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Well, this slide wasn't ending any time soon, so Ren figured he might as well get comfortable. He listened to Lucia's banter with amusement, and noted that it was a good thing that she didn't like tea since he didn't have any with him despite offering it. Although it would have been pretty hard to boil water while hurtling down this interminable tree slide. He glanced at Zwei, but the other man wasn't speaking much. Must be the quiet sort.

“I came from waaaay off in the east,” Ren responded to her last question. “I was living in a big city out there, not a particularly nice area, but it was home. When I got older though, I just needed a change, something different from what I was used to, so I journeyed for a few years. It must have been... hmm, twelve years? Yeah, twelve years since I left that place. Just been traveling around since then, seeing the world, meeting new people, and generally just enjoying life.”
He paused for a few moments, a calm smile on his face. Damn, when I tell it that way, it sounds like it was actually a good time. “Of course, I needed to pay my way while I was doing that,” he continued, “so I took on a few odd jobs, found out I was reasonably proficient with magic, and so when I was told about a nearby guild in one of the villages I passed through, I decided to give it a shot. And here I am!”
Ren finished the account of his journeys, waiting for any comments or questions Lucia or Zwei might have. Or maybe the latter would talk about his own story. That should be interesting.



Fucking fairies. They were now urging the group to dance with them, something which just irritated Mizuki even more. And on top of that, Clara suggested that humoring the fairies would somehow encourage them to help them get out of here. Whatever assumptions the girl made to reach this conclusion, Mizuki didn't want to hear them.
So, as far as she was concerned, Mizuki had two options open before her, neither of which was dancing. On the one hand, she could put the fairies heads on pikes until they told her what she wanted to know. That was a tempting option. The downside to this was that there were probably too many of them for her to take on. On the other hand, she could simply ask them what she wanted to know. She'd try that first, even though it meant she'd have to restrain herself and stay mostly polite.

She stepped forward to one of the fairies, holding up a hand to indicate that she wasn't accepting the invitation to dance. “Fairies, please listen to me,” she said in a raised voice, saying it firmly in a way that would attract their attention. “I and my companions need to find a way out of this place, and ultimately find someone called the sugar plum princess. Now, I'm sure you can help us with the former, so speak up if you will help. If you know anything about the princess, I'd like to hear that as well."

​

This girl was... strange. Mizuki came to the conclusion that she really just wanted some company, even from someone such as her. She was only young after all, so it was to be expected. However, Mizuki did not want her company, it irritated her, so it was time to get the kid to scoot.

"Will you not come with me and trust me because Ezekiel made me hurt people?"

Mizuki looked back down at the child, looking her in the eyes intently. “Nobody cares about Ezekiel. You are a child that he was using, and you merely followed his orders. Not so different from the rest of us. We're all just following orders.”
Leaving it at that, without a proper explanation of what she really meant, Mizuki continued on to the mouse hole. However, she let the little girl keep a hold of her arm, albeit she walked awkwardly, keeping her arm slightly away from her body. She wouldn't yell at the girl this time.


Fucking fairies. Mizuki hated them. Those tiny, tinkle-sounding midgets, always snooping around and poking their noses into other peoples business. And this Nutcracker was wasting time on one. Why was she not surprised. She was about to snap at him to get his **** together when Silvia came up to ask him where they were supposed to go to get to the princess. That was something Mizuki wanted to know as well. Best let him answer, assuming he could.

The groove was real, the beat was pumping, and Ren was a dancing machine. He had started off moonwalking, but it soon progressed into a series of spins, flips, worms, and pelvic thrusting. Damn, he had moves. He was the pinnacle of motion, poise, and elegance as long as he kept dancing.
And then he suddenly found himself tumbling backwards down a tree slide. He was no longer on that pinnacle.
Luckily he wasn't alone in his fall from divine grace, as Zwei and Lucia were nearby, the latter of which seemed to be enjoying herself, judging from the 'weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee's she was making. Then she saw him and waved, to which Ren responded with a wave as best as he could, considering he was sliding backwards down a random tree slide.
“Hey Lucia, Zwei!" he called out to them. "I have absolutely no fucking clue what's happening right now, but it seems not completely life-threatening, so I'm going to stay positive. How's it going, anyway? And the family as well. I'm really just making small talk here while we sit here on this seemingly infinite slide that will most probably only end when our other teammates that were suddenly embroiled in combat finally hand Ken his ass. Until then, I suppose we could have tea or something. Sound good?”

