[h1][center][color=DAF6C7]Riona[/color] & [color=ab274f]Wulfric[/color] Part 2[/center][/h1][color=lightgray][hr][hr][/color]
[b]TLDR for the flashback:[/b] Jonathan’s birthday party goes on, and the children end up playing football. Lacking a referee, the game devolves into a free-for-all brawl towards the end. As the adults are informed, the fight is broken up. However, Wulfric happens upon the parents arguing soon after. Then, Lord Desmond Dantès speaks to him. The prince is impressed, but unfortunately has to leave. On the way home he saw Lord Dantès holding hands with the castle’s royal gardener, Gardner Haywood. Lady Dantès was holding hands with two other adults he didn’t recognize.

[color=lightgray][hider=Year 1720, Flora]There were other dances after that, but they all blurred together in Wulfric’s mind. As much as he didn’t want to, the anger and frustration at that Dantès girl wouldn’t leave him. Thankfully, after a few more songs, Jonathan suggested they should do something else. He brought out one of his gifts - a ball from Lord Dantès - and said the boys could go out to play football.

[color=ab274f]“Isn’t that a [i]peasants’[/i] game?”[/color] Wulfric asked the young lord. His tone was equal parts scandalized and enthused. The only reason he’d come to this birthday party was because he had heard other people brag how fun they were. And this would be a new, unknown game, so he was really excited to try it out.

“Er…we play it at school,” Jonathan replied, embarrassed. Immediately, Wulfric blurted out, [color=ab274f]“You go [i]to school?[/i]”[/color] This was even stranger to him. [color=ab274f]“I thought all nobles were tutored…”[/color] He looked at Jonathan in wonder, but the boy was growing very uncomfortable. [color=ab274f]“How [i]is it?[/i]”[/color]

“What, school?” the youngest Bernard asked, a tad grumpy. “It’s just school…it’s boring.” He looked down, turned the ball he was holding in his hands a few times, then peeked at the prince. “[i]This[/i] is much better, I promise! Will you play with me?”

[color=ab274f]“Of course,”[/color] Wulfric confirmed, slightly confused. Weren’t they all going to play? [color=ab274f]“But you’ll have to tell me the rules,”[/color] he grinned dazzlingly.

“Oh…alright.” On the way out, Jonathan related the basics. There were teams, there was striking, scoring, and defending. There were some rules about what you couldn’t do, because it was considered barbaric. Wulfric found himself comparing the game to dueling, except football wasn’t one-on-one.

Outside of the Bernards’ estate, past the garden, there was a neatly trimmed lawn. There were white lines running here and there - this was called the field. There were two simple structures on each end of the field; the goals. There were wooden benches far to one side, and Suzanne, Margaret, and Jennifer immediately sat down, chatting to each other. Wulfric’s servants and guards stationed themselves at the stands as well.

Lars set himself as the leader of one team, while Wulfric let Jonathan handle theirs. After much bickering, cajoling, and a sprinkle of insults, it was five against four. Lars had Charlie, Tomás, Florian, and had reluctantly accepted Cora. With Jonathan were Wulfric, Juan, and Mariel.

“You can handle being one down, can’t you?” sneered Lars mockingly. “Unless you want to take [i]that[/i] one,” he laughed loudly as he looked at Lady Dantès as if she were a cockroach he wanted to squash. The young girl had remained closer than the three who’d sat down. Wulfric glanced at the youngest lady skeptically. Surely, that small child wouldn’t decide to play. “Just don’t complain it was unfair when you [i]lose[/i],” Lars jeered with a smirk.

“You’ll see who’s the loser when we beat you!” Jonathan shouted.

[color=ab274f]“Come on, let’s make him regret picking a fight with us.”[/color] Wulfric beckoned Jonathan. It was time to [i]start[/i]. [color=ab274f]“You should get out of the way,”[/color] Wulfric said to Lady Dantès dismissively. Jonathan made that discomfited frown again, and said softly, “I…I wouldn’t want you to get hurt…Um…” The boy didn’t seem to want to chase the girl away, but was also reluctant to let her stay that close. “It…could be dangerous,” he eventually settled on.

