[IC] When the Flames Die

[Epsir]

"It'd be nice if it was that easy, right?" She just smiled faintly and mechanically carried on the motions of the dance for a moment, thinking over what she was about to say to Thomas. It was certainly a precarious situation. One wrong move, and she'd have to spill an awful lot of innocent blood getting away. She didn't want that, she doubted that anyone in the guard wanted that, but their situations were different and they were unlikely to understand why exactly she was there. Being honest with herself, she wouldn't have believed it if she'd been told. "I'm here to protect people, and I am not a bodyguard." She looked down at her wrists, shrugging what she could while held. "I don't plan on going anywhere," She said, even, low, and apparently unfazed by the changing demeanor of her dance partner and their escalating situation. "What do you expect, a confession?" She made a quick series of glances around the crowd, half-sure that she'd see someone approaching them and happy to see they were still alone in the crowd.

[Sightles]

"No, Miss Lexine." Thomas replied, his grip still tightening, "I expect you come along with me to the interrogation room. If you do, I swear on every God on this continent, you won't be held here against your will, and I will not alert the Order of the Thistle to my suspicion of you." Thomas began, his voice growing slightly more somber, and darker, "Right now, I have every right as a King's knight to arrest you, on multiple accounts, actually." Thomas added, trying to level with the girl about how dangerous her situation was, "I just want to know what is happening. You don't have to tell me everything, but it's not safe for us here." Thomas finished, as he continued to lead the dance. Thomas had no idea who had already heard their conversation, and it'd be much better to talk in private, where no one would be able to bother them, "You wouldn't be armed right now, unless you knew how to use those weapons. I'll even disarm myself, if you do the same." Thomas added in, trying to reassure Lexine that all he wanted was knowledge, and had no intention of arresting Lexine, or alerting his fellow knights.

[Epsir]

"I'm sure the interrogation room is a comfortable place to talk," Lexine said, frowning settling her eyes on Thomas'. She was patient enough waiting for important things, but dealing with an overly curious Thistle Knight was starting to become draining. Worse than that, he wanted to leave the area and close any window she had of actually finding the people she needed to be looking for. Which was, of course, simple desperation following the knowledge that Karl Leid was most certainly no longer within their influence after that initial search effort that morning had failed. In fact, with how much they had done before resorting to combing crowds like idiots, it was absolute certainty in her mind that the Keilauds were the only ones with the facilities to shut them out, or at least the only facilities they respected enough not to break into on a whim. That wasn't quite right either, because she was standing at the king's party armed. She sighed, ignoring the threat of arrest and addressing the man's offer. "It's not safe in there either. Lead on Sir Knight, let's fix your curiosity." She nodded towards the palace.

---

The dance was underway already, and that was fine by him. It had been a weary day and he didn't relish the thought of speaking as soon as he arrived at his own feast. It was the midnight feast, at least, so the expectations of formality would be significantly lower. Either way, the king had appeared and it was likely that few at the party escaped noticing the small entourage of knights and followers who joined him at the table. It would have put minds at ease if his presence didn't herald only further silence, a poor word for the chaotic din of the party. It may have been the late hour, but the king had begun his day looking tired and he looked considerably worse for wear at this hour. Well groomed as always, but there was only so much cosmetics could accomplish on an unwilling canvas. He looked on at the dancing blankly, seeming more lost in thought than anything else. Despite his lackluster and even inappropriately quiet entrance, a few members of the growing crowd returned to the tables as if waiting for something to be said. In truth, some had simply yet to present their gifts, a prospect full of politics that the king was once again simply not looking forward to.

