The Saga of Laprima Donnaugh Options

[Renee]

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Clavicus Vile

When the dream began, she found herself lying in a cart, lying in hay, lying still, half-hiding from the others. Part of her wanted to be out there with them, while another part felt quietly content to stay right there. Right in that haypile. Staying still, and keeping quiet. It's this latter, secondary part which attained.

The scene was heavily pastoral. Lots of trees, green with foliage. Sunlight and blue skies. A few puffy clouds, a perfect sort of day. The sounds of others around her. The cart she was in had been drawn off to the side, placed in shadow. The horse which had brought it here must have been tethered somewhere else. As she lay in the cart, she began to feel rather lonely. Sad, and lonely, despite the others cavorting nearby.

They were there for her. All of them, gaily awaiting her presence. Dressed in finery. The women wearing whites, pinks, and light blues. Maids and maidens. The men, dressed more somberly, but the sounds from their revelries were no less delighted and cheerful.

Where is she? Where is Laprima?

Someone was calling. A man, sounding a bit tipsy with wine, perhaps. Yet his voice contained an edge of concern. And then, the voice of one of the ladies...

We should go find her! She's probably near! She's going to miss out!

She sank lower, hiding within hay. She could hear them coming, getting nearer, occasionally calling out to her. She cowered. Not with fear, but with some sort of distress. Lonely she was, and part of her did want to join the others.

She scrunched within the hay as footsteps approached and circled the cart. She held her breath. Eventually, the footsteps moved on. Small relief; she exhaled. They hadn't discovered her. So she took a chance. Got situated upon her arms, and raised her head about a foot, attempting to peer over the cart's side. As she did so, she noticed there was a knot in its wooden planking. For no reason at all (other than, this is a dream, and in dreams we sometimes do strange things) she pushed upon this knot, and the knot fell out, leaving a hole. She squinted her left eye, viewing outside of the cart, only to see vague shapes of the departing couple, heading off into a cabin. Still calling out, still calling her name.

...And that's when she noticed the man with the dog.
...He stood off to the side of the meadow, nearer to the woods.
...He stood in shadow. He wore a jerkin of white and black. He beckoned to her.

You there! I can see you, he said quietly. Despite using a soft tone, she could hear his voice clearly, in the surreal way which dreams can magnify. I can see you, and I mean no harm. Why do not you approach me?

She felt a stab of fear. How can he view me, hiding within this cart? But then, she relaxed. For the man was merely a boy. A boy she recognized from her youth. And this boy was her brother.

Laprima! he called. Come hither, posthaste!

And so she did.

She rose from the cart, took a moment to brush stray strands of hay from her clothings, and then ran swiftly toward her brother, skirts ruffling below. She noticed that the dog which had been there a moment ago had vacated, or vanished. She looked to her brother as she drew nearer. And her brother smiled up at her in his typically mischievous way. A smile she hadn't seen since they were, in fact, both children. Her previous feelings of loneliness were gone.

You should depart! her brother said to her, dancing around her with gaited elan. Head on! Depart hence toward Solitude! And do as they say! ... These folks you see in their fabled costumes, all of them here, are of nothing to you! ... To us! .. They mean nothing! ... A wretched lot! ... So onwards must you go! ... Your man, he awaits your presence! And you shall be in high company! Just dandy! Just peachy!

She felt elation at his words. Her brother, right there before her. 'Whatever is to come, would be fine,' he was telling her, seemingly tapping within her thoughts, her hopes, her fears.

Elija, she said to him.

Yes, sister!

She was weeping by now.

Her hands raised to embrace him. But just then, a flash of emotion overcame her. A mixture of revolting sickness, and sweet delight. She recoiled, stumbled backwards in disgust...

Laprima Donnaugh awoke, bolt upright, her eyes teary. Her bed quarters around her, her 8 year-old feline dozing by her side. She'd just had a dream. Her thoughts were racing, so she consciously made an effort to remember all she could. ... Her brother .... A cart ... Some people walking by in gay costume ... A dog by the side of the forest ... Slowly, she pieced it all together. After a minute or so, she sat up in bed, inked her quill and began to scribble words quickly in her journal.

After she had recalled all she could, she realized she was in agreement with her brother. She would head to Solitude.

This post has been edited by Renee: Jan 24 2022, 02:42 PM

[Renee]

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Chamany LaCroix

His name was Chamany LaCroix, and when Laprima first noticed him, she realized it was actually he, who had noticed her first.

Though he spoke their language, it was obvious Chamany was from somewhere else. His voice had an accent. He occasionally got his wording wrong. He was from High Rock. Or ... Hammerfell. Hmm. Some said he was from Solstheim. Wherever he was from, he came to the Imperial City early in the Year 199. And when he first arrived to attend classes at the city's Aristocratic District school, Chamany LaCroix quickly became the talk of all its higher-education students.

The boys, some of them idolized Chamany, while others were jealous. They idolized because he had seen the world, and had participated in heroic ways outside the city's walls, or so the rumors went. They got jealous because suddenly, most of the school's female pupils turned their attentions toward him.

He was handsome, he was dashing. He was pursuing an education in Merchandise, a rather stodgy choice for schooling. Laprima could have seen her own father taking those same classes, for instance. But this also meant that (unlike a lot of the Imperial City gothics) Chamany LaCroix was ultimately interested in commerce, and commerce ultimately meant money. Not just money, a steady income of money.

And so the story went: Laprima, Siouxsie, and about a half-dozen other gothic lasses all took turns imagining themselves being with him, as in, getting scooped up to live the rest of their lives in his gorgeous castle. Or traveling the world by his side, upon two steady steeds. Or getting hot under the collar with the man behind the mausoleums of Green Emperor Way, while guards and citizens walked meters nearby. Because that was another thing, Chamany LaCroix was a man. Not some boy, not some lad.