Lady Dantès and, for some reason, Mariel frowned slightly in response. The younger girl recovered first, while the older girl continued to be mildly upset by what had been said. [color=DAF6C7]“Thank you for caring. But I’ll be fine, Jonathan. I played before.”[/color] Lady Dantès regarded their team with a critical eye. [color=DAF6C7]“Who’s doing what?”[/color]

“Positions?” Mariel asked, and when the little girl nodded, she finally stopped frowning and turned to Jonathan. “Well?”

“Um…” Jonathan scratched at his cheek, suddenly shyly embarrassed at all the attention. “I-I’ve played different positions…But I’m good at passing. What about you?” he turned to Juan.

The tall, lanky boy shrugged. “If you’re midfield, I can strike.” Quizzically, he looked at Wulfric, who admitted, [color=ab274f]“I’ve never played in a team.”[/color] He had messed around with a ball on his own, and had seen a game or two from a distance, but that was it. There was an awkward silence, and some of the children exchanged concerned glances between each other. 

“Your Highness…” Jonathan started carefully. “Could you…keep the goal for us?” Wulfric tilted his head at the boy, expecting an explanation. When the other youth gave it, the prince grew sulky. [color=ab274f][i]“What?”[/i][/color] he exclaimed. [color=ab274f]“You just want me to stand around doing [i]nothing?[/i][/color]

“It’s not nothing,” Mariel growled and glowered.

[color=DAF6C7]“Can you or [i]can’t[/i] you do it?”[/color] Dantès gave him a challenging stare.

Juan merely stood there, looking uncomfortable, while Jonathan raised his hands in a placating gesture. “Er…n-now, t-there…uhh.” His gaze wildly darted around, seeking a solution. “T-the other team’s all ready! We, uh, we…n-need to decide soon. Could you [i]pleeease[/i] do us a favour here, Prince Wulfric?”

It was only because of Jonathan’s pleading, and because he could see Lars gloating from afar that Wulfric agreed. [color=ab274f]“[i]Fine,[/i] but when I’m bored, I’m switching.”[/color]

With three positions settled on, the boys turned to the girls. Mariel punched into her own palm, a fierce expression on her face. “I’ll play defense. No one’s getting past me.” Four pairs of eyes landed on the last member. The small child, Dantès, ended up as their second midfielder.

When they were all ready, they got into their designated spots. Wulfric was at the goal, so all he had to do for a while was watch. The ball was placed in the middle of the field. Rather than a clear signal, the opposing teams had a haphazard count-down, then the children launched towards the center, competing on who would get the ball.

Tomás, who was an attacker - the same position as Juan - had that boundless energy driving him, so he made contact first. He was quick, aggressive, and unpredictable. A wildcard that could whirl by all opposition like a sudden tornado, but also a reckless, easily distractible player who often had the ball stolen from him. However, he had Charlie and Cora supporting him as midfielders, and those two were the stars of teamwork. Unlike anyone else, the pair was clearly used to playing together. They moved fluidly in sync, giving Tomás plenty of opportunities to work his magic. Surprisingly, Lars was the defender; from the back, he shouted out orders to his team. Most of the time, they listened to him - and when they got it right, their play was a work of art.

Honestly, their team was weaker, Wulfric could see that from where he was watching. Juan was a decent match against Tomás, but the twins were good at blindsiding him, and Lars was a formidable defender. Jonathan was experienced, and even Dantès held her own, but compared to the twins? Unexpectedly, Mariel was their saving grace; she limited the opponents’ options so much that Wulfric could predict and stop most of their attacks. 

There’d been several times where bickering had ensued in the game so far. Tomás had knocked down Juan, Lars had tripped Jonathan, [i]Dantès[/i] had kicked Lars, and Mariel had nearly stunned Charlie once by barrelling into him. For each of these events, the team whose player was affected had called foul, while the opposing team had either claimed it an accident or a valid strategy. 

The last accident-adjacent event involved Juan and Tomás knocking heads - literally. Juan came out of it with a swollen eye. Wulfric took that opportunity to switch out with him.

[color=ab274f]“Can you still see out of that eye?”[/color] the prince asked the other boy. Juan just shrugged, and mumbled unconvincingly. Wulfric hummed. [color=ab274f]“Watch out for your blind spot,”[/color] he warned.

