Finding Emmeline didn't take too long for Ace, he had learnt a bit about her and made an educated guess as to where she might be. (Actually, he just followed the trail of roses that vendors now had.) Ace saw her looking at some stuff as a merchant presented some finer things to her but she seemed only politely interested. Ace walked up to her and leaned against the post of the stall. "So," he began, crossing his arms. "I have a hot meal prepared for the two of us at an inn down the road. The issue is that they have only one room available. I booked it, but I was considering the fact that we can perhaps try the other inns and try getting a room for you there?" he asked
Emmeline smiled softly as she sensed her traveling companion approach and gave a polite nod to the vendor before looking at him. “Oh, that doesn't seem like much of a problem to me.” she shrugged. “Though it would be a shame to waste a warm meal… we can talk about our options as we eat. I just hope you won't mind if I'm a little blunt with some of them.” she winked with a playful smirk.
Externally Ace scoffed and smirked. Internally he was going through a crisis. Never once had he ever interacted with a person to this extent. Now his…companion was underhandedly teasing him. Ace didn't know how to feel.
"Well, chérie, shall we head to lodgings for the night? It's very long and there is much to do." He smiled and looked at her, eyes shining in the candlelight.
“Bien sûr.” Emmeline giggled, looping her arm around his as if they had done it several times. “Lead the way, mon ami. Cher will follow us to the stables.” she commented casually. “Though I have to admit… it’s always a pleasant surprise to hear you speak French. Where did you learn it?” she asked, trying to keep a normal conversation going to distract him from her touch.
Ace opened his mouth to respond but frowned. He stayed silent momentarily, still frowning, then slowed his pace. "I…I can't remember." He said quietly, furrowing his brow as he tried to think. It wasn't as though he was fluent, not at all, but he had the faintest memory of someone using French terms of endearment. Were these Cade's memories? But Cade didn't use any French. It had been some time since he had been connected to Cade, and keeping their old memories apart was getting harder. Ace's mind ran as he went back and forth in this loop trying to determine the answer to Emmeline's question.
It wasn't until he stumbled on a crack in the road that he broke out of his silent trance. Ace shook his head as if to shake out the uncertainties before looking at Emmeline with a fake smile. "Here we are, I stumbled on this crack as I was walking to come to meet you." He opened the door and held it for her. As he locked eyes with the barkeep, he gestured for two meals and took a seat, gesturing for Emmeline to do the same.
Emmeline raised a brow at the uncertain pause and the quiet confession. She knew Ace, and Arlo, was a special case but it still felt odd to her. “It's alright.” she assured softly, patting his arm in a way that she hoped would be comforting.
She walked with him in silence, barely managing to keep them both upright when he tripped. But she smiled when he opened the door for her and walked in, nodding politely at the innkeeper as they sat down. “So, what do you have in mind for tonight's… arrangement?” she asked, bringing up their previous topic.
Ace furrowed his brow in thought and laced his fingers together. He chewed on his lip as he ran through the various scenarios. "Well, I have met my quota for the month so I can scout the inner city and plot a path for us to use in the morning. I can come back and rest on the chair by the window so as to not disturb you." Ace rested his chin on his hands and smiled softly, looking at the crackling flames. "It has been some time since I was awarded the chance to sleep, I wonder if I still remember how to dream?" he murmured.
Emmeline nodded thoughtfully at the suggestion of scouting but frowned when he mentioned the fact that he didn't get to sleep much. She almost understood why between his job and how the magic between him and Arlo seemed to work… but it still didn't seem healthy. “Everyone dreams, even if you don't remember it.” she pointed out softly.
“If you insist on taking the chair, then I can enchant it for you so it would be more comfortable.” she offered before batting her eyes at him. “But I do not mind if you wish to share the bed. It must have been even longer since the last time you slept in one.”
"My dreams normally consist of what Arlo does in the day. I sleep when he is present and vice versa. I appreciate your offers. I will scout and if I return to see you awake, we can make arrangements then." Ace offered. Their meals had arrived and Ace dug in.
“That makes sense,” Emmeline nodded, “but doesn't your body also need more rest than just the few seconds it takes for you to… switch?” she asked once the person bringing their food had left. “Which reminds me, I wasn't able to play that little prank on Arlo because he… woke up quicker than I expected. I was only able to catch him and help him back on the horse.” she admitted, feeling that it was unnecessary to mention that things had actually worked out better that way.
