Patch's Story

Muddy boots drug dirt from outside on a day that didn't seem to sport mud-bringing weather. However the man it was attached to always seemed to be boot-deep in a mess, and this time was no different. Flip-flap, flip-flap, his fingers flicked at the velvet casing that held a deck of cards, the lone thing he carried that was not his clothing, as a man such as this had little need for things that were not clothes. But ever since a short time ago, he had become awfully concerned about his cards and his fingers often fumbled with their casing, like a miser concerned for his coin purse.

He was unremarkable of features and could have easily been mistaken as a farmer, with only green eyes to set him apart from the crowd that he wandered among, one hand kept on his cloak to keep it from being trodden. While an unfortunate trip wouldn't dampen his mood, it would bring attention to him and that was rather the last thing he wished to deal with right now. No, he had something much more important on his mind.

A chance encounter along the roads of the surrounding lands had put him in the rather unfortunate position where he wished to plant himself right in the center of authority, at the attention of authority and see the queen. Being one who didn't make friends in the short and long term meant he would rather not be seen, but that wasn't an option anymore was it! The irritation brought an inescapable grin to his face as he joined the line of those who sought the audience of royalty to solve their petty problems. They were all terrible and should have just left. After all, she needed to hear about his petty problems.

It had been a rather eventful day. An Emissary from one of the Lords' sons had arrived, bearing a gift. He had just returned from travels to other countries and lands. And now, he was yet another suitor that she held little interest in. If he wanted to press his suit, why not approach her himself?

The hours trundled along, and as mid-day arrived, so came with it the near end of the line. And with that... Her head cocked slightly as she felt a familiar tread heading up the castle steps in her extended awareness. She knew that particular set of feet. A smile flashed across her face, as she refused to acknowledge that the last time she'd seen him, she and Patch had been harvesting apples when an impostor had led her to her almost death. But what could he be doing coming in through the front doors, and joining the line?

Her fathomless sapphire gaze flicked aside to Titan briefly while she settled a dispute over a loose mare having been covered by the other man's plow horse. The mare in this instance was a prized race-bred Courser, and the stallion was apparently not of the best breeding or conformation. How would her guardian react to Patch, she wondered. The two had never, in her knowledge, met. It would be interesting, she supposed.

Out in the hall, as the last supplicant before Patch left, a signed grant for land in hand and a giddy expression on his face, the herald gazed at the chestnut haired, presumably human man. "Your name, sir?" When given the name, he nodded, stepping to the door and slipping into the Hall, not letting the bemusement show on his face at giving such a name; "Ser.. Patch." At a nod from the Queen, he turned, pulling the door wide to admit the man, while knowing that his wife, one of the maids, would be giving him an earful tonight after she'd helped clean up the mud left behind by those boots.

The Queen's eyes glinted with amusement, having caught the faintest hint of a pause before saying Patch's name. Her eyes left the herald, settling on the man and giving him a swift once over with those fathomless sapphire pools, from the muddy boots, to the hand on the velvet case that held his cards, to the every present, wide grin on his face. "Patch." Warm welcome was evident in her tone of the name. Warmth and the faintest hint of wariness. What trouble had her adventuresome friend gotten himself into this time?

Aha, now that he had an audience it was time to strike at the hearts of the people. "I come with news of a great tragedy, your majesty," Patch spoke, head down as to not yet unveil his face from the hood. Flip, flap, his velvet case went once more. "This is a matter so important that it must be spoken in private or in whispers, for there is no telling what unscrupulous forces might be at work."

Finally his head tilted back just slightly, the hood slipping back far enough to reveal his entire grinning face, full of youth and life that was married with a certain age. However it was this that made him very difficult to take seriously, as he rather didn't seem to be taking it seriously himself. It was much more likely that he was just trying to stir trouble and hysteria.

"All I ask is to have a minute of your time to reconvene into a less busy place so that I might divulge what I know."

The whole affair had been rather uneventful, and by the sixth hour of accepting audiences, Titan had utterly tired of how dreary the day’s festivities had already been. There was however one incident of excitement in the morning hours, as Titan had just so happened to dote upon the Queen and notice something out of place. With her plunging scoop neckline, her breasts were pressed against her fragile form, and Titan was able to make out the soft curves of the tops of her bosom. Unfortunately, in his time spent with her, he’d seen far more of her than he dared admit; their adventures together having lead them into the most peculiar circumstances. As he edged closer to her, he could just make out the scent of wild jasmine and vanilla radiating off her skin, the smell of the summer hayfields and lavender in her hair. It was almost admirable the way she could hold her head high, regardless of the dire straits that led her there.

As she prepared to entertain her final audience, there was something strange about the man who entered the grand hall next. He was average height for a human, young in appearance, with green eyes and chestnut brown hair. That wasn’t what threw him off however. That grin was almost unsettling. And that way the Queen greeted him warmly. Did they perhaps know one another? There were very few friends the Queen had that he didn’t know about. Although, there was that stint during the summer where he had to return home. Gods only knew what the Queen got herself into during that time. No matter, Titan knew his place. Standing tall, he eyed the man skeptically, and watched him very closely. There was just something off about him, something his intuition told him not to trust.

Itching to say something, he kept close guard of his claymore as he eyed the man, taking notice of the velvet case in his hands. A weapon of some sort perhaps? “A friend of yours?” Breaking the silence he had held over the course of the last several hours, he stepped off the platform beside the throne Queen Briena was seated in and ventured out into the hall. Standing in one place for so long had gotten the best of him, so he resorted to innocently circling Patch instead. There was just something about him he didn’t like. Maybe it was the fact he was a man, and had any relation to the Queen whatsoever. Or the fact that he wanted to speak to her alone. "I'm not so sure I like the idea of putting you two in a room alone." Although Titan had no reservations, he was of a jealous nature when it came to the Queen. While Titan was a prince, he was in no position to rectify his feelings for the Queen; and he knew this. So, why he had them at all was as much a mystery as anything.

She felt Titan's attention fix onto Patch as soon as he came into sight. The emotion of distrust and unease radiated from the man, her close proximity leaving no room for a buffer from the reaction. She gave no indication that she had noticed his unease, beyond a low hum through her mind to the Guardian's mind. A soothing note, though she doubted he would be easily soothed. From what she could sense, his mind was already made up to dislike Patch. A barely audible sigh lifted her chest and blew through her nose, but her smile never faded as she watched the man before her.

Theatrical as ever, Patch spoke of a tragedy, hand still fiddling with his case. Though he kept his head bowed, face hidden, she had no need to see his face to know he was grinning hugely. As he straightened, she cocked her head, brows lifting. Titan, however stepped from his post, and she gave the Aedillonian a brief glance. *"Yes. I would call him a friend."* The tone of her mental voice was conversational, pleasant, but there was a warning to stay his hand.

Her eyes returned to Patch as he requested a more private setting. It was her break hour. She had no objections. After all, the both knew she could handle herself. However, Titan, despite all their years of knowing one another as ward and warden, still stubbornly clung to the notion that she could not defend herself. He voiced his disapproval almost immediately, and gained a sharp look from the Queen as a response.

"He is a friend, Titan, and I am on my break hour. I would like to get up and walk around, anyway." She leveled a direct look at the tall man as she rose, lifting the front of her skirts with easy elegance as she descended the three wide steps, revealing that she'd sneakily foregone the court slippers during dressing that morning, bare feet padding silently on the carpet as she approached Patch. She was taller than the grinning man be a few inches, but his personality almost gave him a way of being larger than life. It could be amusing, it could be irritating. It was Patch.

