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Realistic or Modern Night’s Embrace | Private |

david tennant

daydream believer
Rose lifted her gaze when she heard the familiar steps that belonged to Emory. While the other male normally had the cold expression that lingered on his face, she didn’t recognize the rage that had filled his honey eyes. It was something that concerned her greatly. She hoped that she hadn’t been the one that caused it. She wouldn’t know how to handle herself if she did. The air between them was already awkward and tense. She only hoped that it didn’t last like this for too long. She hated any sort of disagreements. She just felt as though the other male couldn’t stand being around her right then. He had seemed to flinch away earlier when she was just trying to help. Now he seemed to be upset about something still. She bit her bottom lip as she debated on whether or not she should ask him if he was alright.



She stayed quiet though after she spoke, surprised that he didn’t respond for a little bit. It didn’t make her feel good. A bit of dread seemed to settle in her stomach. She only could assume that she had caused his thoughts to be turning in the way that they currently were. She straightened her posture some and allowed a light breath to leave her lips. She was mentally begging for Viola to finish with the meal so that she could eat and head to her room. She might even take the gamble and go out to look at the stars. It had been a while since she had been lucky enough to stargaze. She did have a balcony off of her room. She could always just go out onto it. She didn’t realize that she had drifted off into her own thoughts until she heard Emory finally respond.



“You’re welcome. If it does not work as well, I can include more herbs to make a stronger dosage. I normally don’t need it to be strong, but every person is different.” She forced her tone to sound a bit lighter than. Maybe if she tried to improve her mood, it would help improve Emory’s mood as well. It was a silly thought, but she had to try whatever it took. The words were lingering on the tip of her tongue. She couldn’t hold them in anymore. “Are you alright? You seem more distant than normal.” She inquired. She hoped then that she didn’t overstep her boundaries.



She blinked at his comment and nodded. “I won’t put any up where you can easily see them if you don’t want me to. I just wanted to try to improve the atmosphere here. The walls are rather bare.” She pointed out. She offered him the familiar smile that commonly lit up her face. She was just trying to see if she could help him in some way. “I know that this is rather a long shot, but is there any way I might be able to disguise myself to head into town tomorrow? I want to see how the kingdom will be celebrating my birthday when they believe I am dead,” She paused to lightly shake her head,” It is rather ironic that they will be mourning my death on my birthday, while I am still alive and well. It is almost comical.” She mused.

LONELYRAIN LONELYRAIN here was my last reply to the thread!))
 
Emory merely nodded his head in an absent response to her words, although his attention was anywhere but their conversation. Even as the anger in his honeyed gaze had slowly tempered and eased away from view, there was still a tension in his limbs, the way his actions seemed more or less just going through the motions rather than being completely alert. Albeit, he should perhaps be more focused on the conversation that the annoyance that had been sprung upon him, he could barely focus on the words being spoken to him, although he did speak up regarding the tea, his golden eyes focused on the tea cup before him rather than Rose, "Perhaps, making it a bit stronger would be appreciated." Although his headache certainly wasn't as painful as before, it certainly wasn't gone and had instead settled to a dull ache around the sides of his head, though this could be a cause of his own anger and annoyance toward an all too irritating letter.

Rose seemed to grab his attention though as she inquired whether he was alright, that alone had caused the male's head to raise upward to look at her, regarding her with one his usual blank and distant expressions, though he was rather taken off guard. Was he being too obvious? How improper of him to act, to even so much as make her concerned over his behavior. The man shook his head, almost as if attempting to physically shake off the prior annoyances of such a pest that had come scratching at his door, instead settling on being calm again, "Yes, I am fine. There is no need to concern yourself over me," He paused, hesitating for a few seconds before adding, "A rather... unsavory pest had come to bother me with a prior deal, that is all." However, it didn't seem like nothing more than a business deal. For him to express anger toward something so minor was uncharacteristic of him, but the individual called Laurence Barker was someone that Emory actively avoided, for good reasons of course.

Next was regarding the decorations she planned to place within the mansion, although he did raise an eyebrow at her saying that she would put up the decorations out of his own sight if he desired it. This alone had caused his gaze to shift about the bare walls of the dining room, void of decorations like the rest of the mansion. He supposed he did go a bit overboard with discarding every single object that had once belonged to his family, more so decorations put up by his own mother, but it was indeed rather bare and all too simple to any one who may walk into his mansion, as it barely looked lived in. "There is no need. Place them wherever you'd like." If she was to be the inheritor of his estate anyways, he supposed it would make sense if she wanted to decorate the mansion however she'd like. There was no point to limiting her, and he wasn't intending on completely treating her like a prisoner in his own lands.

Then, the next question had come and made the man look upon her with a close to bewildered expression. Why would she want to look at proceedings with her own supposed funeral? The royal funerals were long and drawn out affairs, boring in their own right if he were to even describe them. Getting to the next town in of itself would be a hassle on its own, not to mention to try and get a decent enough disguise for her to stop her from being discovered before he was ready to reveal her to the public. His bewildered expression had eased away, now settling on tense and almost reluctant... there would be a lot of risk to allow her to go outside, but he supposed it wouldn't be too bad if he accompanied her himself, just to make sure she would stay out of sight for the most part. Besides, no one would dare approach him, and it would make it easier if she were disguised to simply pass her off as one of his many henchmen.

Leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, it almost seemed like he was about to completely reject her request, but instead he nodded his head, "Very well, if you desire to go, then I won't stop you. However, I will accompany you out of the risk of you being discovered. Most people won't approach you if you have me nearby." Sound enough reasoning in his own mind, but he also wanted to keep an eye on her. After all, he wasn't going to permit her to leave the mansion without him close by, or one of his men shadowing her. Even if she had proven to be only kind so far, he still didn't completely trust her to not try and escape.

But, this left the problem of having to deal with his unsavory deal with his unwanted "client". He would have to get the task done relatively fast if he wanted to accompany Rose the next day and be relatively alert while he was out with her. He was used to getting around three to four hours of sleep anyways, so such a matter could be easily dealt with... or so he hoped. As this thought rang out in his mind, his attention shifted over to the entrance of the dining room where it seemed like Viola had finally finished their dinner for the night. It wouldn't be long before the woman was soon hurrying her way over to the dining room table and placing a hearty meal before both Rose and Emory and taking her usual spot to linger near the wall until she would be called over for anything the two might need.
 
Rose kept her gaze focused on the other male, trying to read him. She was normally good with things like that, but Emory wasn’t normal when it came to showing his emotions. He held such a hard exterior. She was hoping that he would open up to her eventually. Her gaze didn’t waiver, though she did straighten her posture some. There were some things that still ran through her mind from her days within the castle. Her training had been very formal and it was something that would stay with her for the rest of her life. She was pleased with the fact that the other male had seemed to like the tea. She had multiple different brews that might be able to help him. “Alright, that I can do,” She paused, lightly biting on her bottom lip,” If you tell me some of the issues that you are currently struggling with, I can create a custom brew for you. It should be able to solve all of them.” She offered.



The other male grew to be even more rigid as she spoke once again. She would be lying if it said it didn’t bother her any. She wasn’t used to hiding things like this from her. Everyone had always been so open. Her former husband was even rather open to her. His emotions had been that of anger and abuse, but she handled it. She truly enjoyed being here. It was such a nice change compared to what she had been used to. She was just hoping that the other male would let her help him. “Ah, alright. I apologize for overstepping. I know that I should allow you to have your privacy.” She commented.



She slowly turned her gaze towards the room surrounding them. The walls around them were far too bare. She was rather excited to be able to finally put some things up on the wall. Taking up painting again would help her relax as well. That and reading were two of her favorite activities before this all had happened. “Thank you Emory. I truly appreciate it. I promise that everything I put up will be tasteful. You can even view some of my art after I finish painting it.” She spoke with a light smile beginning to spread on her face. She was just grateful that the other male didn’t seem to mind her doing certain things such as that now.



Her smile had begun to fade as she focused back on the other male. She had expected for him to quickly shut the idea down. Their entire plan could be ruined with her going into town. His logic seemed to be strong enough though. Emory was one of the more feared people within the kingdom. The king was even scared of him. Her smile grew to a grin once she heard his words. “That is wonderful! I do not mind you accompanying me at all. It could be an interesting day.” She mused. She was wondering how her father would be taking the day. The news of her death must’ve been spread throughout the kingdom by then. The day would most likely be solemn, but she could also do some extra shopping while they were out.