Mizuki, intent of focusing on the missions, didn't even turn back to face Jack as he pettily asserted his free will and opinions of her, or Sara with her ignorant warnings about the perils of taking a life. She merely brushed off their clueless, self-righteous declarations, not deigning to give them the impression that they were people she would consider equal enough to argue with.
Besides, she was calming down now. There was a concrete goal now, directions to the princess, and the Nutcracker presumably could lead them there. With something to focus her mind on, Mizuki could mostly ignore this foolish argument as background noise. Hopefully the two, and everyone else, would catch to the fact that she did not want to talk to them wherever possible, and so would leave her alone.

It wasn't to be. Before Mizuki had gone very far she had been approached by the child. She stopped in her tracks, frowning down at the little girl, irritated by her talk of dollies and god knows what else. Someone had better get and keep the kid out of her way, or she had no doubt she would blow up on her.
And yet, something stopped Mizuki from lashing out at the child. The little girl's hand. It tugged at her own, not in a forceful or commanding manner, but in a way Mizuki hadn't ever felt before. It was... inviting. Confusion swept through her mind, trying to figure out what the girl wanted. She looked into the other girl's eyes, searching for some ulterior motive, or something in her demeanour that would alert Mizuki to her falseness.
Her eyes are innocent. Her hand is warm. Any irritation she had towards the girl was gone, now replaced by confusion, anxiety, and suspicion. The suspicion suddenly took precedence. Even if this girl was genuine, it was possible that someone else was getting her to do this. Her eyes flicked around, scanning for this other person. Alessia? Probably not... Jack and Sara, that would be a joke. Silvia is too weak-minded to be behind something like – She stopped her this thought process suddenly, looking back down at the child. There wasn't any dark motive here. And the child wasn't seeking out Mizuki's company in particular. She merely wanted the argument to end. She wanted things to be peaceful and happy again. Of course it's not me she cares about.

Mizuki drew in a breath to speak, intending to order the child away, but the girl distracted her by tugging on her arm again. Her hand was so warm and soft. Somehow this little girl was still making Mizuki second guess herself. At this point, she didn't really know what to think.
Mizuki took another breath, and forced herself to calm down, to speak in a clear voice that wouldn't betray the anxiety she was feeling. “What is this?” she asked calmly, glancing at the small hand on her arm and then back to the girl's eyes, looking into them intently. Mizuki watched to see how the child would react.

Of course she couldn't be left alone to do her work. Of course someone full of a petty sense of righteousness had to declare the Nutcracker's life sacred. And of course, it had to be those vapid stooges, Jack and Sara.
If it hadn't been for the owl, both of them would have faced being skewered on the end of Mizuki's sword. Thankfully this owl had something useful to tell them, the location of the princess. The one helpful piece of information they'd received all day. Now that she had something to work with, Mizuki could calm down, concentrate. Her energy could be directed towards a concrete goal, rather than on hating those around her. Yes, now she had a job and a means of doing it. That was all she really wanted, to be honest.
She marched off after the Nutcracker, ignoring his request for names. As far as he is concerned, she thought, I am danger.

As she passed by Jack and Sara her anger suddenly returned and she gave them a furious look. She would have to warn them not to interfere with her again, for the sake of the mission. “You two imbeciles, do you really think I would get rid of the only person we had that could possibly help us?” she demanded. “Are you really so clueless that you can't tell the difference between a threat and a promise? Idiots. You didn't stop to consider that there would be no profit from killing him, and yet the possibility of all he knew while he was alive, did you? Well I did. Next time, don't fucking question my judgement.”
Turning on her heel, she strode away from the two, determined to ignore them for the foreseeable future. Right now, she had a Nutcracker to terrorise and a princess to find.

So the Mouse King had a weakness to shoes, apparently. Something to note for later. For now though, there were a myriad of questions that needed answering, and not really any way of having them answered. How had they suddenly been shrunk, why was there a talking Nutcracker, and where the hell was fucking Evanora? Not helping, that much was evident, and leaving them without the leadership a group like this needed.
This group. Just look at them. That child was prating on as only a child can, Silvia apparently had cracked and was wandering aimlessly away from everyone else, and Sara and Jack were pondering the most inane trivialities they could conjure up from their limited minds. God, they were a bunch of complete jokes. I should fucking leave them all behind and get out of here myself, she thought, glaring furiously at them all. Pathetic wasters.
In short, Mizuki was pissed. It was time to take control of this situation, and do everything possible to sort out this mess. Seeing as everyone else was busy being not helpful, that unfortunately left the task to her, the one who preferred to not to be at the front of things.
She stepped up to the Nutcracker and grabbed him by the collar (he totally has one, work with me here). “I'll be the one cracking nuts if you don't tell me right now how we can find this Princess. And don't tell me you don't have some idea, because if you don't have anything, then we don't need you, and that means you die.” She glared at him icily to emphasize her point. “Now talk.”

