Enlightenment [Lili - COMPLETE]

[Marko Iliev]

Marko didn't enjoy parties.

Well, that was untrue, to an extent. He liked drinking heavily with people he considered his friends, if that could be called a party - even if they didn't need a special occasion to do it on. He liked loud music and smashing plates, and dancing was only really something he found fun after six straight shots of rakija.

It was probably after the revolution had taken place that what was considered a lavish party was really just a stuck-up gathering of snobby nobles in some fancy-ass place or another. They were bland, they were boring, and they were full of some of the most droll people in Granor. These were the kind of parties he hated.

And yet, it was no surprise to him - really - that he had ended up at one that evening.

Normally, those assigned to special operations within the Ruthien ranks would intercept the delivery of an invitation or two from the organisers to whichever random noble or nobles were summoned. They would then head in disguise to the gathering itself, and carry out their mission - be it simply collecting information, undermining a target, or carrying out an attack. Marko was only there to do the first of those things. He was working alone, and the party would probably be under guard anyway. That didn't mean, though, that he wasn't armed. A mission was a mission, and anything could go wrong at any time. Hopefully, that wouldn't happen, though. He doubted any nobles knew of his affiliation with the rebels. If they did, why would they continue to invite him? Usually he'd tear up the letters, throw them away and think nothing more of it. This time, of course, he had to keep the paper to let him in.

Everywhere Marko went, he generally walked. The gala was no exception. He didn't really like horse-drawn carriages; he could have driven in, but a car would have been a problem to manoeuvre around the likely excessive number of carriages in the area... Nobles didn’t often come alone to these social congregations. If the head of the family were given the invite, he would probably bring at the very least his wife with him, if not his footman and bodyguard and various other servants, too. He wouldn’t be surprised if he was the only one completely on his own that evening.

He approached the... The... What the hell was it again? Oh, right, the museum, with his hands in his pockets. He was dressed in a high collared, faded leather-brown coloured suit; probably something he wore once a year, if that, and probably something that Milos would die laughing at if he ever caught him in it. The street outside the museum was crammed with carriages, and the occasional car, as he had expected, but it looked as if people were being ushered inside already. Which was good. He could probably just flash his letter at the doorman and be straight inside, then. The sooner he could get in and out, the better.

[Lili Walser]

Lili enjoyed parties...

Well, that is, Lili enjoyed the social aspect of parties, getting to spend time with people her age, and older, and younger... perhaps dance a bit... listen to music and chatter. She wasn't usually the talkative sort, after all, and people did so love a good listener. And if need be, she could gently state something that would create the conversational flow.

Normally, she'd have Gilbert with her as a chaperone. But Gilbert had been called to work, and as she'd responded already, he couldn't very well make her stay at home. So her chaperone, Sarah, was attending with her. Oftentimes, Sarah would attend as well, depending upon the size or the character of the gathering - in case two pairs of eyes were needed to watch Lili... but tonight, it was at a museum. There was certainly no need for that - especially as Sebastian had driven them here in the carriage, and would be here to pick them up in three hours' time.

She presented her invitation at the door, then, upon entering, she worried that perhaps she wouldn't actually know anyone here. It didn't matter. She was here now, and that was that. She and Sarah both handed off their cloaks to the footman, allowing him to place the outerwear in with all the other nobles', then entered the gallery. Both women wore their hair pinned up; Lili had a pearl brooch pinned into hers, to match the pearl necklace she wore. Her gown this evening was of muted rose pink, with ivory lace trimming the sleeves and hem.

"Lady Lili, let us retire there, near to that piece of art. You can see the entirety of the gathering there." And be seen by them, too, Sarah was certain of that. Lili nodded and led the way through, stopping to chat with anyone who greeted her. She was in a good mood...

It was a party, of sorts, after all.

