guess who's going to gay baby jail.

[kecharitomene]

FORM: Written, in the fancy books
SENDER: Galatea Lourdes
RECIPIENT: Everyone with a book
WHAT: Definitely not Commander Coupe's stolen personal correspondence
WHEN: Immediately before the Mont-de-Marc debacle
WHERE: The Gallows
NOTES: Related to this calm discussion between two adults. There will be no written responses (from Galatea; please feel free to talk amongst yourselves), but if someone wants to have seen Galatea rifling around for writing implements and wonder what an illiterate baby needed those for, feel free to wild card crystal/action up in this bitch.

( the text is written in orlesian, and painstakingly, unsteadily reproduced in a shaky, uncertain hand—as if it had been copied as one might a picture, rather than fully understood. where words in the original piece of text were written close together, they run together undifferentiated; letters are ill-formed and punctuation missing. still, it is sufficiently legible to those who read orlesian to make out the following: )


A,

If not now, when?

Need the Anders come knocking, else the Divine? You are like to fare as well for either. Already new lines are drawn: Phylacteries. Agitators, even the bloody Rifters. Obscurity is a thin shield when we must rattle every line for aid.

If you speak truth, then matters cannot hold; you've lost any safeguard. To hide is a losing proposition: A war of attrition, for all you think yourself free. You place yourself in danger. You place them in it.

I miss you as an absent limb. I recall my promises; I wish to help. But the North has gone from tenuous to trash fire, and I've too many guests to act freely. I cannot lift a hand if it is tied behind my back.

Remember your duty.

L


( your move, coupe. )

Comments

[rathercommon]

[ In a tidy hand: ]

Can someone translate this?

private crystal~!

[coquettish_trees]

[ Having recognized Kitty's handwriting from all that lovely transcription work, Lexie calls her up and summarily reads it to her. Then: ]

Under normal circumstances I would simply write it out for you, as it is obviously personal correspondence, and I do enjoy a bit of stolen personal correspondence... but it seems of a nature that may be related to the war effort in a way that could perhaps be advantageous to our enemies, and these books are, if I recall correctly, not as secure as speaking over crystal.

I am currently considering 'accidentally' spilling ink across the entirety of the page. Your thoughts?

[rathercommon]

Hullo, Lexie.

[ Kitty sighs. ]

And - maybe. D'you know who "A" and "L" are?

[coquettish_trees]

I cannot say I do, but that means little enough.

[rathercommon]

I just wonder...I don't know. I don't know enough about what's going on here to be able to interpret much of that. But it seems like there's lots of stuff that shouldn't be concealed from people. Do you think this is something that people in the Inquisition ought to be made aware of?

[coquettish_trees]

[ cheerfully: ] Worry not, I am sure someone has made a copy already.

There will be plenty of time to air the potentially incriminating personal matters of our fellows once we have the means to keep it within the Inquisition proper.

[rathercommon]

[ A puff of air. ]

Yeah, I guess. Weird thing, though, whoever wrote it out. I think they aren't lettered. I was watching it as it was being written, and it's not the way anyone writes.

[coquettish_trees]

How curious! I did not see the writing itself, and so thought it simply either very poor handwriting or an attempt to obscure their own script.

Perhaps that means whoever did this did not choose the copied missive with any intention... save perhaps enmity. That may make the value of it to the writer not in its contents but simply in the showing that they can and will obtain and disseminate such things.

Intimidation, of whoever this “A” is. Or this “L”, if the letter was intercepted either before or shortly after it was sent.

[ she tsks ]

Not a kindly thing to have within the ranks, is it?

[rathercommon]

You might argue that secret-keeping's not a good thing to have within the ranks, either.

[ Though from her tone, that's more argument for argument's sake, rather than something she really believes. ]

[coquettish_trees]

[ amusedly: ] I would never. You know quite well that too much exposure to the truth makes me itch.

Wars are won and lost on secrets, cherie, whether or not you agree with that state of affairs. Think you if we had no secrets kept within the Inquisition ranks that we would not have one or two intrepid Venatori agents swearing their oaths to us, and then within our walls cheerfully copying all of our battle plans, our lists of personnel, our trade routes, the names of our clandestine operatives?

[rathercommon]

[ A huff. ]

I know. I've dealt with spies before.

[ Honestly...she's dealt with spies before. ]

[coquettish_trees]

And what think you of the merits of guarding against them weighed against the merits of freely shared information?

[rathercommon]

Depends on the information, doesn't it. And the spy.

[coquettish_trees]

Information we do not know the value of and a spy whose skill and presence we are unaware of, of cour—ah!

[ a chuckle, as the message is meticulously obscured ]

My dilemma has been solved for me. Would that such a thing would occur in all instances of my ambivalent indecision.

[rathercommon]

[ A little sigh. ]

I guess so. So I guess now the question is who's unlettered and has a grudge against this "L."

[coquettish_trees]

Or "A", if it were received correspondence.