Ren looked around suspiciously at the trees, strongly suspecting at least one of them to harbour positive opinions of Wenlock's fashion sense. “You watch yourself, trees,” he whispered into the wind.​

Now to explore this place. Actually, scratch that. Peggy had claimed that this was the deepest part of the forest. And yet, they were almost definitely, as far as Ren's eyes could tell, on a floating island above the rest of the forest. Which in turn made this 'deepest' part of the forest also the highest. Did that make sense? Ren wasn't so sure, but he put the thought aside for now.

It was time for him to decide in which direction he would walk, because of important plot reasons, probably. Going right was too obvious. Going left was the opposite of right, so therefore it was the least obvious, and by virtue of that nothing would actually be there because whoever had hidden whatever they were looking for would know that they would figure out that it was the least obvious direction, thereby making it the most obvious direction, and at this point had figured that the person trying to find said item had reached a point in their logic so convoluted that really it didn't matter which direction was the most or least obvious.
Ahem. With those two directions scratched off the list, Ren now considered forwards. Ha, waaaay too dangerous. There could be wolves, or bears, or evil toadstools, or even a root he could trip over. Obviously the safest way was to go backwards.
And so Ren did. Grabbing his crotch in one hand and throwing out his other one dramatically, he began to moonwalk as 80's pop music played in his head. It was glorious.

Ren is ready for second departure.

​

Those mice... they hadn't acted as Mizuki had expected. While trying to kill one, somehow the other had taken the blow... whether it was because the mouse was trying to save it's comrade, or simply because it was stupid enough to walk into the sword swing, it wasn't possible to know now. Both the mice were dead.
It had nearly been Mizuki who was dead though (and in fact she did, but was saved by the power of editing). After hitting the wrong mouse, she had lost her footing, and found herself flanked on both sides by her enemies, taking a massive blow from each. Just one more of those, and she would have died, but suddenly that other girl, Alessia?, had taken out the one behind her.
The remaining mouse, suddenly without its partner, didn't really have much hope of surviving after that point.

Standing up slowly, Mizuki grimaced as her wounds stretched with the movement. She looked over at Alessia, assessing her. It looked like the other girl hadn't even taken a scratch. Interesting.
“You do your job well,” Mizuki stated flatly. It was strange that she would even talk to someone else on a job, but she felt like she should acknowledge Alessia somehow.
Something struck her though. Why should she acknowledge the other girl? She didn't mean anything to Mizuki. In fact, nobody in this guild meant anything. So why...
Ah, yes. I need to convince them that I want to be part of this guild. It would be strange if I didn't talk to anyone. Talking to this girl is just part of the job.

Ren didn't like to say 'I told you so', but he had always had his suspicions regarding Peggy and Annika's relationship. Peggy had quite a human looking face, and Annika had distinct, horsey features. It just all made so much sense now.
“So, let me get this straight,” Ren interjected. “Moustache-man wanted a wife, so he burst in through the window, said 'Ima wife her', the parents were like 'wat no', and so the best idea the guy had was to turn his desired wife into a winged horse, and then just fly off. With no wife at the end of it. And he profited from this... how?” He feigned a thoughtful face, and then snapped his fingers. “Oh, right, of course, he got to up his evilness street cred. Maybe he thought it would counterbalance the ridiculousness oozing from his facial hair.”
Having mocked Wenlock as well as he could with the material provided, Ren continued to more important matters. “Anyway, now that we know that Peggy is part of the royal family, apparently, can we please move on to the slightly less urgent business of saving the kingdom and its inhabitants?” Ren suggested. “Does that sound good? Good, lets get down to it. Your majesty – can I call you Rayla? – do you have any ideas as to how we can solve this mess? Because right now, I think you're the most likely to know something that can help us kick 'the guy's' ass.” He motioned for her to begin. "Please begin."

