[IC] Glass Shoes [GranoxFirewind/LalaKitty]

[Lala Kitty]

Ella continued to clutch her side as Ariana herded her to the stables. While Ella's attempt to subdue the woman had failed, she didn't want to give up yet, to give up hope that Ariana would possibly calm down and take her offer to leave peacefully. After her attempt on the queen's life, no one would let her leave the castle alive; she needed Ella's help if she wanted to get away safely.

"Please, think this through," Ella insisted, being dragged by her hair now, "If you let me help you, you can get away with everything, head home. I'm useless to the king right now; I guarantee you I am dispensable to him."

"Actually," the assassin hissed, "Because of my actions, you will be remembered as a loyal princess. It sickens me to know that you'll be known as the beautiful, pitiful princess, rather than the vile traitor you are."

With a harsh yank, Ariana pulled Ella in front of her again, the dagger at her throat. Stable hands and armored soldiers alike drew their weapons at the sight of their future princess in such danger. Ariana kept her face calm and slowly advanced, the threat in her eyes evident; she wouldn't hesitate to kill Ella. Ariana's movements became quicker, less steady. Ella knew she was impatient on escaping from the castle now.

"Prepare me a horse!" the woman barked, "Do as I say, and I might let the princess live."

[GranoxFirewind]

He followed through the tunnels, finally glad his father had taken the time to show them to him. At first, when he'd been so young, a boy of merely ten, his father had told him they might save his life one day. He'd been so bored that day, desiring nothing more than to play with the other noble children. Now, he thought with a sense of amusement, they had done far more than save his life. They'd help him save the life of his beloved, if he was fast enough.

He was lucky, then, that they were streamlined. Straight under the castle, there was no winding passage, no traffic to get in his way, no guards or locked doors, or otherwise barred paths. No, this was a path that had been intended to get royalty out of the castle as quickly as possible, should the need arise. It had certainly arisen.

Soon enough, a faint light began to shine through. It led to a small supply shed, one that held a variety of tools for the work of a stable boy. The tunnel ended abruptly, replaced by a ladder to the source of the light, a piece of the wooden flooring that could be pushed up. On he went, climbing up, shoving the wooden flooring out of the way for him to climb on up. He replaced the flooring, afterall, no one needed to know how he'd arrived.

Slipping out of the shed, he noticed Ella and Ariana approaching. Perfect... He had arrived before them. He could take the assassin by surprise! Her demands for a horse were heard, but he was behind them. Out he charged. He'd given away his position before, leading to Ella being hurt and his help being neglected, by shouting for Ella. He wouldn't do that again. His aim was simple, he was going to charge straight into Ariana, force her to pay attention to him. Then the other guards could react. Simple.

[Lala Kitty]

Ella grew more nervous as she was dragged to a horse, Ariana's grip firm and absolute; she wasn't going to release Ella, not while she was the only thing keeping the assassin alive. But maybe Ella would still be able to get herself out of this. She only had one more shot.

"Ariana, I can distract the guards and let you get away," Ella reasoned, "You don't want to have to do all of this, right? You were never given a choice, just handed a dagger as a small child and ordered to survive. I know how that is, and trust me, if you kill me now, Marken will hunt you down to the ends of the earth to get his revenge; you'll never be able to rest again."

Ariana's grip loosened a little finally, her blade quivering; she really didn't want to kill. But who had a choice to say no to the king? Not everyone had Ella's great fortune of being drug out of their shady job; they usually turned up in city gutters, barely missed at all. Slowly, Ariana began to lower her blade, letting Ella explain herself further.

& then, Marken charged from behind, gaining everyone's attention; he looked so strong and heroic, almost like a real warrior as he charged. Adriana let out an enraged cry & shoved Ella to the ground. The blade in her hand sliced into Ella's neck as she fell, her hands flying up to cling to it. She was swarmed over by the stable boy and a soldier as Ariana faced Marken, her gaze deadly.

"Lady Ella will live!" the stable hand announced to Marken quickly, "The assassin only cut the skin."

Ella wiggled and tried to sit up, to badly Marken and Ariana to stop, but she was held securely, and her voice wasn't coming out thanks to the jarring feel.of blood oozing from her wound. There was no way either opponent would back down, and more soldiers were on their way, by the looks of it. Ariana's chances of escape were dwindling very quickly, and either her or Marken would die in the inevitable, desperate clash.

[GranoxFirewind]

He'd managed to get away from Adriana after she shoved Ella away, pulling out his sword again. Others were nearby, that could help him in this fight... But, at the same time, they didn't want to get close. They didn't want to endanger their prince by giving the woman nothing to live for. "Give it up, assassin. I've won, you're cornered. You've already compounded your crimes by trying to kill my bride and trying to escape, I wouldn't recommend doing anything more. My father isn't a happy man when his laws are broken." His voice was strong and firm, even if his sword arm wasn't the best.

Moving himself between the assassin and Ella, it was clear she would be forced to attack him to get to the princess, if she had any intentions of not going down alone. His sword was extended before him threateningly, and he was waiting for the assassin to try the first attack.

[Lala Kitty]

Once again, Ella tried in vain to calm Marken, her arm reaching out to him. She had to warn him and Ariana, try to get them both to calm down. No one had to die, or to hold a grudge. Both of them were being shoved into this fight, when in truth, they could both just walk away.

It pained Ella to see Ariana charge after Marken, releasing an angry, strangled cry into the air. She came at him full force, intending to end their battle with one attack. Either she would land a blow, or Marken would. Ella became more insistent to free herself of the men trying to calm her, her voice cracking as she called out to the assassin.

"Ariana, don't!"

At the sound of Ella's voice, Ariana flinched for a moment, but it was enough to barely miss her attack against Marken. Her dagger flew in the air and barely grazed his cheek, the young woman's eyes widening as she realized what her mistake was about to cost her. Ella tried to stop Marken, but she was held down again, subdued by the stable hand and knights trying to calm her.

[GranoxFirewind]

He stood there on guard, watching as Ariana charged him. He hadn't even heard her name to this point, simply referring to her as 'the maid' or 'the assassin. Never actually giving her a true name, something disrespectful. Granted, she had tried to have him killed multiple times, along with his wife, so he supposed that was only fair to both parties involved. He doubted he could best her in swordplay, expecting one of his men to come and intervene. Instead, something else happened.

Ella shouted out, and the assassins blade missed. The attack would've been fatal, cutting open his throat and leaving him to bleed out on the ground, unable to strike back. Instead, it merely cut his cheek, and allowed him time to bring his own attack in. His stance had been set up for exactly this, stabbing forward with the shortsword. It easily pierced her clothing and flesh, half the blade cutting in and into her lung. With every artery he'd nicked on the way in, she'd be dead in minutes.

She stared at him, almost dumbfounded, as Markens face turned to one of pure shock. He hadn't intended to kill the girl, not himself anyway. He fell back, watching the assassins blood pool on the blade and begin to drip down, a numbness taking over his limbs. It was like he'd entered some kind of alternate reality, where the world was lighter, and heavier, he simply couldn't comprehend it. What had he done? It had been self defense but why? Why had he done this? These thoughts whirled through his mind, as Ariana slowly died on the edge of his sword.

[Lala Kitty]

Ella finally broke free of the gripped fingers on her arms and ran to Ariana and Marken. She caught the assassin as she fell back, sliding from Marken's sword and onto the ground. Ariana's eyes rolled to the back of her head as she struggled to catch her breath, barely able to keep herself conscious now. Ariana let out a heavy, violent cough into her fingers & tried to shake her dizziness away.

"You should be reuniting with your prince..."

"No one should have to die alone, not even you!" Ella answered fervently. Ariana gave Ella a small smile, one filled with both contentment and longing. Ella wondered if they had met some other way, maybe they would have been good friends; maybe she could have made a difference in her life.

"You're so naive," Ariana groaned softly, "But since you're so nice... I'll let you in on a secret; there's another assassin in the castle, someone that works close to the king and knows who we are. You need to stop him before he holds your past over your head...."

Ella stiffened at Ariana's warning, keeping herself from asking who it was. She didn't want to goad the woman on her death bed. Giving Ariana a nod and a warm smile, she hugged the woman against her chest, feeling her start to tremble and grow cold. One more terrible coughing fit later, Ariana grew still and Ella felt her go limp. Ella buried her face into Ariana's hair, gently petting her as the light left her eyes. She stayed there until the stable hand gently pried the dead girl from her arms, and one of the soldiers pulled her to her feet.

"She didn't have to die, Marken!" Ella yelled angrily at her fiancé, hot tears streaming down her cheeks, "I convinced her to leave on her own. She wasn't going to kill me!"

Ella buried her face in her hands as a warm hand wrapped around her arms, rubbing gently on her shoulder. She recognized the queen's perfume as she sobbed quietly into her hands, feeling her firm, but gentle hands soothing her tears away.

"Ella, calm yourself," the woman muttered softly, "You're just feeling a temporary fondness for that scum because she showed you mercy. Getting angry at Marken for saving you does nothing to make the situation better."

Ella wanted to believe the queen, but she felt too destroyed right now; she'd gotten Ariana to trust her word, and it got her killed. Ariana warned her that she couldn't afford to trust anyone, and she was right. Ella was so stupid for thinking she could fix everything herself.

[GranoxFirewind]

He was still in shock from what he'd done, barely paying attention to Ella mourning the death of the assassin. Why was she mourning...? Wasn't the assassin someone who should be cheered for being dead? She'd tried to convince her to kill him... He didn't feel any remorse for what he'd done... He hadn't wanted to kill personally, but he'd wanted the assassin dead nonetheless. She'd tried to have him killed, afterall.

Her yelling brought him out of his trance, and he looked up. His arms felt lighter, and Marken realized he'd dropped the bloody sword to the ground, disconnected from the world. "She charged me Ella... What was I supposed to do...?" His voice was faint, as he saw the blood still on his hands. He wasn't a killer, even if he would sentence someone to die. That wasn't in his blood...

Regina tried to calm down Ella, but Marken didn't care about that. He didn't wait for an escort, for someone to dismiss him... He just walked away, back towards the castle. The world was a blur right now, he just wanted something to wash that away. When had Regina even shown up? He soaked his hands in near boiling water, trying to feel some sensation, before it finally came to him, the pain tearing a gasp from him. He'd read and heard of those who mutilated themselves... No, he wouldn't do that. Royalty was better than that. He'd do what came natural. He poured himself a glass of rum, and started drinking.

[Lala Kitty]

Ella watched Marken leave helplessly, feeling like it was her fault that he left without a word. As the king looked over the body with his guards, the queen let out a small sigh and began to lead Ella inside, giving a frown when the guards began to point their swords at Ella again. Ella wanted to call out to Marken to call him back, to call for help, but she didn't feel like she had the right to ask for his help now. She probably destroyed him by taking Ariana's side.

"Move aside," the queen said to the guards, "The assassin, the very woman who tried to kill me, tried to kidnap and kill Princess Ellanor. What more proof do you need that she isn't guilty?"

An uneasy silence fell over the room before the king ultimately raised his hand, calling off the guards. Ella was dragged from the stable by the older woman promptly, her gaze directed to the ground with every step closer to Marken's private rooms. She was terrified to face Marken again. He'd killed that woman, and wasn't sorry at all. Even worse, she got angry at him for protecting her, for protecting himself.

"You'll get past this," the queen murmured softly to Ella as they neared the large door that would lead Ella to her fiancé, "Marken has never killed anyone before, and you probably felt bad for the girl for whatever sad reason she had to do her job. But Marken did his duty as your future husband, and you are not at fault for an assassin's actions. as long as the two of you don't make the mistake of blaming each other for tonight, you both will heal."

Ella gave the woman a numb, quiet nod before she went into the private rooms herself, and heard a lock behind her as the queen locked the doors behind her. Either she didn't want the two of them to leave before they made up, or Ella wasn't completely off the hook yet. Sighing, Ella quietly walked through the dark rooms to find Marken, seeing a light at the bottom of one of the doors. Ella let her fingers slowly slide down the cool, wooden door before balling up her fist. She brought her hand down against the door a few times and knocked it, too nervous to go inside herself.

"M-marken?" Ella called softly, saying nothing else. She moved back from the door and kept her gaze towards the floor. She stayed rooted in that spot, unmoving while she waited for her fiancé’s response. Honestly, she half-hoped he was asleep and wouldn't come to the door.

