Cidito organizes a Familiar's Council and invites all of the other Familiars to join him in the, um, the west garden. Yep, we have a West Garden now :mrgreen:
Felecia is not invited, because she is not a Familiar. And this is actually me invoking Felicia's status as a Story Flaw.
Guys, I need your help. See, my magus never took longevity. Not yet. He wants offspring first. So he is still fertile. Which means I am still fertile.
And, um...
You know that magic cat Felecia who isn't a familiar but still hangs out with a maga?
Well, um, I think I knocked her up.
I need to make shure, and I need to figure out what to do about it. I mean, it ain't the first time. But I ain't never been with a magic cat before, nor one that can talk and that i haz gotta live with.
"Really?" Horus says, stretching the word out as he speaks. He gives Cidito a piercing look. "That is news." Roberto's familiar clearly has Horus's full attention now.[sup]1[/sup] "Lucas told me that Roberto had held off on his longevity ritual, but I never gave thought to what that would mean to you." He pauses and arches his head to the side. "How strong is your suspicion? I mean, is it just because you were a tomcat with her, or is there some other reason you suspect she's got a pile of buns in the oven?"
Horus ruffles his feathers. "I could ask her for you, of course," he goes on. "Tell her she has a certain glow and ask if it means she's expecting kittens - though that's hardly subtle. Of course, time will give us an answer if we just wait long enough. Depends on how you want to roll with this one."
"As for any particular consequences," he adds. "Let me think. I know a thing or two about magical creatures.[sup]2[/sup]"
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[sup]1[/sup] Horus has the flaw Busybody, so he's all ears!
[sup]2[/sup] Horus has Magic Lore (creatures) 2, so I figure he might know something about relations between magical animals.
Magic Lore check: 1d10=6+3 = 9
Does that tell Horus anything about what peculiarities the pregnancy might bring?
Horus knows that a cross between a magical and mundane being results in Magic/Mythic Blood. Magic Might crossed with Magic Blood still results in Magic Blood. Two creatures with Magic Might produce another creature of Magic Might. Further, they need not be the same species. That is how chimeric creatures like the griffon and cockatrice came about.
"Well," the falcon says after a few moments of consideration, "one thing is certain - if you and Felecia did make kittens, those kittens are going to be magical." He ruffles his feathers at the thought of a passel of magical kittens - and later full-grown magical cats - wandering around the castle. "I couldn't say for certain precisely what they'll be able to do magically. But it'll likely be a mix of your and Felecia's gifts. I must confess, I'm new enough around here that I'm not entirely certain of your capabilities or her's. The point is, you two are going to have a pawfull. And the mundane residents of the castle may be in for a surprise too."
You gotta understand, procreationz is different for us cats. And she had just gone into heat, so I wuz all like "hey baby" and yadda-yadda. And then again the next day and y'know. And anyway, she goes out of heat and time goes by. I keep checking in to see if she is ready to go again, and she ain't been going into heat. In fact, her things have been, un, she's showing signs. I oughtta know! This ain't my first [strike]rodeo[/strike] tourney.
"You know best about cat things," Horus replies. "If you think she's sitting on the nest, then I won't question you." He tilts his head to the side. "But you're forgetting something. If you've figured this out, then she certainly has too - and much sooner than you did. Why hasn't she said anything to you about it? Are you sure you're the father? I mean Felecia is a cat, and cats are --well-- not exactly well known for being faithful. And being as she's friends with Fleur ... you might not be the only knight she's jousted with."
That's the problem! I don"t want a bunch'a talkin' magical cats runnin' around here! I kinda like being the only one. I could handle Felecia 'cause she's a girl and all. And neither of us resides at the castle. But if she starts hatching lil' proto-familiars and the magi get the idea to start an enterprise...
Besides, I hate kittenss. I like hooman kids. Just not kittens. Or puppies. I hate puppies even more. And baby bunnies. I hate them most of all.
"Now there I must disagree with you," Horus replies. "I love baby bunnies. They're so much more tender than the adults." If he had lips, he'd lick them. "But I digress."