"You misunderstand. When Arlo is controlling the body, I am asleep inside. I can't try to force a switch nor can I control it. Whatever he does, I am able to see, it comes like a dream to me. That's how I know many things that happen when Arlo is around." Ace hesitated, he trusted her far more than Cade did but even still he wasn't sure exactly how much he should tell her. He thought back to their conversations and could only recall one moment when she was untruthful. "There are…conditions for our specific condition." he chose to trust her at the moment, after all, they were striving for a similar thing.
"Arlo can use magic to separate our body so that we can be present at the same time. That's how we were able to speak the last time. The consequences of that are that it takes a lot of energy from him which means he goes to sleep longer. The longest time was 3 days but that's a different story." Ace sighed and poked at the now empty plate with his cutlery, the scratching sound of metal against wood was reminiscent of his early days practicing his sword work. "I can use magic to block Arlo from seeing everything I do in his dreams. That's why I am able to…urge him… to do certain things by altering the story a tad."
Emmeline nodded slightly as he explained a bit more about the magic that Arlo used but found it more interesting that Ace was able to influence Arlo through their dreams. “I did suspect that was what happened when he said he would speak with you about what I said. Though he did not let me witness it.” she shrugged, not really bothered by it since it had been a personal matter for them. “But, I do understand. Your… duality is not a complicated thing for me to grasp but it is a duality up here only, n'est-ce pas?” she asked, placing a finger to his forehead. “I was talking about this.” she explained bringing her hand against his arm. “Le corps. Pas l'esprit. Does this not also need rest?”
"I'm unsure. It's never bothered me before. It might be an advantage of my contract. After all, he needs his work done. His knight cannot be tired, it must be ready at all moments." Ace shook his head, his hair falling into his face. He used a leather band on his wrist to tie it back. "Any how, i should get to scouting. The inn is slowly getting quieter which means that the knights are going to be out soon for patrolling. You should go up to the room and rest while I'm out." He looked at her and slid a room key in her direction.
“I suppose that makes sense.” she agreed thoughtfully. Of course, it didn't mean that she liked that as a fact… true, when she occasionally animated an inanimate object to help her with something, it didn't need sleep as the magic sustained it. But it was still an inanimate object, not a person.
“Merci, mon ami.” Emmeline smiled as he passed her the key. “If I am not awake when you return, the chair will be enchanted for you. Otherwise… we’ll talk when you get back.” she smirked with a teasing wink.
Ace stood up and bowed dramatically. "I shall see you soon." He smiled and walked out of the inn, pulling his hood up and snapping his face mask into place. Walking inconspicuously along the side of the road, he made sure to stick to the shadows and when he saw a spot with no lights, he ducked into it and climbed up to the tops of the building.
Casting a quick silence charm on his boots, Ace walked along them to reach the castle gates. Once he reached the bridge, he jumped down and used the underside to get across and onto the main part. Ace stayed down there for a while, waiting for the guard shifts to change, and gathered intel. Once the shift exchange happened, Ace climbed up the sides of the walls and ducked into the main city.
(Do you want to have an interaction between them or do you want to have a timeskip to the morning? I'm good either way)
(I’m also good either way. I guess it depends on how much you want Ace to get teased 😏😉)
Emmeline giggled at the dramatics but nodded in reply as he left. She waited until he was out of the door before taking the key and heading up the stairs, a simple spell showing her to the door the key unlocked.
The room was no different from any other room in any other tavern, but she still cast a few protective charms that would only activate if anyone other than her companion and herself tried to enter. Now, casting spells was easy for the daughter of the Enchantress, but altering them to accommodate Ace and Arlo’s unique magical signature required a little more concentration.
(I think Ace should get a little flustered. It'll make it more dramatic when she finds out about Arlo/Cade 😂😂😂)
After getting some information from the guards and plotting their course for the day, Ace sighed and then made his way back to the inn. He wasn't about to admit it to anyone but he was honestly a little nervous about sharing the room. It wasn't as though he hadn't shared a room before, no, it was more about the fact that Ace was going to share the room with a person he felt very strongly about. He groaned out loud. Ace could almost hear Hades laughing at him from the underworld.
(I agree. Not to mention that Emmy doesn't think much of royalty so the realization will have an impact on her too.)
