forum The Strangers in the Palace (Closed)(Fantasy)

Started October 31, 2021 by @LovelyRose

tune

(aaa we're finally at the trial!)

Rinlos had not slept very well, to be honest. He had woken up repeatedly throughout the night, usually tossing and turning or just, in general, unable to get some good rest. But he was awake now, and he was going to do his best to stay alert and awake for everything. He had dressed in the best clothes he had with him, and had run a comb through their hair to clean it up. He hadn't hardly eaten anything at breakfast, just drinking some coffee and doing his best to push past the way that their stomach had tied itself into knots over this. This whole thing was terrifying. Of course he would go to the trial, but he was so worried about Arquis and the outcome of it all.

Once they were in the room for the trial, he greeted Marsiquia with a weak smile, sitting down with her and looking around the room for a long moment. "I didn't sleep much either." he admitted softly. "I'm just… I'm worried for Arquis."

Ari had slept better than his friend had, but still not perfectly. He didn't know Arquis well, sure, but he was still worried for the man, if only for Rinlos's sake. He knew that if this didn't go well, Rin was going to be devastated. Gods, it would suck. He dressed nicely as well and, like Honey, had ended up renting a suit. He hadn't brought one with him, thinking that he wouldn't need one. He had been wrong, but at least he could rent one and still look decent. His curly hair was pulled half up, and he had worked some creme through it to make it look nice and defined. If there was only going to be a few of them on Arquis's side of the room, then it mattered that they looked good. Ari knew how these court games were played, he knew how much appearances mattered, he knew what it meant to have the people on your side of the court looking more put together. Yeah, it was sort of shitty how it equated having the money to look nice with having the morality and such on your side, but at that moment it was not the time to try and fight that. He just went with Honey and Rinlos to the court room, staying near his friend.

(I know I'm so excited!)

“Me too,” Marsiquia whispered. She returned Rin's smile, her own knowing and sad.

A moment later, she slumped against Rin, letting her head drop onto his shoulder. They were possibly one of the only people in the room that understood what she was going through, and although the two of them hadn't spent that much time together, she really did feel like he was sort of a brother to her. She was glad he was there. At least she wasn't alone.

The chatter in the room, which had already been loud, grew to an almost painful uproar. Marsiquia lifted her head, worried that her actions caused the commotion. But when she turned, her heart stopped in her chest. Muria was walking down the main aisle. She was the perfect picture of grief. Her dress was long and black, with a dark veil that floated elegantly behind her. Under the veil, her hair was neatly pressed, though not done in a showy style. She also wasn't wearing much makeup, either, just a little bit of mascara and lipstick. Her eyes were teary. When she reached her desk, she stopped to dab at them with a handkerchief, smudging her mascara slightly. A couple people—mostly women in her age group, possibly some of her friends—got up and walked over to offer their condolences. The rest just stayed and watched from afar, some scared, some merely curious, and some visibly thrilled, like they were watching a drama.

The crowd grew louder still. Arquis had entered. Marsiquia let out a soft gasp. His face was bruised from where Quirisa had hit him. If that wasn't bad enough, he didn't make eye contact with anyone as he was guided down the aisle. Multiple guards had to walk with him, though that didn't stop people from yelling out questions. He stayed silent and kept his head down. Even when he got to the front, he didn't look up. He just sat and stared down at the desk.

"Should we go- should we go talk to him?" Honey suggested, uncertain. Arquis didn't look like he wanted to talk, but nobody else had gone up to see him. It looked bad for him to be sitting all alone, while Muria, just a few feet away, was being reassured by a small group of people.

(sorry for the wait, we had to put my dog down and I've been sick all week)

Rin watched as Muria came in, lip curling faintly, but his gaze softened when Arquis came into the room. He didn't like the way that Quirisa's hit had bruised, didn't like the way that it looked. It wouldn't help turn things in Arquis's favor, that was for sure. He sat, frozen in his seat, for a long moment, until Honey spoke. "Uh– yeah, that's a good idea." he replied, gently shifting Marsiquia a little bit so that he could stand, moving over to Arquis. "Hey, lover." he greeted in a hushed tone, not sure if the room knowing about their relationship would hurt Arquis's chances with the judges. He wished he could greet him with a kiss, but he really wasn't sure how well that would go down.

Ari let Rin be the first to approach Arquis, knowing that it would mean a lot to his friend. Knowing that depending on how the trial went, this could be the last conversation that they had. It was… really sad. His heart hurt for Rin, he couldn't imagine what Rin was feeling or thinking about. This trial wasn't going to be easy, and that thought kept circling back into his head.

(hey! oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, don't apologize for that at all. if you need to take more time, please take it! this can wait, if you need it to!)

Arquis didn't look up at Rin until he spoke. Even then, when he did finally look into their eyes, it was as if he wasn't really seeing him. His face was blank.

"Hello," he responded in an almost disinterested tone. It was close to the tone he'd used when first meeting Rin. There was no trace of the warmth or familiarity that had bled through when they'd talked to each other just the day before. It was like they were perfect strangers.

The nobleman's neutral gaze floated over the crowd behind Rin's shoulder. Again, it was as if he was watching but not really seeing, like it all wasn't registering in his mind. He was merely a passive observer, not a piece of the puzzle. Not a man on trial. His eyes refocused on Rin, and he offered them a polite, bored smile.

"I believe the trial is about to start. You might want to take a seat." He gestured, his gloved hand stiffly sweeping towards the audience. That cold smile stayed in place. “I am certain the staff will help you if you are unable to find a place to sit.”

(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, 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?

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."