She perked up more as the food was brought over to the table. “Thank you Viola.” Her words were gentle. She waited patiently for everything to be placed down before she began to eat. She had been rather hungry, but wouldn’t scarf the food down.
 
Emory couldn't say he was too shocked to see a grin crossing her features at him accompanying her, in fact he was slowly getting used to her smiles, but he could never get used to someone actually grinning at that prospect of him joining them for a whole day at that. It was just unbelievably odd. However, as he had begun to eat the meal before him, a knocking at the front door had caused him to pause just before he could take his first bite of food. He wasn't expecting any visitors, especially around this hour with it being so close to night. A frown had touched his features, though saying as politely as possible, "Excuse me." The man had stood from his seat, stepping away from the dining room table and out into the entryway, his heavy footsteps echoing in the hall as he unlocked the front door, pulling it open to reveal whomever was awaiting him on the other side. What he saw nearly made the man burst with an ever familiar coiling of anger that had settled within his chest, stifling any words that may have flew from his lips of any sort of greeting. What the hell are you doing here now?! His headache had spiked, expression turning down into a deep scowl as the man before him had grinned at him, a taunting, irritating grin that made the gold of the man's eyes glint.

The older man before him had laughed, a rough laughter that grated against Emory's ears, "I see my letter reached just a bit before I arrived, since you don't seem too surprised to see me." The man leaned forward, a foot stepping near the entryway to the doorway in which Emory didn't move, firmly standing in place as his eyes grew colder, lowering his voice so that he would not risk yelling at the fool before him, his nose nearly wrinkling at the strong smells of different perfumes and ale clinging to the clothes of the man, "I'm not surprised to see you, however I didn't expect for you to arrive so soon." His body shifted position to block more of the entryway as Emory's tone became a bit more scathing, "In fact, I expected you hours from now. Why did you decide to arrive so early?"

"Why?" The man echoed the word, his golden eyes filled with an eerie light as he said quietly, dropping his tone to match Emory's, "Because, you still owe me, that's why. Having you run off so many years ago really was inconvenient for me, especially since your mother is gone now." Laurence mockingly raised a hand, lightly patting the side of Emory's face and causing the man to recoil as if he had been burned, "And I like collecting on my debts early. Don't you?" Emory's jaw clenched tightly as the man brushed him aside, stepping into the mansion forcibly as he took off his hat that had been concealing graying blonde hair, his golden eyes bright as he looked around the entryway, a snort leaving him as he commented, "Didn't know you hated decorations. Looks abandoned in here."

Emory firmly closed the front door, locking it as he took in a deep breath to cool his annoyance as Laurence had sniffed, "Hm? Did I interrupt dinner time for you? Ah, such an untimely mistake. Surely you have some food for me, no?" Emory snipped back in response, his eyes blazing with irritation, "Absolutely not. Nor do I intend for you to stay long enough to eat." Laurence laughed, a hearty sound as he responded with amusement, "How cold of you." Emory stepped after the man, internally cringing as the man had peered into the dining room, causing a rather nervous Viola to flinch in surprise which quickly turned into dread as she eyed Emory practically stewing with rage behind Laurence as the man's attention was completely locked on Rose.

"Oh, and who is this? You didn't tell me that you tried settling-" Emory interjected abruptly, his cold expression becoming more so rigid as it seemed like his eyes were attempting to burn holes into the man's back, "I'd rather you'd not finish that sentence, Laurence." Stepping past the man, he cleared his throat and forced his expression back into a more neutral state, though it was clear he was anything but feeling neutral, "Lady Barclay, this is Laurence Barker. Please, don't pay him any mind, he's just passing through." His tone grew a bit harsh at the last words, eyeing Laurence with a warning expression, though the man seemed to be easily brushing off Emory's glares, and instead had approached Rose, extending a hand outward to her as he smiled broadly, a rather welcoming gesture as his golden eyes sparkled with mirth, "A pleasure to meet you, Lady Barclay." On closer examination of Laurence's face, his features were strikingly similar to Emory's, the primary similarity being the unusual honey gold of his eyes, and his broad smile that made his eyes sparkle - something that would of course be similar to Emory if the man would even so much as crack the tiniest grin. Gray stubble lined his jaw and chin, his short graying blonde hair being tousled and wild. Of course, the scent of various perfumes was strong as he neared him, as well as a tinge of ale and smoke. He simply smelled like a brothel, the scent almost overpowering, but he was seemed to be trying to be as friendly as possible, a sheer contrast from Emory currently glaring at the man.
 
Rose was pleased with the fact that the other male didn’t seem to be too surprised with her smile. She had been trying to be as polite as she could, which she normally was anyways. She just wanted for Emory to feel comfortable around her. She would be spending quite a long time with him. After all, the two had to finish formulating the finer details of their plan. She couldn’t wait to see the shocked expression of everyone who believed her dead once they made their proper public appearance where she would be named heir of Emory’s estate. She just wanted to gain her revenge on her ex-husband. He had done so much to her over the years they had been together. She despised the Ann. There were times where she wanted to hate her father for pushing her into that relationship, but she knew that she couldn’t. Her father didn’t know of the things that he had done to her. No one would, except Viola and Emory, until she revealed it.

She raised a brow when she heard Emory’s words and watched as the male left the room. She had no clue who could’ve been at the door. It was far too late for it to be something of importance. A light sigh left her as she continued to eat. She looked towards Viola then. “Thank you very much for getting everything for me today. I managed to get Emory to admit that the tea helped. He actually gave me a tiny smile earlier. I have never seen him that relaxed before.” She informed. She was hoping that the news was a sign of good news. Viola seemed to know the other male rather well. She was rather positive that the maid had been there since Emory was a child.

She could hear vague conversation coming from outside of the dining hall. She slowly turned her head to look out the door. She was aware that she shouldn’t be visible if there was someone coming to the house. She was supposed to be dead after all. She paused her eating fully then. She was debating on what she should actually do. She was wanting to just head back to her room to avoid any confrontations like that. She was aware that it would seem suspicious for her to just disappear. A gentle sigh escaped her lips. She didn’t know exactly what to do anymore.

She looked a little surprised when she noticed someone she didn’t recognize come into the room. She then noticed Emory step in after him. She had never seen the other male that angry before. She made a decision in a split second then. She turned her gaze back to the unfamiliar man. She slowly stood from her seat, straightening her dress. She offered the man a gentle smile and held out her hand. She allowed for him to kiss it like one would normally greet someone of high status. The smell that was wafting off of him made her sick though. She could assume a first impression about him immediately and it wasn’t a good one. “The pleasure is mine, Sir Barker.” The resemblance to Emory was uncanny. She could assume that it actually was his father.

“I do not wish to be rude, but you are intruding Sir Barker. Emory and I do have some plans that we have planned for the evening. I hope your business will not take too long.” She spoke in a plain tone. It was the first time that she hadn’t spoken in a polite way. She was kind of worried that the man might lash out at her. After all, women weren’t supposed to speak in the way that she was. She would handle it though. She handled much worse from her former husband.

i was thinking that maybe Laurence could lash out on her and Emory could step in? that could kind of get him thinking as to why he was acting the way that he was and why he would be even caring towards rose? then maybe she could fall ill after the day out and that could lead onto that plot we had discussed before))
 
(Sure! I was planning for Laurence to be pretty scummy as he and Emory's mother was the cause for most of his misery anyways c: )

As Laurence grasped hold of Rose's extended hand, the man seemed to be rather pleased, his grip at first being gentle as he was about to raise her hand upward to plant a polite kiss upon her skin. But, the polite gesture never came. Instead, Rose's scathing greeting had made Laurence's smile freeze in place upon his features, causing the man's eyes to become frigid, any warmth that had been there had instead vanished and replaced with being angry. Laurence never tolerated a woman speaking back to him in such a manner, due to him being the primary owner of one of the most successful underground brothels in the kingdoms, the women he owned were never permitted to even so much as speak when they aren't spoken to. "Oh? Is that so?" Although his tone was still rather upbeat and friendly, his grip had tightened as his golden eyes grew more cold, the sudden strength he was applying to her outstretched hand would definitely be enough to leave bruises, as his fingernails were digging tightly into her skin. This didn't go unnoticed.

Viola who was in the corner was eyeing the interaction with a pale pallor to her skin. The maid's hands clasping together tightly before her as she sucked in a breath. Laurence wasn't a frequent visitor, but when he did show up he was extremely unpleasant, and just seeing his grip tighten on Rose's hand was enough for her to wish to intervene, but it seemed her interjection would not be necessary after all despite her quite nearly not being able to bear it much longer. Her eyes growing wide at the next action that had taken place, an unusual intervention from Emory.

