Deacon Flynn (_pyrrhus) wrote in btvsal, @ 2010-12-14 00:05:00 |
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Entry tags: | place: la, ~deacon flynn, ~ronan |
To Find a Princess, Part 1
Who: Deacon, Ronan, & Liam (NPC)
Where: The beach house
When: Monday, Dec. 6th, evening.
Note: This scene takes place about four hours after Kidnapped Princess.
Liam had been surprised how easy Andais had made it for him to set up the kidnapping. She woke up from a bad dream, her knight in shining armor still out for his errands. He followed behind her, texting the team to come and get her. He hated the psychotic bitch. She had made his life so much harder, his job was supposed to be to protect, not take her anger on. He walked back to the house. It was his job to make this all look like it wasn't his fault, well that he wasn't involved in her being taken. He ruffled his hair with his hands and let himself into the house about four hours after they'd originally left the house, trying to give the illusion that he'd been out looking for the princess.
Deacon had been home for an hour already when Liam came home...without Andais. He just barely heard the front door open and close and stepped to the door leading out to the back porch where he was, smoking. The guard took one look at Liam and his expression darkened, "...Where is she?"
His eyes quickly adverted. "She disappeared on me again. I looked for her for four hours. I figured she came back here to you." he said as he ran his hands through his hair again. Years of service in the courts kept his face schooled, and composed.
Andais' disappearing act on Liam wasn't a surprise, so Deacon wasn't worried all that much...yet. The guard merely sighed, shaking his head as he turned his attention toward the beach. The elemental fae could feel a headache creeping up on him even as he asked, "And what did you say or do this time to upset the Princess?" Deacon tossed over his shoulder at the other guard.
"I didn't say a word to her. She came out of her room at 1 o'clock, told me that she wanted to go out for a walk, she was in one of her moods... I walked the standard distance from her down the beach. When we got to the pier, she pointed out something out in the ocean, and she disappeared."
"Alright, fine." Deacon said shortly, the middle finger and thumb of his left hand lifting to pinch the bridge of his nose a moment while he collected himself. Before speaking, he took another hit off the cigarette, "She'll come in when she's ready."
He clasped his hands in front of him. "I only took my eyes off her a for a minute."
"Don't!" Deacon declared, turning on his heel as he jabbed his right hand, the one with the cigarette clamped between his index and middle finger, "You were with her and it was your job to stay with her!" Harsh words...perhaps a bit self inflicting?
He backed up a step. "You know how she is." he said as his brows furrowed.
"That is not the point, Liam! It is your duty to protect her! It is your duty to be by her side!" The hand that had been pointed at the guard then shifted in the opposite direction of the house, "Princess Andais is out there, alone, and we have no idea if she's in trouble or not." He paused long enough to finish off his cigarette and pull another from the pack--an action he rarely did--and muttered to no one in particular, "This is...this is all my fault." He stuck the cigarette between his lips and it flared to life, "I should've waited until she woke up."
He didn't know how to respond without lying, and fae didn't lie, so he said nothing to the first. "She woke up very cross." he said simply.
Deacon was doing his best to keep it together, to be rational about the situation, but he silently admitted to himself that it was difficult. He paced the entire length of the back porch, listening to Liam and then askd as he passed the door, "Did she say what was upsetting her?"
"No. But she was up much earlier than I've ever seen her be up." he said as ehe watched the man pacing. He was actually enjoying that. He knew that the other man cared about her in a way that he just couldn't understand.
He could only assume that a bad dream had awoken the princess so early. Choked laughter that hinted at hysteria bubbled forth, she was probably angry at Deacon for not being there when she woke up and took it out on Liam, completely unaware that the other guard was indeed responsible for Andais' disappearance.
He heard him laughing, and arched a brow. "I spent four hours on the beach... she's just gone."
The guard waved a dismissive hand, "She'll come in when she's ready." Deacon repeated and continued to pace the length of the back porch, a motion he was still doing two hours later when he finally paused. He was standing in the doorframe again, lighting up yet another cigarette when he noticed the tremor in his left hand. Deacon squeezed his fist closed to stop the shaking, pressing it to his lips, and closing his eyes, not knowing that his face displayed raw emotion. Andais still had not returned by then.
Whenever dismissed, he went to his room, and set up a pick up for himself. He'd be gone within a few hours.
