Peace and quiet...about damned time.

[Rhindeer]

Beatrid waited patiently, staring up at the ceiling and yawning. This wasn't really her ideal way to kill an hour, but at least it was a closed off room and with Hek in the tub and Kuro out there, she was once again left in a relatively quiet state of peace. Well, save for the rustling of clothes, which did make her turn her ear toward the tub more. This was probably pretty mean of her...she knew it. That water had been freezing the way she'd left it, probably even colder than the lake and river water would be this time of year. Or maybe he was used to that type of thing. Maybe she was just assuming things from the way he dressed, but if he did come from the country, maybe he normally bathed in cold water in streams or whatever? If so, that would kind of suck, because this wouldn't have the effect she was going for...though it would still be inwardly amusing to her on some sadistic level, given she knew all about the warm water and he didn't, heh heh...

Of course, it might have also helped if she'd realized that she'd forgotten to get Hek a fresh change of clothes. But...she'd been so preoccupied with Yones and Kuro and now Hek that the thought had never once crossed her mind. Big mistake. She'd remember soon enough, though...

She heard a bit of splashing as she assumed he got in...then more splashing and a gasp. Beatrid smirked to herself. Not one peep out of him, either, except that he sounded in pain with the way he was breathing, and he was lasting a long time in there, too. Bwaha...ah, revenge. She didn't even need a big reaction to be satisfied; it was just knowing that he was suffering needlessly that was satisfying enough, and after this he'd probably be too cold to act like an idio--eh?

Squeaking. The sound of knobs being turned on the other side, and water running. Beatrid blinked, but didn't feel too worried, in fact she just snorted softly and shifted back along the wall so that her backbone wasn't pressing into the tile uncomfortably. It took a while for the warm water to heat up, so if he did discover that knob, he'd probably think it only spilled out cold water, too. That's what had happened to her at first.

That was when the water gave one particularly loud splash and the curtain flew open...to reveal a very naked, wet and glaring Hek. Who yelled at her. Because he'd obviously figured it out...

Crap...

Oookay...of all things that could have happened, Beatrid might have expected to hear yelling from him. Maybe for him to even come out of that little room and march over to her ominously--but with a towel on at least! He had no towel! At least, he did, but it wasn't on! For a moment, all Beatrid could do was stare, face blank, eyes wide. Then she realized she was staring, and he was walking over to her after proclaiming that she was "SO dead!", and she jumped in alarm and took a few quick steps back and away from him, toward the door. What the hell did that mean?

"What the hell are you doing?! Damn, not everyone wants to see that; put a bloody towel on, that's what it's there for!" she growled, straightening up to her full height authoritatively and glaring back up at him--an effect which was somewhat lost with her cheeks flushed. Fuck. Not that she was embarrassed, because she'd been living around guys since forever and, hell, wasn't like it was anything she hadn't already seen--okay, yeah, she was embarrassed. So what? Wasn't everyday a crazy naked guy confronted you. Naked. Damn...he had no shame, did he?

"Get back in there and get some damned clothes on, Hek!" she warned, planting her hands on her hips to show that she wasn't intimidated.

[Anonymous]

"Beatrid..." A familiar voice could be heard just outside the door, but only loud enough for Beatrid to hear, since she was closest to the door. Apparently, it sounded like Kuro, but is not as stern and emotionless as his voice usually is. There was something, different. One thing's for certain, he assessed the situation from the outside and determined where everyone was standing by the footsteps and the yelling.
"I would like to bring your attention to a certain rumor that Yones has decided to spread, concerning you and the new Mordecai. It'll be throughout the Palace in no time, considering that it is spreading through the word of the maids." Leave it to Kuro to be a spy. It's amazing how useful a ninja can be from time to time. How unfortunate it is that no one seems to find Kuro as useful. The very ninja stood outside the door, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

[Anonymous]

Beatrid could only think of a towel at this time? She had deceived him! He was the victim! She was the ‘attacker’ and Hek was out for sweet revenge, his angry face turned into an evil grin and he looked down at his lack of clothing. Heks mismatched eyes narrowed slightly, but his evil little grinned stayed when she puffed up her chest and glared at him, flushed. Taking a wet footed step closer, he leaned towards her ear, not touching her, and put his mouth to her ear, barly a hairs width away.

�Aww, Bumblebee, you’re not blushing because I’m naked are you? Or maybe it’s because you’re too hot…?�

Pulling his head away slightly, Hek stuck out his tongue and licked Beatrids face from the side of her chin to her hairline, making a noise while he did so. Yup, Beatrid was defiantly hot, and if Hek felt like making her blush more, he’d probably comment on how she ‘tasted’ too, which would be an exaggeration since she tastes like person which isn’t very tasty at all. Wrapping his hands around Beatrids waist, he pulled her closer and yanked her with him on his way back towards the stall. All this happened in a matter of seconds, but he did her a voice from the other side of the door while he was quite for those few moments before he licked her face. Hek called through the door.

�Sorry Sir, the lady and I are busy right now, come back later.�

Hauling Beatrid with him back to the bath, he pushed her in front of him and leaned over her, pushing her closer and closer to the edge of the tub, his head beside hers and his wet hair dripping down her front. Sweet revenge indeed, well… More like wet cold revenge but it was still revenge, so it was still sweet. Heks hand opened slightly at her abdomen and he bent over, pressing his chest to her back and he whispered again in her ear.

�Guess what? I really do think you’re hot…�

At the word ‘hot’ he let go and pushed her towards the freezing tub of water, and after he had let go, he went and grabbed the towel and wrapped it around his waist, covering his <I>stuff</I> so that Beatrid wouldn’t have to stare at it anymore. Dusting off his hands and running them through his hair, he looked at her and smirked.

[Rhindeer]

Goddammit!

Beatrid came very close to just screaming in frustration as an all-too-familiar voice came to her from the other side of the door. ARGH! If she'd thought things couldn't get any more retarded, boy, was she wrong! Now she was trapped. Kuro on one side, a naked Hek on the other. This was just...just...so damned ridiculous, she didn't know if she wanted to just scream or burst out laughing. Well, whatever the case, the door was locked and he was on the other side...which meant she was trapped in here with a naked newbie. The naked newbie seemed like her first priority, so she just ignored the voice and went on acting tough and intimidating.

At least, until Kuro mentioned Yones and a rumor and the "new Mordecai" all in one sentence. "What?!"

For one split second she looked away from Hek and toward the door her back was just inches away from. Oooh, she should have known better that to take her eyes off of Hek for even a second. Bad Beatrid, slipping up on her training...well, now she'd quickly learn why you never took your eyes off an eminent threat.