[DrowsyPangolin]

Sophia continued dancing for a moment after Gareth asked his question. "I'm not sure, surely he should've shown up by-" She was cut off as she noticed the king and his entourage approaching. The king hailed no fantastic entrance, merely taking his seat quietly. The princess stopped mid-twirl and looked towards the king's table quizzically. Odd, she thought, that a ruler would enter into his own celebration in such a stealthy manner. Perhaps something weighed heavily on the king's mind? She resigned to make no judgements, hoping she would actually get an audience at some point. That was when she would get her impression of Bard. She motioned towards the party to Gareth. "It seems he slipped in right under our noses." The princess laughed softly. "Should we go get a seat, Gareth, or would you rather keep dancing?"

[Sightles]

Thomas watched on as many of the guests, including nearly every knight of the Order of the Thistle fixed their eyes on the king. In a moment, Thomas released one of Lexine's hand, and held her other in his hand, leading her on. The way he led, anyone that wasn't paying attention to the King, would simply assume that Thomas and Lexine were friends, or lovers, and were simply leaving the party. Entering the Palace without Order knights seeing either one of them was easy, as nearly everything was focused on the King. After entering the Palace, Thomas released Lexine's hand, gave her a moment's look, before keeping on with his pace. Eventually, they arrived to a large metal door, with many braces. Thomas unlocked the door to the closed off room, then undid his belt, placing it outside the door to the side, "Your weapons, too, please." Thomas asked, with a soft smile on his face, "I appreciate you coming to talk to me, and I appreciate your trust." Thomas added, holding his soft smile, as he awaited Lexine to enter the empty room.

[ravenDivinity]

Gareth bit his lip. "If you see it fit, my lady." He held her hand, him twirling her around, and he chuckled. His keen eyes looked over to the king, one set of eyes of only few that noticed the king arrive. "After all, um, I don't always like making decisions." The half-elf left the question up to Sophia's judgment.

[Epsir]

Lexine took another quick look around the yard as the two emerged from the crowd, looking around to take stock of the situation. The king had arrived, and that put a deep dread in her. They'd been right in assuming the worst and now she was down another man in all probability. She caught herself grinding her teeth in the frustration as she marched along behind Thomas. She was going to miss her chance because of some busybody knight. When they arrived at the door, which was not giving her any positive feelings about their arrangement, she began to disarm after Thomas. She removed her belt, tossing it aside before pulling her shirt untucked to get at the belt worn under it. A sheathe bearing the two tiny, press-forged knives that had shown. After that, she produced another set from within the cuffs of her shirt. Another pair came from belts just above the shin tied around her boots. She tossed away a pair of black gloves and an accompanying roll of black cloth wrap. Last to go was her tie, which clattered suspiciously as it landed. There were a few she wasn't about to undress just to remove, but disarming was really just a gesture at this point. "I'm sure history will appreciate this farce some day, too," she quipped, walking into the interrogation room and immediately contemplating escape while waiting for the knight to lock her in alone. She didn't expect much from him, but it wasn't a reason to start a fight so soon.

---

His knights wanted to get on with it, apparently. The king's knights took to sorting the gift pile almost as soon as he had found himself seated, and one by one they would be inspected by the first man and presented to him. It all seemed rather stuffy but he was the king now, with all that meant. As each parcel came to him in slow order, he acknowledged the family, house, or nation that had brought such a gift. The Lyoki sword, and the small box seemed to be sitting towards the end of the pile, away from where the knight had begun to process, but seeing as it was only the midnight feast they would be upon those particular gifts rather quickly. In the meantime, the king continued to pass through books and jewelry as more and more guests took their seats or returned to the area of the feast. Things had quieted down some, but only just, as the party very much lived.

[Sightles]

Thomas stepped into the room, locking the door with a key as he did so, which then promptly hid amongst his clothes, with his back to Lexine. The room held a small table, with two chairs, along with a smaller table with a pitcher and three glasses. Along with a comfy couch situated in the corner of the room, "Well, so why don't you just give me the basics of what your real intentions are." Thomas said, still holding his same soft smile. Thomas did not take a seat, and instead opted to stand next to the table, near Lexine, with one hand on the table. Thomas was sure the girl was still armed, it would be stupid of her to completely disarm herself in this situation, just as it would be for Thomas to completely disarm himself, "And let's try to be completely honest, shall we?" Thomas added, with a slight smirk, as he remained standing. He didn't trust the girl, and knew she would no doubt try to lie her way out of the situation, but Thomas had all day to question her, and had the patient to wait for her to decide to talk.