Listening to Kyle, Franco couldn't help cheering up. When the soldier apologised for his fervour, Franco laughed quietly for a few moments, for just a little while forgetting his cares.
“Forgive me Kyle,” Franco smiled when he had finished, “I'm not laughing at your determination. In fact I admire it. Your enthusiasm, it's a breath of fresh air for me, something I've needed for a while now.”
Now what? Kyle had been successfully recruited and introduced to the household, and from what Franco could tell was already firmly dedicated to the Bertram family's interests. The nobleman was pleased with this acquisition, it had turned out better than he could have hoped for. At most, he had expected someone without prior loyalties, simply looking for an easy placement. At worst, it could have been someone sent to spy by another aristocrat, to whom Franco could feed false information.
Kyle, however, was neither of these. And that suited Franco just fine.

“You may want to rest for a while now,” Franco told Kyle, as he got up off his seat and wandered over to his desk. “It's down on the first floor where I showed you, and there'll be a servant around to lead you to your rooms. Get a big meal, and some rest. We'll be heading out either this evening or early in the morning. It depends on my mood.”
A paper document then caught his attention on the desk, and he seemed to forget Kyle was here, his brow furrowed in deep thought. ...get the attention of the royal family... somehow. Then move on to the bigger plan. It'll grant us great influence, but I'll need gold... hmm, soldiers maybe... Linhaven is quiet, I could get some from there. But there should be another way...
He suddenly turned back to Kyle, evidently not having forgotten him. “If you don't need a rest, however, feel free to wander about. It would probably be good for you to get to know the layout of the place, and meet some of my other people. Or just stay here, if there's anything else you'd like to talk to me about.”
Giving Kyle a friendly nod, Franco turned back to the document. The furrow in his brow returned, and he tapped the desk thoughtfully. The other families, what are they up to? How will they react to my manoeuvres, if they're not too busy paying attention to Vex... I should see the King soon, start things now while it's quiet...

​

Now this was an exhilarating fight. Mizuki, having stepped back a bit from her opponents to catch a breather and adjust her footing, was tensing up her body for another strike. That one on the left, it looked weak. She would deal it one last blow, and then turn her attention to the other mouse. It might get a hit in on her, but it wouldn't be anything too serious.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, that blonde girl flashed past, charging towards the weak mouse Mizuki was targeting. Enraged, Mizuki dashed after her, catching up within a few steps, and smashing her elbow furiously into the side of the blonde girls head.
“THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!” Mizuki roared. “GET BACK TO WHERE YOU BELONG.”
The looming shadow of one of the mouse soldiers rose above them. Damn. While Mizuki had been dealing with this blonde bitch, the mice had taken advantage of the opportunity and closed in on them. Gritting her teeth, her fury fueled by both the other girls stupidity and the mouse soldiers cunning, Mizuki drove her sword into the belly of the mouse standing over them, sliding it in right up to the hilt. It was almost certainly dead.


Mizuki used Basic attack on Mouse Army Member 15, just to screw with Sara because antisocial-ness.

Well, while Caleb's questioning had been an amazing display of fine detective reasoning and skill, probably, it hadn't really helped them solve their current problem. Namely, the fact that the entire population of some town had been turned to stone. Including, most importantly, the king and queen, the people that were supposed to pay their paycheck.

Ren decided it was time he entered the conversation. “Ok, so, Pink Pegasus, do you mind if I call you Peggy? So, what's your plan?” he asked him, her?, frankly. “Because right now, all I'm hearing is, 'lets run!'” A thought struck him, remembering something that the pegasus had said. “Hey, this witch, the one who owned the wand first. How about we pay her a visit? Perhaps we could ask for her help, even offer her a little revenge on Wenlock. Or, if that's a no-no, we could steal a weapon of our own from her. I'm sure she's got something that would help. What do you think Peggy, eh?”



Mizuki used Blitz on Mouse Army Member 16. That poor, nameless bastard.

Mizuki, despite not being included in the battle post, was all like, "Fuck you", and found her own two mice to kill. She attacked one of the mice with Blitz.

​

Rather than go ice skating as they were probably supposed to be doing, Ren had kept off the ice. Well off the ice. He didn't know how to skate, and as far as he was concerned, walking on what was essentially water was dangerous and unnatural. He wasn't going to be taking that chance.
And then all of a sudden, there was thunder, and green fog, and moonlight, and a giant frickin griffin landing down beside him, displaying it's glorious wings and a flurry of movement and wind. Oh, and there was also some guy with a bad mustach. He was weird.