Rozenwyn and her guards had still not returned from their outing so Deacon ducked into the house and picked up the phone. The guard dialed Ronan's cell and without any pleasantries, Deacon said, "Andais is missing and I am," He gulped, "...worried." Boy, was that an understatement.
Ronan answered his phone on the first ring, but kept his attention on Rozenwyn as well. He never let the woman out of his sights more than a few moments. "How long has she been gone? She disappear on the other guard again?"
Deacon closed his eyes again, nodding even as he said, "Yes. She's been gone s-six hours now." His voice went quiet, "Ronan...she's never been gone this long before, I--" The guard exhaled sharply and breathed in, "Something's wrong."
He frowned. "What spurred her to leave the guard this time. Did he open his mouth and insert foot?" he said as he motioned for his group to stop so that he could think. "Where does she go whenever she disappears?" he asked.
"I asked what Liam had done to upset her, he said she didn't say," Deacon replied, sinking onto one of the stools that sat at the island in the kitchen and added, "I'm not sure, but if she wanted to be alone...probably one of the more secluded areas of the beach. Liam searched for her for four hours..."
"When I get home we'll both talk to him. Is he around or out looking for her?" he asked, before he told the others they needed to get home.
"I dismissed him to his quarters." The guard stood and started toward the stairs, taking them two at a time. Deacon's intention was to check on the other guard, make sure he was still there so that everyone could help sort the situation and find the princess.
"Well I guess we're just going to have to wait and see if she comes home or start interrogating people."
"Yeah." Deacon said shortly, reaching Liam's door and rapt his knuckles on it.
"We'll be home soon." he said before stuffing his phone in his pocket, and telling Rozenwyn what was going on.
There was no answer at the door.
"Liam!" Deacon bellowed and whaled on the door.
Liam glanced at his watch and wondered where they were. When they'd be there to collect him. They should have been there by now. Little did he know that he was being hung out to dry. He opened the door. "Yes?"
"Don't go anywhere. Ronan and Rozenwyn are returning home and we'll sort this all out." Deacon sighed, "They'll be back in an hour." He looked at Liam again, "You're sure she didn't say anything to you before she disappeared?"
"Look a dolphin." he said as he crossed his arms over his chest. "That's the last thing she said to me before she disappeared."
The guard looked away thoughtfully, his fingers rubbing over the coarse hair on his chin, "That's...actually really helpful." Deacon turned away and started toward Andais' suite.
He rolled his eyes as he shifted from one foot to the other. "If you think so." he mutttered as he walked over to the window and looked out, wondering where his ride was.
Deacon didn't hear Liam as he was already on the phone again with a contact at the local aquarium. Hopefully his inquiry would pan out, but a few minutes later his hope was dashed and worry set back in. The guard sighed, scrubbing his hand over his face as he fell backward onto the bed. He stared forlornly up at the cieling and muttered to the darkness, "...Where are you, Andais?"
Liam walked out of his room and down to the kitchen, rustling around in there for a few moments before heading out the back door as quietly as he could, attempting to leave without Deacon hearing him
The guard sat up, hearing someone puttering around in the kitchen and bolted out of the room on the hope that Andais had returned. Bounding down the stairs, Deacon was sorely disappointed to find Liam there instead of the Princess...and it appeared he was leaving. His anger flared, "Where the hell are you going?"
Liam looked over his shoulder as he stood at the door. "I was going to check the beach again." It wasn't a lie... it just wasn't Andais he was going to look for.
"I'll go with you," Deacon replied, pulling out his mostly used up pack of cigarettes just after writing a note to Ronan and the other princess.
He nodded his head and cursed his luck mentally. He walked out on the beach with the other guard and knew that he couldn't get away easily with the other guard with him.
Deacon paused at the edge of the yard to pull out the cigarette from the nearly used up pack and lit up. He surveyed the other guard as he searched and had to wonder why Liam suddenly such initiative in searching for Andais all of a sudden. Liam and Andais weren't exactly on the best of terms, after all...
He stuffed his hands in his pocket and walked further down the beach, trying to put some distance between himself and the other guard. He hoped tht he'd able to get free of him and get away.
The other guard followed Liam at a slower pace, his questions boiling to the surface. Deacon was positive that Andais would return on her own, but...only if she was able to return on her own. It was starting to seem a little too convenient that Liam did everything he could without Deacon's prompting like in previous situations.
