[h2][u]Final Answers[/u][/h2] [b]What is your first name?[/b] Isabellae [b]What do You Want to Respond to Gurrond?[/b] D) [color=f26522]"Whatever they are paying you, I'll pay double. You can always count on the word of an Allerstone!"[/color] You puff your chest out proudly, but then remember: [color=f26522]"Oh, and my name is [name]. [name] Allerstone."[/color] (color: f26522 ) [hr] Albeit this treatment wasn't unkind, she was still left in this disgraceful, for lack of a better word, CELL, bland as they came, without a clue on whether she had been rescued or kidnapped. When she was asked for her name, it seemed like a good opportunity to put her cards on the table and make her demands. With an arm almost as limp as a rag doll, she somehow managed to lift it up enough to bring it to her chest for what she hoped was a slightly more dignified look. [color=f26522]"Whatever they are paying you, I'll pay double. You can always count on the word of an Allerstone!"[/color] Isabellae puffed her chest out proudly, but then remembered: [color=f26522]"Oh, and my name is Isabellae. Isabellae Allerstone."[/color] [color=a36209]"Allerstone. One of the prominent craftsmen families that's taken to creating magical tools as of late? Are you saying you are their daughter?" [/color] [color=f26522]"But of course! Was the insignia on the carriage not enough to tell?"[/color] Even if it was just a layer of cloth, a famed craftsman's insignia was usually a symbol most should recognize, especially if they knew of the craftsman or craftsmen family in question. Who, after seeing that symbol of the golem hand on the side of an enchanted blade, would ever again hesitate about its perpetual sharpness or the toughness of the steel? Who wouldn't be able to tell of the honor and prestige of a carriage bearing it even on a simple cloth banner hanging from the window? Gurrond's eyes widened for a moment, but he brought a hand to his chin, covering over his mouth while his eyes seemed to scout the ground. Then he took a deep breath and lowered his head. [color=a36209]"I'm truly sorry for your loss, Isabellae."[/color] Isabellae could practically hear her next heartbeat: it felt like some sort of ominous hiccup. [color=f26522]"My, my loss?"[/color] The air inside her lungs felt faster, her mouth was hung open by them. [color=f26522]"Grain didn't...he didn't, right?"[/color] [color=a36209]"Grain? Was that the boy that was with you under the carriage? I'm sorry for his loss too but... Isabellae, do you not know what happened to your parents?"[/color] She almost shivered, but her feelings were growing mixed. What was he talking about? What was this Gurrond about to reveal to her? [color=f26522]"Did something happen to them in the Amberins?"[/color] Gurrond's eyes instantly met hers. [color=a36209]"So you really haven't heard about it. But how, misinformation? Treason perhaps? No, that isn't important right now."[/color] The grey man's hands gradually came closer together, grasping at each other. [color=a36209]"Isabellae I... I'm going to say something that... no, I don't know how to tell you this, but your parents, they never made it to the Amberins. They were... they died in an ambush almost two weeks ago. I'm sorry."[/color] As if jolted with a sudden herculean spike of strength, Isabellae's arms nearly propelled her out of the bed, as if attempting to jump towards Gurrond. She screamed, but Gurrond caught her in his arms. He softly lowered the panting girl down to the ground as her hands instinctively clutched his clothes and she shook her head. Her stare could have split a shield in two, but not a word left her mouth even after her panting stopped and she let go of his clothes at last. Gurrond headed towards the door. [color=a36209]"This is probably a lot to take in. I am not good at delivering this sort of news, but I suppose this is probably a time when I should leave you be alone for a bit. Let me know when you feel ready to talk, or call for me if you need anything. I'll be right around the corner. I'll leave the door open too, alright Isabellae?"[/color] Having said that, he passed through the threshold. The door was left just a sliver away from closing, just enough to be able to see the corridor outside from the right angle. Isabellae just sat there, staring blankly at the door. Each of her senses felt numb, there was almost a ringing sound in her head, the path ahead seemed blurry, she could barely tell what kind of floor she was in anymore. Her limbs felt even more limp than before too. She closed her eyes. Memories began flooding her mind. Her earliest memory was probably the time when her mother brought her to a party. It was hard to remember a lot about it. The lights were bright, the sounds felt overwhelming, the faces were all so funny or scary. She remembered crying a lot, though as expected the 'why' of it was rather fuzzy. SHe remembered lessons her parents taught her about enchantments and signet-stamps, the old and new lifeblood of their trade. She remembered how they joined in when the maids wanted to dress her up for the holidays. She remembered the day she met Grain... [hr] [center]6. How did Isabellae meet Grain? A) He was a boy even younger than her that lived in the slums. Out of pity / compassion, Isabellae begged her parents to take him in. Though officially a servant, he was treated and viewed more like a little brother to her. B) He was hired or bought, and trained specifically to serve her as a butler or a bodyguard (whichever he would've turned out to be more suitable to, had he lived). C) They met one day during a festival, when Isabellae was lost in the woods and he helped her find her way back to her parents. He became her mischievous friend who loved pranks and helping her sneak around. Although he was nowhere near her actual standing, it became clear she was quite attached to this boy, to the point where, as a test, he was allowed to come with her on this trip. D) He was an apprentice to her parents, learning by her side about craftsmanship and trade. He was always viewed as a rival, someone who spurred Isabellae on to surpassing him, in an admitedly somewhat childish (but nonetheless satisfying) effort to earn back more of her parent's attention. [/center] - - - Tags: [@loganthecat] [@stone] [@erode] [@yankee]