His voice was pleasant on the phone. Raymond Marillet, lately Prince of Tours, was glad to hear from you and certainly looked forward to a visit. As with all things, he made arrangements as he would not be in his lovely Tours the week of your planned arrival, but that he'd be further south, in the Peregrine, in Lascaux.
     Summer has come to the region with a flourish. It's still early for harvest, and the vineyards are full and lush. Sunset comes over the hills in pinks and oranges, and vintners take their walks to see how the day's sugar has come on the grapes. Lascaux's tourist season is still in full tilt: wineries see their American partners and distributors, who can get away from the States in August and September. They turn a business trip into a family holiday. Why not? The caves are nearby to distract a wife and children for the day while 'work' happens. The last Italian and German visitors amble through the large ville, while most of the Spanish have returned to the cooling climes of Madrid.
     Do the French even come to Lascaux?
     Apparently, one does. In Manon's Brasserie, where the locals hide, a man in his early thirties sits at a table in a corner near the front door. The brasserie is cool and busy, with many coming in to get snacks to tide them over to the dinner hour. He glances up as people pass by, and a small line has formed at the back of the brasserie, where the counters are set up. A barista works hard and frantically, in the face of the more casual counter staff serving desserts to choosy patrons.
     Dressed in green slacks and an ivory shirt, the man enjoying his paper and espresso does get a few looks. He is terribly attractive, and is perhaps a local aristocrat. No one would be surprised. However, he misses most of the looks given to him by the girls, and after glancing at his watch, he rolls his folded paper upright again and continues to read.

     The good Dr. Gifford was, of course, glad to meet somewhere else if convenient. And as she is making a tour of wineries, anywhere in the shouth of France is most convenient as it saves her an additional trip at a later time.
     Once the evening is well established, Victoria makes her way out of her rooms at the inn that was arranged for her quite conveniently and comes to the lovely little bakery. She manages not to look exactly like a tourist with her confident grace and the self-assured air she's grown into over the years, making her look like she must be youthful for her age rather than the mid-20s one might guess on first blush.
     Carrying a handbag over one shoulder and carrying a rather sizeable parcel wrapped in brown paper, she shoulders the door open easily and glances about at the lines of local people arranged for the early evening rush. Noting the unfurled newspaper, she leans a bit to the side to get a glance around it to the gentleman behind before a pleased smile comes over her features. Weaving between the patrons she arrives at the out of the way spot and clears her throat lightly, "Monsiur Marillet?"

     The man looks up, expecting to see you there. Raymond stands immediately, setting his folded paper down beside his cup and an empty dessert plate.
     "Victoria," he says, the name almost purred. A side-effect of being French. "Please, my father was Monsieur Marillet," Raymond teases, hand extending as he comes to his full six-foot height. A cyclist's form.
     "I hope your trip was tolerable," Raymond adds, leaning over the table's edge to place kisses on each of your cheeks. His English is impeccable, though there is no mistaking his first language. "I actually hate travelling," he adds, sunnily enough, "...never did it well. It's a learned ability, n'est pas?"

     Smiling she sets the package down on the table to return the continental greeting with practiced ease. "Oi." Victoria shrugs her shoulders a bit with an absent wave, "Oh, it was lovely, actually. I'm enjoying getting to see so much of the countryside looking at all the vineyards. And the trains here are wonderful, unfortunately ours in the States are only passable."
     Her bits of French are executed with precise pronunciation. She seems to be well versed in it and her ease with the language has only improved with tours of the local businesses. "Unfortunately I've had cause to do a good deal of it lately, but once you settle into the patterns it's not so difficult."
     Glancing around again she turns back to her host with a pleased expression, "The village is so idyllic I can understand why you like to vacation here."

     Raymond chuckles faintly, his head angled as he pulls out a chair for you. "Yes, well, I do and several million others, it seems." His light-brown hair ends in gentle curls around his face and nape, the sign of a need for a haircut. "I didn't realize you had business here," Raymond says, glancing to the counter. Someone will show up in a moment. "I hope it won't distract from your enjoyment of our Lascaux. You should see the caves, if you have time."
     Taking a seat, Victoria shakes her head, smoothing her skirt down automatically as the chair's pushed in, "No, not at all. I'm just taking in the local wineries and seeing how they organize things. I manage one in Oregon, you see, and it's something I rather fell into. So, learning about other methods is a great opportunity."

     "Interesting," Raymond murmurs, "I had no idea. A woman of many talents," he smiles.
     "Do you want anything?" Raymond asks, motioning to the counter. He grins, "Another learned habit..."

