Burning Away

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Maria fell back and nursed her drink as Ethan cut in to the conversation, returning Lily's smile in reflective silence. From the sound of Lindwell's words, he was rejecting Lily. Even if his complaints were legitimate, she wasn't going to protest. A silversmith truly didn't belong on a usurper's staff, her primary worth was in the connections she held. That quality wasn't unique to her, any merchant they could grab off the streets could do the same, and that was exactly what Maria wanted. She could live with her actions before Ethan, a man she didn't know for anything other than wanting power, but Lily was different. Even if her relationship with the girl was sharing a drink and some stories, she was someone that had been let in to her life, if only for a desperate couple of minutes. No matter how many things she had betrayed that day, there were some things even Trinan was unwilling to tarnish. Perhaps she was only unable.

Leaving her thoughts for later, she listened through Lily's story, wondering where exactly the merchant was taking them and why her interest in their proposition only seemed to be growing. Esterl, she recognized the name of the girl's homeland. As she had been told so long ago, Lily and her sister had been successful silversmiths there. Even though the sly, blonde girl across the table never spoke of herself in the story, Trinan couldn't help but feel that it was meant to illustrate something to the two of them. At face value, she implied some relation to the Black Cat, or Cats. That was... Maria tensed, but held her even expression. It was insane to even think, but the way Lily told her story it almost seemed like that was what she wanted. It was hard to imagine two silversmiths doing well for themselves in the middle of such bleak circumstances, but the alternative, while somehow tantalizing, was even more farfetched. The idea that she had simply been lied to crossed her mind, not that it meant any offense. If the story here was the truth, the girl had every reason for hiding her history. On consideration, Maria knew that she wasn't any different. She lifted her cup and sipped lightly on what remained of the liquor. Lily had her rapt attention in speaking, but her eyes fell wide on Ethan, waiting for his answer. She wanted to know more, but her curiosity depended on Lindwell to enable it, at least while he was present.
 
Ethan listened carefully to Lily's story, showing no great interest as it went on in it's length. Ethan switched his glances between Maria, and Lily, as the girl told her story. Ethan let out an audible scoff as the story ended. The man had more use for a smith than a thief in his personal retinue. While he could trust a smith to be useless, he couldn't very well trust a thief to not be detrimental. Although, the girl obviously, Ethan hoped, wouldn't revealed her skill set if she still used it to steal on a daily basis. Still, a thief, and a liar, could never be trusted. Ethan would not accept that. Ethan glanced over at Maria, and saw eyes that spoke her feelings to him. She seemed to be begging for Ethan's approval of their friend, with her eyes. Ethan turned his gaze back to Lily, leaning slightly forward in his chair, "Most likely the only place liars and thieves ever go to. New places to find nicer houses, and more bountiful pockets." Ethan responded, amazingly bearing a smirk, but his tone was more forceful than anything, proving that the story did little to entertain him. After a moment of silence, Ethan glanced back to Maria, giving her a thoughtful look, and piercing her with his deep blue eyes, before turning back to Lily, "If Maria trusts you, however, I do not have much room to question you." Ethan responded, his smirk now gone, replaced by his stone-like visage and his normal tone. Ethan stared at the girl, not particularly trying to seem threatening, nor as if he was judging her, "You will be paid well with me, and your work will be rewarded in it's own way. Steal from me, or mine, and I will destroy you." Ethan's last words were icy, the first bit of actual emotion he had managed to shove into his normal forceful tone all day. It was uncharacteristically Ethan. Either meant to be a way to frighten Lily, or honest words that he intended to make good on, could not be differenced. Ethan finally leaned back in his chair, helping ease the tension from the conversation slightly as he did so, "If you'd like to join us Lily, I'm sure Maria would be glad to have you along. I'd prefer if we could move this discussion to my estate." Ethan added, simply, awaiting a reply.
 
Lily's smirk deepened as Ethan replied. His personality contrasted strongly with her own, but that would only make it all the more fun. She finished her ale before speaking. "By your logic, Mister Lindwell, I'd wager that makes most of the world a liar and a thief." The girl chuckled, placing the flagon on the table. She threw Maria a glance as her name, and her trust, was mentioned. Who'd of thought a brief conversation in a tavern would've come in handy two years down the road? She nodded along with Ethan's final statement, raising her eyebrows slightly at his choice of words. The coldness in his voice showed his seriousness, but the girl had heard such threats before, if that was even the purpose of the statement. "Duly noted."


As Ethan suggested they return to his estate for the remainder of the conversation, Lily slid her chair away from the table. "Gladly, if you'll give me just a moment to gather my things, we can head out as soon as you'd like." She gave Maria a reassuring grin. She knew very little of the woman, truthfully, and nothing of Lindwell, but the proposition sounded interesting, at the very least. She hopped down from her chair, casually strolling across the room and retrieving her trunk from the corner. She shouldered the mass of wood and turned back towards the table where Maria and Ethan were seated. As she stopped by Tristan and Geralt's table, noting that Robert had already left. "I've got some business to attend to. Perhaps I'll run into the two of you again." She threw Tristan a look that seemed to suggest something before returning to her new companions.


She smiled, trunk over her shoulder as she stopped at the table. "Well then, let's be off then. I'm curious as to what exactly I've gotten myself into." She giggled, the trunk jostling about on her shoulder as she did so. Whatever Lindwell's game was, he was serious about it. She looked over towards Maria again, beaming. It seemed her time in Arcartus would be even more eventful than she'd predicted.
 
Maria leaned her head further back and emptied the rest of her cup immediately, setting it down forcefully once it was empty. Her arm flinched as she almost called for a second habitually, but then heard Ethan. She let the threat pass without reaction, it was his right to make, and there was nothing more to it. Moving back to the estate was more unpleasant, somewhere along the line the meal had been forgotten, but she wasn't sure she could eat anyway. She stood up, pushing her chair in gently and brushing down the front of her clothes. The soldier stood firmly, glancing around the tavern without much interest in it now that they were departing. None of the day weighed on her posture anymore, she'd almost forgotten about the cold outside, even. Besides meeting the first of many recruits, she'd been able to learn a bit about her recruiter, all over the comfort of liquor. While he cared for his image, he was pragmatic enough to accept her experience when it came to certain things. He was trying to trust her. Encouraging thoughts, ones she knew were probably not true. She was far from a people person. What she saw was reassuring, and that was enough. Maybe, just maybe, her purpose wasn't needed. Fortune had smiled upon her, but that wasn't something Maria was used to or willing to rely upon. Ethan's acceptance of their new partner could very well turn out fleeting, his wording already seemed to suggest that he had no love for her presence. Another roadblock: Lily herself could leave. Most of her still wanted that to happen, she had just learned new things about the woman, but no matter what qualifiers she had Maria simply didn't want to drag her down.

She remained stoic as she thought, rocking side to side in small, relaxed movements. On the other side of her thoughts, she wanted a comrade close at hand. Lily and her were far from that, she knew, but the silversmith had done well by her in a country whose every aspect seemed to turn against Maria and her soldiers. The fact that she had done so by doing nothing at all didn't weigh on her much. Compared to her usual company, Lily was a lifelong friend. Considering what she had done, the thief more than she deserved. Her smile had faded, though she wasn't sure exactly when, the feeling of glaring out the window was something she was suddenly aware of. The streets were clear, except for a few passersby. Lily had returned from some other table, bringing a heavy looking trunk with her. "Right. Let's go." With their preparations complete, she was the first to step away from the table. Maria crossed the tavern briskly, back to business for the trip home. A few long strides saw her too the door, which she wrenched open and held for her companions. Outside, the foot traffic had begun to pick up in full now that the storm had blown away. The empty streets she had enjoyed briefly on her way there were now gone. Her first thought was of the danger that a crowd posed, but of course, Lindwell did not have enemies yet.
 
As Lily announced her interest in leaving, Ethan quickly stood and donned his cloak, and leather gauntlets. Ethan had nothing more to say to Lily, but felt the need to clarify things to here, ~ Of course most of the world are liars and thieves, otherwise this world would have a much different look. ~ Ethan thought, preferring to keep his retort to himself. Ethan followed Maria to the door, awaiting on Lily before they left, "She may a familiar face, but she has been a thief longer than your friend. In that regard, she is proud to have been a thief. Caution is smart." Ethan's voice raised barely above a whisper as he spoke, but it clearly carried between the two of them as they stood at the door. Eventually, Lily joined the two, prepared to leave. Ethan glanced outside the open portal as Maria wrenched it open. Traffic had picked up considerably. Instantly, the first thought into his head was that there were too many people. While Ethan had done little to earn enemies, he had done even smaller to earn friends. During his time in Arcartus, he had learned one thing; The political landscape was as dangerous as it was unpredictable. Things happened in a blink of an eye, and anyone could be a spy for some political player. Right now, if Wolcott caught wind of what he was doing, it could strain his already weak relationship with the man. Ethan let out a sigh, and was the first through into the snow-ridden streets of Lieda. The man wasted no time in picking up stride, to quickly reach the estate.
 
Lily followed along behind her new companions, the snow crunching beneath her feet as she strolled down the street. Her face exuded an air of contentment, as if she didn't have a worry in the world. Truthfully, she was considering exactly how things would go from here on. Lindwell didn't trust her, and she was not foolish enough to believe such a thing was likely soon, if ever. Despite this, he seemed content to suffer her presence, at least for the moment. Maria had said she trusted her. Dangerous as it was, she believed the woman. More importantly, the both of them now had a decent idea of her past, or at least a piece of it. Letting them in on that information was risky at best, but it had seemed like the best decision at the time. She briefly wondered if the revelation had changed Maria's opinion of her. Perhaps she'd ask later.



The trio moved along through the crowds and eventually made their way to their destination. Lily looked up at the building before them. It was impressive, or at least fitting of Lindwell's lordly demeanor. 'Nicer houses and and more bountiful pockets indeed...' Lily held back a chuckle. "Lovely home you have here, Mister Lindwell." She shuffled the trunk about on her shoulder. She'd grown used to carrying the chest over the years, but it still never got any lighter. The girl waited for Lindwell or Maria to lead the group in.
 
She didn't have time to think about the weather, which was strange, seeing as most of her life in Arcartus had been spent appreciating how terrible the climate was. Maria couldn't afford anything unfortunate befalling Ethan Lindwell, she was entrusted with his safekeeping and trampling the aspirations of some poor mugger was fine by her to see her duty done. That was all, she told herself, and kept up alert on the way home. It was going to be a chore to move like this every time they were out in Lieda's streets, but that was the job of a retainer. Now that a retainer was all she was, it was important to get used to it. She had done it before, only not under such extraordinary circumstances. Her thoughts in the tavern were left behind, Maria kept herself busy simply watching their surroundings. Focusing outwards kept the time passing. They passed her alleyway quickly, and she knew the house wasn't far beyond that. The unnamed worries that came with the mobs of people could be left behind there.

The Lindwell Estate stood as imposing as ever before them, though she no longer gave it the cursory glance of an inspector. There were a few points that needed to be secured and she already knew them, and, so close to 'home,' she could let go of being a guard for a few seconds and remember what she had wanted. Trinan stepped forward to grab the door for the party, letting Lily and Ethan through before entering the room herself. The fire had been left unattended in their absence, the undulating light from the burning logs still threw distorted shadows around the room. The wine was still out on the table, which meant it would do for now. As far as greeting guests, it was at least a homely image.
 
Ethan was the first of through the door, quickly removing himself from his warm clothing, hopefully for the last time today. Seemingly ignoring Lily's comment, Ethan made his way to the table he had sat at before, when him and Maria had been here, and quickly set himself to moving all the papers and trinkets off the table, off on one of the kitchen's counters. A temporary holding place, but also a temporary hiding place. Ethan knew that if Lily was famous enough to earn a name for herself as a thief, it would be likely she could snatch an important document with Ethan being any the wiser. After clearing the table of all items, including the decanter and glasses from earlier, Ethan dutifully took a seat, sitting slightly forward in his chair, "Maria, if you'd be so inclined, now might be a good time to bring out the drink from downstairs, so we can entertain our guest properly." Ethan seemed somewhat awkward, attempting to speak with a welcoming tone, making it seem as if he was being almost sarcastic. A small, mistakenly forced, smile came on his face as he turned his gaze to Lily, "So, I guess it's time to explain the line of work you'll be entering, as this will be unlike any kind of work you've done before." As Ethan went on, the seemingly forced smile quickly faded to his normal stern face, evident that keeping up the smile might of been too much for the man, in the current circumstance.
 
Lily followed Ethan and Maria into the estate. As they entered the house, she placed her trunk near the door and removed her scarf and overcoat, hanging them on a nearby coat rack. She stretched her arm, removing the stress of hauling the heavy trunk around all day. She watched as Ethan moved all of the documents from the table, her arms hanging loosely at her sides. She had a feeling he wasn't just moving the paperwork to be polite. He directed Maria to go retrieve a drink from the basement. Good, there was alcohol, that'd help the affair along considerably. She couldn't tell by the tone of Ethan's voice if he was being a gracious host or insinuating something. She was still attempting to get a read on the man.


Lily took a seat at the table across from Ethan, placing her hands on it's edge. As Ethan spoke again, her ears perked up. "Yes, do explain." She held the same lighthearted smile she'd worn since leaving the Pigeon. Lindwell's smile seemed forced, even strained, to the girl, but again, he was a difficult man to read. "So Mister Lindwell, what exactly are we going to be doing?"
 
"Yes sir," she said, voice flat and quiet. There was only one drink the man could have been referring to. The desperate beverage she had been eager to sequester for later. She didn't want to get drunk in these circumstances but the day had seen her consuming nothing but alcohol. As she walked out of the room and made for the wine cellar, she started to smile. She could hold her liquor well enough, in all probability, it just seemed a shame to disrespect such a communal event as sharing liquor. The wine cellar remained the same, a dusty little space full of comforting aromas. Even in the dark, the bottles glinted invitingly, each label bearing its own little story. Trinan wasn't listening to them as she paced the storage, searching for the spirits Ethan had mentioned. There were few breweries she didn't recognize the bottles of, but for all she looked there didn't seem to be a liquor amongst the man's stores. Seconds after she began to think of conceding and asking Lindwell where his good drinks had run off to, she caught a shimmer of clear glass out of the corner of her eye. Really? She knelt down, looking between the shelves. A large glass vessel stood between the woodwork, clear glass, massive, and full of transparent fluid. She recognized the implement, a twenty liter jug. An absolutely superb device for containing alcohol, its unwieldiness made passing it around even more enjoyable, in a way. She smirked at the booze, caught in new found appreciation for Lindwell's tastes and a bit of nostalgia. The last time she'd seen glassware of the same caliber was in the hands of a chemist at the QM's. With any luck, the rough spirits within the glass were a shade less lethal than Scopes' nightmarish mixtures.

Trinan emerged from the kitchen, carrying the flat bottomed jug in her left hand, and a trio of fresh glasses in her right. She had her dreams, but prudence demanded that cups were at least offered. "What you called for?" She asked, setting the jug on the table and figuring there really wasn't another answer. Her job complete, Trinan fell back from the table a moment, letting Ethan and Lily run their discussion and wondering whether or not she should join it. No matter where she was welcome, she had an interest in listening to the answer to Lily's question. She had pledged her loyalty to Ethan Lindwell, without much understanding of what that entailed other than continuing her duties as a retainer. Well, not entirely. I'm a Seneschal now. Her understanding of the term wasn't perfect, but it seemed highly ceremonial. Observation aside, she also knew that it was possible to be called on to explain the more martial aspects of their operation. If she believed all of Lindwell's King-Knight story, he was from a far different military tradition than the ones she knew.
 
