Ravenglass Essence (Mercenary Lord andMacabreFox)

[MacabreFox]

His voice was the voice of reason. It calmed her, relaxed her over anxious mind. Although she struggled to get the borrowed clothes on, Rue managed. Thankfully, Mark was courteous, and turned about to give her privacy.
"I'm done." She told Mark. He turned, and slipped an arm about her waist. Damn did she need the support. Rue leaned against him, too tired to care. They left the bathroom, and then the gas station after Mark tipped the cashier.

He helped her into the Camaro, even reclining the seat for her so that she could rest. On the drive to her apartment, Rue tried to understand why she was attacked, and who. The painkiller slowly ebbed into effect. Mark moved his hand closer to her, as if offering her more support. She reached out for it after several moments, and touched his fingers only.

As they turned onto her street, she sensed that something was wrong...and then she saw it. Immediately, Rue sat up, the pain shooting through her body. Bearing the pain, Rue placed a hand over her mouth and fell against the seat, shielding her eyes. "Oh Mark...what do I do now?" She queried after him. Now, she had no place to live, and no means to earn a living.

[Mercenary Lord]

Mark sat there for a few minutes, silently thinking. There was an obvious answer to her problem, but would she be all right with it? She took his hand, if only the finger tips and he understood that this must be a massive pain for her. He decided to speak.

"Well...you could probably appeal to one of the Ravenglass Boys. They might be willing to help you. Suki might, especially since you two talked last night." He fell silent again. "Or...well, or I could let you stay with me. I do that a lot, when any of our members need a place to hide, or a spot to relax. Of course, normally they have to pay a little bit of rent, since I don't want them becoming cocky and demanding." He tightened his grip slightly on her hand. "But for a friend in need, I won't charge a cent. You wouldn't have to do much, either. I have a full staff on the property, a few miles away, that do all the cooking and cleaning and such. Although," and here he smiled, "Lesley likes pampering guests."

He looked her in the eyes, then. To others, looking at Mark's eyes for a while was like taking a narcotic. It was incredibly relaxing. To look at someone who was totally at peace with themselves only brought peace and relaxation to them as well. "It's really your choice, though. I won't force you to stay with me if it makes you uncomfortable. You could stay as long as you needed."

[MacabreFox]

God damn it. This man threw a wrench in her gears! Everything in her conscience told her to run, but some part of her told her to do it. To accept his offer. And that gaze of his...it held her own, transfixing her, paralyzing her with...with what? Nirvana? Possibly. His grip on her tightened, but only slightly. Enough for her to decide.

"O-ok Mark. B-but..only for...t-two weeks max...no more than that, all right? J-just two weeks." Rue stuttered. The hell just happened? She was doing so good until now. Mark mentioned to her about Lesley pampering her, she wondered how that'd go. "Thank you Mark...for everything."

[Mercenary Lord]

He had upset her. Mark could tell by the way she flushed slightly, the way her stutter returned, and the way she told him a maximum limit. He had obviously misinterpreted her sadness, and in his haste to assist a friend in need, he had upset her delicate and fractional confidence. He mentally kicked himself, relaxing his grip on her hand. "I'm sorry." He murmured reflectively. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." Then he brightened. "But I'm happy you're willing to give our old shack a try." He released her to shift gears, and pulled out of the driveway. He made a mental note to have people work on repairing Rue's home. She obviously was very attached to it.

He replaced his hand, back to where it was, but made no move to take Rue's again. He could see it was making her slightly edgy, and he didn't want to cause her any more grief than she had been through already. He focused on the road, and all of a sudden, he realized how exciting this would be for him, as well. He did not have friendly contact with many people anymore, especially not attractive women. He supposed Lesley was attractive, true, but she was young, and he had always thought of her more as his little sister. She was only around nineteen, after all. Rue, on the other hand, was far closer to his own age, and he was glad to know that he would have the pleasure of her company for a while, at least.

They pulled around the corner, and Mark stopped, flipped open his phone, and called the customary safety check to order. A few moments later, the confirmation arrived, so pulled out, and drove through the gates. They pulled up to the garage, where he cut the engine, hopped out, opened rue's door, and, before she could react, picked her up with both arms, carried her into the house, and plopped her down on one of the Parlor couches. He shut the car door, then headed off to find Lesley. She was at the kitchen counter, playing some game he hadn't seen. That was rare. He tapped her on the shoulder.