The man had been standing nearby, watching Laurence's interaction with Rose with care. He had been content to merely stand nearby and observe, being just about ready to usher Laurence outside of the dining room to his study - but he had taken notice of his all too tight grip on Rose's hand as she had shockingly responded in a less than satisfactory manner to the man. Almost immediately, he knew what would follow would be more than unpleasant as the man had continued to speak, although his tone was pleasant he could hear a familiar tinge of anger simmering beneath, "Forgive me for interrupting whatever... business you may have with him. But, I don't remember giving you a rather unpleasant greeting, now did I, fair lady." His grip tightened again, and that was enough for Emory to immediately step forward, although he didn't register what he was doing as he had grasped hold of Laurence's hand, forcibly prying it away from Rose's own hand as the man had taken a position behind Rose, his free hand grasping hold of her shoulder and drawing her close.

His heartbeat was fast with anger in his chest, the own gold of his eyes becoming piercing as he bore holes into Laurence's own eyes, his own grip squeezing as hard as he could around Laurence's now trapped hand, rage making his own voice seem far colder than before, "I may have permitted you to come into the mansion, however I will not permit you to lay your hands on my guests in such a manner. Do you understand, Laurence?" The man looked startled, gazing back at Emory as the other was bristling, clearly not happy at all with Laurence's aggression. Emory hadn't realized how close he was holding Rose to him now, as he usually wouldn't ever permit her to draw so close, but it seemed as if he was fully intent on protecting her whether he realized it or not.

Laurence's expression pinched with pain as he responded with haste, "Yes, yes I understand. Do you mind letting go of my hand? You're fit to break it!" Emory's eyes narrowed, for a moment it seemed like he would refuse, but he had released Laurence's hand from his own as the other male had gingerly withdrew his hand, shaking it as if it had been burned, stepping away from both Emory and Rose as it was clear he would not be able to approach the woman any time soon, and it was clear he wasn't eager to anymore either with the threatening aura coming off from Emory.

"Now, if you'd be so kind, Laurence, please do wait within my study until I am ready to deal with our business." His tone hadn't lightened up, which had made Laurence withdraw without another word. The man disappearing from sight as his steps echoed down the hall and up the stairway, leaving a rather annoyed Emory who now had realized he was still holding Rose close to him. Hastily, the man released his grip on Rose, stepping abruptly away from her to put as much distance between them as possible considering he certainly didn't understand the sudden flare of rage he felt on her behalf. Surely, she could have handled the situation herself, he didn't need to intervene now did he?

Clearing his throat, the man's gaze shifted to her hand as he allowed the anger to melt away from his tone and return to the usual, cold monotone, "Is your hand alright, Lady Barclay?" Of course, he was trying to brush aside the fact he had drawn so close to her, as he was still confused over the whole matter. How foolish of him to react on anger so quickly indeed... surely he wasn't feeling ill was he?
 
awesome! scummy parents truly always bring in the perfect amount of angst lmao))



Rose hadn’t expected for the other male to act in the way that he had. She glanced down to her hand before she focused on Laurence fully. The grip on her hand was growing tighter and tighter. She had expected for a slap to accompany it, but the other male didn’t raise a hand in that way. She knew well enough to not make any noises though. She just lifted her chin to keep focusing on the old man’s gaze. She didn’t want to break it. If she did, it would show how weak she could be. Her hand was really beginning to hurt though. Her hair was beginning to go numb from the pain. She was sure that she would have cuts on her hand from his long nails digging into her hand as well.



“You did not, but an interruption is unpleasant enough. You are aware of that aren’t you? You do seem to come from a higher class. You should know the basic rules of higher society.” She was aware she was walking a rather thin line. She just despised people like this. This was how her husband had been. She didn’t want to be spoken to like that again, especially not since Emory had been so kind to her as of late. She didn’t want for this to continue to ware on. She relaxed her posture some as the other male stepped in and pulled her carefully away. Her hand was throbbing by that point and she bit on her lower lip to keep her tears from forming.



She stayed silent then, knowing better than to continue to try and speak. It would be far too foolish for her to. Even with Emory’s arm around her, she was concerned that Laurence could slap her. It had been no more than a month since she had been hit like that. She did not wish to go back to it. She just leaned lightly into the man holding onto her. She wouldn’t admit it openly, but his grip was very comforting. She hadn’t felt this safe around someone before. She glanced up to him before looking back to Laurence. She could only imagine how Viola was feeling about the current situation.



She slowly began to relax as Laurence left the room. She didn’t mind the fact that Emory tried to put as much space in between them as he could. The other male was always distant like that. “I believe so. There are just some cuts I will need to treat. I hope it won’t be too bruised tomorrow morning.” She spoke gently. It was unfortunate that it was her dominant hand, but she could deal with it. “Thank you Emory. Sometimes my mouth can get the better of me. I just couldn’t stand the stench coming off of him.” She tried to explain quietly.



A light breath left her as she moved to carefully sit back down. “You can go handle your business now. Thank you again.” Her words were clearly sincere. She offered him a soft smile before she turned her gaze to her hand. The delicate skin had been cut open by his nails. Thankfully the cuts weren’t large. “Viola, can you please help me treat this?” She inquired. She just wanted to take care of it as quickly as she could. That way she could finish her meal and head off to bed for the evening.
 
(Yep! I can't wait to delve eventually more into Laurence and Emory's mother, as well as the former Lord May, just a lot of drama there in general lol)

Emory's face visibly tensed at the damage left behind by his father on Rose's hand. Where his fingernails had dug in, he could clearly see that the skin had been torn open, even if the injuries were rather minor, the anger in his chest had coiled and tightened. Of course, he reasoned quickly that the anger could be that it was inexcusable for someone to lay hands on one of his guests, especially while he was nearby - that and his ever burning hatred of Laurence in general. Her words certainly didn't help cool the fires of rage in his gut, but at the very least the man was restraining himself from showing much anger. Instead, he said in as calm of a tone that he could manage, "Of course." His eyebrows furrowed, gaze never leaving her hand until eventually the man had to force himself from continuing his all too furious stare. Instead, he cleared his throat as he turned away from her, taking steps to leave the dining room until his figure had disappeared, leaving a rather flustered Viola to hurriedly rush over and tend to Rose's wounded hand.

The maid, still pale faced from the rather tense situation that had played out before her eyes had quickly approached Rose, almost all too eager to tend to her injuries. The usually nervous maid herself looked a bit angry, a clear change from her usual timid and nervous self as she had gently took hold of Rose's wounded hand, examining the small cuts that had been left behind by Laurence's fingernails, her tongue clicking in anger as she spoke quietly, "That man was always a brute. I apologize that you had to go through that Lady Barclay." Of course, she was keeping her voice as low as possible since she herself had come under the harassment of Laurence before. Although, the man only had come to the mansion a handful of times after Emory had fully taken over, every encounter with him was uncomfortable. This topic was something that Viola was all too willing to share, as supposedly Laurence Barker was a topic that Emory hadn't forbidden her to discuss, as Emory always tried to pretend that the man didn't exist by the time his all too short visits would end and Emory would leave with him. She never knew where they went though, and she never dared to ask. Just saying the man's name was enough to make Emory fly into a rage, and she was always walking on eggshells around the young lord anyways.

Viola, in a flurry had quickly moved out of the room, her light and hurried steps echoing about the mansion as she was clearly in a rush to obtain the hidden first aid kit that she had personally seen to would be always stocked with local remedies and medicines, although it would be commonly used by Emory himself whenever the man would return from his occasional nightly outings from clients. It wouldn't be too long before Viola would return, her hands firmly on the homemade kit, taking her place by Rose's side and beginning to with as much care as possible begin cleaning the tiny cuts on her hand, handling her hand with as much care as she possibly could manage as her facial expression, having been pinched with anger had now settled on worry.

After a few moments of Viola fretting over her small injuries, the woman had spoken again although now the anger had faded as she had asked, "..You said earlier that Emory appreciated the tea and smiled?" It was something to bring the attention from Viola touching the tiny cuts with a clear salve, of which would sting initially for a few seconds at a time. Anything to bring the focus away from the vile man that was indeed Laurence Barker, for no one needed to keep such a man in the topic of conversation. But, Viola found her claim earlier to be quite unbelievable as not once had she known Emory to be accepting of any help, nor did he ever smile. He was a man void of joy, and that was all she had observed of him throughout her servitude to him and his family.
 
yay! i love extra drama and angst))

Rose was hoping the other male wouldn’t be too upset by the damage done to her hand. It would end up bothering her for days to come. The bruising would be worse than the cuts. Due to her skin being the fair tone that it was, the bruising easily showed. She was worried to see the state her hand would be in the day after. She offered him a gentle smile. She was hoping that he would not be too upset about this all. His anger was very clear to see though. She didn’t recall a time that she actually had seen someone this upset before. She let out a gentle breath as he finally walked away and then looked to Viola. She appreciated the way that she rushed over to help. It meant quite a lot to her.