[Marko Iliev]

He had a suspicion, the closer he came to the museum's entrance, that as he was alone - unlike most of the other guests - he would stand out more, which could in turn be dangerous to his plan. His mark was a military man, he gathered: an Admiral Frederick bom Ilsolde. The Ruthiens had a basic profile for him, but not the details. Anything more personal than an outline of his family, perhaps, or his place of residence, was likely reserved by the nobles and the military. But of course, nobles gossiped. That's where Marko came into play. The Admiral was obviously some form of target to the Ruthiens. If he could find out any inside information; perhaps anywhere he might favour travelling to without a bodyguard, or any notable turmoil within his household, or maybe details of his medical history... Anything and everything he could find out was good. All too often were did Ruthiens favour action over tactics. They could do that all they wanted, but it wasn't going to get them a liberated city.

Luck seemed to be on his side, however. He managed to enter the museum after flashing his letter to the doorman without hindrance, though he was then forced to walk steadily behind a pair of slow moving women, who were wearing old-fashioned, stereotypically noble dresses that from the back gave them the impression that they had gigantic... Rear ends. Gigantic rear ends that shuffled unnaturally from one side to the other as they walked the entrance hall at a snail's pace... Gigantic rear ends that... Marko realised he was looking at... Why? Oh, right - two reasons. One, they were there. They were just there. And they looked ridiculous. Two, Marko was a tall man, but they had huge, equally ridiculous hats on, with gigantic plumes on top that blocked what he might have seen over their heads. They were prattling on to each other about this and that, and he wanted to interject into their conversation and ask them to move a couple of times, but kept biting it back. He couldn't afford to blow his cover, especially not so early in the procedure. This hallway wasn't the underground tunnels where the rebels scurried around. This was a different kind of rat run.

Once they had reached the gallery, the two women scuttled off in a random direction, causing him to breath an inward sigh of relief. He was struck with a different problem, then, wandering in a different direction to where the women had gone, but wandering none the less. Where to look... What do to... Finding the target was a start. From the mug shot he'd been presented with, Admiral Ilsolde wasn't anything out of the ordinary, unfortunately enough. He looked like any other noble man over the age of fifty - grey haired and haggard. There was nothing Marko could distinguish him with except his memory of his face, and the fact that he would be wearing an Admiral's uniform to the event. Thankfully, the latter narrowed it down, making the former much, much easier. If he was luckier still, he might even get the chance to converse with the man himself.

He tried not to purposefully scan through the rest of the nobles looking for him, though. Instead, he drew his attention to an old statue of a bearded man in armour that was on display, behind the token red barrier ropes. He couldn't tell who it was off-hand, so he glanced down at the plaque below.

King Baldwin
One of the earliest known kings of Atheros, archaeological evidence suggests that he was--

Marko didn't get to read any more than that before he was interrupted by a voice cutting - on purpose - through his concentration. "You, you're that Iliev boy, aren't you?"

[Lili Walser]

Lili had barely glanced at the statue of the king - it must be Baldwin or one of his sons, from the look of the armor. She wasn't interested in statuary. No, the piece she was intrigued in, moreso now that she was nearer it than before, was the painting of a field of wheat, and farmers. She'd have to ask Uncle Toni if he'd seen it... but she'd first have to see if there were others. Perhaps he'd come with her to the museum one day. Then she could look around without others nearby... and Uncle Toni probably wouldn't mind spending all day in the museum. Maybe Gilbert would come too? She'd have to see.

Once they stopped, Sarah turned to survey the passing nobles again, making certain that no one was altogether too close to Lili... and figuring out where those of the throng were that would know her charge, where those that Lili would know where, and where those that Lili might like to meet happened to be. It was part of her duty as a chaperone, to make certain that Lili knew the names of people she met - if Sarah knew them - and to ask if Lili didn't. That way, if the girl wished to talk to them, she wouldn't have to embarrass herself by asking.

"Sarah, look. The detail on this painting is just exquisite." Lili was murmuring, leaning as close to it as she could with the red rope in the way. One of the guards eyed her warily, but as she had her hands locked behind her, he didn't comment. Nobles. They thought they were entitled to everything. This girl, thankfully, didn't appear to even consider the idea of touching such a priceless piece of artwork.