In any case, she soon forgot all about this whole "rumor" bit, because, well...other things forced her to file away that information as currently unimportant.

Warm breath on her ear made her give a jolt, and when she turned her head back around, bam, there was Hek. What the--the--?! Hot?! Holy hells! Eyes narrowing, Beatrid cranked back her fist, about ready to wail into him for invading her personal bubble so closely...while naked...and calling her hot...which was overall just making her feel more and more utterly creeped out--but what he did next was so unexpected, she literally froze. Which was probably a good thing for Hek, because at this point she was also quite ready to put her knee to good use--he was just a wee bit too close for comfort, and dammit, but she wasn't about to take any crap from him, more tolerable than the others or not!

Of course, that was before he...licked her...?

Yeeeah...that had to be the weirdest fucking thing anyone had ever done to her.

And, indeed...it did coax an even darker blush from her, her eyes widening, her face heating, but her body freezing up. What. The. Hell.

She came to soon enough.

"You basta--AH!" That was when he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, which was a smart move on his part because she couldn't knee his groin from this angle. Nor could she do much in the way of punching or other bodily harm with her own body all squished up against his and the side of her face pressed up against his bare chest. Um...yeah. This was just a wee bit awkward, considering his chest wasn't the only bare part.

By this point, Beatrid was both pissed off as well as growing increasingly worried. What the hell was he doing?! Dammit! With a growl, she did what she could to slam her fists into his chest, though it was difficult with her so close--it was nigh on impossible to get a good blow in. "Dammit, Hek! Let go!" she ordered, struggling against him and trying her best to push back against him, though her boots did little to gain traction on the now wet tile. Wherever he was lugging her, she was not going. Especially not after that little comment he'd thrown out to Kuro. What? Like bloody hell! When her punches didn't work, she used her nails, digging them into his chest and pinching the skin there as hard as she could, for once in her life cursing the fact that she kept her nails short. "Hek! I mean it! I'm gonna fucking kill you! Don't dick with me, Hek!"

Whatever happened, she was not calling on anyone unless she absolutely had to! No! She was gonna take this little bastard herself!

Seeing as how scratching and punching hadn't worked, she was about ready to start biting him--and not in a kinky way, either; she would tear off skin if she could help it!--but then he suddenly turned her around, still keeping a tight hold on her and pressing against her back. She blinked when she saw the tub looming in front of her, her chest heaving and heart pounding, a small shiver coursing through her as cold water dripped down her chest. What was he...? She wasn't going to let herself find out. With a grunt, she once again began twisting in his grasp, and this time tried to find a good way to elbow him in the gut.

That was when he leaned over and whispered in her ear.

And she didn't have time to register anything more than the fact that, suddenly, she was hurtling toward the bathwater.

A second later, and Beatrid was scrambling to sit up on her knees, drenched from head to boot in the cold, freezing water she'd set up for Hek. She sat up with a sharp, choked gasp, water plastering her bangs to her face and her clothes to her body in a most uncomfortable way, though she was too damned frozen to notice that at the moment! Sputtering and coughing up water that had made it's way up her nose, and shivering like crazy, she reached up with shaking hands to brush her hair out of her eyes.

The first thing she was was Hek, blessedly covered with a towel. But that was the furthest thing from Beatrid's mind at the moment. Ooo...she was going to take that towel and strangle him with it!

A smile crept across her lips, though it didn't look as intimidating this time with her cheeks flushed from cold and embarrassment, and her body quaking and soaked in cold water. In a bath tub. Shaking her head, she rested her hands along the bath tub's rim and tapped her fingers idly against it. Ooo, yeah, he was gonna get it. "Funny. You're a funny guy, Hek, ya know that? Too bad you're gonna die!"

With a grunt, she lunged to her feet--and slipped and fell right back into the water with a yelp, splash, and a very loud curse. Ow. Glaring up at Hek, she yanked off her boots--damned things were filled with water--and instead of tossing them over the side, chucked both of them, one right after the other, at Hek. Aiming, of course, for his head, which was nice and violet and provided a good, clear target. Then she quickly hauled herself up, more carefully this time, stepped over the side of the tub and made a mad--if awkward--dash for the cupboards where the towels were kept. Might as well arm herself.

Sliding to a stop, she wrenched open the cupboard and grabbed a towel, which she quickly shook open. Then, just as quickly, she wound up the towel until it was nice and tight. It wasn't wet yet, but it would do until she could get back around him and dunk it in the tub. Then it would really hurt when she smacked him with it. Still smiling, she held the wound up towel like a weapon--almost like it was a bow and arrow--as she lowered her own body into a defensive stance. "You're goin' down," she announced--and snapped the towel out at him.

Okay, not the scariest "weapon", but...it would do!

...This would be kind of fun...

[Anonymous]

Kuro maintained his position against the wall during the whole commotion inside the room. The was almost no reaction out of the ninja when the new guy called out to him. If Kuro knew Beatrid any better, this cocky new guy will soon be losing his manhood. Beatrid did sound like she was in a bit of distress, but what damage can be done by a fellow Mordecai that one is supposed to work with? The slashing of water sounded a bit out of place between the struggling, but deffinately not something Kuro has any reason to ponder over. It was the time Kuro heard the snap of a towel, that distinctively sounded like a whip, when he decided to take action. The door slowly swong open on it's own, or at least that's what it seemed like. No one was there, but Kuro's voice could be heard as he called in without looking at what's going on.
"Are you two done in there?" Kuro was still up against the wall, beside the doorway with his arms crossed. He'd only really intervene if asked to do so. Hardly ever any danger within the Palace, otherwise.

[Anonymous]

If he was an evil conqueror, he’d put his hands on his hips and laughing evilly… But, since he isn’t and when he laughs out right he sounds stupid, he just stood there and grinned evilly at her while she flopped around in the ice-cold tub like a fish. Ha! It would be colder since she was clothed, and he had actually gotten used to it after the first seven seconds of being in the tub. Though the cold droplet’s of water that ran down his face and neck made him shiver and he looked at his back but his attention was stolen by Beatrid and her statement of ‘you’re goin’ down.’  He blinked once and felt a slap against his chest, he paused and just looked down before the red almost welt showed up on his bronzed and lavender chest.

�Yeeaaaooow!�

Hek rubbed the spot and heard the door click open, he looked at it oddly before hearing the voice from outside. Giving an odd look at Beatrid, than looking evilly, Hek turned his head slightly but kept his mismatched eyes on his attacker who left the red mark on his chest. The floor was wet and slippery, and his eyes flicked towards the tub of cold water and how far she was from it. Clearing his throat slightly, he took another step towards her.

�No, we won’t be done for a while, you should probably leave…�

Another step, and as an after though, Hek added.

�And would you mind closing the door? Ya know, privacy.�

Hek took another step and narrowed his eyes, his hand quickly shot out and grabbed her towel before she could wind it up and whip him with it again. The scratches and bite marks she hit him with stung and they would probably sting, so Hek would mention her helping him patch up after their little water fight. Grabbing Beatrids wrists, Hek stepped into the tub and ducked until his head was in, he pulled and pulled his head up at the same time. He looked pretty normal, and he smirked again before a stream of cold water came out of his mouth and aiming at Beatrids neck, his eyes flicked to her chest area but quickly snapped back to her face and grinned.

�Guess what Beatrid, I have initiated a water fight... I’m a country bumpkin, I hope you know that I’ve had plenty of these.�

If the yanks before didn’t get her into the tub of cold water, this one would, and if the last ones did, this one would pull her so she was about a foot from him, either way. Pulling, she would get into the tub or land on her butt. Hek would be pleased with both because if she fell on her butt, he’d splash her. Either way, she’d get wet and Hek-Akiz would be happy, this was going to be fun indeed. And the soap still wasn’t wet, amazingly, and Hek still has some dirt smudges on his face.

Long live procrastination. Though this was certainly an extreme way of not bathing.

[Rhindeer]

Hah! A grin broke out on Beatrid's face as the blow connected, and she might have even laughed at the yelp it produced if she could have laughed. But her teeth were chattering too badly and her body was positively quaking. Yeah. This sucked. If she'd been naked like Hek, it wouldn't be so bad. But wet clothes clinging to her skin? Not fun. Very cold, heavy, and uncomfortable, and her long braid didn't make it any better, but it was worth it!

Of course, a very cold body did make for slower reaction times. It was hard to quickly wind up the towel for a second round with her fingers all numb and thick feeling and her hands shaking wildly. And, for a second time, her attention was pulled away when the door clicked open and Kuro's voice came through. What the...? Hadn't she locked that? Damn! Well, she'd whack him too if he came in here--this was an official warzone, and anyone that entered was fair game as far as she was concerned! Her eyes narrowed slightly, and she prepared herself to shout something out at Kuro, but Hek beat her to it.

And a look back Hek's way told her that, once again, she should not have taken her eyes off of him.

"Hah, yeah, privacy," she scoffed through chattering teeth while rolling her eyes, and started winding that towel up again, ready to smack him one good.

But he snatched it up before she could and grabbed onto her wrists, which were probably quite cold to the touch and certainly felt quite numb to her! So, instead of any actual words coming out, what instead came out was a surprised yelp, something that Beatrid didn't do much of. "Ack! Hek!" Oh well, she was cold, give her a break! Which was something she would blame all her delayed reactions on--that she was freezing to death, yeah! And dammit! But Hek was dragging her back to that tub again, looking thoroughly evil! Nooo! She was already dripping! She couldn't get anymore soaked at this point short of drowning! Hek stepped into the tub--he was insane--and Beatrid braced her feet up against the side of the tub, wary of being pulled back in again. Argh! She was no pushover by any means, but damn, he was taller than her and, obviously, stronger as well. But she was also very cold. That could sap strength. Right.

He ducked his head into the tub, and Beatrid wasted no time in trying to wrench her wrists free. Or to figure out a way to get him back. The thought crossed her mind that she could kick his rear while he was bending down with his face in the tub, but that would also make her lose balance and, probably, end up right back in the tub.

Especially when he gave her a pull.

"Gah!" was all she could say as she pulled against him--and hoped he wouldn't be evil and let go suddenly, because landing on her butt would hurt. "What are you doi--"

And that was when he smirked.

And sent a stream of water out of his mouth and down her neck.

Beatrid yelped yet again, the cold water inducing a convulsive shiver from her, and she tugged at her wrists. She was too occupied with other things--like staying out of the bath tub--to notice his eyes stray down South, though she wouldn't have been able to punch him at this moment with him holding her wrists so firmly. And kicking...well...not unless she wanted to fall forward into the tub.

A water fight?

Erk.

Not a second after he'd said that, splash! He yanked on her arms, and she pulled back and away from him, but the tile was wet and slippery and she lost her grounding. Into the tub she landed, the cold water a shock to her system, especially since she's gotten used to the wet clothing. A little. She came up spitting out water, feeling like a drowned...something...and not a foot away from Hek. Well then. If it was a water fight he wanted, it was a water fight he'd get! He was on!

And seeing as her legs were now free, and she was as wet as she could get...

And Hek was standing oh-so-nicely...

Flopping over so she was sitting on her bottom braced up on her arms, she stretched out one of her legs and quickly hooked it around one of Hek's, then gave a swift tug to trip him and bring him down into the tub, as well. Which would also, sadly, make his towel pretty darned useless. Oh well. Rearing up onto her knees and grinning triumphantly, she promptly took action and...began splashing him while he was down. "Two can play that game, farm boy!" she announced with a laugh, still shaking, which could be heard in her voice. And probably looking pretty ridiculous. "Maybe you'll even get <I>clean in the process!" she added, splashing at his face for emphasis.

Yeah. Never in her life did she think she'd end up having a water fight with a practically naked new guy not a half-hour after meeting him.

And enjoying it!

[Anonymous]

Chuckling softly at her reaction he wasn’t ready to get pulled in as well. Taking a mouthful of water, he came back up coughing which resumed when he got the face full of water, his lavender eye was closed and his hand was covering his mouth while he hacked up the water that he managed to inhale, once he was done with that, he shook his head and showered everywhere with a fine mist of cold water. Looking at Beatrid, he stuck both his hands in the tub and splashed water at her before he shuffled over to try and dunk her in. He failed and actually managed to slip and fall on top of her, one of his legs between hers and one of hers between his, his head hurt, but he didn’t think much of it. Hek blushed and moved his hips up, only to have the towel slip from its ‘knot’ in which he pressed back down and tried not to think about that. What his hand was on did make him look though and his blush to deepen, on the left side of his face, his cheek turned a distinct lavender colour.  Of course, Hek actually had to squish what his hand was on before he clued in to it being Beatrids breast, his hand, of course moved and he put it on the bottom of the tub and grinned sheepishly at her.

�sorry… Um…�

Hek tried to look down between them, but it didn’t work and he just banged foreheads with her. A smear of blood was on her forehead and he looked down at her.

�Beatrid… Bleeding… or…�

Hek moved his left hand and reached across his forehead where he found the throbbing spot he thought was just a bump. Great, been in this place for less than two hours and already he was bleeding. Hek sighed and than looked up, they hadn’t closed the curtain, and if that fellow who was standing outside came in right now, he’d see more than he’d probably ever want to. It looked like he and Beatrid were up to other things than a water fight.

