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Realistic or Modern Night’s Embrace | Private |

Rose’s eyes had clenched shut as she kneeled on the floor, her arms coming to gently cradle her own body while she tried her best to calm her breathing. Her sobs came out in gentle hiccups, though each one sounded more hoarse than the last. They were catching more and more in her throat while her panic only grew. Flashes of memories came forward in her mind, the situation at hand mirroring one she had experienced and remember far too well. Blaine had done the exact same thing to her, even though the context surrounding it wasn’t the same. She had insisted on going to visit her family for the first time since their wedding. She couldn’t recall just how sick she had been at the time, but the man had turned and yelled at her that she was to not leave the house under any circumstance protests had flown from her lips, that same anger swelling in her. It all fell upon deaf ears as she was locked inside. That was the first moment that solidified everything that continued to happen to her from that moment forward. It was something she never believed she would experience with Emory. At least, not until that point.

Her lips were parted as she struggled to get the air into her lungs. The gentle voicing of her name barely graced her ears, nor did she realize the steps he took to return to her side. Her body hadn’t stopped trembling as the tears stained her dress once more. She only realized that he kneeled in front of her once he carefully grasped her cheeks and forced her gaze up. Her eyes were still wide, green irises dull with exhaustion and the pain coursing through her. She could vaguely see the regret etching its way onto his expression. It normally would’ve brought her a sense of peace in knowing he realized his wrongdoings, but nothing could calm her in the moment. She worked so hard to push her trauma down to where it wouldn’t affect her, to put on her happy persona for everyone surrounding her. Each recent event only chipped away at that exterior, but this finally caused her to break.

She didn’t react to his apology as her chest continued to heave. She couldn’t feel the trembling of his own fingers since it matched the trembling of her own body. Sweat glistened on her forehead, her panic only making it worse. The tears didn’t stop carving the streams on her cheeks even with his best attempts to wipe them away. She hadn’t ever broken down in front of Emory like this before. Her face fell once more when he finally removed his hands from her cheeks. She forced herself to swallow, a soft whimper leaving her lips as she did. It was only then that she began to shake her head at him. She tried to think of the words to respond to what he was saying. All of her anger from before had vanished into the pool of panic that overwhelmed her. Her expression was twisted with the shock of the situation, eyebrows raised slightly. She opened her lips again to finally gasp out some words, knowing they wouldn’t solve any of what was now plaguing the both of them.

“I don’t—“ She broke off as she heaved in another breath. “I don’t know. I can’t—“ She broke off again, tilting her head back some. The morning light streamed through the windows directly on the two of them. Her skin was much paler than it normally was, fingers curling tightly into her palms once more. “I can’t breathe.” She managed to finish the statement as she slowly adjusted the way she was sitting on the ground, her muscles protesting every move. She lifted her arms to rest gently on the top of her own head in a desperate attempt to clear her lungs. Each one felt as if it weighed more than ten bricks as she forced them into the air. She desperately wanted to have a proper conversation about everything that just happened, to gain the clarity she knew she deserved. She just knew she wouldn’t be able to if she wasn’t able to calm down. She forced herself to begin to take deeper, slower breaths to combat the sobs that had now faded completely into hiccups. The tears were beginning to dry on her cheeks, eyes bloodshot from the amount she cried. The skin surrounding her eyes had swollen from the crying. It didn’t happen often, but she truly looked terrible in that moment.
 
Emory forced his gaze back up to her, seeing her panicked breathing was only serving to get far worse. Her appearance disturbed him greatly, unsettled his nerves due to the fact he'd never seen her in such a way, nor did he ever desire to. Her struggling sentence proved to make the guilty feeling within him grow far worse as he struggled to suppress a wave of panic from beginning to overwhelm him in response. It wasn't as if he were a stranger to panic attacks, him having experienced them frequently when he had been a child. The least he could do, at least after his very rash actions before, was to try and be a calm presence now than lash out like he had before. Rose didn't deserve that, he should've known better than to allow himself to show such a disturbing side of himself to her.

And so, the man had spoken, "Slow breaths." His tone was far gentler now, watching Rose with caution to monitor her breathing. It certainly didn't seem as if she was improving by much, granted seeing that she was trying to take deeper, slower breaths was certainly a start. The guilty feeling only intensified as he saw how her appearance seemed so utterly pitiful, which prompted him to look away from her again. He couldn't even look directly at her anymore, knowing full well that this was his fault and no one else. "..Keep breathing slow." The words came out quieter now, still not looking at her directly and merely listening to the sound of her breathing, though it seemed to be interrupted by her sobs which were dissolving into hiccups. Certainly not a terribly decent improvement, but any changes for her to begin to calm down would be for the best.

The temptation to reach out and hold her was lingering within his chest, but once more he refrained. He wouldn't permit himself to hold her after he had forced her to such a point as this. At this point, his hands remained stubbornly close to himself, fingernails still sinking into his palms as his eyes was now settled on the wooden floors beneath them, his body twitching occasionally with aching pain, but he didn't allow himself to display much more than that in terms of discomfort. His expression, although filled entirely with regret was slowly beginning to be overshadowed with exhaustion. Neither of them needed this right now, to be pushed to their emotional limits and then some. But, again what else could he do? The man wouldn't speak further, not until she would calm, as speaking more on the issue now would probably make the situation worse, and quite frankly his own mind needed to calm down as well and compose itself; for assurance that he wouldn't result in snapping at her again. There was a lot of anger and frustration that had built up in the man over the years, and as much as he displayed himself as a calm man, he truly was anything but. Any sort of prolonged stress was bound to make him snap and lose his composure, and it wasn't as if it made things any better that Rose was the center of it. Perhaps, it would have truly been better if he never had opened himself up to feeling emotions at all? At least then, they probably would have never gotten close and she wouldn't be at risk. This thought lingered within his mind as his silence remained prolonged, unwilling to speak until Rose was ready to do so.
 
Her breaths were beginning to ease the slower that she forced them to be, her chest not nearly heaving as much as it had before. His reminders to continue to take those slow breaths were everything she needed to keep her mind focused on the action. It took a few minutes, but she did manage to calm her breathing down completely. Her arms slid off the top of her head, returning back to her side. She placed her palms on the floor as she moved to adjust her legs. She shifted her aching knees from beneath her and moved them off to the side. The hard wood she had been sitting on did little to keep her comfortable. She knew if she tried to get herself into a standing position, she would most likely collapse immediately. She felt far weaker than she had before. It could be blamed entirely on the wave of exhaustion that hit her after her sobbing episode.

Her eyes burned while she brought a shaking hand up to rub at them. She was still breathing through her mouth, her nostrils completely blocked by that point. Her breaths were much shorter than they had been before though she was clearly much calmer than she had been. She didn’t look at him for a while, allowing the silence to keep its place between them. His anger still echoed in her mind, the cold tone he used unable to vanish from her memory. Even when she first arrived, he never spoke to her in such a way. This was new, uncharted territory for her and something she had never hoped to experience. She took in a soft breath before she finally broke the silence between them. “I truthfully do not know what to do Emory. Perhaps we can hold this off enough until we can get to the kingdom. If my father becomes aware of the threat to my life, maybe he can do something to step in. Maybe we can even convince the emissaries from Avrune to help.” She confessed.

It was the only thing that had come to her mind, the the simplest of explanations for her to express. It wouldn’t be a permanent fix at all, but it was something. “I don’t want for you to put your own body on the line for me. It is completely unfair for you to do. I am not worth reliving your trauma Emory. You might believe it, but I know I am not. Nothing is worth going through that again.” She added with a slight shake of her head. There was no anger to her tone anymore. It just held the remorse she felt about the situation at hand. “You won’t ever agree with me on that. I feel like we both would rather die than allow any harm to befall the other.” She confessed with a weak smile beginning to spread on her lips. She shifted in order to finally lift her gaze and look at him. He seemed absolutely exhausted, his body trembling from the pain still coursing through it. Her immediate urge was to get him back into the bed, but she still couldn’t find it in herself to move any more. She could feel the weakness in her own limbs. “I just wished you had told me about this the moment you found out. Surely you understand why I was upset about not knowing. It is my life after all.” She reminded. She brought both of her arms up to carefully hug herself in that moment.
 
"It can't wait." He forced his tone to remain calm, though there was a faint flash of agitation that had sparked to life in his eyes, though it too was quick to fade as he shook his head, "If the solution was that simple, I would've reached out to your father already. Reaching out to the kingdom right now is pointless, if they can't even deal with the mage-" Emory cut off his sentence before he continued, his jaw clenching as he spoke quietly, "I don't even think the emissaries from Avrune can deal with this..." Recalling Eunice and what she had shown him, what she truly was, it sent goosebumps to flare over his skin as he shook his head again as if trying to physically dislodge the memories. An all too primal fear was beginning to coil and twist his gut into knots. However, knowing full well that cutting off any information from Rose right now was pointless, especially considering the tense moment between them just moments ago, he didn't have it in himself to continue to be cold... not right now. But, the lack of vibrancy, of life in his tone as he was speaking was worrisome, his eyes losing the guilty edge and now settling into emptiness as he was now fixated on staring on the floorboards as if his mind truly was elsewhere.

Silence would meet her words then as he allowed her to speak without interruption, his expression tightening in response as he finally looked at Rose, "...I would have told you immediately if this was just a run of the mill threat; but it's not. You don't understand." He took in a breath to try to calm himself, knowing full well he wasn't making any sense as he put a hand to his head, a sign of agitation and frustration, no smile coming to his face. "...She isn't human, Rose. She truly isn't. There isn't anything in this world that can change this situation, even if I told you sooner... do you think I could ignore her demands? Do you think I would have taken this path if there wasn't an easier path available?" A sigh left him as a weak laugh finally managed to come from him, strained from his already hoarse voice as he once more settled his gaze on her, the lack of light in his eyes finally overtaking him.

"...I'm sorry, but I truly don't see any other solution right now. And if this keeps you safe for as long as possible then..." He trailed off, his lips pressing in a tight line, "..You're just going to have to bear with it." Emory wasn't budging in his decision, but at the very least he wasn't yelling at her. Instead, from what very little he was telling her, whoever this individual was he had deemed them far too dangerous for even the kingdom or the mages from Avrune. In fact, the man placed Eunice being far larger of a threat than Agrius. He truthfully didn't want to deal with this either, wanted to allow himself to rest and allow his injuries to heal, but he didn't have that kind of luxury. Time was against them right now, and considering Eunice had made it all too clear that Rose's interruption had angered her, he desired nothing more than to try and appease that dreaded creature so that Rose wouldn't be Eunice's immediate target to lash out at.
 
The responses Emory gave her were as Rose expected them to be. He didn’t want to give her an ounce of space in regards to putting her own life at risk. She understood where his caring heart was coming from, but she was experiencing this on the exact opposite of the spectrum from him. She shook her head lightly, adverting her gaze once arm. Her fingers gripped her arms tighter as they curled around her chest. Her own gentle grip was the one thing keeping her mind from running wild with ideas. It didn’t help that her illness wasn’t allowing her to think with full clarity. “You haven’t tried ignoring her demands Emory. You haven’t dared to go against her, to question her. She knows that she can do as she pleases with you because you won’t take a stand against her.” She pointed out, words quiet while she spoke. She noticed his movements out of her peripheral vision, grateful that he was taking his anger out on his hair rather than on her.

She cleared her throat gently, shoulders slouching more. Each movement she took only made her look smaller and weaker. “How do you think I feel watching you get beaten in the way you are? Do you think that this is easy for me to see you covered in these wounds?” She asked, voice beginning to tremble once more. She could feel the tears beginning to form in her eyes, but she was quick to blink them away. “I am suffering the same as you would be if she followed through her words to kill me. You haven’t taken into account how this all would make me feel, how it is making me feel.” She corrected herself while she spoke. There was no easy solution that she could think of to solve this, especially not one that would involve both of them coming out unscathed. If they both continued down this route, it would surely end up with one of them gravely injured if not dead. She was hoping it wouldn’t ever get to the point where one of the two would die, especially not after the peace they began to find.

