((Thus ensuring that she'll be staring at both of them across the table. Perhaps she hasn't thought this through. :mrgreen: ))
Alexei smiles and takes Korvin's hand. "Thank you my friend. The keys to the vault are never safer than in your hands. Helmut has been scribing for me my choices already, though I find this embarassing to me. Helmut, please give the list." Helmut steps forward with a sheaf on vellum written in his flowing script. "Helmut too has been encouraging me to produce this while my mind has been elsewhere."
Helmut leans in to Korvin. "He has been in much prayer and contemplation, plus his wounds have kept him idle at times." he says quietly.
[i]Alexei's vis list:
Corpus 10
Creo 10
Perdo 5
Vim 5
Rego 10
Muto 10
Rego/Terram Vis 5 (Counts as 10?)
Herbam 7
If there are 5 pawns remaining as the Chess vis only counting as 1 pawn, then it shall be donated to the Covenant to be used on a worthy project as decided by Council vote, preferably being performed by one of our newest members.
It is also understood that while these are the desired choices of vis, they are not the final choice and Alexei will cede first choice should there be a shortfall and allow other members of Mons Electi preference in their selection.[/i]
"Alexei insisted on that last part." Helmut adds as Korvin looks over the list.
After retrieving the tablet from Helmut, Korvin wanders over to the table. He picks up Renaud's placement card and walks around the table and switches it with Rose's card. After completing this he heads over to Tranquillina. I talk to Renaud all the time and I would hate to see Rose having to deal with two Tytali all night. This way Renaud can give me his opinion of Stultus. I do run the problem of Rose and Abagail gabbing past me but I'll take that risk. He hands Tranquillina the tablet after updating for Alexei's choices. Your turn. 24 pawns of vis.
((The inventory is up to date for Alexei's choices))
Fiona arrives with her apprentice, dressed in her normal hermetic robes...kind of. They've been magicked to fit her form a little more closely than normal. Not scandalously so, but definitely accentuating her curves. ((MuHe base 3 to "change...item made from plant products", R: Personal, D: Sun +2, T: Individual, for a final Target Level of 5. Her MuHe CT is Sta 3 + Mu 17 + He 10 + Aura 5 = 35 ÷ 5 (no fatigue) = 7. Quite doable. And the reason she's doing this? Because Sheelagh has "Envied Beauty" 
))
She looks around quickly, spotting her and Sheelagh's placecards, and heads to her assigned seat.
[color=blue]"You look very elegant this evening, sodalis," Fiona says in Latin with a smile.
She approaches Alexei before she takes her seat and gives him a quick hug. [color=blue]"I started your potion this afternoon. It should be ready in about three days," she whispers in his ear during the hug.
She then goes to her chair and sits down, looking around her.
Roberto looks at the placecards and switches them around when no one is looking. He will sit next to el peyoso, but not Marcus.
Stultus enters with the other new magi, once the current inhabitants of Mons Electi have all arrived. A muscular and very hairy man dressed in rough homespun follows him in, lugging a book-sized package and a carved wooden frame (Rumpelstiltskin) that he leans against the wall.
Unlike (almost) everyone else, Stultus is still dressed in jester's motley. It's clean, and the colors are bright and festive, but it's still an outfit that's very far from formal robes. He saunters around the table, cheerfully greeting magi -- even ones he hasn't met before -- by name. (The only ones he does not seem to know, and just as cheerfully requests an introduction from, are Abagail, Sheelagh, and Rose.) Roberto, in particular, is greeted as "my flaming Flambeau friend", and Alexei as "Chief Hoplite von Kroitsau. A pleasure to see you again. Congratulations on your recent ere... I mean, election."
He clambers into the chair Henri shows him, and leans back. Unfortunately, this means that all that can be seen of him is the top of his head, two eyes, and a Nose.
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"You have my apologies for my attire, sodales. When I wear formal robes, I am frequently mistaken for a particularly garish animated hassock. Didn't want there to be any misunderstanding, y'see." (The corollary -- that there be no misunderstanding about who and what he actually is, and what Mons Electi is letting themselves in for if they admit him -- is left unspoken.)
!Don Stultus, el peyoso magnifico! Good to see you my friend 
Alexei purses his lips and looks at the bafoon in vague recognition. "I know you...we spoke at that one Covenant in the Rhine, you helped me...in your own way." he arches his eyebrow. "So you are here now and wish to join Mons Electi and it seems you know Roberto as well. Roberto? How do you know him?"
"Er ... all right, certainly Princeps," Tranquillina dissembles, somewhat put out that all her thought that went into the seating plan was changed on a moment's whim. At the mention of vis, Tranquillina seems to shrink a little bit. "Ah, thank you Korvin, but I can simply leave my shares in the common store and withdraw them only as needed."
When this doesn't fly ((I assume)), she reluctantly looks away and mutters softly, "Half in Vim and half in Corpus, then...."
Tranquillina does ((I think)) notice Roberto switch Marcus and Renaud's placecards. ((Per 2 + Awareness 2 + stress die 9 = 13.)) Now she is doubly hurt that people are questioning her seating plan, and she doesn't quite know how to react (especially in front of guests). As for Renaud - who will now be seated between two Tytali rather than near the other Mercere members - Tranquillina frantically tries to come up with a reason why she would have seated him there, so the Redcap will not realize he has been uprooted not once but twice.
