's query. "No, Father doesn't know," he said calmly. "Nor will he, until we have a plan in place to catch all of those involved. He would move too soon, Stephan, you know that. They are not yet all in the capital, and I do not yet have custody of a certain someone who will need protecting when it all comes to a head."

Prince Maksim

Date: 2016-01-18 18:11 EST
"My replacement," Stephan guessed. He couldn't fathom how there could be someone who looked so much like him that he could pass as his double. But there was one piece of information Maksim had not yet explained. "And what do they plan on doing with me" Why replace me with a double only to assassinate the double" Why not merely kill me instead" Their plans will not come to much so long as I am alive," he said, presuming the plan was to kill him before replacing him with a double, but why make it so complicated" "Are you saying this ....impostor does not have a hand in the plot, too?" he asked further, as he tried to grasp the plot in its entirety.

"The plan in place is to have you disposed of before the plot ever goes into effect," Maksim explained carefully. "They do not have much trust in the assassin's ability to kill you publicly, but this boy does not have your years or your skill. He will be an easy target for them, though he does not know that his only purpose is to die. I am to invite you to my townhouse, here in the capital, two days before the midsummer festival, there to be cut down and mutilated beyond recognition by my own men - all of whom are loyal to me, not to these vile plotters. There is another reason to be rid of you both as well ....the boy is of our blood, Stephan. He is our uncle's bastard, and the life of his sister - our cousin - is being held over his head as surety for his compliance. Their mother has already been killed, protecting her daughter's virtue. I am to take custody of the girl in a short while; once she is with me, I will be able to protect her. I would suggest that on the evening you are supposedly murdered, Marianne should take to her bed, feigning some indisposition.

"Forgive me, sister," he said gently to the young princess sat between them, "but I do not particularly wish you to be present when things come to a head. With luck, we will be able to arrest all those involved the night before the festival, and lay their guilt out for our father when he summons them to him, but until they are all in chains - Coimbran and Pomeran alike - I will not rest easily."

Disposed of was the same thing as killed, but Stephan said nothing once again until Maksim was finished speaking. He reached for Marianne's hand, to reassure her he was there and that he wasn't going anywhere, plot or not plot. He almost wished now that he had asked her to leave them to it, but as upsetting as it all was, he wanted no secrets between them. "A boy," he murmured. "How do they think they can fool everyone - including my wife - with a boy?" he asked, though there must be some uncanny resemblance if they thought their plan feasible. "Our blood," he echoed his brother's words, anger rising, despite his attempt to suppress it and suddenly he slammed a fist against the table and rose to his feet, obviously struggling to keep his anger and frustration in check.

Maksim had opened his mouth to continue, but Stephan's sudden outburst was enough to silence him. His gaze darted quickly to Marianne who, despite her pale countenance, was already moving to her feet to follow after her husband and calm him if she could. Her hand gently captured one of Stephan's closed fists, drawing his touch to her belly, where their child stretched to be felt.

"Your blood, dearest," she said softly. "A cousin you have never known - two cousins. The daughter of House Hasperan your mother was never blessed with. However involved this plot, however clever they believe themselves to be, they have blundered. They have endangered your family; they have killed the woman who shared your uncle's bed often enough to bear him two children. And they clearly do not know how clever you are, nor the wit and intelligence of your brothers." She glanced over at Maksim. "You are certain there is no talk of direct danger to the High King, or to your mother?" she asked him.

He nodded confidently. "None," he confirmed for them. "They plan to lay all the blame at Coimbra's feet and incite a war in which many of the true loyalists at court will die. They need the High King to be angry enough to act without thought, and the deaths of his eldest and youngest sons will do that for him. My reputation does not make me his favored son."

Marianne nodded, raising her eyes to Stephan once again. "When this goes into effect, I will go to the Queen," she told him. "She will protect me, and she will make sure your father knows that something is afoot in the only privacy he has. But you should involve your uncle. It is his children being used against the crown; surely he will care enough to want them protected with the rest of us?"