�Don’t hit me! If I move, my towel will float away and I’ll be naked on your leg for about two seconds. So, you have to hold my towel closed and we both have to stand up if you don’t want to see me naked again.�

His left hand went up and he wiped the blood from his forehead, and that small but semi-deep cut. Great. Bleeding. Just what he needed right now. Looking down at her, looking very sheepish with the blush still in place. He looked up and than back down.

�Can we stop the water fight now? Blood and water don’t mix, and … I need dry clothing…�

Finally, he got to say the clothing thing that he had been wanting to say earlier. Hek closed his eyes for a moment and shifted, than quickly stayed still, just incase Beatrid decided to slap him across the ear again. The piercing in his ears were cold and his ears were now red, and, Heks lavender fan of hair was dripping on Beatrids face. He murmured sorry before staying still.

[Rhindeer]

Beatrid started choking soon enough, as well, as a nice wave of water struck her face right as she was laughing, which thus resulted in her inhaling a mouthful of water. Coughing, she raised an arm up to shield her face from any more water that would come her way as she attempted to recover.

Weeell...

Her arm worked as a shield from the water, but when it came to a full-grown, six-foot-two male body landing on her? Didn't do much good.

Splash!

For the fourth time during this whole encounter, Beatrid resurfaced spluttering up water, but only managed to raise up so far as her elbows, because there was a weight pressing down on her hips. Shaking her head to clear the water and wet hair out of her eyes, she opened her eyes fully...and the first thing she saw was an oddly blushing Hek. Slowly moving her eyes downward, a dark flush quickly painted her cheeks as she fully took in their current, ahem, position. Ooookay. Uh. Yeah. She gave a discreet cough and began to wiggle a little in an attempt to carefully break free--and quickly stopped, about the same time Hek did. Her blush only further deepened as, yeah, it quickly became obvious to what extent their legs were entangled...like that one of her legs was pressed against a very delicate spot of his...and one of his own legs wasn't quite where it should be...

Suddenly, her eyes narrowed a little as she returned her eyes to his face, a familiar warning look. He was blushing, too, and oddly quiet, so she was going to let this slide for a mistake, but now he was lingering for just a liiitle too long. "Alright...off. Get off, He--" Her words cut off abruptly with a small squeak, an odd sound coming from her. Then again...it wasn't often that she was...squished...

"Whatthefuck?!"

Anger dissipated from her face in a heartbeat, replaced with a look of mortification as, yes indeed...<I>something was being...squished. Her eyes widened, her blush darkened, her face burned, and she went absolutely rigid. Lucky for him he seemed to realize what he was doing and move his hand! Lucky for him she couldn't move her own hands--well, not unless she wanted to fall backwards and get another mouthful of water--or she would have strangled him! Sorry! Yeah right! "You did that on purpose!" she managed to get out, her voice strained with embarrassment.

And then he went and banged heads with her.

Oooh yeah, he was making just a lovely impression right now.

"Ow..." she winced, her own head now throbbing, and when Hek mentioned her name and bleeding in the same sentence, she opened her eyes and glared up at him. This was ridiculous. He was on top of her, he'd groped her, and now he'd made her blee--wait, no, the blood was coming from him, she noticed as he pressed his fingers to his forehead. She scoffed softly. Served him right. "Right, great, now get off," she told him, and this time she did shift a little so that she was balanced precariously on one elbow, so that she could free up her other hand and push it against his shoulder in an attempt to dislodge him, and at the same time she started to shift her legs, to begin to squirm free and shove him off, and to hell with the fact that, um, yeah, it probably didn't look right. Nor did it feel right, but she'd ignore that for now! If she could only stop blushing.

...This probably looked so wrong. Didn't help that she was breathing sorta heavy from exertion and hacking fits. Blargh!

What Hek said next, though, made her freeze again before she'd barely begun her fight to get loose. Nice save for Hek, too, because she would have resorted to smacking him if he didn't get the hint soon and get off her...or doing more painful things, considering where her leg was.

...Argh...of course...

"Fine! I'll hold the bloody towel. How the hell did that happen, anyway?" He probably did it on purpose. With a groan, she lifted her free hand off his shoulder and then gave a grimace. Hold the towel closed. Hold the front of the towel closed? Oh damn, if that didn't have "potential for disaster and mega embarrassment" written all over it. This was insane...

"Yeah, yeah, truce. Just...don't grope me. And if I grab something else by accident, it's an accident! Alright? Alright." She was still blushing horribly, and shivering now as well--all that running around and whatnot had gotten her kind of used to the cold, but now that she was just laying there, she could feel the cold once again--but she managed to grab onto one end of the towel with her free hand, and feel around until she had a hold on the other end. And she was rather relieved that, no, she didn't accidentally grope him...though this still looked so wrong. She purposely had her eyes averted as she clung onto the towel and shifted slightly, her left leg starting to go numb.

"Got it, now move..."

Dry clothing? Yeah. She needed some now, as well. But this was top priority right now! When they were both up and disengaged...that was when she'd worry about clothes! She shook her head slightly so the water from his hair wasn't dripping in her eyes.

[Anonymous]

Wincing slightly at the pain that was slowly covering his whole head, Hek closed his eyes for a moment than opened them quickly incase he pressed his head down and fell asleep, which would be on Beatrids breast, which wouldn’t do him any good. Holding himself up, he shook his head and kept his eyes closed, just for good measure, that and the blood was running down his face over his eye. Shit. Hek listened to Beatrid and felt her hold the towel closed. Sitting up on his knees, he followed Beatrid and then replaced her hands with his own. Smiling thanks he kept his right eye closed because of the blood running over it, before shuffling to the side of the tub and slowly and cautiously stepping out. Wiping the blood from his eye, he went to his black pants and held them against his head, trying to keep the water from keeping the blood running.

Hek walked over to the towel closed and looked over his right shoulder to make sure Beatrids back was to him before switching towels, and threw the sobbing wet one to the ground. The clean white one now around his middle, he took out another one and tossed it to Beatrid. Smiling slightly, he took another one and wiped his head with it, as if pulled by strings, the lavender fan of hair returned to its upright position. Smirking over his shoulder towards Beatrid, Hek stood there and looked around.

