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    1. BuzzingBee 8 yrs ago

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Hello! This is Buzzingbee! I used to be on here as BuzzBee but I had some trouble. I had issues in real life that made me go off for a while and then when I was going to come back on, passwords, emails, etc were forgotten and lost. xD But I'm back and ready to jump into where I left off!

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Same here! xD I prewrote this one to only get through the morning but if you want to go ahead and pace yours faster, go for it! :) Most of what I have planned can be summarized honestly lol
If only she had thought to schedule the duel with Layth closer to sunset rather than sunrise. The knight had gotten poor sleep so when Olivia came to wake her up to get ready for the fight, Penelope felt as if she had never gone to bed in the first place. The lieutenant stretched out her limbs and rubbed her eyes as she tried to shake the hint of anxiousness she felt churning in her stomach. I should have never challenged him to this stupid duel. She groaned inwardly as she put on her armor. Stepping out of her tent, she was immediately greeted by Olivia, who seemed to be beaming.

“Ready to go kick your brother’s ass?” Olivia grinned, seeming unfazed by her friend’s tired appearance.

“Not really… Gods I dread facing him now..” Penelope sighed, running a hand over her face. “You think there’s a chance he’ll agree to calling it off?”

Olivia pretended to mull it over for a second, tapping her finger against her chin in thought. “Well, this is your brother we’re talking about soooo…. I’m going to have to go with no.” she answered with a small snicker. Seeing Penelope deflate slightly, Olivia gave her friend a reassuring nudge. “Oh come on, Penelope. You can handle a duel with your brother. You’re fierce with a sword and if you need something to fire you up, just think about all the things he has done! I mean, there’s a reason you snapped and challenged him.”

“I guess you’re right..” Penelope mumbled. Trying to listen to her friend’s advice, she began to recount how infuriating her brother had been since she had returned to the camp. She thought of his harsh words towards her, his threats about Crow, and how he tried to derail any plan she presented to the barons. A spark of anger and motivation began to bubble inside her. It felt encouraging and the knight continued to focus on some of the terrible things her brother had done. Normally thinking of such things brought a sense of shame since he was her brother and his actions were out of her control but in this case, it gave her a reason to continue forward with the duel. “Yeah… he’s been terrible.”

“Exactly!” Olivia grinned as they continued walking towards the training grounds. “And now you have the chance to get back at him for it!”

Penelope returned her friend’s grin with a smile and nodded her head in agreement. The two friends soon reached the training grounds. It wasn’t surprising to see that a small crowd of knights had gathered to witness the fight. Whenever duels took place, it was common for rumor to spread and crowds to gather. Still, Penelope couldn’t say she was fond of having the additional pairs of eyes watching her. She let out a breath and focused her gaze towards the sparring area, where her brother was already waiting. Layth, looking eager for the fight, gave his training sword a few mock swings before turning his head to look over at his half sister. As their eyes met, he smirked confidently and rested the blunted blade on his shoulder.

“I was wondering when you were going to show up. I thought you might have chickened out.” Layth sneered.

Penelope rolled her eyes in response as she stepped into the sparring area. She stopped to pick up one of the training swords, gripping its handle firmly in her hand. “I assure you I have no plans on backing out.” she responded coldly. At least, not anymore…. She added to herself.

“Let me know when you two are ready and we can let the duel begin.” Mia announced from the sidelines. The baroness stood near the edge of the area with her arms crossed and an intrigued expression set upon her face. As Penelope looked over at her, the baroness flashed a small smile.

“I’ve been ready.” Layth replied haughtily. “ What about you, sister?”

Penelope glanced at the small crowd around them. Most of their comrades seemed to just be interested in watching the fight but she did note a good handful of knights sneering in her direction, obviously rooting against her. It was difficult to say if they were friends of Layth or simply resented her for working with and eventually courting Crow. The crowd wasn’t all bad though. She located Olivia, who was quick to give her a thumbs up, Gavin, who had a serious expression with his arms folded over his chest, and Tomas; who stood near Mia, glancing at the two siblings with a frown on his lips.

The knight let out a breath, bracing herself for the fight as she took a step forward. Raising her sword defensively, she met her brother’s gaze with a challenging look. “I’m ready.”

“Wonderful then we shall begin the duel. Warriors, raise your weapons and prepare to fight in three.. two...” Mia paused as she counted down, eying both opponents before dropping a raised hand. “One!”