Liam walked down the beach, knowing that Deacon was following him. He was really starting to think that he'd be killed.
Killed would be too strong a word for Deacon. The guard wanted Liam to suffer if he did indeed have a hand in Andais' disappearance. But he couldn't very well just attack the other guard in broad daylight without provocation. He stopped walking; It was definitely a sticky situation.
liam kept walking even whenever he heard Deacon stop. He wondered just how far out of his sight he'd let him get, and decided to test it feigning looking for Andais
Unfortuantely for Liam, the other guard wasn't going to be letting the possibly traitorous fae out of his sight now. Deacon followed after Liam once more, but dropped back just a tad as he, too, feigned the action of looking for the missing princess.
Liam moved through the night, wishing for once that he had the princess' powers. He didn't. His hand of power was just as useless in his eyes as Ronan's healing... They were fae. Outside of the battle field, his power was a joke. He looked around some more, the pair nearing the pier where he was supposed to meet his contact
Upon reaching the pier, Deacon stopped to tap out the last cigarette in his pack. To Liam, he said, "We should head back. Ronan and Princess Rozenwyn should be home by now." Sticking the cigarette between his lips, it bobbed up and down as he added, "We'll regroup and decide what to do next."
He looked over to the man and nodded. "Lead on." he said as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
Deacon stared back at Liam, his features expressionless as the cigarette flared to life. It was an agonizing moment longer while the guard puffed away before he turned and started back toward the house.
Liam walked behind him for a good 50 feet before he took off at a run in a different direction, hoping to get out of reach of the man
The head guard heard the fleeing footsteps and whirled, discovering the fleeing form of Liam. Deacon snarled, producing one of his blades and chucked right at Liam's back. At this moment in time? Fuck honorable!
Liam felt the blade and hit the ground. He reached behind him, trying to get the dagger out of him before his body started to heal around it faster than a normal fae would. That might have been one of the reasons that Andais took out her violent rages on him. He healed quickly
Before long, Deacon was on Liam and growled out when he saw Liam attempting to pull the knife out, "Not gonna happen, traitor." Deacon hauled Liam to his feet by the root of his hair and started back toward the house, "You're going to tell me where she is, Liam, so help me..."
Liam winced as the man hauled him to his feet. He walked in front of Deacon under protest. "I can't tell you what I don't know."
Since a faerie could not lie, Deacon had to try a different tactic. Shoving the other guard toward the direction of the house, he stated, "Then you'll tell me everything you *do* know."
He walked back towards the house, grumbling under his breath about traitors.
When the two guards arrived at the house, Deacon hoped that Ronan and the other princess were home. He none-too-gently shoved Liam through the backdoor, wrenching his knife out of the other fae's back as he moved away.
Liam stumbled into the house and landed face first on the floor as the man pulled the knife out of his back, damaging the mostly repaired skin.
Ronan had taken the princess upstairs and set the other to guard her room as he went down stairs at the sound. " I take it you've had a disagreement or he's involved"
"He's involved." Deacon replied shortly, wiping the blade of the knife on a towel he snatched from the kitchen counter. He sneered in Liam's direction, "I just don't know how and he doesn't know where she is."
Liam moved to stand up and looked from one guard to the other before bolting towards the front door and tripping over Andais's dog.
The poor dog yelped in surprised at the action and Deacon bolted after Liam, avoiding the dog and grabbed the other fae, "And where do you think *you're* going, hm, Liam?" Picking Liam off the floor, Deacon marched him right over to the sofa and shoved him onto it. The elemental guard then sank onto the coffee table edge just in front of the sofa and stared intently at Liam, "Now..." He began quietly, "Start from the beginning."
Ronan scooped up the dog making sure that it was alright, before putting it outside. He walked over and stood behind Liam just invade the far got any ideas. Liam stared at the elemental fae. "I was born nearly 900 years ago" he said sarcastically since the other fae hadn't been specific about which beginning
Deacon's hand shot out to strike Liam across the cheek in an open hand slap, his finger accusingly pointed in his face, "Cut the crap, Liam! I want to know how you're involved in Andais's disappearance!"
