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Octavio felt his muscles relax at the mention of a rebel party within the town. It meant several things. One, the bigwigs were going to be devoting a lot of time and resources to them, and two, it meant that he was in an environment where tension and distrust were going to be higher than usual.

[color=#dde0c7]"Rebels, excellent. More willing to commit to action than the average man, and more knowledgeable of the inner workings of the town than any of the higher ups could ever hope to be."[/color] He sauntered close to the exit, less out of impatience and more out of not being used to having to wait on others. [color=#dde0c7]"Even if they don't form some sort of alliance with us, we should still make a serious attempt to get as much information about the city as possible from them."[/color]

All of the political and social reasons backing the rebels didn't matter to Octavio. He just wanted as much information as possible and knew from experience that it was the commoners who knew the most about the lands. 

...

Lynx had to stop himself from wincing at Sil's words. [color=#ffff66][i]Who was that aimed at?[/i][/color] he thought, vanity and concern poorly hidden under a layer of annoyance. Octavio didn´t answer his question and instead replied directly to Chres. 

[color=#dde0c7]"Fat? I suppose my friend here enjoys his meals, even in times of crisis."[/color] He shot a jokingly accusatory look at the cat, who communicated his fury at Octavio wordlessly. Both of them knew that around this point in their squabbling Lynx would usually disappear for awhile to mutter angrily to himself, but their scenery had instilled a sense of vulnerability within them. Everyone in town, it seemed, was trying to fend for themselves. Octavio never considered himself to be good with kids, but even he still found himself surprised at the horrified stares the younger townsfolk gave him. [color=#dde0c7][i]At least now we don't have to worry about some sticky brat petting you.[/i][/color] Octavio thought, with a gentleness intended to diffuse Lynx. 

Chres had spent their time around the market with a worried look on his face. Everyone around them looked more or less the same, but it felt odd to see the unofficial leader of their party joining in. It was wrong somehow, and Octavio felt as if he needed to remedy it. He immediately brushed away the prospect of beginning to care about him as soon as his mind suggested it, however, and he attempted to busy his thoughts with some trinket that caught his eye. [color=#dde0c7][i]He doesn´t drink, so I can´t solve this with wine.[/i][/color] he thought, against his own wishes. 

[color=#dde0c7]"How I got my familiar, eh?"[/color] Octavio was glad that he´d initiated the conversation instead of the other way around, as even with his skills in speechcraft he knew that there really wasn´t much to talk about. It wasn´t like with lying to nobles, where you could just earn their respect by one-upping them over and over again. Chres was different. His eyes slowly settled on his familiar, taking in Lynx´s beauty more sharply now that it had been pointed out. Yes... Lynx was definitely striking, elegant to the point of being imposing. Octavio even felt a pang of guilt for having gotten used to it. Fur the gray of a gentle dawn surrounding a lithe and powerful body, adorned with a storm of dark spots all across his back. Lynx turned to look at him, meeting Octavio´s gaze with a pair of eyes the color of ice water.

[color=#dde0c7]"I was at a ball one day."[/color] Octavio began to speak, not breaking the eye contact with the big cat. [color=#dde0c7]"The King and Queen wanted a grand celebration for their daughter's coming of age. It was more than simply that however, as they had wished to see if any of the town's young men could be an eligible suitor."[/color] He remembered all of the espionage and flattery involved in inferring just that one simple sentence. His thoughts were once again a mad mess of possible outcomes and sentences, mixing and matching to try and determine the best possible series of events to present. 

[color=#dde0c7]"The princess loved animals, mostly the familiars that the court wizards would entertain her with. She brought out nearly a dozen of them for her ball, all of them anchored to precious stones that were just as eye catching as they were. One of them had caught my eye, a lynx being constrained by an ornamental leash that was painful to even look at. Anyone could have seen that he was in great pain by his movements alone."[/color] Lynx turned away. Remembering his days as an ornament angered him. 

[color=#dde0c7]"I had no interest in trying to capture the princess' heart, and my close friend at the time had failed to show up. With no plans in mind and an abundance of wealth I simply negotiated a purchase. She didn´t care for him, so it wasn´t difficult." [/color]

Several brief periods of violence and emotion swept around the various webs of sentences that were being formulated and selected. Glass being shattered, guards being fought, his once closest friend attempting to murder him the moment he fled the scene. The smile he gave Chres was friendly, yet his thoughts centered on vengeance. If he were to do one more thing before dying in this horrid situation he found himself in, it was hunting down Ophelia and flaying her. The woman who had grown up with him in their orphanage as a sister, providing him with the wrong information to get him killed, and then attempting to finish him off herself after he had survived. One of the few genuine emotions in his stunted heart was hatred towards her. Raw, total hatred.