"You're right about one thing, though. They'll almost certainly be able to talk. Imagine that ... six or eight little talking kittens running around the castle. Makes me glad I live in Mallorca. And you're right about another thing, they'd be ripe for becoming familiars. In fact, some of the magi in the covenant might bond with them. Then they'd be around for a looong time. But don't feel so bad. It's not the end of the world if there are more cat familiars around. Celeste and I get along quite well."
"Of course, you do raise another good point. if Pere or Vibria had the same idea you had about turning this one-time thing into a regular enterprise, they might try and set this place up as a magical kitten mill, catering to all the magi in the Tribunal." He shakes his head once. "This is quite the kettle of fish you've landed yourself in."
"But I have to ask again, what about Felecia. Certainly she knows about her situation. What does she think about all this?"
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Likewise, in each case Horus is replying to the previous post by Cidito.
Oh, if yer talkin' 'bout eating', that's a different story. But I prefer full grown hares. Don't underestimate me as a fat cat. I iz bigger and stronger than most cats, and I can magically grow bigger even. I haz boxed hoomans and took 'em down. And see how I iz missin' an eye and got this scar, Had a fight with a nasty hooghe dog once. Beat him, but he got his on me too.
But I don't eat dog, And I don't like the idea of anyone eating kittens. Can't drown them either. I figure making sure they iz born outta sight from the magi. Felecia also lives on the islands, but her hooman has her own location like the other wizards there.
Certainly bigger, Horus thinks, though he's diplomatic enough not to say it out loud. "You know, I do believe that you did have a scrap with a big dog. I doubt you take grief from anyone. And the fact that he outweighed you and was a dog probably never entered your mind. Me, I try and stay out of trouble like that. Sure, I've gotten into a few scrapes with other birds of prey arguing over a rabbit or a fish. Who hasn't? But that's about all."
"As for your plan, it's a sound one - if it works. But I can see a few flaws in it. First off, what if Felecia has already told her wizard that she's expecting. They are friends, and they do talk. If she's told Fleur, then Fleur might tell the rest of them. The second problem is that you want me to not tell Lucas. We share all the good gossip with each other.[sup]1[/sup] How can I not tell him?[sup]2[/sup]"
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[sup]1[/sup] Horus and Lucas both have the Busybody flaw. I expect they're like a couple of old hens at times. "Did you hear about the cook's assistant and the stable boy?" "No. But I did hear about a certain soldier's gambling problem ..."
[sup]2[/sup] Then there's that Loyalty to Lucas +3 trait ...
(thank you for indulging me in a cat story) But we iz under the confidence of a Familiar council. The code sez you gotta be loyal.
It does'nt. He's making that up using Guile & Leadership. Ceck against Code of Hermes or Folk Ken.
Horus does not have Folk Ken, nor has he studied the Code of Hermes. So I'll just roll 1d10+0 with three extra botch dice for Folk Ken: 1d10=5+0 = 5.
And I like a side story about the familiars. It's fun.
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"Well," Horus replies, drawing out the word for a second or two. "If we're under the confidence of the Familiar Council, then I suppose I don't have much choice, do I? But Lucas is gonna be sorry that he missed hearing about this one."
"Of course, Felecia isn't a familiar. So she's under no requirement of secrecy. She can blab to Fleur all she wants."
Celeste, who has remained aloof from (and a little appalled at) the entire conversation, gives Horus a look that says several things - 'what is wrong with you?', 'don't drag me into this nonsense', and most importantly, 'don't count on us getting along much longer'. Of course, all of that is likely lost on Horus and his lack of Folk Ken.
Not that Cidito's insistence is going to keep her from telling Vocis. The entire topic of conversation and her embarrassment at being present for it might keep her from telling Vocis, though.
I cannot take credit for the idea. An old friend, Cliff Allcorn, who played Cornelius of Bonisagus in my Ultima Thule saga from the 90's, came up with it when his familiar (Sly the Fox) organized a "Familiar's Tribunal".
:mrgreen:
