DrowsyPangolin

When the Flames Die

Sophia frowned slightly, her disappointment visible. It seemed they'd come all that way for nothing. They'd have to interact with the Order after all. Her eyes floated back to the group behind her as she shook her head. "Oh... thank you anyway, sirs." She gave a slight bow to the guards before turning and returning to the group. She looked towards Gareth with a sigh. "If Mister Canti is in the Tower, how do we get to him?" The guard had said the Order had been holed up in their tower all day, so it was likely near-impregnable at that point.

Eva glanced over to Gareth, then back to Sophia when he spoke. He was right. If anyone was going to get something useable out of Canti, it was more likely the squire than the Princess, but evidently the girl had not planned that part out. For a moment, Eva smirked, but she quickly hid the reaction. Regardless, her face curled into a slight frown when the guard gave them the bad news. It seemed Canti hadn't even been brought to the standard dungeon. If they wanted a chance to speak with him, they'd have to go through the Order. The Tauran glanced towards Gareth. "Looks like you'll get your chance after all."

When the Flames Die

Sophia followed along, occasionally giving worried glances behind them. Thankfully, her paranoia seemed for naught, as they were alone for nearly the entirety of their brief journey. At several points during their search, she questioned whether Feril actually remembered where they were heading. Eventually, though, it seemed their guide's memory finally served her well, and they reached the entrance of the dungeon. Feril was justifiably concerned about approaching the guards. Sophia nodded. "I'll ask them." If she sounded a bit uncertain, it's because she was, but they needed information. She slowly approached the pair of guards, forcing a weak smile. "Hello, sirs. I was told Mister Canti was in the dungeon. I'd like an audience with him." Sophia spoke with much more confidence than she actually had, her court training coming in handy for once.

Eva followed quietly behind Sophia, looking between the two guards. With the number of people in the Great Hall, it was highly unlikely that anyone was seeing the regent any time soon, but still, maybe they had a chance. If they wouldn't let a foreign dignitary through, perhaps they'd let a squire of the Order. She looked back to Gareth. They needed answers. At the moment they were running in the dark, and clearly that had not been effective thus far. She remained silent, standing behind the princess.

When the Flames Die

As they entered the Great Hall, Sophia was surprised to see the sea of bickering nobles inside. Though the conversations around them blended into a headache-inducing cacophony, she made out a few bits. It seemed no one knew where the king was. The thought was troubling, and it was obviously already having it's effect on the general populace, as the mood in the room was far from amiable. She turned away from the mass of arguing men. If they could get to Canti, asking him what had happened might help them out. Feril seemed to remember her way to the dungeon fairly well. The princess turned towards her, still worried about the girl's current situation. Even so, it was one of a very slim number of options. "Right, if we can get there maybe we can find something out." She glanced back to the crowd for a moment. "We should probably move quickly." She turned back to the group. "If you're sure you want to go back there... lead the way Feril."

Eva watched the crowd of nobles cautiously. At the moment they just seemed confused and irritable, much like anyone else at that point, but she knew how fast an irritable crowd could turn into an angry mob. She kept close to Sophia, putting herself between the princess and the crowd. Gareth seemed to think talking to Canti in the dungeon was the best idea. Though such an idea sounded dangerous, the now former regent was likely to tell them more than the Order would, if their previous encounters had been any indicator. The girl that had joined them at the tavern, Feril, seemed to remember the way to the dungeon rather well. Eva turned an interested eye towards the girl, a bit impressed with her eagerness to return to the scene of her imprisonment.

When the Flames Die

Sophia followed the group into the palace grounds, with Eva bringing up the rear of the party. She looked around. Nothing around them seemed to have changed, but all the same, it felt different. This was no longer the joyful place it had been only a few days ago, that much was for sure. She pondered Gareth's question for a moment. If what they had heard was true, then Wallace Canti was imprisoned at the moment, so he would likely be of no use to them. They had already spoken with the guards the night before, and they seemed to know only slightly more than they themselves did. The only option was the Order of the Thistle, but Feril was right, they weren't the safest bet. The princess cast her eyes towards the tower on the far side of the grounds. If they wanted answers, that was where they had to start. "I think Feril's right. Our only real option is talking to the Order." She looked towards Gareth. "If nothing else, maybe they'll tell you something." She hoped the boy's squirehood would aid them, but it seemed unlikely. Her eyes fell to the ground for a moment. "Anyway, we need to tell them about Walden."

When the Flames Die

Sophia followed the group out into the busy streets of Mullen. Gareth's new found confidence was inspiring. Somehow, it made her believe that they might just make it through all of this alright. Still, there was the luring fear that danger lurked behind every corner. As they cut through the large crowd of townsfolk, the princess cast her gaze to the sky. It was clear and blue, with scarce clouds to speak of. She smiled weakly at the sunlight. A hawk circled about in the morning sky. For a moment, the girl's gaze followed the bird, her yellow eyes glistening in the sunlight. They were nearing the Palace now, and she could feel the nervousness creeping into the pit of her stomach. She felt a hand pat her on the shoulder, and turned to see Eva walking behind her.