His head turned to the side with the force of the hit. "I was approached when we were back in the sithen... I shrugged it off, because I have been one of her guards for a while. I didn't plan it, but then she called her father through the mirror and told him that she'd chosen you as her consort... She can't to that. Fae do not marry for love. If she is to help bring fertility to the court, her marriage has to have offspring, and she has refused to bed anyone for quite some time."
The guard's expression darkened at Liam's words. Deacon's hands had come to rest on his knees, his left curled into an angry fist but the guard forced himself not to physically react. It was a while before he felt he could speak without doing something foolish, "You mean to tell me, you...*chose* to be a traitor to your princess simply for a *choice* she made?" Deacon made a noise of frustration, throwing up his other hand to silence any excuse Liam was going to lob at him. "*Who* contacted you?"
Ronan could barely believe what he was hearing. When Liam moved to get up, he pushed him back down into the seat of the couch hard. "stay" he said gruffly.
Liam's brows furrowed. "It was for the best of the Unseelie. It has been 245 years since a child was born full blood sidhe. She is the one that the sithen gave the power to give back the children, and yet she chooses to turn her back on her people." He said instead of answering his question.
Deacon blinked at Liam and a moment passed where he said nothing until a bark of laughter came from him. He then grabbed the other guard by the collar of his shirt and pulled Liam roughly to him. Deacon's tone was quiet, cold, and deadly serious, "Did it *ever* occur to you that perhaps it was Fate that Andais made the choice she made?" Tricolored eyes devled into Liam's, "Who contacted you, Liam?"
"You have been with her since she was pulling at her mother's apron strings if you were meant to give her children, you would have done it by now." he said with a sneer. "A very concerned unseelie royal."
His head nodded, "That would be true indeed...*if* I had been sleeping with her this entire time, you idiot." Deacon shook Liam once, "I want a name, Liam."
"And I want her dead," he sneered at him again.
A small, amused smile slowly curved Deacon's lips and his right hand, the one that carried a Hand of Power, lifted to press lightly over Liam's left eye, "A name or I'll start with an eye."
"You'll never find them. They've already had her since two. She's probably long gone." He said as he tried to shift away from Deacon's hand. "I have shoes older than your beloved princess. She will easily be replaced."
Had Liam said nothing more, Deacon would have let the other guard's first words slide. He would've just demanded to be answered. But the loathsome bastard had to compare Andais to a pair of shoes. *Shoes!* Sparks literally flew from Deacon's eyes as his hand began to glow with heat, as if embers from a dying fire smoldered beneath his skin. Liam would feel nothing...at first...and then the pain would be unbearable as his left eye began to burn from the inside out. As this occured, Deacon barked a demand, "I want a name, Liam!"
Liam did nothing at first, gritting his teeth to try and get pass the feeling. When that didn't help, he let out a groan at the pain. He was used to torture because of the princess, but not used to the fire that burned him from the inside out. "Darius" he screamed as he tried to push the man's hand away from his face.
Deacon was so surprised by the revelation from the name, that he didn't resist Liam. His gaze shifted up to Ronan's, the guard's expression turning grim.
Ronan's brows both went skyward as the name was revealed. His brows furrowed together. He knew that fae didn't lie, but he had a hard time believing that Darius was a master mind to that. "Is the King's sister in on this?" he asked as he cuffed the back of Liam's head.
Liam rubbed the back of his head as he sat there for a few moments. "She ordered it."
Shock rendered Deacon mute. He stood, his fingers lifting to pinch the bridge of his nose as he slowly walked away. The guard's hand then raked through his hair, "We should, uh...contact the King."
Ronan ran his fingers through his long hair as he kept the other hand on Liam's shoulders to prevent the man from leaving. "Yes, we should contact the king... And send this one to the Master of Punishments." he said frowning. "Rozenwyn is going to be disraught."
Rozenwyn wouldn't be the only one distraught by the news that her aunt had betrayed her. Andais had so little of those that she trusted that Deacon feared this would break her heart when she learned of the news.
Deacon took a deep breath and let it out, preparing to contact the King, "...Yes." He turned, his gaze deadly seriously, "Stay with him, Ronan. Don't let him out of your sight." The guard then strode for the stairs, taking them two at a time until he reached Andais's suite. He straightened his appearance as best he could and stepped over to the mirror that Andais would most likely use to contact her father.