“It is alright Viola. He just reminded me of my former husband. I had expected for him to slap me, but I was grateful that he didn’t.” She assured. She glanced around them to make sure that no one was going to be close enough to hear her. “If you do not mind me asking, was that Emory’s father? I can’t help, but notice how striking the resemblance between them is.” She inquired. She was hoping that she would be able to get some answers on these things. She didn’t want for the maid to be too worried about this all though. She didn’t want for her to be worried that she would get in trouble due to this all.

She waited patiently for the other to return to the room after she went off to get the first aid kit. She turned her gaze back to the food on the table. She used her left hand and began to carefully eat once again. She felt terrible for letting the food go cold. Unfortunately her appetite had been turned away by the things that occurred not too long ago. She ate as much as she could before she put the fork down. She leaned back lightly into her chair and let out a gentle sigh. She only perked back up once Viola returned to her. The first aid kit she held in her arms seemed to be rather extensive and she was hoping that it would work well enough for her.
“He did. It wasn’t a large smile, but it was something. It was the happiest that I have seen him actually. He said that it completely handled his headache.” She informed. She was very pleased with herself for getting him to even have the tea. “I do have to thank you for giving it to him. He was upset that I used you to give it to him, but I think it will be alright for me to do so now.” She assured. She winced lightly as the cuts stung. She tried not to let it show that it bothered her too much though. “I was surprised he offered to take me into town tomorrow as well. Is he normally as pleasant as he has been to me lately?” She doubted it with the way that she had seen him act when she first got here. It was just something to make conversation with.
 
(I love it as well! c: )

Viola hesitated as soon as the question was asked regarding Laurence Barker, the maid's lips pressing together in a tight thin line as she seemed somewhat reluctant to answer that for a few seconds, only to respond in as hushed a tone as she could possibly manage, "Yes, I believe so. Though, Lord May has never explicitly told me if Mr. Barker was his father; I always somewhat had a suspicion he was." The maid stopped her sentence, looking upward as she heard movement from the stairway, nearly holding her breath as she waited for it to pass, and only after silence had settled once again had the woman allowed the pent up breath to escape as she continued speaking, "The only thing I knew was the former lady, Lady Maridel hadn't been the most... faithful lover for the former Lord May. It wasn't uncommon to see her slipping off into the night with Mr. Barker; her infidelity had caused most of the problems that led to this mansion being as abandoned as it is."

Maridel Yates, Viola could remember the woman almost too well. The same woman whose statue lay broken in the garden, the same woman who curled the former Lord May around her fingers and had ultimately broke the kind man's heart, sending him spiraling down a stairway of madness. Whether the woman had spend as much money as possible on useless, gaudy things or pretended to act meek and kind around Lord May only to turn around and be a complete devil to the servants who once frequented the mansion, she was a vile woman with much vanity. Even in the family portrait that Emory had ordered to be thrown away, despite how benevolent and kind she appeared, a beauty beyond compare, she was truly a wicked snake and Viola truly didn't like her whatsoever when she had been alive.

Having Laurence Barker still snooping around however made Viola a bit unnerved, as it just meant that Maridel Yates' influence still remained. She knew naught of Emory's early life before he came to the mansion, but only remembered Maridel bringing a skinny, blank-eyed and dazed child who never smiled or even reacted to Viola. Of course, over time that had changed and Emory had grew to begin to respond to questions, but he always withdrew from physical contact and had for the longest time avoided looking women in the eyes. Even now, Viola wondered what in the world happened to have made Emory such an unhappy child, more so one who seemed like a broken doll all those years ago. She never asked though, as Emory was always extremely closed off to inquires about his earlier life, nor was it her place to ask questions either despite the concern she had felt and still felt toward the man.

With Rose confirming that she had seen the tiniest of smiles grace Emory's face, that alone had made the maid smile as a tiny laugh had left her, "Forgive me if I still find that hard to believe Lady Barclay, I cannot imagine Emory smiling.. it just seems so foreign to me." Nonetheless, her expression softened as she sighed with relief, "I'm glad that he can show any emotion at all - aside from anger of course." She tried to be more gentle as she continued applying the clear salve to the cuts, and once done had took firm, thick enough bandages and begun to wrap it securely around her hand, though as Rose continued to speak, the maid raised an eyebrow in bewilderment, "He... offered to take you into town?" The question itself seemed utterly ridiculous to Viola's own ears as she stopped in the midst of applying bandages to Rose's hand, looking upward toward her as if she had grown a second head.

"My word... I never would think that he would ever be so pleasant. He usually avoids going out into public!" The maid shook her head, her eyebrows furrowing in her utter confusion, "This almost makes me think he had fallen ill... perhaps he could be warming up to you?" The suggestion itself was alien, Emory never warmed up to anyone. In fact, he seemed to only hold more aversion toward women than men now that she thought about it.
 
Rose bit her bottom lip lightly as she waited for Viola’s response. A gentle breath left her then. She wasn’t surprised to have the slight confirmation on it. “I could only assume that he is. After all, I can see the relation in their eyes and their expressions. It is almost identical.” She admitted. She fell silent as she listened to the maid continue to talk. It seemed like Emory did not have the best childhood when it came to his mother. It made quite a bit of sense as to why the other male acted the way that he did around women. “Poor Emory. I could not imagine having my mother do something like that. The rift that it must’ve caused between her husband as well must’ve been terrible.” She mused. She had a wonderful relationship with her mother before she passed. The relationship with her father was just as strong as well.

Her mother had always been so kind to her. She had taught her in the arts as well as her manners. Her father had taken the time to teach her how to yield weapons. They wanted for her to be well rounded. She might’ve been far from being first in line for the thrown, but her parents truly did care about her the most out of any of her siblings. The thought brought a gentle smile to her lips. She truly did miss them. She would give anything to be able to see her father once again. She was sure that the idea of her death was weighing heavily on him. She was rather curious to know how her sisters were reacting to it as well. She guessed that all would be revealed when they went into town tomorrow.

“It is alright Viola. I found it rather hard to believe as well. It does make me feel better knowing that he is relaxing around me though. I had been worried that he would continue to be distant until the day the mansion was passed on to me.” She confessed. She was rambling here words off like the maid knew of their plans. She wouldn’t mind explaining them to her if she was curious enough. She thought it was a rather decent plan. She also knew Viola wouldn’t run her mouth off to anyone. She stayed quiet as the woman wrapped her hand carefully. She was dreading when I got to unwrap it tomorrow and see the full extent of the damage. “Yes he did. I wanted to go and he offered to accompany me.” She confirmed.

“I hope that he is warming up to me. There is no reason for him to continue to be distant and cold.” She stated. She looked at her hand then and slowly stood. “Thank you Viola. Dinner was wonderful. I am going to head off to my room. Please be careful. I do not want for anything to happen to you tonight.” Her words were soft and kind. She offered her one last smile and then made her way out of the dining hall and back to her room.

Once she was there, she wasted no time in getting herself prepped for bed that evening. She wanted to skip into sleep as quickly as possible. She undid her dress for the day and let her hair down. She slid into her night gown and then climbed into her bed. She stared at the ceiling for a few moments before she closed her eyes. She managed to drift off rather quickly.

you can skip to the next morning in your post if you would like (: ))
 
Viola truly had hoped so too that the man was finally warming up to someone. She had been worried that the day would never come as he always had remained so frigid and cold to just about everyone who even so much as tried to approach him, much less even offering to accompany anyone outside of business. A faint smile had crossed the woman's face as she had bowed her head to Rose, just as the young woman was making her way out of the dining hall and had cast a glance to the unfortunately neglected plate of food that was supposed to be Emory's portion. A sigh left her lips, casting a worried glance upward to the stairway she could still spot from her position, now wondering just what in the world Emory would be doing now with Laurence? From the looks of things, it seemed as if it were another job that the unsavory man would be putting before Emory, although she had a sinking suspicion that perhaps by the time she would return in the morning, perhaps that would be the same time Emory would arrive from who knows where.
...
With the dawn light breaching the skies, it was then that a rather exhausted Emory was returning back to the mansion after having quietly left at midnight along with Laurence. A target needed to be dealt with, or rather a competitor to the man's business that Laurence was all too eager to pay a hefty sum to have eliminated. Such was the way of most of the Black Market dealings he often participated in. No matter how late it would be, or seemingly outrageous the request, Emory had to fulfill each and every single request to the best of his abilities, such was why his coat in particular was marred with blood. Laurence Barker had requested as much suffering as possible to subject the poor victim to, and Emory had to oblige. Being indebted to Laurence was an affair that put him at a disadvantage with what he could and couldn't do, even as the rocking of the rather shabby carriage that Laurence had secured for him was rolling to a halt, Emory was trying to swallow down the residual sensation of nausea that was threatening to rise up within him. He absolutely hated returning to the hell hole that had been his early childhood, more so the brothel that Laurence owned.

