The Fires of Summer (first draft)

In the morning, Smock gets straight to work on the dress, the resting body of Kallisto and the still-awake body of Axel in the next bed. She pays them no mind, her hands working expertly to attach feather after feather to the dress, working tirelessly on it. Later, she goes to the washroom, where there are washing items provided, including high-quality razors which she uses to shave her face and arms.

When it comes time to prepare for the ball, it's perfect: the feathers sit prettily against the lower half of the dress, some sewn onto the shoulders and pointing outwards, giving it a unique silhouette. She dresses herself as both Axel and Kallisto do too, the pair of them giggling and complimenting each other. Then, she takes the makeup she'd been gifted and takes it to the mirror hanging on the wall of the room, over a cabinet, and begins to work on her face. The first thing she does is feminise it subtly, bringing out the traits that make her look the most like a woman and hiding the delicate prickle where her facial hair had grown.

She then moves to prettying herself with eyeshadow and an eyeliner pencil included with the brushes, using the black eyeshadow on her lips. Her eyeshadow mimics a wing, and is made of mostly black, though there's a touch of blue that she carefully applies to add more to the design, where the wing extends into lines at the top. She does her hair, a braid settling over the back of her head, underneath which it flows down her back.

When Smock finally turns to Axel, she sees a slight blush colouring his nose and cheeks and the tips of his ears. He looks great in that jacket and his trousers, his piercings all in, making him look perfectly like himself while stepping into a formal world. Smock approaches him and straightens his collar, smiling.

"Let me brush your hair," she says. Kallisto laughs nearby.

"...No," Axel's expression changes. "You can't do that to me."

"I can and will," Smock says, grabbing his hand. It seems to do something, because the man doesn't resist as he's sat down on the bed. Smock sits behind him, crossing her legs. "Kallisto, do any of the others have a brush?"

"Yeah, I'll go ask for it," the werewolf smirks almost evilly, rushing out the door to go find someone.

Smock starts by running her hands through his hair, gently working through knots with her fingers. Axel sits still for the time being, his ears tilted downwards in irritation, twitching idly. "Must you really do this?"

"It'll be worth it. You'll look handsome," she assures him, and he goes quiet, shuffling to get himself comfortable.

His hair has a bunch of knots. Its messy appearance and volume, though not immediately discernible as tangled, is made up of a lot of it, and she works very carefully to pull them apart as painlessly as possible, if Axel can even feel what's going on in there. She untangles it bit by bit, taking it slowly and carefully, watching the easy way his hair falls when it's undone. Then, Kallisto comes in with the brush, and she finishes working through the knots, and starts brushing.

Just as she expected, he starts squirming and complaining about the pain. Smock has to fight to keep the brush going in the intended direction. "If you keep moving around it's gonna hurt more!"

"Then hurry up," he whines, managing to sit still for a full minute before he starts moving again. Smock recalls what he'd said on the mountain, about struggling to stay seated, so Smock tries to go a little faster while keeping it as painless as possible, though the speed does sacrifice some of the gentleness.

Brushing out Axel's hair brings out more of its natural waves, bringing them tighter, the tips turning slightly inwards in a regal manner. It's slightly reminiscent of his father, but Smock doesn't say so, knowing it would only cause pain. Besides, these are not his father's waves; they're his own now, everything about him is.

When he's done, Axel's hair is still somewhat unruly - she's not sure if she could ever fully tame it - but presentable. "See? That wasn't so bad."

"Yes it was," he complains. "Can I get up now?"

"Not yet. I'm going to give you some braids. All the princes have them," she tells him coolly, taking some hair from behind his ears and starting to weave it into a braid, just like his family's. She weaves it in to the side of his hair, not joining it at the back, and does the same on the other side. Then, she weaves another, smaller, just under that one. It's an elegant look on him, more elegant than any other Sanguis. Smock runs her hand gently over her work, through his now much smoother hair, making sure all as much of his hair is in place as possible. "You look really nice, Axel. Go have a look."

Axel doesn't hesitate to stand up and walk over to the mirror, turning his head side to side to look at the braids. Kallisto smiles from where he stands. "You do look good."

"I... I suppose I do, yeah," Axel smiles. He stares at himself a little longer, then walks to Kallisto. "Touch my hair. It's so soft."