�I am sorry about touching your um… breast… So, should I put my old clothes back on or… wait here while you help find me other ones or… what?�

Feeling very awkward for no apparent reason, Hek looked at the sopping wet ground and looked to his clothing that should have been on the curtain rob, but were on the ground sopping wet. Sighing he picked up the clothing and wrung them out before folding them neatly and looked towards the open door, that fellow out there never did close it. Looking around at Beatrid, he smiled and than walked towards it. Hek poked his head out of the door and smiled, it faded after he saw what he was smiling at. Yikes. He wasn’t scary as in ‘Aaaah, run away he will kill usss!!� but scary in an “I eat babies and am made of stone!� way. Though Hek actually didn’t know what that way was, because he’d never come across a baby-eating statue before. Stepping out of the bathroom, he stood a bit away from Kuro and held out his hand.

�Hello, I’m Hek-Akiz… I’m new here.�

Did he even know how to shake hands? Or was he weary? Hek wasn’t hiding anything on his body; because all he had on was a towel around his waist, and even that didn’t cover much other than was had to be. Looking inside the bathroom again, Hek stood there with his hand out after his little introduction and chewed on the inside of his cheek.

This was perfect. Hek couldn’t wait to meet the rest of them. Not.

[Anonymous]

Ugh. Finally! Yones had hastily finished his report, and was practically running through the halls towards the bathing room. He'd given the report to a servant to deliver, which he'd probably get a reprimand for, it was supposed to be top secret. Not that any servant would have the guts to open it anyway... Besides, it wasn't like the report was terribly detailed anyway, Yones just needed to get it done and out of the way.

But hell, Yones needed a bath, and a long nap. This day had been terrible, so his best plan was to sleep through the rest of it. First though, a bath. He was still covered in blood and sweat, and his clothing could use a wash as well. Served him right for wearing his favourite vest into battle. Something to remember for next time.

Hopefully none of the others would be around, and he could relax in peace. Beatrid was annoyingly superior, Kuro was just a little creepy, and that new one, the purple haired farm-hand or whoever he was, was a stupid lug. Yones didin't want to have anything to do with them.

Unfortunately, all three of them were at the bathing area... Kuro, standing still and staring into the room. Hek, half nude and reaching towards Kuro... and inside was Beatrid, who appeared to have taken a bath without taking any clothes off... Did he really even want to know? Probably not.

Yones halted in his tracks, staring at the trio with a raised eyebrow in a look of disbelief. Just what exactly were they doing? Finally, he managed to find some words:

"Alright, this better not be what it looks like! Whatever the hell that is."

[Rhindeer]

Yeesh...that was some cut he got. Beatrid glanced up at his face as they both awkwardly got up, and resisted the urge to shake her head and snort. Not a couple hours in and he was already injured; his first battle wound. He probably got it when he fell on her, though she couldn't remember hearing a bang or anything, but then again, she had been more focused on getting...fallen on. They'd have to get that taken care of after they got some clothes on, though it probably wasn't as bad as it looked. Head wounds just liked to bleed a lot; even a tiny cut could spurt blood when it was really nothing.

Klutz.

...He might need something for those scratches and stuff, too. And...did she bite him? She couldn't remember biting him, but maybe she had, because one mark on his chest looked like it was made by teeth.

Whoopsies! Heh heh...

She, on the other hand, came out without a scratch...well...unless you wanted to count some bruises from falling all over herself in the tub...and that she had also been fondled. Ugh. Stepping out of the tub, she started wringing out her dripping clothes and hair, glancing around at the room as she did so and not bothering to try and be neat. The room was already quite effeciently thrashed, with puddles of water all over the floor, some water even beading on the walls. Whatever maid had to clean this mess up would probably hate them. But damn, that had been fun! Even with the...squishing...and all. Er. Yeah. She'd just keep on letting that one slide until it slipped right on out of her memory. Anyway, everything else had been a blast! Including the part where she got to beat Hek up a little, but, then, she just had a sadistic streak and rather liked to fight, soo...

She looked up when a towel almost hit her in the face, and she caught it and looked at it for a second. It wouldn't really do much to help her now...she was in sopping wet clothes, and the only good that towel would do her was when she was out of them, which...would not be happening any time soon, and certainly not here. Well...she'd hold onto it until she needed it, and in the meantime, she just wrapped her hair up in it so at least that wouldn't drip all over the place. Her clothes...eh, nothing she could do about them now.

Walking across the room, she stooped to reclaim her boots--which she had previously hurled at Hek and which were about six feet apart from each other--and looked up just in time to see Hek's hair perk back up. Beatrid raised an eyebrow. He was like one of those birds...a cockatoo? Was that what they were called? Chortling quietly at the mental image, she turned her boots upside-down to shake out any remaining water as Hek spoke up, apologizing. Again? Eh...so it really had been an accident, then...either that or he was trying really hard to cover up his tracks. Except...he'd said that apology so loud! Maybe not really, but to her ears it sounded loud, what with him practically announcing out loud that he'd grabbed her breast! With the door open!

Beatrid cringed. Good job, Hek, really good job. Yet she glanced up at him briefly and mumbled something that sounded like "Don't worry about it". Bah. She could forgive him. He'd apologized like three times now, and hell, it wasn't like she was really some uber super bitch--all the time.

Plus she wanted him to stop announcing that mishap...

"No, just carry them if you still want them. If you don't want them, just leave them here and a servant or something will take care of 'em. As for you...I...uh...guess I forgot clothing, huh...?" She turned back around and shifted slightly in an attempt to keep moving and get some body heat back in her. "Um...why don't you just follow me. It'll kill two birds with one stone, and I don't know what'll fit you, anyway."

Never mind that he'd be an almost naked guy walking through the palace. Oh well. Wouldn't hurt to torture him more, and she'd already discovered that she was taking a liking to teasing him. He was just...so new! And didn't know hardly anything! Heh.

...And, fine, the doofus was pretty fun.

She paused once more to set down her boots and wring out as much more of her clothes as she could, but looked up right when she heard an all-too familiar voice. Hek had moved in that short time that she'd looked away and gone over to greet Kuro--damn!--but what got her attention even more than that was the sight of Yones, still all bloodied up, standing there with what she took as a bemused expression on his face.

Perfect timing.

Snatching up her boots and straightening, Beatrid marched out the door after Hek barefoot and shivering, though she could never pass up a chance to take a jab at Yones, of course! Smirking as she passed him, she tossed a glance over her shoulder at him. "It's exactly what it looks like, Drones, and it was a blast and we got really wet!" she told him, grinning. It would be his fault if he took it the wrong way, and then she could just accuse him of being a pervert. Because all it had been, after all, was an innocent water fight. Er. Mostly innocent.

...She almost regreted that comment when she remembered the scratches and bite mark she'd given Hek.