[GranoxFirewind]

The first glass burned. It always did, even when you were used to it, and Marken was far from used to it. But, the burn was good. It distracted him from the day, all of the things that had happened. The murder of a guard, the one he'd invited to 'guard' his wedding, Ellas attempted kidnapping, his own locking in a cell... It all swirled around him, as he tried to drink it away. A second glass followed, though he couldn't drink all of it. The burning didn't diminish, and he was glad for it. His only companions were the crackling of flames from the fireplace of his sitting room, and the clinking of ice against glass as he drank his rum.

He heard the faint knocking, Ellas soft voice calling out to him. His name, stuttered out. He considered not answered, telling her to leave him alone, to get the hell away from him. It had hurt when she'd screamed at him, for defending himself, defending her. Like he wanted to kill her, like he enjoyed it. That had hurt the worst, how she just assumed he had the worst intentions in mind... How she thought an assassins life was worth his own.

But, in the end, he wanted to resolve this. He refused to disallow her the trust he'd given her in the past, refused the opportunity to have a companion who could speak to him, could drink with him. He refused to have his wife hate him without reason. Standing up, he took one last swig of the rum, before replacing the glass on its coaster. Liquid courage, alcohol was often called. They weren't wrong, that much was certain, as his inhibitions were burned away. A shaky hand cracked open the door, where he looked at Ella. His eyes were glazed over, though it was obvious he hadn't been crying or anything of the sort. he was just... It was hard to describe what he was. "Come in..." He sounded half-hearted in it, and his voice conveyed his hurt, though he opened the door wide enough for her to enter, waving his arm for her to sit in a chair beside his.

[Lala Kitty]

Ella couldn't measure her relief when Marken didn't send her away. He even came to the door himself, welcoming her inside, even if it was obviously forced. He probably didn't want to see her at all right now, or want to be near her. He probably felt like she’d betrayed him, like she picked Ariana over him despite what the woman had done.

There couldn't be anything further from the truth, and Ella hoped to herself that Marken would allow her to explain herself. She made her way to the chair he gestured to, taking in the far-away look in his eyes and the slight slur in his voice. The heady scent of spice in the air informed Ella that her fiancé was drinking himself some rum right now, and a particularly strong vintage, at that.

The woman took her seat in her chair and waited for Marken to sit himself down as she pulled out another crystal glass and poured herself a drink. If Marken didn't have to be sober for this conversation, she sure as hell wasn't going to be either.

[GranoxFirewind]

He was patient, waiting for Ella to finish pouring the rum over the cool cubes of ice. Why had Marken even set out two glasses of ice? It wasn't some subconscious thing, he'd made the conscious effort to pour the second glass. With a shrug, Markens addled mind couldn't quite remember why, just coming up with it being some kind of gesture of peace, as if a mere glass could do that.

After she'd had a long drink of the heavy brown liquid, Marken would sigh and set his own half-empty glass down. "Why? You looked at me like I'd stabbed you when I defended myself from that assassin. And I defended you. Why did you scream and yell? I didn't want to do it, you know, and yet you acted like I did it with glee... Why?" His voice conveyed pain, very clear and very obvious pain. He'd gone out of his way to trust Ella, and this was how she'd repaid him. By very nearly killing him in his sleep, and then screaming at him when her kidnapper was slain by him. It didn't exactly look good to the normal person, hell it didn't look good to Marken!

As she spoke and tried to convince him that she was right, or wrong, in some way. Try to convince him to forgive her. He wanted to forgive her, not for her crimes, but so he could just forget it. It would all be alright if he just forgot it happened, right? Sighing, Marken took another draft of his rum as he listened.

[Lala Kitty]

As much as Ella wanted to defend her actions, she knew she couldn't. Even as she confronted him earlier she knew she was wrong to do so. Marken treasured her properly, and did everything in his power to keep her safe at his side. He wasn't thinking of the terrible position Ariana was in when he killed her, he was thinking that his fiancée needed him to protect her, and acted on that impulse.