Kallisto does, and immediately the man's eyes open a little in awe. "Woah. That's crazy."

Smock laughs at the two, then stands and heads towards the door. "Come on then, you two. We should go and meet the others."

When they're all together, Smock takes in everyone's outfits. Kallisto is dressed quite femininely, with a black sleeveless turtleneck and a pale orange feather shawl, akin to a boa in its texture, light grey trousers with a belt, and black boots with heels. He looks absolutely fantastic, his strong shoulders on show.

Keaberos wears an orange kimono and over it a haori in a deeper orange. With it he wears hakama in black, decorated with a gold designs of trees all over. His feet are obscured when you look at him from close by. His hair is pulled into a very neat bun which is tied at the base with a ribbon, and he wears just a single stripe of eyeliner to accentuate his eyes, with a touch of dark orange on the lid.

Grey wears a simple three-piece suit, with a white shirt, white blazer, and black trousers. She wears black boots with it all. It seems Keaberos must have taken her on that shopping trip, and it must have ended fantastically. Her grey hair, usually pulled into a ponytail, now sits loose over her shoulders and back.

Rabia is in an orcish kaftan, red the colour of her eyes and accented with gold. It's elegant, made of beautiful material and flowing behind her. The sleeves are slit and flow down far past her wrists. Her neck is adorned with complex golden jewellery that drapes over her skin, and she's easily one of the best dressed alongside Smock. Not only that, but she looks happy, which is better than just looking beautiful by far.

Ophelia is in an orange mermaid dress that sprawls out at the bottom. She has to hold it to be able to walk, revealing white heels that she seems to be able to stand in just fine. The top of the dress, where it cuts a 'v' into her chest, is decorated with white details made to look like coral and fish. Orange must be her favourite colour, and it suits her more than perfectly.

Julien, unlike the others who have made extra effort, is just wearing his usual clothes, though they do look formal enough. The most surprising change about him is that in place of his usual plague mask he just wears the beak rather than the full thing, his regular glasses sitting on his nose.

"Are we all ready to go?" Axel asks after everyone finishes exchanging compliments, clasping his hands together enthusiastically. There is a unanimous agreement, and with it they set off to ascend the many steps to the palace once again.

Getting up the steps in a dress is difficult, but Smock manages to get by, and so does Rabia and Ophelia. The two are mindful of where they place their feet, holding up the fronts of their dresses as they walk. Their arms are tired by the time they reach the top. Thankfully Smock's dress already has a slip of space at the front where it lifts a little to allow for some movement on the flat ground, but the others keep holding theirs.

Axel suddenly comes to link arms with Smock, an invitation in his hand. They walk ahead of the others, who seem to also be making some sort of formation, coming in pairs.

They join a short queue, and when it's their turn, Axel hands over his invitation to a guard. He speaks with confidence, forcing an accent that brings out more of the Gorik sound that they'd heard from the locals. "Mister and Missus Onasis. We've come quite a long way for the announcement yesterday and for this ball tonight."

Smock only processes what Axel said when they enter the throne room. People are talking here, but it's clearly not kitted out for a ball, so everyone must be waiting to be let in. Mister and Missus Onasis... He's my husband for the night.

They do make for a pretty convincing husband and wife. They both are dressed elegantly in black, matching one another well. With a slight sadness Smock wonders if she's finally going to get a hint at what a marriage feels like. A part of her wishes she could be here with Ellamia, though on second thoughts Ellamia would probably hate a huge ball with the Sanguises.

Suddenly people start to move, and Axel holds Smock close and tight with their linked arms, making sure neither of them lose one another. The crowds move in a shuffle, filtering in to the new location slowly but surely, and Smock feels heavy with anticipation for something grand. When they finally reach the doors, they enter into a corridor, and along that and up a flight of stairs is a door on the right that everyone is filtering into. She figures that on the other side, people must be seeing a door to their left, because it seems that this is none other than the ball room.