Oh well. She was in a much better mood than previously after that little brawl, so right now she really didn't care. Plus she was too cold to care, and just wanted to get into some dry clothes. She glanced at Hek, who was trying to make introductions with Kuro, and rolled her eyes. If her hands weren't already full, she would have grabbed him and dragged him along. Yones she could tolerate because, hey, at least they were both open about their...animosity. Kuro...well, aside from being aloof and patronizing, she just never knew what he thought about anyone else. Which irritated her. He was always playing statue. Which was also creepy, like him watching she and Hek just then...

Ugh...

"Oh well...you missed out, but I'm sure you boys can have fun in the tub together!" she added with utmost seriousness, nodding to Kuro and Yones. "Wash each other's backs. C'mon, Hek. Let's give them their privacy."

[Anonymous]

Kuro had remained at the side of the door during the entire water fight. He heard everyhing that occured and did nothing, but stand watch while the two went at it. Finally, it had stopped and Kuro was still up against the wall with his arms crossed. A lavander head poked out of the room to look at Kuro after some time. Then this new Mordecai, Hek-Akiz, stuck his hand out to offer Kuro a handshake. Kuro simply looked down at the offered hand before looking down the other end of the hallway, pulling himself away from the wall and uncrossing his arms at the same time.
Not too soon after Kuro had realized someone was coming, Yones comes trotting along, only to stop at the sight of the three by the bathing room. While Beatrid and Yones tossed words back at each other, Kuro looked to the bloodied hole in the left shoulder of his outfit. For once, he's actually thinking about something other than what's currently happening. His attention was brought back to reality when Beatrid addressed, both himself anf Yones. Oh yes, Kuro would like nothing more than to wash Yones' back with his blades. That would be most fitting for the situation. Unfortunately, other thoughts overran that idea.
"Sounds like Yones' rumor is true. Only a matter of time before it reaches the Matron." Kuro finally speaks up, with an actual tone in his voice that isn't emotionless. That's a different turn.
"I would have joined you two in your romp, but I'm not sure my blades would have mixed well with your water." Kuro finishes as he begins to walk off in the opposite direction of which Beatrid and Hek are moving in. Was that a joke from the ex-assassin? Something was completely different with Kuro. Beatrid and Yones would be able to notice the change easily.

[Anonymous]

Well, the Connlaoth hospitality rate was dropping and its occupants were even worse here, Hek may have been a farm boy, but he'd seen better manners on a cow he was milking than this baby-eating statue. Since he hadn't been here all that long, Hek noticed no change, so he rolled his eyes towards Kuro and his bad manners before going back into the bathroom and getting his folded up clothes. The sound of Beatrid made him lift his head and he walked back out of the room, his folded up clothing in one hand and his boots in the other. Looking down at his chest, he remembered the nail cuts and the bite mark. If he was in the mood, he'd have grinned at both of the males before grabbing Beatrids hand and walking off with her. When Beatrid said her little blurb about them and it being really wet, Hek blinked owlishly at her. Did she just say that? She managed to spit something out before him? really? Hek pressed the heel of his hand to his forehead and pulled it away, ah, no more fresh blood. Wonderful. Hek looked towards kuro when he said something about rumours. What rumours?

"...Wow, I've been here for only two hours and already we have romours!"

Matron? If Hek said he knew what the was, he'd be a liar.

"Whats the big deal about The Matron knowing? I don't really think its much of their business when people go at it like bunnies... " Hek looked towards Beatrid. "Is everything public knowledge here, or am I used to people minding their own business..."

Hek gave a pointed look towards Kuro for this, because by all rights he shouldn't even be here if he minded his won business. The Romp comment made him look oddly at Kuro, the lavender eyebrow raised and he pressed the knot on the towel closer to his body. Was this guy gay? Did he know that Hek had been undressed for the most part? Hek-Akiz put his folded clothing on the arm that held his boots and he hooked his arm around Beatrids and looked at her. Since Hek was more or less dried off, he was only cold because he was naked, but Beatrid was wearing soaking wet clothes, and they were cold because of the freezing water... That they had forgotten to let out of the tub. Oops!

Once Hek hooked his arm around Beatrids cold one, and watched for a second while Kuro walked off before he rememberd how he was so rudly shrugged off. The "blades in water" thing made Hek raise his eyebrow again, this guy said some questionable stuff, Hek pressed two fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle to get Kuros attention, because he didn't really know the fellows name since he was ignored. The jerk.

"Yo! Ninja... guy... That was a handshake, its a greeting and before you dissapear... You weren't invited into our little 'romp', so keep your blades where they're useful.. Your vanity table..." Hek began to walk again, dragging Beatrid, since the mismatched eyed fellow didn't really like bad manners, he counteracted them with bad manners. Turning to 'Drones" Hek smield slightly. "Sorry about the mess, we'll tell the maids you didn't do it so you don't get chewed out. Common Beatrid, you're freezin'."

So, off he went on his marry way dragging Beatrid, whom he let go once their turned a hall.

"Okay, I'm lost, lead the way."

Waving his hand in the general direction, which was in front him, Hek-Akiz looked down at his chest, or tried too, and poked the bite mark. It looked Kinky. As did the scatch marks, poor Beatrid, been around the new guy for nearly an hour and already they'd probably done everything under the sun... Wow, they were fast.


((OOC: Posting from school because I had too! Yaay!  excuse the spelling errors >_> ))

[Anonymous]

...exactly what it looked like? ...going at it like bunnies? Had they actually...

Yones stood in utter confusion, staring at Hek and Beatrid. The rumour had just been in spite, but had they actually been up to "something" in there? Yones didn't think it likely that Beatrid would so easily fall for some backwater fool of a Mordecai, but you never knew.

But then why would Kuro be here? Was he... watching? Giving advice? Taking part... Yones quickly wiped the mental image from his head. Kuro must have just arrived. Given his comments it seemed he hadn't actually been in the room when the... activities were taking place. He was acting a little odd, for Kuro anyway, but everything seemed to be going wrong today. At this rate, Kuro would decide to take Beatrid's suggestion and wash his back.

“The only time I'm going near Kuro's back is when I stab it!� Dammit, why couldn't they just leave him alone? Why was everyone so abnormal?

And then... “the mess?� Did they...?

Maybe he would take a bath later.

“Listen. You just keep... whatever sick thing you've been doing to yourselves. No need to be announcing it in the halls. Just... just stay away from me!�

((Small, didn't you have a post here?))

[Rhindeer]

[I did! But then I thought I was getting a bit ahead of myself and  better ask ya before I posted to give you a chance to respond, so I got rid of it, heh. ^_~ Didn't have to alter much. Whoaz. XD]

Beatrid grinned maliciously. She knew it! She knew he'd take it the wrong way! Both of them! And stay away from him? NO</I> problem! The dirty minded little bast--hold a second.