"Long story short, Les, one of my friends had her house burned down, was beat severely, and needs a place to stay. As he watched, Lesley's eyes lit up with excitement. "Seriously? Awesome!" She shut the laptop, and jumped off the chair, running into the kitchen. "It's that one girl, Rue, isn't it? I'll make something special for our latest guest." Mark shook his head, and went back into the parlor, sitting down on the couch.

"Sorry about the whole carrying thing." He waved a hand. "You looked very uncomfortable, and I didn't want you to have to walk anymore until that painkiller really works. In about half an hour, the pain should be completely gone." As he spoke, wafts of enticing air slithered out of the kitchen, and into the room, mingling with the lit incense. It should have smelled strange, probably even bad, but somehow it managed to smell delicious. Whatever Lesley was making, it was fantastic.

"I guess sleeping arrangements are something we should deal with soon, huh?" To himself, he added, And after that, it's time to find out what the hell happened last night. He didn't want to remind her so soon.

[MacabreFox]

Rue felt wounded, Mark had sounded hurt because of what she said. She meant it so as not to become a burden to him, like the burden she was to her father and to her aunt. Being a burden to someone, just the mere thought of it tormented her. She kept quiet the entire car ride, dozing in and out of consciousness. Her head would dip forward and then snap back up. To her, they reached the house in no time at all, then again that could be because of the painkiller. After gaining entrance, they proceeded up to the manor.

Rue went to let herself out when, Mark opened the door for her and scooped Rue up into his arms. He carried her all the way into the house, and set her down in the parlour room on a sofa. For some reason, she kept thinking about his arms about her, holding her close to his chest... Her face coloured red as he re-entered the room.

"I'd like to thank Lesley for loaning me the clothes, Mark. Uhm...s-sleeping arounge...er..arrangements? Wherever you'd like to put me is g-good..although I ought to arn you that I do sleepwalk...not often though." Rue said, and thought to herself, 'And that I used to be an addict...'
"I have at least 3 grand in my bank account. So I could..." Her voice trailed off as her eyes closed.

Like a slingshot, her head snapped up. "What is that smell? It smells good..." Rue said more to herself than to Mark.

[Mercenary Lord]

Lesley may have been cooking, but she could easily hear everything. She poked her head around the door frame and smirked. "You could sleep with me. I have a king sized. We could share a-" she petered off as Mark slashed a hand at her.

No, He mouthed, barely noticeable. She shrugged, and continued speaking.

"To answer your question, after I call in some of the other cooks Mark has around here, we're going to cook a traditional Chinese feast for our new guest. Well, sort of. We're gonna mix in European Medieval eating as well. Not too much of any one thing, so you'll be able to sample it all, but right now the menu is..." She consulted sheet of paper. "Chinese chicken dumplings, High-quality ramen, which may or may not be Chinese. Whatever it is, though, it'll be top class. We got Pearl Balls, Char siu spare ribs, Asian greens, and plum sauce soaked beef. On the European side, we have...Gilded apples, Makerouns, Roast beef, and pork pot pies. Naturally we'll have an assortment of fruits and vegetables as well." She walked back into the kitchen, and picked up the phone. Mark could tell because she began speaking into it. "Yeah, you heard me. I need, like, three guys here now. We're making a feast."

Mark smiled weakly. "Don't worry, her sleeping suggestion was a joke. I think. Although, should you want to, I suppose you could sleep with someone else. But," The word was almost a grunt as he stood. "There is a place you can sleep by yourself." He held out a hand for her, helping her to her feet. He held out an arm for her to grasp, should she need it, and slowly moved into the other room. Eventually, he came to a ground floor room near the stairs. "This one is one of the guest rooms. I think it'll do well for you." He opened and held the door for her, displaying the calm and attractive living space.



"It's pretty close to mine and Lesley's, so if you needed anything, we'd be in earshot. There's also this." He stepped into the room, trusting Rue to support herself against a wall, or if she was strong enough, simply stand, and moved toward a smooth and almost invisible stereo set. "This thing is cool. It's only a radio, but I made a nifty little program a few years ago. The stereo automatically analyzes around fifty music stations, and classifies each song that has or may be played there. It groups them into categories, so if you want a peaceful night, just select the 'Tranquil' group, et cetera. It's one of my favorite things about this house. I have one in all of the bedrooms."

