"The Dolphin and the Diplomat"

A tale of Scipio, son of Flora.

Year -84

It all started on a spring day. I was in my rooms in Castle Amber,
minding my own buisness and simply reading a book. There was a
knock on my chamber door.
"Prince Scipio?" came the voice of a messenger. "Come in" I said,
hoping that whatever she had for me, it would enliven the day.
Sandra walked in. "Good day, Sandra." I said in greeting. Some
of my relatives can be very condescending to shadow folk. Not I,
however. Especially not to a member of the fair sex. You might even
say that I have a dedicated interest in them. I think it is entirely
appropriate for the son of Flora to be as interested in the opposite
sex as she is.
She came bearing a conical wrapping of flowers of some kind. I
immediately wracked my brain, wondering if I had sent anyone flowers
lately, and, perhaps, the order had been screwed up, and so the
flowers had come HERE. For the unicorn, I could think of none.
"I think there is a mistake, Sandra. Are you sure they are for me?"

The petite brunette nodded. "There is even a card addressed to you,
Sir." She placed the two items on a table.
I walked over to my muffin basket, and tossed a muffin to the
messenger, which she deftly caught, and with a smile, left. She has
always been good at catching my signals, Sandra has...
Curious, I walked over to the items. The flowers were odd. Some
sort of rose, but the petals were the lightest color of blue. Blue
roses. Where would one find them, and who would send them to me?
To answer that next question, I looked at the card. It was a vellum
envelope, with the name "Scipio, Prince of Amber" neatly handwritten
in gold. A fine effort--almost the lengths I myself go in courting
the opposite sex.
I carefully slit the envelope open with a handy, nearby letter
opener. Oh, while I enjoy Trump calls, and legend has it that I never
refuse one, handwritten correspondence is very polite and mannered.
I do write to a few people here and there in Amber.
The letter itself was of the same material, and the ink of the words
was an ebony black. Again, the handsome handwriting of the envelope
was the same on the letter. The words themselves were some sort of
poetry.

"The pursuer of the sex most fair
Shall find himself the object of the chase.
His usual quarry will be the huntress
And he, himself, the prey.
Through land, sea, and air
His lips she cannot wait to taste
Who is this huntress?
Scipio Aurelius is her prey."

There was no signature.
Does the word intriguing mean anything to you? Unless someone
was playing a massive and nasty joke upon me, it seemed certain that
someone, a woman, had taken an interest in me. Someone who knew that
I pursued women with gusto, and had decided to turn the tables on me.


I carefully found a vase and placed the blue roses in them, and
supplied them with some water. I had no clues to go on besides the
handwriting, a poor clue here in Amber, where graphology is not exactly
prevalent, and the roses themselves.
Perhaps they could give a clue as to this lady. Perhaps they only
grew in a certain region, or perhaps had a symbolic meaning--like white
roses mean friendship and red roses mean love. so, naturally, I went
to the library of the castle. As it so turns out, there was no one
about. I headed over to a natural history section of the expansive
shelves after climbing the catwalk. I was looking, of course, for any
section on botany.
Taking a few promising volumes, I set to work at a table. I started
reading up all I could on roses...
After a while, exhausted, I returned the books to the shelves,
dissappointed. No reference to blue roses of any kind, shape or form.
So, perhaps they were from shadow. In which case, the search was
hopeless. Still, perhaps this mystery woman would send another clue.


I was not dissappointed in that. A couple of days went by. Except
for the fact that the roses
did not wilt, nothing unexpected or untoward occurred. Naturally,
everyone and anyone were curious as to where the roses had come from.
Even ladies which came to my quarters were fascinated by them.
Finally, I received yet another missive and gift.
I unwrapped this to find a beautiful hand mirror. Silver--not plate,
either. Engraved with mostly spirals and such. Very nice indeed.
Eagerly, I turned to the envelope. The same envelope as before--I
compared it with the first. I delicately opened it to find this
message, also unsigned.
"Prince of Amber, as you can see
I have given the gift of sight to thee
I'll just bet you've said to many a lass
Your eyes are alike a looking glass
Thus, my fine Prince, I turn the tale
And if your eyes do not fail
As you use this to look on thy visage
Reflect on what might be my lineage"