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As Maria retrieved the jug of sour mash, a look of distaste washed over Ethan's face as he remembered how he had handled the drink before. After a moment of composing himself, he nodded to Maria. With a slight smirk, this time more genuine, Ethan glanced back over at Lily, "I saw this drink drop a man twice my size at a dinner party. Particularly strong stuff. It was introduced to me as a a chemical used to strip varnish from wood, more than something a human should consume." Ethan seemed content to put Lily's question away for a moment, as he stood up and poured a glass each for him and Lily, allowing Maria to decide if she was ready to drink or not. As Ethan sat back down, his smirk was now gone, and the rock-solid face from before was back, "I am of royal blood." Ethan started, no preamble and shoving the details upon Lily, abruptly, "And I intend to seize the throne of Keilaudrin. As a thief, I assume you lack interest for the reasoning and justifications behind such an act, as they do not affect you. Arcartus has promised me an army to lead in an invasion of Keilaudrin. Having lived in Keilaudrin for nearly 10 years in a station of power, I know the people and land well. I need you, and our mutual associate Maria, as a type of retinue. I need people I have selected, handled, and command." Ethan continued on, speaking of the subject as if it was matter of time before all this was achieved, instead of a matter of if it could be achieved. A type of confidence not known to many people, "As for payment, I will cover your charges now, and if your service is deemed accepted, you will be further awarded." Ethan allowed his words to hang in the air for a few moments, wanting Lily to absorbed the information he had gave her. After a reasonable amount of time, Ethan spoke up once more, "The success of the operation is much higher than the failure. I have commanded armies, fought on the battlefield, and led men into hellscapes of which we emerged victorious every time. Once again, meaningless information to a thief, but I would like you to know that this is a calculated measure, and has is still being thoroughly analyzed." Ethan finished, grabbing the cup filled with the sour mash. He held his cup slightly forward, awaiting an answer from Lily, and hopefully a toast as well.
 
Lily's eyes sparked to life with a look of what could only be described as pure bliss as Maria returned with the jug. Her excitement only escalated when Ethan told her more about the drink. Her love affair with alcohol had been years in the making, but it wasn't very often that she came across something quite as special as this. "Sounds like it's right up my alley." Her grin widened when he poured her a glass of the clear liquid. She could already smell the pungent aroma searing the fine hairs within her nose. Her eagerness to try the beverage, however, was postponed by Ethan's return to seriousness. She crossed her hands in front of her as the man spoke.


Lily raised her eyebrows as Ethan spoke of his lineage. Lindwell was no royal name she had ever heard of, but the certainty with which he spoke kept her from questioning the authenticity of his claim. As he continued, she leaned forward, trying to fully understand what she was hearing. For just a moment, a split second after Lindwell mentioned Keilaudrin, her eyes darted to Maria before returning to the man before her. Things were getting interesting quite quickly. She briefly wondered if Lindwell knew of Maria's time in the country. She was glad, for a moment, that she hadn't mentioned the location of her first meeting with the woman. That would likely raise questions that neither of them would be eager to answer. Ethan continued, explaining generally what she would be doing, and how she would be compensated for her time. After what she'd just heard, there was no chance of her rejecting the proposal.


Lily shook her head as Ethan's explanation drew to a close. "No information is useless, I'm glad to know I won't be following a greenhorn." She smiled as she raised her glass. "Well, Mister Lindwe-... your Highness?" She hoped the man took no offense, she frankly was unsure what a king in his position would prefer to be called. "I am certainly interested in this cause of yours. Hopefully I can be of some assistance."She clinked her glass against Lindwell's with a bright grin. "A toast to success." She narrowly stopped her self from including 'Long live the King.' at the end of the statement. She'd need some practice on the finer points of socializing with royalty. As soon as the words left her mouth, she turned the glass up, taking a gulp of the strong liquor. For a moment, she grimaced, a reflex to the bitter, burning liquid that had just washed down her throat, but the grimace quickly changed to a look of utter satisfaction. She felt warmth rush to her face and ears, and the strength of the drink burned her throat long after she'd swallowed it. "I'll be honest, you keep this flowing and I'd follow you into the mouth of hell."
 
The soldier remained unmoving at the side of the room, clothing still slowly drying after the day's earliest adventure. Her eyes watched the fire, trance-like contemplation in their depths. The truth wasn't in the slowly crackling fire, but in the conversation. As the two at the table continued to talk over Lily's new occupation, Trinan listened. The silversmith, rather, the thief, was on their payroll. That was all, Lindwell was still sparing with his real intentions. He needed a staff, and they were going to be it. Maria had a staff herself, she was vaguely familiar with their roles because they were more or less her own. Lindwell ran a different ship, the operation he wanted, and that played to her wants nicely. Ethan mentioned an army again, he had mentioned one to Wolcott earlier in the day. Arcartus lending an army to such a man practically ensured his victory, the issue laid in where exactly Wolcott intended to pull that army from.

