The flickering of a light in his house, at first, did not alarm the eldest of the Treyburn brood as he made his way towards his small house. He was accustomed to his sister's presence, ever a cheerful source of company...as well as delicious food. He quickly constructed a list in his head of the meals she might be concocting -- something terribly practical, of course, thanks to their limited income -- but wonderful, nonetheless.
He could all-but smell the scents of roasted meats when it suddenly dawned on him that it was quite late at night for his sister to be awake. In fact, not only was it late, but that silhouette that had moved against the window was not very feminine in the least... And, besides, Illi was meant to be on holiday...
His eye narrowed slightly at the thought that, perhaps, bandits had found his little cottage...but if they thought acquiring his things would be easy, they were about to learn a very painful lesson about stealing from a Treyburn...
Valia's request had made Trevian smile and nod. "I'll just go get a chair," he answered her gently. The bed wasn't that big -- his brother had obviously given up on the idea of marriage -- and it would have been rather improper for him to sit down beside her... But a chair placed beside the bed would be proper...even if it would give him an ache in his neck come morning.
There was good reason to believe they were safe -- at least, for the time being. Night had fallen quickly, which would have made it difficult for the men searching for her to track them to the cottage...and, over the packed, well-travelled road they had taken to arrive here, it would have been nearly impossible in the first place. Besides, it was unlikely he had been recognized -- and, if, on the off-chance the kidnappers had recognized his family crest, there was no reason for them to assume he hadn't continued on to the Treyburn Estate, merely a few hours travel from this very place. Redly had been disinherited so long ago he was all-but forgotten as he languished here...even, sometimes, by the Treyburns themselves.
As he picked up a chair, he had nearly convinced himself that there was no reason for him to be so anxious when he heard something that sounded too much like a footfall from the hallway outside of Valia's room.
It was probably nothing...but he left the chair and drew his sword, just in case.
Redly moved cautiously through the house. Long years spent here had taught him which floorboards creaked and which doors required careful opening. Like a ghost, he moved from the back door through the kitchen to the narrow hallway from which the bedrooms sprang. His goal was to reach his bedroom, where he kept his sword.
He opened the door softly and slipped inside, surprised to find that this room, too, had been inhabited by the brigands. A fire warmed the room from the hearth, throwing flickering shadows out over the room. Beneath the heavy covers of his bed, he could make out a figure.
A very feminine figure.
It was odd enough that it made him pause and strain his eye to make out more detail. Well, women could be brigands as well, he supposed, as the woman suddenly noticed his presence. Her scream was almost deafening -- almost. By some miracle, he heard the squeak of the floorboard behind him calling out its warning.
There was a cloaked figure standing in the doorway of Valia's room -- and a quick glance around seemed to confirm that he was alone. From the backside, he wasn't particularly impressive in stature or build -- but that made him no less dangerous if he was determined to kidnap Valia back.
Trevian was so intent on his goal that he hadn't quite realized the floorboard beneath his foot had creaked until the man turned. (How could he hear anything over Valia's scream?) Whoever he was, Trevian thought, he had damned good hearing and rather impressive reflexes -- oh, and a pair of pistols.
The soldier found himself staring down the barrel of a pistol, already armed, pointed at his face; a second gun had been pointed at Valia. His own sword, half-raised to strike, seemed a bit ineffective suddenly...until he raised his gaze from the weapons to the face of the man holding them.
An eyepatch. And a scar. "About time you got home." Trev ignored the one-eyed man as he unarmed both guns and thrust them back into his belt with a practiced air about him. His own sword also returned to where it belonged as he crossed the room in a few long strides. "It's alright, my lady. There's no need to be frightened. This is my brother."