He stepped back to her, pressing his hands against hers again, but this time, it was to place the small bottle of painkillers in her hand. "Take one of these every four hours. There's a pool of purified water over there, and a couple of glasses next to it." He smiled again, releasing her hands. "I'll see you tonight, then. The meal will take some time to get ready, and I have some work things to do. Wish I didn't, but, that's how it is." He released her hands, and smiled once more. "See you then." Then he left, and delved back into the hellish world of making software.

-----Timeskip ~ 7:30 P.M. ((Feel free to post any reactions to anything that's happened thus far.))-----

Mark heard a gentle knock on his door. "Mark, it's time. We're aaaall set." Lesley returned downstairs, leaving Mark to gather his thoughts, switch out of programming mode, and exit his studio. He descended the stairs rapidly, if quietly, and headed into the dining room, where a small table had been set up for two, against Mark's earlier thoughts. Lesley had insisted that the others would eat in a separate room. He eventually took it in stride. The food had already been laid out, the cooked things being kept warm by heaters, and the cold things being chilled in trays of ice. It was truly magnificent. Everything was on the side of the room, even the little table, because Mark had always felt more comfortable eating with a wall nearby. The cooks would serve the the meal in a truly magnificent manner: three plates full of various delicious delicacies for each person, with all the warm or cold foods on respectively heated or chilled platters. Lesley really had pulled out all the stops.

"Wow. Les, this is magnificent."

"Yeah, I know. Isn't it great."

"Indeed it is. Would you please go and get Rue?"

"Sure." Lesley departed, and Mark took his seat. He had neglected to dress up, because he disliked too much ceremony on such a basic thing as dinner. Fancy food, maybe, but fancy clothes? Not a chance in hell.

[MacabreFox]

Rue listened to Lesley as she began to inform her of what dinner would consist of. It all sounded very appetizing, and delectable, but Ruellen had no idea as to what a gilded apple was, nor a Makeroun. The thought of eating so much food made her queasy. When was the last time she had a decent meal? Her last Chinese New Year before her mother left. Everyone had been so happy, but that was 14 years ago. She looked Lesley in the eyes and nodded, "This all sounds so wonderful, Lesley."

Mark helped Ru to her feet, and even offered her his arm. It pained her to walk, her back muscles were taunt, like that of a string on a bow. Thankfully the guest room was on the ground floor, and relatively close to the stairs. Mark opened the door for her and in she stepped. The room was magnificent! He explained to her the stereo and what it could do. Ruellen was quite pleased. No, more than pleased. Impressed. "Thank you Mark." She bowed her head to him. Before he left he gave her the rest of the painkillers.

Now that she was alone, Rue went to investigate the stereo. After fiddling with it for a few minutes, Rue figured out how to work it. She had selected the Indie music channel. The room filled with music, though at a low volume. Just the way she liked it. As Ruellen listened on, she identified the band, Silversun Pickups. Rue liked a variety of music, indie, punk, rock, j-rock, k-pop, even Finnish bands like The Rasmus, and The 69 Eyes. Indeed she had an odd taste in music.

She opened a door in the room, and that it was a complete bathroom. Rue found that the floor was heated. How quaint. Rue looked at the shower and thought it would best to take one. As Rue peeled off her clothes she slowly became aware of the damage inflicted upon her body. There were several lacerations on her face, chest, abdomen, forearms, and even her back. She reached up, and touched a knot on the side of her head. The knot had to be the size of a plum. Groaning in anguish, she stepped into the shower after removing all the bandages.

The water fell on her like rain. It gently washed her body, though causing her wounds to sting. She rested her head against the tiled wall. Her eyes were closed, and eventually Rue became lost in her own mind.

After her shower, Rue put on the same clothes she wore, generously loaned to her by Lesley. Now that Rue was cleaned, she decided to relax on the enormous king size bed. She fell asleep in no time.

A knock upon the door roused her from her cat nap. She rolled out of bed and answered the door.
"Hello Lesley, is dinner ready?" Rue asked. Her hair, no longer in a fohawk had lain down. Her bangs were quite long. They framed her face nicely, really bringing attention to her eyes.