The Tauran woman gave a confident smile. "Don't worry Princess." Eva was a bit worried as well, but not only about their own situation. They were likely walking right back into the source of all their troubles, but at least they were familiar with that particular brand of evil. What lurked in the dark, though, was something none of them could be sure of, and if her guess were correct, Lily was probably tailing the boy from before. She hoped the woman would come back with some answers, but if their encounters last night had been anything to go on she was likely following the child into a lion's den. That wasn't her concern, though. If Tosli wanted to run blindly into the dark she could, but the Tauran woman had a sole purpose: keep the Princess safe. She followed along, the Palace growing closer and closer. It didn't have the same warmth or charm it had upon their arrival.

When the Flames Die

Gareth's words inspired the nervous princess, and if Feril was willing to risk returning to the palace she saw no reason to cave in to her own cowardice. They would get the answers they needed. It was the only choice left to them. Sophia nodded. "Yes. We've got to sort all of this out." She rose from her seat with a smile. Behind her seemingly confident expression, though, she still felt nervous. They might find out something they didn't want to know. Even so, an unfortunate truth was better than wandering around blind. She looked towards Eva and nodded as the woman rose as well. "Right, let's go."

When the Flames Die

Sophia frowned. "You're probably right, the only people who can give us any answers are in the palace, but our chances of getting anything out of them are bleak at best." THe girl's eyes fell to the table. "Still, answers are what we need." She looked towards Feril when she refused to flee. It would be safer for the girl to turn and run, to leave all of this behind her while she still could. But, if her mind was made up, then no one was going to change her decision. Sophia remembered what Gareth had said the previous day, before everything had fallen to pieces. He'd decided that all of them should form some type of alliance to answer the questions they had, that they would all share information with each other. The princess looked around at her companions. "Regardless, if we want to make it through this, we've got to stick together. It's our only hope of sorting this mess out..." She looked towards Feril. "You were a prisoner in the Palace, though, do you think it'd even be safe for you to go back there?"

Eva remained silent for most of the conversation, listening to her three companions as they spoke. Answers. Answers were what they needed, and as nervous as the prospect of returning to the palace made her, she suspected Feril was right. If they wanted to figure out what the hell was going on, that was where they'd need to go. Right back into the mouth of this chaos. She glanced towards the bar, noticing that Lily was still gone. Perhaps she was still following the boy who had harassed them.

When the Flames Die

Sophia glanced around the room. "No, not by the order..." She couldn't bring herself to describe the scene again, it was beginning to wear on her too heavily. She looked back towards the girl when she suggested they flee. Part of her wanted to think it was a great idea. That they could just bolt towards the border and she'd be safe back home in a few days. The other half of her, though, kept running through situations where they were ambushed in the wilderness. Even if the Order wasn't particularly trustworthy, it was safer here, at least for her. The princess looked towards Feril, a look of concern crossing her face. "Feril... if you think you can get away then you should, but... I don't know that I would make it very far, not with what's after me." Her eyes fell to the table. She couldn't help but blame herself for the danger she was putting both herself and her companions in.

When the Flames Die

Sophia had been sitting at the table, her face buried in her hands, when she heard a familiar voice. She slowly raised her face from her hands, turning her head slowly towards the girl who was approaching them. A bright red jacket confirmed her suspicion. "Feril?" She was surprised to see the girl. The last time they'd been in contact was when the courier had been carried away by Sir Thomas for questioning. In all the commotion they'd been facing, she hadn't stopped to think what may have happened to the girl. "Feril! You're alright!" It didn't matter that they'd only spoken for a few minutes. A friendly face at this point felt like a godsend. It sounded like Feril, too, had been thrown into an odd situation. The princess motioned for the girl to take a seat with them. "Things have been... bad. But no, the Order didn't send us off. We were attacked during the commotion." Sophia frowned a bit. "We left the Palace, apparently the Order arrested the regent. I don't know, things have gotten so confusing." She glanced back towards the door. "I'm afraid we probably don't know much more than you do." Sophia looked across the table, noticing a rather confused-looking Eva looking Feril over. "Oh, Eva, this is Feril, Feril, Eva." She motioned between the two of them, and then gave Eva a nod, as if to say 'she's alright'.

When the Flames Die

Sophia stared at Mentha as he left, getting a chill as he thanked her for her time. Something was very wrong. Her eyes scanned the room. Sure enough, the entirety of the inn seemed to be staring them down at this point. Sophia shook her head, returning to her seat and putting her head in her hands. Nothing made sense to her anymore. She just sat there at the table, ignoring the stares from nearby people, her eyes resting on the half-eaten breakfast on her plate.

Eva's hands returned to her sides as the boy left. She looked around the room, noticing all the eyes on them. They had no idea what was going on. "Mind your own business." She spoke flatly, striding across the room and taking her seat by Sophia once again. She didn't like this. Her eyes glanced to the distraught princess. The girl didn't deserve what she was going through. She glared towards the door. That little bastard had to add insult to injury. She sighed.

A pair of bright blue eyes watched Mentha from the shadows of a nearby alleyway. It seemed he was leaving, so at the very least there was no need for things to get messy quite yet. Still, whatever he was involved with was obviously not good. The hooded figure made no move, only watching the boy silently, made nearly invisible by the darkness of the alleyway and the sea of people between them.