Because both sides had been injured (Tomás had a bloodied nose), both teams got one point, and a rest period. Wulfric beckoned the others closer. [color=ab274f]“Juan, you know what to do?”[/color] he confirmed. The tall boy nodded, though not without sending a dark glower at Tomás. The young royal glanced at Mariel. [color=ab274f]“Can you defend with him like you did with me? They’ll want to shoot to his right.”[/color]

Mariel blinked, surprised at the acknowledgement, then gave Juan a considering look. The boy scrunched his face, looked away, then back, expression still sour. Then, he nodded haltingly. [color=ab274f]“Don’t let them score,”[/color] Wulfric directed this to the messy-haired boy, giving him a long look. That seemed to work, as Juan’s eyes widened, and he nodded quickly several times in succession.

[color=ab274f]“Alright,”[/color] Wulfric smirked. [color=ab274f]“I have an idea…”[/color] he motioned them all closer. [color=ab274f]“So far, Jonathan has stuck to Charlie, and Dantès to Cora, right?”[/color] The other children nodded. [color=ab274f]“Well, how about this? Both of you, get on Charlie.”[/color] Some started to protest, but Wulfric spoke on. [color=ab274f]“Lars almost always passes to Charlie, and then he and Cora to each other. Even if he’s forced to give the ball to her, you should have seen those two don’t work together. We’ll cut down on what they can do like that,”[/color] he explained, and most seemed convinced. 

[color=ab274f]“Mariel, you can cover Tomás. Cora will be free most of the time, but we should be able to handle that…I’ll deal with Lars. If [i]I[/i] can’t score, I’ll pass to whoever’s closest.”[/color] He gazed at the two midfielders. [color=ab274f]“So, be ready for that.”[/color] He looked from one player to the other, waiting for each to give confirmation. [color=ab274f]“Let’s go!”[/color]

They got into action. Now, Wulfric was the one leading the charge.

Finally, he got to move! He was smiling, exhilarated as he ran across the field. It was like the wind was with him, even as it rushed against him. It ruffled his hair, filled his chest, and tickled his skin. Hot puffs of air escaped him. He was so fast! The ground was hard as ever, but he bounded up from it with energy. He was like an unstoppable gale now, and he felt great.

Getting a grasp of who was where was more difficult now, but Wulfric got a hang of it soon.

Then, he was on the ball, and Lars was going right at him. Wulfric grinned.

The two faced off, Lars stole it for a moment, the prince launched right back at it…

…Unexpectedly, he slid sideways onto the grass, but got the ball. He somehow managed to aim it to a free player-

-Dantès.

As Lars was trying not to trip over him, Wulfric pushed himself off of the floor. “GO!” He started to run again, just in case. However, the little girl scored, getting the score even. Wulfric laughed, still enthused at the unexpected move he’d done against Lars by accident. It was so awesome, though!

[color=ab274f]“What about that? You even got beat by a little girl,”[/color] the prince pitched in slyly.

Lars got as red as a lobster, and Wulfric was still chucking as he turned around to get back to the game. The boy was shouting something, but the royal just ignored him. One more goal, and they’d be in the lead.

However, before they could resume, another fight broke out. This one was different. It got loud and messy, quick. Wulfric stopped in his tracks, and glanced back towards the players to see what was going on.

He turned around just in time to see Dantès launch herself at Lars, tackling him to the ground. They rolled across the grass, a tangle of flailing limbs, as each tried to gain the upper hand. They punched and kicked at each other as they grappled, twisted, and wrestled on the ground. “Get off me, you rabid half-breed!”

[color=DAF6C7]“Take it back!”[/color]

“You can go straight to the hells with your pillow-biting lord and take your diseases with you!” Lars grabbed a fist full of Dantès’s hair and yanked it back hard, causing her to scream in pain. But she refused to relent, pulling on his hair in return.

“Get off her, you fucker,” Mariel growled, immediately joining the fight to back up Dantès. “H-hey now,” Charlie tried to help, but somehow got tangled up into it all when Mariel’s kick landed on him. With her brother involved, Cora was at least half-in, trying to pull Lars away at one point, arguing with him at another, and intermittently attempted to get Dantès and Mariel to back off.

