Romance RP

(Nite, nite, phoenix and sorry it took me long to respond. My mom called me and all. ^^ I'll be here tomorrow though so see you then. ^^)

The shapeshifter took a seat as well as Lady Penelope. Irene nodded and taking a breath, she said,

"That's true. We need to put a plan to get Lycoris back but we have to avoid using force as much as possible. Word about this fight mustn't leak to outside."

(Back and free now.  XD)

Alex replied, "I agree.  Sia has enough to deal with right now as it is.  So we should use stealth to rescue Lycoris and Lycoris told me that if her other self is in control, we have to force her out.  What kind of defenses does Duke Collins have?"

(Welcome back. XD)

Irene was thoughtful for a moment before she replied,

"For a start, he does have a large defensive shield around his mansion to protect him from any attacks. It's the kind of shield that gives him an alarm if it's a strange or unwanted person. Also, other than the numerous soldiers nearly everywhere around the mansion, he has magic-proof abilities around some areas like the garden and entrance."

(Thanks.  ^^)

Alex looked thoughtful and asked, "Are there any weaknesses in those defenses?"

He thought to himself how there must be a way to break through the defenses at Duke Collins' place.

Irene looked thoughtful and replied,

"There's a magical room in the heart of the mansion that controls all this. If we can reach this room, I can deactivate it all but naturally, reaching it won't be easy one bit with all those defenses outside."

The shapeshifter raised an eyebrow and replied, "That isn't helpful at all. We still can't find a way to go through them."

She looked thoughtful then quietly added, "Unless those defenses can't detect shapeshifters?"

Alex replied, "Yes, that is a possibility but..."

He looked at the shapeshifter in worry, knowing the when she used her powers, it would make her health worsen.  But he couldn't think of another solution.

The shapeshifter noticed Alex's worried look but didn't comment on it, although she couldn't ignore it either. She replied,

"Well, there's no other solution, is there?"

Irene looked thoughtful then said, "Well, I am not exactly sure about the defenses' ability to do that but it's worth a try."

Alex nodded and replied, "All right then.  So assuming that the defenses will be vulnerable to shapeshifting, the shapeshifter can get to the magical room and deactivate the defenses.  Then we'll need to get to Lycoris quickly and get her out of there.  Who should handle that?"

Ryan replied, "I think you should, Alex."

Irene nodded and replied,

"I agree. You have enough experience to take care of it, Alex, and I think Lycoris will be most comfortable getting away with you. She contacted you, after all."

She paused then said, "If possible, we can ask Lycoris to come to a place that is easier to get to, like the gardens. It will make getting away much easier."

Alex nodded and replied, "Ok, I'll do my best what if that impostor takes over?  Should I knock her out or something and then carry her to the gardens?"

Ryan looked disturbed over Alex's idea but inwardly, he thought that there might not be much choice if the impostor took over.

Irene sighed inwardly as well at that thought but nodding, she said,

"There would be nothing else to do, right? We can't let her get away this time. It might be too late next time."

The shapeshifter said, "Then it's all decided upon. When shall we take action?"

Alex replied, "The sooner the better but perhaps we should wait until it's nighttime?  It would be the best time to use stealth then."

He turned to the shapeshifter and asked, "Once we rescue Lycoris, do we take her back to the castle or my place?"

(Getting sleepy here so I'll get off for the night now and go to sleep.  I'll check back again tomorrow at some point and post again.  Nite, nite, Love.  ^^)

(Nite, nite, phoenix. ^^)

The shapeshifter was silent for a few seconds before she replied,

"No need to go back to the castle. We can take her to your place and it would be easier to go to the devils' world afterwards from there."

(Ahh I have an exam tomorrow so I might not be able to post tomorrow until really late my time. It depends on how tired I am when I return but I thought I should let you know just in case. XD)

(Ahh no problem.  I'll make this post and then go to sleep in a bit.  Of course, I'll post again tomorrow at some point.  ^^)

Alex nodded and replied, "I understand."

