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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 28, 2024 22:33:23 GMT
Estelle "Little Mouse" Estelle stared at Maylea when she grabbed her hands, staring at her eyes, gaze wavering slightly, but then determined when Maylea confirmed that Alex was okay. But it fell into remorse and worry when Maylea confirmed Dante was in danger. Her hands tightened over her sister's, before letting them go, wringing them in front of her. "The King, he's cruel," she whispered in a tone edging on haunted, staring off into space for a moment. He wasn't as cruel as Drake, but Drake was more of a personal issue. She had once trusted him, she had never trusted King Chadwick.
When Lilith confirmed she'd help save Dante, she turned her fierce gaze to her eldest sister, appreciation glimmering in her eyes. "Really? You'll help save him?" She questioned, sounding disbelieving for a moment, before her face changed to be more thoughtful, "You won't regret it, Bri! Dante may be an idiot at times, but he's very quick-witted and strategic. I'm sure he can help your gang!" Well that may be stretching it. Dante didn't associate with anything dealing with the idea of breaking the law, so him helping a criminal gang out wouldn't be feasible. BUT! He did free Minke, so that counted for something. He still had a chance to become cool. "I can talk to Elena," Minke offered, glancing between her two sisters and then towards the Siren's tent, before shrugging, "Or I could at least talk to Crius. He could probably help me convince her to help."
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 28, 2024 22:41:49 GMT
Chadwick -- "Chadwick" "Oh, I can, and I do," The King replied as his son stuttered over his words at first. They both knew what Dante's fate was. What would happen to him for his actions. He still let Alex finally get the words out, and the heartbroken, numbed, and shocked look the Prince had filled the King with a vindictive glee. Still, he shook his head, sighing. "Now Alex, you must understand it's for the best," He commented, reaching forward and grabbing his son arm in a rough, but not painful grasp. He lifted it so the bracelet on it was in view of them both, "Like you, that girl is a danger to everyone around. But with her, it's worse. She tricked King Drake, fled his protective guards, and came to Oralee. We contained her for the safety of everyone here. I'm sure you can understand that." He didn't care if Alex did, he only cared that it befitted his goals. Still, he had to spin this as an act of protection, of justice. "Dante had freed her from the Dungeons. Dante had threatened me too. And you know what he said?" Now his grip on the wrist got tighter, painfully so, as he leaned to whisper to his son, "He said if I didn't call off the Wedding, he'd reveal the truth about your curse and tell the Kingdom what I had done to you." He turned his head then, glaring at the boys muted gold eyes, grasp painful and tugging, "How did he know about that, Alexiares?"
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Post by pallas on Aug 28, 2024 23:35:25 GMT
Alex made a sound of protest as his father grabbed his wrist, letting his bracelet flash in front of both of them. He felt weighted down by that leaden dread as his father spoke, talking about how Minke was a danger just like Alex was.
There was a time when Alex would have believed his father when he told him that he was dangerous. It hadn’t been so long ago.
It was Dante who had made him think differently.
His father’s grip tightened painfully, and Alex gave up his useless attempts to wrench his wrist from his iron grip. His heart threw itself against his ribcage, hammering in his chest. As bold as he’d felt before, he felt just as afraid now. He hated that his father could always do that. Make him feel like he was still a scared child. But he was not.
”If you had not done it, there would be nothing to know.” Alex answered, neither directly confirming nor denying his father’s accusations. ”I was never a danger. I was frightened, like that girl. I needed a father, and rather than trying to help me understand or control what was happening to me you made me ashamed and afraid of myself, and you gave me these horrible things and called it a gift. But I expect nothing less from you. You, who brought me back from Levina and have done nothing but hate me for it since.” He met his father’s eyes defiantly.
But his mind was whirring now. Dante was condemned and he had to do something. If Athena had been the last person to speak to him then she knew about Dante’s situation, and if he knew Athena at all she would not want to leave Dante in that position. Maybe she intended to come back for him - maybe. But either way Alex knew he needed to stall. Buy Dante some time at least to make a plan.
”So what is your plan, dear father?” Alex challenged. ”Every noble from the surrounding kingdoms is here, and many of them will not leave immediately when they find out the wedding is off. And it is off, because if Athena is gone I can promise you she is already miles from here. No, no doubt they will stay a while. Use up the wedding food in a feast or two. Do you intend to execute Dante, without a trial, while they are here? There would be talk about such a tyrannous move.” There would have to be a trial at least, surely. Even traitors technically had a right to one. Or if his father didn’t agree to a trial, as he suspected he would not because a trial would allow Dante to reveal incriminating information about the king, he would at least have to wait until the hubbub of the royal wedding had subsided and the guests were gone.