Ren moved closer to where the man, called Wenlock much to his misfortune, and listened incredulously to him declare that he was the princesses future husband. Annika's and Johanna's reactions were priceless, and by the time Wenlock reached the word bride, Ren had burst into laughter.
After a few moments of this he stopped, wiping a tear from his eyes. “Oh, god, that was hilarious. You're part of the entertainment, right?” Ren asked him. “Oh, you're not?! Well, let me tell you something. A guy like you, he isn't going to get any girls,” he confided to Wenlock. “You need to spruce up your appearance man. That beard? Pathetic, and the knot is just a no go. If you're going to have a beard, grow it out, and braid it like a real man. And the mustache, well, it looks like spaghetti got stuck there after your lunch.” Ren pointed over to the griffin. “This your ride? I'll just let you know, they have terrible mileage. Unicorns are where it's at.”
Smiling at Wenlock, Ren reached out and patted his shoulder. “We all make mistakes like this at times, I guess.” Suddenly his face and entire demeanor changed into a deadly seriousness. His grip on Wenlock's shoulder got tighter, and he stared into the other mans eyes emotionlessly. “Now, what the fuck are you still doing here? Go.”

​

Mizuki had not been at dinner. She didn't like eating with other people, and besides, not even most of the other guild members even knew she was here, let alone any of the hosts. And Mizuki was happy enough it being that way. She wouldn't have to give them any attention if they didn't come seeking for it.
Instead she had found out where their bedroom was from a frightened servant, and spent the evening there, pretending to already be asleep when the other guild members came up. She wasn't sleeping though. She was constantly listening to the sounds around her, both to the others in the bedroom, and the servants softly treading down the hallways outside.

The clanging wasn't even hard to hear. Mizuki stayed put for a few moments at first, listening to figure out where it was coming from and perhaps what it was. Eventually she determined that it was somewhere downstairs, and that if she wanted to know what it was she'd have to go and find out.
Evidently another guild member had thought much the same, she had already made her way out of the room. Mizuki left the room close after her, Alessia was the name she grudgingly remembered. She walked quietly, not alerting Alessia to her presence but certainly not hiding it. Mizuki didn't want to speak to her, or feel the need to answer her should she talk. It was unnecessary.

Franco winced as Kyle's bolt smashed the chair, sending splinters flying everywhere. That had been an expensive chair, probably the most expensive thing in this room. No matter, I have something of greater value now. This power, it had so much potential. If Kyle had described it accurately, then it could be used to sheer through a shield raised to parry a blow, or, interestingly, for sudden, unanticipated killing. And given its effects on the chair, doors and other weak structures could be dispatched easily as well. Kyle even claimed he could get through walls given enough time and energy, and Franco was inclined to believe him.

Of course, the magic had its drawbacks. A loss of energy through its use, a common enough side effect of wielding such powers. And luckily, one that could be mitigated.
“Kyle, I think it's in both of our interests that you develop this power further,” Franco suggested. “It seems to me that, if this power of yours uses your energy, to last longer you simply need to get more energy. Your stamina, you can train to increase it. Your training as a soldier has probably allowed you to use your magic more powerfully than you would have been able to otherwise, but I am certain you could become even more stronger.”
A plan was beginning to form in Franco's mind. Kyle's magic was strong, more powerful than anything any of his other servants could boast, and if it could be developed further, and Kyle proved faithful, Franco could find himself in a very strong position indeed. “I want you to continue your physical training, for a start,” he told Kyle. “Become fitter, faster, stronger. And aside from this, I will arrange somewhere for you to practice your magic. Somewhere out of sight and earshot. Most of my subordinates, while loyal, still share the common fear of magic users. But I'm sure you are used to this ignorant fear already.” As am I. “With practice, you will learn to use your magic more efficiently, and more potently. I doubt you've had many opportunities to use it before, so I can imagine your strength will grow quickly.”
Now, I have to get him to strive for this. I have to challenge him.
“Now, that's what I think should be done,” Franco said leaning back. “However, you know about your magic more than I do. Tell me what you think. Will this help, or is it just a pipe dream? Do you have any more potential, or is this your limit?” Franco looked Kyle straight in the eye, challenging him. “Is this all you have?”