“You do not get to tell me that I have to bear with a decision you made entirely on your own. You do not have any right to do so Emory. That is something Blaine would do to me and you are not him. So do not act like this is the final decision in the matter.” She didn’t allow for any of the anger from before to fill in her tone. One thought managed to come to her mind, one that she knew he would immediately turn down. She bit down on her bottom lip gently before she raised her gaze to look up at him once more. The dullness was reflecting completely on his expression finally. She didn’t think she had ever seen him so exhausted before. “You are not going to go when she summons you next. If she truly wanted me dead, she would’ve killed me when I interrupted you last night. She wouldn’t have hesitated. She is leading you along with this baseless threat to me in order to keep you under whatever control she has over you.” She proposed.

“You are not going to go and you are going to rest. I am ill enough as it is. Each time I get sicker and weaker and I do not return to how I was before. One of these days, an illness will kill me in the exact way that it killed my mother. There will be nothing we can do about it, just as there is nothing we can do about the threat this woman placed.” She continued without missing a beat. She didn’t want to give him too much silent to protest her words as she wanted her explanation to convert fully before she did. “Let her come to try and kill me. I will be by your side the entire time. We can bring whatever sentries you have here. Even if she isn’t human as you say the better our numbers, the better chance we have. Let her come Emory and we can deal with it then. I won’t let you go out anymore to that brothel.” She finally allowed for her hands to fall from her arms, dropping them to her side slowly. “It is my life Emory and I am deciding what I want to do with it. Let her come and try to kill me on her own.”
 
Emory's expression, although filled with exhaustion had twisted into tension as Rose began to point out that he hadn't bothered to resist or ignore, much less even fight back against Eunice. A scathing retort nearly flew from his lips then, but he bit his tongue to prevent it from leaving him. How could he fight against something like that? The only reason why Emory had survived as long as he had was he chose his fights carefully, it was only when Rose had entered his life that he had become slightly more careless; the careless action being to retaliate as he had done against Demelza. He should've taken more care with the situation, but could one truly blame him? When it concerned matters with his trauma or matters concerning Rose, the man would lose all sense of composure, all sense of self. Was she expecting him to do some foolish last stand? A sharp exhale left him then, a tinge of anger beginning to tingle within his chest as he nearly parted his lips in the beginning of a sentence, but he was silenced once more as she continued to speak.

The more Rose spoke, the worse he felt, not just out of guilt but there was a sensation, a chill that was running up and down his spine. His muscles, as sore as they were had tensed as he could feel eyes beginning to burn into his back, but for now he was trying his best to ignore it. But something was certainly very wrong. Of course, the more he tried to focus on what Rose was saying, the sensation only strengthened as he could feel a light pressure upon his shoulders, tingles of pain settling down and across his skin which caused his expression to slightly twitch in slight agony. Was he beginning to imagine things? Was the absurdity and stress of the situation finally getting to him? His gut feeling told him otherwise, but nonetheless the man's expression was becoming agitated, "...Rose-" He tried to interrupt, but visibly flinched again as soon as she had far too coldly continued to speak, but her plan certainly made his teeth clench as he snapped, "Absolutely not! I'm not about to let you..." His voice failed him, the chill intensified, filling his lungs and freezing him to his core. Of course, to anyone else it would simply seem as if there was nothing there, for there was no temperature drop in the room, nor did any mana spark to life in the room either.

However, Emory felt the pressure of fingers tightening upon his shoulders as Eunice's voice whispered in his ear, though it did not echo within the room, "She really is making me quite angry." He could feel her fingers sinking underneath his skin, the sensation feeling alien and wrong, "Ah... what to do? I don't usually like feeling so unpleasant. It's not healthy to hold onto all of these negative feelings. Someone needs to pay the price, but you don't want me to kill her. Should I make my point clear? Demonstrate that she holds no power here? I need a willing participant though." The sensation of fingers beginning to move slowly through his middle and finally settling around his heart, a pressure that was alien as her voice cooed, now beginning to become audible to both of them within the heavy silence that had now settled, "Oh dear, your heart is beating so very fast! This will do, wouldn't it? I was hoping to do this later, but starting early wouldn't hurt either."

Emory's body went utterly still then, the cold chill settling fully over him as Eunice's voice spoke now in a very much mockingly cheerful manner, "Consider this a tiny rest for now. It's time for me to have a little talk." The pressure increased, sensation intensifying as her fingers squeezed abruptly with such strength that his now racing mind couldn't process fully what she meant, nor even try to protest or beg for her not to, before his body suddenly slackened. The abrupt change from consciousness to sudden lifelessness would without a doubt cause quite the shock, the gold to his eyes that had briefly the spark of life had suddenly extinguished, his body crumpled to the floor like that of a puppet with the strings having been cut. Blood slowly but surely was leaking from the man's lips, no breath leaving him as the very air above him split, the tiniest bit of a tear as a slender shape had materialized, her fingers dyed red, slick and glistening in the morning light as a ominous smile was on her lips as she spoke cheerfully, "Forgive me for eavesdropping on your little conversation, but I had a feeling that Emory was being a bit too soft on you."

The woman's gaze turned down to Emory as she spoke, an exasperated sigh leaving her lips as she then looked to Rose, scolding her with her tone dripping with mockery, "Honestly, look at what you made me do. It's not wise to ignore good sense, I knew you were a brave one but I didn't think your bravery would verge on stupidity." Settling herself down near the man's body, her bloodied hands clasped together, tingles of mana sparking from her fingertips as she smiled from ear to ear at her, "It's certainly been a very long time, princess. Let us chat for a little while, yes? I fear that there's something quite wrong in that head of yours that you're not quite understanding where you stand here. Emory certainly understood, but he has such a difficult time putting it into words." She shook her head in dismay, looking down at the eerily still man laying like a barrier between herself and Rose before turning her gaze up to fixate on Rose again, pleasantly smiling at her like she had done far too many times in passing within the court, though her eyes clearly didn't match the pleasantry she was putting on, for Eunice truly was beyond furious.

"Now, this is what will happen, you will remember how to share and give him to me when I desire it. Otherwise, I'll start tearing him open in front of you." Her hands gripped the man, smiling still pleasantly as her bloodstained fingers were running a line from his chest to his abdomen, her sharp nail nicking some of the injures already upon his skin causing some blood to begin to swell up in response, "I'm quite curious to see what he looks like on the inside, his heart was quite pretty after all... ah, I know! We shall find out together, you and I! That is.. unless you decide to be a good little girl and actually try to think, yes? I can bring him back as many times as I like, so if you want to truly piss me off even further, then by all means continue to press your luck. I've been wanting to blow off some steam for so very long... it almost feels nostalgic." Her words were like venom, and despite being quite composed, she was boiling with rage on the inside. How dare this little pest try to be defiant? How dare she try to deny her her toy?! Eunice had never met a mortal so completely infuriating, and the fact that she still couldn't kill her made her feel even more angry.

Yes, she should not have acted on anger herself, due to quite literally breaking her little toy's heart, however it was an easy fix to her, thus her relaxed and unbothered air as she remained far too pleasant for the alarming and stressful situation she had dumped on Rose now, knowing full well the woman before her had just barely managed to calm down just moments before. But, in Eunice's mind, this was all too righteous payback to a woman that was trying to take away what was originally hers in the first place; and it let her vent a bit of frustration on Emory, killing two birds with one stone. She cared not for Rose in the slightest, desiring nothing more than to eliminate her now... but she would not. Emory being so docile was something she was enjoying far too much, and it truly made her excited for when she would bring him back into the waking world, how would he react? Pushing him to his breaking point was a lovely little game she needed to succeed in regardless, just being able to whisper in his mind now was an obvious sign to her that she was pushing him to his limits, breaking down whatever mental fortitude he had to make him completely and utterly hers. It was a victorious feeling indeed.
 
Rose’s lips remained parted as he immediately snapped his response at h, having expected nearly as much. What she was suggesting was a foolish plan indeed, something she knew quite well would end badly for both of them. It was the only thing that had come to her mind in regards to an action the two of them could take though. She would always sacrifice herself before putting Emory in danger. It was a terrible streak the two of them had going for them, now that she realized in. She took in a sharp breath as her mind began to formulate what she planned to say next, only to watch as his body began to tense. There was a voice that began to sound from a spot over his shoulder, one that she hadn’t heard in years. Confusion immediately hashed across her expression as she turned her gaze to look at the spot where she heard it coming from. She couldn’t immediately place the voice, but something about it brought forth an eery feeling.

She quickly returned her eyes to Emory at the stillness that overtook his body. Her confusion only seemed to grow. Part of her believes it was just her fever causing her mind to run ramped. It wouldn’t be the first time that something odd would’ve happened while she was sick. Another thing she could thank her mother for, she supposed. Nothing could’ve prepared her for the way the young lord’s body dropped to the ground, a sickening thud following. His skin turned so pale rather quickly, the dullness in his eyes unmatched to any other that she had seen before. Her hands began to shake as she lifted them in a weak attempt to reach out to him, her legs shuffling her forward some. “Emory?” She whispered, her own voice hoarse in her throat. It was only when the blood began to stream from his lips that panic overtook her. Trembling immediately regained control over her body and tears quickly formed in her eyes. A choked cry broke through her lips, but she was quick to try and shove it done. She didn’t want for whoever this was to get the satisfaction of seeing the full extent of her pain, of what seeing Emory like this made her feel. Her expression twisted with the anguish of seeing the man she loved dead. She refused to allow anymore sobs to leave her lips.

Her head snapped up as the slender woman stepped into the room out of seemingly air, her tears not stopping as she glared at her. It was only then that she recognized Eunice from the many time that she passed her in the castle’s hallways. “How dare you do this to him!” The words came out in a roar of rage, encompassing everything that she had felt up until that point. Her hand was weakly grasping Emory’s, feeling the coldness and heaviness of it only made her rage swell even more. “He isn’t your property because you decided all those years to abuse him. You do not get the right to treat anyone like this. Just because you have abilities our people do not doesn’t make you any better than us.“ Her voice was still trembling as she spoke, but she meant every venom-filled word she spat.

She flinched as her eyes caught sight of the line of blood forming on his abdomen when her nail carved through. Her mind was beginning to race through the possibilities of what could be done, of how they could escape this situation. She needed to calm down. If she continues to let her anger have this control on her, it would only make this worse. Her head was beginning to pound more, and she truly felt as though she was on the verge of falling unconscious herself. “If you wanted such control of him, just dangling my life over his head isn’t going to keep him attached to you. Surely you may believe me a fool, but you wouldn’t be dumb enough to believe that.” She chose her next words carefully. She allowed herself to carefully let go of his hand as she finally forced herself to her feet.

Her vision immediately blacked for a moment while she did. The combination of her crying, the illness, and her stress were beginning to become worse and worse. She knew she would probably be bedridden soon due to it all. Her hand reached to grab ahold of the chair not far from her in order to steady herself. “You know killing me would completely ruin him. He would never be the same nor would he fight against you anymore. So why haven’t you done so yet? Why would you dangle my life over his head when you have no intention of actually killing me?” She asked, working to control the trembling of her own voice. It was growing harder to breathe once more. Her free hand took hold of the hem of her dress, fingers curling into it. “What do you want from me Eunice? I do not want to play any games with you and I doubt you want to with me. Tell me truthfully. What do you want from me? What do you want me to do?” She asked. If she could get through this moment and get her to leave, she could contact the emissary from Avrune through the letter. She could tell them who was the bigger threat that needed their immediate attention. She could survive this. She could—
 
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Eunice's expression didn't change, aside from the raising of a neatly trimmed eyebrow as Rose had shouted at her. But, to the woman it seemed like nothing more than useless barking, causing her to heave yet another sigh as if growing bored, "He is mine, both body and soul, and if I'm being quite frank... I need him far more than you do. It's a shame that he's unwilling to give his heart to me, it would make everything far easier." After all, Eunice wasn't lying, she needed this man far more than any mortal that she encountered. She was not going back to that emptiness of a prison, and besides Emory had sparked something within her when she saw him all those years ago, trapped in a little box and shivering. What was the feeling again? She couldn't remember, but it was such a strong emotion that had assured her that she needed to have this one mortal, for no other would do to keep her here; not at least if she wanted to wait another few hundred years, keeping her head down and watching these animals walk around on her world.

They all made her sick. And her good for nothing children revered so highly as "gods" to these animals too.