He smiled venomously. ”And you forget one thing. Dante is not the only one who could tell the world what you did to me. And if you think that I would not take the risk of revealing what I am just to see you punished for what you have done, you underestimate how petty I am and how little I have to lose.” And even better, Chadwick could not simply silence Alex without killing him, and a suspicious death or an execution would not look good.
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Aug 28, 2024 23:54:27 GMT
Athena nodded in agreement when Estelle said Chadwick was cruel. He was, she couldn't say otherwise because of everything she'd seen or everything Alex had told her. But her little sister had probably been through worse based on her tone alone.
Both her and Estelle turned toward the oldest of the Lenore's when she voiced her support in their campaign to free Dante. Athena smiled gently and nodded. "Thank you, Bri," she muttered in a whisper.
Athena took a moment to look at the camp she was in the middle of. Surrounded by tents, horses, and hardened criminals lead by two very angry women. She stood out like a sore thumb in this damn wedding dress. She wanted it off of her.
But one thing at a time.
He eyes found where the Siren had most likely disappeared to and she narrowed her eyes. She'd heard the woman was a seductress with a temper as changing as the winds but she didn't take her to be a spiteful and entitled person. Of course most people never cared to get the details right about legends and stories.
"If you can get her on our side then I welcome the help. But, if not then we can just do it alone. I spent enough time in the halls I can guide us," she said. But she didn't sound very sure of that fact. She knew where Dante was being held but things would probably be changed by now after her escape. "We need to plan quickly if we're going to do this though. Breaking into a castle is not easy especially now."
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Post by pallas on Aug 29, 2024 0:14:22 GMT
Lilith did not doubt her sister’s words on the king’s cruelty. Word travelled when a king did a thing like execute his wife, so Lilith could not call herself surprised to hear that a man who would do a thing like that would be capable of the kind of cruelty her sisters were talking about.
She waved off their thanks. She highly doubted what Este said about him being useful to her gang, but it wasn’t about that. This was about her never wanting anyone to have anything over her ever again if she could help it. No favours, no nothing. And it was also about her being glad her sisters were alive and thankful to the man who had helped them get back to her.
”Thank you.” Lilith said when Minke suggested speaking to Elena for her. ”You are welcome to try, but do not get your hopes up. Tell her that if she doesn’t want to come, I will go alone and take any loot in the palace for myself. Tell her that she actually has a chance here to do some damage to a corrupt royal.” That advisor, he must know things. Things King Chadwick would rather not see the light of day If Elena really hated royals so much, corrupt royals, this was her chance to actually do something about it.
But then Athena was talking about the difficulty of breaking into the castle, and Lilith thought for a moment. ”There might be someone else who could be of use.” Lilith suggested. She didn’t like it but it didn’t make it not true. ”Elena has a prisoner, the head of the palace guard from Wisteria. The Verndari boy. He knows a thing or two about castle security no doubt. But that is only if Elena agrees to help and he can be forced to help us.” Of course, Lilith herself possessed the key to ensuring Callan Verndari’s cooperation. The prince. If Elena agreed to be involved and to get Callan to help, actually getting him in line would not be difficult at all.
It seemed a long shot, but it was an option. If not, they’d have to use what Minke and Athena remembered of the layout of the palace to guide them. And that might be enough, but it was a gamble. Lilith did not like her plans to hinge on a gamble.
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 29, 2024 17:01:54 GMT
Estelle "Little Mouse" Estelle nodded at Lilith's commentary on how to win Elena's approval for this mission. She had some other ideas. Perhaps she could appeal to the woman, explain some of what she'd delt with. She didn't want to give someone like a notorious criminal information about her life, blackmail to use against her, but Estelle also knew she could handle herself. Nothing Elena could do to her was worse than what had already been done. "The King will want to handle Dante sooner rather than later, but he will still have a trial. I wouldn't be surprised if he used all the publicity in the Kingdom now to his advantage." If she were executing an enemy, and she was some asshole King, she'd turn the spectacle of the wedding into a way of earning the people's support by uniting them behind a common enemy. She was raised by her Mother to act as a ruler, even if she had no genuine claim, with her having two elder sisters. Still, it was important for her to learn the ins and outs of ruling, and part of that was publicity, how to keep people in line. Lilith suggested the guard, a prisoner of Elena's, and Minke winced at the word prisoner.
She went oddly quiet at the idea of getting Elena to force him to help them, her gaze locking on the ground and narrowing. She bit her tongue, letting the metallic taste distract her mind from the turmoil she felt. She knew what it was like to be a prisoner, to be a tool, and she would never wish it upon another.
