"Beauty is a Weapon at a Woman's Disposal"

[the_scandal_of_italy]

WHO: Lucrezia Borgia
WHERE: Bunglaow 27
WHEN: 6/07
OPEN TO: All
WARNINGS: None
STATUS: Open

---

The shock of arrival had worn off as the day was nearing its end. To go from the Roman style celebrations to a vast wilderness had been a shock for her. The smell of Rome was familiar to her, the waste, food and people were almost comforting, even behind the walls of her mother's palazzo. To leave that and surround herself with...nothing, it was as much of a shock as the cold water she emerged from.

Villagers greeted her, others brought in through similar means. They apparently were confronted with new arrivals often, as their explanations seemed well rehearsed. They weren't disingenuous, just...memorized. She wasn't the first and she got the impression she wouldn't be the last.

Without Cesare or her father to guide her, Lucrezia followed the advice of those that found her. Once she was cleaned, she found a house to her liking and waited for the last of her daze to depart. Was this how her precious Djem felt when he arrived in Rome? So out of sorts and confused? The thoughts of her family weren't far from her mind, quickly chased by an overwhelming sorrow that threatened to suffocate her, as though she were drowning again.

Forcing herself to think of other things, Lucrezia collected a number of linens from the house and brought them to the front porch. She didn't know very much about cleaning, but she knew how to soak and treat linens, having sat beside Francesca as she tended to Giovanni Sforza's home. It took a bit of effort to bring a bucket of water to the house, but eventually she was seated on the front porch, singing to herself as she scrubbed the linens in fresh water. There was no soap, but did that really matter?

Comments

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"How very rustic." But no, that would never do. She would need to see this home that Jon had claimed and see to it herself. All men needed a bit of beauty in their surroundings, if only to help ease their minds and hearts from the struggles of the day. She was no great artist, but she knew how to transform even the most modest dwelling.

"I think we should simply clear away the dust and cobwebs. I should like to use my furniture before deciding where it should be placed." She grinned. "Are you so friendly to all of your new neighbors?"

[tooktheblack]

"I try to help everyone who comes here," Jon said. Admittedly, not everyone who arrived in this place was a beautiful woman so he might have been somewhat more friendly with Lucrezia than most but he was still helpful to all who came. He had been here the longest among most - only a few remained that had arrived with him - and he felt it was his duty to aid the newcomers.

"But since you live so close to my family, I feel I should help you more than I would most."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"You intend to be partial to me? I shall have to find a way to be worthy of your attentions." It is said with a coquettish smile, tipping her head just right so that her gold hair could catch in the light. What woman wouldn't want a man offering her so much attention and aid? He was a knight, rescuing a lady in distress. Perhaps even better, he seemed to be a man of grim temperament. Love play with such men was nothing short of enticing.

"How fortunate you are to have your family." She sighed softly. "I rather wish my brother were here." Or her son. She had lived without her family while wed to Giovanni Sforza and suffered because of it. "Do you have brothers?"

[tooktheblack]

"I have...had three of them," Jon explained. It had been ages since he'd seen Bran and Rickon and all that he'd heard from Sansa was that they were dead by Ramsay or Theon's hand. He wished he'd had the chance to rescue Rickon from Ramsay but as Sansa had advised, that had been a deliberate ploy to wound him and distract him.

"My brother Robb is the only one who is here with me now. I have two sisters. Only Sansa is here in the village."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"I have three as well. Two older brothers and a younger one, though I have always wanted a sister." But perhaps she wouldn't have been as cherished by her father if she had been one of many daughters. "I should like to meet your family." If only to be in a loving environment again. They might not be hers, but it would be comforting.

"Is your brother as handsome as you?" She grinned, naturally falling into her coquettish nature.

[tooktheblack]

"They say he's more handsome, actually," Jon said, laughing uncomfortably. Women had always fawned over Robb but Jon wasn't certain if it was because of his looks or because he'd be lord of Winterfell someday.

"Maybe I don't want you to meet my brother. Then you'll never want to talk to me again, will you?"

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"Do they? Then how is it I haven't met him yet?" She flashed a smile at him. It was easier to forget the manner of her arrival and how uncertain her life was here. At least for now, she could tease and flirt. Her mind could be occupied by something far more pleasant and enjoyable than be surrounded by fear and sorrow.

"Ah, but doesn't he live next door to me? I imagine I will cross his path sooner or later." Given how kind Jon was, she couldn't imagine abandoning his kind overtures.

[tooktheblack]

"You will and I will have to hope that I have made a memorable enough impression that you'll forget about how handsome he is and still have eyes for me," Jon teased. It wasn't something that came naturally to him, this sort of banter, but he was better at it now than he'd ever been before he'd left to go to the Wall.