The thoughts made the pleasant expression upon her face weaken, only for her to force the smile back as she watched Rose rise to her feet, to Eunice her words sparked a tinge of surprise as she was quick to remark, "I see, you aren't as dumb as you look." Of course the woman knew continuously dangling Rose's life as a threat wouldn't work for too long, as every mortal had a breaking point. She'd observed it in Emory when he had been a boy, stabbing Duke Caxaton in the eye with a broken piece of glass, but even then that was after four years of trying her best to break his mind fully, and she could've succeeded too if Maridel hadn't been a hinderance and whisked him away from her at the last second. There was something very, very intriguing about how much this man could take, how sturdy he is compared to the last unfortunate fool that had been chosen far too many eons ago for her to even remember his face or his name, for her kind desired little insurances to make sure they would not be trapped in their prison. Unfortunately for her kind, or rather more so for her, the little fool had killed himself after she had been cornered and shamefully dismissed back to her prison by the mortals of that age. Ah, she truly didn't want to remember anymore, it was making her far more angry.

"Do you think I want a mind-controlled puppet following me around? It would be an easy matter for me to simply overwrite his will with my own... but that would be far too boring. Having everything fall easily into my lap doesn't make the reward sweeter... it spoils it." The woman's arms settled around Emory's torso, drawing him close to her, a twisted affection crossing her face as her hand came to gently caress his raven-black hair, "He makes this fun, and I want to take my time in allowing him to realize there is no escape, not from me. Something that I'm sure you've observed considering how desperately he wants to keep you away from me." She shook her head as she nuzzled the man's neck, "..I never thought he could be so cute, how worried he is over you. But, at the same time it really does make me feel quite unpleasant. Oh well, it doesn't matter."

Eunice lifted her head to look at Rose, annoyance as clear as day on her face, "What do I want from you? Nothing. Your body is far too weak, too frail to be of any use to me. In fact, the only reason why I haven't slaughtered you already is because I'm finding it very enjoyable to have Emory rely on me to protect your worthless life." She paused, thinking then spoke, "Actually, the only thing I want from you is to stay out of my way. Continuing to do so will only result in me taking out more of my anger on this 'poor man', since I can't kill you. And I assure you, each death he'll suffer will be worse than the last... granted that also would help me quite nicely." A pleasant hum had left her lips then as she stood, laying Emory's body on the floor and stepping over him, grabbing ahold of Rose by her hair and quickly tightening her grip as she then began to drag the woman before dumping her on Emory's bed, an expression of distaste settling upon her as she shook her head at the woman before her.

"...Honestly, and you're this ill? You really are pathetic." The disgust lacing her tone was obvious as she leaned closer to Rose, "I really am tempted to leave you here to die. But, I did promise him..." She looked over her shoulder to the motionless man on the floor, thinking for a few moments only for a wicked smile to finally cross her face, "Hmm... but this could work. And he'll be so very happy to take your place, wouldn't he? You might be useful to me after all, little one." Her hand then settled upon the woman's chest, a surge of mana suddenly sparking to life within the room, "This will be painful at first, but I assure you, you'll be feeling quite pleasant... whenever you wake up again that is. Oh yes, and I'll be taking him with me, it's not as if you can object to that, now can you? He'll just have to suffer all these little unpleasant feelings you're having to go through, but I'm sure if it keeps you healthy then he won't complain!"

Her hand drew back, though it seemed as if nothing was there until the mana seemed to bundle together, an inky black bundle resting upon her palm, a satisfied hum left Eunice's lips then as he turned away from Rose, "Fear not, I'll return him to you when I'm done. Ah, I probably should wake him up first.." She crouched down beside the man, with her free hand another flare of mana had surged within the room, far stronger than the previous as a faint sound could be heard, as if someone was struggling to take in a breath as Eunice cooed, "Good boy! Now quickly, take this." A strangled sound followed as Eunice's hand with the bundle of mana within it was suddenly pressed down the now gasping man's throat, him being unable to resist as Eunice then promptly heaved the man up over her shoulder with all too little ease, his body still limp as it seemed like he was unable to respond to his environment yet as Eunice with her free hand had waved dismissively at Rose, "Have a nice rest, he should be back by the time you wake up. I promise."

A chilling feeling settled over the room then as just as it seemed she was there, the woman had suddenly vanished, leaving the room empty and the only evidence that she had even so much had been there was the tiny pool of blood where Emory's head had hit the floor.
 
sorry this is rushed! wanted to get it in before i left for work))

Rose began to realize that Emory was right the longer that Eunice spoke. The woman wasn’t human at all. She had no clue just exactly what she was, whether she came from Avrune or if she was a rumored descendant of the gods. She had never believed the tales told of the descendants as they were often used to solidly claims to the throne. But there was something different about this woman she never experienced before. It completely terrified her, her own body continuing to tremble as she leaned against the chair. She cursed herself for not being healthy enough to at least attempt to do something in that moment. She doubted she would be able to fight back against the woman as it would most certainly result in injuries herself. Her eyes darted behind Eunice to the door that was partly opened from before.

She winced as another bout dizziness overcame her. She shifted to stand closer to the chair, refusing to allow herself to fall. The tears were continuing to stream down her cheeks while Eunice drew Emory’s body to her own. A wave of nausea overcame her, bending over slightly in order to not allow the little contents in her stomach to escape. “You are a monster. You will not be able to get away with this. Surely you must realize that.” Her voice was growing quieter, though the venom from before was returning to drip through each syllable. “You are leaving one witness who has better connections than you might think. I swear that I will kill you Eunice. Mark my words, I swear by it.” She hadn’t ever made a threat such at this before, but she meant each word she said. She would do whatever she had to in order to murder the being standing in front of her.

She took a step back while Eunice approached her, though there was nothing she could do to prevent her hair being grabbed. A soft cry of pain broke through her lips as she helpless tried to shove the woman’s hands from her head. Her fingers grasped weakly at her hands, her feet kicking out until she was tossed on the bed. Her panic began to overcome her once more, feeling as though she couldn’t breathe. The hot warmth of Eunice’s breath on her face caused her to flinch. Her eyes closed partly, expecting for the woman to lash out against her in that moment. She turned her head away, only to feel the cold hand settling on her chest. She slowly forced herself to look back towards her while she spoke. The mana in the room was overwhelming, enough to cause a wave of pain to wash over her. Her mouth opened wide as a loud moan broke from her lips. Her body twisted and tensed before all she felt was nothing. She couldn’t find the words to respond to anything Eunice said anymore, blinking slowly. Her eyes then rolled back into her head as the world around her faded into darkness.
 
(All good! I got sidetracked today tbh, was playing Pokemon Scarlet and I lost track of time x.x)

The day went by slow, or rather it seemed that way to Eunice. After all, she was having the time of her life, comfortably laying next to a heated body, the uncomfortable warmth to it being the only true sign of life from the man who was struggling for breath. A finger slowly slid down Emory's chest, drawing lazy little circles upon his damp skin, the fresh fever that had been all too easily traded over to the man being the cause, and yet much to her amazement there was still strength in his limbs despite one arm being forcibly trapped underneath her own body. He couldn't overpower her now, something that she was trying to ensure he would never do, her fingers pausing at the new injuries lacing his skin, puncture wounds that had previously pierced all too vulnerable organs resulting in her having to use a mere fraction of her mana to bring him back from the brink every time... but it was worth it. The anger she had coiling within her chest had finally disappeared as she placed her head upon his chest, listening to his weak heartbeat.

"Are you about to die again?" She whispered, tilting her head upward to gaze at Emory's face which held no acknowledgement, an emptiness that she adored in the pale gold which was dimming once more as her hands slid to rest on either side of the man's handsome face, "I can't have that, Emory. You've already burned through quite a bit of my mana already. You're quite lucky I'm so fond of you, you know?" The man didn't respond, his lips parting in another struggling breath which broke off into a cough, causing a smile to broaden on her face as she chuckled, "Oh dear, you really aren't feel well, are you? What a shame." Her gaze shifted away from him, trailing over the familiar surroundings of her bedchambers, the very same that she shared with her husband. The man had been called away due to investigating matters that Agrius had kicked up under her command, causing Eunice to have all the time in the world to lay with her little toy.

By now, however, the moonlight streaming into her room had made her realize that she had perhaps kept him all to herself for a full day. Shifting her position on the plush bed, the woman stretched, although pleasantly tingling from head to toe as she looked to Emory who was still quite immobile and blankly staring off into empty space, "Hey, it's time for you to go back to her... Rose, was it?" The mention of the name had caused the man's eyes to slowly slide to Eunice, though he didn't speak a word, nor did there seem to be a spark of life or excitement in his gaze which caused Eunice to tilt her head in response, "Rose? The princess you're so fond of. Don't tell me all those deaths had made you forgotten? Ah, my mistake, you must be still recovering." She chuckled, looking away from the dull-eyed man, "I know it's quite a pain to begin moving around after all your limbs have gone stiff, but you'll be perfectly fine in a few hours... maybe." The comment ended on a vicious tint, the woman crossing the room to retrieve her nightgown from the nearby wardrobe, covering herself from view as she cast another look at the man laying as still as a corpse on her bed, though now his eyes were half-closed, his breathing becoming worse and far more grating on her ears. As sturdy as he was, it seemed like he was far beyond his normal mortal limits; something that she could remedy if he wasn't so stubborn. Even if he wasn't able to speak at the moment, nor move, she had a feeling there was still some way for her to go to bring him under heel... which fascinated her, and vexed her all the same.

"Tsk, come now. We haven't all day, and considering you've done wonderfully for today I'll let you rest for tomorrow," She approached his side of the bed, grabbing him with ease as most of his body had fallen to the wood floors below in a solid thud, prompting the tiniest of sounds to finally escape his paralyzed throat, though he put up no resistance, no fight. "Doesn't that sound wonderful, Emory?" She spoke that question a bit louder, leaning down to look into the glazed over eyes that was staring into empty space. A satisfied hum left her lips as with a surge of strength, Eunice had heaved Emory up within her arms, the sweat covering his body proving to give her a bit of trouble to have a good grip on him which prompted her to sink her nails into his back, blood swelling up in fresh injuries - as if he didn't have enough - which caused a slow exhale to leave the man, no longer the tiny little cries that she loved to hear, but a slow and quiet sound as his body was unable to give the sounds that she adored to hear. It was disappointing, but not unexpected.
...​
Emory's body couldn't move. He couldn't feel a single thing, the blood that pumped through his body had stopped and resumed too many times for him to count, and falling deep into death's cold embrace only to be ripped back in the waking world to be plunged back in again... he couldn't even determine if he really was alive right now or not. However, all the new injuries he received from Eunice as well as the horrid pounding in his head and the feverish sweating that was raking through his body was enough to tell him that Eunice had truly given it her all that day to make sure he suffered, even if his mind was missing vast swaths of the agony he had to endure. He didn't want to do this anymore.

Eunice's excited words was mere babbling to his ears, her cheerfulness certainly not matching the situation as he felt his body being carried by the woman, unable to feel the chill of mana due to his body still haven't not recovered from the last return from death, regardless he found it harder for him to breathe as the mana flowed over him, causing tears out of reaction to come to his eyes and fall free, but there was no true emotion in his chest. Whether it was out of his mind being unable to process anything anymore, or trying to shield himself, he couldn't feel any strong emotion within himself. It was as if everything had truly been sapped out of him, leaving him with an emptiness that was familiar and almost... comforting. Was it his mind merely shutting down? He didn't know, but at this point he didn't care.

Suddenly, he felt his body being heaved, the solid feeling of a hard wood floor hitting his back causing the already little breath in his body to be knocked out of his lungs as he was struggling to gasp for air. Very faint feelings of pain had managed to resurface in his numb nerves as he heard Eunice's voice above him, "There, now you're home nice and safe. Do take this time to rest, I'll see you again soon." With that, the icy presence was gone, leaving Emory staring blankly up at the ceiling as he was struggling to breathe. Due to Eunice's persistent spell, the man seemed quite ill, fever chills prompting his weakened body to shiver as sweat was causing his skin to be uncomfortably hot to the touch, fresh injuries as well lined his skin in some obviously fatal spots, of which were particularly deep, while still others were shallower. Nonetheless, the man's torso seemed to have taken most of the damage, and Eunice's recent addition of her nails sinking for a hold into his back leaving bleeding holes within his skin.

