Aprillis 24, Midday
An inn at the center of the city.
Attire: Here.
Drystan Hurst


There had been murmurings in Ravencrest City where it concerned the Queen's illness and the king had summoned the citizens to the square in front of the castle in order to make an announcement towards it. However, this announcement seemed to end up being the opposite of what rumor held towards the Queen's demise and she had walked out onto the balcony, waving to the citizens of the downtrodden city. The King's face had been described as shocked, though many misinterpreted this as something more positive. The Queen of Duskwither gave much hope to the people of Ravencrest that eventually, the iron fist rule of Erikson would relax and to some extent, it had. There were fears that if she died, the Kingdom would return to its harsh rule. Apparently, that just wasn't going to be happening now and the Kingdom was joyful to see that the rumors had not been true.

Andrika Duskwither walked through the crowded streets, her hood over her head of curly hair. The large cape dragged against the ground, getting muddy at the ends as it usually did because of its size compared to her height. Her eyes kept peering out from the darkness of the cowl, following the trail of light that of which would lead her to the Assassin she had marked. It wasn't that she didn't trust Lirit's information, it was just easier for her to follow a mark of her own in a place she wasn't used to. The woman entered the inn, crossing past the bar and up the stairs to where the rooms of the inn were located. The trail ended at a door and she stood in front of it, shifting the crate onto her hip. She liked the Assassin. He never looked down on her and he never judged. At least not to her face. She felt comfortable around him and despite recent events, there was still an underlying trust that existed. Her gloved fingers knocked on the door. Speaking of trust, she didn't exactly trust that didn't have this door trapped in some way and therefore it wouldn't have been prudent to just barge in though she felt like doing so when her impatience was high. When he opened the door she lifted the crate up that had the old bottles of Goblin Piss clanking.

"Can I come in?" She grinned just lightly.

Word had spread throughout the city of the Queen’s appearance, descriptions of her well-being and the relief that had washed over Ravencrest’s citizens at her presence. They had gone through Erikson’s ruthless rule for many years but the Duskwither queen softened even by a little the former manner in which the kingdom was lead. Few wished anyone else but her on the throne to bring a bit more kindness with the way they were treated. Murmurs of the news were still heard here and there, though for the Assassin it had stopped when he had went back to his room at the inn in the centre of the capital an hour or so ago. A book was now sprawled open on the bed, Drystan’s eyes glancing toward its content now and then before his attention would turn on the dragon egg resting next to it. He had bought a book on dragons from the market, though there was only so much it said about what happened before they hatched. The tip of his finger ran very lightly across the black tendrils spread across the egg’s grayish surface, following the pattern idly. It seemed it had to be kept safe and in a warm place until the dragon was ready to crack its way through the shell.

That part was easy, all that was left was patience. A knock on the door made his eyes snap momentarily toward it, quickly but gently moving the dragon egg back in its metal box and that tucked away safely in a cupboard before he went over to answer, not willing to let just anyone know of its existence. Once the door was open, his eyebrows rose a bit before a small grin stretched his lips at the sight of the Ranger holding a crate up that seemed to be filled with bottles by the sound of it. “You’ve guessed the password.” he said as he nodded toward the crate, for a second crouching on the threshold, fingers seemingly following a very thin and invisible line to guide it next to the side, shifting down and a quiet click sounding as the trap was deactivated. Of course he would have one considering they were in Ravencrest. He smirked a bit and grabbed the wooden crate from the Ranger, motioning for her to come in, closing the door with his foot once she was inside the room. “It sounds like there are bottles in here so you know it would’ve been impossible for me to refuse.” His arms seemed to weight the crate for a moment before another smirk showed itself. “There has to be a least a dozen. Where did you ‘seize’ this from?” he asked with a smirk as he moved to settle the crate down on the only table in the room.

The crate was taken from her hands and when it was she wiped them together to rid them of the dust. The young woman pulled her hood back and looked around the room. It was clear that he was not the only one occupying this space, which made her curious but she didn't say anything towards it just yet. She leaned over to pull a bottle from the crate and she twisted the cap, standing next to the table as she took a sip. The brew should have tasted aweful because of what was marked on the label but it did not. Depending on the age, there was a small window in between when the Goblins Piss didn't taste so much like vomit. Ten years after it was brewed, the contents of the bottles became somewhat sweet and very much palatable, but after the eleventh year, those bottles would begin to rot after reaching their 'peak' and then the contents would be even more fowl than first brewed. Most people didn't know this. "I stole it from Erikson's liquor cavern. Filled with so much untouched and expensive liquor you would cry if I even dared utter how much." The woman brought it to her lips and drank some, eyes searching the area again.

"It's for celebrating." She clinked her bottle against the one he would no doubt lift from the crate. "My mother has been cured of her illness." The Ranger pushed herself away from the table, walking around the room. She noted some of Aunt Lirit's things, and her brow lifted at the more questionable leather apparel in the room belonging to Thea. Andrika lifted up one of the leather bras with her finger and perked a brow. "Looks about your size..." She teased, tossing it back onto the messy pile. The Princess smirked, walking back over towards the table and leaned against it. "So, finding trouble is what you've been doing since you left us?" Her shoulder shrugged. "I would claim to be jealous but I always seem to find trouble just fine on my own."

Another bottle was taken from the crate by the Assassin, an eyebrow perked as he read the label, taking off the cap and sniffing it a little before he took a drink, having expected to spit it out instantly but instead found it was not as unpleasant as he thought. There was an edge of surprise on his features, but he didn’t question it and simply took another sip. “That’s good though. Don’t want to think what he would do if he did drink them. Tricking Kael into drinking some however doesn’t seem like a bad idea.” he said with a bit of a smirk, though shifting into a smile once she mentioned the reason for the drinks and clinked their bottles together. “I’m glad. The entire city seems to be rejoicing.” The Assassin leaned his body against the table as the Ranger walked around the room and her eyes took in the space, though it hit him just how disordered the place was. He was used to it by now, but not all were. A light breath in amusement was let out between drinks as a leather bra belonging to Thea was picked up. He was sure that somewhere out there in the city Thea’s ears would no doubt be itching at having her often flaunted chest compared to Drystan’s even if it was a joke.