After it became apparent that the fight wouldn’t stop any time soon, Florian tried to help, “Um, guys! Let’s not fight.” Jonathan had been too shocked to react, but this startled him. “I-I’m getting the parents.”

Yet, even as he ran off, Juan drew closer. “You fat snitch,” he said meanly, eyeing Florian with a glint in his eye. Whether in an attempt to help him, or because he was itching to fight with Juan, Tomás jumped into Florian's defense. Now, there was a whole group of children brawling wildly.

Wulfric watched, both surprised and fascinated. He had never seen such a…chaotic, violent melee. 

Maybe [i]this[/i] was why his parents weren’t keen to let him commingle with other children.

“S-say,” Florian shuffled closer. “C-can’t you stop them?”

[color=ab274f]“Hm?”[/color] Wulfric turned to the rotund boy. [color=ab274f]“Oh, yes. Sure.”[/color] He whistled, and the guards who had previously been stationed by the stands came closer. They didn’t seem happy about the fighting children, but had obviously not judged this to be dangerous to him - else they’d have stepped in already. [color=ab274f]“Can you break them apart?”[/color] It was an order more so than a question.

In the following minutes, his guards wrangled the children with the tenacity of a cowboy dealing with a herd of raging bulls.

With the situation safer and partly handled, the three girls approached as well. “Oh, isn’t this [i]so terrible[/i],” Suzanne said to him. Wulfric just nodded. Margaret and Jennifer chattered too, but Wulfric was only half-paying attention. These three girls were like Duchess Edwards; skulking vultures looking to have fun by gossipping about a ‘terrible’ situation.

Soon after the guards had become involved, some of the parents arrived, led by Jonathan. Wulfric turned to his nearest servant; a man who had come to fuss over him, cleaning the mud and dirt off of him. [color=ab274f]“It’s time to leave.”[/color] 

As he made his way back to the building, Wulfric passed by the Dantès. The lord was kneeling, asking what had happened. At first, the girl was fuming as she recounted what happened, but as she got to the part where she launched at Lars, her expression crumbled and tears welled up in her eyes. [color=DAF6C7]“Then h-he… he,”[/color] she choked up. [color=DAF6C7]“He called you a…”[/color] It was obvious the insult hurt the girl more than her guardian, because instead of repeating whatever offensive remark Lars had made, she burst into tears. Lord Dantès enveloped her in a comforting embrace, gently stroking her head with his hand.

He was murmuring reassurances into her ear when his gaze met Wulfric's.

The prince observed them for a short moment. [i]Pillow biter.[/i] That’s what he’d heard Lars say about Lord Dantès during the fight. Wulfric didn’t even know what the insult meant. Obviously, it was some awful, horrible, and upsetting thing. He could find out later, however. The boy looked away from the pair, and went on his way. He would have to say goodbye to some people. It was clear everyone else had decided to leave too.

While people prepared to depart, Wulfric overheard angry shouts coming from one of the rooms. He went to investigate and found Lars's mother screaming hysterically at Lord Dantès, surrounded by several other adults. It mirrored the earlier fight between the children, except now the adults had sequestered themselves away to argue. And just like before, it turned physical. Lady Blundell struck Lord Dantès so quickly and hard it sounded like a whip crack.

Everyone froze. The room went silent, like the quiet before the storm. Except no storm came. Lord Dantès calmly faced Lady Blundell and addressed her and the others in a measured tone. His restraint seemed to shame all the adults present. Eventually, the matter was resolved, and the group dispersed, leaving Lord Dantès alone.

As the last person exited, he turned and opened the door behind which Wulfric had been listening. “I apologize you had to witness that, Your Highness,” he said, kneeling to meet Wulfric’s eyes. His green gaze, so dark it bordered on black, bore deep inside Wulfric. “How are you feeling? I hope this doesn’t deter you from attending any future birthday parties…”

There was a slightly pouting frown on the young royal’s expression at being discovered. [color=ab274f]“It’s alright,”[/color] he said, and tried to look as composed as the lord speaking to him was. [color=ab274f]“I could have left,”[/color] he added. Wulfric openly studied the bright red imprint upon the man’s cheek. The lord didn’t seem to care a whit; hadn’t even seemed to notice, really. Is that what it meant to be a real, proper adult? If so, Wulfric wished he could become one soon. He wanted to be just as unaffected when faced with pain. Still, he gave the man a weird expression when Lord Dantès asked him how [i]he[/i] was feeling. [color=ab274f]“...I’m fine.”[/color] At the next line, however, he smoothed out his expression. Because he was a child, and still unpracticed, it was obvious what he was doing. [color=ab274f]“It won’t.”[/color] His parents, on the other hand?

