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There were just certain images that were hard to get out of one’s head. Usually, the more disturbing something was, the harder it was to forget it. At least, that was what Soren tended to find when it came to her. She wasn’t sure that applied to everyone, but she knew others had similar issues. Though, the more she was exposed to death, the more desensitized she had come to it. Then again, witnessing the death of Valas Enteri wasn’t what was bothering her. It was that almost sadistic smile of Lincoln’s that kept playing in her mind. After all, seeing someone decapitated didn’t disturb her as much as how Lincoln looked like what her father likely looked like all those years ago. Even though for most people, it would likely be the losing of the head that did them in and not a smile.

However, Soren never claimed to be normal. After all, not every day a woman was a knight, let alone one with magical abilities. One she used sparingly, and the other she could not turn off even if she wanted to. For one was based on music, while the other was based on sight. The only one way she could not see the ghosts was to close her eyes. But even then, the ghosts just had an instinctual knowledge of who could see them and who could not. At least, some of them did. Thus, sometimes, even that was not enough to keep her sixth sense at bay. However, Soren, at that moment, wished she had a power to make herself forget. That way, the knight would stop having the image replay in her mind like she was continuously reliving the past in her mind. For while she was used to the sensation, it was very unwelcome.

But, the knight knew that if she had a distraction, then maybe she could get her mind off that. She had been able to keep her mind off Rosalie’s suicide by being in the company of others. Though, Soren wasn’t sure that would solve her problem. After all, what happened if she came across Lincoln by accident? That would be terribly awkward! For she was still under the impression that what she saw was a forbidden act. Something that if others knew she saw it, she would get in trouble. Maybe even serious enough trouble that she might have to worry about her life, let alone her status as a knight of Envy. However, if company was out of the question, what else was she supposed to do? Maybe she should go find some place to keep her swordsmanship skill in check?

A slight rumble going through her stomach let her know that wasn’t the best option. It seemed her stomach was in need of nourishment. Thus, that meant her previous destination, before that whole incident with the royals of Wrath, would now be her destination once more. Unfortunately, there was no one to guide her to the dining hall for something to eat. The knight could only hope she would be able to find the way on her own. Besides, allowing herself to admit she was lost twice in one day would not do well for her sense of pride. Thus, her blue orbs looked around, trying to see which way seemed to be the best path to take. For while she hoped for the quickest way, she mainly hoped more for finding the surer way to get the dining hall and get some food than the quickest.

As Soren picked a path and moved forward, she found her way blocked. Well, more like her walking interrupted by a figure bumping into her. Due to her hunger, she almost let her self-control slip and almost asked the person what was wrong with them. After all, the knight was not a ghost and thus invisible to the naked eye! However, Soren was able to rein herself back, allowing herself to bite back any snarky remarks that might have wanted to leave her lips. Though, as the person(Maelona) took a step back, she almost couldn’t help but feel somewhat glad that she had kept herself from saying anything. For the girl looked like a miserable mess! It was not hard to see that she was upset from her expression. The fact the person(Maelona) might have felt bad for bumping into her probably wasn’t helping her any!

However, that didn’t mean Soren wanted to deal with a crybaby either. There was a difference between mourning for someone and just crying for attention through crying! It was the people that fit the latter that annoyed her, since the people that fit the former had every reason to cry. But, which one was this girl(Maelona)? Should the knight try and find out what was wrong with her? That would give her the distraction she needed, even if that wouldn’t solve her hunger. Though, maybe Soren could kill two birds with one stone? The more she thought about it, the more appealing the idea seemed as the girl(Maelona) apologized. The knight lightly shrugged as she brushed her green outfit off slightly. “I was not really paying attention either. So, I apologize as well, and now we are even.”

The croak in the girl’s(Maelona’s) voice made it more obvious something was wrong. Thus, her curiosity was peaked. Though, as her blue eyes looked over the girl(Maelona), she could not help but notice she looked like a royal. A royal of what kingdom though? Since she was not a royal herself, Soren did not have the knowledge of recognizing a royal based on looks and names. At least, of any of the kingdoms she did not care for. She could recognize people of Envy, Humility, and Wrath with ease, and for some obvious reasons. Envy because she was a knight there, Wrath because that was her homeland, and Humility because that was her mother’s kingdom. Well, so was Envy, but that was what happens when her mother was both from Humility and Envy. However, in short, all the other kingdoms, but those three, she didn’t much care for. Thus, she didn’t know the royals for those kingdoms.