[Sightles]

.

[DrowsyPangolin]

Sophia smirked a bit at Gareth's indecision. The boy's nervousness seemed to constantly bear down on him, but the princess didn't think less of him. People were quirky, after all. "I suppose we should get a seat before they're all filled up." The princess motioned to the large group of people, who were quickly occupying all the available seats. Sophia began walking towards the tables, motioning for Gareth to follow her. She moved quickly, brushing by the slower attendees, and managed to snag a seat which placed the king in plain view. She pulled out the chair directly next to her own, saving it for Gareth. She motioned towards the chair. As she turned, she noticed that the king was beginning to sort through his gifts. She smiled. Surely the sword would make a good impression. Her mother had had the finest smiths in Lyok craft the weapon. It wasn't a tool for war, obviously, more of a show piece, but it had come out absolutely beautiful. The gems alone had a value equal to a moderately sized castle, and probably the surrounding lands as well.

[Epsir]

She was slightly surprised to see Thomas still standing in the room with her. The revelation did not however raise her estimations of the man. In fact, he had gone and made her night much more complicated because he felt entitled to answers. Understandable, commendable probably, if she wasn't still on edge about what was going on outside. She took a seat, surrendering the high ground and letting her interrogator feel at home. Something he would no doubt recognize but she really wasn't about to start going round in circles about who was playing who. Their information excursion had become bothersome quickly, and from where she sat Thomas seemed content to treat it as an interrogation. She didn't suspect that either of them had that kind of time, judging solely by the absence of her colleagues. He had asked for basic intentions. That was doable. She had agreed to speak in transparency in order to go about her business, although until then she thought it wouldn't be honored. "I am going to take into custody a fugitive known to be sheltered in this country. My personal desires are the preservation of life through clandestine resolution of my goals. My actions are illegal, unsanctioned by and untied to any state known to exist." She spoke blandly, reading down the list of appropriate information from some textbook in her mind and slowly looking around the room. Her dull, green eyes slowly settled on Thomas, staring through the man and wondering where either of their breaking points would be and what exactly the man sought to gain.

[Chazbarry]

As the two dance, Payton attempted to lead the duo herself, and overtake Jezin's lead, "My my, you're quite the gentleman, you know that?" Payton mocked swooned, as they danced, before laughing to show her entertainment with her joke, "Are you this nice to every girl you come across, or just the ones wearing armor?" Payton said, wth a slight smirk, as she still attempted to take the lead of the dance. As the pair kept up their dance, it was noticeable that Payton's armor didn't clang, or shake, almost at all, pointing to the quality and lightness of the metal she was wearing. It was also noticeable that she moved fairly smoothly, almost as good as a woman in court, but not quite there.

[Sightles]

Thomas could feel his heart in his throat for a moment, before the feeling left due to Thomas reassuring himself. Thomas paused for a moment, before smiling, and then scoffing. The scoff was not in disbelief, but in surprise, "Under law, The Order of the Thistle would be allowed to execute you where you stand." Thomas spoke, as he stood stoically. The number one thing every Order of the Thistle member fought against was outside subterfuge movements, and personnel, inside the country, "Who's commands you, and who's this fugitive?" Thomas asked, as he shifted slightly, but kept standing up and looking down at the rather small woman, "More importantly, what exactly did your fugitive do to warrant such action?" Thomas added, his interest sufficiently piqued. Thomas wasn't about to let her go, but he wasn't going to go back on his promise to her. He needed to figure out exactly what was going on, for the sake of the Order, and the sake of the King. The girl was obviously was a much bigger mystery than she was letting on, something Thomas intended to fix, and he wouldn't ask 100 questions to get the exact answer out, "Don't think because you have noble intentions means you can do whatever you like, however you like." Thomas added, as an afterthought. This was likely an international situation, as if it had to do with the King, and people within Mullen or Keilaudrin, the Order of the Thistle would of no doubt heard of this, also, and Thomas would of already been alerted to the situation.