Almost as soon as the duel’s beginning was announced, Layth rushed towards her. It was exactly what Penelope expected him to do though. The female knight had trained, sparred and dueled with her brother for many years so his relentless fighting style came as no shock to her. With the agileness of a dancer, she slipped away from the slashes of his sword, parrying it with her own when it did swing close. Her brother didn’t allow her much breathing room though. He was just as aware of her style of fighting as she was of his own. Layth slashed at her, causing the sound of clinking metal to fill the air as he lunged at his sister once more in an attempt to overwhelm her defense with his attacks.

Penelope swiftly deflected his blows with her sword. When he lunged forward again, she swept to the side, aiming to try and utilize a weak spot in his form. She used the handle of her sword to hit his side. Layth let out a small grunt of frustration at the strike and lashed out a leg to try and sweep her legs out from under her while he had her so close. Penelope managed to get out of his reach just in time, shooting her brother a proud smirk that was not well received. The determination and anger in his gaze was unwavering. It was enough to let the female knight know that he had no intention of losing. Well, neither do I… she thought, clenching the hilt of her sword stubbornly. She lunged forward at him this time, causing their swords to clash briefly before she pushed off of him. Wanting to maintain her offensive position, the female knight aimed her sword at his hand, slashing low with hopes to make herself an opening.

Layth deflected her attacks but not with ease. The male knight was tense and focusing heavily to make sure not to give away any weak points. With his jaw clenched, he knocked back Penelope’s sword and charged forward. Unprepared for the sudden thwack to the side of her sword, the female knight had been forced to make an opening and Layth took advantage of it by sweeping his arm out to knock her to the ground. Due to their size difference, Penelope went down with ease.

She groaned as she fell on her back and hurriedly blocked his second attack as he swung his sword down at her. Layth glared at her and pushed against her sword. “I hope you’re ready to lose.” he sneered.

The female knight rolled her eyes. “It isn’t over yet, bastard.” she growled in response. Taking advantage of his focus on getting his sword at level with her throat, she swept her leg out and knocked her brother down to the ground beside her. He landed with an undignified yelp that made a smirk cross her lips. Apparently Layth had thought his footing was more solid than it had been.

Penelope rolled away from her brother, lunging to her feet as swiftly as possible. Layth was just as fast to recover though and was already climbing back to his feet by the time she moved to face him again. Halfway up to his feet, their blades bounced off of each other once more as the male knight deflected his sister’s attack. His jaw was tight with frustration and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. Winning wasn’t coming as easily as he had hoped and that only added fuel to Penelope’s fire. Her next onslaught of attacks came relentlessly as she buzzed around him, trying to strike at every possible angle. The female knight was intent on using his own form of fighting against him now that he was becoming stressed about the possibility of losing. The close clashing of metal caused no strife for Penelope but Layth was a different story as his eyes darted from her to her weapon in an attempt to calculate where she would strike next. She had successfully gotten into her brother’s head.

Though Layth’s skill with defense was decent, it wasn’t up to par with his offense. Between her tricks and her skill with a sword, all Penelope needed was a small opening and as soon as one presented itself, she took it. Her brother leaned slightly too far left as he deflected one of her onslaught of attacks, leaving his right wide open. Instead of making an obvious attack for it with her blade, Penelope swung a fist forward, catching the side of her brother. Layth grunted and stumbled. His recovery from the hit wasn’t fast enough to stop his half sister from raising her blade to his neck.

“Yield?” Penelope asked with winded breath. Forcing Layth to be on defense was no easy task and she was feeling the full effects of it.
Backing down was never something that came easy to the male knight. As the two siblings stared each other down, there was a fire inside his gaze that looked ready to engulf her if given the chance. But with one look down at the blade pointed at his throat, the fire was trapped to his eyes alone. The next words out of her brother’s mouth came out slow and bitter. “I yield.”

Penelope’s sword lowered upon hearing the words and she turned to look to Mia. It was custom that the match’s victor needed to be approved by the referee before the duel’s results were finalized. Mia’s lip twitched upward into a smile. “The fight was fair. Penelope Vermillion is the champion of this duel!” she announced proudly.