     Victoria laughs lightly and nods, "I suppose you could say that, yes." Glancing over to the array of sweets she nods, "One I never got over, actually, that sounds lovely. Whatever the local specialty is as long as it's not wine." She grins slightly at her own comment. "And a coffee would be wonderful."

     Raymond nods curtly, and lifts his hand to give the lone wandering waitress a signal. "So," he smiles, blue eyes glinting, "...I'm glad you decided to visit. How long can you stay?" With the waitress approaching, Raymond twists and says, "Un cafe et un Pastiche," his face barely given to the woman. She departs, leaving him alone with you again.
     "You'll like...the dessert. It is a local. Pastry with warm berries with vanille," he can't help the French version, "...well, creme anglaise."

     "I am too." Victoria says with a smile, "It's easier to deliver this anyway, I changed my mind from the paperweight and I get paranoid about shipping." She tilts her head toward the box to indicate what she's speaking of.
     "Oh, my schedule's pretty fluid. I have a list of vinyards and wineries to visit, but most of them only require that I call ahead a day for an appointment, so I'm not booked for anything." She gives a polite nod to the waitress at the break in conversation before smiling a bit more easily again, "It sounds delicious, and in season, too, no doubt."

     "Barely," Raymond concedes, the smile still at his laps. A generally happy fellow, it seems. "And thank you," he motions at the box you still hold. He laughs softly, "You didn't have to bring it here with you. We could have arranged for it later."

     She shrugs a bit, still smiling, "You don't have to open it now, and if it's inconvenient I can have it sent sometime later. I just figured since I was coming to see you anyway, I'd bring it along."
     She sets the box off to the side on the cafe table so that it's not in the way of conversation since it stands a little over a foot and a half tall. "So you said the caves are nice? I'm sure they have some history to them, should I pick up a tour book somewhere?"

     "You can," Raymond nods, "...though the caves typically close at five. However, I know a few people, and if you're interested in an evening tour, I think it can be arranged." Such conveniences.
     "I cannot believe you do not know our caves?" Raymond presses on with a grin. "Tsk. The caves of Lascaux are world famous. They are miles upon miles of pre-historic art..."

     "I'd love to, thanks." Victoria says easily, "And unfortunately, I'm not as versed in art as I'd like. I have my interests, but with everything else..." She shrugs a little and lets the obvious go by.
     Raising her eyebrows slightly she sets her arms on the table in front of her, just in time of course for the food and coffee to show up. Thanking the waitress she moves back a bit for them to be set down before answering with interest, "Really? That does sound interesting, now that you mention it I think I heard one of the vinteners mention them, though I didn't catch the location, he was rattling through things a bit too quickly for me." She shrugs a bit sheepishly before taking a sip from her mug, "It sounds fascinating though."

     "Wine, the caves," Raymond explains, watching the waitress depart, "...that's the whole reason the tourists come, hmm? The caves are on the..." Raymond thinks a moment, "...UN list of protected places now."
     Picking up his own cup, Raymond is quiet for an instant as he watches you and takes the last swallow of coffee. "Are you enjoying Europe? Was Edinburgh your first stop?" Raymond smirks, "And yes, I ask plenty of questions. I'll add on: When do you go home to America?"

     Chuckling a little, Victoria nods, "You do, don't you." She takes another sip of coffee before picking up her spoon with a shrug, "As long as you don't mind them back, that's fine."
     "Yes, it was, I came for the gallery show specifically. It was a short trip, though, I've been back once, already, if briefly. I'm here for most of the fall, though, actually. Things were settled when I left and I wanted a chance to look around at things."

     "Fall is fast approaching," Raymond observes, sitting back in his chair. He brushes at his slacks, but continues to watch you as he does. "It sounds as if you have had a reasonable holiday, yes? A woman of business, like yourself, perhaps needs her distractions and time away."
     "I haven't been away before this in ages, actually. I think it was... two or three Christmases past, I can't remember exactly. We came over to visit Straithfyr." Victoria answers easily, taking another bite of the dessert in obvious enjoyment, "But, things come up and get busy. Life was just too hectic to be able to afford the time away. And then as things go it made more sense to be away for a bit." She shrugs slightly in a dismissive manner regarding her own excuses as though to say 'It is the way of things.'
     "It's been more than reasonable, though, I think. The earlier visit for the gallery show was just enough to remind me that it's good to take some time away at regular intervals."