[DrowsyPangolin]

A warm smirk crossed Jezin's face as he allowed Payton to overtake the lead. He replied with his typical bravado. "A gentleman? Oh, well I do try to be, milady." He continued moving to the music rather gracefully. "I assure you women in armor get special treatment. Especially those who dance so well." He winked and chuckled slightly, still moving about. He noticed a few people leaving the dance floor. It seemed the king had arrived, late to his own feast. The soldier continued dancing, but periodically glanced towards the king's table, and then to Sophia, who had taken a seat nearby. Despite Lexine's earlier concerns, things seemed to be going rather smoothly, at least for the moment. He hoped the woman had been wrong and the feast would go off without a hitch. Still, in the back of his mind, he had a bad feeling. "It seems our host has finally arrived." He said, still dancing about, allowing Payton to lead.

[ravenDivinity]

Bumping into some people along the way with quick and rushed apologies, Gareth brushed past others in the crowd while he made his way to the seats Sophia took. She patted the seat for him, and he promptly sat in the chair next her, him adjusting his posture and his attire such that they would appear well. The king rummaged through the gifts as the pair looked at the king. "What did you bring the king?" Harker missed what Sophia's gift exactly was; for all he knew was that a long slender box contained it. The fact that he did not bring a gift bothered him, but he warily supposed that nobody would notice out of the sheer number of people present. He watched the king, the half-elf resting his chin on his bridged hands on the table, and he pondered what the king would do to secure an heir. 'Who would take the throne if the king were gone?' thought Gareth. 'He has no wife, no children. Does he have any suitors?'

[DrowsyPangolin]

Sophia smiled when Gareth took his seat, crossing her hands in her lap. "My mother had a very special sword made for him. It's made almost entirely from gold, and it's covered in gemstones from all over Lyok." The princess smiled, hoping the king would enjoy the gift. "It's absolutely beautiful! I'm sure he'll like it. At least, I hope he does. We hired the most talented smiths in the entire empire to make it." She kept up her smile, and reached across the table for a small glass. A pitcher was nearby. She lifted it, struggling slightly with it's weight. She poured a bit of the wine into the delicate glass cup, being careful not to spill any. The princess gently placed the pitcher back in it's correct position and took a small sip from her glass. The wine was strong, stronger than the wine she had tasted in Lyok, and she pursed her lips slightly at the flavor. She had never drank very much before, but it was a celebration. "So, Gareth, you've lived here for a long time, right? What do you think of the king?"

[Epsir]

Lexine sat back in the chair, crossing one leg over her knee and resting the her head on the chair's back. Thomas was right, execution was about the most civil treatment someone in her line of work could expect. However, his questioning had gone over the margins she was going to answer within. No one commanded her: her initial statement declared that. She sat there in silence, letting Thomas continue with his questions. She would have liked to trust Thomas, especially because she needed a replacement. That word hurt to think, and her brow furrowed to match her frown as she glowered at the ceiling. The words 'noble intentions' caught her attention, and she spoke up slowly, "I am a killer, sent to find a killer. No names for anyone involved." That would have to be good enough for the knight, it was among the only things she had left to say. She'd hoped his curiosity would have been more restrained, there wasn't much she could do about his demands.