“I’m sure, you do have a talent for it.” His eyes turned sideways, his voice amused at that and as far from scolding as it could possibly get. “I find it better when you’re not alone though.” Another drink out of the bottle brought the surprisingly pleasant taste back in his mouth, for the first few sips truly having had the reflex to spit it out. “I guess you could say that’s what I’ve been doing. Mostly travelling, chased, almost eaten, bitten, scratched, dressing up as a woman, the usual.” he added with a smirk. “This pretty much sums it up.” The Assassin motioned at the disheveled room as he said that, finding no reluctance to admit these things. He trusted her, he had no reason not to. “I assume you’ve been pretty much doing the same though in a more orderly fashion. The Hunter’s Festival was held a few weeks ago, did you go?” he asked with a bit of a grin as he turned his eyes back on her. “Caught an ogre?”

Somewhere in Ravencrest City, Thea is standing up suddenly from her table in a rage, not quite knowing why and Lirit is putting a hand to her shoulder to caution the blind woman to sit down. It turns out, Thea does occasionally listen to someone, and that is the blond Bard.

Andrika nodded to his words towards the city rejoicing but other than a smile and some words she didn't seem overly jubilant towards it as she might usually be. There were reasons to this but no real indication was there to bring it up. The sweet liquor was brought to her lips again and her eyes shifted to watch him as he spoke, a grin sliding past the neck of the bottle as she continued to sip, feigning innocence to his accusation. "Hm, so it does belong to you. Unfortunately, no. We were in Ravencrest." Her shoulder shrugged. "I should have opted for the Hunter's Festival as opposed to Crystalwick as it was the only deviation in the route we could manage to take before being sent here. I hate it here..." Her brow furrowed just slightly. "My mother has decided to stay for the next month and work with the clerics here to provide better medical aid to the people." Her eyes remained focused on the bottle. "She is very much the most selfless person I've ever known."

Her eyes suddenly narrowed as she looked back towards him. "Wait a moment...you ask me if I've caught an ogre like you've caught an ogre. Have you caught an ogre? If so, I'm jealous once again. I think that's your intent with me." She smirked, placing her empty bottle in the crate. "The other woman in your trio...would she be jealous to know you're drinking in a room, alone with another woman?" The grin grew a little larger, opening herself another bottle. "This one tastes more acidic..." She made a face but drank it regardless.

A subtle nod in agreement came as his response toward her dislike of Ravencrest, the city not exactly being his favorite place in the world either. It wasn’t its dark alleys and cut-throat markets, but the people themselves. Most had grown harsher as well under Erikson’s reign. The Assassin took another sip out of his drink, shifting his eyes toward her at the mentioning of her mother, a quick smile stretching across his lips. He had never met the queen personally, why would he, but word spread enough about her to gain a good opinion of her kindness and generosity. A smirk appeared, however, at the question on the ogre. “Yes and no. It was definitely unconscious on the ground, but I couldn’t take the stench to drag it away, so I just left it there.” he said before he took another drink. “I’m sure some orc who could bare it eventually came by to claim it as his own.” Pity. His eyes looked up for a moment in thought as she posed her question, lips pursing together but then shifted into a smirk.

“Probably.” he answered, not quite sure if he was wrong or making a very big understatement as he couldn’t quite predict Thea’s actions. “Though I have to say she was very possessive of me when big bulky men were hitting on me while dressed as a woman and her along with Lirit were supposed to be men.” A grin spread his lips before he continued and took another bottle from the crate. “Mm, don’t know if I should’ve told you that. Your aunt is going to kill me if she knows I did.” He took a sip of the new bottle, pausing for a moment to ascertain its taste before he shrugged and swallowed the drink. “You wouldn’t be scared of a jealous woman though, right?” he teased, an amused grin overtaking his lips once more. “You did save the dragon egg from a giant alligator though so let’s see… hmm, what could be worse…” An amused breath escaped as his finger rubbed the edge of his jaw in mock of thought as he knew better than to challenge the Ranger’s courage against anything. Taking another sip out of the bottle he allowed his hand to fall on the table next to him, fingers curling idly around the edge. “You plan on staying here with your mother?” he asked once his eyes turned back toward her features. “It would give you a good chance to loot all of the king’s liquor cavern I suppose.”

"I'm not jealous nor would I be scared." That was a bit of a lie where it concerned the jealousy only but she sounded confident enough in her statement. Her eyes suddenly rolled up as her more sensible thoughts recollected. "I'm sorry did you say that my Aunt dressed as a man?!" Andrika laughed, her brows raising in a mild shock. The girl had only ever known Lirit to be a fierce warrior, serious and reserved. "I have to say...she does look much more happier now than I've ever seen her to be. More confident. It's very heartwarming to me to know she was taken care of so well as opposed to the fate we all thought she might have succumbed to. Although from your description of events earlier...it seems she wasn't bored either." Her lips twisted into a small frown when he mentioned her staying. "I can't." She answered simply, as there was no real reason to elaborate just yet as to why. Perhaps he would assume that it was some type of Fellowship business. Andrika smiled just lightly and took a seat on one of the edges of the beds. "I only dared to steal this as I'm sure if I looted anything further he would use it as an excuse to lock up his poor example of a step-daughter."

Andrika had been willing to take a chance towards being nice to the man at the prompting of her late father who knew that eventually, that sort of alliance would have to be made between the two kingdoms. However, Erikson was not an easy person to love and she concluded that she never would where it pertained to his behavior towards her and her rash ways. "Not that the excuse would be enough to stop me. I would just run away to Violet Bay and become one of the women of the Smarmy Beast." The woman's grin grew and she laughed, finishing off what was left in her bottle and lifted herself to reach for another.

The answer brought no further questions from the Assassin, having assumed as he would have guessed it that it was something related to the fellowship. He knew by now that they were often given a course to follow throughout the two kingdoms and if the queen was now apparently well, there was nothing to make them deviate. A slight smirk curved the edges of his lips toward the interaction between the Ranger and her step-father, again judging by what he had heard of the man but it was enough to find some truth to her words despite the light manner in which she said it. Taking another sip out of his bottle, he swallowed quickly before he laughed at her solution of going to Violet Bay. “I see you have similar aspirations such as myself when it comes to a last resort.” he said with a grin, taking out a bottle and handing it over as she reached for one. “At least if I hear news of the king locking up his step-daughter, I’ll know where to find her after she escapes.” he added with the same amused expression before his eyebrows rose.

“Although I believed we agreed that the women in the fellowship are perhaps far prettier than the ones found in such places, so it might not be fair for you to do that.” The smirk still lingered a bit, letting the now empty bottle down, taking another one and moving away from the table. “Plus, if anything I’ll hire you as my dragonspeak tutor. Apparently I’ll need it. And since fishing didn’t really work, maybe that one will.” The Assassin took a seat before another sip out of his drink was taken, lips pursing a bit as this one also had a bit different taste. Hopefully it hadn’t been brewed a year earlier. “Actually I might need that anyway. Because this is of little help with that part.” he added picking up the book on dragons he had bought to emphasize what he meant and then half tossed it on a nearby lower table. “Are you available for hiring?” he asked, a wide grin stretching across his lips.

"It would all be depending towards what I might get in return..." She smirked into the bottle as she lifted the contents to consume it. Her brown eyes shifted from him to the book he had placed on a shorter table, reading the cover quickly before her hand reached out for it to draw it onto her lap. "Let's see if any of this is true.." She muttered, flipping the pages with her free hand as the other held the bottle, bringing it to her lips occasionally as she skimmed through the information. "Hm, well this must be based on assumption but black dragons aren't all about the darkness...they work just as well during the day...discrimination." The woman laughed, flipping to another page, head shifting to where he was seated. "Are you sure you're prepared for the size that precious little thing could reach? His mother was small, but we have yet to identify the father..."

Her free hand closed the book shut and replaced it on the table in which she found it. The Ranger's gaze looked towards the cupboard. "I can hear it now. It can hear us too. So if you talk to it, it will not understand but it will slowly begin to understand some common tongue. Not everything. Like for instance...Spitfire knows the word dinner." She smiled with a laugh. "He is aware of the word 'no!' spoken very loudly and when he is about to rape some poor animal..." Her drink finished she stood up, walking over to the crate to play a sort of russian roulette towards which drink might be sweet or bitter. "They speak...on a different wavelength. You bond with them and they'll allow you on that level. In raising dragons, it's all about letting them know that you aren't their captor. My dragonhawk lets me know every day that he LETS me keep him." Andy cracked open the cap of the bottle in her hand and took an even larger gulp, increasingly intoxicated with each drink and increasingly attempting to push her greater worry out of her mind.

The Assassin watched as she examined the book he had bought, a laugh escaping as it did not seem the literature was off to a promising start. “Doesn’t really matter what size it reaches for me. Only one to whom that would matter it would be itself as it would need to find its own variety of livestock to hunt at some point.” he answered with a smile, honestly not intimidated by whatever size the dragon could reach. His eyebrows rose a bit as she mentioned that the soon-to-be hatchling could hear them, nodding toward what she said though the thoughtful edge was wiped off quickly to be repressed by a chuckle at Spitfire’s knowledge on common tongue. Dragons were independent beings, it made sense for them to need more of a companion and not a captor. “Perhaps but I think that’s just his species talking. He likes it.” A light amused breath escaped before he took another sip out of his bottle, before he settled it down and shifted from his place to the cupboard, taking out the small iron box and set it down carefully on the bed, opening the lid to reveal the egg safely inside it.

His eyes studied it for a moment before he turned to gaze back at the Ranger with a mock of a worried look. “Really, how big can that possibly get?” A smirk broke through the act before he continued. “To think one day it will eat in a day as much as I do in a week. Cows, deers, boars. Unless I can raise it to be a vegetarian and live on grass and trees. Mm, I wonder what the book has to say about that.” he said with a small grin as he knew well of the impossibilities to that. “It says that the egg needs to be kept in warm spaces for the dragon to be ready and find enough security around it to hatch so I usually opt for keeping it wrapped in blankets mostly.” The Assassin retrieved the bottle to finishing off again, walking to the table and picking out another with nothing but hoping for luck to not have taken a bad one. Though to be honest, all seemed likely to be drank anyway so why bother picking? “Why do I always find myself indebted to you? It’s happened far too often for you to deny that you take pleasure in it.” he said toward the Ranger with a smirk as he took off the cap, at the moment still unaware of any underlying worries as he had seen no indication to it.

Her knee shifted as she folded one leg on the bed, right hand pushing against the bed to lean in look at the little egg with the coiling black veins embedded around it. She watched him as he shifted his gaze to her and a smirk crossed her lips at his words."Oh no. It won't grow as big as this entire establishment. No.." The Princess spoke with sarcasm, the grin giving her away though either knew the small creature wasn't going to stay tiny forever. The young woman placed herself on her stomach, elbows holding her up as her fingertip of her free hand lightly traced along the veins. Her eyes were focused on the patterns it made while he continued, a small breath of laughter exiting her lips as she turned her head towards him. "Do you have a name for him yet? Or her..." She laughed, finding at this point of inebriation laughter coming far too easily. "Then you might have a more difficult job of extracting Spitfire from her vicinity..."