The lack of vibrancy in his eyes was worrying, his ragged and weak breathing filling the air as his eyelids were beginning to grow heavy. This... was his room, was it not? He didn't feel any sort of comfort in the knowledge as his sluggish thoughts were catching up to the situation. It didn't matter where he went anyways, Eunice could just reappear and drag him back to her grasp, and now that he knew that the she-devil was freely toying with his own life now, what hope did he have? A weak sound left his lips, a wheeze though it was him laughing. How absurd this situation was turning out to be! Was his own life cursed? Was that it to have this demon obsessed with him? Tears swelled up and trickled down the sides of his face, his wheezing laughter dying within his chest, numbness overtaking him just as quickly. He supposed all that was left to do was to just lay there until feeling finally returned to his body, he didn't even know if anyone else was still in the room, nor did his fractured mind seem to remember much of anything for that day.
 
oo how do you like it? i have been debating on buying it! and you are fine c: between work and the end of my semester i have been swamped lately lol))

The amount of time that had passed wasn’t something that Rose could calculate, nor did she truly care. She didn’t know where she found herself. Her dreams were completely nonexistent. Instead, she was present in a black space in her mind. There was nothing surrounding her and no one for her to speak to. Every time that she tried to take a step forward, she found herself back in the same spot she originally had been in. A panic set over her for a while, confusion melding with it as she couldn’t understand just why she was here. But then she recognized that she could use this to her advantage. The time allowed for her to formulate a plan she believed might work in helping remove Eunice from Emory’s life once and for all. She had been hoping to make her arrival to the kingdom and to her father known at the ball, but it seemed as though the latter would have to know sooner. With the proximity to the hall itself, she knew the emissaries from Avrune would already be present in the kingdom. She just needed to get there alive.

A loud gasp of breath broke through her lips as her chest heaved up, eyes quickly shooting open wide. It felt as though a weight had been completely removed from it. She brought a shaking hand up to rest of her forehead only to feel that the fever she had before was gone. In fact, all of her ailments were gone. She managed to push herself into a sitting position, blinking rapidly in order to calm her mind. Now that the fever was gone, she could finally connect the meaning to what Eunice had been saying. She shook her head at the thought of the vile woman, truly wanting nothing more than to sink a dagger into her heart. She doubted it would be enough to kill whatever kind of creature she was, but it would at least bring her some peace of mind. Forcing her breathing to calm, she finally turned her gaze to the room surrounding her. The sunlight had disappeared from the windows, replaced with the familiar darkness that she seemed to be living through as of late. It was then that she noticed Emory laying on the floor.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed before carefully landing on her feet. Her steps were quick as she rushed to his side, kneeling next to him. She placed a gentle hand to his forehead. The heat of his skin immediately caused her to remove it from its position. “I am so sorry Emory.” She whispered. She knew it would be quite a struggle, but she needed to get him into his bed. She shifted to where her body was near the back of his head, carefully moving her arms to loop beneath his shoulders. She began to drag him towards the bed then. It didn’t seem like he was giving much of a reaction at all to anything. The dullness in his eyes had only grown worse since the last time she saw him. Part of her wanted to cry once more, to allow herself to break down. The stress from the situation was beginning to reach her breaking point. She forced herself to be strong, to not be selfish. She couldn’t allow herself such pleasantries when Emory’s life was on the line.

She rested his back carefully against the side of the bed before she stepped in front of him. She put one leg on each side of his body before returning her arms to loop beneath his shoulders again. She gripped her hands together behind his back and lifted. A few grunts broke through her lips at the weight of the man, his muscled body still limp as she did so. She managed after a few tries to get him up onto the bed. Soft pants were breaking through her lips while she did so. She carefully took his hand in her own for a moment, squeezing it gently. “I will be back. I am going to get you some medicine and salve. I will make sure the sentries take good care of you while I am gone.” She brought the back of his hand to her lips, pressing a gentle kiss to the warm skin. She desperately wanted to tell him her plan, but she knew Eunice could hear anything she would say to him. She would have to keep him in the safe the time being.

She placed his hand down gently back on the bed before she quickly turned and left the room. It seemed like a new wave of energy had overcome her as she rushed to her own bedroom. She quickly changed into a lighter dress, one better suited for riding. She pulled her hair into a braid and then hurried to Emory’s office. Her eyes fell upon the letter her father had written first and then the one from Avrune. Her fingers snatched it before she made her way down the stairs and to the closet from before. She slid the cloak back on and then stepped outside. It took her longer than she would’ve ever liked to admit to find a sentry, the man she found far too good at his stealthiness. “Emory is ill and injured. I need to go to the kingdom to retrieve a few supplies for him. I should be back a day from now at the latest. You have my permission to bring whoever you need inside to care for him in my absence.” She informed, tone firm while she spoke. She dipped her head in thanks and then followed that familiar path to Echo once more.

The determination was written clearly on her face while she got the horse suited for travel. She made sure the letter was safe in the travel bag in case she needed it, though she hoped her suspicions were right. Once she was in the saddle, she kicked him off in the direction of the kingdom. The ride took her a decent portion of the night to complete, the streets nearly empty by the time she arrived. She kept the hood of the cloak covering her head as she slowed Echo’s gallop until they were outside the gates of the castle that she hadn’t seen in years. She tilted her head to gaze at the massive gate, a sense of longing hitting her. Three guards immediately stepped forward to block her. “There will be no entry. I suggest you return where you came from.” One warned. Rose could feel her heart beginning to pound in her chest as she lifted a hand to remove the hood from her head. “My name is Rosalie Barclay, seventh daughter of King William Barclay. I demand to see my father.” She stated in a fool tone. The recognition quickly flashed across their faces along with a shock that she had never seen before. She was grateful her family did have such distinctions in their appearance for it made recognizing them much easier. One guard immediately bowed his head, his movements shaky as he spike. “A-At once, my lady.”

Rose watched as the gate was lifted, a smile coming to her lips as she was guided into the courtyard. She carefully got down from Echo once safely inside. She dug into the saddlebag to grab the letter for Avrune before she was led inside. The old stone walls brought a familiar sense of comfort and nostalgia. She couldn’t believe it had been such a long time she had been here last, though she was grateful to finally be. The closer they approached to the keep, the louder she heard the voices of many men she hadn’t in quite some time. She was instructed to wait outside while one of the knights stepped in. Silence immediately fell as she heard the loud voice of her father dismiss everyone. Her fingers curled into the palms of her hand before she was guided inside. Sitting at the head of the king banquet table was a man she never thought she was see again. He slowly stood as she began to approach, though she paused a few feet from him. “Rosalie?” His voice was quiet, shaking as he gazed at his daughter. She bowed her head in greeting, her own smile coming to her lips. “Hello, father. I know this must be a shock, but we have quite some catching up to do.” She confessed.

The man quickly stepped forward, gathering her in his arms. The embrace was a welcome one, something that almost caused for her to collapse into it. She forced herself to remain composed as she pulled back after a few moments. She could see the tears filling his eyes, the lines in his face having gotten deeper from the stress. The two sat at the table together as she explained everything that had happened since they had been apart and how it must remain a secret still that she was alive. He seemed less than pleased that Emory had been the one to save her, but it was quickly brushed away with everything else she said. She then showed him the letter from Avrune, demanding to speak to the emissaries. She watched as her father looked to one of the many knights around the room, the one he chose quickly turning and rushing off to go get them.
 
(I finished the main story last night, and I have to say it's actually pretty good! Granted there is a lot of performance issues and the graphics aren't the best, but the storyline is enjoyable and it actually feels like an rpg, I guess? It's at least a bit fun to play and honestly for the first time in a long time I actually like most the characters, they're actually memorable lol)

Emory's eyes strained to see the figure approaching him in the darkness of his room, though he felt not a single emotion rise up within him. Rose's voice as gentle as it was served not to even draw relief from him anymore; for the thought that she was once again spared for another day left him feeling quite empty. He could feel someone trying to lift him after she had moved out of his direct line of sight, and normally he would have stood himself, but he felt too weak to even begin to try to move. The longer his body remained holding the spark of life, the more feeling was beginning to return to his deadened nerves and now he could begin to feel agony. A quiet wheeze left him in response, more laughter at this situation. He really had been reduced to nothing so easily. Why had he ever gotten so overconfident to begin with, so arrogant? Just because he managed to bring himself so far didn't mean anything compared to that demon, it was a mere step, one that she shown she could break so easily. It was all for nothing, what pitiful defenses he had painstakingly crafted... sure it was more than enough against a mortal, but that?!

Finally, it seemed as if Emory's body had been sufficiently pushed back upon his bed, though the man didn't even react to Rose's words, instead that awful wheezing sound kept leaving his lips, his throat being unable to emit a proper response. His chest heaved with the effort as he was expelling precious oxygen from his lungs, the dullness to his eyes holding no recognition of Rose as she had placed a soft kiss to the heated skin of his hand. Normally he would be trying to stop her from leaving, to demand where she was going, but there was no such thing from him, not anymore. His mind was too far away at the moment, now coiling and wrestling as it was slipping down a downward spiral, perhaps worsened by the fever that was now raging within him. Coughs left his lips, agitating the painful injuries on his chest as his jaw clenched, hearing the door to his room close as he struggled to move, though it seemed his own body was far too stiff to respond once more. Ah... hahah... hahahhaha! Tears trickled down the sides of his face as the wheezing laughter faded, resulting in the man fully allowing himself to go immobile. There was no use to this... wasn't it?

The man sank deep into his mind then, unaware of the sentry that had now entered his bedchamber and was trying his best to tend to Emory's injuries through Rose's request, albeit this was moments after Rose had departed from the mansion. He could feel the man shaking his unresponsive body to get him to have any sort of reaction, worry creasing the man's familiar face... who was it? He didn't remember, not that it mattered. Leave me be. The thought didn't pass his lips as he closed his eyes, the pounding headache ringing within his mind... there was no choice but to give up now, wasn't there? Yes... that's what he'll do. That woman made it abundantly clear that she wasn't going to allow him to leave her anytime soon, that she'll persist to haunt his life until he would die and then deny him that same death as many times as she wanted, until whatever left of his will was ground into the dirt till he couldn't get up again; because she needed him for... something.
...Meanwhile at the kingdom...​
Confusion settled upon Ephovia's face as she was following the kingdom's guards, her hand grasping the far smaller hand of a child who was yawning sleepily and rubbing at her eyes. The unexpected summons wasn't something that she minded much, but considering it was quite late and they demanded for all of their little group due to an emergency, a pit of dread had sparked in her stomach. Her gaze shifted down to the eleven year old at her side, the little girl mumbling sleepily, "Is Agrius up to no good again?" A familiar tingle of pain sparked in her chest at the man's name, turning her head away from the little one at her side, "I-I don't know, Your Highness. We'll just have to find out." The princess of Moonhaven, capital of Avrune was by far one of their strongest mages, boasting such immense mana despite being quite young still and it was expected to still be growing. Of course, the third member of their little group, a man named Ethar was currently dealing with the matters of putting to rest those who had been afflicted by Agrius cruelty. It was a thankless job, but unfortunately there was nothing they could reasonable do to save the dead or dying; best to put them out of their misery with the least amount of pain possible.

Eventually, the two had found themselves before the grand doors separating them from the banquet hall, prompting Ephovia to feel a bundle of nerves within her stomach. It never ceased to intimidate her, regardless on whether she was dealing with the nobles in Moonhaven, nor in this kingdom in Erista that audiences with the royal family made her immensely nervous, although she had been told she was quite good at masking it. However, her thoughts began to shift to the man referred to as Emory May, a bit of concern settling within her as a frown crossed her face. It had been a day or so since she had last contacted them, though she knew he probably was busy... she hoped his condition didn't progress too much. And the woman that was there- ah!

Surprise flickered across her expression immediately as she gazed at the very same woman she had spoken to, though considering now Ephovia was appearing before her in the flesh, the woman was quite small and delicate, her blue eyes being her most prominent feature, and the child at her side had quite the long array of ginger hair, a spray of freckles lining her face and her eyes were a brilliant gold, practically glowing like the light of the sun, not the honeyed color that Emory had... or rather used to have. "U-um, hello- er, greetings, Your Majesty." Ephovia winced as she botched up the greeting, having been completely thrown off guard as she approached Rose and King William, stopping a respectable distance away from the two as she looked between them both, "Is.. is there something wrong? What do you need my assistance with?" The mood already seemed a bit odd when she had entered, and she felt a bit bad that she had to wake the princess to bring along with her at such a late hour, but the little one needed to keep an eye on everything, after all she was blessed with far more mana than Ephovia had and perhaps could see things with far more clarity than even she could.
 
ooo that’s good! usually i forget the characters pretty quickly lol i will definitely check it out!))