Lord Dantès nodded, as if he understood unspoken thoughts. “At least it was an eventful, if not a little enlightening day?” He smiled. 

A fleeting smile appeared before Wulfric made it go away. The way the lord said it, it sounded like they were both in on a joke, or sharing a hidden message. Mock-serious, he nodded sagely. [color=ab274f]“Very eventful.”[/color] The mischievous grin that wanted to escape warmed his gaze with a playful mirth. [color=ab274f]“[i]And[/i] enlightening.”[/color]

“I wanted to thank you for your intervention, Your Highness. People might’ve gotten seriously injured if you hadn’t.” The lord bowed his head.

The young prince blinked in surprise, mouth opening. He shut it before the lord could see. He hadn’t imagined anyone could have found anything positive about this situation. His parents - like everyone else’s - would be upset that it had come to a fight, and that he’d been ‘involved’. They might scold or punish the guards, and would surely not allow him ‘unsupervised’ social outings any time soon. 

[color=ab274f]“You’re welcome,”[/color] he eventually settled on. It didn’t cross his mind to mention Florian. He was sure the sincere gratitude he’d received was the only good thing he would get out of the scandal. This was for him - [i]just[/i] for him. At a prompt from a servant, he said, [color=ab274f]“I have to go.”[/color] He frowned, disappointed but unsure of the reason for it. The lord was like one of his nicer teachers. He’d been impressed by how the man had handled those other adults. But he didn’t know how to say any of that; hadn’t thought of it so concretely. Instead, he went with what he did know: [color=ab274f]“It was a pleasure meeting you, Lord Dantès.”[/color] It wasn’t just empty words he might have said hundreds of times; he [i]meant[/i] it. Same with the following bow.

After exchanging their last words, Wulfric departed for home.

On the carriage ride back, he caught sight of the Dantèses again. They were walking along the sidewalk with unfamiliar faces - except for one. Gardner Haywood, the royal gardener, strolled hand-in-hand with Lord Dantès. Wulfric didn’t recognize the other two adults swinging Lady Dantès between them, holding one of her hands each. One wore glasses over his honey-colored eyes, his features bearing the distinct characteristics of Alidasht. He had a deep complexion and even darker hair. The other was a fair-skinned woman who had auburn hair and eyes darker than either Dantèses.[/hider]

[color=ab274f]“Fake?”[/color] Wulfric mused half-absentmindedly as mostly forgotten memories had been partially reawakened, and now sluggishly gathered at the forefront of his mind. [color=ab274f]“I resent that,”[/color] he noted, though he sounded almost– [i]tickled[/i], if meriness could ever be ascribed to the crown prince. [color=ab274f]“However, yes. It is I, Prince Wulfric. What a…thoroughly unexpected surprise.”[/color] It was largely a pleasant one, he thought, even if he and the Lady Dantès had never got along the one time they’d met. Recalling her name had also reminded him of the - sadly - deceased Lord Desmond Dantès. Yet another man who had been too good to die so early, to have been slain so horrendously.

[color=DAF6C7]“Quite.”[/color] Riona said, her tone brazen though her heart thundered in her chest. [color=DAF6C7]“No wonder I found you so irritating.”[/color] Truth be told, half of her wanted nothing more than to turn on her heel and flee, putting as much distance between herself and the Heir Apparent as possible. Why in the hells was Prince Wulfric here? Did he recognize the maidservant she had become too? No. After all these years working in that castle, he never so much as spared her a glance (not that she gave him a chance to, either). So he couldn’t have. Then why now? With a gods damn mask on no less? Was it the expensive dress? [color=DAF6C7]“It’s… been a while.” [i]No, it hasn’t.[/i] “What are you doing here being a creepy crow when you should be… socializing with your prospective wives?”[/color]

