A meeting with the Ice Queen (private, attn Arran and Morrigan)

Noise carried in the winding marble staircase that led to Morrigan's office, and Rupert could hear his own footsteps echoing no matter how much he tried to step lightly. The cold beauty of the architecture leading the way to the Elder's office was a fitting lead in, he thought, reflecting on Morrigan's icy blue eyes. When they came out into the hallway, though, the carpeting muffled his footsteps, and so it was with some measure of quiet decorum that he approached the doors and gave a single knock.

Arran kept his eyes firmly focused on Rupert's back, matching him step for step, stride for stride, as the pair made their way quietly towards the Elder's suite. The architecture was interesting, but Arran's thoughts were more preoccupied with the meeting before him. They stopped before a pair of doors and a single knock sounded dully as Rupert's hand hit the door.

Arran waited patiently, somewhat nervously, but patiently, nonetheless.

Morrigan considered the report from the Hunt in front of her. She was grateful that at least one of her fellow elders saw no reason to hide most of their findings from the Order of the Rose. She did not doubt that Mai kept some information withheld but it was rare as far as she could see. Reading the report from Sorin was like a game of cyphers; she had to ferret out the things that he wrote with minimal regard that were obviously important bits of information that he could not keep hidden but would rather her not notice. Then there were the smaller pieces of information that were conspicuously absent. Morrigan had to decide if those were a ruse to make her waste her time or if she had genuinely found something that the Elder of the Night was keeping for himself.

In an ideal world the three Orders of Anantya worked together as a unified force for the good of the clan. In truth it was an eternal cold war of epic proportions and -this- was from their own people. The Evenhet had been allowed to splinter to keep peace in the clan. It was something that not many would understand but Alfarinn and Megan had always been a strong willed pair. They had, even then, people who agreed with their thinking and it would have only been a matter of time before an insurmountable rift formed within the clan causing it to either split apart or destroy itself. She and the other elders of the day had felt it better to allow them to go with grace. Still dealing with the younger clan had not been easy.

A knock on her door brought Morrigan out of her musing. Setting the report in a folder and then placing the folder in a drawer, she then brushed a hand over the immaculately kept bun of deep red hair . Every strand was in place. Straightening ever so slightly, the Elder of the Rose spoke just loud enough to be heard clearly through the door.

"Enter"Â?

Arran heard the invitation and waited patiently for Rupert to open the door and introduce him.

Tilting his head towards Rupert, Arran asked softly.

"Any particular language of preference for the esteemed Elder?"

Rupert raised both eyebrows slightly at Arran’s question, wishing he had a better answer than the one he would have to give.

“I personally have always spoken English to the Elder of the Rose; I must admit that I am not certain which would be most convenient, only that my own native tongue more than sufficed.”

Arran seemed fine with speaking English and he imagined that if worse came to worse he could ask Elder Kinsey himself, in a moment.

Without further ado, he opened the door at Morrigan’s order and formally announced Arran’s arrival before stepping aside to let him through.

Arran had hoped that Rupert would have provided him with some inkling of insight, but it was no inconvinience.

He waited in silence as Rupert introduced himself to the Elder of the Rose, and stepped forward as the last word died on the lips of the Head Butler.

Arran took five measured steps forward, the Elder of the Rose was all that mattered, the details of the room was pushed aside as he entered into the presence of one who made Arran's own age insignificant.

Keeping his eyes focused slightly below those of the Elder, Arran bowed low. Arms at his sides and hands open. His eyes never wavered as he kept the position for a few seconds and then straightened to his full height.

He stood at attention, and waited for the Elder to address him, or indicate that he was permitted to speak.

Morrigan waited with steely calm as her door opened and the head butler appeared opening the portal for another. Ah, her fellow member of the Rose had arrived. It was wonderful that some good news had finally come her way this evening.

She locked eyes with Rupert and tilted her head slightly. It was an acknowledgment of his presence, approval of his manner, and dismissal all in the economy of one small gesture. Turning her attention back to her guest, Morrigan favored him with a slight smile.

"Good Evening, Mister Mirza. So good of you to come."Â?

Of course they were all servants of the Rose, even herself, and therefore she fully expected him to arrive as was his duty to his Order but manners were one of the things that kept a people civilized. She felt that not even a ruler should be above them and history has shown her to be correct.

Lacing her long fingers together on her desk, Morrigan leaned forward slightly.

"I am, as I am sure you know, a very busy woman. So as much as I hate to dispense with the pleasantries, I do believe that it is a must. Shall we get down to business?"Â?

Rupert returned Morrigan’s nod with a slight bow, then gave Arran a similar gesture before turning to go. Someone was always manning the front desk if they needed anything further and the Elder would have asked if she had wanted him to wait outside, and so he knew he was free to leave and continue about his business.

He thought he knew what he would do next.

/ooc Rupert out

Arran waited until Rupert had exited and the doors had been quietly shut behind him before addressing the Elder of the Rose.

He nodded in acquiessence. "Yes, beloved Elder of the Rose. Let us not stand on ceremony when there are matters of importance to attend to."

Arran straightened. "How may I be of service, beloved Elder of the Rose?"

Morrigan noted his willingness to forgo the aforementioned niceties and get down to business. She chose to ignore the somewhat flippant use of her title and the adjective 'beloved' that was placed before it. She personally preferred to earn such titles and have them be meant when they were said. This would be the first time that her and Mr. Mirza would be working together and to her mind that gave him little cause to consider her so dear.

"Morrigan will do quite nicely."Â?

She smiled then and continued with her reason for asking him here.

"There is a position that requires filling and we believe that you have the list of skills that would be required for it."Â?