It might have been easier to see if we could attempt to match the handwriting, as it was copied as a picture rather than simply copied words, but that ship has sailed now.

It is someone with light fingers, that is to be sure. I imagine the Scoutmaster already has wind of it. Since it became a public matter, and one that rouses curiosity and worry, I rather think we shall be hearing more about it.

[ drolly: ] And if we do not and wish to I think I can muster a loud fit of pique.

[rathercommon]

[ A short laugh. ]

Suppose you can. And I expect you'd do it better than I would.

[coquettish_trees]

Do not underestimate yourself, cherie, forget not that I have been on the receiving end of your ardent displeasure before, and it ended in your receiving a fairytale promise of truth from the lips of one quite unaccustomed to it.

But I do, I think, enjoy the advantage of Being Orlesian.

[ brightly: ]

Oh! I punched someone. You were entirely correct, it is liberating, if rather painful.

[rathercommon]

I meant more that - you know. Your sort of displeasure's a bit better suited to that sort of thing. But anyway -

[ Pleased - ]

Tell me more about it. Who'd you punch? If you're going to do it again, I can show you the proper way to do it.

[coquettish_trees]

An erstwhile lover of mine who was making truly awful allegations regarding my current one. [ dryly: ] I imagine you should have been less inclined to hit him in recompense for that than I.

While I do not plan on a repeat performance... I did not plan on the initial one either, so I suppose it would not be a poor course of action to learn to do it properly.

I imagine one facet is to not be holding the neck of a wine bottle whilst doing it, but circumstances did not allow me much in the way of preparatory time.

[rathercommon]

The neck of a wine bottle - did you cut him?

[ girl that's hardcore ]

[coquettish_trees]

Andrasté misérecordieuse, non! I was simply holding the bottle at the time, it was not broken.

[ at that point ]

[rathercommon]

I'd have been really impressed if you gave him a scar or something. Fought him like you were some guttersnipe out for revenge.

[coquettish_trees]

[ She laughs ]

Not this time, although I do regret not being as impressive.

[rathercommon]

Well, you ought to. Carry a little switchblade around with you like the girls back home.

[coquettish_trees]

[ innocently: ] I know not what a switchblade might be, but do inform me as to whether or not a well-weighted throwing knife might count similarly in your estimation.

[rathercommon]

Oh, yeah, I guess it'd work. Except you can keep a switchblade up your sleeve. It's a little stick that, when you flip it the right way, becomes a knife. So you can get a bit more surprise.

[coquettish_trees]

That sounds delightful. I do not suppose you could explain their workings to a smith here?

[rathercommon]

I -

[ Huh. ]

Yeah, I expect I could. Pretty easily. Would you want one?

[coquettish_trees]

Oh, absolutely.

[ Guess what Loki's getting for Satinalia~ ♪ ]

not here

[wroughtamiss]

[Absolutely taking a copy. Solidarity with the Mothers it's what Andraste would've wanted.

Oblig seen Harvestmere 9:44]

Re: not here

[rathercommon]

[ deacon more like dickin' amirite ]

[faithlikeaseed]

[It's been a long time since he's read anything in Orlesian and all of that older in syntax than this--and the text is bad and he's not used to reading again, but what he can get is enough to conclude in spidery script,]

this shouldn't be here.

[The words sit for a minute or two before he begins meticulously blotting out the message.

Who knows how long it sat before he found it or who might've seen--and copied--it in the interim, but it's not going to be around much longer.]

((ooc: pretend this happens whenever's convenient for ur dude's ambitions to have seen or not seen this one!!))

[assistente]

[In a neat hand:]

To the Writer of this Message:

The security of these writing books remains largely untested.
A warning if the intention of your correspondence was to be personal.
The Base Operations office is working to improve the security of the writing books.


-Seneschal Salvio Pizzicagnolo

[faithlikeaseed]

[Once he's done with his self-imposed censorship task,]

is there a provision for removing messages more quickly than blotting them out?

--Myr Shivana

[assistente]

There is no current provision for removing messages.
If it is a desired provision we might consider its addition in testing.
It is personal opinion that at all times the written word should, in general, be given proper weight and consideration.

- Seneschal Salvio Pizzicagnolo

[faithlikeaseed]

I concur.

However, it would seem prudent to have a means of expunging information to hand—at least until the security of these books is ensured. A mistaken or malicious csr crystal message doesn’t linger to be copied down at leisure. — MS

[assistente]

Crystal messages of particular importance are noted.
For record keeping purposes.

We can experiment with a temporary targeted expulsion or obfuscation until such a time that security is better ensured.

- Seneschal Salvio Pizzicagnolo

grumbles about smart quotes screwing up html on the phone

[faithlikeaseed]

good to know.

[Potentially alarming for some people, but.]

Thank you, seneschal—for all you've done on this as well.

its It's not my area of magical expertise but I'll be glad to test any spell so-devised. — MS