[IC] Countryside Adventure (GranoxFirewind & Light The Dark)

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander heard the sounds too, and allowed Calliope to pull away, following her to the window to look outside. He was confused at first, before his eyes widened in realization. The manor was under attack. And from the direction the forces were coming from, it was more than just an attack... It was an act of war. He reached out to grab Calliope by the shoulder, spinning her around to face him. His face was grim, and very serious, one of the few times he seemed unsettled. "Calliope, listen to me. You're going to do exactly as I say, do you understand?"

Regardless of her response to that, Alexander would continue speaking. "I'm going to leave your room and try to get to your father, figure out what I need to do. You are going to lock the door behind me, you are not going to open it for anyone who isn't myself or your father. Do you understand me?" His words came quickly, though there was very obvious worry in them. He pulled out one of his daggers, handing it to Calliope. "If someone forces their way in... Defend yourself. I'll be back as soon as I can be." He would pull her into another embrace, for a brief moment, before letting her go and running out the door, closing it behind him. He knew that guards would already be mobilizing, but he would be able to maneuver around them, thanks to his leather armor. His plate was useful in some situations, when he absolutely needed to be capable of taking a hit. Otherwise though, it just hindered him.

He quickly reached her fathers study, and considering it was still early into the night, he knew the man would likely be there, probably receiving word of the invading force as he approached the door. Alexander didn't bother knocking, instead throwing open the door and walking inside briskly. He saw her father, sitting in a chair with a paling face, while a soldier, looking like a captain of the guard, or something of similar rank, told him of the news. He didn't necessarily care right now. "Daiud. What do I do with Calliope. She's in her room, I told her to lock the door and not to let anyone in. They're invading, and we're first on the list. What do you want me to do?" The man seemed shocked at Alexanders tone, though he would seem shocked by anything at this point, his face as pale as could be. He quickly recovered, looking to Alexander as he took in the news.

"Take her from here. That is an army, any this manor is going to be burned to the ground. We don't have the guards present to stop a fifth of that force, much less the entirety of it. Take her from her, we have some family in Norgarrum." Alexander was silent for a moment. Norgarrum? That was two damn countries away.

"Why am I taking her so far away?" The answer was simple, as Daiud explained. For all their wealth, it was material. They held no real influence. The only place they could send her, safely, was Norgarrum, was to family. And, being two countries away, it was also far from the war, far enough to keep her from being harmed by it. Nodding, Alexander would leave to head back to Calliopes room, already starting to hear combat. It'd taken him nearly twenty minutes to traverse the entire manor, and he'd spent more time talking. The forces had arrived, and now they were attacking.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope blinked, staring at the door Alexander had just left through. She had remained silent through his words, somewhat in shock of what was happening. She held tightly to the dagger in her hand, the hilt smooth and solid in her grip. Turning to look out the window once more, she found herself almost mesmerized by marching of the army. In the mood that she was in, Calliope found it hard to care that the house under attack. So she stayed at the window, watching numbly as the army got closer. She saw them break down the gates to the manor as easily as a child knocks over a stack of wooden blocks. She watched them approach, the house guards no match for their numbers. She didn't see much more after that, for the door to her room opened.

Now, there was one very important part of Alexander's words to her that Calliope had simply not seemed to have heard. After her guard had left, she had not locked the door as he had instructed. She only remembered what he had told her to do as the door creaked open. Slowly, Calliope turned, her hands dropping to her sides. Her heart began to beat faster...

"Lady?" A woman Calliope's age came into the room. Calliope breathed a sigh of relief. It was only one of the maids. Not one she knew very well, but she had seen the maid around quite a bit.

Calliope brought her free hand to her chest as the woman shut the door. "Oh. It's only you. You startled me. What-what are you doing?" The question was in response to the maid not looking or behaving particularly maid-like. Indeed, the woman strode quite confidently into the room, all the while playing with a length of what looked like wire in her hands. The woman didn't answer, just quickly moved towards Calliope. Forgetting the dagger that was still clenched in one hand, hidden by the folds of her nightdress, Calliope backed away, her heart suddenly racing again. She felt her back hit a wall as the woman reached her; the wire was slipped quickly and efficiently around her neck, and then...