"Otherwise, well. You'll just have to make a decision between two kings."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

King? Her head shot towards him, staring at him with wide eyes. She had been flirting and teasing him as she would any normal man, but he was a king. There was etiquette that was expected to follow, taught to her when she was a young girl. Despite being a bastard, she was the daughter of the Pope. She knew how to receive men of near equal standing.

"Your grace," she curtsied, her amusement evaporating. "I didn't know.

Juan would tell her that kings should bow to her, but she didn't possess his arrogance. She didn't mind paying respect where it was due. "I should have known. You have the bearing of a king."

[tooktheblack]

Jon held up a hand. "Please, no, none of that. I would rather you just call me Jon, all right? I was a bastard before I was a king and I'm never going to get used to people calling me your Grace and curtsying and bowing. I don't need it. I'm a king who fights in the vanguard and a king who works with his hands. Jon is just fine."

He smiled a little, somewhat sheepish. "Can you forget I told you?"

[the_scandal_of_italy]

She smiled softly, looking down at her hands shyly. "I was born a bastard as well. It was only after my father was named Pope that I was legitimized." He was a king, he was at least equal in standing to her, if not a bit higher than her in status. He was humble, at least. More so than the older nobility of the Italian kingdoms. No matter how he was born, it gave him more grace and majesty than they ever possessed.

"If that were possible than I would be able to forget arriving in this world. You are a king, you shouldn't be afraid of it." No more than she could control her standing as a type of princess. "If only all kings were as handsome. It seems like they should be, doesn't it?"

[tooktheblack]

Jon shook his head. "Kings should be good at ruling their people, just and fair. If they are fair to look upon, that is good news for their wives, but I do not think it is necessary to make a good king."

He did smile a bit, though, and watched Lucrezia's face carefully. "Do you think I am a handsome king, then?"

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"All of the greatest kings in tales have been handsome." Though she learned long ago that stories were often far from reality. "Honor is something rarely seen, even more so in Kings and rulers."

He received the same sort of smile that she had offered Paolo, knowing and seductive. "Of course. As handsome and good as Hector."

[tooktheblack]

Jon laughed a little to hide how he didn't exactly know who Hector was. It wasn't a name known in Westeros, anyway, and he shook his head.

"I just try to do my best, my lady. I don't know if that makes me a good king or a bad one but I try to make the best decision I can with the information in front of me. I'm plain spoken and I'm better with a sword than a quill. I don't know what that makes me, so far as kings go."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"So long as you bear in mind how best to serve your people, you will have the makings of a great king." Though she knew that wasn't the way of ruling. Jon seemed to be idealistic in the way that she used to be, the way she wished to be. Better to hope that he could be a good king, full of kindness and hope, than a man as corruptible as the cardinals of the Vatican.

"But kings must have heirs. How have you not wed?"

[tooktheblack]

"I've only just become a king. We're at war. No time to marry anyone or think about fathering any heirs."

Besides, Jon was a bastard. He'd assumed that House Stark would continue to hold Winterfell and that Sansa's sons and daughters would inherit, not his own.

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"Marriage alliances often unite kingdoms and warring families." She frowned, glancing down at her hands as her thoughts traveled back to Giovanni Sforza. "I was wed to offer my father protection against his enemies, yet it seemed that he miscalculated my husband's arrogance and cruelty." His humiliation was the greatest gift her father could offer her.

"Perhaps you shall fair better. Your marriage will be more in your control." For how could he not wed? A king needed heirs.

[tooktheblack]

"My sister was forced into two marriages for political alliance. I am sorry you were married to someone cruel, Lucrezia," Jon said, his own fingers curling into a tight fist as he thought about Sansa being used as a pawn by first the Lannisters and later the Boltons. She shouldn't have been used that way. No woman should.

"A woman ought to have more control over who she's to marry. It's not fair to you."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"Marriage is the only way to secure those alliances. I knew that I would be wed to a man of my father's choice. I thought perhaps that he might come to love him, but he was loyal only to his family name, not to his honor or anything else." He paid the price, at least.

She gave a small laugh, "I may have more control now that I am older. My father has not yet spoken to me of marriage, but he will likely allow me to say 'yes' or 'no' to whomever he suggests. As it stands, I have no desire to wed again." Her eyes trailed over the room. "Now it seems I don't have to consider it."

[tooktheblack]

"None of us have to consider marriage in this place. We have alliances that stand without it," Jon agreed. He was glad for it. While he had never been married and would treat a woman well if he had to, he knew that Sansa had been and he never wanted her to have to marry again.

"It makes this place strange, by my estimation, but not entirely bad."

[the_scandal_of_italy]

"There seems to be much about this place that is strange, but I am grateful that there is such kindness." She looked at him fondly, a warmth in her eyes. "So many have helped me settle in, but I will be able to rest easy tonight because of your work."

She grinned, "Thank you."