"And I assume Felipe knows of this, as well," Stephan said, which was obvious enough since it was Felipe who had passed him the message. He was understandably angry, his jaw clenched and face flushed, but neither Marianne nor Maksim deserved his anger. "You are certain this is true and you have their trust?" he asked, turning to his brother, even as Marianne tried to calm and console him. He rest his hand against the swell of her belly, pulling her close against him in a protective embrace. "I will not let anyone hurt you, love," he promised her quietly. "As for my uncle," Stephan started, scowling, "he should have handled his affairs more carefully, but what is done is done, and if they are truly our kin, then they deserve to be protected."

"Felipe knows enough to be in the process of bringing his men into the city," Maksim assured his brother. "I didn't tell him all. He's even more likely to move too soon than Father is."

As Stephan took Marianne into his arms, she leaned into him, hoping her presence was helping to calm him even a little, but she did not speak again, allowing the brothers to continue their conference.

"I don't doubt that they are our kin," Maksim went on. "Stephan, he's you to the life. Blonde hair and younger, but once his hair is dyed, only those who truly know you will see any difference. The girl, I'm told, is a contrast but a beauty. As to the plotters, they trust me. I've seen their faces, I know their names. They think I am invested in this plan of theirs."

"They're fools to think you would betray your own family. We are brothers, Maks, despite all our differences. We are of the same bloodline. We grew up together. How is it they believe you would betray your own family so easily' Do you really think you are so hungry for power that you would be part of a plot to murder your own family?" he asked, unable to hide the worry from his voice and his contempt for the plotters.

Maksim raised a brow above his easy-going smile. "Well, I have spent the last ten years or so cultivating a reputation as an indolent layabout bent only on my own pleasure," he pointed out. "I know it has caused you all grief, but there was method to it. I have a network of spies that are all my own - men and women who occupy positions in various households that mean they go unnoticed. And everything they notice comes to me. As far as the world is concerned, Stephan, I am easily led, easily distracted, and consummately corruptible. And my net, which was cast years before this plot came into effect, is about to catch five of the greatest fish you could possibly imagine."

In Stephan's arms, Marianne couldn't help smiling. "You made yourself the bait before you ever knew there was a fish seeking it."

Stephan was in no mood to smile. There was nothing to smile about, knowing there was a target not only on his back, but their child's, his brother's, and two cousins he had never met. It was a pretty plot, but one they were determined to thwart. "You are putting your own life in danger courting them, Maks. Are you sure that they trust you?" he asked, as worried about his brother's life as he was for any of them.

"Stephan, it seems fairly obvious that they only plan to tolerate me until I have produced an heir or two with whatever wife they choose for me," Maksim shrugged. "Then she and I will have terrible accidents, and they will be free to raise a new High King the way they wish to. Besides, I'm the expendable one. You are Crown Prince, and Felipe is best suited to be second in line until your son is born. Believe me, I know the dangers. I have already walked the line between life and death in this affair and come out whole. I truly believe that if we can move quickly enough, we can catch the whole stinking lot of them in a single strike."

Prince Maksim

Date: 2016-01-18 18:11 EST
"What do you propose, brother?" Stephan asked, without hesitation. Perhaps history would judge him the fool, but he knew his brother and trusted him implicitly. Maksim didn't want to be Crown Prince, and he didn't have a jealous bone in his body. No, Stephan knew his brother better than that.

Maksim leaned forward. "I will not know where the assassin has been hidden until the night before the festival," he said, "but I do know that all the lords involved will be in the capital for the festival itself. I propose that we use our own guards - yours, mine, and Felipe's - to arrest those men, and capture this assassin, on the night before the festival begins. We will go through with their charade on the day of the festival, to be certain there are no other plans in place - I will take charge of the boy, if Felipe can guarantee his sister's safety. Once the time set for the assassination has passed safely and without incident, you can return to the public eye, and we can lay it all out before Father. Then we turn the investigation over to the King's Guard, and concentrate on protecting our cousins, whose testimony will be the most damning of all the evidence."