Andrika tipped the bottle upward to consume the remainder of what was left as in little time from having opened her drink, it was now empty again. The more drinks she had the faster the consecutive bottles went down. The Ranger pulled herself up, walking over towards where he was standing to replace the empty bottle in the crate. A small scoff of a laugh left her throat and her eyes shifted slowly to look towards him, taking a few steps closer to be in line with him as she leaned over to speak in a more hushed tone. "I don't consider those things so much debt, though if you prefer I collect I can think of a few things I would want." A not-so-innocent smile crossed the delicate features of her face as she reached past him to grab herself another bottle. "Though I'm not entirely sure these would be things that you would necessarily like, therefore I'd honestly suggest that you just be grateful." The woman teased, looking up to the ceiling with her eyes only, then towards him with a little smirk. She held up her index finger after taking another large gulp of her liquor. "One kiss. I'll never ask for anything more."

A slight thoughtful look overtook his features at the mentioning of a name before he shook his head lightly to indicate that he hadn’t chosen one. All he had were a few options but he didn’t know if it was going to be a male or female. “I promised not to interfere.” he said with a small chuckle toward Spitfire’s behavior toward a potential female dragon, taking another drink out of the bottle he had in his hand. His lower half was leaned against the table while his eyes followed her move in line with him, instinctively leaning in a little as she spoke in a quieter tone, a smirk crossing his lips in response to the Ranger’s smile. He searched her features for a moment toward her remark, the smirk returning quickly when she lifted her index finger. “Just one?” he asked with the smirk growing for a second while his free hand wrapped its fingers around the hand she was holding up to pull her close enough to him that he had to tilt his head downward in order to look at her features.

“You said you could think of a few things.” he said with the same expression as he emphasized on the plural though this would hardly fall in the category of ‘favors’ as he didn’t exactly see it like that. The smirk on the Assassin’s lips stretched into a slight grin. The intoxication from the drinks was not hitting him yet, though it was sure to soon considering the crate was half-way empty by now from a number of perhaps a dozen bottles. “Is it because what you said earlier or because you know you won’t need to ask anymore after?” His head tilted a bit with the grin spreading a bit wider across the Assassin’s features, fingers releasing the momentary clutch they had on her hand. They were brought up against the side of her neck just as the grin slowly faded from his expression. His head leaned forward and caught her lips with his own, the closer he got the more the lilac scent enveloped his senses. He pressed a bit further into the kiss as his fingers slid up into the dark brown curls of her hair, tangling slightly to draw her in.

Only her eyes moved to see his hand wrap around her fingers, the touch forcing her lungs to hold in a small breath as he brought her close. Her head upturned to look towards him as he looked down towards her, a difference in height evident. A grin crossed her lips at his mention of her words, her own voice responding quietly. "One demand at a time, less I overwhelm you." The grin grew as Andrika searched the features of his face towards his reaction. She was a forward and flirtatious woman, but not many men had courage to react as she wished them to considering her position in the court. As she felt his fingers slide up against the side of her neck, small shivers traveled across her skin from where he touched, drawing her attention upward as she found herself caught up in his kiss. She honestly had not expected him to follow through on her demand of him, finding herself increasingly enamored as he pressed further into the kiss. The woman's lips parted just lightly in response, soon prompted by the feel of his fingers sliding into the curl of her hair to deepen it. When her lungs demanded she exhale, Andrika pulled herself away an inch, dark brown eyes staring up at him with a rather pleased expression. Her eyes shifted to the side, then looked up as she contemplated the question. "I won't need to ask? I could just take?"

Her fingers pulled against his shirt so she could lift herself a little higher and press another soft kiss, finding herself instantly addicted to doing so where it concerned the Assassin. Now she felt both pleased and a little saddened, though there was little clue to this as he had no idea of what she had done previous to arriving at his door. At the very least, she would have little regret where it concerned if she came back or not from the task she would have to complete in just a few hours time. She pulled back again, narrowing her eyes somewhat. "Mm, that makes me wonder what else I could take without protest..." The woman put a finger to her lips to pretend to think further towards it. Her finger ran down her chin and she hooked it against the neck of her tunic and pulled down just slightly, only to realize that she had revealed, in some part the dark mark that both she and Lirit now had on their chest. Her eyes shifted just slightly, pulling it back up suddenly. Assassins knew that mark. It was for temporary passage in Limbo for those who made deals with the Ferryman. When they passed through limbo it was stained on the walls of the maze every other length. Of course, she didn't know this of assassins and instead carried on, smile still prevalent as she kissed the side of his face.

Only the need for breath pried him away from the texture of her lips though tempted to quickly close the distance once more. His eyes kept themselves directed toward her, a small smirk showing itself for just a moment to confirm her question. It had not been so much of a demand in his eyes, at least not one he obliged unwillingly. The pull of her fingers leaned him just slightly forward to meet her lips, letting his hand again settle on the side of her neck and near to keeping her there, unaware of her inner turmoil. As she pulled back, he smirked slightly, following her finger make a trail down her chin to the upper hem of her tunic. “I’ll make a list, without the dragon egg though…” he said as his eyes kept on the path, though not failing to notice the part of a familiar dark mark he appeared. Every Assassin knew it. It was impossible not to. A small grin was unable to be kept from taking over his features while she kissed down the side of his face, subtly letting his bottle on the table behind him.

It was far too tempting to trail his lips along her jawline so he didn’t suppress it, tracing across the skin while his free hand settled on her hip. “However, before you go through your demands, let me have just one.” he said in a quieter tone, pressing a kiss in the hollow space just below the line of her jaw. There was hesitation in pulling away, but managed to do so after a few moments. His fingers slid from her neck down to the hem of her tunic, eyes following them as he pulled slightly on it before he spoke. “Tell me why do you have this?” The question was not ‘how?’ as it was obvious to him how, but ‘why’.