Remembering the smell of perfume, and still smelling it on his own clothing now just made him desire to gag, not to mention the women that had tried to worm their ways onto his lap, hoping to fleece him of any coin he had on him - which he knew well enough to never bring, not that he was interested. Any emotion akin to lust had died and withered thanks to his father and mother, and it wasn't as if he allowed himself to look upon any woman in such a manner either. They made him incredibly uncomfortable, perhaps due to childhood trauma that had been threatening to rear its ugly head within him again, being the source of his feeling of intense nausea. The man was all too eager to get out of the carriage, the coach driver having been paid prior to Emory even reaching his destination with the sound of the carriage's wheels creaking as it soon would be on its destination right back to the Black Market, leaving Emory alone yet again with his thought wheeling about within his own mind.


I need to bathe. That was the primary urge he needed to attend to. He felt filthy, but it wasn't due to the blood on his coat - which he had every intention of throwing out - but it was due to the smell of cheap ale, perfume and smoke. The smell that clung to Laurence was sticking to him like a foul cloud, making wish to gag. His skin alone just felt as if it were crawling with disgust, and in the midst of these emotions, he felt an intense feeling of irrational fear. His mind felt as if it were locked in a haze as he fumbled with the mansion's front door, eventually managing to open it and hurriedly walk inside. He was swift to close the front door behind him, his steps hurried as he made his way immediately toward the nearest bathroom and locked himself within it, although not before doing the painstakingly long process of drawing enough water for his bath, shedding his clothing and setting to work on scrubbing his skin.

Usually, Emory would never frantically do anything. He was always composed and controlled with his actions, never allowing himself to act out of character or fearful. However, as he rubbed the cloth over his bare skin, he did it until the surface was nearly rubbed raw. Even if he had been by all means clean, he didn't feel like it. He felt filthy, like he could still smell the scent of the brothel on his skin causing him to frantically try and put more soap and water on himself, to wash away the filth until his heart no longer was beating a frantic beat in his chest. By all means, this was not as bad as the first time he had returned to the Black Market in years, when he had first taken over the former Lord May's mansion. Back then, he had vomited and gagged, almost having to be restrained to his bed after he had returned to the mansion due to concern over him contracting some illness. Of course, there was nothing physically wrong with him, as he was in prime health. But, just that place in general served only to make him act so irrationally that he could not control himself.

This would carry on until his skin seemed almost fit to bleed, and the man's arms wrapped around himself as he took in a deep breath and exhaled. All he could smell now was just soap and water, a relief causing his tense muscles to unwind. His eyes closed as a familiar headache thrummed behind his temples, which was the telltale sign that exhaustion was finally catching up to him. But, rest wouldn't come just yet, he needed to get himself alert and prepared enough to go out later on with Rose, he had offered and he wasn't just going to withdraw such an offer. If needed, he could get some sleep in the carriage ride on the way there, but even then he doubted that would be possible.

Slowly, the man had went about getting himself out of the bath, draining the water and setting to gingerly drying his skin with as much care as possible considering he had quite nearly made his skin bleed, the paleness of his skin being colored an angry red. This would lead to him eventually exiting the bathroom, only after going through his usual routine of trimming down his beard and making sure that he didn't look exhausted, and grabbing hold of his clothes that were sufficiently bloodied to of course discard and retreated to his room, securing himself new attire that would suit what would be Rose's "funeral". After all, a royal procession would expect everyone there to be in mourning, and showing up in brightly colored clothes was just inappropriate.
 
Rose woke quite late the next morning for her own standards. She didn’t know exactly why, but she was not complaining. She had been rather exhausted due to everything she experienced the night before. She shifted in her bed some, a light groan escaping her. Her vision was blurry for a few moments, but she quickly blinked to clear it. She reached a hand up to lightly rub at her face. She had unconsciously lifted the hand that was covered with the bandage. Confusion overcame her for a few moments until the memories of the night before hit her. She wished that she would have been able to forget it, but it was probably going to be stuck with her until the bruises and cuts healed. She shoved the blankets off to the side before she pushed herself into a sitting position.

She waited a moment before she moved to fully stand up. She then remembered everything that was going to await her that day. She would have to dress much different than what she normally would, but she would not mind doing it one bit. She moved to draw herself a warm bath. She slid her night gown off before she carefully stepped into it. She washed her hair gently, enjoying the massage that her scalp was getting. She then carefully washed her skin with soap. She wasn’t in too much of a rush to finish her bath. While Emory normally woke up early in the morning, the funerals usually didn’t start until around midday. That would give them plenty of time to get there by carriage. She rinsed her hair out carefully and rinsed her skin once again.

She got herself standing and drained the bath. She grabbed her usual towel before she began to dry herself off. She wrapped it around her figure. She then stepped towards her wardrobe. There were multiple different dresses in it, but she would need to dress manlier if she were to blend in. She closed it and focused on a smaller dresser. It held older clothes, but they seemed to be more masculine. She found a tan tunic. She slid it on. It was rather large on her, but she could always adjust it. She dug around more until she was able to find a pair of pants. She slid those on as well. She found a belt, carefully sliding it around the pants. She tucked the tunic into it before she tightened it. She also put on a jacket. She then made her way over to the familiar mirror.

She looked much different than she normally did though she didn’t mind it. She just put her hair up into a bun that looked familiar to some men that she had seen. Her feminine features were mostly masked. Her face still held the features, but she couldn’t help that. She just made her way out of the room and to the dining hall. She smiled brightly once she saw Viola. “Good morning Viola. I believe I have done a very good job in dressing myself today. After all, it will be best for Emory to not be seen with a woman and I would be too recognizable with a normal dress on.” She spun one time with a light laugh. She was very excited for the day and it showed.
 
Viola whom had arrived a few hours after Emory had returned was currently setting the dining hall's table with breakfast as she had prepared it as soon as she had walked through the door, perhaps a bit excited that Emory was finally going outside on a trip that did not solely relate to business had looked up in the midst of humming a rather cheerful tune as Rose had stepped in, surprising her a bit with her attire. It was certainly more masculine than she was used to seeing, but the woman smiled regardless at her, "Good morning, Lady Barclay. I must say that is a fitting disguise." It seemed like Rose's excitement was more or less rubbing off on Viola as the older woman had laughed in return, "I do hope you both enjoy yourselves while you're out." Of course, the maid felt like this was a momentous occasion, for Emory to actually be leaving the mansion with a woman, granted a woman in disguise. It was almost like a date. Ah, if only. She truly did worry for Emory that the man was far too content to be isolated and not make connections with people. Hopefully some good would come from the day's events.

The sound of a familiar set of heavy footsteps had echoed from above as the maid had turned around, backing up to her familiar position near the wall as Emory soon could be seen. The tall man was dressed in a fine black suit attire, the dark coloration being nothing too new of course but considering the suit had been tailored to fit him snugly while being comfortable, his muscled frame could certainly be admired far more easier than before. With his usual clean appearance, it just seemed that he appeared a bit more handsome than usual. The only thing that could be seen as off was his eyes, they looked tired. The honey gold although usually dark seemed not too alert whatsoever, and as he crossed the threshold into the dining hall, his gaze had shifted over to Rose rather blankly if only for a few moments like his brain was attempting to process what was before him.