Now this was a surprise. As the blue magic crackled in Kyle's hand, Franco looked at it keenly in silence for a few moments, admiring the way it cast its light and danced.
“Your magic is truly a thing of beauty,” Franco said simply, being completely open about what he was thinking right at that moment, an occurrence that wasn't frequent at all.

Kyle was turning out to be quite a good addition to Franco's retinue, despite only having just joined it. He was one of the top soldiers just out of training, he was young and seemingly unaffiliated with anyone else in the aristocracy, it was clear the young man was prepared to dedicate himself wholeheartedly to the Bertram family, and to top all this off, he possessed the rare gift of magic.
In fact, it was almost too good to be true. It now struck Franco that there was the vague possibility that Kyle was in fact working for someone else. Magic was rare, very few people could use it or even tolerated it, and even fewer people would actually admit to having such powers. The odds of there being an unaffiliated young soldier who could use magic, and admit to it after having only just receiving a position in a new household, were quite low. Someone could be counting on Franco to jump at the chance to accept Kyle to use his power, and unwittingly reveal too many secrets. It wouldn't be a surprise if that was really what was happening here.
And yet, my own power tells me he's genuine. I can't rely just on that of course, but it's something to go on. I shall have to keep an eye on you, Kyle. For now I won't reveal too much, but I will let you know some of my secrets. And if they somehow become public knowledge, I'll know who to blame.

Coming out of his silence suddenly, Franco leaned forward. “What does your magic do?” he asked. “From the looks of it, it has some sort of physical impact on the world, but what exactly I obviously can't say. Perhaps you could show me?”

​

At first Koko couldn't really hear what the three people she was watching were saying, but soon their voices began to rise in anger. When the weapons came out, the little cat huddled down more behind the leg of the table, frightened about what would happen next. When the woman was attacked from behind, Koko just ducked down her head, trying to just hide from what was happening. There was a sound of smashing glass, and Koko scrambled underneath another table as broken pieces of a bottle landed near her. They wouldn't have hurt her, but Koko was too frightened and young to think clearly in this situation.
Where are you Alec? Come and get me, please!
She was nearer to the door now, but there with all the feet moving and the fight going on, the cat wasn't brave enough to make a dash for it. The door opened briefly, and Koko almost made a dash for it, but it was too late. The young woman that had opened it suddenly charged forward and slid over the table Koko was under, making it shudder and sending the kitten racing off to another table in the fear that the table would fall on her.
Her fur ruffled and her breathing ragged, Koko cowered in corner, watching the scene in front of her with large frightened eyes. She just wished that Alec would come soon and take her somewhere safe.

Franco smiled a little at Kyle's joke, enough to let the other man know he took it in a good way. “Yes, maybe one day I will, assuming the right woman comes along,” he responded in a light tone, suddenly getting up from his seat. He went over to a window and looked out over the countryside for a few moments. The right woman. If only it were so simple.
“Kyle, you said you had something important you wanted to tell me,” Franco said with his back turned, still looking out the window. “However before you do, I just want to give you a warning about the nobility. We are not infallible. I include us all in that, the Bertram's not the least, and dangerous as it may be to say, neither are the Strive's. We make mistakes, and most of the time it isn't us who bears the brunt of those failings. It is the common folk, the ones who carry out the orders, that suffer the consequences. For every one nobleman that falls, thousands of their subordinates go before them. And all because they made a poor judgment, whether because of greed, or apathy. You could even say that this rumored revolution is due to bad decisions.”

“I am the same. I may strive not to fail, I may hope to do good, but I am painfully aware that I very often make the wrong choice. I don't want to, I spend sometimes days pondering over my course of action, and yet I still find myself at nights agonizing over the terrible consequences of my decisions." He sighed. "I can't help it, I suppose. I am merely a man.”
“As for you, sometimes you will know when I do not that I am making a mistake, and perhaps even feel that what I am doing is morally wrong. When such an event occurs, tell me. And if I will not listen, I would ask that you follow me still, even if it goes against every fiber of your being.”
He finally turned to face Kyle, a deadly serious look on his face. “In essence, you must dedicate your life to following me, and my family. If you cannot do that, then you may leave. But if you can, then stay, and tell of this private matter of yours.”

