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 Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 6:01 am
 Joseph's mouth hung open as she suggested their child might be a girl. He only now realized that he didn't know, having assumed his kids would all be boys. After she kissed him he started to laugh. "Don't talk such rot! It won't be a girl. We're far too manly. Ha! I wouldn't be surprised if you had twins!" He said with a grin, leaning forward to kiss her again. He scooped her up into his arms and started heading for his rooms. He laughed heartily at the thought of it as he carried her away.
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The young prince wanted to ask her if she needed to be escorted home, but she'd already left. He sat down with a sigh, raising his cup to allow the fumes of his tea to waft up towards his nostrils. "Mon amour sait tellement de gens intéressants. Je devrai travailler fort pour conserver sa vie pleine et riche avec l’intrigue. Je ne peux pas permettre telle une femme magnifique à lasse après que nous avons marié. (My love knows so many interesting people. I shall have to work hard to keep her life full and rich with intrigue. I can not allow such a magnificent woman to grow tired after we've married.)" He sipped at his tea before setting it down on the table. A quick glance told him that his bodyguard was still present, though he didn't make any noise at all. Barth turned towards him, smiling bemusedly and grasping his hands together. "Quant à cette femme de ménage, que pensez-vous d’elle ? Venez, vous inquiétez pas et être aussi franc que vous le souhaitez. Nous sommes de vieux amis, après tout, ne sommes-nous pas? (As for that maid, what do you think of her? Come, worry not and be as blunt as you'd like. We are old friends, after all, are we not?)"
"Je vais lui tuer si elle constitue une menace pour votre vie. (I will kill her if she poses a threat to your life.)" That deep pitched, dark and tainted voice spoke lowly as if without saying it directly, Armand was trying to convey a message. Asking the prince to stop teasing him as he had absolutely no interest in playing that sort of game. His answer earned him another sigh from Barthomieu and nothing more was said between the two of them. Barthomieu wrote a few letters, having to paused every now and then to correct his Crias. One of them held instructions to the prison guards on where and how to transport the man whose life he'd just purchased. It made him uncomfortable, paying for another human being as if he were just cattle or perhaps some other non-living form of extravagant goods. But he'd done it, with very little proof, all with the hope of making his betrothed a little happier.
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Astrid glanced in the direction the large animal had run off in, to see that giant white fluff ball running back in their direction. 'Rubert' slid to a halt next to his master, shaking his rattle about in his loose, slobbery jowls. Astrid glanced down to her dress briefly upon seeing what the dog's mouth looked like. As she had dreaded, the fine white satin material of her skirt was covered with a layer of fur and lines of drool. Embarassingly enough, right in the center where the animal had been. She looked up as Kenneth dared to offer to escort her to the dining hall and then looked briefly in Ailean's direction. She loathed the decision she had to make, but resigned herself to accepting that man's offer. She placed the fingertips of one of her hands delicately upon the palm of his extended hand. Then walked with him. Egbert was waiting behind her chair and one of her maids tested her food for poison in front of her after the first course had been brought out. They were eating a fairly masculine meal with plenty of meat, which she knew he enjoyed so much.
She recalled how different his bare torso looked now, compared to when he had been her slave. No longer as scrawny, though the painful scar tissue remained. His new home was spoiling him. Surely he ate meat often, if not every day, to have gained weight this quickly. She waited for him to take a few bites, watching him enjoy his meal. "I have discovered something recently that may interest the two of you, about your past." She looked pointedly at Ken. "You were used and disposed of by your parents. They expected you to uncover and send them privileged information about my family. As I was the favored heir, it would seem that I was of particular interest to them, as well as my dear father. The noble that you attacked, they arranged for that to happen. Wanted you to lose your future and your freedom for their own gain. They played you for a fool and once you failed to deliver, sold you without any protest and fled Criaswen."
She watched for Kenneth's reaction to learning this, closely. She noted Ailean's silence, the old man was probably staring at his new son. What would happen to him now, with the true nature of his parents finally exposed?
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Arric's smirk remained and he tilted his head, suppressing a laugh. Since she'd come out and admitted to her dealings, he had no need to dance around the topic. "Yet you could purchase males for your... unsavory business. Do tell me, what makes Hector any different from those boys you've bought, trained and sold? Or Joseph or I, for that matter? Our royal blood? If not for that, would you seek to use us? I find your forced compassion amusing. I do not doubt that you want to pretend you truly care about him, but do not insult my intelligence by lying to me. Your lies are so obvious, Victoria. How twisted your view of the world must be."
