forum The Strangers in the Palace (Closed)(Fantasy)
Started by @LovelyRose
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@LovelyRose

Arquis kissed the spot in between their brows and smiled fondly. "Love you more," he murmured, a hint of something vaguely teasing melding with the genuine passion in his tone. He joined his partner by their closest friend and listened patiently to his explanation. His forehead creased with thought.

"I doubt it was anything you did, Ari. Honey is having a bit of a hard day, from the sound of it." He recalled what Rin had said about meeting a client and sighed. "Getting out of here for a while might be best for him. Did I hear him say something about the front desk? We should wait for him there."

He led Rin by their hand down the hallway, following the steps to get to the entry. Honey hadn't arrived yet, but Lovey was working a shift. She looked beautiful in a white shawl and a mask trimmed with pearls. Her blonde curls were pulled into a long, fluffy ponytail that bounced when she hopped up from her seat.

"Hi, everyone! Heading out?" Her eyes darted between the three of them. Something like hurt flickered across her face, but she didn't address it.

Arquis had an idea as to what the issue might be. "That we are. Your brother will be joining us momentarily."

"Oh, yay! That's great news!" Her smile could've outshone the Sun. "Speaking of great news, he has someone looking for him! The guy said he was an old friend. I didn't know that Honey had very many friends, but, well, it seems that he has quite a few nowadays! Isn't that nice?"

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin nodded a little, heading with Ari and Arquis down to the front desk. He inhaled softly at Lovey's remark. "Did the friend give his name?" they asked softly. "Because I…" he was afraid that this "old friend" was Myr. That Honey was alone, without anyone with him, and Myr was looking for him. This…this might not end well. But he didn't want to scare Lovey for no reason.

@LovelyRose

Lovey tipped her head, curious but not quite understanding. "He didn't. We don't really do names here, most of the time. Mostly aliases and such. But I've seen him around before, I think! Not super recently. Maybe I'm thinking of someone else?"

Arquis watched Rin carefully. He'd already caught onto what they were thinking, but he wasn't sure how to proceed. On the one hand, maybe it was the client or someone similar, and Honey could be in trouble. On the other, maybe it really was just a friend of some sort. The blond had been at the inn for a long time. Surely he had other friends, or at least acquaintances or supporters like the cook that made him extra ice cream.

The young woman shrugged and took a seat once more. She clicked her nails on the cover of the book she'd been reading. "Did Honey say he was expecting anyone?"

@ElderGod-Icefire

"It's just that Honey and I ran into a guy earlier who was…abusive." Rin said carefully. "And Honey said he would meet up with us here after he grabbed a jacket." their gaze flickered about the room, searching unsuccessfully for Honey, before looking over at Lovey again. "So I am a bit worried about him."

@LovelyRose

Arquis's gaze went to Ari for just a spare second before returning to Lovey. While he was worried about what he would think, the nobleman knew that their top priority should be ensuring Honey's safety. The situation had rapidly gone from pleasant to very tense, and he was just about ready to tear the place apart to find the blond.

Lovey was one step ahead. Her face went pale, and she wrung her hands together. "Oh. Oh, I didn't even think about that. I mean, of course I thought about it, but he seemed so nice. I shouldn't be so gullible." She stood and pulled a set of keys from the pocket of her dress. They jingled as she walked towards the nearest hall. "Come on, then. Let's go check on him really quick. Best case scenario, he really is just getting a jacket, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Right?"

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin took a deep breath, nodding a little bit. "Better safe than sorry." they agreed, following Lovey quickly. He hoped that Honey was fine, that this was all just a coincidence, but…they were worried that Honey was in danger. That Myr had found him and was going to hurt him somehow.

@LovelyRose

Arquis hurried after Lovey and Rin down the way to Honey's room. He was glad that the young woman was there to guide them all. Her stride was long and fast, and her ponytail swished in her wake like gold lightning. Once she got to the door, she stopped, schooled her expression into something polite, and then knocked.

"Hey, Honey! I think I left Sugar's collar in here. Can I come grab it?"

No answer. Arquis felt his heart plunge into his stomach. His palms grew cold and clammy.

"Hello? Honey?" She rapped the door again, letting out a giggle. It was a bit too high in pitch to be real. She was terrified. "You in there?"

Still nothing. Lovey shuffled forward and stabbed the master key into the lock, then turned the handle. There was a moment of silence as she absorbed the scene in front of her. Arquis almost didn't want to look. His mind had convinced him that something terrible had happened, and he was expecting to be hit at any second with the coppery smell of blood. Finally, he peered in.

Something terrible clearly had happened, but it was hard to know what. Honey was hunched on the floor at the foot of his bed. The skirt of his dress was bunched up around his thighs, and his head was in his hands. He didn't appear to be crying, but he wasn't really moving, either. Arquis quickly scanned him for any sort of wound. There was nothing. He didn't appear to be injured. That was a relief, though there was something still very wrong.