Stephan could not begrudge his brother at least a little praise, the tiniest hint of a smile on his lips. "You have thought long and hard on this, brother. You seem to have thought of everything. Tell me, how can we ensure our cousins' safety, and when do you propose we inform our uncle that his offspring are no longer a secret?" he asked, secretly thinking Maksim already had a good plan in place. They only needed to work out a few minor details and hope everything went according to plan.

But before Maks could respond, he turned to Marianne, taking her hands between his. "You should go and rest, my love. We will likely be up talking for some time, and I do not wish to weary you with our talk."

Marianne pouted a little at being left out after hearing so much, but she knew Stephan would make sure she knew what she needed to know. She smiled as her husband took her hands. "Then I will to bed, dearest," she agreed softly, raising his hands to her lips to kiss affectionately. "Good night, Maks."

Rising to his feet, Maksim bowed to his sister by law, smiling as she made her way from the room. He eyed her exit in vague amusement. "You are absolutely sure there's only one babe in there, yes?"

Stephan brushed a soft kiss to his wife's cheek, along with a brief rub of fingers against the swell of her belly before sending her off to bed. He knew it was unlikely she'd sleep well until he joined her, but at least she would be spared the more unpleasant parts of his conversation with his brother. "I am not sure of anything anymore, Maks," Stephan replied, dropping into a chair and refilling both their cups, whether the wine was watered down or not. If Maksim wanted him dead, he had certainly had plenty of opportunity for it.

Settling back into his seat, Maks chuckled a little. "Mother will be delighted, either way," he predicted. "Grandchildren, at last!" Taking a sip from his cup, he sobered himself to answer the question Stephan had put to him before dismissing Marianne to her chamber. "Our uncle is likely to know something is happening when I appear at court with his daughter on my arm," he warned his brother. "I had to convince my treacherous friends that she would be my mistress in all eyes in order to get them to agree to my having the care of her."

Stephan tipped back his glass, draining it almost completely in one long swallow. Even watered-down, it might help to steady his nerves. "Be careful the lie does not become the truth, brother mine," he warned, knowing Maksim's reputation for being a rake and a rogue with the ladies. "Are you sure you have no children of your own hiding anywhere?" he asked further, unsure if that was something his brother would be willing to share.

The look his brother gave him was almost venomous. "I am hardly going to take my own cousin to my bed," he protested vehemently, anger touching his voice as he added, "especially a girl who may well have been abused already. They killed her mother while trying to take her virtue, Stephan; there is every reason to suspect that they have had what they wanted from her by now." He scowled - for all his reputation, he had never taken what was not freely given, and he despised the men who used force to claim a woman. Stephan's other question made him snort a little. "I have one bastard daughter," he informed his brother, "and her mother asked me not to acknowledge her. She's been claimed as blood by her mother's husband, and he is a good man, to them both."

Stephan lifted a hand to his brother to both silence him and soothe his anger. "Forgive me, Maksim. I mean no offense," he told him, making no other excuses for his outburst. This had not come at a good time, too close to the time when Marianne would give birth, and the sheer audacity of it filled him with rage. "Make sure no one finds out, unless you plan on marrying the girl," he warned, not wanting his brother's child to be used one day in such a way as their cousins. "I am not so uncaring that I do not feel for our cousins' plight, but I must put the safety of my wife and child above all else," he tried to explain, sighing in annoyance. "You are lucky you are not restrained by titles and expectations. I will entrust our cousins' safety to you."