[color=ab274f]“An evocative costume, is it not?”[/color] he agreed. To demonstrate, he swept an arm to the side in a dramatic gesture, feathers rustling in a riotous swirl of black, chains rattling against each other. [color=ab274f]“Hmm, well,”[/color] he smirked as she questioned him on his prospects. Notably, Lady Dantès had rescinded her decision to depart. Was it nostalgia, or was she trying to find out something specific now that she knew who he was? [color=ab274f]“It would be in bad taste if, immediately after Shehzadi Mayet’s departure, I would begin pursuing her sister.”[/color] 

So his sights were set on Shehzadi Nahir or Shehzadi Layla? Interesting. Either would make a very powerful alliance if it came to fruition. All the more reason to find the evidence as soon as possible and expose them.

… Or else there’d only be one thing left to do.

[color=ab274f]“Besides,”[/color] a hint of slyness crept into his tone, [color=ab274f]“who is to say I am not socializing with a prospective wife at this very moment?”[/color] He laughed at the absurdity of the idea, longer than was strictly polite. After a moment, he cut off with a sigh. 

Her body reacted—feet stepping a few steps back, arms wrapping around her to shield herself from the Prince’s very presence—before the familiar triad flared hot and bright. Anger. Repulsion. Hate. They seared through her veins.

She pierced him with eyes flint cold while he laughed at a joke that only he found funny. [color=DAF6C7]“You’d gain little from such an arrangement,”[/color] she said, [color=DAF6C7]“I have nothing left for you to take from me.”[/color]

‘Nothing left for you to take’ was a peculiar manner of phrasing on the lady’s part. Her reaction, too, had been worrying. It gave him pause, frankly. It was a reflexive loathing on her part - but what had caused it, exactly? While he chose not to comment on it, he had certainly noticed. [color=ab274f]“And yourself? What have you been up to?”[/color] he asked eventually.

[color=DAF6C7]“Do you care?”[/color] she repeated the question little Lady Dantès asked years back.

[color=ab274f]“Yes.”[/color] It was a simple assurance, but truthful. He wanted to know the cause of her abhorrence, of her hatred. He had to know. If his family had been involved in any way - if his past suspicions were more than just that - he ought to know.

A handful of breaths slipped by before Riona finally shaped the words. [color=DAF6C7]“What have I been up to? For fourteen years, I’ve endured a waking nightmare. One where the man and woman who slaughtered my home go unchallenged, unpunished.”[/color] Her fingers knotted in the fabric of her dress. [color=DAF6C7]“Did you know there’s no record left of the town or House Dantès? They’ve erased it all. Redacted from history. Convenient, right? It’s only a matter of time before we’ll be forgotten altogether as if we never existed at all…”[/color] Her knuckles become pale against the orange color. [color=DAF6C7]“Those monsters grow fat on the spoils of their atrocities.”[/color] She hissed, [color=DAF6C7]“Just as [i]you[/i] reap the rewards sown at the expense of others, [color=4E0E04]False Prince[/color].”[/color]

[color=ab274f]“I see…”[/color] Well, he did in part. [color=ab274f]“I have noticed the suspicious lack of records,”[/color] he affirmed. In fact, it was that which had led him to believe that something other than ‘a bandit attack’ had been at play. But how could he have confirmed, when the king and queen never acknowledged such inconsistencies? There were several other instances where a lack of evidence [i]was[/i] the only evidence. [color=ab274f]“I remember,”[/color] he informed her. [color=ab274f]“If only the two of you.”[/color] 

She rolled her eyes. Not enough to recognize her as a maid. [color=DAF6C7]“How much of that memory surfaced only because we bumped into each other?”[/color]

[color=ab274f]“A fair amount,”[/color] he acknowledged, tone even. But the memories he spoke of were not merely the result of this happenstance. Why did she think he’d noticed the erasure of her family from official records in the first place? [color=ab274f]“However, [i]Lord Desmond Dantès[/i] is not the sort of man I would simply forget about.”[/color]