     "And your family?" Raymond asks tactfully, "They are accepting of your hectic business pace and now of your needed vacation time?"
     "My family is... well, complicated as I'm sure you can imagine." Victoria says easily, pausing a moment as though trying to arrive at the most appropriate descriptor. She takes another drink from her coffee mug and continues, "The closest person I have to a father lives in New York and we're on amenable terms as long as we don't speak too often. And that branch of my family stays there for the most part."

     "And your lover?" Raymond says directly, the last word always so strangely compelling with French undertones? "If I remember, there was someone else?" Come now. You -are- talking to a Toreador, and a Toreador Prince at that. Perhaps his sunny disposition does belie the fact that Raymond Marillet is a vampire.
     "Or..." Raymond's hand opens upright on the table near his cup, "...is that no more then?"

     Her smile quirks a bit in amusement at the direct inquiry. Not an entirely unexpected question. She does pause briefly to take a bite from her bowl before answering, not at all concerned about the pause she makes as she considers how precisely to respond.
     The paleness of the colors that shimmer around her just out of the range of the normal eye makes them look almost like a veil. The calm light blue dances in balance with the conservative lavender, not at all unexpected in a Ventrue. Compassion pink swirls with a happy vermillion with balanced ease. And where one might be concerned about a bittersweet brown that can linger on the ends of love, there is only a silver woven through in thick threads like a thinly meshed screen.
     "We discovered when we were apart for my trip here that that seemed to suit better than when we were together." Victoria says simply, a genuine disappointment reflected in the emerald of her eyes. "But, I think the truth of it probably is we were always better friends than lovers and it took a while to realize."

     Raymond smiles and nods in understanding. "At least you are honest about such. Most, like us or not, never understand that about love." The smile turns into a brighter grin as Raymond brings his arm to rest across his lap. "I'm sorry to hear it though," he adds, "...no matter the truth of the realization and the improvement for it, it is still a difficult thing to experience, having to part with a one indeed beloved."
     "I hope your holidays assist with that process. Holidays, long ones, are good for that."
     "Well, and spending lots of money," Raymond grins brightly, his blue eyes twinkling in the admission.

     "Well, it wasn't an easy honesty. But I think it's going to be better in the long run." And, considering, it's likely to be a very long run. Victoria reaches up to brush a lock of hair back behind her ear where it belongs, nodding a bit at the condolance of sorts, "Well, yes. So far we've stayed close though, hopefully it'll be easier now than it was. He's still keeping things running smoothly while I'm here, actually, which is a change he enjoys, I think. He tended to get... overshadowed a little. Or I was too protective, I don't know."
     She laughs at the suggestion and nods, "I'll have to keep that in mind. I think the holiday has been the best thing for it all, though." She grins and takes another sip of coffee in return, "And I haven't been as... frugal as I probably would've been otherwise as I've been touring, I'll admit."

     "Frugality is overrated," so sayeth the Toreador. "But then again, I would say that, wouldn't I?"
     "So, then, do you have many friends on the continent? I am impressed already at the friends you seem to have accumulated already in your...short...existence?" He supposes there, but it's a good supposition, he'd say.

     Laughing lightly, Victoria nods, "Well, some people would expect you to, certianly." She tilts her head to one side a little, "But rushing to judgement based on stereotypes is never a good idea."
     One eyebrow arches slightly at the new direction of the discussion, interested in the turn of it more than anything else, "Well, many is a relative phrase. Several, certainly. Maximilian's had me look up some of his old friends while I've been here and I've avoided some. And then I've looked up others he didn't mention. And then I've made several through William and Ian since I've been here." Her grin broadens a bit at the assumption and she nods, "Comprably short, yes. But, long enough to be interesting. Or at least I like to think so."

     He nods with that. From Raymond's expression, he didn't appear to expect some great revelation, nor was he prodding too much. "And speaking of," Raymond grins, "...you said you'd met them in America in Oregon. I dare say that they think much of you," he affirms, "...to keep up correspondence. They are the type of friends that..." the prince smirks now, "...that many would give their bonds to know." You can imagine. "An impressive crowd," the comment meant to your astute choices. "And a sire you must have, to have prepared you for all of these things."

     That brings a laugh out of her, certainly. Genuine amusement overflowing from it before she takes another drink from her coffee cup, "Yes. I did. And I'm glad that they do, really, it's been immeasurable in just about everything, really. I have to say though it surprises me now when I look back at what an utter mess I made of... just about everything when I first met them."
     She grins a bit and nods, "That he certainly did. Maximilian Constantine, lately of New York and... Corsica, I believe was the last place he called me from. Though he winters there, so he's home now."

     "I am afraid that I don't know him," Raymond nods, "...but maybe I should." A moment of quiet then, "In fair play, I should let you do the same -- I have asked so many questions, and so..." Raymond's hand comes out, offering you the opportunity.