Liam and Ronan stayed put in the living room. Ronan knew that Deacon was not going to fall apart. He was glad for that, but knew that the man wouldn't be up to 100 percent capacity. He worried about that, but knew that he'd pull it together until they found the princess.
Just before he was ready to contact the King, Deacon's stomach decided to upheave on him. He spent a long moment in the bathroom pulling himself together, his gaze hardening when it fell upon the ring on his finger.
Deacon was a freaking Night Raven, for Goddess sake! His charge, who happened to be the woman he loved, was depending on him to bring her back safely. Standing, a determined expression spread across Deacon's face because he'd be damned if he didn't bring Andais back in one piece.
After rinsing his mouth out with water, Deacon returned to the mirror. A finger lifted to trail across the mirror, it's reflective surface rippling a moment later.
The king was seated at his desk, scrawling on a piece of parchment, a letter to his daughter in fact. He heard the tinkling of bells as the mirror rippled. He looked over at the mirror and touched it, before returning to what he was doing. "Speak."
Deacon gulped, "King Essus...your daughter, Princess Andais...has been taken." The guard's expression was very much blank, neutral as he revealed the news and continued, "I have already questioned an individual I believe had a hand in her kidnapping." He paused, forming his words as carefully as he could, "Liam, I believe, only had a hand in telling where and when to grab the Princess." Deacon's gaze slid away from the mirror with the heavy implication of what he said next, "He says that Darius is the one that contacted him."
The king's heart fell when he heard that his daughter had been taken. "Darius has left the court for a time. I should have known that he was up to something." he said as his brows furrowed. "Send Liam to me, even if he'd only had a hand in it, he will regret it." he said. "Have you told my sister of this betrayal?"
"Of course, Sire," Deacon replied in reponse to the King's request to send the traitorous guard to him. He hesitated at the next question, "My Lord, I...believe the news would be better taken from you, her brother, rather than a guard."
Deacon opened his mouth to add something in regards to what Liam had said about Andais going against tradition. But the guard closed his mouth and dropped his gaze, "Liam will be returning to the sithen by true dark, Sire."
"I will speak to my sisters. I trust that with three guards there, you all can keep my niece safe. Though I am sorely tempted to demand that you all return to the sithen. As her consort you should not have allowed this to happen." he said, his fist hitting the desk. "If there is a hair on her head damaged whenever she is returned, I will ensure that the box is smaller this time."
The guard's heart skipped a beat at the threat, knowing full well that King Essus would make good on it if Andais were harmed. Deacon didn't reply verbally, too afraid that his voice would betray him as he nodded in response.
"Don't just stand there. Find my daughter. You will have two new guards by the darkest of night. Mistral and Twilight will be joining your entourage there. Permanently. "
Deacon paid his respects and moved to touch the mirror, ending the conversation so that he could get started. There was a moment where he just stood there, eyes closed, to calm the racing of his heart. When he opened them, Deacon stared back at a seemingly calm individual, despite the panic and chaos that was happening within. It was time to get some serious answers out of Liam.
He headed back downstairs, pausing briefly, to retrieve a new pack of cigarettes from his room. As Deacon approached both guards on the sofa, he tapped one out from the pack and lit it. The fiery guard paced in front of the coffee table, "King Essus has been informed of the situation. Liam will be returning to the sithen tonight for appropriate punishment." Deacon paused in both word and action, "...Mistral and Twilight will be arriving tonight as a permenent addition to the entourage."
Liam winced at the idea of being returned to the Master of Punishment's sweet mercy. He knew he wouldn't survive. He was starting to regret his decision to help the others.
Ronan nodded his head. "Both are appropriate choices. Especially Twilight... since his powers are closest to the Princess' " he said running his fingers through his hair. "We need to get a move on finding her though." he cuffed the back of the man in front of him's head. "What do you remember about the calls?"
Deacon saw the expression on Liam's face and stopped pacing, "There is always the possibility of mercy, Liam, if you fully cooperate." The guard moved to sit on the edge of the coffee table again to add softly, "No more circumventing the truth, no more inane dribble of tradition. Cooperate and I will request that your punishment be quick." Deacon's gaze bore into Liam's, "Answer Ronan's question."
Liam closed his eyes and sighed. "Darius always insisted on me not being the one to call. He wanted the control of that. He called most days when you were out. Always checking to see if the princess was up or if she was going to go out. He had wanted to snatch her the last time you were gone, but then she pulled her disappearing act on me, so I couldn't tell him where she was. There was always the sound of boat horns in the background and often the sound of bells." he said not really thrilled about cooperating with the other two guards, but he believed that Deacon would ask for his punishment to be quick.
