[center][h3][color=C0392B]Rudolf Sagramore[/color][/h3][/center]

Rudolf, despite the familiar faces and scenery that surrounded him, sat quiet, a stink-eye for the ages contorting his youthful visage the way only a suspicious younger sibling could. 

With the matter of Team Unicorn settled, their time across the final leg of the overland journey had proven briefer than Rudolf had remembered— probably a combination of the brisk pace Wulfric and his party had set their chocobos to, and the fact that it was journey the younger Edrenian hadn't made since he was a boy. Riding at a familiar hard pace meant a lot more distance, likely, when the world between Caerdaran and the Castle Demet wasn't quite so big. 

[b]"Young master."[/b]

He sighed, pausing his glare through the back of Wulfric's head to curl it up towards Balder, the household's butler, looming over him with a glass full of golden liquid in hand, plucked from a platter in his far arm. The steely composure had yet to leave his face, forever placid and proper. [b]"Your [i]apple juice[/i], sir. Terribly sorry about the mix-up earlier."[/b]

Rudolf eyed it warily, gingerly accepting the drink with a grunt and a sniff. No nose of alcohol this time, just crisp sweetness. He took a sip to taste, before slowly imbibing— disaster had struck moments before.

[b]"I made sure to fetch your favorite. Had you given me ample time, I might have warned you. Earl Demet had thought it would be nice to welcome you back here with a pour from his personal reserve. The barrel is nearly as old as you are."[/b]

He had, of course, immediately drained the first drink handed to him, no deeper in color than this one, and nearly choked when it was whisky hitting the back of his throat instead. [color=c0392b]"For twenty years, that was damned pale."[/color] he grunted over the lip of the glass, returning his scowl back to Wulfric's gleefully talking head. The heir of the household was currently too busy regaling a put-upon looking Galahad with some tall tale to catch the suspicious look— but Rudolf couldn't help but notice the boisterous guffaw that had just so happened to erupt from him, in time with the stricken lad's sputtering through the alcohol. He was in on it. He had to be, Rudi was sure.[sup]1[/sup]

[b]"Indeed. Surprisingly light for nineteen years."[/b] the manservant concurred, idly correcting both ages that were tied to their talk. [b]"But it aged beautifully nonetheless. So much that he's kept it all to himself until now— pray tell, would you have me go inform him you disliked it, sir?"[/b]

[color=c0392b]"No, no. It's..."[/color] He sighed through the nose as he set the juice down, rubbing at his half-scarred temples. [color=c0392b]"It's fine. I'd have it again, even. And no 'sir'. I'm divested of my family, remember? Just a guy from Sagramore, these days. We're basically on the same level."[/color]

A raised brow from the older man. [b]"Then maybe if you behave yourself for once, Rudolf. I'll be attending to the other guests."[/b]

[color=c0392b]"[i]Hey—[/i]"[/color]

[b]"Good to see you again, kid."[/b]

There was a strangled groan as Rudolf's three-way collision of protests crashed into one another within the depths of his throat, as the salt-and-pepper haired man took his leave, gliding away to the other Kirins with his platter in hand. Asshole. [i]Asshole![/i] That prim propriety, the same one Rudolf had summoned from memory at the docks when they first landed in Drana Asnaeu, it cloaked an asshole! He knew Rudolf was gonna fall for that prank, too, he was sure of it! He and Cadmon and Wulfric had probably put their heads together to plot to mess with him!

And it didn't stop there, he realized, sinking back into the cushion and trying to let the alcohol relax him [i]just a little[/i] before another familiar voice sounded off, her own two gil in hand.

"Oh, excellent, you [i]didn't[/i] spill this one. Now, Rudy. What happened to you, did you go playing inside a furnace while you were away?"

Lydia, one of the maids, had evidently been close enough to overhear his mention of lowered social standing and seen fit to drive it all the way to the hilt as she swiftly retrieved an emptied plate, the teacake that had sat upon it having been swiftly devoured. Her smarm could practically fill the room on its's own—

"And his clothes are in tatters. You run straight through bramble on your way down, Rudy?"

Marguerite, now, from across the table.

"Bit depressing picture looking at you, Rudy. Haven't been this much a downer around your friends have you? Feel like I'll get bad luck if I get too close." 

Robert, a footman, keeping his distance from the swelling air of disquiet. Seriously, did they [i]coordinate[/i] this?[sup]2[/sup]

[color=c0392b]"surely you jokers have [i]better[/i] things to do."[/color] he stewed, grinding each word out through his teeth, before pulling up in the seat with a huff. [color=c0392b]"For that matter, what's the Earl attending to that's keeping Wulf from just kicking his door open and saying [i]'Hey Dad, I've brought the runt and his friends, you can yell at him now'[/i] the way he normally would?"[/color] he asked, pointedly wearing the affectation of a dimwitted brute while the dimwitted brute continued to bug the Knight Dragoon.[sup]3[/sup]

They shared a glance, before looking to their least-indisposed boss. Balder looked up from cleaning his glasses with a handkerchief, his circuit of the Kirins momentarily settled before Esben. A consummate professional, it didn't take him long to feel their eyes all falling to him.

[b]"As it always is, my boy. He's poring over writing in his study. A lot of communication to keep up with these days. I'm sure you remember that a party of eight is rather large to cram in there— rest assured, the Earl will be out shortly enough. Patience is a virtue, Rudy, you used to have more of it."[/b]

At that, he folded his arms and ground his teeth, biding his time until one of the two people that surely signed off on this particular welcoming stance could answer for their crimes of making him the butt of the joke. At least the edge of the ride had been taken off by the mishap, so... silver linings.

[hr][hr]
[list]
[*][sub]1. So, the story here is evidently that Wulfric had already gotten the kid to try some booze while drinking with friends when they were both much younger— only for thirteen-year-old Rudolf to immediately down the whole thing once he'd been handed it and thus be instantly tanked. All subsequent "tries" that night were just surreptitiously poured apple juice, and this story had gotten around the Castle by the time Rudolf had been sent off home. He thought the first glass [i]was[/i] apple juice, and that the butler was just doing a cheeky callback.[/sub]
[*][sub]2. No, you just gave them an opening. Familiar guest or not, servants [i]love[/i] openings. And maybe their Lord told them he wouldn't stop them if they messed with you, but primarily, servants love openings. Fold it into your porter bit.[/sub]
[*][sub]3. Little note here. I love, genuinely, that this is still how guys imitate eachother. Puff up the chest, hunch the shoulders, drop your verbal IQ into the negatives. It's so universal.[/sub]
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