They enter into a small part of the room, but when Smock turns her head she sees just how grand the place is. The room is bigger than any Smock has ever seen, with great pillars holding up a second floor that oversees the one beneath. Like the other rooms, the walls are black, but the floor is made up of light purple marble. A set of stairs sits at the far end of the room, leading up to the second floor, and behind the second flight, on the wall, there are paintings depicting a landscape of Aldelis. Smock figures it must be from the perspective of the palace looking over the land. The ceiling is similarly painted, however it's painted with a scene of a red-headed man falling through the sky, his tattered wings obscuring his face, a storm bearing down upon him. The sound of a piano emanates from all around, but Smock can't see anyone playing on the platform in front of the stairs yet.

There's banquet tables covered with large cloths on both sides of the room, behind the pillars, and where there is free space, tables and purple chairs are laid out. People are gathered in the middle, seemingly waiting for something.

"The Emperor makes a speech before any ball begins," Axel leans in to tell her. "They'll open the buffet afterwards and the musicians will start to play."

Smock just nods, watching the stairs, figuring that'd be a good spot to make an announcement. The piano music comes to an end and she finds herself missing the slow, graceful sound, especially now that all she can hear is the overwhelming sound of people talking. Above the noise there's the sound of light metal touching the ground, like armoured footsteps, and with it comes both Corvus and the Emperor Regus Sanguis.

The height difference between father and son is laughable, with Corvus standing at six feet and seven inches and his father at only five feet and one inch. More laughable is the man that comes down to accompany them, standing at a total seven feet tall, towering above the both of them.

Smock recognises the tall man, though he can't quite put his finger on it. He's got light tan skin and hair the colour of cherries, with intelligent gold eyes that have the horizontal pupil of a goat. Two small horns poke out from his hair. He has a smirk on his lips and an overall smug look as he speaks with Regus and Corvus. Smock can see a scar that sits over his right eye. He wears a suit that seems to mimic the Emperor's style, black and purple and undeniably regal.

The Emperor, despite being so short, has an appearance completely befitting of his role. He wears a suit in a similar style to his companion, though it was clearly meant for him, but with the addition of a cloak lined at the top with fur that makes his stature seem larger. He has the same birdlike legs as Corvus and he walks with practised elegance in his step. His hair is long and white, with the same unkempt quality of Axel's, though clearly brushed and taken care of. It too is weaved into braids at the sides, though it also has some that fall over his shoulders and loop at the back. The crown sitting on his head is only decoration for spikes that permeate the Emperor's dark purple skin, that according to legend were cursed upon him a long time ago, and it is made of black and purple crystal. His body is marred with scars, but his face is clearer, with burns on his jaw and scars beneath his eyes like tears that have stained him over many years. He has pretty lips and striking narrow eyes, red sclera with gold irises that seem to glare at his red-headed companion, and Smock is immediately reminded of the dream, but when the man speaks his voice is so much deeper than the one he'd heard before, with a slight rasp.

"Welcome all," he begins, the crowd immediately quietening at his voice. "I am pleased to see so many in attendance. I hold this ball as the first of the summer, in honour of my son's achievements and my family's prosperous reign within the past decade. I have much to thank you all for, as my loyal subjects, the people of the empire I have raised from the ground up. May we feast and drink together in celebration, to another many decades of health and glory."

Smock is relieved that Regus seems more inclined to keep things brief than his son, who no doubt would have gone on and on about something or other. She watches as people begin to spread out now, the musicians starting to play and servants unveiling the banquet tables for everyone.

"Hungry?" Axel asks, a smile on his face.

Smock becomes aware that she is, in fact, quite hungry, having skipped out on dinner so that she would be able to eat at the ball. "Yeah, actually."

Axel walks with her to the table. There are no plates - it's more of a buffet that you pick at rather than grab a dish for. Smock can't help but try a bit of everything. She has a small sandwich, then some shrimp on a stick, then some lamb kebabs, stuffed grape leaves, olives, cheese, salami, some stuffed cucumber bites, and more, and that's only the beginning of everything they have laid out. The food is absolutely delicious, better by far than the restaurant (though she would throw absolutely no shade their way) as one would expect for a palace, and Smock ends up feeling full much faster than she anticipated. As she's thought over and over every time she's eaten for the past couple of days in Gore, she could absolutely eat it all over again, and she supposes that it's not too far from reason to do so, considering they've got all night.

Axel finds her again and takes her hands, smiling. "You look like you enjoyed that."

He stops a waiter coming around with glasses of wine and grabs one for each of them. Smock drinks, recognising the taste as the Emperor's favourite. "I did. They've got some really nice food here."

As she drinks her eyes move, taking in the other people in the room. A large number of them are high elves and humans, but a few other races slip in too. Smock can even make out an orc, making their population in the room a surprising two, speaking with some nobles with a polite smile on his face. The others from the initial group are scattered across the room in pairs. Kallisto, as he said he would, seems to be getting quite personal with a group of people, and Smock doesn't keep her gaze on them long enough to try deduce what exactly is happening.

"I've managed to figure out how to make some of it," Axel seems excited, "just from the taste, and looking at it."

"That's really impressive," Smock smiles to him, eyes gentle. "You'll have to make some for me."

"I'd love to," Axel beams, drinking slowly. "For now, though, I'm going to scout out some of the space. Later, I'll slip away and find the item I'm after."

"Alright, Ax. Good luck," she tells him, their free hands brushing together for just a moment too long as he heads out on his way, weaving between people carefully, drawing as little attention towards him as possible. Smock follows him with her gaze for as far as she can, then turns to the rest of the gathering, unsure what to do next.

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, she doesn't have to think for very long, because she's swept up by a pair of high elves. They're both women, and they have wine in their hands, glasses half-full. The first is blonde and the second a brunette.

"Was that your husband?" the blonde asks, eyes wide with interest.

Smock isn't sure what to do with her hands, feeling hyper-aware of everything she's doing. "Yes, it was."

"But he's demonkin," the other high elf whispers as though it'll get her in trouble to speak so loud.

"Ah, I see," Smock frowns. High elves have a certain purity culture about them. High elves are only permitted to marry other high elves, or the rare human with lengthy approval, especially if the intent is to produce half-high elf children, who are seen as quite exotic. She thinks fast, pulling herself back to her Archangel voice, thicker with a raven elf accent and well-articulated. "It's... complicated."

"Complicated?" high elf one asks, pulling her and the other towards a lounge chair, where they sit and lean in with interest in at Smock, who's pushed into the middle.

Everything feels like it's going too fast. She takes a deep breath and looks between them both. "Well, we don't even know each other. My name is..." she thinks hard for a high elf name, remembering the appearance she's holding up, "Adelie Onasis."

"Adelie, a noble name," the blonde high elf smiles. "Mine is Camila Lavigne, and my friend's is Eleta Beaufoy."

Smock isn't knowledgeable enough in high elf culture to know if there's any meaning behind their names that she can compliment, so she simply returns the smile politely. "Those are lovely names."

"Thank you," says Camila, "now your story?"

"Right," Smock nods, clasping her hands together and looking to the floor thoughtfully. She carefully constructs a story in her mind. "Me and my husband - his name is Luca - are a union of love. A demonkin and a high elf, ones in love at that, when I was expected to marry another high elf... well, it's scandalous. We hid our love from my family to the best of our ability, having secret meetings, sneaking out at night, so on so forth, trying our best to continue our union without their knowledge. He runs a mob, where he handles crime, and deals with the darkest members of society."

"Ooh," Eleta places her chin in her hands, intrigued. "Forbidden love, so romantic!"

"It's my favourite," Camila giggles. "Go on, what happens next?"

Smock looks up for a moment, seeing that she's amassed a very small crowd, mostly of intrigued high elf wives. They must have overheard Eleta's exclamation. "Well, we managed to stay a secret for a long time, but not all things can come to a happy ending. One night, my parents sent someone to spy on us, and they caught me with Luca in a garden. Of course, they were livid. They questioned how I could betray their honour by being with a criminal and, even worse, a demonkin. They were distraught, and cast me out of my home forever, forbidding me from returning. I ran to Luca, who took me in, and we married soon afterwards."

"How could they?" Camila gasps, a dramatic hand to her heart. "Which family is this?"

"You must be so much richer now," Eleta says.

"I am rich, but as much as I am hurt by my family, I can't wish for their reputation to be ruined," Smock puts on her best theatrics, looking down again, this time mournfully rather than awkwardly. "I still love my family dearly, I just wish the world was not so divided that they cannot see my love for my husband."

"The tragedy," someone from the crowd sighs, and conversation breaks out.

Some people begin to ask questions.