With the thrill of the duel dying with its end, Penelope became aware of the crowd around them for the first time since they had begun trading blows. It appeared their audience had grown and from the sound of it, she had not been the fan favorite. Murmurs and awkward glances erupted from the larger majority of the crowd, who now had to deal with watching their favored Vermillion accept defeat. It hadn’t been her intention to make an example out of her brother to his followers and those who looked down on her for her actions but regardless, it appeared she had.

On the opposite spectrum, a smaller amount of the crowd responded with claps and cheers. The strongest of her supporters was naturally Olivia. The other female knight gave loud cheers, grinning like a fox as her friend was announced the winner. Tomas let out a breath and as he caught Penelope’s gaze, he shot her a friendly smile and joined amongst the friendly claps. The female knight managed to catch Gavin’s normally stoic face break into an amused smirk as he cheered softly for his friend and the defeat of Layth.

Penelope faced the crowd with a proud grin but didn’t indulge in her victory any further than that. Instead, she turned her head back to address her half brother, only to find that he was already making his quiet exit from the sparring ring while most of the focus was on her. Her grin dissolved slightly as he looked back over his shoulder to meet her gaze with one final glare before cutting his way through the surrounding crowd. While he was being greeted with words of sympathy, Penelope turned and put away the training sword before making her own exit. Her supporters were fewer than Layth’s but she still received a few words of congratulations from her comrades.

“Excellent swordsmanship out there lieutenant!” grinned one of the older knights named Robin, who gave her a firm clap on the back.

“Thank yo–” Penelope began before an arm wrapped around her shoulders and pulled her away with clear enthusiasm.

“You’re damn dangerous with a sword! I don’t know if your brother’s pride will ever recover from that.” Olivia laughed as she now walked with her friend. Alongside her sudden arrival, the knight realized that Gavin had also quietly made his way up besides the two.

Penelope smiled at her friend. “I’m sure he’ll bounce back just fine. I just pray it was enough to keep him from constantly irritating me.” she paused before a more mischievous smirk crossed her lips. “Though, I must admit, beating him into shame was quite satisfying to some degree.”

“It was satisfying to watch.” Gavin admitted with an amused expression.

“No kidding! Your poor viceroy is going to be sad he missed the clash of the Vermillions.” Olivia joked.

The female knight gave a laugh and nodded her head in agreement. “True but if Layth honors our agreements, he’ll at least get some entertainment from my proud brother congratulating us on our courtship.” she pointed out. She shrugged her shoulders and continued onward. “Anyways, come on, let’s go get breakfast. I’m starving now!”
I'm Bee or Bug, whichever suits your fancy, and I'm hoping to start up a couple new rps so here's some details about me and what I'm looking for! ^^

- I'm 20+ and only write with those 18+. Sorry to the younger writers out there!
- That being said, mature themes are ok with me! I do prefer to fade to black but I am willing to write out some scenes if my partner prefers it.
- I prefer MxF but may be convinced into trying FxF pairing wise. I prefer to write for a female main but would be open to doubling up.
- I average about 3 paragraphs per reply and looking for someone who can average about that!
- I have a busy life between work, friends, family, and pets to take care of. So I'm not the best at replying consistently but if you're patient, I can usually do at least 1 reply a week.
- Romance! I'm a sucker for it and it's usually always included in my rps.
- Though I'm a more introverted person, I do love OOC! Whether it's about the story or just how our days are going, I tend to enjoy it. This isn't necessary though! just a preference :)
- Hoping to collab with my partner as far as world building goes. I'll admit it's not my strong suit as a writer but I'm hoping to get better since I do enjoy it! :) I just need a little help with it!
- Side characters and character building/development are my bread and butter! I enjoy having one main and a wide cast of side characters to help fill out the world a bit more.

Cravings :

- Outlander based rp - I normally don't do fandom rps but I just recently got into Outlander and would love to try writing something similar to it. Of course, we could pick different time periods and maybe figure out a different form of time travel that would work best for the story. I'm open to any ideas!

- The Southern Vampire - Another craving/plot idea I've been wanting to try is a wild west/vampire plot. I have a couple different ideas and I'm also open to hearing yours!

Characters :

This is a bit different than what I usually do but I have a couple characters I originally made for dnd/tabletop games that just didn't take off and I would really love to use them in an rp if anyone is interested! :)



Time for me to once again crawl out of the shadows and pick up a new rp or two.