Once satisfied with the protective spells, Emmeline took some time to clean up properly for bed and even changed into a simple nightgown, though she kept her thorny rose necklace on. She examined the chair near the window, to determine what spells would be best for it… just in case before sitting down near the bed and pulling out an old book to read as she waited for Ace to return. She had read this book many times but still found enjoyment in its pages… and occasionally inspiration or even lessons. Tonight she was hoping for the former but would not be surprised if she came across the later as well.
The charm Ace had cast on his feet slowly began to wear off. He didn't notice that his footsteps had returned until one knight remarked to his partner about strange sounds and looked up, almost catching him as he jumped across a building. Ace climbed down the building right then and snuck around like a thief in a prison as he made his way back to the inn.
He didn't want to disturb the innkeeper, who undoubtedly was resting this late, and chose to climb up the side of the building to his window. The light shining in the room was visible from the ground and Ace had groaned out loud at the prospect of speaking with Emmeline. "Good evening madame." he spoke softly as he entered the room on the off chance that she would be asleep.
Emmeline chuckled to herself as she heard Ace lamenting that she was still awake. She set her book aside and, with a flick of her wrist, increased the light in the room. Not nearly bright enough to blind but enough to see clearly. "Welcome back, Monsieur Chevalier." she grinned. "I hope your time scouting was productive."
As much fun as she imagined this would be… a part of her was just a little nervous, not that she would ever admit it. She trusted Ace and even liked him as a friend and travel companion. But, she suspected, there was just something about sharing a bed with someone that caused this sort of feeling. "I know you said earlier that you don't get tired but you also said you were looking forward to getting some sleep." she reminded, brushing her fingers invitingly against the sheets beside her.
"I–" Ace didn't know why he was hesitating. He had shared spaces with his travelling companions in the past. The difference was that he was younger than he was now. He silently went to the door and hung his cloak on a coat hook beside it. He took off his top layer and his vest leaving only a thin white shirt with sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Putting the clothes on the chair proved a bit more difficult than he thought, the chair was slippery and his clothes had no grip either. Once figured it out, he sat in the chair and unlaced his boots.
"Sleep would be preferred but I would rather you be more comfortable than I. I mean, you need it and I don't. I could perhaps sleep later, possibly find a spot on the floor. My cloak is quick soft and large, I could make it quite comfortable for myself." And thus Ace had begun rambling. He knew that what he was saying was just excuses and nothing more but he couldn't help it, it was like there was something physically stopping him. It also didn't help that Hades was back in his head laughing at him and poking fun.
Emmeline giggled softly, watching him postpone trying to talk his way out of sharing a bed. It was oddly adorable. But it was also reassuring to know that he was just as nervous as she was.
“Oh, I can sustain myself if I choose not to sleep. I just don't make it a habit.” she informed easily. “And even with your cloak, I doubt the floor would be comfortable enough. As I said, if you really don't want to join me in this warm, soft bed… I could enchant that chair for you. But I don't believe it's necessary as the bed is big enough for both of us.” she pointed out.
"I–well–ugh, I give up! I'll take one side and you take the other." The faster we get this over with, the faster I can forget about it. Ace grumbled and stood up from the chair, approaching the bed in an annoyed manner. It did well to hide his increasing nervousness. As nice as the bed might be, he doubted he'd get any proper sleep tonight.
(Timeskip to the morning? Cade will have fun)
(sure. Emmy’s going to have fun then too!)
Emmeline snickered as Ace finally stopped arguing and joined her, though she was careful to stay on her half. Nothing was going to happen, but she planned to have just as much fun in the morning. “Bonne nuit, mon cher.” she smirked, taking the opportunity to tease him one more time before putting out the lights with her magic.
Ace was glad the lights went out. He didn't know the state of his face and he did not want Emmeline to see. "Pleasant dreams, Emmeline," he said in a tired voice then turned over. To his surprise, he fell asleep within minutes and the sound of soft snoring filled the room.
A beam of sunlight flashed across Cade's eyes and he flinched, rolling over to block it out. He sighed in drunken glee at the warmth and comfort of the bed he was in. The warmth of the person next to him did nothing more than lull him back to a deeper sleep. Cade gladly accepted the siren song of the warmth and melted into the bed before his eyes snapped awake and he pushed Emmeline out of the bed then jumped out himself. "What the–" Cade cursed and looked around wildly, patting his body and spinning in circles. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY BED?!" he sputtered and held his fists in front of him, glaring at Emmeline.
(Sorry! I thought I responded but apparently not)