And so I did. I tried to recall on every single female in Amber
who I have not already met. I rejected the idea that this could be an
old flame. The tone of these messages was of someone who knew who
I was, what I was, but I never had known. The hand mirror joined the
roses on a dresser.
I started inquiries. From my mother, to even braving a visit to Aunt
Fiona.I even prevailed on my cousins and sisters--even though they
were mainly in shadow. Kaitlyn seemed amused at my plight, Raven just
gave her usual smirk, and Marianne said she wanted to meet the woman
who could turn the tables so neatly upon me. I was being driven to
chomp at the bit of this game the lady was playing. Unfortunately,
I had no luck. Either it was a massive conspiracy, or everyone else
was equally baffled. I couldn't assume either one--in Amber, you
just do not know.
It hurt my social life, too. Pursuing the opposite sex had lost
its luster in the meantime. I wanted to resolve the pursuit of myself,
first. It would be horrible for my admirer to break the game off,
and so her identity never known, because I entered into a
relationship. So, I laid off laying for awhile.
The next gift came a day or two after my investigations ended.
This time it was a bottle of some liquid. A tiny vial of pure
crystal. I looked at the blue liquid. I did not open it, preferring
to read the latest poetry from my secret admirer.

"From here we are born,
And to here we return
Or, so, my people believe
It is more than just a creed.
As for you, my fine Florimel
My chase has run you pell-mell
Have you no thought as who I am?
The answer lies by tiger striped sand."

Finally, a clue with some meat! I opened the vial. Yes, it was
what I thought it was. Seawater. And that, combined with the clue
in the last line, meant that I knew where the admirer hailed from.
And, who I should talk to...
I pulled out my trump of LLewella.
"Hello Scipio!" the maiden under wave said, smiling from her
position in a large clam shell couch. "What can I do for you today?"