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Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 12:36 pm
Bethany raised an eyebrow, shoving the last few pieces of meat in to her mouth. "Twins...?" She thought about it, going to kiss him back when he lifted her up and carried her to his room. "I bet if I got to try some famous Crias pie, you might get a little satisfaction tonight." She smirked, using his needs for her own agenda of finally getting to try fancy pie. "If it's a girl, you better spoil and love her just like me!" She demanded, kissing his nose.
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Kenneth was overjoyed to hold her hand, letting Egbert get her seated while Gertrude helped to set the plates down before leaving to go tend to her child's dinner. He sat down and smiled wide at the delicious meat on his plate. He stuck a few pieces in his mouth, a broccoli then a carrot before taking a sip of water. He listened, slowly setting the glass back down as she spoke of his family, they...used him? That noble that he punched for trying to steal a widow in mourning was all set up? Was she apart of this? "Dinner is great tonight, Ailean." He noted, still thinking over what she said and failing to notice how he moved pieces of food on his plate around instead of eating or the frown that followed such deep thought.
"Guess I'm a fool...doesn't matter, they are traitors...." he paused, sighing deeply as if it really hurt to call the people he missed traitors. "And Ailean is now my family, I'm a Catanoch, not an Odilo anymore." He frowned, sending a steak bit to Rubert down below before setting the plate for the dog to reach on the ground before getting up. "Your information is...comforting to say the least. Here I thought they missed their only son. Excuse me, I'm not hungry anymore, I still have some work to do in my study before bed, if I don't see you before you go to bed, then sleep well, your highness...I love you." He smiled, fake before leaving them to finish their dinner.
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Victoria huffed, was he playing around with her interests by saying she held no compassion? "Runs in the family, Arric." She spoke, thinking about his words for a moment, would she sell Hector if he could walk, but still not function like a strong prince? Not to her people...but into slavery? She would send him as far away as possible if it weren't for Ester being so close to her twin. "Oh I care about him, but only because I have to, not that I want to. Yes, I would use you, I used Joseph at the ball, and I'm sure if you weren't so...healthy, I would surely find a way to use you." She chuckled, standing up and patting at her dress. "This has been fun, Arric, but it's tea time." She smiled, leaving and stopping outside the door with a smirk. "Next time I'll knock." She then left down the hall to go enjoy some tea and seeing what could be done about the damaged book.
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Posted: Tue Jul 18, 2017 8:10 pm
Without wasting a moment, Joseph ordered a nearby servant to go and demand Crias pie from the kitchens. That servant was to tell all of his servants and a mad scramble ensued. With Bethany in his arms he carried her effortlessly through the castle until they'd arrived at his chambers. He set her down on the bed and was just about to begin his seduction when there was a knock on the door. Joseph ignored it at first, but as the door opened he turned to yell at them. "What the hell is it!? Can't you see I'm busy! I'll have your ******** heads for this, you incompetent peasant!" He shouted, and his servants were visibly shaken by his threat. They were staring at the ground and trying to look as pitiful as possible. "P-Prince Joseph... The chef doesn't--He said he can't make any more Crias pie without shopping first." This caused Joseph to finally move away from Bethany in order to storm over to them and pick up one of the servants by wrapping one of his long-fingered, slender hands around their neck.
"I don't give a ******** what he has to do! My wife needs that stupid pie! Wait... more? What do you mean, more?!" He caught on to what the poor servant was trying to say, moments after he'd begin to choke the guy. He let go, allowing the man to fall to the floor and gasp for breath while the other one nervously began to speak up. "T-the chef.. U-uhm.. H-he has o-one ma..de already! B-b-but it's--it's for Princess Ester, he s-s-said!" "Ester? So?! Bring it here, or I'll have you sent to the mines!" He bellowed at the two servants who ran off to obey his orders. He turned back to Bethany, setting his hands upon her shoulders. He cleared his throat with a grunt, then began to try massaging her in an effort to keep her calm. "It'll be here soon."
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Ailean rose to his feet, his knee crunching and popping as usual. He stayed where he was, with his hands on the table to keep himself steady, to allow blood to flow through his legs. At his age, he couldn't move quite as quickly as his son. He set his son's back with a stern gaze, soon turning it to the Queen who was nonchalantly drinking wine. He coughed a bit, inhaling deeply through his nostrils before speaking. "When you were named as queen, though you've yet to have your coronation, he celebrated by spreading extravagance throughout our provinces of Bleakburn and Lhanbyrde. He's worked hard, though his body is still weak, to court you. Aiding towns and peoples throughout our proud country. His back still holds open wounds from your wrath, and your would-be captors. My son would move the world for you, if he could. I doubt even knowing it's impossible would keep him from trying. I don't know what changed you, Little Astrid, and I can't say if your father would approve or not. But for what ever it may be worth, I can't say I'm proud of you."