Another goal settled in her mind, find the Verndari boy and speak to him herself. If Elena refused to help and he could, perhaps it would be beneficial to free him herself...
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 29, 2024 17:13:18 GMT
Chadwick -- "Chadwick" "Oh this again," Chadwick rolled his eyes as Alex started in, commenting on how Chadwick hated him, asking why he ever brought him, claiming he wasn't a danger, "Do you forget what you did to my wife Alexiares? You are a danger, and these," he gestured to the magic-resisters, "These are a gift. Without these, you're secret would have been on display long ago and the Kingdom would have called for your head, boy." Alex brought up a good point, however. Chadwick chewed on that, thinking, but then the boy was threatening him. Threatening to tell the world about what he was just to see Chadwick punished. "Alex I can twist it however I want. You tell them? I'll claim you kept me under threat, you threatened my dear Caspian. Who would they believe, their beloved King, or the hated Prince?" He spit out, glaring at Alex, daring him to move. But then his eyes narrowed, a cruel smile ticking up on his face, "Plus, it would be a shame for poor Dante to suffer even more, wouldn't it?" His gaze flickered to the door, then back to Alex, whispering then, "And trust me boy, I'll make him pay for every word you say."
If Alex cared so much for the idiotic man, he'd use it against him. It was Alex's fault for exposing such an obvious weakness.
"As for the trial," he hummed, stepping back, "We'll make good use of the public for it. If they can't have their wedding, then at least they can have the man who stopped it. Thank you, Alex. You've given me a brilliant idea! We can have a trial instead of a wedding!"
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Post by pallas on Aug 29, 2024 18:22:19 GMT
Alex couldn’t argue against his father’s point about what he’d done to his stepmother. He hadn’t meant it, he’d been a teenager who hadn’t learned how to control his powers, but he couldn’t deny what had happened. ”And if I had been given the chance to learn to control my abilities rather than made to fear them, maybe it would never have happened. But do not lie to me and say you gave me these to protect me.” he indicated the bracelet. ”You did it to protect yourself from anyone knowing you have a Factioneer son. You have never cared about protecting me.”
The truth of those words settled on him even as he said it. His father had never cared about him, he had only ever been out for himself. It was easier to control Alex than to be a father to him. It was easier to hate him than to show him compassion.
”Let me ask you this, father.” Alex began calmly. ”If you are so sure that you are good and right, why are you so afraid of anyone finding out? Why do you have to lie and twist the truth?”
But all the confidence he had built up left him when his father started talking about what he would do if Alex talked. He would never win. And worse, Dante would suffer. And the way his father spoke that threat… Alex believed every word of it. Chadwick was cruel, and Alexiares knew that as well as anyone. There was no length to which he would not go.
And then he spoke of a public trial. Using the spectacle for publicity. No. What had he done? What had he done to Dante? He might have bought a little bit of time before his father tried to execute him, but the cost was great. For the kingdom, for Dante. A trial might have some hope, though; Dante was good with words, great with them. Maybe he could make everyone see Chadwick for what he was. But nothing would change the outcome of that trial, Alex already knew.
He had only desperation left.
”Or you could avoid giving him a public platform. He is good with words, you know that. You would be allowing him to use the greatest weapon at his disposal. Father, you could exile him quietly, destroy all of his evidence. The people would never know that there was treachery under your very nose for the second time.” Alex knew how his father hated to be humiliated, and that was humiliating. ”He would cause you no more trouble. And I would never step a toe out of line again. I swear it. I will be nothing but obedient. It doesn’t have to be this way. You don’t have to kill him.”
He knew it wouldn’t work, his father had made his mind up that Dante would die. But Dante had only wanted to protect Alex, and Alex could not allow this to just happen. He would claw and scream and say whatever he had to say to try and stop this.
If his father killed Dante, he would make him pay for it.
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Aug 29, 2024 19:46:50 GMT
Athena scoffed at the mention of a trial. That was probably what was going to happen. And Alex would delay as much as possible to try and find a way for his stick to get out of this.
"If he was smart, he'd pin my disappearance on Dante. But he's been so quick to act without thinking as of late," she muttered, half in thought. The King could be temperamental and angry but he did care a lot for appearances. If something pissed him off enough, she felt, he would do something to solve the problem quickly. Even if it damaged his image. But those were her own perceived thoughts.
Looking pointedly at her troublesome little sister, Athena pulled her into one last grateful hug. Grateful that she was alive and doing somewhat ok. She still had her wits about her and all her limbs.
But they were wasting time. If they were going to save Dante, then they needed to start working on it. Pleasantries can come later.