He took in her appearance after finally registering indeed that it was quite different from what he was expecting. Not that it was bad, and instead he had greeted as distantly as possible, "Good morning, Lady Barclay." Even his voice was tinged with exhaustion, but he wasn't about to let that slow him down and instead had taken a seat where he usually would seat, his head thrumming with the usual headache that would plague him. After his trauma induced panicking earlier, it had worn him out quite a bit more than he would have been comfortable with. Indeed, Emory would most likely doze off in the carriage ride to the kingdom, that is if he didn't force himself to stay awake the whole time. He was a rather paranoid individual after all, and he never let his guard down unless he would be taken by surprise. But, his lackluster greeting would be seen as disappointing, as he didn't seem to visibly show much interest in Rose at the moment, as if he had he would be bewildered by the action. After all, he had jumped to her defense during the night out of anger, something that he was still confused about and he would ponder it in the back of his mind. For now, no strange emotions had stirred in his chest, nor did he seem to be too interested in Rose at the moment at all, putting most of his focus into keeping his eyes open.

Viola, whom was standing in the corner seemed to almost visibly show her disappointment in Emory's lackluster response. Although it would be expected she supposed, as Emory didn't show interest in anyone. But, she couldn't help but want Emory to show some sort of response to Rose in general.
 
Rose looked to Viola with shining eyes, unable to help herself any. She didn’t think that she had been this happy in quite a long time. She could see that the other woman was rather happy as well. It was a nice change from what she used to. She was only hoping that the other male would have a somewhat cheery attitude as well. She did doubt it somewhat though. She didn’t recall a time that she had seen the other male with pure joy on his expression. She was rather interested to actually see him happy in that way. “Why thank you madam. I found these in a drawer, but I am glad that they ended up fitting me. I just wanted to be able to look as if I wasn’t myself. I would be far too easily recognized if I went out in a dress.” She explained. Her face was still far too feminine, but she couldn’t help that.

“I hope so as well. There are a few items I want to pick up while I am out. There are more tea ingredients that I wish to get for Emory as well. He will feel better if he tries a few other blends.” She informed. She loved to create different types of tea to help those who needed it. She would commonly do it for her father back at the castle. She was only hoping that the other male would continue to accept her help. She turned her gaze when she heard the footsteps coming towards them. She smiled brightly at the other male and struck a pose. It made her quite sad to not see any sense of him enjoying it, but she didn’t let it show. “Good morning Emory. I do tell you this multiple times, but please remember to call me Rose. It will make me feel much better if you do.” She reminded.

She shifted to take her own usual seat at the table. “I think all I need is a hat and I will be alright to go. Unfortunately my face is still far too feminine, but there isn’t anything that I can do about that.” She mused. She didn’t seem to let what his response keep her down for long. She was just a happy person in general. The others knew that by now quite well. She looked to Viola once more. “Viola, would you might brewing some of that tea from the blend I made yesterday please?” She inquired. She could tell something was wrong with the other male and knew that it would help with any issues he currently had. She then shifted to focus back on Emory.

“How was your night? I do want to thank you again for helping me last night. My hand is rather bruised, but the cuts look nice and not infected.” She informed. She didn’t know if he would care or not. She was just in such a good mood that she rambled on. She really just couldn’t wait until she could finish their breakfast and head out. She had grabbed some of her leftover money to bring with her. She was just hoping the day went smoothly. It was cloudy outside and it worried her that it might rain while they were out, but she would still want to go. The temperatures were what worried her. Any sort of chill could get her sick. Her immune system had never been the best, but she tried to hide it.
 
Emory looked across the table to Rose as she had once again reminded him that he could simply call her by her first name. But, should he really do such a thing? Although he didn't much care how she referred to him, calling her name so familiarly just seemed... odd. Nonetheless, if it really bothered her that much he would have to try to attempt to drop honorifics. "Very well.. R..Rose." It was odd to say her name so familiarly, the delivery just shown that much, but at the very least he was trying to appease her if only a little bit. Normally, he would perhaps ignore he request, but oddly enough he had listened. Perhaps, he really was extremely tired? That certainly could be the case as he could practically feel Viola's surprise behind him even if his back was currently to the maid.

He had begun to take small bites out of the meal before him, oddly enough not feeling hungry despite not having the opportunity to finish or enjoy his dinner during the night before it had been rudely interrupted. His gaze shifted to look at Rose as she had expressed that perhaps she would require a hat, though he had to agree with her. If she was going to go out disguised, she needed to hide her face. Maybe one of his old hats would do? There weren't many that he owned, but he was sure one could be suitable enough to match her attire. Of course, he remained silent as she chattered away as it seemed like she could fill the whole conversation for the both of them, not that he would allow her to do such a thing as it would be rude for him to mutely stare at her and say nothing. But, he wasn't feeling particularly talkative, especially how unpleasant his night was and the lack of sleep.

Viola had nodded her head in response to Rose, "Of course." With that, the maid had turned and walked off toward the kitchen, beginning to brew the tea that Emory without a doubt needed currently. Emory at the moment had paused in his eating as Rose had brought attention to her hand, the mention of the incident causing a rather unpleasant feeling to settle in his chest again. "That is good then, I was concerned that it may have gotten infected." No telling where that disgusting man placed his hands before. The thought was venomous in his own mind, not desiring to think about the man any longer than he had to. However, Emory's expression had soured as he thought about what had occurred during his night, a familiar sense of nausea coiling in his stomach just by recalling the scent alone of Laurence's brothel. Nonetheless, a question was asked and he needed to answer.

"..It was unpleasant." Blunt and to the point, it was clear he wasn't particularly enthused about the topic and with how short his answer was, he didn't desire to continue discussing it. Instead, he was quick to change the subject, "As for a hat La- Rose, I believe I have a few that you may choose from and use." He swiftly corrected himself as he referred to her, still finding calling her by her name uncomfortable and odd. But he was trying at the very least, though he didn't know why he was putting so much effort into something so utterly trivial.
 
Rose could feel a smile growing on her lips as she heard his words. She was really grateful that she was seeming to get to a good place with him. Emory had protected her last night when he didn’t have to. She was rather shocked that he had actually. She expected to have to deal with the situation by herself. She wanted to slap Laurence for the way he had treated her. She knew better than to though. The other male would’ve probably retaliated in the worst way possible. It really was worrying to think back on. She let out a gentle sigh then. “Thank you Emory. It makes me feel much better without the honorifics. Besides, I have been calling you by your first name since I have gotten here. It just makes me relax.” She explained.

She moved to carefully take ahold of her fork. It was rather sore, unfortunately. She began to carefully eat. The food was as good as it always was. She was quite grateful with the fact that Viola was such a wonderful cook. She was very comfortable being here. Once she finally got the decorations she wanted to up, she would be even more relaxed. “Also, I should probably come up with a male name to hide myself with. How about Alexander? I feel like that suits me somewhat.” She offered. Her mind was just running through all of the possibilities that could occur where she could need something like that.

“Thank you Viola!” She called after the woman before she turned her attention back to the plate in front of her. She continued to eat rather happily. She only hoped that the tea would help Emory in a way that he could need. “I was as well. Viola helped me treat it last night. It also looked better this morning than it had last night. I just cannot wait for the bruising to go away.” She informed. She was just spouting random things at the current moment in time. She noticed the way that the other male tensed then. Something must have happened that he was hiding. It would explain why the other male was so exhausted. She hadn’t seen him this tired before.

“I am sorry that it was. I won’t bring it up anymore.” She promised. She just focused on her meal again. It didn’t take her too long to finish eating. She was still on smaller portions due to the fact that she hadn’t been able to eat properly these past months. Her ex-husband had forced her to not eat as a form of punishment. “Really? That would be wonderful. Hiding my hair is going to be the final step for me to hide myself.” She mused. She was clearly so excited for the day ahead. She stood when she finished with her meal. She looked down at her outfit once more. She was very pleased with herself. “Where would these hats be? I can go run and get one. That way you are able to finishing eating and enjoy your tea while I finished getting ready.”
 
Emory had barely nodded his head in a reaction to her, his exhaustion slowly beginning to shine through the longer he sat. His eyes burned, headache thrumming within his skull as his eyelids felt heavy, just robotically eating the food before him. Even if it did indeed taste as good as usual, he was barely even enjoying the taste of the food on his tongue and instead was trying to focus on Rose's chatter which for the most part was helping keeping him alert enough to actually react in response to her, even if it was rather lackluster replies. However, the suggestion for her to go under another name hadn't really crossed his mind at all, for he really wasn't intending on having her actually speak during any interactions. This had managed to grab his attention long enough for him to give her a blank stare at first, only to raise an eyebrow at her.