With that said, his body had finally caught up to his will. He moved away from his chair in order to bow to her, disappointed with her answer but still showing her the respect due to the Queen of Criaswen. Then hobbled away to search for Kenneth. He'd guessed that the boy's family had abandoned him but to have planned to put him through that sort of hell? Just in the hope of gaining some information on the royal family? He couldn't understand that. To be willing to cast aside one's blood and honor, to play such a dirty game. He reached Ken's room and knocked on the door. "Ken? Are you in there, m'boy?"
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Astrid watched him carefully as he left the room, frowning herself as he said he loved her. Then she picked up her wine glass and took a drink from it, smiling victoriously. In her eyes, this was the final blow. He would surrender his foolish ambition of becoming her husband and king, knowing now that his frivolous past and memories were all lies. It was laughable that he'd believed his family could love him. If not for what they hoped to gain from him, they would never have pretended. It was the same with every [I[family, her own being the best example of this. No respect or love held for one another, each seeking to gain even at the expense of the other. But the forced smile he wore wouldn't leave her thoughts. She should be enjoying this victory, and she was drinking to show this to the others in the room. But she couldn't prevent herself from wondering about him, with that defeated face of his stuck at the backs of her eyeballs.
She glanced at Ailean as the old fool made his little speech. She adopted a stoic expression and took another drink of wine before responding. "You were honored by my father. Out of respect for him, I'll overlook that insult. As for your son, the truth would come out eventually. Would you rather he remain ignorant? If they returned, he would be vulnerable and they would manipulate him again. Tell me if you would do anything differently, Uncle Ainee." The last words were spoken almost mocking as she was becoming angry. Speaking that it was for Kenneth's own sake just made her feel worse. She believed it. Saying it in a cruel way didn't change the true reason she'd revealed it, though her timing had been poor. She hadn't considered it, or thought it was possible. With the country between them, she believed she'd finally banished him from her heart. Then why would she truly wish for him to be empowered with such information, even though it would hurt him? To protect him? From those people?
She stayed at the dining table, ignoring Egbert's muffled mutterings. No doubt he was speaking in Idstein's tongue. She ate a little more, even though she'd also lost her appetite. Then drank the rest of her glass, ordering it to be refilled and tested. Then continued to drink with only sub-human servants and a worm as silent observers.
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He was surprised by how readily she admitted the truth. He'd expected her to protest it at least. He smirked victoriously, even as she left, and rubbed his lower lip with one of his fingers. His mind was churning, mixing together various thoughts and formulating a plan.
_______________
Ester was sitting in her bedroom, playing the music Ken had written for her, on the small piano that'd been given to her by Astrid on her last birthday. She hoped that it would cheer up Hector, who hadn't spoken a word to her all day. He moved with the help of their nanny to relieve himself, but otherwise stayed in his bed with his covers pulled over his head. Since they were eleven, this was their last year sharing a bedroom. What if he stayed sick? She'd lose her best friend, forever and he'd lose the rest of his life. She silently cried a little, saddened from thinking about it, but kept playing. She hoped the music would inspire him. He always did love reading his books while she played on the piano.
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Posted: Tue Jul 18, 2017 10:51 pm
Bethany was smiling up at Joseph, oh she couldn't stop thinking of that pie! A nice crisp crust, fresh fruit....that taste of sweet hotness. She blinked as Joseph began yelling at his servants, the last pie was for Princess Ester? "That's your little sister correct? The youngest? Oh I couldn't steal her pie...maybe she will share it?" She laid a hand on Joseph's that massaged her shoulder, looking up to kiss him deeply before slipping away. "Wait!" She stopped the servants, smiling big and holding the dress so she didn't trip. "Tell the chef to go shop for more stuff, I'll share with Ester." She ran off again to where the young princess's room was, the piano sound was so beautiful yet sad. She knocked before entering, stopping as she became shocked at the young prince in the bed. "I heard the Prince was sick but..." She knelt down beside Hector and moved the blanket before fixed his bangs so she could see his face. "Joseph told me what happened, after he heard from princess Victoria." She smiled at him, leaning in to whisper so Joseph or Ester couldn't hear. "Your very strong, I'm sure others would of given up on life, but you are truly a Inrmis to be feared." She pulled away and got up to walk over to Ester. "Oh, I came by to ask you little princess, may we share your pie, you and I?" She asked, not knowing about the fact that Ester only talked on paper.