Maria walked away from the wall, getting herself over to the table. The woman pulled up the jug of alcohol, turning the rough liquor out into a glass in a small measure for herself. The toast had gone by without her, but she liked that. The beverage provoked scary reactions, Lily from drinking it and Lindwell from mere recognition, but now that everyone else had gone it was unavoidable. Maria put the glass to her lips and downed the drink. Her vision crossed momentarily, and the captain's foot searched backwards to keep her balanced. Her head felt light, as if she'd been struck, and without an actual recollection of drinking anything she was left with a burning throat. The girl's face flushed bright red around her scar, and as the burning persisted she felt more like she had eaten a pepper than anything else. After a second, she straightened herself. Maria coughed weakly into her fist, clearing her throat and standing still by the jug as her eyes watered. It wasn't exactly like being stabbed, but the brew had the same level of subtlety in its body. Expressionless, she reached down and poured herself a larger measure before finding a seat down the table. "To success," she said hoarsely.
 
As Lily graciously referred to Ethan as 'Your Highness', a fire filled inside of Ethan, one that even the alcohol he had in his glass could not achieve. Ethan fought back the urge to smile, or to show any kind of emotion, at this point. As Lily blessed their success with their toast, Ethan cleared his throat for his own toast, "Victory is life." Ethan said, without a second thought. Ethan clinked his glass against Lily's and downed the drink in a quick flash, slamming the glass down on the table with a hefty thud. Ethan's head had already been swarming by what Lily had said, but now it instantly cleared, filled with only one thought: Burning. Ethan let out an audible groan as he shook his head, attempting to someone rid the terrible, gut-wrenching feeling from himself. After a brief moment, the man composed himself to look over at Lily, but was interrupted as Maria made her way over, and took her own drink. Ethan held back a friendly laugh, as she too struggled with the drink, instead opting to shake his head instead. Words from Lily brought Ethan back to the forefront of their conversation, and in a rare moment, Ethan laughed at Lily's comment, temporary lowering his persona. After a bit of comfortable silence among the three of them, Ethan looked back up at Lily, "I should tell you my real name. Thomas Morgan." Ethan's face was now somber, as he spoke, bringing down the false spirits the drink had given, "Exiled-King of Alinor, 'Kingsblood', Ex-Commander of the Order of the Thistle, Dismissed Morningstar, and, now, A Ghost." Ethan sat in silent as he revealed who he was. Even in Estovet, there were few amongst the more informed that had no heard of the man. The events of the Days of Bleeding had been contributed to him, and him alone. Ethan grabbed the jug, titling it to pour himself another drink, and downing it as soon as it finished pouring. Seemingly, without any reaction to the particularly strong chemical he had ingested, Ethan poured himself another drink, downing it just as fast as the last.
 
Lily smiled as they made their toast. The alcohol had clearly had it's effect on her companions, something she noted as they downed their respective drinks. She was surprised when Lindwell laughed. It was strange hearing something like that coming from a man who had only seconds before been the epitome of rigidity. Lily laughed along with her new superior. The situation felt lighter than before, but only for a moment. When the man spoke again, her eyes widened. 'Thomas Morgan' she'd heard that name before, a few years ago, under circumstances she desperately hoped the man before her had no knowledge of. Her eyes darted to Maria once again, making sure she wasn't the only one who had just heard this revelation.


As the man listed off his mostly former titles, her mind raced. She'd had no idea something of this magnitude would happen when she'd arrived that morning. After a moment of collecting her thoughts and coming to terms with what she'd just heard, she reached for the jug, carefully pouring herself a second glass. As she poured, she replied. "Thomas Morgan... Aye, I've heard that name before. Your fame certainly precedes you." Perhaps fame wasn't the right word. Infamy seemed more appropriate, but she supposed the difference was in who one asked. "I appreciate knowing who it is I'm working for, Your Highness." As she finished the statement, she downed the entirety of her glass. Again she felt the raging fire within her stomach, but the alcohol did little to dull her senses at the moment. She placed the glass upoin the table again.
 