     "He's been over in the Americas for some time now. And before that he was in Italy." Victoria adds easily.
     She considers a moment and holds her coffee between her hands delicately as she tilts her head to the side a bit with a hint of a grin, "I suppose it's only sporting. So how long do you expect to be away from Tours?"

     "Two more nights," Raymond says, "I cannot stay away so long." Truth with no bitterness. It's the role he's accepted. "But it will have been five nights, and that is enough for now. I try to take frequent breaks, instead of...well, burning out, so to speak." Raymond grins, rolling his eyes in self-deprecation.
     "But as you know, I have not been in my role so long. A bit over a year and a half." In case you were wondering.

     "I remember hearing about it, there was a bit of a stir if I recall correctly." Victoria answers, "But at the time I wasn't paying as much attention to the European theatre as I probably should have been." She grins a bit, "I've never paid quite as much attention to the European theatre as I probably should have been, really."
     "I've never really learned how to take breaks. I think this is the first one since... I was in college, actually. Well, unless you consider when I moved to New Port a break, but it didn't turn out to be one." She shrugs a little, not overly concerned about the specifics, "So do you come here on all your breaks or do you tend to go to other places too?"

     Raymond smiles coyly, his head tilting to his right shoulder. "This is the one I don't mind telling others about. The rest...well, I do need my privacy," he explains, winking gently. "You'll forgive me, Victoria," each syllable discretely said, "...if I don't tell all my secrets."
     "As for a stir," Raymond grins, "...it wasn't so awful. You know how these things go, they're planned. Agreements upon agreements handed down from who knows when."

     Laughing lightly, the doctor shrugs, not at all offended by the lack of information on that front, "Of course. It wouldn't do to have hangers on all over the place I'm sure." Victoria grins a little and takes another bite of her dessert and adds with a smile, "Not to mention, secrets keep life interesting."
     "Well, on the well executed ones they are. The ones which aren't are the ones people worry about." She settles back in her seat a little, "But I'm glad it was a good transition it sounds like."

     "You believe this wasn't?" Raymond asks, hands coming to rest on his lap. "That is, you have said it was a stir, stir suggests it's of some worry, thus it wasn't handled well."
     And yes, it's the first sign of annoyance.
     "You might as well have said, 'How long have you been beating your wife,' Raymond adds. "Ventrue," he grins, brow arching and falling in a blink of an eye.

     "Not all stirs are bad." Victoria observes calmly, "And honestly the only level of stir that I heard was that there was talk of it happening. Nothing specifically good or bad. Which, to my mind, is the best kind of transition you can have. It's noticed, which is important, you wouldn't want people forgetting who was where. Which I've heard of happening. And people are paying attention but there hasn't been any kind of negative press associated, which means that it's probably a better than average situation."

     Raymond nods, his blue eyes still bright. He inhales and exhales, shrugging. "So, tell me about this..." he says with a slight smile. His eyes flicker to the box. "Am I going to have to find something spectacular in my closets to trade?"

     "I didn't mean it as an insult." Victoria adds, noting the lingering displeasure before she takes a drink from her coffee.
     "No, unless you want to. I had said I was going to send you a paperweight from the artist I mentioned at the gallery opening." She says easily, moving on to the more graceful topic of conversation, "But, I saw this instead and liked it too much. So, since I didn't have any place to put it I decided to give it away instead."

     "You're very kind," Raymond smiles. "I look forward to opening it. I do love presents," he smirks, confessing a weakness. "Ah," he shrugs again. "I am glad to see you," he nods. "And I hope you enjoy your holiday here. I should perhaps go -- despite being away, I do still have a few items I must deal with."
     "Will you have time for drinks later?" Raymond asks, sitting up slightly in his chair.

     "Of course. I should check in back home myself, it's getting on morning back home and people's schedules will be shifting, which is the best time to catch them." Victoria rises from her seat easily and smiles, "Drinks would be lovely. Early tomorrow evening I was going to go by a vineyard nearby to look at their process since I was invited to, but I'm free after or later tonight. Whatever's more convenient."

     "Later tonight, say...two or three? If I may, I'll ring your room when I am done," Raymond offers. "I will also have the caves guide sent to you and arrange for a tour, say tomorow evening, after your business meeting?"

     "That sounds perfect." Victoria answers with an easy smile, "I'll look forward to both. Good luck with the rest of your evening, and thanks for the coffee and pastry, they were a treat."

Posted by rowan at September 20, 2003 01:09 PM