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Ken sat by his fire, why did his heart ache from those words? He felt...empty almost as the faith in his family disappeared. Abandoned on purpose, to betray the royal family? He wouldn't do such a thing and if he had, he would of been executed immediately. He snapped to at the knocking, getting up to open the door and see Ailean there. "Y-Yeah...I...I didn't mean to walk out on the dinner...did I upset her? Oh what should I do Ailean? I love her to the ends of the earth, not even God could come between my love for her, yet I'm...I'm hurt!" He moved to sit in a seat by the table, a chair on the other side as he slouched. "My family never meant to free me, they planned it all, my poor sister, too young to care and only to believe her parents...Astrid even hates me. I know she can love, Ailean. Her cheeks turn a beautiful pink and her smile makes me so happy...her eyes sparkle like the moon and her hair glistens like the sun!" He smiled, seeming to be in a trance when he finally spoke of how he felt for Astrid. "She is a fierce woman, proud and strong, people have tried so hard to take her off the pedestal but instead rose her higher as she used their hatred for their weakness!" He spoke, resting his head on his left hand before frowning. "Yet here I am, trying to reach the pedestal she sits on when so many other men are stronger and more brave than I." He frowned, moving his shoulder a bit as he felt the scars itch and scrunch before he settled his shoulder back down.
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 12:57 am
Ailean hobbled on inside the room and moved to the chair across from Ken. He slowly bent his knees and held on to the table for stability as he sat down in the chair. He released a long sigh, listening as his son carried on about his love for the queen. He leaned forward to pat the younger man's head as he finally stopped talking. "Just breathe, son. It's a lot to take in.. I wouldn't worry about Queen Astrid. If she couldn't handle any form of criticism she isn't fit to rule... She hasn't killed you either yet, so... You're fine, for now. Right now we can't concern ourselves with that. She just plunged a knife into ya, in a way. You've done enough. Worry about yourself now. We could even try to find your sister, to see if she's okay. This business with your birth parents.. it's serious. We should find out as much as we can. If they were going to betray Criaswen, they're likely to try it again and they were nobility. Just why would they do that? Do you know anything, Ken?"
________________
After downing her second glass of wine, Astrid decided to leave the dining hall. She was feeling just the slightest bit tipsy and that was making it a little difficult for her to make her way back to her room. She stopped by a door, hearing that all too familiar voice speaking so highly of her. She leaned against the wall, touching her forehead with one hand and biting back a frustrated sigh. That soft-brained, soft-of-the heart fool. She was completely taken aback by this attitude of his. She had revealed something deliberately to hurt him and in a cruel way, so as to humiliate him in front of his new family. Yet he was worried that he may have lost his chance to be with her? He knew how she felt about him, had she never revealed that she was in love with him would they be in this sort of situation now? Why had she not simply denied harboring anything except for contempt for such a pathetic man? "Eyes that sparkle like the moon..." That foolish man.. She chanced a glance at the door, for a moment thinking that she should go inside.
However she knew that he wasn't alone. What she said wasn't a lie, and as she'd only just realized he needed to be aware of the truth anyway. There was no point in apologizing. If anything, this would teach him what she was capable of doing to him should he dare to raise his hand against her ever again. She walked away, eventually finding her rooms and then having more wine brought to her. After bathing and changing clothes for the evening, she sat in front of her own fireplace, holding a half-full glass of wine. Her useless slave was off with his wife and infant son. Her maids were in the room next to hers, waiting to be called upon. She was completely alone with her thoughts and plenty of drink. As time passed, she glanced outside the window. The blizzard had calmed down, to the point she could see part of the night sky. But that was no indication that it wouldn't start up again. She couldn't stop wondering about that worm of a man and she was a little drunk. The hour was late enough that he should be alone.
But she couldn't go to see him wearing only her nightgown. The rumors would be horrible if she, an unmarried woman, were caught visiting a man in the middle of the night wearing practically nothing. But if she called upon her maids to help her get dressed they would know that she was going somewhere. Emily and Maud were quite the gossips. She couldn't change clothes either, so she would merely have to cover herself up and perhaps bring something to hit him with if he tried anything. She went to the wardrobe and retrieved a rather thick robe made of solid white fur and velvet. She slipped it on over her nightgown and tied it closed. Then she grabbed a candle, and put on a pair of slippers so she would make as little noise as possible. She peeked outside of her room. The hallways were dark, due to a lack of windows. So she lit the candle and then left, heading ever so stealthily towards Kenneth's quarters.