"No one will find out about my little girl," Maksim assured his brother. "She is already five years old, and no one has connected her with me. She favors her mother, and I am content to watch her grow from a distance." He leaned back as Stephan clarified his own position. "Of course, brother, I am not asking you to think of anyone but yourself, and your wife," he assured him. "But her idea was a good one. Send her to our mother on the night you come into town. You won't leave my townhouse until the arrests are done - you will be apart from her for two days and nights. Mother would do anything to keep her safe, and Marianne would be best placed to tell her what is happening. Through Mother, Father will know, and he will know that we are handling it."

"By your own admission, Mother already has a grandchild," Stephan pointed out, gesturing toward his brother with a half-empty glass. Stephan sighed again. "Do not put words in my mouth, Maks. I did not say I cannot think of anyone but myself and my wife. I said I must put her safety above that of all else, including myself," Stephan corrected leaning forward in his chair to make his point. Maksim might think he was clever, but he was not the one who would one day be High King. Leaning back in his chair again, obviously annoyed by all this, though he supposed it was something he would have to get used to, he blew out another breath. "Her idea is a good one, so long as those in our service can be trusted."

"And who will be there to protect her, if you put yourself in harm's way?" Maksim asked him quietly. "You love her, Stephan. Credit her with loving you in the same manner. If you want to protect her, you must protect yourself. I do not wish to see her heart broken."

"It is a good plan, and I will do as you ask, Maksim, but please do not believe that I do not care for you or Felipe or our parents, or even cousins we have never met. As king, I will have to care for all those who live without our borders. Do not mistake my need to protect my wife and child for not caring."

"Stephan ....I have just spent ten years pretending to be the greatest disappointment ever to be called a prince of Pomerania," his brother pointed out in amusement. "Believe me, I understand. Though the realm will be yours, you belong to your wife, and the children you will have with her. We've seen it in our parents, and I can see it in you and Marianne. Let us get through the midsummer without incident, and then you can settle to the terrifying prospect of being a father."

"When all of this is done, and one day, I become King, you will have your reward. Anything you wish will be yours for the asking. I would hope that you accept my offer to become one of my closest advisors, but ..." Stephan shrugged his shoulders. "It is your decision to make."

"Oh, didn't Felipe tell you?" Maksim grinned at his brother. "I'm going to be your Chancellor, brother dearest. You're going to be the best informed High King in history." He raised his cup to his elder brother, confident in his network of spies and just how vast it truly was. "Tell me, would you like to know what Peter of Carib ate for breakfast this morning" Or perhaps what time the heretic council in Lotharingia have to break their session in order to move their bowels?"

Prince Maksim

Date: 2016-01-18 18:12 EST
Stephan's mouth dropped open for half a second before he barked with laughter. "I do not think I will need to know those things in order to run a monarchy. And pray, do tell, what role does our dear younger brother see himself playing in the years to come?" Stephan asked, clearly amused by his brother's plotting, but also heartened by it. He had known all his life that Maksim was only playing the fool, too smart to be as reckless as those around him made him seem.

"Ah, Felipe will be your Commander General, we've known that for years," the middle brother chuckled, glad to see the tension leave the crown prince. The situation was, in fact, well in hand, but it was necessary for Stephan to know what was going on before he was obliged to hide for two days. "Ever since Father gave him his first wooden sword and he broke that ambassador's kneecaps with it. What was the man's name again?" He groped for the answer through his laughter. "Oh, Baudwin! The Frankish ambassador had to hobble home and explain to old Ethelric that he had to retire because a three year old had crippled him for being rude about his mother."

Stephan laughed. Like Maksim, he'd been old enough at the time to remember it. "Ah, but they all thought twice before being rude to Mother after that, and Father considered awarding him a badge of honor, as I recall." He leaned forward to refill both their cups once again, draining the last of the wine. "There are times I enjoy you both. I cannot so much as sneeze without everyone at court knowing about it. At least at Peronell, we are better able to relax."