The woman dropped to the floor. Calliope sank to the ground, staring at the dagger sticking out of the woman's chest. Calliope's white nightgown was smeared with the maid's blood, her neck a bit bruised where the wire had began to tighten. She didn't remember what had happened, but she could see the results. Calliope rocked back and forth on the floor, her breathing fast and erratic. She had never seen someone die before. She had almost been killed, she had just killed someone. Tears slid down her face, and she began to sob; shaking, horrible sobs that seemed to tear themselves from her throat no matter how she tried to be quiet.

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander was moving back through the calls, hearing the sounds of combat breaking out everywhere. He knew well who was winning, who the screams of the dying belonged to. However, they weren't his concern, much as it chagrined him to say so. He couldn't save the soldiers and then help Calliope escape. A yell to his side brought his attention, before a man in a full suit of chainmail slammed into him, throwing him into the wall and making him drop to one knee. He recognized the armor, and the sigils. They belonged to the Traves family. "What's wrong with you!? Don't you know who I a-" His word was cut off as instinct took over, Alexander pulling out a dagger and deflecting a swipe of a sword to his side, all in the span of a heartbeat.

"I know damn well who you are, and that's why you're going to die." The man grinned widely, and Alexander realized that this wasn't just some attack. This had been planned in advance. This wasn't a guard, this was an infiltrator. Again, the blade came at him, but now Alexander was ready. He caught it on the guard of his dagger, reaching out with his free hand to grab the mans wrist, kicking off from the wall behind the man, dragging his arm with him. Before he could react, Alexander was already moving his dagger, slamming it into a seam in the mans armor, right on his shoulder. The reaction was immediate, the mans sword hitting the ground with howl of pain. Retracting the dagger, Alexander brought it around and slammed it into the mans throat, ending both his howl and life prematurely.

He cleaned the weapon on his armor before taking off at a run to Calliopes room once more, practically sprinting now. Adrenaline ran through his veins, keeping him feeling alert and energized despite the constant movement. His breath came in heavy gulps, the labor starting to tax him. He ran from hallway to hallway, encountering no more soldiers as he went, which he was glad for. Delays were not something he could afford, not with the invasion already upon them. He found Calliopes door wide open as he approached, and his sword was pulled out in seconds at the sight. Had they broken it down?

Instead, he saw the dead maid with a dagger in her chest, and Calliope sobbing. Oh gods... She'd killed someone. Alexander sheathed his blade, walking up to the girl softly, wrapping his arms around her protectively. "Calliope... I'm sorry..." He held her like that for a moment, forgetting that there was an invasion. "We have to go, or we'll all die here..." He never let his grip on her die down, closing his own eyes. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, he'd already had to end one life today. He'd done it before, when fighting bandits or something else that his extra contracts required, but it was something he found distasteful. But Calliope, an innocent girl... He could only imagine the grief she was feeling.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope clutched at Alexander as he held her, her sobs increasing. What had she done? It didn't matter that it was self preservation, that she would have died had she not killed the other woman. She had killed her, in cold blood, and gods, what had she done?! It was perhaps a good thing Calliope could not see herself in the mirror, could not see the blood on her nightclothes and hands. It would only serve to drive her further into hysterics.

"We have to go, or we'll all die here..."

After an evening of not feeling much of anything, Calliope was consumed by fear and guilt. She didn't feel like she even had the strength to move, even with the threat of death. "I...I killed her..." Calliope sobbed out. "I didn't mean to... I don't... she would have me but I shouldn't have..." Calliope sobbed harder, holding onto Alexander like he was the only thing keeping her in this world. "I can't...I can't..." Calliope didn't know what it was she couldn't do; but it seemed clear that she was terrified. Terrified of the situation, and of what she had just done.

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander listened to her, and sighed. She was practically hysterical, but what was worse, she was useless right now. His words went in one ear and out the other, and it would kill them both if she didn't get ahold of herself. Or someone did it for her. For now, though, he would have to do something. First things first, he took the dagger out of the maids chest, cleaning it on her outfit, and desperately hoped Calliope didn't see. When it came down to it, his knives were expensive and high quality, and he figured he would need them all to escape this manor alive.