I'm Bee or Bug, whichever suits your fancy, and I'm hoping to start up a couple new rps so here's some details about me and what I'm looking for! ^^

- I'm 20+ and only write with those 18+. Sorry to the younger writers out there!
- That being said, mature themes are ok with me! I don't, however, want a smut filled story. I'd even be up for fade to black if my partner prefers it.
- I prefer MxF but may be convinced into trying FxF pairing wise. I prefer to write for a female main but would be open to doubling up.
- I average about 3 paragraphs per reply and looking for someone who can average about that!
- I have a busy life between work, friends, family, and pets to take care of. My reply rates will vary but if you're a patient person, I promise I will be around lol
- Romance! I'm a sucker for it and it's usually always included in my rps.
- Though I'm a more introverted person, I do love OOC! Whether it's about the story or just how our days are going, I tend to enjoy it. This isn't necessary though! just a preference :)
- Hoping to collab with my partner as far as world building goes. I'll admit it's not my strong suit as a writer but I'm hoping to get better since I do enjoy it! :) I just need a little help with it!
- Side characters and character building/development are my bread and butter! I enjoy having one main and a wide cast of side characters to help fill out the world a bit more.

I don't exactly have a specific plot or idea in mind at the moment but I am kind of craving a good enemies to lovers! Here are some other genres/pairings I enjoy though.

Medieval
Fantasy
Victorian/ Edwardian Era
Friends to lovers
Arranged Marriage
Royal x Knight
Pirates x Any
Forbidden Romance
Apocalyptic
Rival x Rival
Alternate Universe
Human x Any Supernatural Creature
Same cx I can't wait to see it all play out haha I'm excited to bring in more Younisian characters honestly lol
A silence fell over the trio as Penelope trailed behind Olivia and Rory through the camp. Still simmering down from the confrontation with her brother, a new emotion began to take over. Her face was slightly red, not from anger but from embarrassment. Layth may have spat some hateful words at her first, but she was the one that made a scene out of it this time and in front of the prisoner no less. Gods... we must seem dysfunctional. she groaned inwardly. The female knight snuck a glance towards Rory, attempting to gauge the enemy knight's reaction to the scuffle. Surprisingly, she found that Rory was glancing her way, looking curiously towards her.

"Sooo.... that was your brother?" Rory finally worked up the nerve to speak.

"Unfortunately, yes." Penelope sighed.

"He seems...like a lot."

Penelope snorted and Olivia didn't bother to hold back a short laugh. "Oh kid you have no idea. You should be glad her brother didn't have more say in the matter regarding your time here. I can assure you it would not be pleasant." Olivia snickered.

"I picked up on that during the meeting." Rory admitted with a slight cringe. His attention quickly turned back to Penelope. "I understand why though, considering I am from the enemy kingdom but...why was he on your case so badly? And what's this about a thief playing noble?"

Penelope paused as he questioned her, unsure why he would even care about their personal affairs. Perhaps he was just nosy or he was looking for subtle ways to learn more about Brerra for whenever he was able to get back to his battalion. Regardless, the knight didn't feel comfortable with giving him any details into her personal life. "I'm not sure why you're asking but it's none of your business." she replied with a sigh.

Rory shrugged and shifted his gaze away. "I was just wondering... we heard a rumor from one of our southern battalions that a local thief had become the viceroy... I thought maybe it was regarding him."

At the mention of Crow, Penelope whipped her gaze back over to the enemy knight with newfound interest. "You've heard about him? Does that mean he's safely past your borders now?" she asked without restraint. Her previous hesitation to speak went out the window as soon as the opportunity to find out if Crow and the others had made it safely into Younis presented itself. She busied herself to keep her mind from worrying about the potential threats Crow may be facing on his journey so any information about his travel she could get was instantly appreciated. The sight of her caving so easily made Olivia give a soft laugh as she glanced over at the two.

Rory raised an eyebrow at them. "As far as I know, yeah. I know they sent some knights to escort the group and that everyone's been talking about how he used to steal from us and now he's one of the highest ranks one can receive... So it was him that your brother was referring to afterall?" he asked.

With brief hesitation, Penelope merely nodded her head. There was no sense in denying it now. The only additional information this Younisian had was that she was courting the thief turned viceroy, something that was likely a very minor detail in the grand scheme of things. For a moment, Rory didn't say anything and let a brief silence fall over the group. He finally broke it by quietly muttering, "Gods, Brerra is so strange."