"My anger wasn't actually directed at you," Ella finally admitted as she looked down at her drink, "I shouldn't have even said anything, but after Ariana died, I felt so pathetic and useless. I couldn't save myself from the job I had; you had to help me escape. And even though I tried, I couldn't save Ariana from herself or your sword. I can't do anything but be a pawn in other peoples' schemes."

Ella took a long, heavy drink from he glass until it nearly stole her breath, her fingers shaking a bit as she topped off her rum and she tried to compose herself. She almost looked like she cut down Ariana herself, obviously blaming herself for what had happened in the stables.

"I won't ask you to forgive me... I certainly wouldn't."

[GranoxFirewind]

He sighed heavily as she gave her explanation. Clearly it hurt her just as much as it hurt him, and he only had to wonder why. Why did she want this assassin to 'escape' her crimes, her fate? "Why did you want to save her though...? She put a blade to your neck, killed a good man to drag you away, would've killed me if she had the chance... And you wanted her to escape justice? Why? Any man would be properly tried for a murder, but she did far worse, and you wanted to just let her go..." Marken was normally more charismatic, someone who knew how to control his words better than this. As it stood, in his inebriated state, he was doing good not to slur his speech.

That's why he felt betrayed. She hadn't just been angry at him for attacking Ariana, plunging a blade into her chest, she'd been trying to take someone who deserved justice completely away from his grasp, away from the kingdom. She wanted an assassin, who had even tried to kill his mother, loosed upon the world once more. There in lied his anger... "I just want to know why you thought she didn't deserve justice, why she should've been allowed to walk free, after she so brazenly poisoned my mother, killed one of my guards, and tried to take you off to that kingdom away from me." His tone was almost begging. He didn't want to lose her now, after he'd just won her over...

[Lala Kitty]

"You don't understand, Marken," Ella murmured quietly, looking down at her rum, "I never said I forgave Ariana for what she did, I just didn't want her to die a slave. I was in her position not long ago, and if I were to continue down that road, I would have been just like her. Ariana did terrible things, yes, but only because she had to. I know she had to pay for her crimes, I just... I didn't want it to be while she was still on the leash of the people who forced her to do those things. Instead of dying as her own person, Ariana was killed as an expendable slave."

Ella downed the rest of her rum and put the glass on the table, guessing she should slow down on the alcohol a bit. She had tolerance, yes, but she was drinking fast enough to even get herself drunk. She still felt so helpless now, and pathetic. Why couldn't she get Ariana to be her own person? and who was the man that she was warned about, working close enough to the king to slip under radar? Her mind was starting to hurt a bit at the questions in her own mind.

[GranoxFirewind]

"Yes, you would've done bad things, but the difference between you and her is that you didn't. You broke free, she wasn't willing to. She killed someone just to drag you out of that cell. You think she would've surrendered herself to the kings justice right after that? She would've fled, and a killer would be on the loose, regardless of who's 'slave' she is." He guessed he could understand Ella's point of view, that affinity to her that they shared. They were both of the same kingdom, though she truly had no clue of knowing how true either side was. Ariana could've done this all on her own free will, not as some slave like Ella had been, and what would that have accomplished for anyone then, to let a loyal woman go? She would've come back to finish the job...

Marken was inebriated enough to not notice Ella's own drinking, still drinking his own burning rum. He didn't have the state of mind to stop himself, much less her, as he drank by the fire. "I just wanted to know why..." Finishing off his glass, he set it down, turning to look at Ella. It was hard to discern, exactly, what his glazed eyes wanted, but it seemed he was atleast sober enough to speak coherently.

[Lala Kitty]

"Why, what?" Ella grumbled as she slumped back in her chair, "I've answered all of your questions, Marken, what more could you possibly want to know? Yes, I'm stupid, and easily swayed into pity. I'm an idiot that can't save anyone, least of all herself. But I also love you, and I know that I shouldn't have yelled at you for protecting me. I can't even imagine how terrified you were to raise a sword, and then I reprimanded you after you selflessly defended me from an assassin."

Standing with a sway, Ella no longer cared about sobriety and topped off her drink once more, her vision blurring a bit after she took another long drink. Marken would probably tell her that he couldn't deal with her stupidity now, and she didn't exactly want to be sober for that. If she were him, she would hate her right now. Marken had almost lost his mother, his own life, and even his fiancée, all in the course of a single week, and she went and yelled at him like some ungrateful shrew. That was probably grounds to end their engagement altogether.