The sudden booming voice caused Lili to jump and quickly direct her attention to the statue - Baldwin - and the couple of gentlemen standing beside it. Fortunately, she didn't need to inquire of Sarah who they were... well, the younger gentleman, anyway. Iliev... that name was familiar. She'd think for a moment - and perhaps she could figure out just where it was that she knew the Iliev family, whether it was a particularly memorable party or through some other connection.

[Marko Iliev]

The man's voice was loud, though Marko didn't know who it was until he turned to look at him. The man was short and stout (he probably came up to Marko's shoulder at his tallest), with a receding hairline. He was probably just a little older than middle-aged, had one of those plump faces that made his eyes squint, like he was permanently looking into a bright light, and Marko recognised him somehow, but couldn't think of his name. He must've known him through his father, otherwise he wouldn't have asked if he was 'that Iliev boy'.

"I am." Marko replied to the man, after taking a pause to have to think out his response. He couldn't speak off-hand; having spent most of his free time hanging around the underground, he'd developed what was most likely a very non-noble manner of speaking.

The man stared at him, rubbing at his chin in a thoughtful manner. "Grigor?"

Grigor was the second oldest boy in the family, making him Marko's younger brother. He was in his early twenties by now. They hadn't seen each other for at least two years though, which lead Marko to wonder if he'd been mistaken for him by appearances. Then again, Grigor was going to be the son that would inherit the electrical plant from their father. It was more likely he would be attending a noble party than his estranged brother... But maybe he was here too, as well.

"Marko." He corrected the man, giving him a disapproving look. But, he then tried to mask it with a half-smile. "Grigor's my little brother. Why, is he supposed to be here?"

The man looked surprised - as his eyebrows raised suddenly - and he also, perhaps, looked a little off-put, but he nodded, though Marko thought he perhaps was nodding instead of shrugging. "Perhaps, perhaps. I can't say that I know. I haven't had the pleasure of speaking to Veselin in a while. But I do remember you. You're the older boy, aren't you? The one that moved out?"

"Yes." He said, trying not to shake his head in affirmation. Typical of his father's word of mouth, that wasn't entirely true, but this man didn't need to know that he was actually thrown out. But even though he could remember Marko, Marko still couldn't remember him.

The man looked for a moment like he was about to ask further questions, but then thankfully outstretched his hand, offering to shake, with a broad smile across his face. "You don't look as if you remember me at all, though. Augustus Farrington."

He shook his hand, remembering that the Farringtons were estate owners. That was kind of a shame, he had hoped this guy would've been more interesting than simply bloodline and inheritance... Then again, those were the basic principals of nobility. You could be the richest man in Granor, but you didn't have blue blood, you weren't a noble.

Marko opened his mouth to speak again, but Augustus Farrington had already turned away from him, and towards the statue in front of them. "Ah, King Baldwin... What a wonderfully preserved statue! I heard they excavated this from deep in the cliffside. Odd place to leave such an artefact lying around, don't you think? Scholars are presuming Baldwin did something to offend the people and they removed all statues made in his honour, and buried them as deep as they could... This was hundreds of years ago, of course, and gradually Granor has been built up further on top of the cliff since then. Even so, it's remarkable how it survived! Even more so remarkable that they..."

He tuned the man out, glancing off to the side, hoping he wouldn't notice. Urgh, he remembered one of the reasons why he usually couldn't stand nobles - the way they droned on and on about things... Geeze, if he'd wanted to know about Baldwin, he'd have read the damn plaque... Which was what he was doing until Farrington had actually shown up. Anyway, that kind of information wasn't of any value to him. Information on Admiral Ilsolde, however, was... Maybe if this guy shut up again, he could ask him.

