*Closed* Royal and Not *Lady AlainXShadow Assassin*

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"Probably people hired to hunt me down." I said with a sigh. "Mother warned me...they just want money. They didn't expect any trouble." I shrugged. I paused as we reached the stairs. "Go on, I'll be up in a moment." I said with a gentle smile, my hand brushing across his arm before I turned, looking around. I could hear them, whispering, 'sneaking' around. They were too loud.
 
I obeyed Ellie and trudged upstairs to my room. I left the door unlocked, just in case she needed to slip in quickly, and set about boiling water. Thankfully, I had matches still and lit a small fire in the middle of my room. I opened my window to let out the smoke and poured the water from my wash basin into a small pot. I was really glad Ellie wasn't here to see my bad habits, but when you breathe in ashes and cinders all day long a bit of dirt in your tea really isn't that big of a deal. I pinched the leaves out of my pocket and threw them into the pot to steep while the water boiled. Now to wait. I sat down heavily on my bed and cupped my chin with my hands while sighing dejectedly. I was getting weary of how exciting my life had suddenly gotten.

When the tea finished boiling, I slid off my bed and blew out the fire. The pot was still hot, of course, so now it was a matter of waiting for it to cool. My thoughts wandered back to Ellie. Was she all right?
 
I stood in wait for the attackers. Several minutes passed and no one stepped out, but they were still whispering. Two were hiding behind the bushes, and one around the corner, but the others I couldn't track down.
Then, they all went silent.
I heard two blades draw themselves and I drew my own, facing the bush. A man and a woman charged out, both wearing black masks. The man held his sword high, the woman low, one on my right, the other on my left. I waited until they were just about to strike and stepped forwards, between them both, and kicked the man to the ground, his sword piercing his stomach, and engaging in a battle with the woman, who knew nothing about defense, I found out soon. She swung repeatdely at me, leaving both her shoulders, her head, and her chest unprotected. I swung, my blade missing hers and stabbing her shoulder. She dropped her sword and I removed mine, stepping back. She ran off, crying. I sighed. I hated this. Another man charged from behind me, but I dropped to a crouch and he tripped over me, his head hitting the ground and knocking him unconscious. I waited for another moment. It seemed clear... I walked quietly around for a moment. I found a discarded sword, but nothing else. I sheathed my sword and returned to Jabez's home, ascending the stairs and knocking softly on the door, just as I had knocked on the blacksmith's door when I first arrived.
 
My ears perked up at the familiar knock. That must be Ellie. "She's open!" I called out. I licked a finger and set it on the side of my pot. It was still quite warm but should be drinkable very soon. I quickly removed my finger and shook it to cool it off a bit from the heat of the pot. Cups, it would be nice to have cups so I could offer a drink to Ellie. Did I have any? No. But it didn't hurt to check. I hefted the lid of my crate up and rummaged through my few possessions. Funny enough, there was a chipped clay mug sitting in with all the paraphernalia I'd collected over the years. I pulled it out and set it on the ground next to me.

"Did you find anymore attackers to scare away?" I asked when Ellie stepped into the room.
 
I smiled faintly at his response and opened the door, glancing around before closing it. "Actually yes, several, but most of them fled without a trace." I said with a sigh, sitting down. I unhooked my sheath from the thin belt around my waist, setting it on the ground. I remembered the General still had my royal sword. Oh well. I like this one better. "We should be safe for a little." I smiled faintly.
 
"Glad to hear it." I gave her a half-smile in return. Closing the lid of the trunk, I picked up the mug and squat down next to my little pot of tea. "Did you want something to drink?" I asked. Manners insisted I ask the question, but I sincerely hoped the answer was no. It wouldn't do to serve used washing water to royalty, even if it had been boiled and minted.
 
I shook my head softly. "No thank you." I said with a soft smile. "I'm not really thirsty, but thanks for the offer." I said, stretching a little. I could hear people outside, but they didn't sound like a threat. I leaned against the wall, watching him with a soft smile.
 
Nodding, I returned the mug to the top of my trunk to be put away later. If she wasn't going to drink any, there was no reason for the mug. At least I knew I had one now. Then I held the pot carefully between my calloused fingers and blew on the warm liquid to cool it before taking a sip. "So what happens now?" I asked, a somewhat playful mood surfacing its head as the tea soothed my aching muscles. "Will you still continue on your mission to find a trustworthy future husband if you're being chased by thugs?" I gave her a rascally grin.
 