It burned like hell, but Ella drained the last of her drink and stumbled to the other side of the fireplace before colliding into Marken. He reeked of the sickeningly-sweet alcohol himself, along with the faint smell of blood and sweat, but it was still him underneath. Tears stung Ella’s eyes and she shoved her face into his chest, her shoulders trembling.

“Please… d-don’t hate me….”

[GranoxFirewind]

He listened to her speak, clearly agitated with him and how he seemed to be accusing her. Granted, he was, she'd betrayed him and his trust. Ella had taken Arianas side over his own, had just assumed she was a slave, had assumed she was just another innocent person being forced to play a dangerous game. But she couldn't just be that. Ella had the chance to kill Marken, to prevent this from ever happening, and instead she'd resisted, she'd had the sense of good inside her not to do it. Ariana had killed at the first chance, ending a guards life for no other reason than he showed up to help. No... She deserved her fate, no matter what Ella thought.

He was surprised when she stood up, drinking even more, to the point of being drunker than him. His tolerance for hard liquor was practically non existent, but she'd had too much for any tolerance to be of use. He was even more surprised when she collapsed in his chair, nearly on top of him, on the very verge of crying. Sighing, Marken wrapped an arm around her as he moved his fiance into his lap fully, pulling her legs overtop his so that she was slightly more comfortable. They both reeked of alcohol, herself more than him, but she wanted some kind of comfort. He wasn't sure she deserved it, but he wanted his fiance...

"I don't hate you Ella..." He nuzzled the top of her head with his chin, stroking the girls back absently in some comforting motion. Both arms were wrapped securely around her, ensuring she felt safe, and that she couldn't run off if the urge struck her. "I just want you... Don't make me feel like you're choosing between people again... I wanted to protect you, nothing else Ella." His words came in small whispers to her as she sobbed into his chest, trying to comfort her. Yes, he wanted to get past this, just like she did. He wanted to have his fiance, he wanted the girl he'd fallen in love with.

[Lala Kitty]

Ella stayed cuddled into Marken as he ordered her not to pick anyone over him again, nodding & snuggling close to him. Once again, he'd misunderstood he intent, but she was too drunk too explain thinks anymore, & too exhausted to fight him anymore. Marken had never been forced to do much in his life, so he couldn't understand why Ella understood Ariana's situation all too well.

Even if Ariana seemed to be cruel, she was just doing wha she was trained to, & was trying to survive. Assasins like her were taken in as small children & taught very early on they had to kill or be killed; some apprentices were even pitted against each other to the death, for only the best deserved the right to live in their world.

"I never picked Ariana over you," Ella said quietly, resting her cheek over Marken's heartbeat. The cut in her neck was starting to sting a little, but she ignored it for the moment & focused on the sound that proved that she & Marken were still alive.

"I just didn't want her to die... like that...."

[GranoxFirewind]

He was glad she snuggled up against him, took comfort in his presence. It meant she still felt for him, even if her actions didn't really show it. He wanted that from her, to still be her fiance. It'd be an ironic twist if it was the assassins death that separated them, rather than one of their own. No, he'd refuse to let the death of the one who'd tried to kill his mother, him, and her kill his marriage too. That wasn't happening. He could see the line where Ariana's blade had bit into her throat, a clear a sign as any of the womans uncaring nature.

His arm stroked her hair with a sigh, before steadily stroking her back instead. "I know you didn't, Ella, I know you didn't." He supposed he could understand that sympathy, but he believed Ella was still better than her. Ella had turned completely and totally away from that servitude, she'd been ordered to kill and ignored that. Ariana hadn't done any such thing. She'd tried to accomplish her mission on multiple occasions, even going to far as to swing her blade at him, in the last moments of her life. She had no desire to surrender to justice. She was a murderer.

"I didn't want to kill her either... I didn't enjoy it." He considered reaching for the rum, but decided against it. The girl in his arms was a bit more important than that, more important than getting even more drunk. Both of his arms wrapped around her, pulling Ella into a tight hug against himself. "I love you..." He whispered into her ear, not wanting to let her go yet.