Neither of the female knights replied to him though as their focus instead turned to leading him onward through the camp. Penelope could still feel Rory’s gaze lingering on her as she walked but she refused to address it further. The less this random Younisian knight knew about her, the better. Eventually the trio made it to where Gavin organized the holding tent. The makeshift prison wasn’t much different from any other tent aside from the fact that there was a set of cuffs and chains to keep the prisoner from wandering too far without permission. Since this was merely an enemy knight and not an infamous thief, Penelope doubted they had to worry too much about some grand escape but in this case, it was better safe than sorry. She stood to the side as Olivia escorted Rory over to the chains and turned to face Gavin as he stepped over to her side.

“I can help you with setting up a proper guard schedule for him.” Gavin offered and gave a small sigh. “Hopefully he doesn’t have to stay here too long though.”

“With any luck, things will simmer down in the coming weeks and he can be released.” Penelope murmured in agreement. “And I’ll take you up on that offer. Actually, if you could start setting that up for the rest of the day, I’d be grateful. I can watch over him until then.”

“I’ll get to it then.” Gavin nodded before turning to see himself out of the tent.

“And make sure the night guards bring him something for supper!” Penelope called over her shoulder. As Gavin gave a quick thumbs up as he walked off, she smiled a little and then turned her attention back over to Olivia and Rory, listening into whatever conversation the other female knight must have started with the Younisian knight.

“I mean, sure I was scouting the area too but it’s not like I was trying to spy on anyone. Had I known it would turn into this, I would have just slept in late this morning.” Rory pouted, while Olivia snickered. Penelope sighed, knowing her friend well enough to guess that now that things were quieting down she was taking stabs at the enemy knight’s pride.

“It was truly poor timing but with a bit of patience you’ll be back with your kingdom soon and unscathed.” Penelope added on a hopeful note as she decided to jump into the conversation.

Rory shifted his gaze over to her and then lowered it slightly to the chains that were now attached to his wrists. “I guess… I just don’t understand why I have to be kept here. All I heard was that you guys weren’t planning on attacking for sometime. I don’t see how that information could affect anything. We’re the ones still recovering from the last battle after all.” he said pleadingly as he glanced nervously between the two female knights.

Penelope studied him for a moment. The knight knew she wasn’t the best at judging when a person was lying or not-it was a craft she had yet to master-but the young knight in front of her seemed to genuinely think that the information he had heard was harmless. She let out a long sigh and crossed her arms. A serious expression crossed her visage as she met his gaze. “Your leaders will know how to use that information to your battalion’s advantage though. Especially if they know we’re only acting defensively right now. It might even encourage them to attack sooner. Our kingdom is trying to find a peaceful resolution to this war right now and if information like that was used to turn the tides of this war, peace might not come. So that’s why we have to keep you here.”

Rory frowned at her words, shrinking slightly as she spoke with conviction. Despite this, the knight still noticed him give a moment to pause and mull over her words. The young knight didn’t appear to want to throw in the towel on this discussion quite yet, which was a bit surprising since he hadn’t seemed very stubborn. Penelope could nearly picture the wheels of his mind spinning fast as he stared at the ground for a moment with his lips pressed into a thin line. When an idea finally sparked, he lifted his head back up eagerly to meet her gaze.

“W-Well what if our battalions made a truce then?” he asked, stuttering over his words with excitement.

“A truce?” Olivia echoed confusedly.

“Yeah! I mean, this war has been dragging on for so long some of my own comrades have been out here nearly a year and it’s not like we particularly enjoy battles either,” Rory rambled on. “But if your kingdom is seeking peace right now and your battalion doesn’t want to fight, you might be able to convince my barons into setting up a truce until further notice. T-that way no more blood is shed until either our kingdoms reach a peaceful agreement or..or we keep fighting for sure. What do you think?”

“It would be a nice break.” Olivia mused, not bothering to hide her interest at the idea.

“Maybe… But if the Younisians don’t agree, we might be put at a disadvantage…” Penelope mumbled hesitantly. It’d be lying to say the suggestion didn’t entice her. A truce until negotiations were done would mean both battalions could be at ease for a bit and the outer villages could also get a break from being part of the gruesome battlefields. However, if the Younisians rejected the idea, her battalion may be pushed into acting offensively sooner rather than later.