I paused for a moment. I hadn't thought about it. "Maybe? The general probably won't let me..." I trailed off. Or maybe I didn't want to continue on? I wondered if I might have already found him. "Is the mint stuff helping?" I asked, the question coming to mind. I shifting, sitting on my knees. I watched him a moment before looking around the room for the hundredth time since I'd first been in there, my heart beating slightly faster.
 
"Won't know if it helps the swelling exactly until I sleep on it, but I do feel better," I replied, taking another sip. I watched Ellie curiously as she scanned the room again. There was something... some kind of look in her eyes I couldn't place. Instinctively, I looked around, too. Nothing seemed out of place. I turned back to Ellie. "Something wrong, Ellie?" I asked quietly.
 
"H-huh?" I stuttered a little, caught of guard by the question. I smiled. "No, nothing's wrong." I said, letting go of my sword to tuck a stray strand of my hair back behind my ear. I looked down at the floor, leaning against the wall again and relaxing a little. I still felt sore from fighting, it had been a while since I'd been in a good fight, but I also felt a lot better than I had been for a long while. Why? I couldn't really figure out why.
 
I sat back on my heels, eying her curiously. If she said nothing was the matter, who was I to insist something was? I stared at the tea in my hands, swirling the pot to watch the liquid slosh around the sides. Dirt that had settled on the bottom rose to the surface. I grimaced and immediately held the pot still. As much as I didn't mind the flavour of dirt, I still didn't want to drink any more than I had to. I shifted uncomfortably as the awkward silence lingered in the air after Ellie's last words. Was it an awkward silence for her, too?

Then a thought popped into my head. I'd never had a woman in here before. Never had anybody for that matter, but especially a woman. A blush stole across my cheeks. What would the village gossip say now? There was no way we hadn't been observed by somebody with all the happenings here of late. I kept staring down, hoping the blush didn't seep down my neck as well to where Ellie could see it.
 
I found myself slightly tired, my eyes drooping on their own account, but they were the only thing that moved. My head stayed at the angle it was, making it look like I was still watching the floor, my hand still on my sword, my legs still crossed. It was quiet...almost awkward. I wondered what Jabez thought about it...but I didn't say anything, my eyes closing, but not yet asleep, or close, just...resting.
 
The silence drifted on. I figured either Ellie had fallen asleep sitting there or she was just as awkward as I was. I blew on my tea again before lifting it to my lips. The dirt had settled to the bottom again. It was definitely passable tea. I took a few more sips until all was gone from the small pot except for the dregs and set it on the floor by the foot of my bed. I looked over at Ellie and decided to break the silence. "Tired?"
 
I jumped slightly, looking up and blinking a little. I could feel my face redden slightly and looked back down. "A little.." I said softly, stretching my back before relaxing again, releasing my sword and setting my hands in my lap. I yawned slightly and giggled softly, surprised by the yawn. "Is the tea helping?" I asked, looking back up with a small smile.
 
I chuckled as the yawn grew contagious and made its way over to me. "You already asked that, and yes, I feel better," I said with a grin. Looping my arms around my knees, I studied her a bit longer before nodding to my bed. "You're welcome, ah, to take a nap if you want. On the bed. Would be a lot more comfortable than hunched on the floor over there." I yawned again, though she didn't provoke it this time. My brows furrowed. Was I getting tired, too?
 
I looked up at the bed, then at him. I smiled softly as he yawned. "You should go to sleep on the bed. You're the injured one." I said with a glance at the window. My hand shifted towards my sword a moment before a bird flew in. I relaxed and giggled softly.
 
"Are you joking? Me sleep in the same room with a jumpy woman with a sword?" I balked in pretend alarm. "I'd only have to snore and fsht" I made a motion of drawing a blade across my neck "that'd be the end of me." I wiggled away from the bed and looked down at the floor. "I can manage on the floor just fine if I want to sleep. You take the bed before you start another chain of yawns."
 
I giggled softly. "Yeah, 'cause I would definitely be able to do that." I said, yawning slightly again as I covered my face, giggling softly again. I was definitely getting tired, but I didn't really know why. I gave Jabez a 'really'? Look. "It's your bed though..." I said, not wanting to make him sleep on the floor again. It made me feel bad.
 
That woman and her yawns! I caught yet another yawn escaping from my lips and shook my head in disbelief. We were both going to crash before we even had this bed thing sorted out. "Well, what do you suggest we do? We're both obviously not going to make it long like this."
 
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