Notes

[14:18] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Good to see you. Hope you've been well
[14:36] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Hey there! I am. How about yourself?
[14:38] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I'm also well, thank you.
[14:38] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Excellent!
[14:41] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I don't know how busy you are, but would you have any interest in starting a scene?
[14:44] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I would enjoy that. I would like to make some notes for our scene... apologies for not having done that already, which might bring up a few short questions.
[14:46] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Sure, no worries. What kind of questions do you have?
[14:47] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'm starting on making my notes, so as something comes up, I'll ask. :)
[14:48] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Ah sorry, no rush!
[15:18] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I don't think I have any questions
[15:18] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Apologies for the delay
[15:20] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: That's quite alright!
[15:21] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Did you happen to have any thoughts on kneeling or being on all fours?
[15:23] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: It's something I enjoy. Depending on what you want to do with it, I thought it could potentially be included in some of the pampering like for makeup application or otherwise included in daily routine.
[15:26] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Kinda basing it on something like this:
[url=https://i.imgur.com/fMDuI9k.jpeg]nsfw[/url]
[url=https://i.imgur.com/4ZVbjPx.jpeg]nsfw[/url]
[url=https://i.imgur.com/6FZBmDX.jpeg]nsfw[/url]
[15:26] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I don't know what daily routine would support that
[15:27] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: What kind of context did you have in mind for that?
[15:27] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'm not really sure. Just curious about having it as a daily ritual
[15:27] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: We don't have to include it at all
[15:29] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: It's definitely something I'm interested in. Just trying to think of ways it would be interactive. I'd be open to including it in some kind of intimate or cuddling context or generally for pampering.
[15:30] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I think I picture it as a moment that feels more objectifying
[15:30] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Perhaps paired with nobody, or a male, or an attendant, or I suppose another noblewoman.
[15:32] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: So more inherently sexual and exhibitionist? I'm open to that kind of context as well.
[15:33] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Yeah. Something that they endure, rather than sexually enjoy.
[15:34] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: How do you imagine they would end up in a situation like that?
[15:34] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: An attendant notices that it's 2 in the afternoon and whispers to Jessica that it's time.
[15:35] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Might depend on who, if anybody, is there
[15:39] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Did you want to tie it into a cultural element or just have it as part of the daily routine?
[15:40] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Part of Jessica's culture and new to Emery
[15:42] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Sure, that sounds good to me.
[15:43] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Did you have thoughts on if anybody else should be there?
[15:44] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I don't have a strong preference. I think for most days, probably either alone, with each other, or with an attendant, but there could be potential to involve people outside of that.
[15:45] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: And how long might it last?
[15:46] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Most days maybe around an hour? It could potentially be meditative or self-indulgent or anywhere in between.
[15:47] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I like it!
[15:47] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Could be in a bedroom or a more frequented room, or even a private closet-like stall within the bedroom, like a shrine
[15:49] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Yes, absolutely. Do you have thoughts on using it in a more ornamental context? Like an appreciation of beauty and feminine aesthetics?
[15:51] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Oh, I like that.
[15:51] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Makes me imagine having some living statues
[15:52] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: That's exactly what I was thinking.
[15:55] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'm very open to them, but they seem to be a mix of the two cultures, rather than fitting well into just one
[15:57] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: That's valid. Probably not something we start off with then, but maybe something to introduce later if it makes sense.
[15:57] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: We could say that they discover some text that talks about it after being together a while.
[15:57] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: *some ancient
[15:58] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Sure. I'm happy to keep it in the back pocket for now and circle back to it.
[15:59] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Perfect.
[15:59] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Okay, any further thoughts on first episode (of them meeting)?
[16:00] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I think I'm good as far as an introductory episode. Meeting then some exploration of the local city and duchy before traveling to the estate, yes?
[16:01] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: That could be fun.
[16:02] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Anything else you wanted to touch base on?
[16:03] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I don't think so. Would you like to start us off?
[16:04] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Sure thing.
[16:12] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Are they meeting in Maridale or was it a different town?
[16:15] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I think they should meet just inside Barenmore, the name of the estate
[16:26] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: The carriage rattled as it rolled over the packed dirt road that wound its way between the rolling foothills on its way to Barenmore, the secluded country estate. Their passage through the mountain range surrounding Alleghenia had taken longer than anticipated, since the direct routes carved into the mountainside were narrow and intended more for foot or horseback travel. As a result, they had been forced to take a more circuitous route that could accommodate the more comfortable coach. While much of the journey from Londania had been dull, it at least provided an opportunity for Jessica's handmaiden to ensure that she was familiar with the culture, history, and customs of their destination. Another jostle over the slightly uneven ground made the built-in restraints tug lightly as they held Jessica in position. The high-necked collar, delicately wrought from fine filaments of silver, was attached to an anchor behind her neck, the combination of which ensure that she maintained her posture and presented herself as was befitting of a high-born Londanian woman. Flowing from her shoulders, Jessica was adorned in a deep blue silk dress, the color of the sky just after the sun has sunk below the horizon. The bodice was tightly fitted, though not so much as to be suggestive, while ruffles of lace and bunched fabric decorate her wrists and neckline.
[16:30] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (Marvelous start! Do you have any preference on if I play as Jessica's handmaiden for a post or two or do you want me to play Emery's life in parallel?)
[16:32] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: (Thank you! I am more than happy to do either. If you wanted to explore the dynamic between Jessica and her personal servant, I am totally open to that, but if you prefer to look through Emery's eyes, I think that works equally well)
[16:50] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Esmelda ([url=https://i.imgur.com/CR4MxvB.jpg]nsfw[/url]) paused her explanations and gazed at her mistress for a moment. Collared as the lady was, the handmaiden felt some sympathy, glad that she didn't have to endure the strictures that noblewomen did. [i]Of course, the life of luxury and pampering made up for it.[/i] Glancing down at the collage of papers on her lap, on the bench seat, and on the floor, Esmelda realized that she might be going in a bit too deep. She put on a smile and collected some of the papers together. "Perhaps, let's take a break for now. We're getting close," she said, looking past the curtain to outside and seeing that they were descending. "Maridale is... only a few hours away, and Barenmore is on this side of the city. Should get there well before dinner," she said, pleased of her own estimate skills. She wouldn't share that their driver, a man by the name of Jeffries, had told her just as much that morning.