Rose slowly turned her head as she heard the door beginning to creak open. She bit gently down on her bottom lip, not knowing just what to expect. Ephovia had been lovey when she had spoken to her during the scrying, but that didn’t mean everyone else from Avrune would be that way. She knew well enough to keep her guards up then. Her body had tensed slightly, eyes glancing around the large hall in which they stood. She felt as though she couldn’t trust anyone anymore. After all that had happened recently, she was completely on edge. Granted, she blamed that mostly on the way her stress was beginning to affect her mind. Normally she would’ve found great joy in being able to spend time with her father again, but with the way she left Emory… The thought of the young lord laying on his bed at the mansion with the various wounds she hadn’t treated caused her to wince.

She could feel her father’s eyes fall upon her at the action. She didn’t have to look at him to know the concern was etched into his face. The poor man looked as though he had aged ten years in the span of time she had been gone. She supposed the stress was truly getting to everyone now. A soft breath left her lips before her eyes fell on the two that stepped in with the knight. While she looked slightly different due to not being a blue figure and instead standing in front of her fully, she could immediately recognize Ephovia. “My apologies for the late summons. I normally would never do such a thing, but my daughter wished to speak with you. Considering I thought she was dead until now, I believe it is of grave importance.” The familiar deep voice rumbled from the King’s lips as he offered the two a weak smile. He had always been a kind man despite some of the decisions he had to make in the past.

Rose fully faced the two, bowing her head for a moment. “I wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t important. If word spreads that I am alive before I am supposed to make it known, I am sure it will cause an uproar that will overshadow the graveness of this situation.” She explained. She never was one to ask for favors, especially in a moment such as this. “I believe I know who is shielding Agrius. Eunice Gallovan appeared in front of me today out of thin air, almost as though she was stepping through a crack in time. She managed to stop and then restart Emory May’s heart with ease. She was also able to remove my illness and pass it to him. She supposedly has threatened my life and is holding it over Emory’s head in order to him to do her bidding.” Her words were a slight ramble as she tried to get everything she could recall out. She had no doubts that she would’ve sounded crazy to anyone else.

Her father tensed at her side, the familiar surname surely sending panic into the man. He turned his head to look to another knight, who just nodded and quickly left the room. Rose continued to speak then, not missing a beat. “I have seen both Agrius and Eunice use their abilities. I was witness to Agrius at Freycrest and Eunice back in Dusk’s Respite. She is far more powerful than he and is a danger to everyone. I do not know just exactly what she is, if she has been corrupted like he or if she is something more. Emory said she wasn’t human, but I hadn’t realized the extent until now.” She confessed. Her voice was beginning to shake as the memories rushed forward in her mind. She forced herself to swallow hard, blinking a few times to keep her composure. “I wanted to let you know who it was and ask you for any help you might be able to give. I would never normally do this, but I am concerned for the well-being of both of our peoples.” She admitted.
 
(I think there will be DLC added later on maybe too. But honestly just playing it to see the characters personality is really good ^.^)

"O-oh, truly you needn't apologize, Your Majesty! It is what we're here for!" Ephovia's face had tinged with red, flustered by the apology for the summons alone, shaking her head as she cleared her throat to turn to look at Rose, her expression although remaining kind had turned serious, though the woman's jaw had clenched at the mention of Agrius's name once more, her gaze lowering for a few seconds as the previous red tint to her face had evaporated, fading to an almost white tint upon her pale skin. Yet, nothing could prepare her for Rose's further explanation of what Eunice had done, her expression growing more and more pale as her lips parted, though no sound left her lips, a tinge of horror beginning to twist the woman's expression as it almost seemed as if she had seen a ghost.

By the time Rose had finished, Ephovia had taken in a shaky breath as she spoke hesitantly, "I've never heard of someone using necromancy without dying themselves. Forbidden magic, or rather black magic was supposed to have died out centuries ago due to the risk it has on the user. B-but if what you say is true then..." Her gaze turned to the little girl at her side, "Osephi, I know you're tired but can you possibly 'see' Eunice Gallovan? I know you're tired but this is of grave importance. If this woman has anything to do with Agrius, then we certainly need to investigate and locate her." Her lips pressed in a tighter line as she spoke in a firmer tone, "And I needn't remind you to make sure you don't do anything foolish. We just need to determine what exactly she is; though I'm hoping that what we're dealing with is still... human." Or rather it seemed not just her, but everyone else within the room. If Eunice was human, then that would make the situation easier, but if not.. Ephovia didn't want to let her mind wander down that path, that would be a nightmare alone.

Osephi yawned, her bright golden eyes sleepily turning to Rose and the king before looking back up at Ephovia, "..Eunice... Gallovan? I'm sure whoever she is, she's some low rate black mage. Even Agrius's spells were sloppy." Ephovia winced at the child's bold words, looking embarrassed back at King William and Rose, "O-Osephi... now isn't the time to get too relaxed, remember? We don't know what we're dealing with right now." A tiny bit of exasperation settled in Ephovia's facial expression as she crouched down next to Ospehi who was still sleepily rubbing at her eyes, "Come now, you know better. Even if you are rather gifted, you need to always be careful, especially using your sight. So please, for me?" Osephi didn't seem to respond at first, though eventually she grumbled, "You're just like mother, you worry too much. I'll be fine." Ephovia's eyebrows furrowed in response as she bit back a retort, now was not the time to get into it with the princess, not while they had an audience.

Straightening back up, Osephi had let go of Ephovia's hand and boldly approached Rose, pointing a tiny hand at her, "Miss, you seem to have a bit of black magic lingering on you. Mind if I take your hand? It'll make this a lot easier for me." After all, the Osephi it was a mere black wisp of very weak mana still clinging to Rose's skin, where Eunice had placed her hand upon her earlier; granted Princess Osephi didn't seem to be one to waste time on flattery at this moment, and eventually she took a gentle hold of Rose's hand, her eyes closing as it seemed as if nothing was happening. The girl, however was following the flow of mana, for every spell could be traced back to the user, though after a few minutes her legs were beginning to tremble, a whimper leaving her lips as her skin was growing paler. What... what was this?

Darkness, that was all she could see with her sight, something that was uncharacteristic. Usually she would see a person as clear as day, but this... this was just an inky blackness that she couldn't see any distinguishing characteristics. I need to go deeper. Perhaps if she pushed her mana a bit more, strengthened it then she could finally see whatever this was. Settling on that, Osephi's mana seemed to spike, a golden hue sparking to life around the child's body, though this was holy magic, although this magic wasn't enough to make someone ill, rather it was pleasant as if it were a warm spring breeze. And yet, just as Osephi had done so, she heard a voice in her ears, ancient and wicked, "Blessed child? Now this is funny. What do you want little one?"

Osephi's trembling legs worsened as through her sight, she realized what she saw as mere darkness... she actually was seeing flesh. But, it wasn't flesh that she was familiar with, and in fact she was looking at an arm. Terrified, she lifted her eyes and a large, inhuman eye, the single spot of light in the intense darkness was peering down at her, "A curious little one aren't you? But you should know better than to look for things that have nothing to do with you. Naughty children must be punished." Panic surged within her chest as she tried to cut off the flow of magic, to sever herself from the grasp of the creature whose attention she grabbed, but it was too late. In the waking world, Osephi's whimpers had ceased only for the girl to suddenly fall back, letting go of Rose's hand as a wail left her lips, her fingernails scratching at her face as she was screaming as if she were in agony, "No no no no no! No!" Saliva spilled past the girl's lips, tears streaming down her face, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Alarmed, Ephovia rushed over to the girl's side, her arms wrapping around her, "Osephi! Osephi, please calm down!" This never happened before, and the horror that filled the little girl's face as her golden eyes seemed so far away... it wasn't normal. Holding the thrashing girl down was far more difficult though, as her tiny body was struggling underneath Ephovia was she kept screaming for help, the sight making Ephovia's heart twist, though this would last for only a few more moments until Osephi's cries had ceased, her breathing ragged as tears still streamed down her face, Ephovia's hands gently came to wipe them away in response, "Shh, shh... you're okay. You're safe."

The little girl then buried her face in the fabric of Ephovia's clothing, clinging to her tightly as she whimpered, "..I-Iulla.. I-Iulla.. It's..." A chill went down Ephovia's spine as she felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. "...What? Ospehi, are you absolutely sure?! Osephi!" However, before she could get an answer, the little girl seemed to have finally fainted, laying unconscious within Ephovia's arms as the mage's expression twisted in one of panic. No, this couldn't be! All of them were supposed to have been banished! Her eyes slowly turned then to both Rose and the king as she spoke, her voice cracking, "...An Old God... Iulla. That is who this Eunice Gallovan is." She dropped her gaze down to Osephi, her lips pursing in a tense line as she cradled the princess closer to herself, "I... know not if you know of the origin deities, those beings who created this world and birthed the pantheon that both continents revere. Six in total, they are supposed to be sealed away in a prison made by their children to prevent them from crossing into our world but... Iulla," Her breath hitched as she shook her head, "Iulla is the eldest and most wicked of the six. I-I know not how she escaped her prison, but I.." She trailed off, her mind scattering as the panic began to descend upon her. What were they to do? This was a matter that the council needed to be privy to, but even then she knew not how long Iulla has been roaming around, and by all accounts from previous records no one should have succeeded in summoning her to this world.
 
okay, cool! i will definitely pick it up sometime then c: ))

Something about the confidence that Osephi had caused a tinge of amusement to rise in Rose’s chest. It was the first that she had felt in days, her tensed muscles easing slightly as the child stepped towards her. She nodded her head and reached her hand out for her to take. She hadn’t a clue as to how this process would work, but she found a strange comfort in the presence of those in the room with her. The air surrounding them all was much lighter than that at the mansion. She took in a gentle breath, no weight lingering on her chest while she did so. Her mind found itself at more ease as well. The stress from the situation was still dire and one that she intended to take as seriously as she could. But for the time being, she planned on enjoying any moment when she didn’t feel as though she might collapse to the ground beneath her. It was a rare occurrence as of late.

Her gaze settled on the girl, curiosity flaring to life in the dull green of her own eyes. Her head tilted slightly while she watched. Her grip on Osephi’s hand was light and she didn’t dare move in case she disturbed the girl. She focused on her breathing, keeping each breath gentle and calm. The gentle trembling immediately caused for her breath to hitch within her throat, eyebrows furrowing as she continued to watch the princess. Worry was quick to come to her expression as she noticed the trembling of her legs. She quickly lifted her head to look to Ephovia, eyes silently asking if this was normal. But by the way the woman was staring, she assumed it was not. She turned her head to look to her father then as well. The king’s own eyebrows had pinched together, hands clasped in front of himself. It wasn’t taking her long to realize that something was truly wrong.

She received all the confirmation she needed when Osephi stumbled back and began to scream. Her heart felt as though it stopped in her chest at the anguish filled sounds. The way in which she scratched at her face did little to soothe the thoughts beginning to race in her head. She couldn’t tear her eyes off of her, not even as her father stepped forward to be even at her side. She glanced towards him, realizing they both were thinking the same thing in that moment. If what Osephi saw was truly that terrible, what were they to do to combat it? The name that rang from her lips caused a cold shiver to go down her spine, the hair on her arms raising. “I do know of them. While we worship their children, my mother used to tell stories of the old gods to terrify us when we were getting into trouble.” The words that passed through her lips were breathless. She knew exactly which god Ephovia was referring to then. Iulla had been the one god that terrified her more than any of the others. Knowing that she had come into contact with her physically only made for the chill to get worse.

“Our name for her is Strÿla.” Her father finally spoke, though he couldn’t say more than that. Rose rarely saw him afraid, but the fear that was present on his expression was far too much to ignore. “I do not know if your stories are the same as ours but our sun deity, Volô, our moon deity, Yvrè, and our harvest deity, Huîl, led the plan to lock them in the prison,” She paused as she tried to recall the stories that had been told since she was a child. It had been ages since she properly worshipped the younger gods, but hearing the stories to the extent she had left them engrained in her mind. Her expression twisted slightly while she played it out in her mind before she continued, her words slow. “They tricked them into a feast in their honor. They fed the gods until they were full and laughing. There was a harp use to lull them to sleep, an ash dagger to wound them, and the golden chains to bind them while they did the ritual.”