After that, he would heft Calliope over one shoulder, demonstrating his strength easily. They didn't have time for her to pack clothing or anything of the such, they didn't have time to grab anything of value. So while she gripped onto him, over his left shoulder, Alexander walked out of the room, dagger in hand in his right. "Come on... Everything's going to be fine, we've just gotta get to the stable..." Luckily enough, Calliopes room was near the front gate. All he had to do was take her through the garden. That was one advantage they had, the army had attacked the manor from behind, so the bulk of their forces would be behind them as they moved, not infront. Otherwise, escape would be pointless.

They were lucky, more or less, able to avoid the fighting as they went. The guards had rallied inside, what hadn't been infiltrated soldiers anyway, and were holding chokepoints where their few could be that much more effective. The only issue was Calliopes sobbing, something that attracted the attention of another traitor guard, his sword already stained with blood. There had likely been a massacre as the traitors unveiled themselves, none of the loyal men expecting it. "I don't have time for this shit." Alexander grit his teeth together, throwing a dagger with his left hand and managing to hit the man, wounding him, though his scream of pain only alerted more soldiers. At this point, Alexander broke into a full sprint towards the stable, both of his hands around Calliope to keep her stable. He was faster than the men in plate, only his shoulder carrying the extra weight, instead of his entire form.

The front gate was wide open, something that Alexander didn't question, instead glad that it was open, though it likely wouldn't aid the rest of the manor in any form. No enemies were in sight, likely busy pillaging the manor, among other things... Alexander sighed. He knew war well enough to know that not everyone would be killed... Soldiers did have needs, and that manor did have maids and the such... He could only hope that Calliopes family managed to escape, somehow. That wasn't something he could think about right now though, instead forcing his way into the stable, setting down Calliope. "Come on, we need to find a horse with a saddle. We don't have time to set one up ourselves..." He looked around the room, expecting Calliope to atleast try to help. He knew she was going through a great deal, mentally, right now, but she needed to pull it together or they would not make it out of this alive.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope didn't notice the fighting - didn't notice much of anything, really, until the scent of the horses and stables hit her nose. She blinked, slowly coming back to herself, at least a little. She looked around, the sounds of fighting in the distance reaching her ears and making her shudder. Alexander seemed to be looking for...something. Slowly, Calliope followed after him. Perhaps he was looking for a horse. Well, they had walked by a lot of horses already. She saw one that would support them both and went into the stall to saddle it, working quickly. After all, they needed a saddled horse, and the hostlers didn't keep the horses saddled. Calliope was even as fast as some of the hostlers at saddling a horse, truth be told. She was done within minutes.

((...worst post ever))

[GranoxFirewind]

The sound of leathers and other assorted bits drew Alexanders attention behind him, his sword already halfway out of its sheathe. He had been expecting a soldier to have slipped in, not Calliope to actually be saddling a horse. Then he remembered, she did have experience in such acts... He remembered that they didn't keep horses prepared to leave, then, it was too much of a strain on the beasts back. He'd wasted time looking for something that wasn't there, while Calliope had actually done something to help the two of them.

He walked over to the horse and decided to help Calliope onto the beast, after it was saddled and ready to be ridden. She would go on first, in front of him, so that he could control the beast more efficiently, and keep her secure in the process. Once she was on the horse, he'd climb on himself, and begin to steer the beast away from the manor. It was the best he could do, already hearing the sounds of soldiers coming closer. He knew that they had cavalry, and would likely start roaming around to find stragglers, like themselves, if they didn't go. He kicked the horse into a gallop once he was able, sending them flying down a dirt path and away from the manor.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope held on to the horse for dear life. Never had she ridden so fast before, let alone when she was not in control of the direction of the horse. It was thrilling, in a way, but somewhat terrifying as well. Alexander's arms were around her as the horse flew down the dirt path, away from the battle, away from everything she had ever known. Calliope looked back, only once, and saw that one of the buildings was on fire. It was too far away for her to tell which one, from the small glance she had given. The horse carried them farther, and farther away from the battle.