The way Lady Dantès spoke of her family members’ deaths, it was as if the Danroses had had something to [i]gain[/i] by killing them. He had always thought his parents’ reasons to be preventative in nature; to eliminate danger - or rather, [i]suspected[/i] danger, or political inconveniences, as the case may be. [color=ab274f]“Do you know what happened there, exactly?”[/color]

Revulsion clawed its way up her throat. [color=DAF6C7]“You want the details of how everyone was butchered? [i]Gods[/i]…”[/color] Riona shook her head. [color=DAF6C7]“No, why am I surprised? You were always like this...”[/color]

Wulfric blinked at her slowly, once, twice. [color=ab274f]“[i]No,[/i] of course not.”[/color] That had been certainly unusually careless phrasing on his part. [color=ab274f]“I meant, [i]why[/i] were they killed?”[/color]

[color=DAF6C7]“Why? You should know better than anyone why those monsters do the things they do.”[/color]

She wasn’t far off the mark; he knew his parents well. And yet… [color=ab274f]“I do not see what we could have gained by killing your family.”[/color] He said ‘we’ rather than ‘they’; he wasn’t that naive. [color=ab274f]“Were they – what, determined to be dissidents?”[/color] he questioned, highly doubtful. Even if they had been, that would never merit slaughtering a whole town, like she’d implied had been done.

[color=DAF6C7]“‘Determined to be dissidents’?”[/color] she half spat, half scoffed, the sentence out. [color=DAF6C7]“Perhaps you don’t remember much of Lord Dantès as you claim.”[/color] Of everyone, he had fought hardest against any whisper of conflict with the Danroses.

The Lord accepted every insult, every cutting barb from the preening Caesonian aristocrats, believing this self-abasement would keep their town safe, preserve the peace across the country. The naive fool even dreamed that one day, their kind might exist without living in fear. How disastrously wrong he had been. He underestimated the bottomless greed of those monsters and what fear could do to them.

[color=ab274f]“Then [i]what?[/i]”[/color] Wulfric bit out, finally showing some of his own frustration.

[color=DAF6C7]“I’m ‘just some stupid lying girl.’ You won’t believe a thing I say because it’ll tarnish your family’s reputation and shatter every illusion you’ve had of yourself.”[/color] 

[color=ab274f]“Have I not demonstrated that I am inclined to believe, or at the very least, to listen to your assertions?”[/color] he pointed out. [color=ab274f]“I am not someone who would cling to illusions, no matter how fanciful or entrenched.”[/color] He knew very well that reputation was a construct of lies, hopeful beliefs, and the occasional sprinkle of truth to tie it all in.

Riona’s defensive posture relaxed slightly. [color=DAF6C7]“If you do care… swear to me.”[/color]

[color=ab274f]“Swear what?”[/color] He inquired a tad cautiously. [color=ab274f]“I can swear that I care, because I do not wish to mistake [i]convenience[/i] for [i]necessity.[/i]”[/color] The difference between the two was something he had been mulling over lately. But he had no idea what Lady Dantès actually wanted or expected. All that was clear was that she hated him.

[color=DAF6C7]“If you actually care, find out for yourself.”[/color] She straightened up and faced Prince Wulfric properly. [color=DAF6C7]“And when you do, swear to me you’d publicly reveal what your family has done in order to stay in power. Every last one.”[/color]

[color=ab274f]“Oh, I shall most certainly find out.”[/color] He shook his head though he did not immediately deny the second part of her request. [color=ab274f]“In order to stay in power…”[/color] he ruminated on her words. How much of it was ruling through fear, how much a force of habit? Did she mean any and all executed criminals as well? He could believe there had been unjust killings, but equally, he was convinced that some deaths were necessary. 

However, seeking out and rectifying those which had [i]not[/i] been necessary, those which [i]had[/i] been unjust was agreeable. Yet, it was very much a matter of finesse in how such a thing was to be done. [color=ab274f]“Total transparency with the hope that it would bring about appropriate accountability?”[/color] He had to wonder what results she wished for. Given her hostility, vengeance was easily believable. Perhaps she plotted for his family’s downfall, or for another to take the Danroses’ place. [color=ab274f]“You have a surprisingly naive and optimistic outlook of humanity. We are prone to excusing the unforgivable, and to turning a blind eye to the unjust.”[/color]

There were two ‘worst case’ scenarios he could foresee coming from her request. One, the complete disintegration of trust in the government followed by years of unquenchable rebellions and violent social unrest. Two, he or other parties could present all that had been done as if it had been inevitable - as regrettable yet crucial sacrifices. If the latter happened, then [i]nothing would change[/i], or worse yet, ever greater atrocities could be committed. 