---

The stewards made sure that food and drink around the tables remained stocked, and the pile of gifts was being cleared through quickly, although of course they all went back to the same table after being received. Eventually, one of the knights presented the long, slender box to the king. Bard II stood and gingerly opened the Lyoki gift, sliding the red pillow bearing the sword and scabbard out onto the tablecloth before him before taking up the sheath and partially withdrawing the weapon. The gold glistened keenly in the candlelight, and the gemstones came to life with twinkling. Absolutely marvelous, almost too rich for a king's taste but that in itself was a qualifier. It had been addressed from Lyok, his guards had mentioned that particular group on the way here. The amount of money they'd spent on a gift was generous, but he also knew it to be symbolic. Gifts were never just that, but it wouldn't stop him from showing appreciation. Cooperation between their nations would be beneficial on both sides, after all. They were just willing to put up more to guarantee it. He bowed ever slightly in recognition towards Sophia, whom he knew only by retold likeness but it was easy to find the rich, Lyoki looking foreigner in the crowd. "A beautiful weapon, a paradox. Gorgeous and thought provoking, thank you Princess Octavia. Please return my kindest sentiments to the Lyoki crown and people. Accord between Keilaudrin and Lyok will mean prosperity not just for our lands but for the entire west of Estovet." He smiled, and sheathed the weapon once more before affixing it to his belt, beside the ceremonial sword of the king, instead of sending it back to the table. As he took his seat once again, distant thunder sounded on the horizon, seeming far off in the eastern skies and rolling on far longer than normal.

[Sightles]

Thomas smirked, and just hold a stare on Lexine for a few moments, before taking a step forward, and slightly leaning down to eye level with her, mere inches from the face of the small, but spunky, girl. Thomas looked into Lexine's eyes, taking a moment to appreciate her attitude and determination, "Thank you for the cooperation, and as promised I won't tell any Order of the Thistle knights." Thomas said, in a soft voice, as he leaned his face towards Lexine, slowly. Thomas' face suddenly took on a serious visage, and he stopped leaning in, and in that moment his hands shot up towards Lexine's throat, attempting to wrap his hands around her throat, to strangle her. At the same time, Thomas lunged forward, with a quick first step. It was unlikely Lexine was expecting either one of these moves, and Thomas knew it. He could overpower the girl easily, due to his size and build. There was also no escape for the girl, as she had no idea where they key was located, or even if there was a key.

[Epsir]

Lexine had been watching his show with a blank look, waiting for either freedom or confinement. Thomas' face darkened, and her heart jumped. She surged forward in the chair, aiming to ram her head into Thomas' nose but by the time she thought of acting, his hands were at her throat, forcing her head back as his weight sent them tumbling. She bared her teeth, opening wide and futilely trying to earn a bite of the wrists by her jaw. Her mind blanked as she fell. All of the politics of the last hour drifted away, and panic was replaced by an icy grip along her spine that made her sick to her stomach. Clarity. The chair slammed against the floor, jostling her head and signalling the beginning of hostilities. She brought her hands up to her shoulders, and went to work. Her left hand grasped at her attacker's wrist on the same side in an attempt to pin his hand, while she brought her right arm up and swept, elbow out, across her front. The chair kept her from being flush with the ground, and despite immense protest from her waist and the weight holding her she jerked to turn herself in support of her sweep. The strike was intended to force Thomas' hold off or elbows out with raw leverage, or at least put her in a better position to start gouging with the short time she had left.

[Sightles]

Now was a time where Thomas' solid muscular build came into play. While his grip was almost knocked off, he managed to stay gripped to Lexine's throat by sliding over slightly, rolling with the sweep. Thomas was lucky that he had managed to get Lexine on the ground, otherwise she would of been able to put much more force behind her sweep. While taking one hand, and violently pressing his thumb down on the center of her throat, trying to shake her head as he did so, Thomas pulled his other hand free, and reared back, aiming a solid punch into the orbital of Lexine, hoping to stun her. Has Lexine been a man that was even near Thomas' side, it would be likely Lexine would of broke off by now. Thomas could feel the adrenaline rush through his face, but he still held the ever serious, and calm face he normally possessed, albeit far more strained than before. Everything had led up to this flash point between the two of them, and Thomas was going to end it all in this room.