"Are you nervous, Miss?" she asked, curious. She had never known her mistress to be a nervous person, but arranged marriages always had some questions to them.

The attendant had tried to accumulate as much as she could about the Walskan and Alleghenian culture, but the mountain range limited much transfer between the two kingdoms. With so little capacity, the focus was more on business and trade agreements and alliance-making than benign details of clothing styles and wedding traditions. Esmelda could gleam some from various texts, but there were still too many questions to count. She would have to help her lady adjust on the fly.
[17:09] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Jessica tries to cast her gaze out the window, though she has trouble turning her head enough to get a clear view. It was enough to tell they were no longer in the rugged terrain that they'd been passing through for the last couple days, but she had already determined that from the movement of the carriage. Londanians were often regarded as hard to read, and while growing up immersed in the culture facilitated an understanding of the somewhat Byzantine customs, often only an individual's closest companions could discern their mood or inner thoughts. It was certainly an asset during negotiations, both political as well as commercial, and gave them a reputation of being shrewd bargainers as well as masterful political schemers that frequently found employ in foreign kingdoms. Jessica's face was no less inscrutable than any other Londanian, though on the inside, her thoughts and emotions had been increasingly tumultuous as they approached their destination.

She pauses for a moment before responding to the other woman. Since her range of motion was somewhat restricted, it was customary for a handmaiden to sit opposite her mistress in the carriage.. Esmelda had been indispensable throughout the entire process, and Jessica was grateful to have her at her side. "Perhaps tired. It's been a wearisome journey, and I will be glad for it to be at its end. Without your company, I would surely have died of boredom long before we even reached the mountains." She knew how hard Esmelda had been working to gather materials about their destination, but the betrothal had been handled quietly and rather quickly so as not to draw much attention, which left both women a little unprepared for what would happen after they arrived.
[17:14] [user]Slave Cathy[/user] has logged in.
[17:18] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (On a call for a bit)
[17:18] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: (Take your time)
[17:29] [user]Slave Cathy[/user] is now Looking: Desiring a cruel Mistress to [s]take care of[/s] dominate this [s]pillow princess[/s] bondage-loving slave or maid
[17:56] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (I should be able to start writing a post in about 5 minutes. Are we near the end of your time?)
[17:57] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: (I'm going to have to step away in a bit more than half an hour. I'll possibly on later this evening. No rush for you to get back, we can pick back up another time, Just wanted to give a heads up)
[17:57] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (Well, I'm happy to take up whatever time you have. :D )
[18:06] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (Okay, I'm here.)
[18:06] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: (Shall I make a post or should we do a quick post-play chat, even though it was brief?)
[18:07] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: (I think I have time for a post from you and then a debrief after)
[18:19] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Esmelda was thrilled to have a mistress like Lady Jessica. She wasn't entirely sure if she'd be in the woman's employ once they arrived either. She could be sent back to Londania with Jeffries, or she could even be "acquired" by Lady Emery. Lady Jessica would likely try to make sure that she was happy with the choice made for her, but the uncertainty did raise many concerns with the woman. The pair weren't even entirely clear on how old Lady Emery was. Young enough to be unmarried, likely no kids. And Jessica's bethrothed's personality was completely unknown. She could be mean, viscous, cruel even. And entirely within her right and worse, within her culture, to be so. It was enough to flood the attendant's mind with questions. [i]I wonder if they bind their attendants in Walska.[/i]

Esmelda smiled at her mistress's appreciation, tucking the moment into her mind to savor for years to come.

The minutes and hours ticked by, both aware that there was little more to discuss until they met their hosts in person. [i]Wait and see.[/i] It was a hard reality to swallow. Nothing left to do but wait.