"And you will be able to retire to Peronell after the birth of your child in safety," Maksim agreed with a smile. "It is unfortunate that Mari will have to give birth here at court, but at least she will only be attended by her ladies this time. No public performance." His grin was wicked; he had thoroughly enjoyed intimidating the curious court on the night Stephan had consummated his marriage to the Frankish princess. The grin faded, however, as a thought occurred to him. "How is she, though' I have heard that her mother has completely cut herself off from the world now she has taken holy orders. Did that also include her only daughter?"

Stephan fingered his wine glass, debating fetching more, but he didn't want to present himself to his wife drunk, and if Maksim was right about what was going on around them, he needed to be sharp and alert at all times, just in case the conspirators' plans changed. His own life and the lives of those he loved depended on it. "Romola has never shown Mari much affection, even when she was a child. Fortunately, her father made up for any lack of maternal affection, and she was surrounded by cousins who adored her. Still, she worries that she'll be a good mother, but I have no doubt of that. How can she not be? All she needs do is be the exact opposite of her own mother."

Maksim frowned. He couldn't fathom a mother who cared nothing for her own children, spoiled as he was with a mother who openly adored her boys and still treated them as though they were ten years old at times. "Of course she will be a good mother," he scoffed at the idea being otherwise. "And you'll be a good father. Your children will know they're loved. And they'll have uncles prepared to be as silly as necessary to make them smile." He could only speak for himself, of course, but he had a feeling Felipe would lose that dignified outer shell if presented with a small child holding a wooden sword.

"That is not what worries me, Maks," Stephan said, his own stoic facade cracking a little. Here, with his brother in private, with no one constantly watching them, he could just be himself and not worry so much about being the Crown Prince. Here, alone with Maksim, he was just Stephan. "I worry about the birth. You are right - the baby is ....big. I wonder if there aren't two of them in there. I do not wish to become a widower so soon in my marriage. And then, there is this ....conspiracy of yours. I will send her to our mother before things get out of hand, but it worries me that they might do her harm."

His brother considered his words carefully before answering. Maks didn't often speak without thinking. "If there are two babes in there," he said carefully, holding his brother's gaze, "you will be a father before the physicians think to send her to her confinement. Twins are born sooner, smaller, and it seems to be the Goddess' will that it be so, for what woman could bear two full grown babes to birthing and live" Women survive such births all the time, Stephan. It is a worry, yes, but I do not think it is a worry that need overly concern you. She is in the care of the very best. As to the other ..."

He sighed, shaking his head. "I doubt they would intentionally do her harm. The alliance with Francia is too new, and it is known how fond Christian is of his daughter. Their only concern is the child she carries, and in Mother's care, Marianne will not be in any danger. By the time things are moving, our uncle will be aware of what is happening, and I do not doubt that the King's Guard around the royal apartments will be vetted for loyalty and doubled."

"If there are two babies in there, we must hope they are not born too soon or too small that they cannot survive. The physician has said nothing of it, but perhaps I shall mention it," Stephan said. He had been thinking about this for some time, but it had taken Maksim mentioning it for him to realize perhaps he wasn't worrying for nothing.

"She will birth in her eighth month if she is carrying twins," Maksim mused. "Of course, some women birth in the eighth month, no matter what." Quite how he knew this wasn't obvious, but he had spent a long time in various brothels and bawdy houses. Births were not uncommon, nor something to be overly concerned about for the common people, and Maksim's familiarity with them lent his offering to this conversation a reassuring sense of the ordinary.

"Yes, well ....I suppose there is nothing we can do for it but wait. I will speak to the physician and see if he can ascertain whether it is one child or two." God help her if it was more than two. The pregnancy didn't worry him half as much as the birth, but Mari was sure to have the best of care, especially now that they were at the king's court.

His brother nodded, allowing Stephan to have his moment of worry. "And is there anything else, brother dearest, that you wish to unburden yourself of?" he asked curiously. "I will, of course, be stuck to you like glue for the next week or so, in order that I may stay close to your mirror's side without anyone thinking anything of it."