Morrigan had personally lobbied to have the person who formerly held the title to be instated as the Elder of the Rose back in the man's home town of Copenhagen where he had been keeping close ties. To her great pleasure the Anantya in that area agreed with her suggestion. Now however, she needed to fill a necessary role in Nachton.

"We are in need of a new cleaner. I trust you are familiar with this job title?"Â?

If not she could go into more detail explaining what it was that they would be requesting of him.

Arran bowed in deference to the Elder's request. "As you wish, Morrigan."

He listened carefully as the Elder of the Rose outlined her offer to him. Each word chosen carefully and in itself cautious.

"I am familiar with certain aspects of a 'cleaner' as you say. But there is the duality of the role. Do you mean I am to act in physical motion, in concilitory fashion; or perhaps in the capacity of both?"

Arran fell silent and waited for the Elder's response

Arran bowed in deference to the Elder's request. "As you wish, Morrigan."

He listened carefully as the Elder of the Rose outlined her offer to him. Each word chosen carefully and in itself cautious.

"I am familiar with certain aspects of a 'cleaner' as you say. But there is the duality of the role. Do you mean I am to act in physical motion, in concilitory fashion; or perhaps in the capacity of both?"

Arran fell silent and waited for the Elder's response

Morrigan considered the question and further explained.

"I have no doubt that there will be occasions in which both would be necessary. We would need you to work with human officials from time to time to smooth over any...misunderstandings our people might have caused. This might also require the cleaning up of any physical evidence that might be left."Â?

Very rarely was the act of destroying or recovering the job of a Rose and certainly not solely. Neither was it the case here. It was not that she did not believe that Arran could not handle himself adequately in a confrontation, Morrigan smiled to herself at the thought, especially against humans. The problem was the delicate balance of the Orders; if the Rose started hunting people down or doing field work that was clearly within the specialty of the Night then the other Orders would feel that the Rose was trying to push them aside. The political nature of Anantya's factions was complex dance with ever changing steps and partners. It was one of many dances that she and her Order had performed for centuries.

"You will, of course, from time to time be accompanied by a member of the other Orders if their aid is needed or warranted."Â?

She frowned slightly and thought "or they were the one to botch the situation in the first place."Â? Morrigan believed in giving people the opportunity,once, to fix their own mistakes, provided they do so quickly and well. There were,of course, situations that were exceptions to this rule and those poor souls might be pitied by their clan mates.

Arran listened carefully to Morrigan's words and considered his reply before speaking. A diplomatic posting of sorts, but not without it's hazards, and definitely not for the faint of heart when dealing with potential vampiric affairs.

"I understand, Morrigan."

Arran bowed ever so slightly in acknowledgement of the station he had been tasked with.

"Are there any matters of priority or urgency that you would like dealt with immediately?"

Morrigan smiled then at Arran. He was, it would seem, the loyal and dutiful member of the Rose that she had heard about from afar. Arran seemed willing to take up the position because it was asked of him and that kind of attitude would allow him to go far...providing there was equal intelligence behind it.

"I do hope that the position is to your liking. Mr Mirza."Â?

She considered his next question and mentally checked over the latest reports that she had been given.

"I believe there might be something that would provide us with a starting point to our working relationship. Assuming, of course, that you are accepting this offer."Â?

Morrigan waited serenely for his reply.

Arran bowed respectfully before Morrigan.

"You have my loyalty and my acceptance, Morrigan."

He straightened and held his hands in front of himself. There was no question of liking or disliking the position, refusing the wishes of the Elder of the Rose, or even questioning what needed to be done. In Arran's view, the Order of the Rose would always have the best interests of Anantya at heart, and he would do everything to the best of his ability to ensure that the wishes of the Elder would be carried out.

"Ask and it shall be done."

Morrigan smiled at the simple honest answer. In their world it was rare to deal with anyone honestly and she cherished those people highly. It remained to be seen whether Mirza could be fully trusted but she hoped so and the beginning so far had been a good one.

"Yes, this is a simple task but it might turn out to be a useful one."

She slid a file folder with the symbol of the Hunt emblazoned on the front over to the newest member of Nachton's Order of the Rose.

"You will find in there information on a Jessica Patterson. It seems that the Order of the Hunt felt it necessary to subject her to extensive and prolonged use of Command. These things, especially if she has been commanded in a contradictory fashion in the past, could go awry. I will need you to check in on her. Watch her, talk to her and make certain that she knows absolutely nothing about Anantya or the vampires who contacted her. This Alex Westmoreland seems to have used a scenario that she is likely not to associate with us but it might cause her undo paranoia."

Morrigan frowned thoughtfully. It was not that she cared for the human, Jessica mattered very little in her eyes, but the girl might remember the strange interrogation, even in tiny bits. That memory could lead to a feeling that she's being watched or that there are people or forces out there interested in her. Who knows, she might turn conspiracy theorist and believe its all a government plot but once the humans start questioning their surroundings they start giving it a closer look and -that- was what they couldn't afford this Jessica Patterson to do.

"I trust you will find everything you need in the file. If not feel free to contact me or the Huntsmen involved. Best of luck to you, Mr Mirza and welcome to Heolfor Manor."

Arran tucked the file under his right arm and bowed low.

He would read the report tonight, assess the situation, and access records on the Huntsmen who interrogated Miss Patterson from the Clan databases.

But for now Arran would take his leave of the Elder of the Rose.

Rising, Arran turned on his heels and strode towards the door. There was a soft click as he shut the door behind him.

((ooc - Arran out))

Morrigan nodded at his departure and brought out the next set of files to go through. It would be yet another long night for the Elder of the Rose.

((OOC: Morrigan Out ))