"If you would like to take this to the garden, I could use the fresh air, old friend." She nodded toward the arboreal archway to indicate her direction. "And perhaps a light meal." Had she eaten this morning? Perhaps a light snack of an apple while she'd stood on the balcony. She turned on Titan after a few steps, however, stopping long enough to lock eyes with the man and utter in a low, commanding tone, "Stay here."

Patch drank it all in, standing square and tall and proud. The royal guard fellow seemed to be a new addition, or at least that's what he assumed it was. Perhaps some trouble lately had prompted such a change. Alas, dragons and orcs got all the recognition. He heard not their conversation until Briena had neared and talked to him directly, at which point his grin grew wry and almost with a twinkle in his eyes he tossed a look towards Titan.

"Fear not," he said as he turned and guided a hand smoothly about to rest upon the curve of the Queen's back, "Your Queen and I will be done together long before an hour is up." With any implications meant by that left a mystery, he would quickly stroll for the gardens, if only to escape quick retaliation.

Finally free from the center stage he would relax and almost appear casual. "You know, with all the sneaking off you and I do together, your courts might start to think you have a secret lover," he quipped, followed by a side-long accusing glance leveled in her direction, "Though, I suppose that might drive off suitors..."

- From the Audience Hall.

Briena squelched a grin, hiding it behind a calm expression as she watched Patch toss a look at Titan. Ahhh, Patch, already courting danger, and with such a deft hand. She didn't refuse his hand at her back; it was empty of cards, and she sensed, on a deep, deep level, that he would never purposefully harm her. Irritate her to the brink of strangling him, maybe, or take her away on adventures to give crowns to dragons and thwart bandits, certainly. She just wondered what he had in mind.

She walked along side Patch, entering the garden and following the path toward the willow and pond, meeting his side-long glance with a chuckle. "They all know me well enough that it would be the last thing to cross their minds." And if it were wrong, she'd tell them right in a flash. As they entered the clearing, she sent a mental order to the cooks, asking for a light lunch of meat, bread, and vegetables, as well as something to drink and a fruit basket of sorts.

Settling onto one of the benches by the table, a wide stone slab set over two thick rectangular cubes of marble, she gazed at the green eyed man, eyes glinting with their own bit of amusement, before she sobered, asking, "How have you been? I lost track of you when.." A shackle, snapping shut on her left ankle. Water rushing into her lungs, searing her throat. It was one of the very rare times she had truly been terrified.

She forced the memories away watching the man as she added, "And what brings you to come seeking an audience with the Queen?" The food appeared on the table, two glasses of water alongside them with a stone jug, and she nodded to the food, offering it freely to her guest.

Patch listened on patiently, knowing better to let the Queen speak than interrupt her. After all, what he had to say could wait. His eyebrows quirked curiously when she trailed off but didn't press the matter. It didn't seem to concern him very much. But to business it was and he tossed a glance over his shoulder, as if suspecting they were watched, then flap went his cards as he opened it and retrieved from within his deck of cards, splaying them out so each could be seen. Except there was something odd about the cards. They were in order of suits then numbers, but even a cursory glance could see a space missing right at the start; the ace of clubs.

"Someone has stolen a card of mine," he stated, almost seriously, "Within the bounds of your very kingdom, and I rather thought you the perfect person to come help me find it. I have a lead or two I can follow, for certain." His cards were snapped all back together in a pile in a moment and tucked into their velvet case almost protectively, not allowing her a chance to touch them or examine them at length.

"We may have to abandon that rod you have standing near your chair in the other room. I don't think he has a sense of fun. Also your duties. Abandon those," he said with an almost quaint smile.

As he spread out his cards, she gave them a cursory glance, then looked up as he stated that one had been stolen. Her brows rose, and the grin she fought to hide compromised and became a smile. "Someone stole from you? You do realize the irony of that?" She sat back as he returned his cards to the case and studied him, dwelling on the request he made. She already knew that Titan would be livid if she hared off with Patch. He didn't trust him. Which in part, said he didn't trust her.