“I-It’s something to think about! You wouldn’t even have to mention the thing about your battalion backing off from the war and I promise I won’t mention anything… If you let me go back, I mean.” Rory said, seeming encouraged by the reactions he was getting.

Penelope opened her mouth to say something more but was cut off as the flap of the tent shifted and two knights walked in. One carried a small bowl of stew in his hands, a simple detail that let her know that these were guards sent by Gavin. As they dipped their head to her and announced they were there to take over watch, Penelope nodded her head and exchanged a glance with Olivia before moving to leave the tent. The two women headed out into their camp in a silence that didn’t last long.

“Sooooooo…. Are you going to try to get a truce set up?” Olivia asked curiously.

“I don’t know… It’s not a bad idea, but I’m not sure I, or any of us, could convince our own enemies to lay down their weapons for a peace that hasn’t been negotiated yet..” Penelope sighed.

“You convinced many snotty nobles and the king himself. What’s a couple more Younisian barons?” Olivia smirked, elbowing her friend encouragingly. “I say go for it! Plus if we’re in a truce, that means we can really make the most of our stay in the outer villages! I’m thinking we visit all those taverns again but for play not for work.”

Penelope laughed at Olivia’s suggestion. “I’ll think about it, I promise. Still, it’s a bit different than convincing people of the same kingdom. I don’t really know anyone over there.”

Olivia shrugged her shoulders. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out… Anyways, let's go get dinner! I’m starving and someone’s got a big duel in the morning! Come on!” she grinned as she hooked one arm around her friend’s shoulders to drag her towards the dining area.

“Oh gods don’t remind me.” Penelope groaned as she allowed her friend to drag her along to supper.

With a lot to consider and the duel she had challenged her brother to set for tomorrow morning, Penelope made quick work of her meal and retired to her tent at an early hour. Sleep did not come easy though. Her mind kept thinking of various angles at which she could possibly convince the Younisian nobles to stand down from attacking until word was received from the negotiations. While she ran through different scenarios, Layth would occasionally come to mind. The knight mentally kicked herself for challenging him to a duel in the first place. Though there wasn’t much on the line other than pride, she felt ashamed for ever setting it up in the first place. Gods if only I had kept my big mouth shut… damnit I need to sleep.. Penelope groaned and buried her face into her pillow. After a while of tossing and turning to try and settle her mind, the knight eventually drifted off into a light slumber with her stomach churning anxiously for the duel that she’d be facing off with in the morning.
i'm back! and looking to take on a couple new rps c:
I'm finally baaaackk xD

Hopefully that wasn't too rusty lol I've been planning to have Layth and Penelope reach a boiling point but it's been so long it
was a bit difficult to write xD
The three knights trudged through the forest back towards the Brerratic battalion. Penelope keep the conversation between herself and Olivia short. This Younisian scout had already overheard more than enough, the last thing she wanted to do was leave an opening for either herself or her friend to give him even more information on their battalion. Occasionally, the female knight’s gaze would wander over to the young Younsian boy. He was quiet and clearly fearful. He made no efforts to jump into their conversation and instead kept to himself. Penelope caught him eying the surrounding forest a couple times but the look in his gaze suggested that he was looking for possible help rather than an escape route.

As the three came upon the camp, their captive quickly became tense, nervously eying the guards they passed by. Penelope let out a small breath as she noticed a few of her comrades shooting harsh glares towards the Younisian and muttering hateful words as the group passed by.

“I… I’m not going to be executed right? I really meant it when I said I wouldn’t cause you guys any trouble.” the young boy whispered to his two captors, glancing between them.

“This is just a precaution. I’ll make certain that you’re able to leave this camp unharmed.” Penelope assured, feeling a sting of sympathy for the younger knight.

“Hopefully your brother doesn’t get in the way of that.” Olivia mused with a nod towards the large tent at the center of camp. By the time the trio had neared it, talk of their return had spread like wildfire through the camp and now the barons along with their lieutenants— minus Tomas who was likely out of camp on his own patrol—stood right outside the meeting place. Mia eyed her lieutenant with a questioning gaze while the other two barons narrowed their eyes on the Younisian captive. And of course, there was Layth, who kept his venomous gaze focused solely on Penelope.

Penelope dipped her head to the barons. “Olivia and I encountered this scout on our patrol. I believe that he overheard some sensitive information so I brought him back to camp with us to ensure that that information does not get back to the Younisian barons.”