Though, there was one kingdom she had feelings towards, but it was more annoyance than love. The royals from it were ones she could not identify for having never seen them. However, ironically, the possible royal before her was of that kingdom. The enemy of Envy, Patience. Luckily for the girl(Maelona), unless she gave a last name, the knight would have no reason to be annoyed with her. Unless she was a crybaby of course. Even then, it would all depend on how the knight felt about adopted royals. For she had not encountered many and thus had not developed opinions about them just yet. But, the clearing of a throat brought the knight back from her thoughts, her eyes blinking as the girl(Maelona) seemed to have felt the need to explain herself.

“It is alright.” That was all the knight said at the moment. Her mind shifted through what else she should say as her eyes looked towards the girl(Maelona). She seemed to want to say something, but was nervous about saying it. An eyebrow rose at the action, even noticing how the girl(Maelona) looked down. Was she trying to hide something? The knight was tempted to move her head so she could see if the girl’s(Maelona’s) expression had changed. However, even she knew that would be wrong of her to do, considering invading anyone’s personal space was rude. Soren hated when others did that, so why should she do that to someone else? Neither the less, it was obvious the girl(Maelona) was upset, and as Soren’s stomach growled, she knew exactly what to do.

“Excuse that if you will. But, you said you had a troubled mind, right?” Her finger pointed towards the direction that she had been heading towards before being bumped into. “Well, how do you feel about eating? I was planning on heading to the kitchen to get some food. Maybe some company and good food shall ease your mind?” She knew the method didn’t work for everyone. But, it was a method that worked for some, including herself at times. Thus, why not offer the same suggestion to the girl(Maelona)? Though, Soren had yet to hear of the deaths in the dining hall. Her ears could have picked up on the mentioning of deaths and thought it was the servants chattering about Valas Enteri’s death. However, it was more likely Soren had just not heard of it. For that reason, the knight had no idea her suggestion might actually be a bad one.

“If you aren’t hungry, maybe just some company will ease your mind? After all, Mother did always say to never let someone linger with a troubled mind for troubled minds are contagious.” She did not know she might regret offering this girl(Maelona) her help. After all, getting along with the enemy? That would surely shock her system a little the moment she found out the girl(Maelona) was from Patience. Then again, it might get her in trouble too, considering Soren did not remember Liam’s feelings on talking with people from Patience. The knight had an inkling he would be not fond of the idea and likely would hate it. Though, in this case, what she did not know did not hurt her.

Ɉϕɧɳ Ӎiҫɧɑϵɭ Gɍϵϵɳϵ

(())

He wished he could speak through his mouth. However, just like a person had to change their plans due to a wench being thrown in, John had to change his way of speaking. After all, while his vocal cords were useless, his mind was not. It was something that he was grateful for in the end. For if the Gods of Fortitude hadn’t been willing to give him telepathy upon his birth, John would not be able to speak at all now. Of course, the angel did not know his luck in having telepathy until he became mute. Though, the exact memories of that were still foggy even now. He could only recall a blade coming towards his throat, and now there were scars as proof. But otherwise, nothing. A part of him had a feeling that the memory loss was a good thing. Though, he wasn’t sure why.

However, John never did think on that loss of memory for long. After all, no need to think about something possibly unpleasant when in the company of another. One that obviously felt guarded towards him. Not that he could blame the man(Ryan). He was sure if the roles had been reversed, his own hands would be clutching tightly onto his two rapiers. In the field, his instincts would have made him want to throw a throwing knife at the person. However, this was not the battlefield he found himself in, or anything like the front between Wrath and Fortitude. This was a safe haven for the royals and anyone associated with them. Unfortunately, like Tao had pointed out, this place didn’t seem like the safe haven it was supposed to be. Whether that was on purpose was something he would likely never know. But, it only made John feel like he was out on the field once more, and that wasn’t necessarily a good feeling.