"You must tell us your family!"

"How did you feel being kicked out?"

"Has your husband killed anyone?"

"Were you arranged to marry?"

She feigns sorrow, covering her face and standing up. "I can't! Please, excuse me."

A few sympathetic voices arise behind her, trying to offer comfort, but Smock doesn't listen, dramatically taking her exit, and running straight into Axel. They bump chest-to-chest, and when she looks up she sees his slightly flustered face. He gets over the collision quickly, his trademark smirk on his face again.

"You amassed quite the audience," Axel comments with a smile. "Is it your good looks or were you telling them something they can't resist hearing about?"

Smock blushes a little, figuring Axel is taking the husband act to heart. "Oh, no, just my fantastic story about our forbidden love."

"Our forbidden love?" Axel chuckles, leaning in close, their faces level. "That's fun. What's the tale?"

"Your name is Luca Onasis and I'm Adelie Onasis, and I got kicked out of my family for loving the demonkin mob boss," she looks to him for approval and sees amusement in his expression.

"Luca? Do I give off the impression that I'm a Luca?" Axel pulls her to the side to allow someone to pass.

Smock hadn't even realised she was in the way, too engrossed in her conversation. "It was the first thing that came to mind. You do look a bit like a Luca in this form."

Axel laughs lightly, taking her free hand. It appears that he's since gotten a refill of his drink, but she still hasn't gotten through the first one. "That's definitely a first, but sure."

"What about me? Can you see me as an Adelie?" Smock asks, bringing the hand between them as she steps closer, looking up at him with mischief in her eyes.

"Perhaps," Axel sighs, "but you suit Haley better."

She goes to speak again, but the high elves are close on her heels, coming to chase more of the drama. One of them gasps, "Look! It's Adelie's husband!"

Axel holds Smock to his chest, and she hides her face, playing back into the distraught appearance. He speaks, his arm tight to her back. "Hey, back up - my wife is quite upset."

"You must be her husband, she says you're a mob boss," one of them says.

"I am," there's a smile in his voice, "but I mustn't speak of it, I don't want to upset her further."

"So thoughtful," a member of the crowd sighs.

"Now, I need to go comfort Adelie," Axel releases his arm, letting Smock free. She pretends to still be crying, wiping her eyes. The bunch coo sympathetically, but they finally allow them to go. Axel pulls her to the sidelines, through some of the crowd and next to the stairs, which he begins to take her up.

"I've found my corridor," Axel tells her, walking slowly as to make sure she doesn't trip over her dress.

"That's good," she nods, wondering why people are smiling at her as she goes up.

"Yeah. I'm going to go get my artefact. Be prepared to run if necessary," Axel lets go of her when they're at the top of the stairs, his pace becoming brisk again as he walks towards a hallway at the back. Smock rushes after him, unsure why he took off so fast, and without saying anything else.

They both enter into a small corridor that turns on to another corridor, and that's where Axel stops. Guards look their way, and Smock feels her stomach turn a little, feeling as though their gazes are full of suspicion. She approaches Axel, who leans against a wall casually, messing with a note in his hands as though he's left the party to do something important. Smock approaches, looking at him with confusion, only to be met with an equal expression.

"What are you doing here?" Axel whispers, brows furrowed.

"I came after you. Whatever you were talking about sounded important," Smock answers, frowning.

Axel takes a deep breath, looking side to side. There's a guard approaching, and when she sees it, she does the only thing she can think of, and kisses Axel.

The man releases a strangled noise, like the breath has been knocked out of him, and he doesn't react for a few moments, then his mind seems to come to him, and he reciprocates, his arms wrapping around Smock's waist and hers around his neck. She melts all too easily into it, their lips sliding together perfectly, feeling light headed and giddy. His tail curls around her legs lightly like another grasping hand and they press a little tighter to one another, his warmth spreading throughout her perpetual coldness, like a fire right up to her skin. Smock is sure that they look like two lovers getting passionate with each other, heated with the help of alcohol and the inevitable flirting that a ball brings along. She opens just one eye and glances to the side momentarily to see that not only did the guard decide this wasn't worth it, but they've also cleared off entirely, decidedly not keen on witnessing whatever is going on.