“Yvrè used her bow to shoot an arrow from her position in the sky. They decided to create land where the arrow fell. That tiny island then became the prison for the old gods. I can’t remember where they say it is located, but it was supposed to be impenetrable.” She recalled. She brought a hand up to rub at her face, her stress slowly returning. It showed clearly in the lines beginning to etch her face. “If your legends are the same as ours, that means there must be some truth to the story used to capture them. I mean, if we could find those items, couldn’t we lock her away again?” She asked, her nervous rambling starting once more. Her heart sank as she realized she was leaving Emory at the mercy of one of the wickedest gods to ever exist. It didn’t help that she had practically screamed at Iulla earlier as well. She was lucky enough to still be alive in that moment. “She wants Emory for something, though I know not what. She said she doesn’t wish to just break his will, but to let it break over time. Wait, to let it break over time…” She trailed off, turning her head to look back towards her father.

“Didn’t King Aedrion go mad and no one could figure out why?” She inquired, vaguely remembering the stories told of her far great-great-grandfather. William nodded his head slightly, directly his next words to Ephovia. “The maesters kept many works of what happened during that period in our history. Could those be of any use in helping?” He inquired. While it seemed like they were grasping at straws, Rose was truly trying everything in her power help.
 
(Oop, I just realized I didn't even give the kingdom a name... I have like all the other neighboring kingdoms names but like, not the major one in Erista where this is all going down so far :x)

Ephovia's head shook lightly, though a spark of interest had managed to come to her eyes at the old story that Rose recounted. "I fear our version of the tale is quite different and far more... bloody, yet the items remain the same." She hesitated as she lowered her gaze down to Osephi, wiping away her slowly drying tears as she mumbled under her breath, "...And yet if the old gods are using a mortal again..." After all, even if there was one recorded attempt in Avrune resulting in the man's suicide after the old god had been banished, although the method itself was lost to time... where they..? She closed her eyes as her eyebrows furrowed, stress beginning to cross her face. Was Iulla searching for a tether to keep herself in this world? An assurance to keep her hold here in reality? It was a possibility, but of course she didn't and couldn't know unless they would question this deity for themselves although she could have sworn the last summoning attempt had been thwarted! It should have, granted it had been centuries back, but the records of the deceased should have been stored away in the forbidden archives. It seemed as if she would have to make a visit home sooner than expected.

Her wandering thoughts, however had been interrupted by Rose's voice, "King.. Aedrion?" Considering Avrune and Erista had no connections to each other for literally eons, of course having knowledge that yet another suspicious case had occurred within this land had caused her heart to drop. How was the matter dealt with here if that was the case? "Y-yes, that would at least give me some sort of collection of incidents so that I can see what I can do... if there is anything to be done at all." She added in a less than happy tone, her blue eyes filled with anxiety as she took in a deep breath to try to calm herself down before she got too riled up, "I-if it could help, I can recount an incident of our own in Avrune, albeit I've not reviewed the incident in quite a long time. It's happened quite a very long time ago, but if I can see a pattern of some sort then it can determine how much time we have to prevent... whatever she is up to."

Her gaze then settled upon Rose, "As for you, Lady Barclay... I must ask how is Lord May's condition. I must know, especially considering now that I know Iulla is a threat. If what you say is true, that she is trying to slowly wear away at his will, then he is in grave danger." She shook her head as she lowered her eyes, her expression pinching, "The last time a man had been entranced by an old god, though the records from I recall did say it was Iulla, he had gone mad. Once she was banished he..." She trailed off, closing her eyes as she said in a quieter tone, "He committed suicide. I know not how your King Aedrion met his end, but I would prefer to avoid the same dreaded fate for this man. It truly seems as if Lord May was born under quite the unlucky star." There was no humor in her tone, only a seriousness and heaviness as the conversation was taking an all too dark path. Emory's life seemed to be doomed to end if they didn't do anything soon, or rather if they didn't banish Iulla as soon as possible. Though, now Ephovia's mind was racing with possibility for why that occurred to begin with. Surely, they weren't bound to each other, now was it? If that was the case, that made everything far more complicated than it needed to be.
 
oooo i hadn’t realized that either lol! maybe ashoteron?))

What little hope Rose had been clinging to completely dissipated at the mention of their version of the legends being far bloodier than their own, though the reassurance that the items were the same helped ease her mind slightly. This was far out of the realm of things she believed she would ever have to deal with in her lifetime. After all the legends and stories of the god were said to be just that; stories. Nothing that she had been told since she was a child was actually supposed to come true. She could feel the soft touch of a hand on her arm, glancing down to see her father had reached out to give it a reassuring squeeze. He cleared his throat gently before he spoke. “No one knows why King Aedrion went mad, but there were rumors circulating he was having an affair with another woman. They vary from the owner of a brothel to a peasant girl. He was documented with her on several occasions before he even brought her to court one day. It was in that day he spiraled. He murdered half of his noblemen, ordering the knights to slaughter anyone on the streets.” His words were slow as he tried to remember what he had read. His father refused to talk about the man as he had graced the Barclay name with a dark stain.

“He was said to have slain his wife and his daughter in the woman’s presence before she vanished. He then turned his sword upon himself. The records all say the same thing about the end of his life, though I am sure they go into far more detail than I am able to. It has been ages since I have spoken of the man.” William apologized, some remorse in his tone. Rose offered her father a timid smile before looking back to Ephovia. “I can take you to the maesters archive when we are finished here if you wish. Some might be asleep, but those who are not will be more than willing to help.” She promised. A strange feeling was beginning to rise in her chest, resembling that of anxiety. It was as if they were beginning to fight a clock quickly running out of time. “Anything you can tell us in regards to the incident you experienced in Avrune will be quite helpful. I am sure between the two of us we will be able to form some connections.”

Her body tensed at the mention of Emory, immediately turning her gaze away. She knew that the longer that she spent here, the less time she might have with the man before the worst could happen. “He is getting worse with each passing moment. He hasn’t been the same since she stopped his heart. When she returned him once more, I received no response from him at all. I fear that he is almost a shell of himself now.” She confessed, her tone falling immensely as she recounted what she saw earlier. The thought of losing Emory made a wave of nausea wash over her like it had before. Stress. Her mind immediately reminded her of the state she was being forced into. She felt as though she was beginning to reach her own breaking point. Ephovia’s words only made the matter worse. Her breath hitched in her throat, hands clenching her dress. “Dusk‘s Respite is half a night’s ride from here if you wish to see him for yourself. I had promised to return no later than the end of tomorrow with medicine and salve for his wounds. I worry that if I stay away for too long, I might lose him.”
 
(Sure! Let's go with that, that works! ^.^)

Ephovia listened with great interest to the king's recounting of King Aedrion's madness, though a frown had crossed her face in response as she shook her head, "So I can assume that the woman that he had been with was perhaps Iulla... though, it could be any of the other Old Gods. We cannot be too sure; considering all six will desire to break out of their prison, any of them could have been the culprit." She heaved a sigh as a hand came to her head, stress lining her features for a few tense moments, only to look up once more as she nodded her head firmly, "That would be very much helpful, thank you. The sooner the better," She paused as she looked down to Osephi who was still very much unconscious, "Though, I would have to see to this little one first to make sure she's alright. I'd rather her not suffer any unnecessary damage... if she had suffered any." To Ephovia at least, it seemed like the girl had just a bit of a fright, there was no odd flow to her mana at least to her eyes which was a relief. One could never be too sure considering their circumstances were certainly out of the norm.

The mage raised her head once more as her eyebrows furrowed, "Well, from what I can recall, the man's name... what was it..?" Her lips pursed as she lowered her gaze, trying to desperately recall the name that had been printed upon the ancient report locked away in Moonhaven, "Thawyn... I believe. He had been documented as unable to wield mana, though suddenly had been able to wield powerful magics roughly around the point the cults began to increase their activity - ah," Ephovia paused as she lifted her head, swiftly explaining, "Avrune has unfortunately a cult problem; one that reveres Iulla, and the other her mate, Xovarus. From the report itself, the two cults have been waging wars against each other out of the public eye. Thawyn had gotten caught up with the Cult of Night, Iulla's cult and as consequence he had been acting quite strange." Her eyebrows furrowed as she shook her head, dismay filling her from head to toe, "Unfortunately, I cannot recall every detail, aside from when the council of that age had cornered Iulla in some unfortunate woman's body, it took all of the council's lives to seal her away. The devastation of the area was immense, and upon Iulla disappearing from this world, Thawyn had thrown himself to his death before the small amount of survivors. His body was... broken to pieces against the sea rocks when they had been able to recover him."

Releasing a sigh, the woman had closed her eyes, "Though, that was perhaps for the best. There was no telling if Thawyn of that time, if he had survived would have tried to bring Iulla back. Chances are if he were under her enthrallment... he certainly would have. It is a sad fate, truly." Sorrow had settled within her tone, though she had paused and perked up as Rose shared with her Emory's condition, causing the woman's expression to become worried, "Oh dear, that truly doesn't sound good." Was his mental state rapidly deteriorating? Or was it something else? Rose had said that Emory had been slain then revived by the very same woman, although Ephovia knew not the side effects of necromancy, perhaps she should observe this first?

"I would like to see his condition first, if there is any way I can possibly prevent any further damage and even try to reverse his condition, I'd want to do everything that I can." Her voice was becoming firmer, a sharpness to her eyes of determination, "It is because of my forefather's negligence that this monster is running rampant, I swear I will do everything within my power to aid you. You have my word." Though, she had her own personal stakes within this as well, Agrius had turned into a monster because of Iulla, and that she could not forgive.
 
okay bet! c: ))

A silence fell over both William and Rose as they listened to Ephovia recount the incident that occurred long before. The parallels were interesting enough to where Rose stood a bit taller, the pinching of her expression still having yet to fade from before. Mentally she was beginning to prepare herself for everything that they would be encountering as they tried to solve this new issue to their people. She took in each detail that she could, repeating it a few times to herself to retain it better. “Well it seems that there are enough similarities to where I wouldn’t be too surprised if the instances overlapped.” She admitted once Ephovia co eluded her story. The mention of it perhaps being another god other than Iulla was not one that she wanted to even remotely consider if she could. While the possibly was there and all too real, she hoped that they would only have to deal with the one. That was, if they could even deal with her.

“If the items the new gods used are still in existence somewhere, is there any possibility we could use them to help restrain her once more? I do not know if your former council members had access to them in their efforts, but perhaps it could save the lives of many if we could find them.” She offered the rather unrealistic suggestion. Her doubt grew as the words left her lips, but it was one of the few options that they had. She didn’t know what else she could do to solve this problem and prevent it from getting any worse than it already was. “Or do you know of any options to kill an old god? I do have to admit I did vow to kill her and I wouldn’t mind following through with my word after what she has done to so many.” A bit of venom filled her tone at the reminder of what occurred in Freycrest, the burnt bodies slain before her. Then of the way Emory had been harmed himself. She couldn’t imagine the full extent of the damage she had caused, nor did she want to. It would bring her far too much pain.

A soft sigh broke through her lips as she stepped forward once more. She peered down at the unconscious princess, a flash of concern crossing her expression once more. “Ensure she is alright and then I will take you to the maesters archives. There are many copies of the tales there. I am sure they will grumble about it, but they should let you take a copy with you. That way you are able to show your own officials and you can bring it with us on our journey back to Emory.” She stated. Her own determination was beginning to fill her voice once more. She lost most of the optimism she experienced throughout her childhood due to the trauma she faced, but this was one of the few moments where she actually wished to fight against everything that was happening. “I appreciate your help more than I can properly express Ephovia. I am grateful to have both you and Avrune as an ally to our kingdom.” She confessed.

She turned to face her father once more, that sad look coming back into his eyes. “I promise I will return soon. I did plan to make my grand reappearance at the ball. I will be back by then at the latest.” She promised. She hesitated before rushing forward and wrapping her arms tightly around the man. He quickly returned the hug, holding onto her tightly. “I will have someone put the supplies you need in your saddlebag while you guide her. I have missed you Rosalie.” William whispered as he slowly pulled back, tears clear in his eyes. She offered him a grateful smile before pulling back fully. She made sure she had the original letter Ephovia had given her in her hand before she followed the woman from the hall.
 