“I am sorry that sleep is evading you this night.” His finger lightly tapped his chin as his mouth never moved a muscle. “Maybe doing some kind of activity would help? There is always the route of tiring yourself out to the point of exhaustion. Though, I believe most would not recommend that.” That was not the best sleep in the world per say. It was much better to fall asleep lying down on a bed than falling down on any spot deemed sleepable. For the body did tend to find strange places comfortable when all it wanted to do was recover the energy spent by being awake. The angel still did not understand why the body needed sleep. He could see the need if someone had spent all day doing things. But, what about the people that did nothing? Why did they get tired? Now that was a conundrum of its own.

His head tilted slightly as he continued to ponder this. The angel felt a bit of relief knowing the man(Ryan) was not bothered by his company, having no idea for the real reasons why the male(Ryan) allowed his company. “Very well. Then, I shall stay. Though, whenever you wish for a departure from my company, just let me know and I shall leave.” Lips formed into a friendly smile, even though the darkness likely hid the movements of his mouth. “For I would not want to overstay my welcome after all.” Now all the angel could do was wait to see what possible destination the male(Ryan) had in mind. After all, in a way, John was the male’s(Ryan’s) guest. Thus, it was only fair to let him lead the two on their dusk filled adventure. Though, the term adventure was used loosely since they couldn’t go far from the castle, that he knew of anyway.

However, before anything could be done or anything could be said, something happened. Well, more like someone arrived as his ears picked up an unknown voice(Belle) nearby. His silver blues looked in the direction of where the question came from. The time of day made it hard for him to see the person(Belle) clearly. But, even the angel could see that the person(Belle) had a bow and arrow drawn on them. Damn it! He really needed to keep his skills sharp! If someone was able to sneak up on him now, that would spell ill for him later on. Also, shame went through him at allowing himself to be snuck up on, considering he was a Spy of Fortitude for God’s sake! That only made him want to repeat Tao’s words to where it was a mantra that kept him guarded, so this would not happen again.

Unfortunately, it was a bit late for him to have his guard up as the person(Belle) moved into the moon’s light. At this point, he could tell the archer was a woman(Belle). Other than that though, he couldn’t tell much. Sure, the angel could see her features as well as some of her outfit. But, none of it was familiar to him. Did that mean the woman(Belle) before him and the male(Ryan) was a foe? However, the next question she asked him made him think she might not be. Though, his hands still rested on his rapiers out of reflex. After all, it was better to be prepared than to have an arrow through the head. While John could have pushed his luck and tried to send her arrow out of the air with his throwing knife, that would have been too risky. For the chances of it actually hitting were low, and anyone could tell that.

Before John could take any action of his own, let alone speak a word, the male(Ryan) chose to speak first. His silver blues briefly drifted in his direction as he gave his name and John’s, as well as their status. So this was the Heir of Humility, Ryan Riley! The angel really felt rusty in his royal knowledge if something like that could trump him up. For if he remembered correctly, Humility tended to side with Fortitude when it came to their issues with Justice. Their reasons for not agreeing with Justice were likely not the same sure. But in that sense, Humility was their ally and it was not right of him to not remember such a detail. Maybe he really needed to have Haven’s love of books rub off on him so he would not have the embarrassment of not knowing someone he should know. Though, it was a little late for that.

“What he says is the truth, Archer. And unless you are an enemy of Humility or Fortitude, or seek to take our lives, we are not your foe this night.” The reason he had added this night to his statement, was because he knew alliances and enemies were temporary. Alliances more so than enemies. For while hatred tended to last a lifetime, trust tended to be broken easily. However, this was not the time to be thinking over such things as Ryan turned the question on the archer(Belle).

It was up to the archer(Belle) now to decide whether or not this was a night filled with more death, or filled with peace that this day seemed to lack. John, while ready for battle, was hopeful for the latter. Only because he did not want to shed blood more than he had to, considering he did kill that assassin earlier that day. Oh, and because there had already been a lot of death today. No need to add to the death toll if they didn’t have to. But if the archer(Belle) chose to be their foe, they would likely have no choice but to do just that.

Ӄingdom: Justice
Ɍank: General
Ƚocation: Halls
Ⱦhoughts: Today has been a strange and wonderful day.