Her lips pushed together and her eyes rolled up, either look holding some amusement at his wording, head tilting aside as she felt his fingers travel down the length between her collar and the middle of her chest. How he had posed the question made it clear he was at least aware of what it was. "I made a deal. Her disease is incurable. I really only bought her some time. I'm quite sure if she found out she's murder me herself, though that would pervade the point of trying to preserve life of which she is dedicated to defending." A smirk crossed her lips, fingers of both hands cupping under his chin to direct his gaze into hers. "And the Ferryman told me that I had twenty four hours to prepare...so in my infinite wisdom, I decide to make myself beautiful, steal some ale and attempt to not hold some regret by not having asked these demands against you in the first place if by chance I didn't return."

Her shoulders shrugged. While she didn't look worried, she was actually quite terrified but that was a bonus of being raised a royal by the way you had to portray yourself in court despite inner feelings. "I find my time better spent like this." Her head nodded to push forward the point, leaning forward to press a kiss. She pulled back and kissed along his face to his neck with slow, short presses, speaking in between each one. "Now..." She lingered, nose tracing lightly against his skin as she pulled away to speak. "...you won't run off then, will you?"

The consequences of a deal with the Ferryman were well known to him, more so considering his constitution in itself had been a deal between the man and his mother when he was a child. What she explained the lack of utter cheeriness toward the news of the queen feeling better that he had not questioned. Her hands slid under his jaw to direct his eyes straight toward hers as she voiced out her choice of spending her time before she would have to undergo her task. “All three well accomplished.” he added with a small smile before she leaned forward to press another kiss against his lips, the hand he had settled on her waist pulling her a bit higher. The smile grew a bit as she trailed slow presses down from the side of his face toward the length of his neck, turning into a smirk at her words when the feel left his skin. “No one who's worth a dragon egg would.” he responded with the look of amusement across his features.

“Plus, you’d have such an easy time tracking me that it would borderline pathetic for me to even attempt it.” She had tagged him after all. The Assassin leaned forward to kiss her fully, hand sliding from her waist to the small of her back. Perhaps she wasn’t displaying fear, but he doubted that it was true. When one’s soul hanged in the balance, there was little chance they would go through it without an ounce of fear. He pulled back from the kiss, a slightly more serious look appearing on his expression. “I’ll come with you.” he said before he added. “I have to in order to avoid any feelings of selfishness for having your attention during this time.” A smirk crossed his lips again though that was hardly the reason. “Going through Limbo won’t cost me a thing and I know the way toward anything in there. I’ll be your guide and then in exchange you’ll be my tutor. It’s a fair trade.” The smirk grew more pronounced after he finished. There was no chance he would go about why she shouldn’t have made the deal or how dangerous the stakes were but it would help with nothing and he knew it.

She stood perfectly still in his light grip around her waist, her hands moving to rest against his chest as she stared forward. "You need not worry as it has just a dozen hours left before it fades." Andrika smiled just lightly, finding some amusement with his words past the settling sadness that had encroached upon her. Pulled into a kiss she responded with a great deal of intensity, in part because reality was settling in. When he pulled away, hands clutching to his sides and brow lifting with some shock to his words. She would have never asked him to go, but his offer was found to be a grateful one. If it was true, she had no reason to doubt this excursion would have any determent to him. Her arms encircled him and she pushed herself up against his chest slowly, head nodding to agree to the terms of his offer. "Fair trade. At the very least, if I am to be a prisoner there, you can visit. Be sure to bring me liquor when you do." Andrika spoke quietly with a small sniffle.

Her lungs let out a long breath and she pulled herself away from the Assassin, hands pushing up against his chest again as she had some small space between his hold on the small of her back. "That issue is settled. Time for more important things." The woman's eyes rolled up to think for a moment or two. "Let's go do ridiculously dangerous things. Or perhaps, I could show you the famed liquor cavern of the 'great'..." This was spoken with much sarcasm. "...King of Ravencrest." Her eyes rolled, looking to stand on her toes to push herself higher towards his face. "...or, do very unlawful things to each other while we plunder his stash of goods." Her eyelashes fluttered and her lips pouted as if it would take far more greater convincing for him to do as she wished.

The light grip he had on her frame had lessened a bit after he nodded and she pulled back, though he had no intention of picturing either her or Lirit stuck in the Limbo. For an Assassin, Drystan had an unnatural dislike for the place though with situation it was obvious that the feeling was vice versa. However, there were no consequences to his soul for travelling through the maze. The Assassin perked an eyebrow toward her suggestion, a smirk curving the edges of his lips, gaining an amused touch to the expression when her eyelashes fluttered and her lips pouted in the attempt at persuading her often mentioned. “Huh, so it really does work.” he said as if the method was needed. “Poor old man never stood a chance when you asked for his boat.” He grinned slightly, pressing a lighter kiss against her lips to then slip away and walk toward the bed.

“However, you had me convinced at the words ‘liquor cavern’, but I’m grateful for the example.” he said as he took the dragon egg from the surface of the mattress to carefully put it back in its box. He wasn’t going to let it on display as he didn’t know who could enter the room while he was gone. “I think I actually look forward to shedding a tear if the place lives up to the expectations of my imagination. Then again it is the king’s so it very well just might.” As he spoke, he placed the iron box with the egg back in the cupboard, surrounded by a blanket to make sure no one trifled with it though he doubted either of the two women he stayed at the inn with would. Once it was safe in its place, he grabbed a few things and led the way out the door, stopping for a few moments after it was closed behind them to place his trap. Both Lirit and Thea had been told how to disarm it. “Don’t worry though, if I am to cry at the sight, I’ll do it in a very stealthy, Assassin-type of way where you won’t see it.”

Andrika picked up her cloak, sliding the hood over her brown head of curls as they made their way out of the inn. They took a route that of which wasn't typical towards entering Ravencrest castle. There had been many a boring day as a child that she spent anywhere but in court. Andrika and Rhyannon would explore every inch of the castle, finding hidden routes and secret rooms. Andrika led him past the wall that surrounded the castle, let in by a guard of which she was on friendly terms with. She put a finger to her lips, looking up at the man patrolling the wall who gave a silent nod where it came to his silence. Her hands stalked the wall until she found a small door, something that was mostly used for the servants. Down a few narrow corridors and deep inside of the castle, the holy grail of all liquor caverns awaited.

