#dutyxbound

[miss-polly]

@dutyxbound ;

Polly scrubbed at one of the soup bowls, fingers wrinkled from washing the dishes. She was grateful for the company, make no mistake, but things seemed off about the little group of adventurers. "I don't mean to pry, of course," she said. "Your business is your business, and I'm always happy to have guests, but you all look ... well, not like the sort of people I see out here."

Did they at least know where they were? Half of the group looked properly armed, but that didn't mean they knew what sorts of things came out after dark.

[aelsell]

@dutyxbound

The gates of Tir Asleen stood before her and for a moment Tilda could simply not believe that she had come this far. Months on the road, hunger and cold, she had endured it all. For this. She had reached her destiny only to find the doors locked, the guards patrolling, the all too familiar sound of a city preparing for war rang in her ears as she stepped closer. Raising her eyes to the guard tower she called out: "Forgive me, but is there any chance a weary traveller can find shelter here?"

[feuerfliegen]

@dutyxbound

"Aunt Jade", his voice was a mere whisper as he turned towards her. This was not supposed to happen. Owain had memorized the guard's schedules, scouted out the quickest and least busy ways in and out of the castle, bribed a stable boy into giving him his clothes, and now it was his aunt - of all people - who caught him sneaking out of Tir Asleen at night? Owain cleared his throat and adjusted his stance to seem as if he felt he had the right to be here, in the middle of the night. Nothing suspicious to see. "What a coincidence to meet you out here, couldn't sleep either?" Please don't tell my parents.

[blumengeist]

@dutyxbound A OUAT/Modern thingie

"You aren't from here, are you?", across the counter Elora gave the other girl one long look. It was not her intention to stare or to be rude and she realised that her words could be taken the wrong way, so she quickly added: "I mean, I haven't seen you here before and we aren't really the place for tourists. Visiting family?"

[devilsnare-archive]

ミ✉️  @dutyxbound asked :   ❝   how  can  you  be  so  smart  yet  so  dumb  at  the  same  time?  ❞   {for  Boorman}

            ❝ IT'S  A  GIFT, ❞   Boorman  chuckled  as  he  tossed  another  handful  of  nuts  and  dried  berries  into  his  mouth.  He  wasn't  trying  to  be  serious  or  responsible,  he  was  just  trying  to  keep  the  kids  alive  and  the  last  time  he  checked  that  didn't  require  maturity.  ❝ If  you  stick  with  me  long  enough,  you  might  just  gain  the  skill  too. ❞   He  didn't  do  serious,  not  in  conversations  or  relationships.  Whenever  he  felt  the  air  tightening  around  him  he  ran.  And  thanks  to  his  long  legs,  he  was  pretty  good  at  getting  away. 

[blumengeist]

@dutyxbound

"You, my friend, are working too hard.", Elora leaned against the wooden fence that divided the training grounds and balanced a basket on her hip. It had been weeks since their return and she knew that preparation was the only thing they could do right now - and yes, she understood Jade's need to do anything at all. But Elora also wished for her friends to take a break, to be well cared for. "But I am not going to judge you. Because I worried so much last night I could not sleep and baked a bunch of muffins instead", she motioned towards her basket, "Ready for a break and some nourishment?"

[devilsnare-archive]

ミ✉️ @dutyxbound: ❝ Wars  begin  when  you  will,  but  they  do  not  end  when  you  please. ❞  { for  Boorman }

         BOORMAN  NODDED  HIS  HEAD  AS  SHE  SPOKE,  WAITING  FOR  THE  LITTLE  KNIGHT  IN  TRAINING  TO  FINISH.  When silence  fell  he  nodded  his  head,  ❝ I  never  finished  reading  that  book  ...  or  any  book  really,  I'm  not  much  of  a  reader. ❞

          His  teeth  picked  at  the  last  bits  of  meat  on  the  bone.  ❝ All  of  that  fancy  training  doesn't  teach  you  how  to  live  with  it. ❞  Killing,  failing  to  save  someone.

[blumengeist]

[ x ] @dutyxbound : " perhaps... perhaps it might be wise for me to teach you the correct ways of using a sword, your majesty? "

Elora's face was stern, unmoved by the words her loyal friend and knight had just uttered. She tried to control herself, but as soon as the last ambassador left the room she gently punched Jade on the arm. "You know how much I hate it when you call me majesty."

The Empress scoffed, rustling through the papers on her desk without even paying attention to them. Her power came from her words, from her hope, from the magic that cursed through her veins and echoed through the skies.

But yes, a sword... That was a different weapon entirely. "Can you imagine what Kit would say were I to challenge her to a sword fight? She'd never stop laughing. And I'd just... I'd just hurt myself." Elora sighed, leaving the papers and leaning back in her chair before she looked at Jade. She was so tired, an exhaustion that had settled in her bones, and refused to leave. "I wish we could finally have peace instead. But yes, if you insist and consider it safer this way... A private lesson might indeed be needed here. Or a dozen of those. With a small sword. A dagger maybe?"