He looked to Nerine, Ryan, and Irene and asked, "Is this acceptable to everyone?"

Ryan looked unsure but turned to Irene, figuring that he would agree to whatever she decided.

(Sorry I couldn't post at all last night. I had a long day and I was really exhausted when I came back. I will post now however and later if I could. XD)

Irene sighed and remembering how things at the castle were, and Lisianthus' state, she replied, "I suppose that would be fine."

Nerine looked hesitant but she didn't say anything about it. However, she did speak up to say,

"Umm this plan will work only if the shapeshifter's abilities are able to bypass the defenses though. Shouldn't we put extra plans in case they don't?"

(That's fine.  I got back late and I'll make a post now although I'll be going to sleep soon so I'll post more tomorrow when I can.  ^^)

Alex looked thoughtful and replied, "Yes, my darling does have a point."

He turned to the shapeshifter and asked, "What if your abilities can't penetrate the defenses?  We'll need a backup plan."

(Ahh no problem. I couldn't post yesterday at all since my aunt was here so it's just as well. XD)

The shapeshifter furrowed her eyebrows and replied, "That's right. We need to think about something else."

Irene looked deep in thought then asked, "Is there no way for Lycoris to come out of the mansion? Can't she get away from the duke and ask a servant or anyone to help her outside for any reason?"

(Ahh I see.  I'll be going to sleep in a bit although I'll make this post now.  ^^)

Alex looked thoughtful and replied, "If the real Lycoris can stay in control long enough, that might work.  But I think the impostor can hear everything that the real Lycoris does so that's going to be the problem."

(I apologize yet again. Things have been quite hectic here and my studies aren't helping one bit. I apologize in advance if this keeps up but it's really out of my hands. XD)

Irene looked thoughtful and nodding, she replied, "That's true."

Lady Penelope was thinking about the matter as well then getting an idea, she spoke up, 

"How about this? Duchess Irene could act as though she wants to see the duke and she will go in there alone. We'll be waiting outside, of course. I am thinking that she could work her way to that room somehow, deactivate the defenses and we could charge in right after that. If she could keep the duke's company during that too, that would buy us more time. Umm that wouldn't work out if Lycoris were with him though..."

(Awww no problem.  I've been pretty busy as well, spending time with my bf and all that.  He's here until about the middle of next month so posting should resume on a more normal schedule then.  ^^)

Alex looked deep in thought and replied, "Hmm, that's true.  Maybe when we get close to the time to put our plan into action, I can communicate with Lycoris and tell her that she needs to pretend to be tired and wants to retire to her room earlier.  The duke probably would allow her to do that so perhaps that could work?"

(Ahh I understand. ^^ Things are pretty hectic here as well so it's all alright. I should be free by the time your schedule is normal again so we can RP more regularly then. ^^)

Lady Penelope nodded and replied, "Yes, that can work out. If Lycoris can be in her room alone then, we may be able to reach her easily once the defenses are down."

The shapeshifter looked thoughtful however and said, "That wouldn't work out if it's the other Lycoris in control though. What would we do then?"

(Coolies.  I look forward to it.  ^^)

Alex looked thoughtful and replied, "Perhaps I can distract her somehow?  Tell her I want to reach a truce or something?  What do you think, darling?"

He looked to Nerine for a reply.

(Me too. ^^)

Nerine looked thoughtful and replied, "Would that work? What if she suspects that it's some sort of a trap?"

The shapeshifter replied, "I don't think we have another choice. Our options are limited and I think it's a good idea. We'll just need to distract her long enough to get the chance to take her away."

Ryan replied, "I agree.  Out of all of us, you have the best chance of getting through to her, Alex."

Alex nodded and replied, "Ok, I'll give it a shot then.  When should we execute the plan?"

Irene replied,

"We must have it executed tonight. It's the best time to catch Duke Collins by surprise and we can't waste much time. We don't want to give that imposter a chance to get back control or the duke to actually marry Lycoris."

The shapeshifter nodded in agreement and replied, "The sooner, the better."