When the door opened and all Will could see was a burly chest and a beard he couldn't help but swallow a bit nervously as he tried to peer up into the face of the large man. Then he was staring into the man's eyes when he stooped down. Will tried to appear calm, but with the men straggling along behind him and Liam leaning heavily against him and moaning softly he knew that he must have looked desperate. After a moment of silence in which he gazed intently at the man, Will finally spoke. "...Please," he said, managing to at least keep his voice mostly collected. "Sir, I know that this is...that it looks..." He was at a lost and after a brief pause he simply repeated, "Please."

The man finally stood b ack, allowing them entry, and relief washed through Will like a river. "Thank you," was all he could say, and he must have repeated himself at least a hundred times and he led Liam into the warmth of the farmhouse. He barely had time to notice the vastness of the interior, nor the scent of the food that made his stomach ache (soup n the road was fine enough, but not very filling). His primary concern was Liam for the moment, and he gently helped the prince into a chair in front of the fire. Liam himself didn't seem to be able to speak, still too panicked and shocked from his sudden blindness. He simply curled up onto the chair, almost appearing to shrink into a shell of his real self. Will made sure he was secure before whispering that he would be back in a few moments. Liam didn't respond.

Will pushed himself to his feet and moved over to their host. The small dog at his knees made him smile for the briefest of moments, but he could not get Liam, nor the Marshal's words to Raquelle, out of his head. He nodded respectfully and gratefully to the man when he approached him, though. "We were told we could find shelter here. I don't know how many of us can ever replay you for your kindness... My name is Will. The man in the armchair is Prince Liam. Of Itelia."

~~~~~

Sam watched as August spoke to the beautifully intimidating woman in the mirror he had had in his pocket. She didn't need to hear August address her as "my queen" to be able to know that this woman was Narissa herself. The woman who was the cause of all of this. But she could barely pay attention to her when she was listening to August was saying to her. Her gray eyes were fixed upon him, widening with every word he spoke, and she watched him essentially resign and tell the queen to go to hell. Then he threw the mirror, shattering it before the woman could get in a word, and it startled her slightly. But she wasn't able to look away from him as they started off again, and she nodded her head in understanding when he spoke to her.

"So...you basically just...quit your job?" Sam still felt shocked about this unexpected turn of events. The previous day he had been telling her how vital it was that he keep his cover with Narissa, but now she had just watched him purposely blow it. Something must have happened in these last few hours. Something big. Still...watching him basically tell the queen to go fuck herself had been so satisfying, and there were a smile flickering across her face as she looked at him. "I thought...you had this whole covert, lone wolf thing going on. You know, couldn't trust anyone, couldn't let the queen know you were working against her." Sam's head titled slightly as she studied him, and her tone became softer, more serious, when she spoke next. "What happened? What changed your mind?"