[MacabreFox]

Lesley gave Rue a wide smile, "Aww! You look so cute!" Rue's cheeks coloured darkly at her compliment.
"I..uh..um..." She searched for something to say to her.
"No worries, but yeah dinner is ready." Lesley said, motioning for her to follow her. Like a mouse, a nervous Rue followed behind.

"If you don't mind me asking...what's up with your eyes?" She asked Rue. This really caught Rue off. "Why are they two different colours? Is it a birth defect or something?"

"Um...it's called heterochromia." Rue responded. They neared the dining room.

"That's really cool, one purple, one brown. Hey, I hope you like dinner!" Lesley said as opened the door for Rue. When she saw the layout of the room, her forehead began to bead with sweat. Rue approached the table and took a seat. She gazed at Mark's feather necklace, trying not to think about how he held her hands in his.
"...Hi..M-Mark." Rue forced out, her throat tightening in realization that it would be just Mark and her dining at the table. Not that that was a problem.

[Mercenary Lord]

Mark stood as Rue entered the room, and pulled out her chair, motioning to the seat. "After you."

They had scarcely been seated when the food started coming. Three plates each, as promised with all sorts of things. Mark saw the pork pot pies, the makerouns, which he discovered was really just a fancy name for gourmet macaroni and cheese, the Chinese ribs, the plum sauce soaked beef, the chicken dumplings, the roast beef, the top-notch ramen, the pearl balls...it looked phenomenal. On one plate each was a leafy salad of traditional Asian greens, and off to the side were two other platters of fruits and vegetables.

"Wow," he breathed. It was a lot of meats, he noticed, but there was just enough of each meat to be finishable. The entire meal had been portioned out, and while maybe not the most healthy of dinners, it was well balanced, and smelled intoxication. "Wow, Lesley. Thanks. And the rest of you." He motioned to others who had helped. "Here." He reached into a his wallet, and pulled out a few hundred dollar bills. He usually carried that much around with him, in case the buying fancy struck him. He gave one to each chef, and smiled in gratitude. They left then, after setting two glasses and pitchers of water, iced tea, and wine. Damn, Lesley. Just how far did you go with this? As if she hadn't done enough yet, a soft and peaceful Chinese playlist started in the room, not enough to overpower speaking, but enough to not make the eating part of the dinner uncomfortable.

He did eat, indeed. For a few moments, he carefully but voraciously fed himself on the delicious food. It was glorious. He had to tell himself to stop. He poured a glass of water for himself, and offered the three choices to Rue.

"I must say, Rue," he said, collecting his thoughts. "When you wear your hair down like that, you look stunning. As your friend, I feel like I'm entitled to tell you this. It looks really good." He took another bite, chewing and swallowing before continuing, deciding to just go a bit farther with the praise. She'd been through much, and she needed a bit of a pick me up. "You are really a remarkable women." He took yet another bite. Damn, this stuff was good. "How's the room? Will it work for you?"

[MacabreFox]

Rue sat down after Mark pulled out her chair for her. As everything was revealed, Rue's mouth began to water. Wow. Lesley and the other chefs had gone all out! Lifting a fork full of Asian greens to her mouth, Rue noticed the Chinese music playing quietly in the background. After she had finished that, Rue moved onto the ramen; holy fuck, it was delicious!

Mark suddenly complimented her on her hair, this caught Rue off guard. She had a forkful of ramen poised to be eaten, she set it back and bit her lip. He offered her the three choices for their beverages, she gestured towards the wine. "Thank you Mark...people typically mistake me for a boy when I wear it like this..." She wasn't sure what to say to that. Mark treated her wonderfully, and it made her feel...wanted. And by wanted, he wanted to be in her presence.

Then Mark followed up with telling her how remarkable she was, "Oh Mark...I don't think I'd be alive right now, had it not been for you..." Rue moved onto the dumplings,and finished that in seconds. Her next target, the makerouns. "The room? Oh its wonderful! Thank you so much Mark..but I really need to ask you...." Here she stopped and set her fork down and looked him dead in the eye. "Why? Why did you do this? And this too, the dinner? Please, don't think me ungrateful...I'm just curious."