"Honey?" Lovey approached him slowly, hands raised in front of her. She knelt by his side. "Hey, what happened? Are you alright?"

He looked up. His face looked drained of all color. The lipstick he'd been wearing was rather smudged, but that was the only difference between his previous and present state. Or at least, Arquis thought that was the only difference. As he came closer, he realized that the left side of Honey's dress was ripped. Strings of unsevered fabric hung between the two sides like the cables of a rope bridge, barely holding anything up.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin came in, approaching and crouching by Honey. "Was it Myr?" they asked, voice soft and gentle. They didn't reach out to Honey, not wanting to frighten or startle the young man beside them. Honey was already having a hard enough time as it was, and Rin did not want to add to that.

Ari stayed by the door, feeling awkward and out of place. He didn't know what had happened, and he didn't want to intrude where he was not wanted. He crossed his arms loosely over his stomach, watching Honey quietly.

@LovelyRose

At the mention of that name, something steely came into Honey's eyes, some last bit of resolve. He shook his head once, then twice, and then rocked forward so he was on his knees and wrapped himself around Rin. His cheek was crushed into the bard's chest. After a second, he pulled away, still shaking his head.

"Nothing happened. No one did anything." The blond's gaze darted pleadingly between his sister, Rin, and Arquis, who had settled down beside his partner. "Do you understand? No one did anything."

"Then what happened to your dress, Honey?" the nobleman asked quietly, his tone a mimic of his the one his partner had used. There was a trace of regret in it. He didn't want to put Honey on the spot, but they had to know the truth.

"I was trying to take it off, but the zipper got caught, and I got mad, so I yanked it. The zipper. Pulled it too hard, and it tore. That's it. Really, that's it. Nothing happened."

Arquis worried his lower lip. The zipper was not on the side of the dress; it was on the back. He'd watched Honey change into the outfit and had helped him with it. But it seemed somehow cruel to mention that, as if catching a child in a particularly weak lie.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Ari stepped quietly from the room, closing the door. He wasn't quite sure what was going on here, but he knew that maybe Honey didn't want him to know, and that was okay. He could wait outside for everyone else to come back out.

Rin glanced up when Ari left, then looked over at Honey again. "Honey…" they trailed off, taking a deep breath. "Is that really it?" he asked, voice still soft and calm. He didn't want to disbelieve Honey if that was the truth, but…the zipper wasn't on the side, he could see that much, and Honey's demeanor seemed all wrong for it just to be anger about a zipper anyway.

@LovelyRose

"That's really it. Couldn't be anything else. You saw it yourself—door's locked. Nobody could've gotten in. Right?"

Arquis had to admit that he had a point. If that client—Myr, he assumed—couldn't have entered without a key, and it was very unlikely that he'd acquired one. Though it was possible that he had come in and left prior to Honey locking the door, which made a bit more sense. But why would Myr have stopped by for such a short time? What would that have accomplished?

"This does not make a lot of sense," he sighed. "There are a lot of variables that don't add up. Why would you have locked the door from the inside if you were simply here to get a jacket?"

"It's a habit."

"And where is the jacket, then?"

"Haven't picked it out yet. I was gonna change clothes, 'cause I didn't think that any of the coats I own match this dress. So I tried taking it off. That’s when it ripped."

"Why didn't you answer when I knocked?" Lovey asked quietly.

"Didn't hear it. I was upset." Arquis noticed that Honey wouldn't look at her as he spoke. He kept his head down, his eyes glued to the floor. "About the dress. It was expensive. But listen, it's no big deal. I'll just change and then we can go. Alright?"

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin still didn't quite believe Honey. "Honey, if something happened, you can tell us." they said softly, gently touching the blond's shoulder. "But we don't want to force you to tell us if you don't want to." he cleared his throat, unsure what else to say or do right now. He wanted to believe Honey, but at the same time this situation just seemed…off, somehow.

@LovelyRose

Honey flinched and shook their hand off. His elbows dug into the edge of the bed as he hoisted himself to his feet. He stumbled due to one of his heels slipping, his legs nearly going out from under him, but ultimately managed to stay standing. The fakest smile Arquis had ever seen brightened his face once he was safely upright. It was all for show. He was performing again. They'd tried so hard to get him to feel comfortable talking to them, and now it seemed like all of that progress was lost.

"Like I said, nothing happened! I'm fine. See?" He twirled like he had before, but there was something wrong about it. His posture was unusually stiff, and the tear in his dress made him seem like a broken doll. Arquis watched him go around once before something caught his eye. There was something red on his side, peeking out from in between the dangling threads.