"No one must suspect that I or Mari know what you've told us," Stephan replied. The thing worrying him most at present was that Maksim's co-conspirators would decide he was untrustworthy and change their plans without his knowledge. "You must do everything you can to ensure you maintain their trust," he pointed out, though he knew his brother knew this already. Some might find this game of cat and mouse amusing, but Stephan did not; there were too many lives at risk to not take it seriously.

"Oh, believe me, I will," Maksim promised him faithfully. "I have too much care for my own neck to put a foot wrong now." He leaned over to clap a hand against his brother's shoulder. "We'll come out of this whole, brother, I promise you that. The King's council may be diminished for a while, but rather fewer voices, than voices we cannot trust."

Prince Maksim

Date: 2016-01-18 18:13 EST
"Mm, Father will not be pleased," Stephan remarked, and that was putting it mildly. His father was not known for his temper but to find out a plot was contrived right under his nose and by those he had trusted would not be taken lightly.

"And his anger will be reflected in the punishments meted out by him for their treachery," Maks nodded. "It will be a good lesson, and more than that, we will be avoiding an unnecessary invasion of a country that is already broken. The Coimbran king and his council may issue orders until they turn blue, but their people no longer wish war or conquest."

"It will make the executioner happy, at least," Stephan remarked, without any hint of mirth in his voice. This was a time when he should be happy and enjoying his visit at court with family and friends and yet, he only felt the weight of worry for the safety of those he loved, if not for himself. "I will say you seem to be enjoying all this a little too much for your own good, Maksim," he said, the hint of a tease just barely noted in his voice, like the Stephan his brother knew and loved.

"I am rather enjoying myself, yes," Maksim admitted unashamedly. "Those arrogant swine have been looking down their noses at the dissolute second son for years, and now they need me. I'm going to relish the sight of their faces when they realize they played the wrong hand."

"For what it's worth, I have never underestimated you, Maks. No matter what anyone has said - Father included - I have always believed in you. I have always known you would show your worth to him and to me." Stephan moved to his feet, clapping a hand against his brother's shoulder and giving it an affectionate squeeze. "We are brothers to the end."

Maksim's smile was touched, deeply grateful that he had not lost all his family's trust with his appearance of easy living. He rose to his own feet, clasping his brother in a hard embrace. "I will leave you now," he told him. "But we will talk again soon, put our plans into place. Go and kiss your pretty wife, and try to sleep."

"I shall try, though I am not sure how much sleep will be had tonight," Stephan admitted, returning his brother's embrace. Let them think his brother a traitor - all would come clear in the end, and Maksim would be seen as a hero; Stephan would make sure of it.

"Good Goddess, man, let the little woman sleep without prodding at her," his brother laughed, deliberately misunderstanding. "She's carrying more weight than Bishop Gorthric!"

Stephan chuckled at his brother's misunderstanding. "Wait until you are married, brother, and you will see for yourself what it is like to be a husband and a father," he teased, sure Maksim would settle down and become respectable one day. He only needed to find the right woman, one who could not only snare him but tame him.

"I'm having far too much fun with politics to settle down," Maksim chuckled, stepping back to bow with exaggerated courtly grace. "Good night, brother dearest. Do give my love to my little sister when you prod her awake - she might forgive you if she thinks it is my idea." He winked, grinning as he turned to make his way from the rooms.

"Good night, brother. Rest well, when you get there," Stephan bid his brother upon his exit. Despite all that had been shared between them, the good and the bad, Stephan found himself chuckling at his brother's behavior. Whether he ever settled down or not, Stephan had a feeling there would always be a little of the scamp and scoundrel in his younger brother, but then, that was part of his charm.

And despite the danger in the news he had brought, there was wisdom as well. They would set the court a-right between them, and in so doing, prove to the High King and all the political players that the Pomeran princes were not to be trifled with.

((And so the plot is a-foot! More to come!))