"I don't believe that will be necessary... but if you want to, then do as you will." What was the harm of overpreparation anyways? If by chance he did indeed have to talk to anyone and introduce Rose, having a separate alias would indeed do wonders. But, once again he didn't think it would be necessary enough... not unless Blaine Erington showed up at the funeral processions, which without a doubt he would. The man would do anything to save his own skin, and showing up to his ex-wife's funeral would put him in a sympathetic light with the public. Ah, I'm going to have to put up with another annoyance again. The thought made his expression nearly sour again at the thought of conversing with Blaine, but if by chance the man did spot him in the crowd, he would have little choice but to interact with his business partner.

His gaze shifted over Rose's features as she continued to happily chatter and eat, although yes he was slowly growing used to her all too happy atmosphere, it was enough to make him intrigued with her behavior to warrant the man to begin to pause in close to disbelief. Truly, she was the polar opposite of him in every single way, he wouldn't thought he would be annoyed with her by now, but it seemed like her mindless chatter didn't annoy him yet. Instead, she seemed to gloss over immediately mentioning the events of last night, now bursting with energy to go off and find the hats on her own. His lips nearly threatened to twitch upward in a smile, but it unfortunately didn't seem to each such a cheerful point as he said simply, "They should be in my room, up the stairs and to the left. It's at the end of the hall." Of course, he normally would never give anyone permission to enter his own bedchambers, but he was making an exception with her, just to hurry things along and help her prepare herself faster.

Of course, due to him having little time to even think through the exhausted haze in his mind, he had forgotten to hide not only the vial of medicine he would typically use to put him to sleep, as well as tossing his bloodied clothes. As he usually was a very neat person, with his room holding little if any clutter, those two items would stand out all too much. But, being half-awake right now, Emory was more focused on actually attempting to keep himself from slumping over in his chair and falling unconscious, only managing to force himself back to alertness by Viola placing before him the cup of tea as promised which he mutely accepted.
 
Rose could feel some concern forming in her chest as she noticed the way that the other male was slowly beginning to almost doze off at the table. She could only guess that it was due to the things that happened the night before. She was rather curious as to what activities that he did last night. She knew better than to ask about it though. Emory probably would refuse to tell her if she did ask. She hated her curiosity sometimes. It really ended up getting the best of her more times than she would like to admit.

She shoved her concern aside as she focused away from her thoughts and back on the male sitting near her. She allowed a smile to come onto her lips once again. “Then it is settled. I am Alexander for the day.” She was truly having far too much fun with this all and they hadn’t even left the house yet. Her mind hadn’t even come to the possibility that she might see her ex-husband there. She doubted that the twisted man would even recognize her. Blaine hadn’t cared for her one bit during their marriage. She had tried to keep up a positive exterior, but it got hard at times. She was lucky enough that she was able to show her true self here.

She nodded her head as she heard his words. “Alright. I will be right back. Once you finish eating and drinking your tea, we can begin our adventure.” She exclaimed. She stood and twirled once before she walked towards the stairs. It was clear just how happy she was now. She guessed she did owe it to Emory. The other male didn’t have to agree with her about heading out to her own “funeral”. She was wondering who’s body they would be using. After all, she didn’t know of anyone who looked similar tp her. Many people knew of her for her beauty.

She quickly climbed the stairs and glanced around the floor she was on. She quickly followed the instructions that she had been given and found his room. She opened the door before she stepped in. She was surprised by the size of the room. It was rather clean as well. Two items were clearly out of place and she noticed them immediately. The first was a few container that held what looked like medicine. She had never seen them before. It was a little worrying. The next was the other male’s clothes from the night before. They were covered in blood. She paused her steps then, biting on her bottom lip. She tried to divert her focus and just moved to grab a hat. She just slid one on and made her way out of the room. She carefully closed the door behind her. She then walked back to the dining hall. “Are you almost ready to leave?” She inquired as she came back. The hat fully finished her outfit for the day.
 
Emory raised an eyebrow at Rose yet again with bewilderment as her absolute enthusiasm in going on an "adventure". He wouldn't necessarily describe any trip with himself as an adventure at all. Her twirling as she stood and went up the stairs made him even more puzzled than before, making the man shake his head as he muttered under his breath, "What a strange woman." No one would be this happy with accompanying him anywhere, much less to a funeral of all things. It almost made him suspicious again of Rose, but it quickly died out as soon as the feeling had started. She was just cheerful, her energy being a bit overwhelming for him to keep up with his rather reserved attitude... but at the very least she was entertaining.

The man steadily had continued eating his food and drinking his tea, listening for Rose's footsteps as she moved about on the second floor. Eventually, it wasn't long before she came back down to the dining hall which caused him to look up at her to look over her disguise. He supposed it was passable, as she could reasonably pass as perhaps a young boy that was working for him. Decent enough for anyone who wouldn't pay her much attention, though he supposed it wouldn't hold up too well if someone really looked close at her face. I won't let anyone get too close then.

At her question, the man had stood from his seat, "Yes, I'm ready." He was as ready as he ever was going to be, although he typically despised crowds of people and crowded places in general. It made him wonder just why in the world he was even permitting this to happen? Why was he going along with this? He didn't truly have an answer for that yet, despite how much his mind was attempting to find one. Surely, it wasn't only because that Rose was a woman, was it? No. That clearly was not the answer, for he despised women perhaps slightly more than men. Then just what in the world had gotten into him then?

His exhausted mind yield no answers, so he didn't want to think too hard on the matter, saying dismissively to Viola, "Make sure the mansion is locked by the time you leave, we perhaps won't be back until late." After all, the trip to just reach the kingdom took a long time, not to mention the return trip as well. With that, the man had walked toward the mansion's front door, opening it and beginning to approach the carriage that no doubt Viola had prepared before he had even remembered to. My, he really was exhausted.

The man had opened the door to the inside of the carriage, lingering near the door as he waited expectantly for Rose to step inside. After all, he wouldn't be able to perform such a polite action once they reached the eyes of the public considering her role she would have to play as a mere henchman. Such etiquette had been drilled into him by the former Lord May before the man had been driven mad. Besides, she'd might as well get comfortable and choose which side she desired to sit on before him. She was his guest after all, and a woman at that.
 
Rose was quiet as she waited for him to respond to her. She glanced past his shoulder to see his plate empty. It made her feel better to know that he had a decent meal. She was aware that he hadn’t eaten anything last night due to everything that had happened. She was just hoping that the tea would begin to make him feel better. It was one of her better blends. It always helped her whenever she was not feeling the best. She just was praying that it would work for him as well. She shifted her focus back to the man in front of her as he began to speak. She let a smile grace her features once more. It was hard for her t not smile.

“Alright then,” She paused to turn her head and looked towards Viola,” Thank you for breakfast Viola, it was wonderful as always. I hope you have a wonderful day.” She mused. While she was normally quite happy, she seemed to be even happier that day. It was quite odd for someone who was going to be seeing their own funeral. She spun and then began to make her way towards the front door of the mansion. It felt odd to not be wearing a dress, but she would adjust to it rather quickly. She glanced around her surroundings as they stepped into the outdoors. She was immediately hit with colder air. She glanced towards the greying sky.

She moved from her thoughts when they walked up to the carriage. She was rather surprised that Emory held the door to the carriage open for her. It was such a polite gesture. She had expected for the other male to just climb into the carriage. She looked up at him with a gentle expression. “Thank you Emory.” She words were soft, much more than before. She carefully climbed herself into the carriage carefully. She chose one side and relaxed on the seat. A very content sigh escaped her. She pulled the hat off for then, knowing that she could just toss it on once they got closer. It was far too long of a journey to wear the hat the entire time.

She was quiet until Emory climbed into it with her. She looked to him then. “I hope it does not rain too much today. It looks almost as if it is about to pour. It is a bit fitting though, rain for a funeral.” She mused. She doubted that he would find it as ironic as she was. Her expression shifted to be one of seriousness then. “Thank you for doing this for me. I really do appreciate it.” She took a few moments before she ended up speaking once again. “Thank you for last night as well. I know I keep showering you with praise, but I really do appreciate it. You didn’t have to do any of that for me.” She added quietly. She was hoping that he words wouldn’t be too much for him.
 
Emory too had looked up at the graying skies, perfect weather for a funeral. It was a gloomy atmosphere indeed, one that he didn't pay too much mind to, though the irony had not been lost on him, he merely just decided to allow it to pass. His attention had been drawn once more by Rose as she had approached the carriage, and with him holding open the door for her, he expected for her to simply climb in. What he received, however made the man almost flinch. She had thanked him for something so utterly minor, her voice soft and expression gentle. It caused his heart to squeeze tightly, as if someone had reached into his chest and suddenly had grabbed hold. It hurt, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant... just unexpected.