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Hector's eyes were open by a sliver, even before the blankets were pulled away. He didn't seem to notice the change in light, or being touched. But his eyes rolled in Bethany's direction after the woman whispered in his ear. Who was she supposed to be? Why was she in his room? He saw her leave his field of vision and realized he had a choice to make. To move or curl up under the covers again. He decided to sit up slightly in order to be able to see better. His nanny was standing by the door, so was Joseph. He wrinkled his nose just at the sight of that bullying idiot. Then looked over to see the mysterious woman walk over to his twin. He could feel her terror, even without looking. But didn't think anything would happen. Even if it could, he couldn't do anything to stop it. He lay back down and pulled the covers over his head again, deciding to go back to ignoring the world around him.
---
Ester looked over once she heard the knock. Their nanny answered it and in came a woman she barely knew and her terrifying brute of a brother, Joseph. She stopped playing, quickly becoming too frightened to move. She bit her lip as she saw the woman heading for her twin. She knew that to marry Joseph that woman had to be just as big a monster as he was. She had to do something, or at least call for a guard to join them so they couldn't do anything to hurt him. But she was too frightened to move. She could only watch as the woman pulled the covers away from Hector. She was frozen in place, sitting on her piano bench and her eyes grew wide as her new cousin came over to her. She started to tremble, staring up at the woman with big, blue eyes glistening with tears. Then nodded, just once, and quickly wondered if only responding with a gesture would anger Joseph.
So with ever-so-shaky hands she reached for her pencil and a new scroll. Her handwriting was sloppy, but with a little effort she wrote through her fear. Then held the scroll up for Bethany to see. Good evening to you, Princess Bethany and I extend a formal welcome to you as your are the newest member of our family. I would be happy if you would think of the pie as a gift. Please take it. Though her writing was formal, she knew her brother and probably this woman to could sense how scared she was of them. They were like animals, like those horrid great beasts Joseph kept. Compared to them she felt like a rabbit or perhaps even a mouse and she didn't want to be killed by either of these two powerful predators.
"Hey, let's go already!" Joseph complained with a grumble, unhappy that the two were interrupted right before things got good. He also didn't like having to wait here, around these kids. It was awkward, since he only had one goal in mind for tonight and kids weren't a part of it. "Hurry up, woman! I want some wine."
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 6:11 pm
He looked to his new father and smiled softly as the man patted his head. "I want to find my sister, she could be just as innocent as I was and if my parents threw me away, they will throw her to any rich man or trade her to get asylum in another country. I can't believe I missed them..." He frowned again, trying to think of anything that could help, but he had no idea his parents were traitors until tonight. "Being the youngest son, I wasn't old enough to attend any business dealings with my father, I only ever saw him when painting because he taught me. Mother...she was a quiet woman, strict when she wanted to be, but otherwise I didn't spend a lot of time with them. If I could get ahold of my sister, she might give more information then I can." He spoked with Ailean for awhile longer, until the man went to go rest for the night and Ken got ready for bed as well. He felt unable to sleep, lighting a candle and drawing at his sketch pad, Rubert pawed his way up and on the bed at his feet before passing out and Ken couldn't help but draw the exhausted puppy. He drifted off to sleep after the candle went out, laying on his back and starting to snore before Rubert moved his way up and under one arm to sleep, and to prop his head up slightly with a big fluff paw to stop the snoring.
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Bethany could see Hector sit up, smiling slightly before looking back to Ester and becoming confused as she held up a note. "Princess? Guess I am now...oh! Thank you! I'll let you have the next one!" She hugged Ester quickly before releasing the frightened girl and standing straight to shuffled back to Joseph. "Call me woman one more time and I will shove that wine, bottle and all up your *ss!" She huffed, taking the pie from the servant that held it before leaving down the hall to enjoy it in their room. She was a sweet woman, just she had a bad temper and always put off such an intimidating air about her to others except Joseph it seemed. "Come on!" She waved, looking to see if he was following so she could tease him with a kiss.
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 9:36 pm
After a while of searching, she managed to find the door she'd gone to yesterday. She had heard him speaking with his father inside, now only the irritatingly loud sound of his snoring was coming through. Her maids were gossiping earlier about how loud he was, that no one else could be in rooms close to him at night as the noise would keep them from falling asleep. She blew out the candle, knocking softly at first. There was no response, so she opened it. She paused briefly, surprised that it had been left unlocked. Then stepped in, jumping slightly to the sudden barking. The dog, she didn't know if it was the same one from before, practically glowed in the low light coming in from the room's only window. It stopped shortly, fluffy tail wagging and hitting her former slave's face. Yet he didn't wake up, even from this? She scowled, shutting the door behind her as she strode over to the bed. She ignored the fluffy creature, and held the candle over his hand. She dropped some hot wax onto his bare skin with the goal of waking him up.
