crystal;

[satinet]

FORM: Crystal
SENDER: Cassius & Benedict
RECIPIENT: All y'all
NOTES: Week 2-3, Wycome diplomacy, but a catch all for any diplomatic efforts in weeks 2-3 if others want to infodump or gossip here. Cassius is blue, Benedict is red.

Why come, indeed?

[Get it? Because they're in Wycome? It's drawled, insofar as much as a Nevarran can manage, and just muffled enough to suggest that the color commentary—]

The food isn't bad, but we didn't exactly come all this way for the hors d'oeuvres now did we?

[—is from the peanut gallery, and not the person actually trying to make this broadcast.

Benedict says:]

We tried. We tried to make an appointment with the Duke, but he’d only see people who made them in advance, but how far in advance wasn’t entirely clear, because I’m certain I saw someone who arrived today go into his office,

Well, [Cassius' voice swims closer to interrupt him.] We technically don't know that she didn't have an appointment arranged as of six months ago. Maybe they were discussing such timely subjects as the capture of Perendale. But do go on.

--and so he directed us to his niece Lady Ainize in this [muttered:] tacky [—a squawk of protest sounds in the background, but Cassius must be eating something because the noise doesn't resolve into words—] salon, and we thought we’d made some headway with her but she’s also telling us that-- well-- nothing, really. She’s told us nothing we don’t already know.

They’re aware of the situation, but won’t do a damn thing as long as it doesn’t affect Wycome. It’s exclusively the problem of the other Marches, who, to quote Lady Ainize, apparently aren’t doing anything about it anyway.

[Bitterly,] This was a massive waste of time. ...and the wine isn’t even good.

[Cassius, having apparently washed down whatever he was occupied with a moment ago, adds:] Ask them whether anyone else has had better luck elsewhere. Maybe someone else has earned us a little leverage we might ply here.

[Operating under the possibly tipsy assumption that Cassius wasn’t audible:] Have any of you had better luck elsewhere? If there’s something worth salvaging, it’d be helpful to know now.