They met no one along the road, and hadn't seemed to have been noticed fleeing the manor. No one came after them, at any rate, at least not as fast as they were traveling. Soon the sights and sounds of battle faded away. And they were alone, the two of them and the horse, traveling to parts unknown. Calliope supposed she should be thrilled but... she just could not find the energy. Everything that had happened tonight left her feeling numb. And so exhausted. She leaned against Alexander, taking comfort from his solid form, doing all she could to stay awake.

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander rode with the rode, for what felt like an hour before noticing buildings in the distance. Finally, he could see the small village. Calliope was probably freezing in the windchill, in just her nightgown. The fabric was a thin silk, comfortable certainly in the warm confines of her blankets and bed, but terrible protection against the elements outside her home. He was much more protected, wearing a thick suit of leather armor. He supposed that he wouldn't be retrieving his suit of plate, though it would only hinder him out here. It would distinguish him as a knight, or something similar to it, draw the wrong kind of attention. Instead, he could be more subtle, be harder to track. That invasion had clearly been planned for quite a long time, and survivors escaping likely wouldn't bode well for their forces. It would offer a chance to inform the crown of an invading army.

However, those things were less of a concern to Alexander. Instead, he was worried about finding a place to rest for the night, for Calliope. He knew she had been to the village as a much younger lady, when her parents were less controlling. After all, as the richest family for miles of the village, it was their duty to host festivals, show their faces, make acquaintances. He hoped that someone would recognize Calliope, or atleast recognize what they had been through, to give them a bed for the night, and some supplies in the morning. He knew enough about military tactics to know that the army would be at the manor all night. Pillaging it for items of worth, taking prisoners of war, among other things, and finally burning the place to the ground. That, along with a need to let the forces rest, would give them the time to warn the village, and then go on their way, and rest for the night as well. Truth be told, Alexander was exhausted. He'd gone through combat, self-induced training, and now an hour of riding a horse. Somehow, Calliope was still conscious as well, though likely in no condition to walk given her half-lidded eyes.

Instead, he rode the horse right up to a small stable, unmounting, after helping the girl off himself, before going about the process of hitching the horse up, along with removing the saddle and the such as well. No one was around, though he highly doubted that someone would be, considering the hour of the night. It was an open stable however, to deposit a horse so that a traveler could take a night to rest his weary body. From there, the bodyguard gently picked up Calliope, walking to a building he knew well enough. It was a tavern, and it usually had an open room or two on the upper level for rent. Hopefully, with the circumstances, he wouldn't need to pay the rent.

He walked inside the building, opening the door with no small amount of difficulty with his arms holding Calliopes small form, but the man managed it. Looking around, he noticed the drunk or two, spending their waking hours spending whatever small amount of coin they made on cheap food and cheaper ale. Alexander approached the bar, seeing the back of whom he supposed was the barkeep. It had been about a year since he'd last been here, but as the man turned around, he recognized him easily enough. "Sorry, I'm closing up the ba-" His voice stopped and turned to a wide grin as he recognized Alexander, though it faded just as quickly when he noticed the expression on the mans face, and the girl in his arms. "What happened? Is that Calliope?"

He had shared stories of the girl he was meant to protect, on the occasion that he was in the bar, to the man. Alexander was thankful that he had told the man stories, and nodded his head grimly at the question. "Her family home has been attacked, by the army of Rhal. I'll give you the details in the morning, but we really need a room right now. Do you have one?" The man nodded, about to hand Alexander a key, before thinking better of it. With Calliope in his arms, he couldn't unlock a door as well, so instead the barkeep strolled out from around the counter, leading the way up the stairs to unlock a door and push it open. The man walked inside, Calliope in his arms, and nodded to the barkeep, who simply smiled and set the key on a table.

"I expect to hear the details in the morning." With that he closed the door behind him, leaving Alexander and Calliope in the room alone. His first action was to place her in the bed, being stretching out his form, and disarming himself, pulling off his sword belt, and the belts that held his dagger sheaths, one empty. Putting those to the side, he stripped out of his leather armor quickly, leaving himself in a shirt and a pair of cotton pants, simple enough clothing. Then he realized the conundrum. "There's only one bed..." He sighed. This would be an issue, he supposed.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope was half asleep where she stood, as Alexander unsaddled the horse. So she made no protest when he picked her up and carried her into the inn; she did not think she would have had the energy to walk in on her own, in any case. Dozing off once in his arms, she half-heard the conversation with the barkeep, the voices sounding far away. She cuddled up Alexander a little, his strong body comforting, as she felt herself being moved upstairs. It wasn't until she was set down in the bed, and alone, that she woke up a little. Blinking sleepily, Calliope watched him take off his weapons and armor, until he was down to clothing that he could sleep in. Then he said something Calliope had not realized in her sleepy state - that there was one bed, and two of them. Perhaps the barkeep had misunderstood their relationship.