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Joseph followed her eagerly, even going so far to pinch her rump or put a hand on her back to hurry her up. He shouted at a passing servant to bring lots of wine and deserts to his bedroom. Then as they finally reached his bedroom, he shut the door behind them and tried to hurry her over to the bed. At the same time, he was pulling apart the ties on her back which held her dress shut. "Finally! Now then... back to where we left off."
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:06 pm
Kenneth stirred but didn't wake, too tired to care if his Rubert wanted to go outside, he'd clean up the mess in the morning. His snoring continued until the hot wax landed on his hand and he shot up, smacking into a certain dog's behind before scrambling back and gripping his hand. "Gah!" He couldn't see, the only light from his window was the only thing to claim there was someone else in the room. He felt whatever landed on his hand harden, deciding if he had spread it, it would of burned more so he instead gripped his wrist until the pain would go away. He peeled the wax off, holding it up to see what it was as he was still half asleep before noticing the dark figure. "Mmm...Yitta..?" No it was too tall to be her or Inga, Mirabelle?! No...she would of been on top of him already so that only left. "I-It's late your highness..." He mumbled, nearly falling back to sleep while awaiting for her to talk or do something.
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Bethany had grabbed a fork from a servant, trying the pie and smiling as she set it down on a nightstand while Joseph untied her dress. She turned and grabbed at his shirt to pull him close and kiss him deeply. "Hurry up and get me more children! I want to out number your sister before she has a chance to produce!" She explained, smiling happily as they both fell to the bed to enjoy themselves.
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:35 pm
Astrid's scowl remained as she watched him react so strongly. At least he was awake now. She almost regretted blowing out her candle, as she didn't know where she'd find another source of light. She glanced over to his fireplace, or where she assumed it would be. Why wasn't it lit, on such a cold night? She supposed the dog was enough to keep him warm. She felt for the edge of his bed, disappointed that there wasn't anything at the foot of it. Then set the candle on the floor before sitting down on the edge of his bed. She wanted to be ready to stand again quickly if she needed to. She realized she could hardly see him at all in this lighting, and was glad that it meant he would have the same trouble seeing her. "I am here merely to inquire upon you, nothing more." She squinted at him, attempting to get a better look from a distance.
Had he been crying? She couldn't tell. She folded her hands neatly upon her lap, ignoring the dog as it set it's head down close to her. The massive animal's rump was near Kenneth's face, tail thumping against his chest. "Imagine, for a moment, how surprised I am to have found you resting peacefully, after what I revealed to you. You spoke so frequently of them, and failed to answer my questions even with the threat of punishment looming over you. Yet, knowing that those you valued so much do not feel the same and perhaps, even loathe you for failing to meet their expectations... It's remarkable how little that weighs on you." She waited for his response, deliberately being cruel to him with the goal of getting him to reveal more. If she could see him, she'd be able to tell if he was only pretending to be bothered at first. Knowing what she knew about his family, she didn't trust him yet felt confident enough to be visiting him with her only weapon growing cold on the floor.
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:56 pm
Kenneth sat up, running a hand through his hair and trying to wake up enough to understand that the woman he loved was sitting on the end of his bed. "I guess I did fall asleep...I'm still in shock, your highness...I loved them, they were my family, now I feel more betrayed then ever. It weighs heavily on me, why do you think I didn't finish my dinner nor come out of my room since then? I'm upset, I don't blame you if that's why your here. " He moved to try and give her room, his back stiffened and he decided to just try and sit up more instead of moving his legs. "You said what you did because it would of hurt me worse later..." Of course he was glad that he couldn't see her that well, it meant she couldn't either and frankly he wore no shirt after having the fabric contain sweat from sleeping one night, it had hurt his wounds and he didn't expect the queen to walk in on him sleeping. "I don't mean to sleep peaceful...I'm not...I just don't want to think right now about their betrayal." His back relaxed and he moved his legs over the bed side to sit up and feel along his nightstand for a candle, where the hell did he put it earlier?