"What is that?" he asked, and Honey stopped. The noble rose to his feet and moved forward slowly. The blond saw what he was going for and shoved him away, so hard that he almost fell.

"Don't!" he yelled. Actually yelled. He gathered the ripped shreds of his dress and clutched them to himself, covering whatever that thing was. When he realized that everyone was staring, he hurried to the stack of clothes on the bed, grabbed a new outfit and a coat, and rushed to the bathroom. He slammed the door behind him.

Arquis dropped to the floor beside his partner, hands shaking slightly. Honey wouldn't hurt him. He knew that, but he still felt uneasy.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin's lips parted faintly as he watched Honey run into the bathroom, and reached out to take Arquis's hand, squeezing a bit. "Oh." they said faintly, swallowing and taking a deep breath. "I…" he closed his eyes for a moment. "I thought we had made progress with…with this. All of it. I didn't think…" he hadn't meant to startle Honey through that touch, hadn't meant to upset him the way that they had.

@LovelyRose

Arquis nodded, not sure of what to say. Honey had to know that they meant well, but he clearly wasn't in a logical headspace. The lying, the excuses, the emotional outbursts and aversion to touch—those were all issues that would take some time to work out, apparently. Still, it was a little distressing that he'd regressed so far in such a short span.

"I know. I thought so, too." Arquis squeezed Rin's hand and kissed the base of his thumb. "I wish we knew what brought all of this on, it seems so sudden."

"I just don't get why he's acting like this. We just wanna help," Lovey mumbled. She looked defeated. Tears were dripping down her cheeks, bringing some of her mascara with them.

The bathroom door flew open. Arquis yelped, surprised at how fast Honey had changed. His outfit was drastically different. A huge jacket over a long, plain shirt and pants. Nothing fancy. Nothing nice. His eyeshadow was still in place, but he'd wiped his lipstick and gloss off.

"Ready?" he muttered in a somewhat flat way. When he saw that Lovey was crying, his jaw tightened, but he didn't say anything.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin looked up when Honey came back, giving the blond a faint, supportive smile. "Hey, Honey." they greeted, standing up and looking at the blond quietly. "You sure you're up for this?" he didn't want to baby the young man, but he knew Honey needed to be treated carefully right now. He knew that the trauma was all still new and raw, and that Honey needed someone to be gentle.

@LovelyRose

Honey shrugged in a noncommittal fashion, swallowed, and shoved his balled-up fists into the pockets of his coat. "Yeah. Sure. Let's just go. I've already made us late enough."

Arquis helped Lovey, who was still crying, to her feet and gave her a hug. If her brother wasn't going to do it, then he would. She sniffled against his shoulder for just a bit before pulling back. Her eye makeup was all smeared, her lips wobbly. He offered her the softest, most encouraging smile he could manage.

"We will return later today," he told her, and she nodded. He made a mental note to get her something from the village. Maybe he'd sneak her some sweets or a new necklace, something that would brighten her obviously stressful afternoon.

Honey walked past the two of them to the door and pushed out into the hall. When he saw Ari, his cheeks went red, but he just gritted his teeth and waited for the others to join them. Whereas before he'd felt overdressed, he now felt extremely underdressed. There was nothing attractive about him anymore. That had been the goal, but he was suddenly regretting it. If he was not pretty, then he was not much at all. Just a sullen, rude excuse for a man that ruined everyone's day.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Ari greeted Honey with a soft, faint little smile. "Hey, Honey." he said, unsure what was going on but not wanting to let it ruin everything. "Is everything alright?" he was leaning back against the wall, eyes studying Honey carefully as he waited for some sort of response.

Rin took a deep breath, taking Arquis's hand and shaking his head faintly. "I don't know what to do." he admitted softly. "But we'll do our best to keep Honey safe."

@LovelyRose

Honey sighed and shifted in place. He'd been kind of hoping that Ari wouldn't want to talk to him, but he supposed he should be thankful that he did. With what he'd just walked in on, Honey wouldn't have been surprised if he wished to avoid the blond entirely. Maybe that would be for the best. He really wasn't dating material, after all.

"Yeah. Everything's fine. Thanks." He gave him a very quick, bland smile and crossed his arms over his chest. Even with all the layers he had on, he still felt so vulnerable.

In the room, Lovey gave Rin a trembling smile. She walked to the door before turning to speak to the both of them. "Thank you. For everything, but also for keeping him safe today. I would go myself, but I really have to get back to work. I'm so glad he has someone looking after him."