Pushing her little sister toward the Siren's tent, Athena gave her a reassuring nod. "Go. Talk to her. We'll be here when you get back," she said with a gentle smile.
She turned to her older sister then and pressed her shoulder into hers. "Perhaps you could help me get out of this, Bri?" she asked and gestured down to the wedding gown that was torn and dirty with mud. "And talk about you being Lilith Killoran. I was hired to kill you you know."
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 29, 2024 20:08:48 GMT
Chadwick -- "Chadwick" "Sometimes you need to lie in the name of justice," Is all the Twisted King said in reply to Alex's original commentary. He continued speaking, and afterwards, he stared at Alex expectantly. Expecting the Prince to see reason. To see that this was all just and good.
Of course, as always, he expected too much. Now Alex was proceeding with his pleads and begs on the advisor's behalf. Alex started off with it, as if he was doing it for the family's own good. That Dante was a good speaker, that he could shift the masses to his side. But then he was suggesting letting Dante leave silently. Letting him go, letting the traitor flee without paying.
Alex then proceeded to promise obedience, and Chadwick narrowed his eyes is disgust, "Pleading for the life of a mere nobody is beneath you, Alexiares," He spat, coldly regarding his own son. "It seems I was correct in my presumption of who had tainted you with those unsightly little feelings you tried to appeal to me with before, when this whole wedding fiasco began. Tell me, is that why he wanted the wedding cancelled?"He didn't care either way, instead lifting his head up, "I will fix you, son," he said, coolly, resting his hand then on Alex's shoulder, "That pest will be killed, and this will all go away."
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Post by pallas on Aug 29, 2024 20:18:27 GMT
Lilith smiled as her sister shooed Minke away to talk to Elena, reaching out to affectionately ruffle her younger sister’s hair as she left. It felt strange, being able to be with her sisters again. Just like they had been years ago. It felt like time hadn’t passed, though it had and they were all so different now.
”Good luck.” Lilith wished the girl. She was the only sister who had a chance of convincing Elena with how angry the Siren was at Lilith right now.
She turned her attention to her sister when Athena pressed her shoulder into hers. Nodded when the girl asked her to help her get out of her wedding dress. The woman indicated for her sister to turn and when she did, began to work on the lacing as her sister continued to speak.
So she wanted to know about her being Lilith Killoran? She knew she would have questions, and though talking about her life after the fall was hard, she was willing to do so for her sister. And she couldn’t help but smirk a little when Athena said she’d been hired to kill her. She almost felt a little proud of the fact that somebody saw her as enough of a threat to want her dead.
Though that made Athena… what? Some kind of mercenary?
”And we’ll talk about you being a hired killer afterwards.” Lilith shot her sister a look, before continuing. ”Though I call having a contract on my head a compliment.”
But she knew her sister must want some real answers, so as she worked, reminded of all the times she’d helped her sisters get ready when she was younger and talked about whatever was on their minds that day, she continued.
”What do you want to know?” Lilith asked. ”After the fall, I ended up turning to some less than legal means to keep myself alive. I was found by this gang and ended up falling in with them. I had been wandering desperately, doing whatever I could to stay alive. I figured if I went with them I could gain money, influence, connections. Search for you both or maybe one day return to Alexandria with men, take it back from that…” She hesitated, not wanting either of them to relive what they’d been through the day of the fall. ”Anyway, I joined them and found my way here. Gave them a fake name so they wouldn’t know who I really was.”
Until one of them did. But that was when the story turned south. Into things that she never, ever talked about.
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by pallas on Aug 29, 2024 20:34:27 GMT
Alex looked a mix of bewildered and frustrated as his father began to claim that it was somehow Dante’s fault that Alex was gay, that apparently they both had feelings for one another and that was why Dante had wanted the wedding cancelled.
And he… well, he didn’t know how he felt about Dante. He felt something, something quite strong or he wouldn’t be here promising to obey his father for the rest of his life if he’d only let Dante live. He hadn’t really considered the depth of his feelings before that moment.
But Dante feeling anything for him?
”Dante does not have feelings for me,” Alex countered, ”he wanted the wedding stopped because he wanted me to be happy. Because he’s a good person who actually cares about me. He didn’t- he doesn’t-“ He didn’t know what to say. But Dante had always seen him as an annoyance, hadn’t he? Whatever was between them, Alex couldn’t assume it was anything more than friendship on Dante’s end. He didn’t know otherwise yet, hell he didn’t even know if Dante was gay or not.
Did whatever was between them matter now? Alex didn’t know what he felt, he only knew that Dante deserved far better than this.
