(hi again! it’s been a few weeks since my last message, so I’m just dropping by to bump this back up in case you come back eventually and see it. this will probably be the last time I do it just cause it’ll get kind of cluttered. I hope you’re doing well, though!)
(hey, sorry for the wait, but i'm back! April was rough :') really sorry for leaving you hanging like that, and thank you for the kind words, I appreciate it lots <3 )
Rin frowned a little bit. This didn't seem… right. Even if Arquis couldn't publicly acknowledge that they were in a relationship, the nobleman could still have greeted him quite a bit differently than this. He glanced over at Honey and Ari, brows knitting together, and then he looked at Arquis again. "Arquis, we… already have a place to sit." he said slowly, trying to piece together what to say, aware that it was likely that someone else was listening. "Did… ah, did you sleep well?" his figners twitched with the urge to reach out and brush them against Arquis's arm, his cheek, to run his fingers through the nobleman's hair in order to soothe him. But he didn't know what he could do or say in public, and Arquis's behavior wasn't helping him to learn.
Ari frowned a little bit, taking a step closer to Honey. "Something seems off." he said quietly to the blond. He knew that hOney could likely pick up on that one on his own, but still. It was so odd, to see Arquis behaving like this towards Rinlos.
(oh hey! you're good, don't stress out about it! the stuff going on in your life definitely takes priority over this—I'm just glad you're around. and I'm sorry to hear that April was so rough, I hope May goes better for you!)
Finally, that distant look shifted, but only slightly. His jaw clenched the smallest amount, almost imperceptibly, yet he still didn't really look at Rin. Ignoring the second question they'd asked, he said in that same polite, even tone, "Then perhaps you should go take your seat. The trial is bound to begin any minute now.”
Honey tore his eyes away from Arquis and Rin to look at Ari. He nodded slowly, frowning. "Yeah. Maybe it's just nerves, I mean, Arquis has gotta be pretty wound up over all this." But that didn't seem right. Arquis didn't look nervous. His face was just blank. It was as if someone had wiped it almost completely clean of emotion, leaving an empty canvas behind.
Honey glanced over to where Muria was sitting. Most of the women that had clustered around her were beginning to return to the crowd. Only one or two remained, meaning he could see Muria clearly. He raised a brow when he saw her stand, thank the women, and walk to her son's side of the room. That was a bold move. The crowd thought so, too, since the chatter grew to an uproar. He wondered what angle she was trying to play.
Muria stopped a few feet away from Arquis, hesitating, as if she was afraid to come any closer. She dabbed her eyes again with her handkerchief and looked at her son, who responded with a blank stare.
"Arquis." She reached out with her free hand, as if to touch his shoulder, but stopped short. "I wish I did not have to do this, but surely you understand why I must."
"Yes, I understand," he said, and once again, his mask slipped just slightly. His hands were shaking. He tucked them under the desk, out of sight.
"Oh, my sweet boy," she murmured, finally closing the gap between them. She gently cupped his chin and tilted his head so that he'd look right at her. The room grew almost unbearably loud. "This is the kindest thing I have ever done for you. This is a mercy. You will not suffer anymore. Won't it be nice for this all to be over?"
"Yes." Arquis was barely breathing. His eyes flickered to Rin, but just for a second, before returning to Muria. “Yes.”
“Yes what?” she asked, her tone soft.
“Yes, mother. Thank you.”
(hey! just checking in, hope everything’s okay!)
(hi! it’s been a couple of months, so I thought I’d check in again. I’m not sure if you wanted to continue this? whether you do or not, I hope you’re doing well!)
(May I stalk?)
(if you want, haha! I’m not sure if this is going to continue, since it looks like Ice maybe hasn’t been on in a while? but you can read what’s already there, if you’d like)
(hey, I am. So so sorry for doing this shit again. I was thinking of Notebook and this RP regularly, but I just simply wasn't on here. I will totally understand if you're sick of putting up with this behavior and you'd rather just drop me at this point. I hope you're doing okay and that life is going well)
Ari frowned faintly as he watched the interaction. He didn't know Arquis as well as Rinlos did, didn't quite understand what this interaction was, but he knew that it wasn't right. He knew that this wasn't how Arquis usually was with Rinlos, and he could hazard a guess that it was not the way that Arquis usually was with his mother, either. SO it was all pretty strange…but he didn't think there was anything that he could do about it. Didn't think there was anything he could say that would fix this.
Rin frowned a little bit, just struggling to understand this treatment. He had not expected Arquis to be soft and kind and sweet in front of everyone, at the start of this trial, but they had…rather expected something. But this? This was just…nothing. Nothing worth anything, no response other than something that seemed as cold and brusque as the words of a stranger. Arquis was looking at them as if they were a stranger. And it…gods, what could he even say to try and fix that?
(holy cow, hello!! absolutely no apology necessary, life gets like that sometimes, and honestly I’m just glad to see that you’re okay! I was a bit worried after last time since you said things had been kind of rough, so it’s good to see you back on here. if you want to keep going, then I’m perfectly happy to keep going as well!)
Arquis and Muria stayed like that for a moment, her delicate hand still cupping his face. The tips of her well-manicured nails pressed into his cheek. He swallowed, and though she didn't smile, he saw something in her eyes shift. She nodded, let him go, and went over to sit behind her desk once again. Her posture was near perfect.
Arquis, on the other hand, was still a wreck. He sat, staring forward, and said nothing to Rin. Under the desk, he was pinching and tugging at his gloves as hard as he could. Not at the cloth itself, but at the scars beneath. The scars that had opened during their escape from the Palace all those days ago had mostly healed, meaning they no longer hurt when he toyed with them. Still, he messed with them out of habit, kneading the fabric against them with his knuckles, scratching uselessly at them with cloth-blunted nails.
"You really should go sit," he finally said, his voice just as blank and unaffectionate before.
In the crowd, Honey leaned over and placed a hand on Ari's shoulder. He couldn't do much more than that, given where they currently were, but he wanted Ari to know that he, too, was confused. This wasn't the same Arquis they had met, and the way he was acting around Muria—letting her hold him like that—was very odd.
Two men entered the room with big, brassy horns. They played a short tune, signaling the impending start of the trial. The same guard that had been in the room the day before while Arquis was bathing came over to Rin, offering him a kind smile.
"Less than five minutes until showtime, sorry," she said. "Got to clear the space."