She left, presumably on her way to the front desk. Arquis led Rin out as well. Honey gave them a glance before pushing himself off the wall he'd been leaning against. He was glad he'd changed out of his heels. Walking was easier this way, and his feet wouldn't be sore by the end of the evening. He silently guided them out of a side exit, then went ahead on the path.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Ari nodded faintly, adjusting his shirt and sighing softly. He wished he knew how to bring back the happy, playful young man Honey had been earlier, but he didn't. He didn't know how to help, what to do so that Honey was less unhappy. He sighed faintly, closing his eyes and then opening them once Arquis and Rin came back out.

"Let's go." Rin said softly, leading them both along.

@LovelyRose

True to his word, Honey showed them the way to the village. It was rather small, consisting of no more than forty or fifty homes, a main street of a dozen or so live-in shops, and various restaurants. Since it was afternoon, there were people milling about everywhere. An older couple waved to a young girl peddling flowers in the street. Three men playing cards were laughing loudly in front of a bakery until they were shooed away. Music seemed to pour out from everywhere, flooding from windows and doorways and around street corners.

Arquis was amazed. He hadn't even known the village was there, but it was charming and vibrant. The buildings were dusted with just a hint of snow, which made them look like little gingerbread homes with frosting. They were all softly lit from the inside. The little girl with the basket of flowers giggled at him as they passed, and when he waved at her, she gave him a blossom. It was the same type of flower as the one that had floated to his room when he and Rin had first met. He placed it in his partner's hair and pecked him on the mouth, leaving behind a trace of lipstick.

Honey stopped wordlessly when they reached a certain building. Something unreadable flickered in his gaze. He walked towards it, stepping in through the open doors.

It was a restaurant. There was a live band playing in the corner, and almost every booth was filled. People chatted happily as waiters darted about, passing out plates and cups. One of them stopped in front of Honey, looked him over, and said something that blended in with the rest of the noise. They hurried off. The blond started to follow, then stopped to look at Arquis, Rin, and Ari. He gestured for them to follow and went to sit at an empty table outside on the patio.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin looked around the village, smiling softly. It was similar in appearance to many of the villages he had passed through previously, but it was lovely in and of itself nonetheless. He hummed quietly at the flower and the kiss, smiling up at his lover. When they were all seated at the patio, he studied Honey carefully. The blond still seemed upset and out of sorts, but Rin didn't know what to say to help. What could he do to help fix this? They didn't know if there was anything they could do, really.

@LovelyRose

A very handsome waiter in a nicely-pressed suit came outside to deliver each of them a menu. They were handwritten on paper that looked well-loved. The waiter left to take care of other business, returned briefly to hand them cloth napkins and silverware, and then went to another table on the patio. He collected a tall stack of used plates before hurrying to the kitchen.

Arquis reached over and placed his hand on Rin's knee. They looked worried. He was as well, but he felt an urge to comfort them, to remind him that he wasn't alone like he had been before. He hummed and picked up his menu. It was in Anvillean. He scanned the page twice, feeling a knot form in his stomach. Everything sounded so rich, so heavy. So much. But he would start with a drink. That was easier.

The waiter returned to take their drink orders. Arquis asked for some berry tea that sounded interesting. Honey, his mind clearly elsewhere, asked for whiskey. When the waiter said that they didn't have any, he shrugged and got rum instead. He knew he shouldn't be drinking, but he couldn't help it. Everything was starting to be too much.

@ElderGod-Icefire

Rin looked over the menu, taking some tea as well, though not ordering his food just yet. The restaurant seemed like a nice little place, and he was glad that Honey had brought them here, even if Honey was clearly upset and out of sorts. He reached down to gently squeeze Arquis's hand, taking a deep breath and trying to put his concern for Honey to the side. He wanted to be able to enjoy their time together.

Ari cleared his throat faintly, ordering just a glass of ice water. He kept a worried eye on Honey. The young man was old enough to make his own decisions, but it was a bit early for Honey to be drinking like this.

@LovelyRose

The waiter brought their drinks back on a silver tray and set them out one by one. The berry tea looked odd indeed, though it had a lovely aroma. Arquis took a sip and was pleasantly surprised. It was hot and sweet, and there was a subtle tangy flavor that was absolutely wonderful. He was glad that he'd worn wakeup that would hide the stain of it on his mouth, even more so when he realized that the tea and the lipstick were similar in color. That little coincidence brightened his mood somewhat. He patted the back of Rin's hand, then skimmed one of his fingers along the ridges of his knuckles. He traced a heart on the back of his wrist, smiling into his teacup, and glanced at the menu once more.

Honey finished his drink and set the glass down. It hadn't yet begun to kick in, so he tilted his head at the waiter, who dutifully refilled his glass. He started to sip at that one a little slower than before, knowing that he'd need to pace himself. He didn't want to get so out of it that they'd feel responsible for his well-being.

The waiter came around to ask for food next. Arquis considered skipping, but he decided on a bowl of rice and vegetables. Honey wasn't hungry; he disinterestedly picked some kind of appetizer at random.