If Emory wasn't in view of her, he probably would have clutched at his chest in bewilderment. But, he refrained and instead inclined his head silently to her, only allowing confusion to settle in his eyes as her back was turned, taking his place opposite to her. Even if he could indeed sit next to her, that in itself would be inappropriate. She was a guest, and he still regarded her as peculiar, not to mention how he detested being touched.

Nonetheless, the man had firmly closed the carriage door shut, although he shifted his position to get more comfortable, although one could argue that the seats were comfortable enough, Emory simply didn't like enclosed places. Of course, he was far more used to carriages than when he first had ever stepped foot into one at the age of ten, and that experience in of itself was a nightmare. But, it didn't take the man long to get comfortable in his seat, his honey gaze to Rose as she had spoken up yet again, commenting on the weather. This caused him to look out the small window to the carriage, "Yes, indeed." A short, curt response as usual.

However, his composed expression had tensed as she had once again began thanking him. Now, Emory was not used to being praised, in fact being berated or feared was more normal to him than the positivity that was him being thanked for anything. The expression he was giving Rose was one akin to confusion. He didn't understand why she was thanking him at all, but it wasn't to say that her praise wasn't welcome. In fact, it almost seemed like the man was close to blushing as he quickly looked away from her, discomfort settling over his face as he was scrambling to figure out what to say in response.

"You are my guest... Rose, I will not permit harm to come to you while you live on my lands." Emory was swift to regain his composure, although he nearly lost it again upon saying her name. He really wasn't used to that at all, it simply felt weird calling her by name so familiarly. "There is no need to thank me over a matter so minor." Acting calm and collected once more, his expression was now void of confusion but if one looked closely there was a tinge of red to the man's ears. He was flustered whether he wanted to admit it or not.
 
Rose didn’t notice the flustered nature that she seemed to cause the other male to go into. She was just focused on the day ahead of them. She was actually quite terrible when it came to realizing that people felt towards her in a romantic way. She was mostly focused upon her own world. Her happiness just exuded out of her and allowed for others around her to feel her happiness. She was hoping that she was rubbing off on the other male some. It would make her even happier to know that she was. It bothered her to see someone so serious. She had no clue why the other male was so serious. She wished that he would open up to her in a way that he hadn’t before.

His response was rather curt, but she was used to it. “I hope the weather will be a little better as we get closer to the kingdom. It is frigid out unfortunately. It is a good thing I am not wearing a dress today. I am sure I would be rather cold.” She was speaking anything that came into her mind by that point. She couldn’t help herself any. She hated silence. It caused for the air between them to be tense. “I do want to warn you that I wish to do some shopping while we are there. I want to get some other ingredients for tea as well as a few new journals. My star-mapping one has been filled and I want to keep recording my observations. We can do that after the funeral has finished.” She informed.

The subject was quickly changed as she heard his words. “I shall keep thanking you until my I cannot anymore. I find it to be rather polite, don’t you? Showing appreciation is very important in one’s life.” She mused. Her perky attitude was greater than it had been the day before. She would most likely keep this facade up for the rest of the day. A grin broke onto her face then. The other male was speaking more than she had ever seen him before. There was also something different in the way he was acting. She appreciated it though. “Please let me know if the tea from this morning helps you again. I have multiple different blends I can try if it does not work as well.” She added gently.

She studied the other male’s featured for a moments. While Emory was rather cold and distant, he was rather attractive. She was surprised that he hadn’t been wed yet. There were probably women throwing themselves at his feet. “I do enjoy your company. You may not speak as much and you may try to act distant, but you are kinder than you let on. I am lucky that Blaine had decided to drop me here instead of somewhere else. I was worried that you were going to kill me at first, but that has passed now. I am grateful that we both will be able to get our revenge on the snake together.” She was just speaking her thoughts by that point. There was nothing more to it.
 
His gaze once more turned to look outside the window as she mentioned the weather. Although he supposed it certainly was rather chilly, it would get worse once it eventually would start to rain. Emory didn't find the cold particularly bothersome, but he did cast a glance back over to Rose's attire. Part of him wondered if her clothes would be warm enough to stave off the cold, especially if they were to be out for a prolonged period of time. He dismissed the thought though, determining if it were cold enough, he would supply her his suit jacket for warmth. He didn't catch colds easily, and his tunic underneath would provide enough warmth for him to be able to be comfortable enough.

This thought process had made him rather mute in response to her chattering, allowing her to continue to speak with as much energy as possible. Though, the mention of shopping nearly made the man tense, though he did push his discomfort aside at the thought of walking about in public spaces. It wasn't as if he usually walked about in the eyes of the public or in crowds, tending to rely on Viola or his henchmen to buy supplies that he may or may not need. "Very well." A short response had come, lacking any emotion in it, as Emory simply had promised to escort her. That meant he would stay at her side for the duration of the day no matter how uncomfortable it made him, as she really couldn't be left on her own.

Emory couldn't help but fidget a bit in discomfort as she had proceeded to say that she would keep thanking him until she could do so no longer. Part of him that was more rational truly wished that she wouldn't, while the other part seemed a bit more willing to accept the praise. It was an odd conflict of emotions that settled within him, causing the man to shake his head, "You needn't spare such words on me." He was being a bit stubborn, only due to the fact it made him feel weird being thanked and it didn't much trust or like the sensation within him. He clearly was out of touch with his own emotions, only nodding a few moments afterward as she brought up the subject of the tea, realizing that his headache for now was barely noticeable.

Her chatter continued to fill up the silence, though now Emory's expression had eased into a bit of surprise, only to harden again as he said firmly, "Please, do not mistake my actions as 'kindness', I'm not doing this out of the kindness of my heart. If I had seen no other alternative route to take, you would have been dead." A cold answer, but he didn't want Rose to mistake his actions as him being kind or soft hearted. He wasn't either of those things, not anymore. But, perhaps he needed to say that to snap him sense in himself before he went completely at her own pace, whatever emotions stirring within him needed to stop. He was investing in her as a potential means to an end, not as a friend and certainly nothing more than that... or at least that was what he was trying to tell himself. In all honesty, he wasn't even sure why he was granting her requests, part of him reasoned was to keep her happy; but why would he need her to be happy?

Emory's gaze turned away from her, unable to look at her directly at the moment. "..That being said, your company has been oddly.. pleasant, I suppose." He wasn't even sure why he said that, but it didn't seem like he was lying. He didn't really find her irritating or anything like that, and admitting that he found her presence as pleasant was a surprise all on it's own. He usually hated anyone being near him for long, so this certainly was a compliment coming from him.
 
Rose could tell that the mention of shopping was making the other male tense up. She was hoping that he would be alright with them both doing so. She didn’t know what his hobbies or interests were. A lot of the men she knew of didn’t go and do any shopping unless it was absolutely necessary. They usually sent their maids to do so. Pleasant surprise hit her as she heard his agreement. “I promise that I won’t take too long in getting what I need to get. I already have a list compiled in my mind. I will be in and out of the shops in no time. Besides, you do not have to accompany me in the shops if you would not like to. I can handle myself and I will make sure that no one knows my identity.” She assured

“Well I shall. I am quite stubborn as well Emory. I am surprised that you have not realized that yet. Besides, I am free to speak my mind. I am an unmarried woman that everyone believes is dead. My words almost do not have any affect right now.” She realized as a smirk came on her lips. She truly couldn’t help herself any. She was quite relaxed in the current situation. She raised an eyebrow at him. She was curious to see what his reaction to this all was going to be. “I am a polite person as well. If you haven’t noticed that by now, you must not be paying attention to me at all.” She was sure that her ramblings made almost no sense, but she didn’t care. She was content.

A gentle laugh escaped her at the cold answer he gave. “I do doubt that. Someone deep down in your chest, you enjoy being around me. If you didn’t, you would not have agreed to come with my on this adventure nor would you even allow me to do this. It means a lot that you did though. Who is lucky enough to experience their own funeral?” She inquired with a smile. She shifted her gaze to glance out the window for a few moments. The scenery was beginning to shift. She always loved long carriage rides. They made her relax. She quickly looked back to him at his next comment.

“I am glad. I do try to be as kind as I can. But then again, it is my personality. I apologize if I am too much as times. I find it better to be forward than not.” Her expression had softened some once again. She cleared her throat lightly before she shifted some. “Why don’t you try to get some sleep? I will wake you once we get there. I can tell you must not have gotten decent sleep last night. I promise I will be quiet to allow you to get as much sleep as you would like.” She suggested. She really did appreciate the warm compliment he gave her, but she was caring more for his well being than anything else at the current moment.
 

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