“You should have just run your sword through him if you were that concerned.” Layth grumbled.

“We’re trying to end this war peacefully. Not continue the bloodshed.” The female knight met her brother’s gaze with an equally cold glare. Layth had been getting on her nerves more than usual as of late and the constant clashing testing her patience. As the two siblings glared each other down, neither was willing to back down. It was only when Mia spoke up that finally made them turn away from each other once more.

“Since he is here now, we must make plans on how to accommodate this new prisoner. Penelope, bring him into the tent with us for now. And Olivia, fetch some chain cuffs.” Mia order before turning and gesturing for the others to follow her inside.

Penelope exchanged a glance with her friend before Olivia stepped away to do as ordered. The female lieutenant let out a small sigh and motioned for the Younisian to go ahead of her. She trailed into the tent after him and pulled up Tomas’ currently vacant seat for their new prisoner while she sat down in her regular one besides him. To her other side, she noticed Gavin glance over at them for a brief moment before looking to the barons once more.

“Now then, I assume we’re all on the same page that we will be keeping this Younisian as a prisoner for the time being correct?” Mia asked, namely glancing towards Edward.

Edward had his lips pressed into a thin line but with one quick glance at Penelope, he nodded his head. “We are.” he replied with a small huff.

Bennet offered no opposition, merely nodding his head as well. With everyone in agreement—aside from Layth, who had his jaw clenched in visible frustration—Mia moved on with the meeting. “Good. Since we are hoping for a peaceful end to this war, I want it seen to that… I’m sorry but what is your name?” she paused looking over at the Younisian, who seemed to shrink slightly under her gaze.

“It’s…Rory ma’am.” he answered.

“A pleasure to meet you Rory. My name’s Mia.” The baroness nodded approvingly. Turning back to the others, she continued. “Right then, I want it seen to that Rory is given a proper stay here even though he is a prisoner. A proper tent and meals. Of course, he’ll have to be chained and have a guard posted outside his quarters at all times.”

Layth balled his hands into fists. “Must we provide so much? He’s a prisoner and we need to be mindful of our supplies.” he argued. 

“He’s human and deserves to be treated as such until he can be released back to his battalion.” Penelope scoffed in return. She met her brother’s gaze with a glare. “Surely we have enough supplies to accommodate one prisoner for a short time.”

Layth parted his lips, clearly intending on arguing with his sister. However, before he could say anything, Edward chimed in gruffly. “Of course we do. There’s no need for this argument to carry on any further.” he grunted, shooting a warning glare towards his nephew. Penelope looked over at her uncle just in time to see him give a subtle nod in the direction of Rory. It seemed that, despite her uncle’s usual cruelness, he was in agreement with Mia for the sake of making sure that the Younisian wouldn’t think they were low on supplies. It wasn’t hard to guess that the last thing Edward wanted was for his battalion to come off as weak to enemy knight.

Penelope relaxed slightly, glad she wouldn’t have to further defend giving the young knight respectable care. Despite her calming down, tension was still radiating from her brother. One glance towards Layth was enough for the female lieutenant to see he was fuming from being shut down by his own baron once again, an occurrence that was happening more and more often. While Edward’s newfound agreeableness made things easier for her during meetings, it was clearly having a rather negative effect on her brother, who now found himself overwhelmingly outnumbered.

Before the conversation could continue and drawing Penelope from her thoughts, the flap of the tent shifted and Olivia stepped inside with a pair of cuffs. The other female knight dipped her head respectfully before stepping over to Rory, who frowned at the sight but with one quick glance around the room, offered no protest to the chain cuffs and held out his wrists willingly.

“Ah Olivia, excellent timing. Things were just wrapping up here.” Mia said with a small smile. The baroness swept her gaze over the others before continuing, “Now then, since our decision with dealing with this prisoner have been settled, Gavin I’d like you to go ahead and see to it that a tent is prepared for our new guest. Penelope you can aid Olivia with escorting Rory here and scheduling guards.”

Edward nodded approvingly before he turned to his lieutenant. “Layth, while it’s still light out, you should take out a patrol to survey the area. Make sure there aren’t any other Younisians hanging around.”

“Understood.” Layth muttered, clearly unable to keep a hint of bitterness out of his voice.

“Excellent, then I believe we can end things here. You are all dismissed.” Mia announced.