His eyes wandered a bit, but ultimately became interested in Laprima Anne Donnaugh over all the others. She'd heard about him several days before she actually saw him, and when she’d finally first seen him in the Market District, Chamany was already walking toward her. Especially flattered, was she. He introduced himself to her with a flower in his hand. And from that moment on, Laprima and Chamany quickly became a pair.

Though he was studying to become a professional merchant, he did not come from money. His family was poor, so he said, yet he was not interested in Laprima for her family’s wealth. He planned to make his own way into the world at some point, and gain his own wealth. Laprima’s father, ever the stalwart man of business himself, approved of this.

And with Reiley Donnaugh’s blessing, Laprima and her suitor began joking about marriage. That’s how it all began, as a series of jokes. They would do this and they’d do that, until finally one day that summer, Chamany surprised them all. He arrived at her house early one evening all dressed in royals, and asked Reiley for his daughter’s hand, that Chamany and his black-haired beauty would some day join in wedlock.

Laprima was ecstatic, suddenly abloom. After spending so many years as a miserable wretch, she now had some things to look forward to. Laprima and Chamany would both return to school that autumn, where they’d continue their studies. Once that was done, what could come next? ... Young Miss Donnaugh could only imagine good things.

Just as quickly as he’d appeared though, Chamany LaCroix was also gone. As school restarted in Hearthfire, he abruptly explained he'd no longer be attending. He had found a job, one which was too good to pass up. School would have to wait. Instead, he would head south to Bravil, where his first venture at being a merchant was to unfold.

“Eh, why do not you come with me?” he had asked.

And later, Laprima could not entirely fathom why she had not. But she hadn’t, at least, not just then. She had stayed behind in the Imperial City, back in her classes.

Chamany had promised to return soon, but after two weeks of no word from her man, she became despondent again. Saddened and bored, even her friends could not bilk the poor girl out of her slump. And that’s when her trouble with criminal matters had begun; all of which was a way to alleviate Laprima Donnaugh from her own, personal darkness. From destroying herself.

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Morndas, 25 Frostfall, 4E 201

Laprima awoke the next morning in a large, comfortable bed, unsure where she was. For about ten or twelve seconds, she struggled to remember. She'd been having a dream, and it had been a gripping one.

Finally, she recalled. She was in Solitude, inside its Blue Palace. Today would be her second day in Skyrim.

As far as she could tell, she was alone. Chamany had not shown last night, nor was there any sign of him being there at all. Not to worry she told herself. Nothing to get upset over. He has some very important dealings to attend to. All of this was true. She knew it was; she's the one who'd been helping along, after all. And now that she was here in town, she was to stay quiet while he got things sorted.

Laprima could stay quiet, yes she could. But this didn't mean she could stay content. She reached into her leather satchel, and removed the note given to her by the strange man the day before.

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Dearest Laprima. I hope your journey to the cold world of Skyrim has caused to make pleasure in your heart. I am not in town as of now, as you may have expect. Please make way to the Blue Palace. I shall be there soon.

~Chamany~

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"How soon is soon?" Laprima asked her empty room. Chamany was not here yet. What was she to do all day? Certainly not stay inside the palace! Laprima imagined spending more time with her aunt Elisif, and groaned.

She was hungry, so she reached into her satchel, and grabbed a green apple. Walked to a nearby chair, had a seat, she munched her breakfast. By the way sunlight was slanting through her room's windows, she guessed it was late morning.

She began to daydream, as she gazed about her room. Sturdy with stone it was, but also quite drab. Too much like all the other chambers in the Blue Palace. Its walls, ceilings, and floor were a series of yellow, slates, and grays. Not a whole lot of blues, which she found ironic. This would have to change, if she were to continue living here. Perhaps she would hire a couple of painters once she got situated, and her funds became--

And there he was.

"Greetings to you, Laprima." Chamany walked into the room. She'd been so lost in thought that for a split second, she hadn't even realized.

"Chamany!" She nearly stumbled off her chair. "You have arrived!"

"Well, look who is here," he said with a smile. "Laprima, you did make it to Solitude. How was your journey?"

"The journey was lovely." She mirrored his smile with a grin of her own. "The seas were a little rough, I suppose."

"This is good, this is good."

They neared each other. But before they could embrace, Laprima could not help but ask. "And the shipment..?"

"Eh, the shipment is already, eh, delivered," he said. "It has made its way, away from port. Eh, do not fuss, do not worry. Soon, we have the wages we seek."

"Alright. This is good."

"And now I have you. So grateful I am, Laprima."

He smelled of good things, like flowers and sandalwood, she noted. "And now, look at you..."

For the next hour or so, Laprima and Chamany engaged in activities which this writer is declining to describe, other than to say, she is glad for her creation, glad for the moment, at least. During their tryst, Laprima worried a couple times that perhaps her aunt might burst into their chamber. That she'd interrupt, without knocking. Her aunt would walk right in, and then she'd announce they'd all be spending the rest of the day with her, to visit the town's 'facial restorationist'. Or go for a tour of Castle Dour. Or something else just as disturbing and melancholy.

Fortunately, nothing of the sort occurred. Surely Aunt Elisif was aware of what they were doing, Chamany would have walked right by the court at some point, while the queen was in attendance. If so, this meant that Elisif was aware. But also respectful. Or maybe just busy, with all sorts of administrative, courtly details.

"So, allay my curiosity," Laprima said later, as she and her fellow were a-lay on her bed. "What exactly was in that shipment?"

She knew the answer might shock and surpise her. But she didn't know it would also disturb her.
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