Maria sipped at her drink as the man ran through his story, recoiling a little bit every time the putrid liquid touched her. It made her squint every time, and her eyes hadn't quite stopped watering, but the scout didn't stop returning to the alcohol. A few sips in she had already decided that it wasn't the sort of thing she usually enjoyed, but it had an earthy charm. Ethan rattled off a list of new truths that she listened to without a reaction. The name Thomas Morgan was known to her, it was written by her hand a least a dozen times in the post-incident report that she had been required to file after her time in Keilaudrin. They had met before, she vaguely recalled, but the man before her now did not seem at all familiar. In an instant, their strange working relationship had become ever more strange. She set her glass down, folding her hands in her lap and remaining very still in spite of the beverage and worry tearing away inside of her. "What a reunion," she said, looking back and forth between the Lily and Thomas. Her voice was even, but inside she was starting to feel the pressure. Morgan possibly knew her, he was in a position to very easily piece together the kind of person she was, her lack of restraint in Keilaudrin was coming back to cost her more than it initially did. Maria's shoulders slumped, she leaned forward in her chair and sighed, the passage of breath only stoking the fire in her mouth. Was it alcohol or incendiary gel? She looked up at Morgan, ready to speak, but the sheer number of questions in her mind made her pause. She wanted to find Wolcott and shake answers out of him, too, but as she thought over what she'd heard, the answers came to light. Trinan understood his choice perfectly. She smiled and shook her head, returning to her drink. "No matter what you're accused of, I'm proud to serve a man of the people. Thank you, sir," She said, bowing her head in appreciation of her lord's trust.
 
Ethan bore a small smirk for a moment, before returning back to a slight grimace. Ethan's face looked as if he was in slight pain, and hurting. Wobbly, Ethan grasped the jug, and poured another drink, "In front of you sits a oath-breaker, king-killer, kinslayer, usurper, murderer, once-legendary swordsman, and a battlefield commander." Ethan remarked, bearing a smirk as he stared into the contents of his cup, watching as the clear liquid sat still, waiting to be consumed. In an instant, Ethan downed the beverage, "Make no mistake, I wouldn't change a single thing I did, though. Not one." Thomas smiled, brightly, almost breaking into a small giggle as he did so, "Stabbing my father while he hugged me, attempting to kill my mother, while she was pregnant, slaying all those loyal banner men in droves, slaying my leader while in the Thistle, and countless other horrible acts." Thomas sat gazed into his empty cup, with an almost crazed smile, as if the cup had just told a slightly funny joke. In an instance, the grin disappeared, replaced with the stoic visage the two partners had come to expect normally, "But I will become King. I've learned from mistakes, and I will atone for my crimes. If the Gods are just, I'll burn for eternity, but not before I've righted wrongs, and made this world better." Ethan spoke with a low, and soft tone, as if he was telling a bedtime story to a child. Ethan looked up from the glass, and stared across the table from Lily, "You now know the man you follow." Ethan then turned to look at the standing, still recovering, Maria, "As do you. If you wish to take your leave from my company, do so now." Ethan spoke bluntly. His gaze was violent, almost as if he was yelling at his comrades with his gaze, but spoke with a level tone.
 
Lily's eyes drifted to Maria briefly. A reunion. It seemed they weren't the only two in the room who knew each other, then. Her eyes drifted back to Ethan, no, Thomas, as he started up again. The man began reciting his crimes as if they were mere trivialities, no, that wasn't right. He spoke of them as if he were proud of the bloody swathe he had cut into the world. Lily took another swig of her drink, which she'd refilled again, still listening to Thomas. She'd never been one to judge people. She herself had done things, terrible things, things that by all rights should've condemned her to damnation. Even so, the way Thomas spoke made her uneasy. It was too late to back out, however.


