House Call.

[channe]

She sits up, drawing her knees to her chest, taking a deep breath. Her thoughts wander for a moment, and she bites her lip. At the back of her mind, her thoughts still roil in the wrong direction from the sweet summer air and the moments that just came before. This is a bad idea. A very, very bad idea. It's only going to end in pain.

Shut up, she tells herself.

"Are those other Knights still in the area?" she asks, finally, after a brief moment to herself.

[BetaFlame]

Her question takes him off guard, and he gives a little flinch. "I probably wasn't suppose to tell you, so please keep it under wraps? Glenn has a 'plan' -" He even makes air quotes for her, before shoving his arms back under his head like a pillow." "-so he won't like it if we mess with it. But yes, I am sure they are. One of them is Roland, the Second Knight. Right hand of the King himself. Roland the Mountain Lord. He's patient. He know that by showing himself, tipping his hand a little, I will have to go to him eventually" He gives a little sigh, and shuts his eyes. So much for forgetting the next crisis. "He knows I don't want anyone else pulled into Rodel politics. Not that I think you and Glenn Burnie will let me do something like that."

He turns his head enough to look at her now. "I wouldn't worry about it, Agnie. I don't plan on going back. Too much to lose."

[channe]

She grins back at him.

"... well, I think it's kinda too late for not gettin' pulled in," she says, stretching out her legs and leaning back on her hands. "If you didn't want me to get pulled in, we should have had a whole different conversation back there."

[BetaFlame]

He snorts a little. A most strange sound from Aleksei, and one that shows just what he thinks of that statement. "Really? You mean if we hadn't and we were just friends, you'd let them walk off with me? Right." They both knew that was a load of crap. "I used to think Rodel was paradise. You know there is so little crime, I can't even translate the word prison or gaol into my native language?" He just shakes his head, turning it to stare up at the sky.

"I think we paid in our humanity. Children are torn from their mothers because there is a risk they will be mages. They either end up like. They end up part of the Legion, or they die. Unless they are really unlucky, and become priests."

[channe]

"Of course not," she says, and then drops to lay next to him, her eyes fixed on the sky. She's just *asking* for a sunburn.

"It's a good thing they're in Myrken, then," she says. "Sounds like they'll be so battered by the chaos here that they won't be able to deal with it." She pauses. "You know, that's not a bad strategy."

[BetaFlame]

He grins over at her and shifts just a little so he is closer to her. "Are you kidding? Dear Agnieszka, they are like me. They thrive on chaos." Oh, let that sink in. Two more Aleksei's running about making trouble. "Roland would wait it out. The other.. given what Glenn told me about them, there are only two Knights it could be. They are Reaper caste. Assassins." He mutters to himself a little. Reaper caste. Oh, how it lost so much in translation. Just like his own caste did. Hunter-Seeker.

"Roland is the.. hm." He struggles for the correct translation. "General? Commander? caste. They plan wars. But if you trade me to them, they could very likely send the Knights here in force and cleanse Myrken."

[channe]

She'd have pushed him away, before, and she still might. But for now -- she tries this new thing, being close, and tilts her head to regard him again. "I'm not going to trade you to them, silly."

Turning back to look at the sky, she sighs. "Hah. If it isn't one thing, it's another."

[BetaFlame]

"You know what's ironic? Two months ago, I could have beat them both in a fight. Now they would throw me around like a rag doll." His eyes drift shut as he considers his options. "Glenn suggested getting them involved in dealing with Jirai. He wants to plant my sword on her for Roland to try and take back. I think he hopes they will kill each other."

He doesn't push his luck and just settles in place near her. Doing anymore might chase her off.

[channe]

She considers this, and laughs. "And that," she says, "is why Glenn is still Governor. Damn. The man is such a smartass."

She looks at him again. "To be honest, I've been waiting for the day when someone takes down Jirai. I still got a score to settle with her. She's shifty enough to keep your friends busy. She might even take care of 'em for you. An' if they win, well, I'm sure he's got a Plan B."

[BetaFlame]

He smirks a little and looks over at her. "I'd rather Roland didn't die, you know. He's a good man. We just have a slight difference of opinion. He believes I am a slave to the crown, and I don't." He tears off a strand of grass and starts pulling it apart into fibers. Just.. fore something to do with his hands. Trying to hide his nerves.

"I'm not a fan of Jirai, either. She tried to kill me just for fun. Unfortunately for her, I tried to kill her right back. Maybe if we are lucky, Roland will take care of her, eh?"