(Happy Thanksgiving!)

"Considering the former council members had sacrificed all their mana, and unfortunately perished... I would say no. We weren't fortunate enough for that to be of any assistance, though now I certainly wished they had. If that was the case, Moonhaven would have all those holy artifacts locked away for safe keeping." After all, Ephovia wouldn't put it past her own people to try and unlock the secrets of the gods; to get even a step closer to godhood themselves. It was both a positive and negative trait, with most of the populous having a intense thirst for knowledge in the capital city. However, her gaze turned downcast as she sighed, "...No. It's impossible for mortal hands to slaughter them, or even come close. And from the tales alone, even their godly children were unable to kill them. Our only option, the safer option is to seal them back in their prison to hopefully keep them there. The only way for them to slip out is if a mortal summons them to our domain - though I know not why anyone would." Disgust flickered across her expression then, though she forced her expression to become calm as she looked up to Rose, a bit of laughter leaving her lips, "I do have to admit, I admire your courage though. I wish I had a fraction of it." If she had, maybe Agrius wouldn't be... no, there was no need for her to desiring to change something that was very much out of her realm of control. She could not change the past.

Ephovia's gaze turned back down to Osephi as she nodded her head in response, "Yes, thank you. I'll go ahead and see to her at once." Picking her up in her arms, the woman struggled to her feet underneath the princess's weight, a light huff leaving her lips. She could've sworn it was far easier to do this when the princess had been smaller. Though as Rose had turned to face her father, Ephovia had quickly stepped out to give the two privacy, her arms protesting underneath the unconscious princess's weight as she huffed, "I... wish Ethar was here.." At least then she could dump the responsibility of carrying Osephi around on him, even if he wouldn't stop complaining if she did such a thing. Nonetheless, the woman's gaze settled down the large halls of the castle, feeling a sense of intimidation as usual. It felt so... strange compared to Moonhaven, she doubted she could get used to this place even if she wanted to.

Stepping down the hall, she could feel the gaze of the castle's guards around her, making her feel a chill of uneasiness as she kept her gaze forward. Even if she knew it was probably out of caution due to Agrius kicking up too much trouble, it still made her feel as if she was unwelcome here. A frown was quick to settle upon her face, eyebrows furrowing as she slowed her steps, hearing the sound of the grand doors leading into the banquet hall close behind her, she turned her gaze to Rose as she gave her a strained smile, "I'll try to hurry as best as I can." She knew well enough from Rose's tone and body language, she was under a lot of stress. Hurrying the best that she could for now was certainly for the best, the sooner she could get the necessary information she needed, the sooner she could tend to the more worrying issue of Emory.

Following down the familiar hallway to the rooms her little group had been spared, Ephovia had stepped inside the room that been set aside for both her and Osephi, gently placing the unconscious princess upon the bed as she pulled the heavy sheets over her. A soft blue glow flickered to life from her hand then as she placed the glowing hand upon her head, slowly shifting down to the center of her chest where mana tend to coalesce. It took a few minutes, settled in silence as she took in a breath and exhaled, relief in her tone, "Thank goodness." There was no sign of black magic lingering to the little girl's body, perhaps in retaliation it was a mere illusion spell? Or something of the sort. Regardless, the woman had gently caressed Osephi's cheek then, her relief showing as clear as day on her face as she then stood and turned to face Rose, "Alright, let's see these records, shall we?"
 
happy thanksgiving! i hope you have a great day! c: ))

Rose’s eyes scanned her surrounding as she slowly followed after Ephovia, taking in the large hallways as she did. There was something so reassuring to her about the archways that guided the ceiling and the delicate carvings cut into the walls. A sense of longing filled her chest then as she realized the length of time that had passed since she had last been wandering these halls. It had been the night before her wedding and she remembered wanting to take in each detail as she was now. She couldn’t imagine telling her younger self what all she was going to experience during that time. She wouldn’t dare want to extinguish the hope that had been the only thing that kept her alive during that time. That familiar pit opened in her stomach, her expression tightening some while it did. She hadn’t a clue if they would be able to return to the hall like she planned, nor if she would survive past this year. It seemed as though she made a very powerful enemy and her relationship with Emory only caused for her life to be in even graver danger.

She had only nodded in response to Ephovia’s assurance that she was hurry as much as she could, offering the woman the brightest smile she could in return. She couldn’t hide the anguish from her face any longer. The situation was getting far too out of hand for her to properly deal with any longer. She doubted she would even be able to hide it from Emory either, if the young lord was finally able to express his emotions again. The manner in which she left him had only pushed the concern forward once more. She refused to lose him after all the two had been through together. They both fought tooth and nail to be with one another. She wouldn’t let that go to waste. She paused not far down from the rooms the emissaries had been allowed, leaning against the wall of the hallway as she did. Her eyes stayed on the large window in front of her. The twinkling lights of the capital gleamed in her eyes, the only sense of life that seemed to accompany the dull green deep within them.

Part of her wished that she could tell the citizens the danger they were in, but she knew a mass panic wouldn’t do anyone any good. If they could keep a hold on this enough, they might just be able to come out of it without anyone knowing the true damage of the situation. She could feel the glances of the guards that patrolled the hallways around them as she stood there. She didn’t need to look back to them to know the surprise that flashed across their expressions before disappearing just as quickly. She hoped that their presence didn’t cause any discomfort to the visitors from Avrune, but she knew her father would much rather be wary with all that was happening. She blinked and turned her gaze at the sound of approaching footsteps. Relief seemed to have a hold on Ephovia’s face, causing her to assume Osephi was alright. She bowed her head slightly before pushing away from the wall with her hands.

“It isn’t too far of a walk. My father made sure there was always a hall connecting to the maester’s archives for whenever we needed to access them.” She assured as she began to lead the way there. Her steps were a bit fast, though she made sure that Ephovia could keep up with her while she walked. She took her across one of the courtyards that led into the castle’s gardens, the faint sound of fountains and running water from the stream lingering in the air. She then led the way down a much narrower hallway. It stayed slim until they reached a door. She raised her fist once she was there, knocking seven knocks in a different pace. It was soon pulled open before them. She almost didn’t recognize the figure standing before them with the dim light of the candle on his face, but soon a wide smile spread on her lips. “Good evening grandmaester Roúlle. I am sure my father can fill you in on the details of my return later, but I was wondering if we could borrow one of the copies of King Aedrion’s life and history.” Her words were polite, much like they normally would be.

The elderly man looked her over twice, his overgrown eyebrows furrowing before he stepped back to allow them in. “I had a feeling you were not dead, princess. I never trusted that wicked man.” He grumbled, his voice sounding almost as though he were speaking through a cloth. For the first time, the genuine smile finally met her eyes. The green seemed to shine momentarily in the darkness of the entry room. “I do like to believe I am hard to kill,” She confessed, glancing over her shoulder at Ephovia. “This is Ephovia, one of the emissaries from Avrune.” She introduced. Roúlle peered over Rose’s shoulder at the woman and bowed his head in greeting. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady. I can take you to the archives, but there is only one copy I can allow you to borrow. Even then I will need it back as quickly as you can.” He stated before he began to lead the way down another hallway. This wasn’t nearly as narrow as the last, but it did lead to another locked door.

Roúlle lifted the keys from the position on his belt and unlocked the three locks protecting it. He pushed the door open and then allowed them to step in first. It seemed as though the library had been carved into the mountain next to the castle. Bookshelves rose as high as the eye could see, a delicate pattern of stairs and candles guiding the way to even the tallest of shelves. Roúlle then led the way towards the second stairway. They climbed three stories before he brought them to a halt. “The books are located to your left. The copy you can take has a red binding.” He informed, gesturing to it with his head. Rose nodded and quickly turned to hurry in that direction.
 
(Thanks! Tbh it was a pretty quiet day today, didn't do much other than sleep in! Hopefully you enjoyed your day too ^.^)

Ephovia hurried after Rose as she had begun to lead the way, though the woman had hesitated prior to leaving Osephi on her own, giving the sleeping girl a slightly worried glance before she firmly closed the door behind her and promptly began to focus on what was necessary; that being gathering information. The more information she gathered, the better they could raise their chances of even slightly succeeding against this seemingly insurmountable challenge that had been dumped before them. However, as the two walked through the courtyard leading to the narrow hallway, the sound of water couldn't help but make the woman feel a pang of homesickness. Although Moonhaven was far, far different than that of the kingdom of Ashoteron, she dearly missed seeing the shining waters filled with mana, the brilliant fountain that provided a source of the kingdom's power. It was always a peaceful location, although always populated by Moonhaven's brightest scholars to uncover the secrets that their forefathers had left behind, to try to translate the ancient inscriptions. Even she in her younger days had tried to give it a go, although she was quick to give it up though, after all Agrius had always been so-

A wince had crossed her face immediately upon thinking of the man, her hands clasping together as she forced her expression to relax. It seemed no matter what she did, her thoughts always eventually shifted back to him... she wished desperately she could forget, if only then it would stifle the wave of anger and immense sorrow within her chest. Unknowingly, Ephovia hadn't noticed that they had stopped, only when Rose had begun to knock upon the door at the end of the hallway had Ephovia snapped out of her daze, her blue eyes widening in surprise for a single second as the door opened. Curiosity flared within her chest upon seeing a man answer the door, her lips parting in a small "o" as she gazed at him. For some reason, this grandmaester reminded her of some of the council members back at her homeland, making a tingle of nervousness to run down her spine as introductions were made.

Questions filtered through her mind upon the elderly man referring to some other unknown man as wicked, prompting Ephovia to tilt her head although she knew better than to pry. It perhaps was completely unrelated... right? Probably none of her business, certainly. Yet as finally the man had spoken directly to Ephovia, the woman had stiffened up and hastily bowed to him, "Y-yes! O-of course, thank you very much!" Her voice seemed to be a bit louder in her hast to respond, causing a tinge of red to cross the woman's cheeks as she cleared her throat, "S..sorry." Lowering her voice immediately was perhaps for the best, she didn't want to cause too much of an unnecessary ruckus, and she already had embarrassed herself earlier in the audience with the king earlier. Ah, why was she always like this?

Nonetheless, as Roúlle had led the two within the archives, all the nervousness that had plagued the woman seemed to disappear as she was craning her head left and right to observe the many, many shelves. So much knowledge, so much history! Her eyes began to sparkle as a result as she peered at different book spines, trying to decipher the foreign lettering as best as she could as she passed. Records of wars, of previous kings, all of these centering around this foreign kingdom! If only she could stay and truly immerse herself within, oh how lovely it would be. Of course, considering she was to hurry, Ephovia tried her best to keep up with the two, nodding her head firmly although she almost seemed like she was fit to run off at any second to look through as many books as she could, "Thank you very much." She once more formally bowed to the elderly man, a habit from Moonhaven only to tear past him immediately to find the book with red binding.

Upon reaching the shelves to the left, Ephovia's expression had settled into one more serious as she mumbled under her breath, "Alright, red binding... red binding... red binding..." Her thin fingers trailed over the different book spines, eyebrows furrowing in concentration as her eyes began to glow brighter, "Ah-hah!" Her gaze settled upon the book, settled upon a higher shelf, though without thinking the woman raised her hand as mana flowed freely from her fingertips, wrapping around the book and gently levitating the object, the book sliding with ease from the shelf and landing gently within the woman's hands as a smile had finally broke its way upon her face, "Now let's see..." The glow to her eyes hadn't dulled as she pried the book open and began reading over the words in silence as it recounted the tale of King Aedrion, her eyebrows furrowing as she began to try to settle on any details in particular that were missed in King William's previous recounting of the disgraced king's fall. Albeit, most of the story itself seemed to be accurate from how the king recounted it, with Aedrion suddenly growing mad and slaughtering his wife and daughter; although what caught Ephovia's interest was the description of the woman that had supposedly made the king go mad.