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2017 11:29 pm
Astrid felt around until she found a pillow close to where she was sitting at the end of his bed. She threw it at him, remaining quiet for a while as she started to feel a bit dizzy. She'd been unable to forget the face he'd made when he'd left the dinning hall that she wasn't able to sleep. Worse still, she'd been drinking wine which was something she avoided when she was upset. There was very little for her to work on here, far, far away from her study. So there was no other way to subtly vent her frustrations. "You contemptible liar. How can anyone trust a word that comes out of your mouth? How do I know that you haven't fed them something, and it wasn't enough and that was why they abandoned you?! Or perhaps they haven't!" She picked up the candle and the little stand it sat upon from the floor and tossed it at him. His dog hopped up and caught it in his mouth, bringing it back for her to throw again.
She groaned aloud, grabbing the candle and trying to pull it free from the dog's slobbery jowls. Rubert pulled back with a playful growl, wagging his tail all the while. "Let go, you insolent canine!" The dog let go as asked, and she ended up falling off of the edge of the bed on to the floor. She landed on her side with a harsh exhale, the wind knocked out of her lungs. Then tossed the candle together with its stand up towards the bed, hoping it would hit him.
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Posted: Thu Jul 20, 2017 7:06 am
He nearly dropped the match he held when hit by a pillow, looking back and sighing as he was berated to be a liar again. "I'm not lying! I haven't seen them since I was sold to you, not a letter, not a visit." He lit the candle in time to look back to see Astrid fall over the bed when Rubert let whatever he was holding go. "Rubert likes you." He smiled, getting up and stumbling as the candlestick holder and candle hit his back, turning to look back at her fallen form before he decided to walk around to help her stand up. "Are you alright? Are you drunk? Stop throwing candles at me and pillows." He smelled her breath, how much wine had she had? He needed to get her back to her room and bed, before someone discovered she was in his room so late of night and in a robe. "I know you pretty well, your highness, you drink when your upset, so what are you upset about?" He asked, helping her sit down on the bed before sitting next to her again, the candle at the nightstand flickered a bit but illuminated them well enough to see faces.
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Posted: Thu Jul 20, 2017 8:10 am
She let him help her to her feet, but moved slowly. The world was spinning and she was beginning to fear that she might become ill. She didn't want that, it would be so undignified and unbecoming of a woman of her caliber. She shut her eyes briefly in an attempt to chase the sickness away. She did risk sickness to grochily mutter a retort at him, even as he was helping her. "I'll throw what ever I please at you, when ever I deign to." Once sitting, she placed a hand upon her forehead and again, was quiet for a while. The world finally settled and so did her stomach. She opened her eyes to fix him with a glare, catching a glimpse of his stupidly happy giant dog sitting on the floor next to them. She hated the expression he was making, so she shoved her hand out towards him. It landed upon his face , with her palm over his nose and mouth and her fingers spread out to push against his skin. She shoved it upwards with an angry breath, attempting to rub the smugness away.
"Spineless coward! Why are you looking at me like that?! Why aren't you a wreck?!" She continued to shove her hand against his face, even if he tried to remove it. Then slapped her other hand onto his bare chest and began trying to push against the few scars there to see if any were painful. "You should be a mess!" Then the intensity of her attacks stopped as her drunken brain finally processed everything he'd said. She gasped and in outrage grabbed another pillow and began to hit him over the head with it. "I do not drink when I'm upset! And I'm not upset! Even if I were, it'd be your fault, inferior being! How dare you overstep your boundaries time and again! It's all your fault!" She continued to hit him, even as all of the movement was starting to make those unfortunate symptoms resurface. She was hitting him so much with the pillow that it tore, feathers going everywhere as she continued her assault.
"How dare you act like you know everything! You don't! You're despicable! The worst man I've ever met! Even worse than my brothers, or that depraved old vulture that sought my hand! You lunatic! You--You've torn my clothes! Ruined my collections! The maids were even gossiping about my babies! How could you betray me like that?! You lied when you said you wouldn't tell anyone my secrets! You LIAR! You've drawn indecent, absolutely vulgar depictions of women, even one of myself--that I know of! And you didn't care when I found out! You're disgusting! You've removed my clothing when I was drugged! You horrible, horrible man! Lecher! Pervert! You've even raised your hand against me! And you have the gall to order me around?! Act like I'm a villain and you're some helpless, innocent little victim?! You deserve everything I did to you! You--" She stopped suddenly, letting go of the nearly empty pillow to clutch her hands over her mouth.