Personally, he wished for neither of those; it was a matter of finding a third path, then. [color=ab274f]“Very well. You ought to keep in mind, however, that I shall do it on my own terms.”[/color] Even if it was doing ‘the right thing’, he would certainly do it in a manner that would benefit him, if not necessarily his parents. [color=ab274f]“Too, if I ever come across something too dangerous to reveal,”[/color] such as magic, [color=ab274f]“it will be my prerogative whether I do, in fact, reveal it. Believe it or not, there are truths the general public is not ready for – not at the present time, and perhaps, not until many years in the future.”[/color]

Riona stood motionless, catching every syllable, reading between each carefully crafted line. It was a roundabout way of saying things, but clearly the answer was no. Never, to be exact. Because in the end, all of Danroses’ crimes were exactly that, “too dangerous to reveal.” The truth was a threat to their reign. And a Danrose would never act against their own interests. Nothing would change. Not under this “Prince.”

When the abomination’s spawn finished mimicking human speech, there was silence. Strangely, the lack of a face made it easier to see the thing for what it really was. [color=DAF6C7]“Greed and fear,”[/color] she murmured.

[color=DAF6C7]“Good to know you intend to follow in your parents’ footsteps, Edin the Second.”[/color] She would’ve used a different name that suited it better, but she knew that its sire’s name would cut deepest. [color=DAF6C7]“They must be proud. How many of your own people will you kill to ‘maintain order’? Was tormenting that servant at age seven ‘for the greater good’ too? Ah! But of course!”[/color] She threw her hands up. Her words dripped with caustic sarcasm. [color=DAF6C7]“You’re protecting the people from the monstrosities that are yourselves. How very noble! … Too bad you’re doing a gods awful job at it.”[/color]

Her hands dropped to her sides. [color=DAF6C7]“Is that ‘the truth the general public is not ready for?’... Huh. I wonder why anyone would find any of that upsetting.”[/color]

Despite the anger, she was surprisingly composed. Maybe because the thing confirmed what she’d already known, strengthening her resolve. [color=DAF6C7]“We have nothing more to discuss. Thank you for reaffirming that talking to you is and always will be a colossal waste of time.”[/color]

Rather than turn on her heel, Riona stepped into the thing’s space, thrusting the stupid crow mask up high enough to meet its gaze directly. [color=4E0E04]“I pray your reign shall never come. But if it must, may we be fortunate that it is mercifully brief.”[/color] Her eyes blazed with a hatred that could choke the breath out of anyone. She held that smoldering look a beat longer before shoving the mask back into place.
Even as she raged and stormed, however, he stood there still and silent, as unaffected as a cliffside weathering a tempest, as calm as the proverbial eye of a hurricane he happened to find himself in the middle of. Even as she ever so rudely removed his mask, he faced her unflinchingly, his lack of expression only reinforcing the impression of featureless, insensate stone. Their gazes met, and if hers was an inextinguishable wildfire, then his was as inexorably, hauntingly serene and inscrutable as an ocean whose surface was wrapped in heavily lingering mists.

[color=ab274f]“How unfortunate.”[/color] It was a flat, toneless utterance, as uncaring to her pain as the universe was to them all. 

Brimming with all that barely contained wrath, overfilled with it to the point of bursting, Lady Dantès was incapable of nuance. She wanted an immediate resolution, she expected a clear-cut outcome. Her desire for justice – for [i]vengeance[/i] - would not be satisfied until he and his family were all six feet under. Her volatile nature would not stop at mere prayers and wishes for his death, would it?

How unfortunate then, that the last Dantès would have to be slain at the hands of yet another Danrose.

Just or unjust, good or evil, fair or not – what did it matter in the face of pure survival? 

He watched her leave without another word. [color=ab274f][i]If you must be an enemy, then so be it.[/i][/color][/color]