Smock pulls back to see Axel's face covered in a deep blush, his eye wide and his lips still slightly parted. She can see sharp canines, four of them each to the upper and lower row, before he purses his lips, closing them completely.

"Thanks," he clears his throat, averting his eye. "I'll... I'll go do what I came for, now."

Smock can't shake the feeling of her lips on his, the cold metal of his lip piercings against her skin. "Yeah. Good luck, Axel."

"Yeah," the man offers a friendly but awkward smile, reassuring her that they're still on good terms, before darting down the corridor, leaving her there alone.

When she heads back to the ball, she's distracted. She stays on the upper floor and leans on the railing, watching the party below. She can make out Rabia standing next to Kallisto now, the two talking to a group of people, mostly races other than humans and high elves. Keaberos and Grey are socialising, smiles on their faces. Julien is paired with Ophelia, and they too seem to be having quite a good time. Smock thinks to join them for a moment, but can't seem to stomach the thought of it after what just happened. Her eyes wander and end up settling on the redhead she'd seen with Corvus and Regus. He seems to be sticking close to the Emperor's side wherever he goes. Smock still can't figure out where she's seen him before.

As her eyes wander up to her level, she sees Corvus alone. His slim figure is up to the rail, leaning on his elbows, wine in one hand and his head on the other. His golden gaze is wistful as he watches the goings-on below, his eyes seeming to be fixed onto just one spot. Smock follows it to where that other orc stands, speaking with a crowd, until he suddenly turns a little and meets Corvus' gaze with a slight smile. Corvus looks away, pulling his brilliant wings closer to his body.

Smock spots more of the family as she looks around. There's Prince Draco, with hair a mix of pale orange, coral pink, and salmon red, the master tactician of the Sanguis family and a man quite like a dragon, with leathery wings, spiked horns, and a draconic tail. Then there's Princess Coral, a Sanguis that Smock can actually stomach thanks to her involvement and affiliation with the pirates, with her hair blonde at the top and coral pink at the bottom, and her outfit extremely fancy, pieces of coral all over it and a similar coral crown on her head. Smock also spots some unexpected additions to the party, recognising the faces of Piscis and Anguilla, now in fancy clothes and crowns.

Pirates, Smock stares in confusion. Both Anguilla and Piscis seemed to be on the side of the pirates. They must be like their sister.

Suddenly the music changes, and there's a sound like a cheer from the crowd below as people begin to dance. It's one of those dances where you swap around partners, and while it's not quite the same as what pirates do, and certainly not as fast, she figures it wouldn't hurt to participate.

She heads down the steps and joins in right away, her hands meeting a handsome stranger. They don't exchange any words, just dancing, and then she's passed off to the next partner. Immediately she realises luck is not on her side when she comes face-to-face with none other than Lukas.

His eyes widen a little as they dance, and Smock is almost certain she's going to have to make a run for it, but all he says is, "You look really familiar."

"That's odd," Smock smiles, playing herself off as just a confused stranger, "have we met before?"

"I don't think so," Lukas sighs, twirling with her across the dancefloor, mindful of her dress, keeping a distance from others. "Never mind. My apologies."

"It's quite alright," she tells him, "maybe you've seen me at the party. I've become quite popular among the other high elves."

He offers a smile at last in return to hers. He's a very handsome man when he doesn't look absolutely stressed from chasing her around, especially in the fancy light armour he's wearing for the ball. "Ah, you must be Adelie Onasis. Yes, your name has been all around this party by now. I'm sorry for all that you've been through for love. I understand it - I had a husband, and people do not like such unions around here."

"I'm very sorry," Smock says, suddenly feeling sympathetic for the guard. "One day the world will be a better place."

"I hope so," is all he says before there's another exchange of partners, and she finds herself in the company of someone exceptionally surprising.

Up close, Corvus seems to have a tired expression about him. Everyone leaves him space when he dances, mindful of his feathers, leaving them quite a bit of space. Curious heads turn to see his latest partner for just a moment before returning to their respective partners. Smock isn't sure what to do with herself, conscious of the unique way that his legs have to move to be able to dance, wondering if it's uncomfortable.

"Hello," Corvus says, sounding disinterested despite starting up the conversation. "It's a nice night, don't you think?"