Eventually the carriage levelled out and began to make its final trek to the gates of the estate. The entrance was ornate, but not ostentatious. A clear demarcation from the commonfolk, but nothing so obscene that it dwarfed Londania. It looked beautiful, refined, full of class and luxury. Pretty.
[18:21] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: (I probably don't have time to craft a full post before I have to leave, so would you be good to do a quick post-chat?)
[18:21] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Sure!
[18:21] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Off to a good start?
[18:21] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I hope the passage of time was okay.
[18:21] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: This might have been longer in the carriage than what you had intended.
[18:22] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Great for me so far. Yeah, I think that's a good choice. I don't want to get too bogged down in it, but I think it's enough to get some characterization.
[18:22] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: And sets it up nicely to introduce Emery and get the plot rolling.
[18:23] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'd be very fine if the next post was them walking into the estate to meet people.
[18:24] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Excellent, that's about what I had in mind. Something along the lines of disembarking the carriage and introductions being made plus formalizing the betrothal.
[18:24] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Of course, Esmelda will be thrilled to see just how friendly Emery is.
[18:25] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I think we said that a gag would be put in place as Jessica exits the carriage, right? (Like right before or right after)
[18:26] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Gag and potentially armbinder, I believe.
[18:27] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Oh yeah
[18:28] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Still good with that?
[18:28] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Yup!
[18:28] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: She meets Emery, they do a little ritual and the episode ends, right?
[18:29] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Yeah, something to that effect. I don't know if you wanted to do anything with Emery at the estate or with her attendants or just start at the meeting.
[18:31] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Oh, I would enjoy a little snippet, if you're open to that. It's not required though.
[18:31] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Something that feature more of the nudity or affection
[18:32] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I don't mind. Maybe something to mirror the interaction between Jessica and Esmelda but kind of frame it more through the lens of Allghenian/Walskan culture.
[18:33] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: So Emery and one of her attendants?
[18:33] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Maybe having her makeup or hair done, or finishing up a bath.
[18:33] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Yeah, if you'd like. Some kind of preparations feels like a good option, or whatever you think is appropriate.
[18:35] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'd love that. I think, to be fair to you, it'd need to be fairly short.
[18:35] [user]Slave Cathy[/user] has logged out.
[18:36] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: A couple posts seems fair to me, especially since Emery didn't get to be involved yet.
[18:37] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Yeah
[18:38] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: I'll admit that I'm not entirely sure what would happen on their tour
[18:38] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Of the estate?
[18:38] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: of Maridale or the countryside
[18:39] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Oh, we don't have to do that if it doesn't really make sense. I thought it could be an opportunity to explore the culture, but I don't mind if we confine it to the estate for narrative reasons.
[18:41] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Well, I love the idea of the clothing change and Emery experiencing some of the bondage.
[18:41] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: ... and seeing other women
[18:43] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I am more than happy to include those scenes. I don't really have a goal for them beyond like cultural immersion/exploration.
[18:44] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Do our characters just see that? Do they talk about it?
[18:44] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Or are our posts mostly focused on detailing what they see, like a montage.
[18:46] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I think potentially a mix of both. Some amount of using it as scenery/backdrop for conversation, some amount of Jessica is surprised at the more casual approach toward nudity, which facilitates conversation between the characters, and some amount of montage-y "this is an interesting idea, but I don't necessarily have a whole scene for it"
[18:47] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Would you like if they stopped a few times to kiss? Or to talk to one of the other women?
[18:48] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Sure, I'm open to something like that. I kind of envision it as something akin to showing someone around your hometown?
[18:49] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Sure.
[18:49] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Get Jessica excited for the openness of the summer estate
[18:49] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: But if it feels awkward or out of place, I don't mind cutting it.
[18:50] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Having a picnic while seeing a woman bathe in the distance, or two women make love seems cute
[18:51] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Oh, a picnic is a fun idea.
[18:54] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I think it could also be interesting to explore a more formal meal at Barenmore another time, maybe a couple weeks after?
[18:55] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Oh, yeah, I could see that.
[18:55] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: What comes to mind there?
[18:57] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: Walskan formalwear, including some other nobility- maybe some old family friends?, mild exhibitionism or otherwise being less conservatively dressed. But I'm happy to take that in different directions.
[18:59] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Yeah, that could be fun.
[18:59] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Oh! I mentioned Emery's parents... would you like them to be involved at all?
[19:00] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: How involved are you thinking? Or in what scenarios?
[19:00] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Could be sexually or seeing some sex/nudity.
[19:00] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Nothing specific in mind, just pondering
[19:01] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I think it's definitely something that would make Jessica a little uncomfortable, but I'm not necessarily opposed to it.
[19:02] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: I'd be happy to discuss that more in depth the next time, but I should get going.
[19:03] [user]Lady Emery of Walska[/user]: Okay. Thanks for playing and chatting with me!
[19:03] [user]LadyJessica[/user]: It's been a pleasure!