She got up and slowly stepped away. She didn't know where his bathroom was, so she looked at the window. She had to make a decision quickly, and she chose the window. She hurried over to it, removing one hand in order to unlock it. A blur of snow and wind entered the room and the temperature dropped drastically. She leaned out quickly, almost falling out into the snow from how hastily she'd moved. The wind whipped her long hair around wildly. If he followed her, he'd likely be hit in the face by several somewhat damp strands, multiple times. She couldn't hold back the vomit, and ended up expelling quite a sizeable amount of sick into the pure white snow outside. Afterwards she gasped for breath, resting her forehead against the ice cold stone of his window sill and shivering. She spoke at a whisper as she closed her eyes, trying to regain her strength so she could move freely again. "It's all your fault." She made a silent promise to herself that she would find another way of making him pay for his crimes against her. She'd have to do this later, but she was determined to continue to berate him. Surely she couldn't become ill a second time?
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Posted: Thu Jul 20, 2017 4:49 pm
He couldn't help but smile, she was so...emotional when drunk and it was cute, until she began to touch his face and his chest, pressing on the scar where the symbol use to be as he winced. "I feel like you didn't li- hey!" He stopped, using his arms to try and block the pillow as it hit at him repeatedly. He opened his eyes to see feathers flying around him and felt the pillow get lighter as it hit him. He looked up as she stopped hitting him and backed up so she could open his window and puke her stomach out. "Come on...you need to go back to bed, I know it's my fault people gossip about you, or that I've ruined so many dresses and priceless collections because I'm clumsy, but after all the scars you gave me, the lashings, beatings, humiliations and burns, I still would save your life any day." He took her hand and pulled her away from the window so he could close it and grab a cloth from the table and wipe at the left over puke on her lips. "Listen Astrid, I am upset, I am a wreck, I've just been taught that no one cares if I am so why show it?" He leaned in and kissed her on the lips gently, pulling away to wipe at her strands of hair for any hope of removing evidence she got drunk and sick. "Come on, I'll help you to bed." He smiled, wondering what she would or could do now.
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Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2017 5:44 am
She swayed on her feet, eyes closed even as she felt him kiss her. She reached forward, placing one of her hands upon his shoulder to steady herself. "It defies logic. You don't stop. You want to become my canary, but you can't sing. You are as a mouse before an owl. Weak, pitiful." She spoke all of this quietly, almost weakly as she was recovering from being ill. She opened her eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the light. She saw him in front of her, smiling as if nothing were wrong. "It's tragic, but almost... sweet. She said, reaching up with her other hand to grab on to his throat. She wrapped her long, delicate fingers around his neck and squeezed. She tilted her head back slightly, in order to look down at him, and scoffed. "You would die before you could ever fulfill your usefulness. You say you would save my life, but what does it matter? I could crush your life away right now, but what difference would it make to a man like you?" She swayed again, but stubbornly continued on with the little plan she had in mind. She leaned forward, though a bit unsteadily, and with her other hand she grabbed hold of his jaw. She grew close enough that each breath she exhaled would be felt upon his lips. Too close to see each other clearly, and her breath stank of bile and wine.
Behind them, Rubert was at the window. He was sniffing away at where she'd vomited and licking his chops. He whined and pawed at the window, intrigued and enticed by the strong smell. Astrid completed the distance, crushing her lips to his. She held this awkward kiss for a few seconds, before stepping forward and simultaneously pushing him back by his throat. She stayed standing, though she swayed as if she would fall and scowled down at him. "You would lay your life down for any other. You are too weak to protect yourself, and you barely even try. If you don't value yourself at all, why should I?" Her own question frustrated her and she stepped towards him again, visibly tense and angry. "What have you done to me?! I've thrown you away! Just like your family, I don't care about what happens to you! I don't want to! I want you to stop interrupting my work! I don't want to think about you at all anymore! I'm tired of witnessing something weak or--or fragile and wondering if you're faring well! Why won't you understand that I'm tired of this! You're too weak to have stolen my heart. I don't want you, my enemies would rip through you as if you were made of paper! Get out of my head, I don't want to see you looking at me like--!" She stopped herself before she could admit that she often felt like he could see right through her.
It was as if he were manipulating her at times to get what he wanted and that drove her crazy. His efforts were effective because she couldn't stop herself from wondering about him or from remembering how warm he felt in her arms. Or how soft his lips were against hers. "As if you could see--! Get out!" She clasped her hands on either side of her head and shut her eyes tightly. Her face was flushed with color and she was gritting her teeth. "Don't look at me like that, I can stand it no longer!" She moved towards him and regardless of where he was, she would keep attempting to shove him back more. Then she'd aim to cover his face or at the very least, his eyes.
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