She looked down at the bed she was currently lying in, and then at Alexander. "The...the bed is big." She pointed out softly. She couldn't very well ask him not to sleep in the bed. And she certainly did not want to sleep on the floor herself. It would be hard, and uncomfortable, and not something at all she would want to do. Though, admittedly, she would likely be tired enough to do so. But again, she would rather not. Calliope blinked at her guard. "It's not like we haven't known each other for years." She added. "So... sharing...wouldn't be that...wrong." A small blush crossed her cheeks, and she hoped Alexander could not see it in the dark. "Be-besides, it is chilled in here. It would be warmer together..."

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander had said nothing as Calliope cuddled against him while she was in his arms, assuming it was a natural reaction of a girl half asleep. Still, he couldn't say that it didn't feel good on some level, to have someone using him as a pillar of support. Still, what he found comforting in one moment wasn't exactly the greatest comfort the next. The issue of the single bed still screamed at him, that it was wrong, that she was stil- Wait. Alexander stopped and thought for a moment. Her actions earlier... He looked at Calliope again, in her half asleep state. Now, he felt that he could examine her, and her groggy mind would hardly pay attention to it. Just as she rarely saw him sleep, he'd yet to see her sleep in years, the last time being before she was twenty, atleast.

She had... Grown, substantially. The thin night gown that she now wore did little for modesty at this point, though Alexander was too tired to care as he took her form in. He still wanted to think about her as that teenaged girl, with an attitude that he'd never been able to break, but now... Things certainly had a way of changing, didn't they? Her words shook him from his thoughts, and he glanced back up to her face. He honestly didn't even want to argue with her. He wanted to sleep, and the bed was large enough to accommodate the both of them. "I... Very well, Calliope. I'm honestly too tired to argue right now. Move over please." It was a request made from pure desire to simply lay down and sleep, though he honestly couldn't say that he wouldn't enjoy the opportunity for Calliope to be so close to him. At this very moment, in such clothing, he was thinking of her as the full woman she actually was.

If she did comply, moving over, Alexander would climb into the bed, underneath the single blanket on top of it, and realized with a small smile that Calliope wasn't even under it yet. The bed held two pillows, one for each of them then. It was designed with the idea of a couple in mind, but not one to be separate in bed. That much was certain, as he waited for Calliope to maneuver herself in.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope did indeed move over to let him into the bed - after all, she would not have suggested sharing if she was not willing to share. She was unaware of Alexander seeing her as a woman - and had she known, she would have been conflicted. It was what she wanted, for him to not see her as a child anymore, but at the same time, so much had changed in the past few hours that she was not sure she could handle anything else changing. Not only that... she was unsure how she felt about Alexander, beyond wanting him to notice that she had grown. Moving sluggishly, she then slipped under the covers, shivering a bit. Her eyes fluttered closed, and she soon fell into a deep sleep. The events of the day had taken their toll on her; it was a wonder she had been able to do as well as she had.

As the night wore on, she cuddled closer to the man's warm body. She had no idea she was doing such, but something in her dreams or otherwise seemed to move her closer to him. He was strong, and warm, and the only comfort she had right now. Her head found it's way from the pillow to his shoulder. There she slept, unless Alexander pushed her away, her body at peace for the time being.

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexander found himself very comfortable in the position he was in, curling his hands up behind his head. His eyes drifted closed, though he glanced at Calliope as she shivered underneath the blanket. He would need to do something about her clothing, or lack of, to word it better. For now though, he knew that the two of them together would warm the bed very quickly. He found himself forcing the urge to reach his arm out and pull her closer to him away, knowing that such would be inappropriate, even given the circumstances.