Penelope moved to stand up and waited for Olivia to finish putting the cuffs on before trailing after her friend and the prisoner. Layth fell in behind her on his way out and the knight could feel his cold gaze before he even opened his mouth.

“So sister, going to go charm another enemy?” He taunted bitterly. “Disgrace the family name a little more?”

An all too familiar anger bubbled inside Penelope as she turned to face her brother as they stepped out of the tent. “Screw you Layth.” she growled in return. “You’re just bitter uncle’s actually siding with me right now.”

Layth clenched his fists at his sides. “You’ve got everyone fooled that’s for sure. You and that bastard thief of yours. It’s only a matter of time until this all backfires on you and hurts the rest of us.” he snapped in return. He paused and then sneered at her. “He may be playing the part of a nobleman right now but his fate has and always will be to hang from the gallows like any other dirty criminal.”

A flash of fury burned through the knight. She had been putting up with Layth’s constant antagonizing and finally her patience had run thin with his cold words. Her hand gripped the hilt of her sword but she managed to stop herself from drawing it on her half brother. Instead, Penelope took a threatening step towards him, pushing herself into his space as she met his gaze with a fiery look. Caught off guard, Layth’s bitter look gave way to one of brief surprise. While the two argued and spat hateful words at each other, neither had, at least of recent, gotten physical in their aggression.

“Bastard, I’m sick of you and this constant attacking. I’ve been hoping that you would eventually calm down a bit but since you refuse to, I’m challenging you to a duel to end these petty fights once and for all.” Penelope snapped.

“And exactly what comes from winning?” Layth grunted, narrowing his eyes at his sister.

“Loser admits they were wrong and this argument about my courtship ceases.” Penelope responded, narrowing her eyes in return.

Layth smirked victoriously, looking as though he believed himself to have already won. “I accept your challenge on the condition that when I win, I get to have you admit that I was right about your courtship in front of your oh-so dear thief when he returns.”

“Fine… but only if when I win, you congratulate us on our courtship when he returns then.” Penelope rebutted.

Her brother’s face wrinkled in disgust at the idea but Layth didn’t deny her request. Likely because he was so confident in winning. “Works for me.” he agreed, stretching his hand out to her. A smug look crossed his face. “How does tomorrow morning sound?”

“Sounds like a good time for me too kick your ass.” Penelope snorted, finding herself annoyed by how overly confident he was. Though it had been a while since the two had last even spared, the female knight was confident in her skills as a swordsman. At the very least, she’d make sure he wouldn’t secure any easy win, if he won at all.
“Oh! And I can be the referee!” An excited Olivia pipped in.

Having been so focused on challenging her brother, Penelope had momentarily forgotten about Olivia and Rory, nor had she noticed that their tiff had gathered a small crowd of onlookers who were curious about the two clashing siblings. Realizing she had made a scene, the knight felt her face heat up in slight embarassment and she stepped away from her brother to join Olivia.

“No way you’re refereeing. Like I’d trust my sister’s friend to oversee such a thing.” Layth growled.

“I’ll do it then.” Mia, whom had been one of the onlookers, offered. She eyed Layth. “I know Penelope is my lieutenant but I can promise I’ll be fair in my judgments.”

Layth hesitated. Penelope glanced between her brother and baroness. It wasn’t difficult for her to assume that he wasn’t fond of Mia overseeing the event but since she was a powerful baroness, it would be hard to deny her offer. It seemed her power outweighed his hesitation as Layth gave a reluctant nod. “I have no objections to that… I assume you don’t either?” he grumbled looking over at the female lieutenant, who shook her head.

“Excellent. I’ll see you both on the training grounds tomorrow morning then.” Mia said with a polite smile. She excused herself and walked on leaving the others behind.

“We should get going too. Gavin went ahead of us already to get the tent ready for Rory here.” Olivia pointed out.

“Right. Let’s go then.” Penelope agreed. She shared one last cold look with her brother before turning to accompany Olivia and the Younisian knight, still tense from the moment of anger that had led her to challenging her brother to a duel.
Nice! Finally got to throw in one of the Younisian characters that I've been meaning to cx

He is actually a disguised she but I'm thinking of going the route of making him realize he's transgender. At least as much as our setting will allow. I'll get a CS up for him soon!

EDIT: Also forgot to add this before but basically Otto when the Younisian knights appeared xD

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