The door however, was locked. It was always locked but there was a small venting corridor that was just a climb away and led directly into the locked area. It was large enough for a man to climb through, which made it especially easy for a woman as tiny as she was. Upon entry, the darkened cavern was lit by one of her brilliant white arrows she produced, holding it up to the rows upon rows of liquor. Different bottles of every shape and size filled with all sorts of liquors of various strengths. She pulled a black bottle from a medium shelf and held it up to him. "Kraken's Black Charger. Made from the dark ink that the Kraken secretes. Sounds disgusting, and it is...but one shot will knock you right on your backside." Andrika replaced it pushed her back against the shelves, looking over towards him. "Are you close to tears yet?"

The path she had taken him on was unknown to him, but well enough trusted her to be well acquainted with considering she had probably spent her childhood between the two kingdoms. The guards were another matter that crossed his mind, but once one of the patrols nodded to clear off their passing, Drystan’s eyebrows went up, but said nothing toward it, instead following through the corridors of the dark castle. He climbed through the small space that led toward the liquor cavern, his feet landing on the floor eventually and looked toward the rows upon rows filled with various bottles, some of which the Assassin hadn’t even heard of. The area was lighted white from the Ranger’s arrow, revealing the labels more clearly as he shifted his attention toward Andrika and the bottle of alcohol mixed with a Kraken’s ink. It sounded beyond foul, but he made a mental note about it for future references. “Definitely sobbing furiously. On the inside though. For your benefit obviously.” he answered with a bit of a smirk as he looked toward her before he began taking slow steps along one of the rows of liquor to read some of the labels.

The ale he had drunk had left him just a bit lightheaded, but it wasn’t showing yet. “If this were any other person, I might’ve actually respected this collection. However, I have a feeling all of this is mostly left to waste here unless there are any feasts planned.” he said as his head tilted a bit, taking out bottles at random to look at them and then place them back. An amused scoff escaped as a particularly disgusting drink caught his eye. “I would pay to see the king drink Devil’s Spit. Probably keeps it for the people he doesn’t like.” he added though with a grin as he doubted that actually happened. His steps returned him toward Andrika, though his eyes still looking through the rows for a moment, taking out a familiar bottle and turning it around to look at the label. “Half a century old elven wine. I wasn’t even born then. Yes, the tears are still falling.” A small grin spread across his lips before he put the bottle back and walked toward the brown haired Ranger where she stood. “You did say that if you got caught you would promptly leave for Violet Bay, but now I see that’s not likely considering the guards let you pass without question.” he said as his grin turned into a bit of a smirk.

"That's if I were caught by the King himself. His servants and guards hate him." Her fingers moved hair behind her ear as she shrugged lightly. "Perhaps I should scream out loud of our presence here so we should both be caught and then run away together. Do you know how to drive as ship? Though honestly, I get seasick quite easily..." A smirk appeared, spreading across her face as she leaned her head back just slightly, knocking over a bottle to which her agile reflexes caught. She looked at the label with one hand, dropping the arrow down on the ground so its ambient light could light the small area. "Pollen Spirits. Made by pixies..." Her lips smacked together, turning it around. "Made from pollen, honey, and flowers. Depending on the flower depends upon its taste. Some flowers...the pixies get by way of crossing dimensions...so the rumor says. I've never even seen this flower before." She pointed to the little picture on it before her fingers curled around the top and removed the cap.

She sniffed it before taking a small drink. "Good." The woman held it out to him. "By now you must be close to spilling over with tears I'm sure because of how much you are crying inside." Andrika laughed, lightheaded herself and slowly gaining momentum again by the very potent drink she put into her belly. "...These poor liquors and spirits. They're prisoners here." She nodded, going back to what he had said about them going to waste. "Locked in this horrible dungeon with no liberators to save them. We are those heroes Mr. Hurst as I'm quite sure your appreciation for liquor is only second to mine."

A slight grin spread the Assassin’s lips though made a gesture that he wasn’t quite an expert at driving ships though looking more amused than anything. He approached the Ranger further as the bottle nearly fell from the rack to look at the label better, the dim white light enough to illuminate it. It was of little surprise to him he didn’t recognize some of these drinks as his lack of blue blood or greater amounts of gold afforded him to spend time in places where these weren’t sold. Or Erikson was a bigger drinker than they could imagine and bought them all for himself. He took a curious drink from the bottle, the taste sweet and overlapping the ale they had drunk earlier. “Very, very close, but again I’m restraining for your benefit to spare you discomfort.” he answered, a small smirk curving his lips before his eyebrows rose and laugh left his throat. “Second?” he asked in mock of a shocked tone. “Not sure I can settle for anything less than first. But if it’s for the greater good of salvation of these spirits, I’ll consider it.”

He took another drink of the Pollen Spirits before he handed it back to the Ranger, eyes looking around once more toward the rows of various liquors before turning back toward her. “Not that you should trust my word when it comes to competition.” he added with a bit of a smirk as he moved in closer, arms lifting past either side of the Ranger to enclose her between them, palms flat against the wooden bottle rack behind her. She had experienced the ‘through any means or methods’ strategy when it came to them. “I think if it’s made by Pixies the chance of hallucinations as an effect might be possible though I’m hoping it won’t.” Though to be honest, he was pretty sure if this particular brand didn’t, another might. “So if I my sight blurs in consequence and I see you in double, just make sure to redirect me so I don’t accidentally kiss the bottle rack.” he said with a small grin appearing on his features before he leaned in the remaining distance to press a kiss against her lips.