Sleep claimed the man in minutes, a very soft snoring filling the room as he drifted into a very deep sleep. The nights events, the combat, the training beforehand, they had all compounded and had all torn away his energy. He had felt like his limbs were molded to iron as he'd climbed into the bed, and now it would take the full dawn of battle to wake him up prematurely from his slumber now. Even as Calliope re-positioned herself onto his form, using his shoulder as a pillow, Alexander barely stirred. His body did take notice, however, reaching the arm that she had ended up on top of around her other side, firmly keeping her form against his. It was comfortable, or atleast Alexander would have thought so if he was capable of such thoughts. Instead, he continued to lightly snore into the night with the noble girl in his arms.

[Light the Dark]

At some point in the early hours of the morning, Calliope's arm moved to rest against his chest, holding him in a bit of a hug. The night passed, the both of them in each other's arms like lovers. If anyone was to see them, the spying person would certainly think the two were lovers, with how close they were and how comfortable they seemed with each other. However, soon enough, dawn came, and the sun rose higher in the sky.

The light filtered in through the window. Calliope stirred, moving herself closer to Alexander and away from the light. She did not want to wake up - she had the most wonderful dream, and was feeling safe and warm. Some part of her was afraid that once woke, she would no longer feel that way, and so she kept her eyes closed, in that state of half-asleep dreaming. If Alexander was awake, he would see Calliope's face looking peaceful, a small smile on her lips as she dozed. Her long hair had come out of its bindings, spreading across the pillows and herself. Her thin nightgown slipped just a bit off her shoulder, exposing a bit more of her pale, creamy skin.

[GranoxFirewind]

Alexanders sleep was dreamless, but very pleasant and restful, feeling quite content in whatever place his mind went when he wasn't capable of using it. He was very warm, on account of Calliopes snuggling against him, and he had his own smile on his face, finding himself to be in a position he'd rather not leave. Alexander stirred slightly when Calliope pulled herself closer to him, his eyes cracking open briefly. Tilting his head, Alexander considering the girl he found in his embrace, and decided it couldn't hurt to hold her any longer. They'd already cuddled the entire night, it wasn't like much more harm could come of it. There were selfish reasons to it also, the man not wanting to move for how comfortable he was. He couldn't lie at all, and say that he didn't enjoy feeling Calliope so close to him, with such a thin barrier of fabric separating them.

In his examinations, Alexander noticed that her nightgown was starting to slip off, and he wrestled with that conundrum for a moment. The most obvious solution was to simply ignore it. If he tried to fix it, she might wake up and his intentions would likely be considered much more different than what the situation demanded. So then, if he wanted to ignore it, why did he find himself staring at the exposed flesh. A knock at the door drew his attention away, causing Alexander to look over, remembering the bartender. "Come on, we need to talk."

The voice was intelligible, even through the door, but muffled. Letting out a groan, Alexander gently shook Calliopes shoulder. "Give us a few minutes to get dressed. Can you find something for Calliope to wear? All she has is a nightgown right now..." He heard a groan, and footsteps leading away from the door. Looking back to Calliope, he gently shook her again, though made no effort to untangle himself from her embrace, nor removed his arm from around her. Cuddling just a bit longer couldn't hurt, afterall. "You need to wake up, we've got things to do. Can you wake up for me?"

[Light the Dark]

Calliope stirred, slowly opening her eyes and blinking up at him. "Alexander...?" She asked softly, her voice sounding a bit confused and still heavy with sleep. She noticed her arms around him before anything, and she slowly started to draw away. Her face was flushed pink with embarrassment, wondering when she had curled up so close to him, and just what Alexander might think of her. She had barely moved an inch when she noticed his arm around her as well. Her cheeks brightened in color, but she stopped pulling away. She glanced up at him, wondering what was going on. Why did it feel so nice to be in his arms? Why did she not want to leave them? This was different from when he hauled her from the gardens back to the house, even though they had been just as close. This she didn't mind. Indeed... she liked it. Perhaps too much. It was almost scary, how much she liked something so simple.

She swallowed a little, trying to come up with something to say. Finally, she asked, "How did we end up here?" The whole of the night before was much of a blur. "I know the manor was attacked, but I... Truly, I'm not remembering much of it." She admitted, her voice soft.