”He is not a nobody.” He was a better person than Chadwick would ever be. He was willing to put his life on the line for Alex, for Athena who he barely knew. He was a good man. And that, Alex was sure of even if he wasn’t sure of anything else.
But his father had firmly rejected Alex’s pleas. As he placed his hand on Alex’s shoulder the boy wrenched it out of his father’s grip, stepping back. He shook his head as the man started talking about how he would fix Alex, how Dante was going to die.
”If you kill him,” Alex’s voice wavered, but he felt more sure of what he was saying here somehow than anything he’d said before, ”I will make your life hell. And then who will you threaten to keep me in line? You were always right about me, I am my mother’s son, for better and worse. And like her, I will tear everything to the ground if I have to.”
What else would he have to lose? What else could his father take from him?
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Aug 29, 2024 21:48:32 GMT
Athena complied with what Lilith silently ordered and turned so that her sister could start undoing the lacing of the corset.
"You should consider it a compliment. They were paying really well," she laughed. Athena held her hands over her stomach as the corset loosened allowing for better movement and a greater sense of freedom. A heavy sigh escaped her lips before she could stop herself and she let some of the tension in her back fall away.
Turning back around, Athena indicated with her head for Lilith to lead her to her tent so she could fully take the dress off and change into something more comfortable.
As she gathered the skirts of the dress and started walking with her sister she asked her question. Most of what she was going to ask had already been answered in Briseis's short blurb. All that was let were details.
"Did you really kill a nobleman's son for nothing more than a coin? I've heard talk but nothing concrete. He's not who hired me by the way," she added quickly before her sister could ask.
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Post by pallas on Aug 29, 2024 22:09:44 GMT
Lilith chuckled at her sister’s words that whoever it was had paid well. Who was it? It couldn’t be Elena, if she was going to kill Lilith surely she would take much greater joy in doing it herself.
”If you had taken the job, we might have found one another sooner,” Lilith observed with some amusement. ”What made you turn it down?” At least, presumably she had in fact turned it down as Lilith was still very much alive and hadn’t heard any word of her men thwarting an attempt on her life recently.
Once she’d got some of the lacing loosened so that her sister could at least breathe a little easier, Lilith then guided her sister back to her tent. At that point she indicated for the girl to sit while Lilith dug out some clothes for her, moving around the tent as she answered Athena’s question
”That one may be a little exaggerated, but in truth I have done far worse. Just for more than a coin.” Lilith answered. She was not proud of what she had done, there was no bragging in her tone. But there was not a lot of guilt either. She had simply accepted a long time ago that ruthlessness was the only way she would be able to survive. ”I have done a lot of things, May. My brutality was never without reason, but I am not the person I was before the fall. But I am sure I do not need to tell you about any of that.” After all, her sister was a sellsword. She would have been brutal too. She had changed too.
She handed her sister a neatly folded set of clothes, with one or two options for Athena to choose what she liked better.
”And how did you come to be a sellsword?” Lilith questioned ”And tell me more about this whole mess in Oralee.”
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CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Aug 30, 2024 16:22:39 GMT
Estelle "Little Mouse" Estelle squeaked when she was pulled into a quick hug by Maylea. Her eyes widened, but she quickly recovered and hugged her sister back. She had missed Maylea and Briseis so much, and even though they changed, they were still her sisters, that much was obvious. They were still her dorky, protective older sisters.
When Maylea gently pushed her towards Elena's tent, she looked back hesitantly. Briseis ruffled her hair affectionately, and she found herself already missing them both even if they were still right in front of her. She was wary to let either of them leave her sight, especially with how that worked out the last time she let them leave it, but Maylea was right. Dante didn't have time, and he was only in the position he was in because he helped her.
She gave a resolute nod then, and turned towards the Siren's tent, making a quick, even pace with her head held high. It wasn't a look of nobility, but rather the look of someone on a mission.
Without announcing her entrance or asking for entrance, Minke pushed herself into the Siren's lair. Her eyes scanned the area, before locking on the woman.
"Hello," She greeted, voice softer than it usually was, "I take it you're not someone who enjoys platitudes, but regardless, I'd like to thank you for bringing me to my sisters."
It would do no good to get right to business, and regardless, she was thankful to Elena. She just didn't want to announce such a fact before everyone in this camp.
"I know you hold anger at my sisters and myself, for our Royal Blood," She then stated bluntly, though it wasn't quite judgmental, "I won't pretend to understand your reasoning or your experiences, but I do understand the sentiment."She didn't add more to that. There wasn't more to add. Not then, at least. She let the words settle, glancing at the other woman carefully with a guarded expression.
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