Franco listened to Kyle's assessment with interest, pleased to find that the soldier had a good eye for fortifications. That would no doubt prove useful sometime.
“Yes, it's no castle I admit,” he nodded. “The main Bertram fortress is far to the south, just outside the town of Linhaven. It's where my father resides, and half the Bertram family for that matter. We'll probably be down there sometime over the next few months. Ah, but yes, my home here isn't much. If there's any sign of a significant threat, our best form of defense will be to flee,” he said as he began to lead the way into the house. “However it will protect us against any angry mobs thirsting for the nearest nobleman's blood. And with these rumors of revolution, they may come here sooner than expected.”

Entering in through the door, Franco led them into a warmly lit hallway, and took an immediate right up some stairs. Further on down at the end of the hallway could be seen a large room with a roaring fire. “That's where the guardsmen and servants eat and socialize, and this entire floor is where they sleep and work,” Franco explained pointing down to the room, before stepping quickly up the stairs taking them two at a time. On the first floor landing he paused briefly and turned to Kyle. “The lounges, dining room, music room, that sort of thing are on this floor. Any guests I have over will be entertained here for the most part. There's also a few bedrooms and other small rooms on this side of the house, where my steward and the head guardsman sleep. You'll have your rooms there as well.”
He resumed his climb up the stairs, this time arriving at the top of them on the second floor. Without breaking his stride he burst through the double doors to his right, leading the way into a luxurious lounge area. “This floor is where my private quarters are located, as well as some guest bedrooms,” he explained hurriedly, not even stopping in the room for a moment before he was throwing open another door. This one led to even more steps, although thankfully these were the last since they led up the tower.
At the top of them was Franco's study. It was here that he did most of his work, secluded from all the noise below and with magnificent sights for miles through the windows. Here he could ponder his secrets openly, and with his powers he would be alert to anyone that was nearby. He felt safer here than almost anywhere else in the world.

Franco took an armchair by a small fire and put his feet up. “Take a seat,” he said to Kyle motioning to a couch. He picked up a nearby letter and examined it vaguely as he let Kyle get comfortable. “So, what do you think of my home?” he asked, tossing the letter aside. Rather than wait for the other mans response though, he gave his own opinions. “It's an extravagance, to say the least, but even I have my failings. It cost too much to build, and the maintenance costs are huge as well. And to be honest, half the rooms have never been used. It was built for a family however, so maybe one day the rooms will be filled,” he mused, half to himself.

Astedia

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Just as he counted down to one, Zwei knocked on the door, soon followed by Thomas, and then Annika actually opened the door, to Ren's surprise. If he was honest with himself, he was a little disappointed that he hadn't been able to blast it off it's hinges.

This disappointment was soon replaced by yet more frustration as the Princess told them her sob story. To a point he sympathized with her, the King and Queen were restricting her movements way too much. He could understand how infuriating that could be, and he was going to make sure he sorted them out as well, but right now it was Annika that needed dealing with.
“Princess, I understand how you feel. This control of everything you do, this unnecessary imprisonment, I do want to help you get out of it, believe me. But your idea that you should just throw everything away to become a mage, it shows your selfishness and ignorance of the world.”
Ren paused for a moment here, choosing his next words carefully. Merely calling the girl out on her selfishness again wouldn't help. He had to show her a solution, a way forward that she could accept. Now where exactly do I pull that from?
“Being a wizard in a guild isn't as fun and carefree was you seem to think,” he began. “We put our lives on the line daily, fighting whatever beast crawled out of the muck, for sometimes painfully insignificant reasons, all to scratch a few coins together to let us live another day. Then more fighting, more death, and if we're lucky enough to scrounge together a few extra coins, we'll buy some new weapon or armor to keep us alive that little bit longer. Of course,” Ren said with a shrug, “some people enjoy this type of life. Others find themselves with no other options. Either way, it's dangerous work. In fact not too long ago one of our newest members was killed in battle. He had joined us only a few hours beforehand.”

He stopped here to let what he had just told her sink in. Surely she would understand just how close to death a wizard's path treaded. He was using scare tactics here, but he this wasn't the only argument he had. And he could surely come up with a few others if he needed to.
“But lets say you do leave, and become a mage," he continued, presenting Annika with another argument. "Your parents will no doubt be more than a little anxious for their daughter, understandably, but the kingdom will continue to run on as it has all these years, as calm as it is now, the peasant folk going about their daily business as usual. Until one day, the last of your parents dies, and suddenly the country has no Head of State. I imagine there will probably be half a dozen of the noble families at each others necks trying to secure the throne for themselves, or maybe even an external, more stable monarchy will march in to absorb this country. And you know who will bear the brunt of all this turmoil? The peasantry. They'll be the ones on the front line, killing each other for no other reason than because their master told them to. There will probably be family members on each side of the conflict, tearing kinsmen apart. Then, after the fighting has ended, there will probably be a famine, there usually is, and so not only will the fit young people have died in battle, but the old, the sick, and the children will die of starvation.” He gave Annika a hard look. “And there you will be, off in a distant land with your magic and freedom, oblivious to the suffering your neglect has caused.”