However... "He may seem like a suspicious man, but he is a good one. Overprotective, maybe, but then, sometimes those who have been with me since my childhood can be such bossy males at times. But Titan I view as a friend, as well as a guardian." Even if he didn't always seem to trust her to hold her own.

She called in her list of audiences, brows lifting slightly. The man asking for the land deed had been the last on the list of appointments for the day. The rest that would have come in after the hour long break would be walk-ins. Her eyes flicked up to study Patch. "Where are these leads?" How long would this take if she decided to end the duties for the day? It was a leisure day tomorrow, as well.

She paused as she felt something unfamiliar; a presence crossing into the Castle's boundaries. A quick check of the awareness said there was a stranger skulking by the Audience Hall doors. The feeling wasn't right for someone simply waiting to be acknowledged. It felt like... a trap. Reaching out, she sent a brush to the wolfish mind of her adoptive brother, the Lycan Kanixillo. *There's something off at the Audience Hall's doors. Check it out, please? Bring Maelstrom and Vortex with you.*

Kanixillo's acknowledging return brush of her mind said he would be there soon.

Being asked to stay like a lap dog didn’t thrill Titan, but nonetheless he did as he was told and remained in the Audience Hall… for the most part. Standing at the archway leading into the gardens, he’d mostly overheard pieces of the conversation between Patch and Queen Briena; enough so to understand what was afoot. He didn’t trust Patch, but he trusted the Queen. Stepping to the side, he disappeared, appearing in a ball of blue light, standing between Patch and Queen Briena. “Just so you’re… aware. The rod has better things to do.” Keeping his comments brief, he disappeared yet again, leaving the pair to their devices. Titan knew just where he needed to be. At the bar, drinking his worries away. Maybe he would meet a pretty girl and put thoughts of the Queen behind him. Not likely.

The Dusty Traveler Inn and Tavern, a spot Titan frequented when times were dismal. Appearing at the door, he strode over to the bar, taking his seat at the end of the table and pulling a gold coin from his pocket, which he slammed down on the hard oak. “The strongest you got.” The bartender was a young lad, no older than twenty, with short dirty-blonde hair and mellow brownish-green eyes. His features were mostly indistinguishable, and Titan hardly paid the man much more attention than that as he brought his drink. Perusing the wears of the room, one girl in particular caught his immediate attention, sitting at an empty table against the wall playing darts. It was almost amusing watching her play. To be frank, she wasn’t very good. But Titan felt in a strange mood as he and his drink moved to a table closest to her. Coming up behind her, he must have been a terrifying site, towering over her short, fragile stature.

“May I?” He spoke softly into her ear, getting a bit frisky in the process as he carefully took her stomach and leaned her back against him in an effort to straighten her stance. Using his foot to edge her right foot in front of her left, he took her right hand and angled the tip of the dart up just slightly. “Keep your feet planted. And straighten your stance. Your stance is everything. Think of the dart as an extension of yourself. Every move you make counts for something.” Adjusting her wrist, he released her, and stepped back slowly. “Now throw.” Titan was unsure of how successful she would be, but she would have to get at least close to the bullseye at this rate. All it took was the proper steady hands to put her on the right path. Hopefully he’d done that much without scaring her half to death. Someone as large as him easing their way behind her couldn’t have been an inviting gesture. He’d already had a bit to drink however.

Patch's eyebrow quirked knowingly at the suggestion that this circumstance was ironic. "I have no idea what you are referring to," he brushed off casually with a toss of his head and a renewed wry smile, "I would never do such a wantonly reckless and emotionally damaging act without a good reason." A finger was raised and wagged back and forth.

"No, this was the act of the lowest sort of villainy, the kind who no doubt pursues magical trinkets for their own nefarious purposes, no doubt set on tearing apart your kingdom." He nodded confidently at that statement. "All of my leads are taverns. But you might need a disguise. A queen showing up at the same place that I am inclined to go might draw some attention..." He brushed his chin thoughtfully with some light fingers.