"Hm, that's right." She muttered quietly, eyes narrowing with an amused stare. "I keep forgetting that behind those curls is a deadly assassin, at the ready to win by any cost. Cheating? Rangers rarely stoop so low. I have more honor than that..." She shook her head with a grin, knowing she was not one for always following the rule and knowing fully well she would always strive to make a situation turn towards her advantage which made that statement a lie. Andrika let herself be drawn into the kiss, some small laughter bubbling up as she pried herself away just an inch or so. "Would you like me to move? I feel your eyes roaming to the shelving behind me. I'm sorry...but I'm the jealous type."

The woman pointed to herself. "Me. Stare at me." Her lips pushed together as she stared directly into his eyes for what she could only stand for a minute in the impromptu staring contest. She dug her face into his chest to muffle laughter, both hands holding onto either arm that were outstretched next to her. After all, they were here covertly though being more close to inebriated the laughter held no lowered volume. She pulled herself up higher, whispering again though its heightened hush was just as loud as her speaking normally. "I must try...my hardest not to continue on like this. I am a lady. Princess of Duskwither. I must act with decorum." Just even uttering that statement in her mock snooty voice forced her to burst out in a fit of giggles to which she slapped her hand over her mouth, eyes shifting as she heard noise down the hall.

The nearly minute of silence was barely held before some laughter broke from his throat, the effects of the drinks enhancing that effect. He held steady in his place as she pulled herself a bit higher, a smirk curving his lips before she even finished speaking. A response was suddenly cut off as some noise was heard, his eyes veering in that direction and reflex along with the impending inebriation made him instantly drown the area around them in thick darkness, taking out the white light of her arrow with it. The Assassin kept quiet for a few moments as he listened for any more noise in case some of guards were nearby or whatever it was that had caused the sound. “If there are any bottles with actual moving creatures in them in here, I won’t be surprised.” he said though very quietly within the darkness he had projected over the area. “See now, I might’ve taken advantage of the darkness, but I should help you with your efforts of decorum and proper manner and etiquette.” he spoke in a similar mock of a proper tone when speaking to royalty, the temporary darkness hiding the grin in amusement. “Or I should do the exact opposite to test you…” Another hidden smirk appeared on his lips before he pressed along the side of her face, inching his way down her neck, only to pause.

He waited a few more moments to see if the noise repeated itself, but laughed quietly at what had seemed to be a rushed reaction because of the liquor drank. Or at least, that’s what it looked like at the moment as the sound hadn’t repeated itself for the time being. The Assassin diffused the darkness, the light from her arrow once more igniting the area. “I’m wondering if those spirits you mentioned really need to get liberated.” A slight grin appeared on his features before he pushed himself off of the bottle rack, head titling a bit as he headed over a bunch of crates. He poked at one of them with his foot to see if it would stir or move. Nothing happened. However, a few more moments of silence lingered before he poked the crate again a bit harder. “It’s illegal to capture Pixies, right?” he asked, though something small and fast scurried by his feet, making the Assassin flinch a bit in his mildly intoxicated state as the tiny Armowl quickly moved past him. The small creature crawled blindly toward the Ranger’s arrow, knocking it over and dashed hard into the bottle rack head first in confusion, nearly making a few bottles fall.

As the darkness enveloped them Andrika drew herself closer to the assassin, fingers clutching to his sides in a slight fear for the sudden encasing darkness. That mild apprehension quickly melted away when she felt his kiss against the side of her neck and a grin formed at his words. "...Oh, I wouldn't bother with tests. I'll just fail." The woman spoke as hushed as she could, slowly letting her finger's grip lessen as the darkness dissipated. She shrugged one shoulder, eyes rolling up. "Hm, I doubt that would matter to the King if it was illegal not." Andrika rarely criticized the King and the rumors of his wrongdoings due to her mother's scolding towards that, but she figured that Drystan would neither be here nor there towards it as some noble would, at the ready gossip towards the Princess' words.

The Ranger nearly jumped out of her own skin at the noise and again her eyes widened as she gripped onto the Assassin's arm. The feeling however slipped out of her system quickly as she picked up on the familiar movement and identified the creature by way of her ability to communicate with animals. The poor little thing was just lost but as it scurried found its way back through one of the cracks it found its way again. Andrika pulled away in order to lean over and pick up the fallen arrow. It dissipated and the entire area became consumed in darkness again. With some stealth like movement (though a bit unnecessary because he was an Assassin), she slid behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist to pull herself up, lips kissing against the side of his neck. Her voice spoke quietly with an amused tone to her voice. "I would love it if you did everything but assist me towards keeping decorum, manners and etiquette." Andrika took a step back to pull herself away but ended up tripping on a jug, sending her backwards onto her backside. "Oh that was just terribly seductive..." Sarcasm apparent, she laughed, not bothering to get up at the moment.

The small creatures was followed by the Assassin’s eyes as it scurried into its hiding place, the half-elf noticing the dim white light had gone out as a pair of slender arms slid around his waist from behind him. He felt the young woman push herself up against him to pull herself up, the texture of her lips on the side of his neck prompting a grin on his features, gaining an amused touch as she spoke. Turning his head over his shoulder, he had the reflex to catch the Ranger when she tripped but he wasn’t that agile and a light laugh escaped more at her words than her tumble. “Don’t fool yourself into thinking it doesn’t work when a woman falls on her back.” he said with a smirk as he crouched down in front of her sitting frame. “Plus, the damsel in distress and in need of assistance does have its appeal. A Princess? Even more so.” A light laugh couldn’t be suppressed as Andrika was far from that type considering she was the leader of her fellowship.

A smirk appeared on his features before he shifted abruptly, hands slipping under her knees and around her back to effortlessly lift her body off of the ground. “Had to practice my ‘knight in shining armor’ and ‘Prince Charming’ routine since it seems any skills of such can become valuable at some point. If the ability to dress and act as a woman had, I’m making sure no other role would take me by surprise.” he said with a far too amused grin to his features before setting her down to sit on a couple of piled up crates of most likely rare liquor. “If anything, I can promise I will give it my weakest effort to assist your lady-like behavior.” The grin grew a bit wider as he placed himself to stand in front of her, his hand crawling up to the side of her neck. “Which is really my attempt at not being called a ‘bad influence’ cause that would be very, very wrong.” The tone in his voice was enough to denote his jest as he spoke, fingers drawing her in for another kiss.