"Lady Barclay," She spoke, her head raising as she looked to Rose, "Can you provide a description of Eunice Gallovan?" Ephovia knew not what the woman looked like, but getting a time frame of events could confirm if this incarnation of Iulla was one and the same. If it was then that would make even apprehending her even more so dangerous, how many years had this incarnation been roaming around without raising suspicion? If it was a few centuries then no wonder Osephi had reacted so terribly.
 
you’re welcome! i am glad you were able to get some extra sleep! mine was a bit busy since we had a friendsgiving, but fun nonetheless c: ))

Rose could feel Roúlle’s intense gaze on their backs as they moved down the pathway towards where he gestured. She knew the man would watch them closely to ensure they didn’t actually grab a book they were supposed to or mess with anything that would cause them all to get into trouble. Even with the elderly man’s high ranking in the maesters, there was still a strict procedure to adhere to. Rumors used to swirl about the maesters responding to the gods themselves, following whatever rules their deities believed would be best in regards to writing the histories of their lands. She glanced around the shelves as they walked, familiar names carved into the spines. The shelves held the history of each king that ruled Ashoteron, starting from the conquests of King Quëniere going all the way through to the Barclay line. Her family had been ruling the kingdom for centuries now, but there were still a vast majority of names before their own.

Part of her wished she had time to go through the books like she had when she was younger in her lessons, but time was not on their side. They needed to return to Dusk’s Respite as quickly as they possibly could. She hadn’t a clue how Emory was fairing in that moment nor if the sentries had been able to do anything to help him. The thought of having to explain to the ones guarding the mansion who Ephovia was caused the gentle thumping of a headache to fill her temples again. They barely were beginning to respect her and she had been there for months. She had no doubts it would be hard to assure them that the woman meant no harm and instead was there to help heal Emory. She brought a hand up to rub at her burning eyes. The tears from before and her rushed ride to the kingdom dried them out. Exhaustion was beginning to rise within her once more. She truly was pushing her body to its breaking point as she did whatever she could to help Emory.

A gentle grumble managed to emit itself from her stomach. It was only then that she realized she hadn’t eaten in well over a day. Her mind had been so preoccupied with everything happening that she had ignored each pang of hunger in her stomach. Pushing the thought aside, her eyes watched at Ephovia used her mana to bring the book to her hands. Her head tilted slightly, eyes widening at the sight. The flash of mana in the room was unlike the ones she experienced before. In fact, it reminded her quite a bit of Osephi’s from earlier. She almost felt as though she was standing in a field with the warm summer air surrounding her. It was a welcome contrast to that of Agrius’s and Iulla’s. She took a few steps closer in order to peer at the pages of the book from a better position.

Clearing her throat gently, she began to speak in regards to Eunice’s appearance. The woman’s face had been burned into her brain as well as the stained red of her fingers. She gave as many details as she possibly could, voice beginning to tremble slightly as she did. She rambled on for a bit before she paused. Her eyebrows furrowed like they had many times before, expression tighten. “Though the one thing I do know she has had since I was a child are her long nails. I used to believe that the black color of them was just due to some fancy paint, but I assume it is not now. When I saw her last her hands had been stained dark red from blood, though it seemed the worst on her fingertips.” She finished. She hadn’t a clue if what she explained matched what the book had stated or not. She brought both of her arms up to gently hug herself once more. The air in the archives was cold, much cooler than the air outside. It was also far drier, her lungs beginning to ache the longer she stood there breathing it in.

“Is there any useful information in there?” She inquired, a tinge of hope managing to edge its way into the pit of emotions in her chest. She wished that she could numb it away like Emory had, shoving each emotion down until she didn’t feel a thing anymore. “I hope we might be able to solve this crisis soon, for Emory’s sake and the sake of everyone who has had to suffer due to that wretched woman. I—“ She broke off for a moment, turning her gaze away. In the candlelit area where they stood, tears could be seen forming in her eyes once more. “I do not know if I can handle anything happening to him. He had already been through so much and seeing him like this…” She trailed off as a soft sigh broke through her lips. “I do not know how much more I can take Ephovia before I break. So please, please tell me you found something that can help us in that book.” She didn’t allow her words to come across as though she was truly begging, even though the undertone was there.
 
(That's nice! Hopefully you had a lot of good food! c: )

Ephovia's eyebrows furrowed as Rose had relayed to her how Eunice looked, causing a disturbed feeling to settle in her chest as she looked down at the book, reading the description once more. It matched, almost too well, albeit the description seemed to be of someone far younger than what Eunice appeared to be now, it still caused the mage's heart to sink like a stone in her chest. Closing the book, her lips pressed in a tense line as she murmured, "I see..." This wasn't good, not at all. The feeling of her heart sinking got worse as Rose's voice tinged with hope, "L-Lady Barclay.." She began, turning to face her though her eyes grew wide as she saw the tears beginning to form in the woman's eyes. The pain in her tone, followed by her voice breaking into almost begging, it broke Ephovia's heart. The woman's eyes turned to the ground as she shook her head, "...No, unfortunately from the book alone, the woman had vanished after King Aedrion had fallen. Perhaps... she found him unsuited for her purposes, but the only information I can confirm is this incarnation of Iulla is one and the same."

She levitated the book once more in her hands, putting it back in its proper place, "And I fear from that alone, it makes our situation more dangerous. If she has been growing her strength for so long then she truly is becoming far more of a threat than we can perhaps reasonably combat." The mana finally died out within Ephovia's eyes as she turned to Rose once more, realizing her words would do little to comfort her, she took in a breath and exhaled, "But, knowing what exactly we're dealing with is a step in the right direction. We mustn't give up hope, not yet. So please, hang in there just a little more. No problem can truly be fixed in just a single day." Ephovia couldn't bring herself to lie to Rose, or fill her with false hope. This situation was far more dangerous than she had originally thought, but keeping a clear head about this would be best. Her eyebrows furrowed as she spoke hesitantly, "..If Lord May is able to speak, or is relatively coherent then I would like to ask him for some information on Iulla, of course after his condition is stable that is! I-I don't want to be insensitive!"

She hesitated once more after the final word left her lips, a frown crossing her face as she was struggling to find any comforting words at all to maybe ease the burden of the situation off from Rose, "Lady Barclay... we can only do what we can. Right now, let us focus on what we can change, rather than what we can't. You'll only do yourself a grave injustice if you fixate too much on what can't be done at the moment, do not overwhelm yourself. Besides, all is not lost right now, I did swear I will do everything in my power to help you." Offering her a hesitant, yet warm smile, the woman had spoken then, "Now, not only must we see to supplies to help heal Lord May, you must tend to yourself as well. Do not think I didn't hear your stomach growling! If you collapse too, you won't be of much help to anyone, now will you, hmm?" Without much thought, Ephovia had naturally slipped back into her caretaker role, considering she was more or less Osephi's babysitter for majority of the princess's life, she had reached out a hand and gently placed a comforting pat atop Rose's head, although realizing she had done so after a few seconds had caused the woman's face to ignite a harsh red as she ripped her hand back.

"Ah! I-I'm sorry! I'm just so used to dealing with Osephi that-" She immediately halted the flow of words before she herself started to ramble, struggling to regain her composure as she shook her head, "L-let's hurry from here. I do not wish to hold you up any further than necessary, Lady Barclay." Choosing to divert the conversation from her blunder was for the best, besides the woman looked already like she wanted to disappear from Rose's sight and they had perhaps spent enough time trying to search for answers; though Ephovia hadn't given up just yet. The woman also needed to keep her attention on matters with Agrius as well, though she reasoned in her own mind that the matter could easily be dealt with through contacting Ethar whenever she could.
 
i ate too much good food lol! also, i wanted to let you know i am going to be on vacation from December 5-14 out of country so i might be a bit slow due to lack of service c: ))

Rose was well aware that her question was one that would be responded to in the manner that Ephovia did. She should’ve known better that the situation was just going to grow more and more complicated the longer they had to deal with it. She brought her hand up to quickly wipe at the stray tears that managed to slip down her cheeks. Disgust at herself was the one discerning emotion she could recognize in that moment. She had no right to be crying, not when Emory was in grave danger. She was being far too selfish, far too selfish. Mentally she began to scold herself for allowing such thoughts to even slip into her kind. Perhaps it was her exhaustion or perhaps she was finally teetering the edge of her breaking point. She wouldn’t be surprised if it was the latter with the recent events. The news that Ephovia explained to her didn’t ease her mind any either.

“I know. I was just hoping for one ounce of good news.” She confessed, her words much quieter than they had been before. “I didn’t want to say this in front of my father, but the deal she created with Emory involves her using his body as she pleases for herself and her supposed friends. In exchange, she vowed to not kill me. That is why he is in the state you will see him in.” She explained. Her heart sank at the idea of seeing the man so sickly upon her return. The illnesses that graced her were always terrible. It was very important that she ensure her father put the correct medicines in the saddlebag for her. She didn’t want to have to make the return trip to the kingdom if she could help it. After all, she didn’t know just how much time she might have left with the young lord. She wanted to spend each moment she could with him.

She was startled from her thoughts at the gentle pat to the top of her head, turning her gaze to look at Ephovia. Surprise was clear on her expression for a moment before the smallest of smiles managed to cross her face. “You needn’t apologize Ephovia. There are many times that I forget to care for myself and Viola scolds me for it. I promise that I will get something to eat once we return to the mansion.” She assured, knowing the mage wouldn’t have a clue as to who she was referring to. She nodded her head slightly, turning to begin to lead the way out. She paused to look to Roúlle once more as they passed. “Thank you.” Her words were gentle, trembling as they broke through her lips. He just gave her a knowing smile and a nod. Rose then led the way back out through the door in which they came.

Her steps were much quicker as she led them through the halls and back to the courtyard that was inside the main gates to the castle. Her eyes fell upon Echo, who was grazing happily on some hay the guards must’ve been ordered to give him. Her steps echoed off the stone walls as she returned to the horse’s side. Her fingers were quick to open the saddlebags that adorned each side of the saddle. Her eyes scanned everything that had been shoved into them, her father ensuring that they had various medicines, salves, herbs, and other things that could help in any situation. “Thank you, father.” The words slipped through her lips breathlessly as she carefully placed the blue envelope Ephovia had sent on top of what her father had given then. She tightly tied the bags shut before grabbing the reins. She led the rather grumpy stallion away from the hay than towards the main gate. “The ride to Dusk’s Respite is rather easy, I have done it on horseback many times now. I do intend for us to be moving rather quickly, so please make sure to hold on as tightly as you can.” She began to explain, wanting to include as much information as she possibly could for the woman.

“There will be sentries when we get there that will most likely try to refuse to allow you inside. They are under a sworn oath to Emory to serve and protect him, while he had also ordered them to protect me as well. They will grumble and groan about it, but they will let you inside. I can take you to his room once we are there. Iulla also seems to be able to hear some of the things that are said to Emory. She interrupted my conversation with him earlier, so please be careful how you go about asking him questions.” She continued. Her steps brought her around Echo a few times as she moved to make sure everything was secured and in place for the trip. “Oh, you also don’t need to call me Lady Barclay. Rose is perfectly fine to me.” She added, glancing at Ephovia as she spoke then. She carefully climbed onto the saddle as she had been doing many times lately. Part of her was still clinging onto the hope that they would be able to solve this major problem with ease, but there was now an overwhelming urge that was telling her they wouldn’t be able to. Her expression tightened for a moment before she reached a hand down to help Ephovia onto the horse’s back. She murmured a soft prayers to the gods as she gently kicked Echo’s side, pulling the reins towards the gates. She waited patiently as they opened, rising high above. She gave the stallion a harder kick and they were soon riding quickly back on the path to Dusk’s Respite.

Thankfully Echo managed to keep a consistent pace as they rode, the sun beginning to stream its rays into the sky by the time they were finally nearing the mansion. Rose was utterly exhausted by that point, dark bags growing more and more present beneath her eyes. The green of her irises still didn’t regain any of the light that had been in them from before. Her grip on the reins was beginning to tremble as was her entire body. The sunrise shone a beautiful mix or orange and pink when she finally pulled Echo to a stop directly in front of the May mansion. She was quick to slide off of the saddle, legs almost buckling as she landed. Completing the trip in the manner she had did little to help her any. She glanced around until she spotted another free sentries lingering at their posts. “I need help bringing these supplies up to Emory’s room and if someone could then bring Echo bag to the stables, that would be greatly appreciated.” She stated as she gestured to the rather full saddlebags she began to untie from the positions on the saddle. “This is Ephovia and she is here to help heal Emory.” She added. She managed to carefully lift one of the bags herself, a soft grunt leaving her lips. She then quickly moved through the mansion door and back up the stairs into Emory’s room.
 
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