As Thomas finished his speech, the girl watched his face closely. She had been right when she found him difficult to read, but the truth seemed to be marginally more terrifying than what she could've imagined. He spoke of learning from his mistakes, but she still wondered what such a man would do with the power of kingship. Her eyes burned a hole through the table as she took another sip from her drink. She shook her head slowly. "I do not intend to leave." She finished her drink, sighing silently at the cup and the void within it. She refilled the glass, taking another sip. "If I may ask though, your Highness, why Keilaudrin?" She wondered why the man had chosen the nation over his homeland, or some other place.
 
Each self-attributed title rolled through her ears, tallied and added to Ethan Lindwell's account. Maria Trinan continued to sit still in her seat, staring down into her glass. The name had been changed to Thomas Morgan suddenly, but she couldn't quite change her perception of the man all that easily. She failed to appreciate the man's plan, seeing little room for atonement on the path to becoming and staying a king. For his credit, she simply did not understand aspirations of power. If he was working towards atonement, he would find it. He said that he had committed crimes, and the look on his face said that he almost took pride in it. Did he find that in his perceived redemption? She wouldn't have an answer for quite some time, but what he claimed to be in his past was short of what she figured the future held. Keilaudrin would burn when taken, there wasn't a way around that. Trinan peered at Morgan for a while, her glare etched on to an otherwise placid face. There was a lot of blame laid at Thomas Morgan's feet, but that didn't make him a monster. There were many kinds of killers in the world, she knew her own, and desired to find out what Thomas Morgan was. "I will stay," Maria said, somber and decided, her voice still choked by the pain in her throat. Her interrogating gaze turned to Lily for a moment as the girl asked the question that had been on her mind the entire night, although she would never doubt Lindwell's decision in his presence. She turned back to Lindwell to await his answer, eyes boring into the man as if to signal her own interest in the answer.
 
Robert tugged his coat closer as he turned away from the home of Eric Duvall, flicking his hand a bit to the side. Fresh blood hit the snow from split knuckles, and he reminded himself he'd need to get some bandages from the store. Duvall had once again been uncooperative, and had failed to deliver on the information. He feared the old boy had come down with some sort of wasting sickness, as paranoid and pale as he'd been recently. When he had demanded his money back from the failed service, Eric had brandished a knife from within his desk and demanded he leave, with wild, threatening eyes. He had been forced to 'disarm' the gentleman, breaking Erics hand in two places and choking him into unconsciousness. The knife was now stuck into his belt, the blade still shiny and clean. He'd stripped Eric's desk of its valuables in payment for the failure of the tasking, and had made for the door.

The story had been running through his head for the last two hours as he had made his slow and tenacious way home from the store. He'd been through this dance several times with Duvall, this wasn't anything particularly new to him. He wouldn't be turned in, and he hadn't hurt Duvall in any way that would be particularly life changing, but it still hurt his heart that his informant continued to attempt to screw him out of a few fleeting silvers. Last time this had happened, he had brought two toughs along and it had cost Robert a pair of broken ribs and a strained wrist, and one of the thugs their life. He had been lucky to be carrying his sword along with him on that particular evening, and it was shortly after that that he began to take up church and God.

He kicked open the door to his room, placing the heavy container of oil for his lamp on his messy table, and shuffled through a pile of papers that he had plucked up at the entryway, a pair of letters reminding him that the collectors would be worming their ways about soon to snatch what little the public had to give them, evict them from their homes...

The final scrap caught his eye, a poorly packaged letter that was stained deeply on the bottom left corner with a thick blot of ink. He turned it over and over in his hands, already understanding what the significance of it was, and who it was from. He set it gently atop the table and cast the tax men's letters into the basin of his wood stove, striking a match and using them as kindling. It was cold in here, and while this would help, it would mean little to him. He'd be in the bottom of the bottle in his pocket and out atop his bed within an hour. One of the children down the hall a short ways, Trenton Weilas, was set to wake him up late into the evening. The boy had an acute sense of time, and he'd slipped him a couple silvers and half a bottle for his father to ensure that he'd always have a wakeup when he needed it.

The letter could wait. Today he hoped he'd relieve his frustrations on the face of some young punk. He thought briefly of Tristan, and then though vanished from him completely as he slumped face down onto his old, creaking bed, that was nearly as tired and worn down as himself.
 
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