[Lili Walser]

Marko Iliev. There was someone not often seen at parties of this sort anymore... not since he moved from his father's house. She hadn't thought that he was Grigor, though... Grigor was just a little different. He carried himself differently. The blonde noblewoman caught herself looking at the pair of gentlemen again, and focused her attention on the painting once more. She was tuned into their conversation now, though... and really, it was loud enough to be hard to ignore.

Farrington... she wasn't sure whether she knew that name or not. Vati may have... but... well.

But when the nobleman started speaking on King Baldwin, Lili gave up all pretense and wandered over, Sarah following closely. History was always something that intrigued her. She lingered for a moment, peeking at Marko shyly before glancing at Augustus. Goodness, but he was lecturing, wasn't he? ... Even so, it was interesting lecturing.

She didn't speak, of yet, but then, she didn't want to be rude and interrupt.

[Marko Iliev]

"...down and reusing the materials to make new statues of the next king..." Farrington's voice seemed to phase in and out. Marko's eyes continued to pan across the room, until they locked on to the back of a navy blue military uniform, between the cumulative crowd. Was that the Admiral...? It could well have been... He strained his neck slightly, trying to peer between the spaces separating other nobles to get a better look...

...Then, it hit him, that it probably looked as if he'd been staring into space for the past minute or so. The other nobleman's voice droned back in, as if to remind him, "...So perhaps, just perhaps, the people didn't resent him as much as we would assume."

Marko looked back at the statue, and pretended he'd been listening all along. "Something like that." He said, with a slight shrug. Maybe he could pass as not particularly interested, rather than look as if he'd completely ignored him... Which was quite true, really. His eyes wandered off again, to the side, noticing that two women had wandered over, either to look at the statue or to listen in on Farrington's lecture. Well... At least someone found it interesting, he supposed. Marko didn't care for long dead kings, although - as odd as it was for a noble to think along those lines - he was pretty sure their rule would be a damn sight better than the current government.

[Lili Walser]

As Farrington's lecture drew to a close, Lili smiled up at the older man, but didn't offer comment. Instead, she turned to Marko and dipped a slight curtsy. "Hallo, Marko." She greeted him by name, smiling ever so faintly. It didn't truly matter to her whether he remembered her or not - oftentimes, people forgot her, unless she traveled with Gilbert. It made sense... she was quiet, and small, and usually rather timid if Gilbert wasn't around somewhere. It always made her feel more secure, knowing that he was there and could rescue her if the need arose.

Tonight, though, was different enough. She'd not seen Marko Iliev in quite some time... and there was no reason not to catch up on how he'd been recently. It would give her something to chatter to Gilbert about later, even if she did suspect that half the time she chattered about such things, Gilbert tuned half-out.

Ah, well. The important conversation, the one right in front of her, was happening now. She'd return her attention to it, and him, and put the other aside for now.

[Marko Iliev]

He was just about to look back towards the crowd in search of the Admiral, when his attention was taken again. He glanced around once or twice, before he realised the voice was coming from below. He'd seen that girl before somewhere, he thought to himself, as he looked down... Wasn't she a relative of that loud albino military man? He could have been wrong. He remembered her face, at least, but not her name... Not straight away. He had to think harder for that... What was the albino's name? Beilschmidt? "Dobar wecher." He told her, anyway, managing a smile. He had thankfully remembered to be polite at this event. Marko figured perhaps she'd reintroduce herself, if he didn't ask her name.

[Lili Walser]

And reintroduce herself she did. "You probably don't remember me... it's been some time since we've spoken. I'm Lili Walser."

Sarah, behind her, sniffed almost inaudibly to show what she thought about Lili introducing herself (or, rather, reintroducing, which was twice as bad) but Lili ignored her. She'd become immune to those such sentiments from her lady's maid. Often, she or Cousin did things which Sarah found beneath them without even thinking about it. She honestly saw no reason to wait for someone to ask for her name when it was clear that they couldn't recall it... there was no reason to embarrass someone.

"H-how have you been? I... I haven't seen you at a party in what seems like ages."