[GranoxFirewind]

He watched Calliope blush and couldn't help but smile. She had never been this close to anyone, aside from him... As far as he knew, anyway. If she had somehow been sneaking boys into her room with his vigilance, than Alexander honestly had no reason to be her guard, but aside from that, this was also the first time that they had been so close together on good terms. When they were this close, he was carrying her away against her will, or they just happened to be walking close together. Now though, she was curled around his arm, his arm around her own. It was quite a change from the usual, for certain, though the reason it happened certainly wasn't a good one. No, Calliope had no family now, not that she seemed to particularly enjoy the one she did have. Still, it would be hard to recover from suddenly having nothing instead of just about any physical object she could want, given enough time.

"We're in an inn, in the village near the manor. I brought you here after we managed to escape. We're to travel to Norgarrum, on your fathers orders, to some family of yours. I hope you know of them? We didn't have time for him to inform me of their names, or location within the country, and I don't exactly know your family tree." He was down to business, while still holding the girl in his arms. Alexander needed this information to properly serve as bodyguard, and now escort, but he was still far to comfortable to want to move, no matter how selfish it was. "I imagine things are a blur? So many things happened at once, so much change."

Another knock at the door. "I found her a dress that used to belong to my daughter. She got a little big in the waist for it, but it should fit Calliope just fine. It's plain, but I imagine it's better than nothing." Alexander let out a soft sigh, out of minor annoyance. He unraveled his arm from around her, so that he could sit up in the bed.

"Come on, we need to talk to the inn keeper, get some supplies and go. We've got quite the distance to travel, and I imagine that army is close behind." He had neglected from mentioning the fact that Calliope had been forced to defend herself, hoping that she didn't remember that detail. Calliope didn't need to be exposed to such terrible things, killing and the like. It was far too much for a young girl like her.

[Light the Dark]

Calliope slowly got up, already missing the feel of Alexander's arm around her. She went to the door and opened it just a crack, enough to retrieve the dress from the innkeeper, before shutting the door again. There was a small changing screen, and Calliope stepped behind it to dress. The light hit the screen just right, Calliope's body casting a shadow picture on the thin fabric of the screen as she changed. "I don't know my family, no." She said, answering his earlier speech. "Well," she amended, "I know I have a cousin named Oliver. Father forced us to write letters. But I've never actually met him, or any of the family. Unless it happened when I was little, and I simply do not remember." She stepped out from behind the screen, dressed in the innkeeper's daughter's dress, her nightgown folded over her arm. The dress was a bit large, but it covered what needed to be covered. It was better than wearing a thin nightgown, in any case.

"And, yes, last night is all a blur." She admitted to him. Calliope swallowed, just a little. "Do you think we can outrun the army? Or are we simply delaying being caught?"

[GranoxFirewind]

Watching Calliope begin dressing herself, he decided that it would be rather improper to stare, and instead went about putting on his leather armor. Luckily enough, he'd managed to avoid getting blood on it when they escaped the manor. It would be a rather poor reminder to Calliope of what had happened if he was to wear a suit of bloodied armor around her. "Hopefully we'll be able to find this Oliver then. Still, the first task is obvious, getting to Norgarrum. It's two countries away, and we'll be traveling with what we can carry, if we can manage to get that much. It's not exactly looking to be an easy trip."

He closed his eyes thoughtfully as he pulled on his boots, stepping down to the ground. Alexander went about arming himself afterwards, looking to Calliope now that she was dressed. "I think two people on horseback will be much faster than any army. They have to stop and make camp, they have soldiers on foot to worry about. I know enough about the intricacies of armies to know that they are not fast, usually. We should have enough time to hopefully get some supplies here and make off before they arrive." With that, he walked out of the room, straightening his sword belt as he went. "Come Calliope, we've got a man to talk to." He walked down the stairs, rubbing his eyes tiredly. The man had been exhausted from the night before, and not even a full night of rest had provided full comfort.

[Light the Dark]

She swallowed a little, and nodded at his words. She did not like the sound of it not being an easy trip - and she had a feeling Alexander's definition of what 'not an easy trip' was much harsher than her own. She followed him down the stairs, clutching her nightgown to her chest tightly.