"Hello Aunt LLewella." I replied, smiling. "Can I step through.
I think you can help me with a little...research I am doing."
"Her marine eyes blinked. "Of course...come right in" I found
myself in that most unusual place. The reflection of Amber underneath
the waves. Rebma. And, yes, now I saw the symbology of the mirror.
Appropriate, indeed.
After calling for refreshments from a palace servant, LLewella gave
me her attention. "So, what can I help you with?"
I decided to be blunt. "It seems, Aunt, that a certain Rebman, a
lady, has taken an interest in me. I was wondering if you knew who
it was, or had heard anything about this."
Grant me this. I can tell when most people aren't being entirely
truthful. Oh, magic could foil me, and someone really good, like
Random, can fake me out. Still, I am a good poker player, even if
I prefer the intricacies of chess. Poker is a people game, and so
I have learned it.
So, I knew LLewella was not being quite honest when she replied.
"I haven't heard anything about a lady of the court being especially
interested in you, nephew, besides the usual court gossip, just like
home. You are an eligible bachelor, after all."
I decided to leave it. The fact that my aunt knew a little more
was a clue in and of itself. It is unlikely that she would know, or
consort with, anyone outside the high families of Rebma. Thus, it
had to be someone fairly high in the nobility. Unfortunately, I
could hardly start calling on every noble family in Rebma.
"Thanks anyway, Aunt. I suppose while I am here, I should pay my
respects to Queen Moire." With her nod of approval, I left her
quarters, orienting myself to the Rebman palace. While it is a
reflection of Amber castle, it is not identical, and the architecture
is different. Stairs aren't as common, here. Oh, they are useful for
moving large things between floors, but, for ordinary people transport,
swimming is so much easier. In fact, most people who passed me in the
halls swam rather than walk along the passages. So, I was a bit of
a curiosity, and probably regarded as a crazy tourist from Amber.
I finally reached the throne room of the palace. The stunning Queen
of Rebma serenely sat on her throne. A few people were in front of
her, petitioning her for some reason or another. As I watched, a
guard, female, came up to me.
"What is your buisness with her highness?" she demanded. Not
exactly the friendly type, this one. Problem was, she had a couple
of inches on me, and that trident was not a toy. Still, I was in no
mood.
"I am Prince Scipio of Amber. After paying my respects to my Aunt
the Princess Llewella, I thought it would be polite to pay my respects
to her majesty the Queen before departing her realm."
There, I thought. Chew on that one! I have to admit, though.
Moire trains her guards well. I got no reaction of shock or anything
really extreme. Cool and efficient.
"I am sorry, sir." She even sounded sincere. "If you will permit
me, I will conduct you to Her presence." I had no need to protest at
the special treatment, as the group had left, and no one seemed
ready to talk to the Queen.
"Your Highness", she announced as we reached the Coral Throne.
"Scipio, Prince of Amber is here to pay his respects to the Queen
of Rebma." She then left to return to her post, leaving me to face
Moire alone.
"Greetings, your highness." I said, giving a bow to her.
"Greetings, Prince Scipio. I bid you welcome to my realm."
"Thank you. I felt that, in visiting my Aunt, I would be remiss in
not calling upon the fair monarch of Rebma."
Moire isn't always formal. She can joke. "I see that the tales of
the silver tongued son of Flora are not off the mark. Have you, then,
exhausted the supply of women of your land, and come to Rebma for that
reason?" A smile crossed her lips.
I decided to tell the truth. "Actually, your majesty." I said.
"It is more the reverse. It...emerges that one of your subjects has
fixated her so far anonymous attentions upon me." I then proceeded
to describe the gifts and messages sent to me.
Moire laughed. "It is clear that, despite the tales of your
promiscuity, you, indeed, have never spent time in the company of
a Rebman woman, Prince Scipio. Else you would surely know that
in Rebma, it is usually the woman who courts her would be lover."
Indeed, I had to admit, my dating experiences had not as yet led me
to the realm below. That, apparently, was going to soon change.
Worse, it seemed standard practice, which meant that the lady was
hardly acting out of the ordinary.
"I thank you for that information, your highness. I beg leave to
depart your Presence." Yes, Mom has taught me enough etiquette to
fill several volumes.
"Permission granted, Prince Scipio. I suspect, however, that I
will see you more often in the future than is usually your wont."
Indeed. If this mystery woman did materialize, I could indeed spend
more time in this odd reflection of home.
Upon trumping home, I was greeted by yet another package. I
unwrapped this to find a gorgeous ceramic statue, about 18 inches
high. It was of a leaping dolphin.
There was, however, no envelope. I looked through the wrapping, on the statue.
I even shook the statue, wondering if it was hollow. It seemed solid,
and I had no desire to break the beautiful piece of art. Truly,
it outshone the vial, the mirror, and the roses.
As I placed the Dolphin on the dresser, I then felt a Trump contact.

Of course I already told of how I enjoy them. However, the caller was not someone I knew.
It was a woman, Rebman. A couple of inches taller than me. Light
blue skin, coupled with long dark blue hair shot through with bolts
of silver. The unusual hair color was not a sign of age, she looked
young. Not a wrinkle to be found on her body. Her proportions were
athletic--like my Aunt Deirdre. Her eyes were jade, and she was
dressed in a light green diaphanous dress. Rather conservatively--by
Rebman standards that is.
"Scipio, Prince of Amber. We meet at last." It was clear that
this was the person pursuing me all this while.
"You have me at a disadvantage, fair Rebman." I turned my gaze
to the objects she had sent me. "Although your gifts were most
welcome."
"Most curious, don't you mean?" Her laugh was musical. "My name is
Delphina, daughter of Anenome, and I very much would like to have
dinner with you this evening. You don't have any plans, do you?"
Of course I didn't. "My lady, for you, I would break any plans.
How does..."
"8 Bells, at Friend of a Fisherman, in the West Quarter? Sounds
lovely." She smiled to allay any hard feelings I had for her
forwardness. For a glimpse of that smile, she could interrupt any
plans anytime she wanted.
"I will meet you there." With a nod, she severed the contact,
and so my relationship with her began.

The End