Tranquillina smiles fondly, which does more good for her appearance than the makeup and hair put together. "Thank you, Fiona," she replies approvingly in the same language. "You are turning the men's heads, as usual."
He's been hanging around since the tribunal. And he amuses me. I know not much beyond that.
You may leave them in the storage. Just be aware that the kind you want may not be there. And I will permit only 5 more pawns vim to be taken. Do you wish to leave it all in storage?
Stultus grins up at Roberto. Either he doesn't understand that he's just been damned with faint praise, or -- more likely -- he simply doesn't care. "I aim to please." He pauses thoughtfully. "Myself, mostly. But I DO aim to please."
A moment later, he leans close to the Flambeau's elbow, motioning Roberto to bend his head down, and murmurs quietly "You did pass on my warning, yes?"
Alexei nods and smiles. "Well I do appreciate a good joke and have been known to tell a few myself. Odds are the difference between you and I, is that you're actually funny." he pauses and chuckles. "And you dress fancier." his smile fades after a moment.
"But...there are considerations to dwell on. What have you brought with you besides your wit? And what troubles can we expect?"
((To summarize: Tranquillina is relieved that she can just leave her pawns in storage; naively she doesn't really believe that Mons Electi could ever have a shortage of a particular type of vis. She's nervous enough about the subject of vis that she doesn't even follow up on Korvin's comment about limiting the Vim (which I the player understand of course - need to cast those Aegises). If later she wants to withdraw a huge chunk of Vim, to boost her talisman's capacity, and there isn't enough lying around ... well, then she made her own bed, and we get an interesting story scene out of it.))
((And just to [strike]make this thread as confusing as possible[/strike] have as many fun conversations as we can:))
As the first course is served by the carefully instructed servants, Tranquillina turns politely to her right, addressing Gerulf. "I am very pleased that you could join us, sodalis. I know your mater a little bit: I have always found her easy to speak to, and her research is of course well respected within our House. Where do your magical interests lie? Both Isen -" she indicates the magus on the other side of Gerulf, who seems to be morosely regarding his cold salad, "- and I are curious to hear about you."
((What does Gerulf look like this evening?))
Korvin nods at Tranquillina and begins moving around the table to Fiona. You look ravishing as usual Fiona. His eye moving up and down and lingering for a long moment. If you have time, please have a look at the ledger and pick out your vis. Korvin hands her the wax tablet. I'm going to meet the new Tytalis, Stultus. His hand caresses her shoulder and neck. Would you care to join me?
((How the Hell did I miss this?))
Alexei stands as Fiona enters the room, leaning heavily on his staff for support and accepts her hug gratefully. "Thank you ever so my dear." Helmut rushes to get her chair for her for which Alexei is a bit thankful and he sinks to his chair again. "As always it is wonderful to see you Fiona."
He turns his gaze around the room. "And you as well Tranquillina, you are a most welcome addition to this dinner." He nods at Gerulf...he's not sure if he's seen Gerulf before.
((How obvious is it what Rumpelstiltskin's purpose is? Fiona, if you need a roll, has Int 1 + Magic Theory 6 + die roll of 8 = 15, or Int 1 + Weaving 2 + die roll of 8 = 11.))
Fiona simply smiles her Mona Lisa smile. [color=blue]"Thank you."
[color=blue]"Pleasing oneself is all well and good," Fiona muses as she looks at Stultus, [color=blue]"but I've found that there is more...satisfaction in pleasing each other."
[color=blue]"You have?" Fiona says with a grin and a twinkle in her eye.
[color=blue]"Thank you," Fiona says as she takes the tablet and looks it over quickly. [color=blue]"I doubt I'll be doing any work on my projects until I return from Grand Tribunal...but when I do, I'll be needing..." She purses her lips as she does some figuring in her head. [color=blue]"Twelve pawns of Vim, and three of either Rego or Terram. The rest, if you don't mind, I would like to keep in the stores on account until I have need of them."
[color=blue]"Certainly," she says, then gets to her feet, giving Sheelagh a quick look that says that she will return soon and that the apprentice should wait there.
[color=blue]"My pleasure."
Um...what warning? I forgot maybe...?
There seems to be a rush on Vim. We do not have enough Vim in stock currently. We will be getting more from the prize pawns but it will depend on who is claiming them. I'm hesitant to give many now before I talk to Isen to figure out what we will need for the Aegis. You may have to take another type and exchange it for Vim with the Redcaps when the time comes. We have plenty of Rego and some Terram. I will mark you down for Rego and hold the rest, 37 pawns, in storage.
Korvin will move over to Stultus with Fiona. He will wait for a break in the conversation between Roberto and Stultus to approach. Roberto. I hope you are well this evening. And you must be Stultus ex Tytalis. I am Korvin ex Mercere. This lovely woman is Fiona ex Miscellanea.
[color=blue]"That's all right, it's going to be a year or two before I have any use for it anyway. Perhaps by then we will have a better supply."
Fiona curtsies deeply. [color=blue]"A pleasure," she says with a smile. She towers over Stultus, in much the same way an oak towers over a rose bush...he comes up to her thigh (about as high as a thigh boot), and in fact he could probably rest his chin on the top of her kneecap.