She felt a small thrill course through her body from where his fingers touched, the warm feeling making her oblivious to their surroundings and centered to the drawing of his lips against hers. Her fingers curled around his sides, pulling closer the deeper she led the kiss. Her head tilted back just slightly as her lips pulled away to speak, lingering a second longer to press another slow kiss. "I'd protest and say otherwise that I am the far worse influence. Like a siren, convincing young men to leap to their doom from the floating isle into Gwendolin Lake." Her lips brushed against the side of his face while her hand reached up to pull his, drawing his fingers down the length of her neck and across her collar bone.

The fingers met with soft, warm skin across the small area of exposed skin, offering him a more clear invitation to pursue his own initiative towards the roaming of his hands. This sort of behavior was rare for her as not many men were so brave to involve themselves with her. She tried not to become to carried away but it was becoming very difficult to hold back where the Assassin was concerned. "Am I proving myself right? Am I far worse?" Her quieted voice spoke, pressing another kiss as her lips found his again. Andrika's hands moved to pull against his sides again, fingers attempting to feel her way in the darkness around the clothes he wore to find skin to touch.

A small smirk showed itself on his lips toward her counter reply, though not denying it and instead occupying himself with light presses along the side of her face. He felt his hand being moved, fingers sliding across the exposed skin of her neck and down to her collarbone. The pattern she drew across the smooth surface was not stopped when she let go as he allowed his touch travel further down her body. It was difficult for Drystan to distinguish titles as he had not dealt with many of royal blood and it became particularly hard to do so now. He grinned slightly after she pulled back from the kiss, but it was more felt than seen as he was already pressing his lips along the line of her jaw. “There’s little advantage for me to answer ‘yes’.” he said though no matter how low his voice was, it was quite clearly heard within the proximity and the silence in the cellar.

A pleased smile appeared on his features when her hands found their way on his skin. “But if I say ‘no’ then you’d have to persist until you prove me wrong.” His hands were settled on her thighs by now but the tips of his fingers walked up toward her hips, along her stomach and over the curves of her chest, pulling slightly sideways on the upper hem of her dress to press his lips along her shoulder. “This in turn will make me persist until I prove you wrong. Vicious circle.” A smirk curved the edges of his mouth against the soft skin before he pulled back to bring his face up in front of her own, now at a similar height. “I’m pretty sure that conclusion makes me want to stick to ‘no’. The perk is that it has little to do with decorum, manners and etiquette. I'm certain it pretty much goes against them.” he said with an amused grin and pressed another kiss against her lips.

Andrika let her head rest on his shoulder as his hands roamed up, her small frame, tilting it back when his fingers pulled sideways on the upper hem of her dress. She took a small silent breath out when he pressed his lips along her shoulder, words from his mouth tumbling out in a way she could barely concentrate on when combined with his actions. The little smirk woke her and when he moved his face in front of hers she let her forehead fall up against his. "You are correct..." The Ranger's hands moved behind his back, trailing upward as far as they could reach just as her lips met his again. The woman was quite sure if he pulled down any further on the dress she wouldn't know what to do with herself. Actually, she was quite sure of it and it made her nervous.

"I...ah." Her mouth closed as she pulled back just slightly. Speech had become difficult as every fiber in her body was telling her to keep moving but what was still sensible in her head was telling her this probably wasn't the best place or time to continue. Intoxication was not helping with this fight, nor his proximity, words, scent, or the hands that roamed effortlessly across her fame. The woman took a deep breath in and then let it out, pushing another kiss against his lips. "We should probably leave..." A quiet voice spoke, brushing them along side of his face before her hands left the warm skin under his shirt to wind their way around his neck. "I'll survive, right? Limbo? And when we return, we will celebrate in a more proper fashion." Andrika didn't sound too sure but she had a heightened level of confidence now that she knew he would be down in the depths with her. The woman leaned back slightly in order to kiss his lips again with another soft press.

Hands were left on her thighs as a small smile curved his lips after she pressed against them with her own and her fingers left the surface of the skin they touched across his back. He kept his eyes directed toward her features, knowing very well the consequences of dealing with the Ferryman. There cases where he got absolutely nothing his way were rare though Drystan hoped this would be an exception. “Shouldn’t put a question mark on it.” he answered once she pulled back, leaving his lips curve upward slightly and arms curled around her lower back. “You’ll be back in this world after Limbo, I’m sure of it. You do have an Assassin guide after all so no chance at getting lost.” He grinned slightly after he spoke as he had his own reasons for being so sure of that without seeing the future or being over confident.

“Plus, aren’t you that fellowship leader who killed a Slythis all on her own? Oh wait, maybe that was just one of the rumors. Can’t keep track anymore.” he looked up in mock of thought before looking back. “Then again, I got a dragon so maybe that rumor about the Slythis will become true also. I'll help you find one the second we're back.” An amused grin spread across his features before he pressed another light kiss against her lips. He allowed his arms to lessen from around her frame and took a step back so she could have enough space to slid off the crates.

Her head nodded just slightly to his statement, letting go of a small sigh from her lips. Andrika very much wanted to believe his words but a part of her was very sure she had gone in over her head far too much this time. This was either due to the fact she had just pulled herself away from him without having much want to have done so in the first place or for Limbo. More than likely it had to do with pulling away. As he stepped back, she pushed herself off of the crates and wiped her hands and dress of the dust.

Her eyes rolled up to laugh towards his words on the Slythis. "Perhaps we should find one. That creature could be my third pet..." A small grin widened on her face as she procured a arrow for better lighting and moved to climb back up the side of the wall towards the little venting area in which they had crawled from to make their exit. That is, before the procurement of some of the more rare (carryable) items there. It wasn't as if Erikson would miss the items...

[End!]