"The sooner we leave the better. Every minute that passes could be another mile gone." Of course, since it was a set of fifty two cards, there were much easier ways to track them, but he was disinterested to take the easy, magical route.

Torcus Taliden

---

Such a short amount of time passed, at least by the elder's standards, before he could hear footsteps re-entering the room behind the great door before him. First it was many steps with the sound of jewelry and noble attire bouncing about in volume, perhaps a dozen at most, four at the least. Then there was another pause. A very short pause. After it came the sounds of gentle steps, likely barefoot or shoes of soft leather with a second set that sounded bouncy and childish.

As the elder took in the moment, he looked around once again. There was a small way that he might be able to get in to the chamber without the door, and Torcus was certain that all the nobles he would find here today were within, but there were decorations on the wall. Decorations that look to not hold weight well and make plenty of noise when they fall. A perfect reason not to use that route.

Tap, tap, tap came the sound of what the lycan could only consider to be another elf looking to see their queen. The steps moved closer with each tap, but they were not taken with haste. After some period, the elf arrived and the doors opened.

As they finished their movement, Torcus bolted, silently, into the room. Moving around with the practiced step of an ambush predator, the runt moved about the seats of the nobles. As he stalked about them, waiting to hear names to ensure that he had found the right one, the lycan never neared the Queen. He had no interest in here beyond thanking her for making her city so easy to maneuver about.

As the elf got into his speaking position, the lycan began to slow. Beneath his hood and cloak of invisibility, Torcus's ears rose to listen to what the elves would say. He only needed to hear a single name to know the prey he had come in search of.

A chuckle left her at his claim of innocence, but she let him have his word before she stood, smiling lightly at the wagging finger. "I have heard you-" A flash of light made her stiffen as Titan appeared between herself and her friend, gave a snarky comment, then vanished again. She felt him reappear in The Dusty Traveler in the next moment. For a guard, he got drunk more than a lot. A frown creased her brows as she shook her head.

She turned back to Patch, head cocking slightly. "Have you forgotten that I can shift into any creature? I don't mind taking the form of a common dog to appear inconspicuous." She turned, starting down the path to the orchard, the meal vanishing with a wave of her hand. "I can change in the stables." A mental call was sent to the court, announcing that the day was over for Audiences.

She set a brisk pace, confident in Patch to keep up with a woman in a trailing gown, as she asked, "Which taverns are you thinking of?" There was the tavern here in Skysong City, of course. However, after Titan's strange behavior, she felt it would be better to stay a good distance away and let him stew on whatever he was having issues with. Were all Aedillonians this odd?

Meanwhile, in her awareness, she monitored the Hall, pausing as Vortex caught up with a bounding trot. "Vortex." The behemoth wolf tucked his head under her hand, snuffling to ensure her well being before stating, "Strange Lycan in the Hall. Kanixillo and Maelstrom have it handled." The Queen nodded. "Let me know if I need to step in." With the males, they all knew she could handle herself, yet even they sometimes caught the bug of 'protect her with your life', and got stubborn. With her adoptive brother, and two wolves that had powerful elemental gifts, she wasn't too worried.

Unphased by the sudden appearance of Titan, Patch watched on until the conversation resumed. There was a small quirk of an eyebrow at Briena's suggestion. "A common dog? Hardly seems suiting of a Queen," he teased, "And not something I would assort with. No, nothing short of a wolf of brilliant crimson, orange and pink fur will do as my companion."

However there was a twinkle in her eye when she asked what taverns, and he simply answered, "The ones with the best, cheapest ale and the highest discretion in the worst parts of town. Does that fit the description of any place here?" Fingers brushed his chin in thought as he pondered if this town even had a poor district. In times of prosperity, even the poor seemed well off. Which meant everyone was more open to gambling...