“So tell me princess, did these peasants write their own story? No, and they never have. They've always had to do whatever it took to put a meal on the table, no matter how much it wore down their spirit. Thousands of little girls would love to be a princess like you, but that's just a dream. They'll never be able to write that story. Most of us don't get to be what we really want. But I challenge you to accept the fate that has been handed to you, as everyone in this life has to. We can help you learn magic, if you insist, and we will do all we can to get your parents off your back," he promised. "But please devote your life to this kingdom. For the sake of your people, become the best damn monarch this country has ever seen.”

Ren just closed his eyes, pretending for a few moments that this wasn't actually happening. For just a brief space of time, he could ignore the complete and utter ignorance playing out before him, and imagine something happy. Like cupcakes. Cupcakes were happy. Especially with sprinkles on top.

He reopened his eyes, returning to reality. Things had not improved since he'd zoned out. Not even one bit. After further appraisal of the situation, he was beginning to think that the king and queen had more blame in this than he had initially laid on them. Tempting as it was to argue further with them, he decided that right now was not the time. He would give them a little longer to think about it, perhaps they might change their minds. Not that he had high hopes for that.
Instead, he rushed off after Annika as Johanna suggested, barely keeping her in sight until she slammed shut a door, presumably the door to her room.
Tentatively he stepped up to the door and knocked. “Hello? Your Highness, this is the guy from the guild. We need to talk.” He didn't really expect her to let them in, so he prepared to blast the door down.
Five. Four. Three. Two...

Seeing Kyle return in good time, Franco set off to leave. “Good, we'll be off then.” He left the room and strode quickly down the halls of the building to leave. He didn't look back, assuming that Kyle was actually following.
“Your first task is to guard my back, and keep up with me,” he said over his shoulder. “By the way, I may have neglected to say this, but I arrived here without any other guards. They are... slow. Slower than me. I like to keep my thoughts to myself until the last second, so unfortunately my poor guardsmen end up being caught off guard, excuse the pun, whenever I leave to go somewhere, and are only just saddling their horses as the dust begins to settle from the hoofs of mine. I'm hoping that you, however, will be different.”
He reached the front door, flinging it wide open and stepping outside. The guardsman who Franco had made to hold his horse's reigns was still standing them in his hand, still looking somewhat bewildered. Franco took the reigns from him, nodding in thanks and slipping another gold coin into his hand. Then he jumped up on the horse, pulling it's head around towards home.
“Follow along,” he called out to Kyle, and then he nudged his mare into a brisk trot. He didn't say anything or look back at Kyle, merely assuming that the soldier was following. During his rides Franco tended to only barely focus on what was going on around him, and instead think over his plans, ideas, the regular requests from his father, Nyla... Well, things always ended up back at her. Damn, he missed talking to her.

The guardsman at the barracks doors, meanwhile, was still staring after the now receding figures. He had no idea who that nobleman was, why he was here, or even for sure if he was a nobleman. But he paid gold, so... The guard settled back into his position. No need to fuss over the details, he decided.

Before Franco knew it, he had arrived at home and he had to rouse himself from the memory of one of his many excursions with Nyla. His house was a large, imposing stone structure, boasting a fair sized courtyard in the front and a stables through an arch at the back. His guards and servants occupied the ground floor, the dining, lounge, and other common rooms were on the first floor, and up on the second floor was where Franco's private quarters were. A small tower added another layer to the building, and it was there in what was Franco's study that his closest secrets were whispered.
Leading the way to the stables, Franco dragged it to a halt, and leaped off, throwing the reigns to a stable-hand that was obviously used to Franco's way of disposing of his horse.
Taking a moment to examine the workers milling around the stable area, asking them how they were doing and how the work was going, he turned back to Kyle.
“So, what do you think?” Franco asked him, indicating his house. “It's a good size, enough space for all of my people here, but its real value is that it's easily defensible. That's good, strong stone. But you're a soldier, so perhaps you have your own opinion, eh?"