Yones?

Rumor?

Yones' rumor?

What rumor?!

That stopped Beatrid in her tracks, a stoic, blank look replacing her amused one as she tried to piece together what had been said and why it sounded so familiar. Oh! Rumor! She remembered Kuro saying something about that a while ago--a rumor about she and the new Mordecai--but she'd stored the news away because she'd had other things to deal with first...and then she'd forgotten about it. Well, now it had been brought right back to the front of her mind, and the way Kuro said it, it was rather...suggestive. Never mind that her own previous comment had been suggestive just to mess with the guys, and so that it might give her an excuse to punch them later if they fell into her "trap" and took it the wrong way, but that was just how she was. She didn't really think they took her comments seriously. She just liked harassing them as much as they liked harassing her. Or...Yones at least. Kuro never seemed to care, but that never stopped her.

"Wait, what?" She blinked once, then suddenly her attention snapped over to Yones. Matron? Knowing?

...Oh God.

"It better be a rumor about a fucking water fight, Drones!" she snapped, stiffening and straightening. Dear Gods. While she doubted her fellow Mordecai would really take one of her innuendos seriously--really, it wasn't like she'd had any relationships since coming here, so what reason or evidence would they have? She didn’t really care what they thought, anyway--but the servants...they would buy it! And the Matron! She probably would, too! Because it wasn't like she was well acquainted with the Matron at all; she saw her once in a blue moon. She didn't really know what she would think about a rumor, if it was the type of rumor she was thinking about; she probably wouldn't care...she didn't think. But still! The Matron? The whole bloody palace? While she didn’t give two shits what her fellow asshole Mordecai thought, she <I>did</I> care what the higher-ups thought! Like the Matron.

Her glare soon turned on Hek at his...bunny comment. "And that better have been a reference to happy water-fighting bunnies! Because that's all we did! Had a water fight! Drones! What the fuck did you start?" She tried to keep up the tough facade, but by the time she'd gotten back to Yones, she was irritated to find that her voice came out more worried and less angry than what she'd been going for.

Now she really, really, really was regretting her little comment. And that she'd scratched and bitten Hek. Oh shit. This was just...really bad timing on everyone's part...and now she just felt stupid because if this rumor was what she thought it was...she'd only helped it! ARGH!

She was holding her boots in one hand and massaging her temples with the other, trying so hard to resist the urge to just go over there and hurt Yones. Really bad. Or try to. But then if she did, he'd probably figure out some way to twist it so it came out looking scandalous, so for now, she refrained. Shit...

Still fuming, she let herself be dragged away from the scene by Hek, too embarrassed and pissed to really comprehend that she was being lead away. And then people wondered why she was bitchy all the time! Because she had to put up with them! And a rumor. Spread by the maids. She remembered what Kuro had said. Maids. Not good. It would be all over. That bastard! She'd never had a rumor spread about her before. How the hell did you get it to stop? She hadn't even seen any evidence of it yet, maybe they were both just being evil and trying to freak her out, and if so...it was working! Just the idea...her and Hek...ARGH! She didn't even know what it was truly about, but from what everyone was hinting at...she could assume! ARGH again!

Normally, she would have laughed at Hek's comment about Kuro and a vanity table--come on, that was just a great visual right there! She probably would have jabbed Hek, too, for being nice to Yones after that, as well. But now she was in her own world, eyeing each servant they passed by suspiciously. That one! Did she just give her a funny look? No, no...don't be paranoid. She was probably just imagining things. Ack! Those two were giggling! And looking at them! And...and...once she was dry, she swore she was going to corner one and interrogate them.

She folded her arms across her chest once she'd been released, shivering from the cold. But she hardly noticed it, because she had murder on the mind. Not literally, of course, but she simply was not someone who let things go unpunished. That bastard...

"What?" she snapped when Hek spoke up, not really meaning to snap at him, but she was just right back in a bad mood again and he happened to just be there. Sighing, she shook her head and amended her words. "Ah...right. This way..." she said, and turned down a corridor to lead to one of the storage rooms. "Goddammit. I swear I'm gonna kill him...that bastard..." She almost kicked the door in frustration, then decided that would be a stupid thing to do with bare feet.

Instead, she just yanked it open and pushed Hek in while, of course, giving him orders. If a bit distractedly. "Grab something that looks like it'll fit. We'll change back at the rooms. Did you get a room yet? If not, you can use mine to change. Separately. Just don't touch my crap. And how do you get a rumor to stop? I dunno about you, but I <I>seriously don't want the ruler of our bloody country thinking I'm screwing you. No offense. Damn him..."

Yeah...she still didn't know what the rumor was about. Just an assumption. But already it was driving her insane. She probably shouldn't care so much. But...she did.

[Anonymous]

"You there." The voice of the ninjaesque Mordecai calls down a barren hallway towards a lone maid, scampering down it. His call caught her off guard and even startled her. The woman slowly turns around to show signs of being greatly intimidated by the sight of Kuro Kiraa. A lot of the maids feared him simply by hearing about what he is capable of, what he has done within the kingdom. Hardly any mages were turned in alive by him. When they were, they died of shock the next day in their cell. The maid that Kuro is confronting just so happens to be the one Yones confronted a while ago.
"How much word have you spread about Lady Beatrid's privacy?" Kuro asks, keeping what appears to be a glare on the poor woman. She backs up against the wall and slowly spits it out.
"N-none yet, s-sir. I have yet to reach the maid's quarters to pass word to the others. I was finishing my errands." The woman was very jittery about everything right now and she had all the reason to be. It's hard to look an ex-assassin straight in the eye and keep a straight face.
"Good. Let's keep it that way. The only privacy Lady Beatrid will need is when she has her well deserving rest after a long day. Nothing more." Kuro finishes, keeping his eyes on the maid. She simply nods her head without any words and dashes off for the maid's quarters to get away from Kuro. The ninja begins to walk back in the same direction he came from.

[Anonymous]

Oops. He just made eveything worse, and she still didn't answer him when he asked about everything that even happens here being public knowledge. Wincing slightly when Beatrid snapped at him, he closed his left eye and looked at her from the side, holding his clothes to his body while edging away from her. Was it that time of the month or did rumours really scare her that much? She was a legendary Mordecrab! Little things like rumours shouldn't scare her, what should Beatrid care if someone told a rumour about her? Obviously not many people would believe it if it just came out of no where. Maybe she was just over reacting..?