A renewed grin spread across Patch's face at the thought. "We should head out immediately," he said assuredly, "And begin chasing leads of those with magical card-daggers. You know, as far away from guards as possible."

His suggestion of what she should appear ad brought an involuntary laugh from the Queen, nearly enough to bend her double; as it was, she missed a step in her stride, brushing against the arbor that opened out into the Orchards. Then she paused, wondering if that was even possible. She often had the same color of fur as her hair, which was a color you rarely saw on a wolf, even a Dire, unless they controlled fire in some way. Orange, the same. Pink? Well, Maelstrom and Vortex have violet swirls on their paws, one’s markings mirroring the other’s. She didn’t think she’d seen pink on a wolf. “We’ll have to see about the pink, I think.”

She listened to his suggestions as she led the way through the orchard. “Mmm, no, I don’t think so. Our establishments are generally respectable.” As he made his suggestion for haste, she chuckled. He wasn’t one to get chummy with the guards, though she had no doubt that if it meant adventure, he’s happily antagonize one. Titan included. She lifted her skirts over her ankles as she crossed into the pastures, several horses lifting their heads to watch the pair curiously. Redfire, grazing at the far end, spun on his hocks and charged, straight for Patch, before veering abruptly at the last possible moment and prancing to greet his Queen, point made, apparently.

She paused to stroke the chestnut’s nose before nodding toward the stables. The stallion cantered readily toward the building, Queen and Patch in tow. As the stallion made his way to the saddling area, Briena stepped into a feed room, waving a hand and undoing the laces of the gown with a bit of Craft and letting the fabric fall away, calling in a stack of traveling clothes and pulling them on with a sigh of relief. As she buckled the belt around her hips, she vanished the gown, safely storing it in that other plane of a storage compartment before she stepped from the room, scooping a handful of oats for Redfire.

She grinned at Patch as she fed the handful to the stallion. “Walking or riding?”

Patch idly brushed his chin with fingers at her question, staring towards the horses. "Well it would seem like a terrible waste not to use horses when we're right here, since there's small chance of them being stolen. Horses make for a far more dramatic escape should we need to leap out of windows," he answered, almost like he was subtly trying to mentor her. His finger wagged as if to answer an unsaid question, "It comes up more than you think. Preparing for your lack of preparation is important!"

He wandered after her towards one of the horses, leaning on the stall and grimacing at the beast within. "On second thoughts, maybe you take a horse and I'll walk." Things with minds of their own were rarely to be trusted as transport, as they tended not to have the same ideas as their rider.

With a knowing cock of his head, Patch answered with a wry grin and a nod of his head, "My dear Queen Briena, I have been running my entire life." He turned n the spot and marched for the stable entrance with a tug of his cloak to his side, though it would no doubt flutter dramatically behind him as he ran.

"And often times it was from men on horses. With nets and spears and dogs..." he said with a waft of his hand in the air, "But the funny thing about those sorts is they're terrible once you get into a forest." He tossed a glance back over his shoulder to make sure she had followed, or rather to make sure he had walked to the correct exit. "I mean, dogs and horses can't climb trees. Now if they came at me with hawks or snakes I could be in trouble."

He pondered the thought for a moment, wondering why men never did hunt with birds. He had heard that birds could tear flesh open with talons and peel metal with their beaks when called upon. Maybe it was just stories.

Patch laughed cheerily at the sudden rain, which had apparently raised his mood instead of dampening it. "Rain is the best weather. Covers tracks, covers smells, makes it hard to see but doesn't slow you down on foot. Cooling when you're warmed from a jog. What's to hate?" he asked with a broad grin. However that taverns name left him a little curious.

"I take it there is a reason it is called 'The Screaming Swordsman'?" he asked with a cock of his neck, "Or was the founder just eccentric?" He threw an arm casually into the are that disturbed his cloak and sent with it a shower of water raining down around him, along with a very distinct metal 'tink' that he failed to notice as something fell onto the floor around his feet.