A brow lifted in question and he glanced up at Ronan, "The marina?" Deacon stood, the cigarette bobbing up and down rapidly as he started spouting off the marina's he knew of, "Start checking Marina Del Ray, the Port of Long Beach, the Long Beach Marina, and...the Santa Monica Pier."
He looked to the other man and nodded. "We should check those. I'd say that Long Beach is too obvious... and Santa Monica has too many humans for him to easily take her inside without tons of questions... They have to have her unconscious or something, because... I don't foresee your charge allowing them to take her willingly."
Liam sighed. "They're going to kill me "
"Marina Del Ray is large and populated, but no one would question them if she appeared drunk to the mortals. She's more than likely drugged; Andais wouldn't go down without a fight." At Liam's sigh and declaration, Deacon's carefully neutral expression cracked and dissolved into an angry one. Reaching for the traitor, his fingers clamped around the man's chin, bringing their tricolored eyes close together, "Then perhaps you should have thought of that before committing treason against your King!" Deacon shoved Liam away again, shaking his head.
He felt his hand and then his brows furrowed as he was shoved back. "I did not commit treason against my King. I did what was best for our People. He allowed her to do something that no one would ever understand, just because she is his beloved child." He sneered back.
Ronan nodded his head and looked down at Liam whenever he started the doing what's best for the people crap and cuffed the back of his head again. "Keep it up and we'll make you wish you were dead before the Master of Punishments even gets started."
"By consorting with those that wish to harm the King by kidnapping Andais, you *have* committed treason. Against the King and against Faerie no matter your reason, Liam." Deacon shook his head again and stood, declaring, "I have a contact that I think might be able to help us."
Ronan nodded his head. "That is good. I have few contacts here in the human world. So I'm a bit lost." he said as he ran his fingers through his long blond hair. "I hope that it does not take us long to find her, for both your sake and hers." he said looking at Deacon.
"You and me both, my friend." Deacon replied, and picked up the phone. He dialed Eden and requested to speak to Mercy, who was on the phone in short order, "Mercy...it's very urgent that I speak with Lillith immediately." A short moment passed before the smooth voice of the vampire queen spoke into the phone, "...Yes?"
"Your Majesty." Deacon began and although he couldn't see it, Lillith quirked a brow at the formality, "I need your help." Before she could give a retort, the guard plowed on, "Princess Andais has been kidnapped, and I haven't nearly enough men to search for her. Given your extensive knowledge on a number of supernatural matters...it only stands to reason that you have an equally extensive network of contacts." There was the slightest of pauses before he whispered a beg, "Please, your Majesty."
There was a long pause before Lillith answered, "If I were to help you, Deacon Flynn, what would I get in return?"
"I can petition for an audience with King Essus. There is a possibility we can help you with your...werewolf problem."
Another long pause, "Done. Where shall I send my spies?" Deacon listed off the various marina's he thought Darius could be hiding Andais and hung up.
Ronan arched a brow at the offering of petitioning their king for an audience for the woman on the phone with Deacon, but he did not question it. At this point, the hours were growing longer with the princess being missing. He knew that what ever measures were necessary were needed. He'd have offered people the sun and the moon if it meant finding Roz if she'd been lost. He understood Deacon's love for Andais far too well.
Now came the excruciating task of waiting. Liam could not be left alone and there weren't enough guards to aide in the search *and* guard both the remaining princess and Liam. Deacon sighed and sank into one of the matching easy chairs, his hands lifted to meet his face, covering it.
Ronan nodded his head as he looked at him. "You can join the search. I will see to Liam if you wish."
Deacon was torn between fulfilling the King's demand to the fullest and staying to make sure that Liam did not escape to attempt to flee or warn Darius. Relief flooded his face at Ronan's offer, but it was tinged with sadness. He stood again, "Rozenwyn should be updated on whats going on."
He nodded his head. "I will see to it that the Princess is updated on what is occurring. You go and find your Princess."
The other guard nodded and returned upstairs, hesitating at the entrance to Andais' suite. Deacon's featured hardened into determination once again and the guard retreated into his room to prepare for war.