Before Hek knew it, he was getting pushed into a room and told to find something that fits. Of course the words after that wounded his pride more than he would ever let on, but he felt his high spirits drop since appearntly Beatrid didn't like him all that much. Hek-Akiz began looking for something that would fit him, hmph, uniforms. Hek scrunched his nose up and looked at the green and brass coloured things, they'd clash with his hair and make him stand out even more than before. Joy.  Hek, of course, thought it was a little odd that the words from 'Drones's mouth hadn't hurt him, nor had getting shrugged off by the Baby-Eating Statue, but Beatrids words made him want to go crawl into hole and sleep for a week. She said no offence, means she... Only slightly meant it. Bah! Women. At this point, Hek had made his 'ks' sound twice.

Grumbling, he yanked a uniform from the room and went out the door, Hmph, Beatrid must have gone back to her room to get changed. Ah well, he'd ask a maid for help. Even if they thought 'Beatrid was screwing Hek' they would still be helpful in helping him find a place to change, because he'd forgotten where Beatrids room was... Well, he remembered, he'd just forgotten how to find it. Ah, over there! One was dusting something, wonderful. He recognised her as the one  that was suppposed to show him his room, and he grinned, twice as good. Now, clad only in a towel and smelling like nothing in particular, he waved his hand towards her and she came over. A maid who was later on in her years gapped at him and grabbed his arm and began to drag him towards the room she'd been leading him until he'd wandered off and she'd given up on looking like him.

"There you are, now come along... I see you've had a bath, good boy, though you smelt like the forest before... I miss the forest."

On and on the Maid went until she opened the door to his room, which looking like a smaller version of Beatrids, and less girly, which was probably a good thing. The maid gave Hek a pat on the cheek, and he watched her owlishly for a moment before he heard the door click closed. Going to lock it before he got completely naked, once the lock was pulled, he dropped the towel and changed into the uniform, which he thought to be rather itchy. Rubbing his arm and doing up the buttons, he folded the towel and placed it beside his folded clothes. Opening the door and poking his head out, Hek looked around before he put his boots on and began looking for Beatrids room, going to the 'starting' point before he began to look. Hek found himself in the same hall as his room and he was about to slap himself in the forehead before he saw her door. Giving a tryumphant 'ah hah!' Hek walked over to it and knocked.

"Hellooo-ooo, Bumblebee? Are ya done yet?"

Pressing his ear to the door, Hek waited for the grouchy female.

((OOC: sorry about the slight powerplaying Rhi. ^_^;;  but yay! hek has a room! And yay! i posted! And.. ignore the spelling errors... <_<

[Rhindeer]

[No worries, you know I don't mind! XP]

Beatrid probably was over-reacting. In fact, she had a feeling she was. But she couldn't help it! Gah! She hardly ever freaked out about battle, and here she was freaking out because of some stupid rumor. It was stupid. Really stupid. And she knew that she shouldn't let him get to her, but...but...erg. She didn't even know why it bothered her so much. It just bloody did, dammit!

Pushing open the door to her room, she tossed her wet boots into one corner moodily--she loved those particular boots...they were comfy and all broken in, so hopefully they'd dry and not be wrecked too much--and quickly picked out some dry clothes. She didn't have to wear a uniform, after all; she was off-duty right now, and besides, the only time a Mordecai really had to wear one was when they were on a mission with other soldiers, just for the purposes of blending in and whatnot. They had a good deal more freedom than normal soldiers and the like, though honestly, Beatrid had grown rather fond of uniforms. She could blend in more when she wore one and they hid her figure. And she didn't run the risk of messing up her good clothes with blood and stuff, not that she couldn't have gotten more made or buy more, she just found clothes shopping a pain.

Making good and certain that her door was locked this time, she peeled off her wet clothes and tossed those to the floor, a bit rougher than what was needed, then took her hair down from its towel and used the towel to dry off hastily, even though it was damp. Then came the fresh, dry clothes, which felt like heaven against her cold skin--just a pair of worn brown breeches with a belt and a long-sleeved shirt, which she made sure was a dark blue and definitely not white...no way she'd be wearing white after learning about Hek and his thing for water fights. New, dry boots completed it, and then she moved on to fix her hair...which was falling out of its braid and would, once it dried, start to poof out horribly.

Pain in the ass stuff...one day she'd hack it all off.

She had just finished brushing it out and was working on weaving it back into a tight braid when a knock on the door made her jump, and Hek's voice soon followed. Ahaha...so...he'd obviously found his way. Oops. She hadn't really meant to ditch him like that...she was just...distracted and pissed. At Yones. Poor Hek just happened to be around her which meant he was getting the brunt of it all, though she wasn't really mad at him, nor did she even dislike him. Stupid Drones. Stupid damned rumor.

Stupid...Bumblebee. God...

She needed to get out of this damned bloody palace before she went crazy.

"Not yet! Hold a sec, will ya?" she shouted, and hurried along the whole braiding process. Men. Always so bloody impatient. Fastening the leather tie at the end of the braid, she stood and strode over to the door. Unlatching the lock, she swung the door open abruptly and was suprised to find Hek there...with his ear pressed to the door. Rolling her eyes, she walked past him and whacked him half-heartedly on the side of the head as she went. She'd had a bit of much-needed alone time, and while she was still royally pissed off and plotting revenge on Yones, she was considerably calmer now. Fantasizing all sorts of different kinds of harm on that bastard helped a lot, too. "What are you doing? Trying to peep or something? Lech..." She turned to shut her door, then finally looked at him fully.

All dressed up in that uniform, he didn't look like a country bumpkin at all.

He still looked like a cockatoo, though.

And he still had a big ol' gash on his forehead. Even though it had stopped bleeding. "Hey...how's your head? Good to see you found your way back, too. I didn't mean to, uh, ditch you like that." Shifting a little, she thrust her hands into the pockets of her breeches. Typical Beatrid apology right there.

Beatrid was quick to change the subject. "Anyway, I dunno about you, but I need to get out of here before I maim something," she said, glancing up at him. "You haven't been to the village yet, have you? Do you even have any clothes? Ah, whatever. I'm getting out of here, so if you wanna come, feel free. Unless you prefer to hang out with Drones and Sunshine..."

[Anonymous]

Kuro was never one to wear a uniform or some formal outfit. In fact, he's never been seen in anything aside from his ninja garb. He's also never seen at the balls and banquets within the palace. He was usually always out and about in the city away from the castle. Always keeping watch. For the current time, the dark and gloomy ninja of a Mordecai could distinctively be seen near the front gate to the palace. He seems to be keeping watch, not like he has anything better to do. He'll probably move on to the village to hunt out any source of magic and dispatch of it. Yeah, that sounds good. Kill time by killing something. Once he gets tired of watching the front gate.