Despite being the one who'd made the whole meeting possible, Tristodd's sudden and aggressive intervention shocked everyone in the room. Claudias stood back in shock as the young man-- the boy-- responded to Saura's insults against his brother with ruthless, yet somehow dignified precision. He'd never seen-- and only just barely heard about when the boy got angry, and this was easily more intense than anything Caladan had described. For a brief moment, he saw a spark of the boy's grandfather in his eyes, a burning fire that might leap out and consume the common woman for daring to insult his family.
Saura, for her part, actually did shut up-- for a few seconds, until Tristodd spoke up about the "sacrifices and pains that we as nobles have." That statement managed to break her from her shock, and an incredulous look spread across her face. Glancing over at Anna, she found that the woman didn't look back at her, instead turning away. She was surprised by the gesture, and rather than lash out at the boy, calling him out for his assumption that nobles were the only ones who had to deal with such things as strict social expectations or disownment... but it began to dawn on her that, perhaps, she wasn't helping.
And yet when Tristodd told them that the child had to remain hidden, she protested. "Why? Tha girl shouldn't 'ave ta 'ide in tha dark while 'er man screws around with other women! 'Er babe deserves a father!" She exclaimed, not out of anger for her own situation, but out of a desire to not see it mirrored. "She makes a mistake about who she falls in love with, and she and 'er babe can't live laike normal people?!"
"M-my dear, we never said anything like that! She'll h-have neighbors, be able to m-make friends; Chandrilla has s-some of the b-best schools in the entire galaxy, and they're public. Her ch-child won't have to g-grow up in a place like this, where..." He began, trailing off as he saw Saura, lips pursed and eyes watering.
Taking a deep breathe, Claudias would slowly turn back to Anna. So much of his time and energy had been focused on his brother's former mistress, and while there was still a lot to be said, the woman before him took precedent. "I... I understand that this is h-hard for you. In a f-fairer world you'd be able to s-see Reegian as you so please, and r-raise your ch-child together as you b-both saw fit..." the man declared.
"...but our w-world... isn't fair. We're all exp-pected to p-play certain r-roles, do certain th-things, spend our t-t-time with certain types of people... even if you c-could be with Reegian, op-p-penly, you, him, and your babe would be treated terribly b-by all you'd c-c-call neighbors." Claudias explained. His father had rarely talked about his childhood, but he'd heard from others about what the man had been made to go through as a half xeno, barely legitimate son of a grandnephew of a lord. Even after decades of building a reputation for being an ironwilled, fanatical traditionalist, people still made whispers behind his back, mocking him for how young he looked thanks to his Morellian genes.
Anna, for her part, still wasn't convinced. "You... I don't care about what they all think! They can call me a foreign whore for the rest of my life, I just want to be with Reegian! I want my baby to know their father!" She replied. "M-my dear, I understand that you l-love him, but think of the l-life that your ch-child would be subjected to! Would you t-truly prefer for your child to spend the rest of their d-d-days being ostracized and insulted?! If Reegian were to b-become lord after his father's p-passing, all of his d-distant relatives would c-call your child unfit to succeed him! Even if they decline and house Brentioch's s-s-sssssEAT passes to another, they'll want to make sure that y-your child won't ever p-pose a threat to them."
Anna contemplated the significance of what Claudias was implying, and her cheeks, once flushed red with frustration, turned pale as she understood the implications of her words. She might have loved Reegian, given up everything to be with him... no good mother wouldn't say, "Everything but" when it came to the life of her child. "Oh... Oh gods..." She whispered, tears welling in her eyes. "I... oh, Gods, why did this have to happen... why does it have to be like this?" She tearfully asked.
Before Claudias could say anything, Saura, without so much as a moment's hesitation, pulled the girl into an embrace. "There there, girl... there there..." she whispered, as Anna buried her face into the Brentaalan's shoulder and began to weep. "It ain't right, but it's what we've gotta do fer our young. Th'at's tha first lesson ya learn as a mother." She said. "Ya were his man, but from tha moment ya realized it-- the moment th'at ya realized ya were eatin' fer two-- only one person mattered anymore."
Anna continued to cry for a few minutes, and the two aristocrats were left to watch in silence. Finally, Anna pulled away. "I... I understand." She finally whispered, her voice raspy from her sobbing. "I'll... I'll move to Chandrila. If that's what it takes..." She muttered, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Do you... do you think it'll ever be possible? I know that it can't happen for now, but maybe when they're older, and when Reegian doesn't have to worry about disinheritance... when he has... other children..." she said, the last words causing her voice to crack.
"I... I don't know, Anna... b-but should a d-day ever come, I'll h-happily see to it that you and your ch-child can be reunited with him... if not for all time, than at l-least for some time." He declared. It was a promise that Claudias would keep for as long as he had the power to do so. Anna smiled weakly-- it wasn't much of a consolation, but it was something. "Thank you... all of you, for everything." The woman said. "This... I don't know where I'd be without any of your help. You, Mr Brentioch... Miss Saura, Mr. Tan-naras." She'd said, assuming that his stutter had just been part of the pronunciation.
"It's alright, m-my dear. It was our resp-ponsibility to help you-- not j-just as family, b-but as decent men." He declared. Saura, for her part, shrugged. "Ya still owe me a favor fer this." She said, though a weak smile on her lips betrayed her real intentions.
With things looking squared away, Claudias and Tristodd began to chat about the more specific details with Anna, asking for her opinions. It was only when Saura made her way to the door that Claudias moved. "T-Tristodd, I n-need to excuse myself for a moment; d-don't let me st-t-top you from c-c-continuing on though." He said, smiling as he stood up, and followed Saura out the door. There were... words that needed to be said.
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When Claudias returned, the expression on his face was... hard to read. His balance seemed far worse than it usually was, physically struggling to take in... everything that had been said between the two. Today had been a whirlwind of revelations for him, and it wasn't getting any easier. "S-so... what else needs to be said?" He asked, turning back to Tristodd and Anna with empty eyes.
@LouJoVi