"Yes," she agrees, anger bubbling up in her chest, into her throat. She manages to push it down, but she can't ignore it. How dare he talk so casually after everything he's done. How dare he slaughter wives and still be able to dance and talk as though blood has never stained his blade. She forces normality. "So many people here, too. You must be popular."

"Regrettably," he sighs, his wings slightly spread, flowing with each movement.

"Don't you like parties?" she asks, a little surprise passing through her rage. He seems the type to want all eyes on him. Then again, a party had been exactly what he crashed last time.

"Not much," Corvus' long lashes almost hide the dull look in his eyes.

Smock sort of wants to reach forwards and snap his neck right then and there, but she refrains. Besides, it seems like Axel needs something special to go through with killing him, so maybe it isn't possible in the first place. "Surely a King could leave at any time without resistance?"

"I have my eyes on someone, so not yet," his eyes light up a little at the mention, but it just makes Smock angrier. Why should Corvus get to be interested in someone?

"Best of luck to you," Smock forces herself to say, and with relief she moves to another person.

This time it's the redhead that she recognises. This time, she finds herself striking up conversation, eyes glued to his face, trying desperately to figure out where she's seen him before, or if maybe she's just seen someone like him, but she can't put her finger on it. "What's your name?"

The man has this air about him, a smug intelligence perhaps, and his yellow goat eyes seem to glimmer with mischief and danger. "I'm Lucifer. And you?"

It suddenly makes perfect sense. Smock is standing here, dancing with her eldest brother, her forsaken eldest brother, cast out by Michael. Yet, she doesn't remember reading about him having a facial scar. From experience she can say her wounds have always healed without much scarring, especially facial wounds, with her legs only being as messed up as they are from the fire because of its intensity paired with immediately plunging into water afterwards. What could possibly make that kind of mark but another Archangel, or someone greater? Surely the gods wouldn't find any interest in him now that he's fallen, but nobody with such power resides on Aldelis.

Her mind flitters to Regus. But, why would he want to be around someone that scarred his face? Smock pulls herself back to reality, smiling at the man, figuring he mustn't know her if he's asking her identity. "Adelie Onasis. It's nice to meet you, Lucifer."

"Feeling's mutual," he says with a certain charisma about him. "How are you finding the ball?"

"Good. It's been... exciting," Smock answers, and she's certainly not lying about it. "How about you?"

"Great, been harassing Regus' ass all night. He's totally into me," Lucifer grins, his eyes full of that mischief in much greater volume.

"Regus? The Emperor?" Smock raises a brow, following his steps. He seems to dance perfectly, no flaw at all in even one movement he makes.

"Yup. That's my piece of ass now," he laughs, a snakelike tongue flickering from between his lips. She sees fangs in his mouth like those of a serpent but larger to fit his humanoid figure. They're especially apparent from this angle of looking up to him.

"Wow," she says, blinking. That's one hell of a thing to confess. She wonders if he's been telling all of these strangers about how he's with the Emperor.

"I know right?" Lucifer's grin settles back into a smirk, and then he passes her off to the next person.

Smock is almost relieved to be passed on to Axel. He looks especially pleased with himself, his eye bright. "I got it."

"That's great," she says genuinely, avoiding looking at his lips. "What exactly is 'it'?"

"Oh, right," he laughs, smiling with all of his teeth. "It's one of Regus' prototypes. I'm lucky it wasn't in his lab or his room, else I would've never gotten my hands on it. It's gonna be what I use to," he lowers his voice to a whisper, "kill Corvus," and then back again, "because if you put it on someone, it forces them to bend to your will, to do whatever you command them to do, so long as it's within the realm of reason, of course."

"That's terrifying. Why would Regus have been making something like that?" Smock frowns with concern. Sure, it's useful and all, but the implications...

Axel's face suddenly drops with thought. "You know, I'm not sure, but it's convenient, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so, if it gets your plan going," she agrees, though she can't shake the weird feeling about it. "Did it go easily?"

"Easily enough," he shrugs. "How about for you? Who have you danced with?"

"That guard who's been after me, for one. Then Corvus, who apparently has his eye on someone. And then that guy who Regus has been with all night," she answers, her mind unable to leave behind the fact that she was dancing with her brother, and that he hadn't recognised her.

"Corvus? Eugh. I bet he wasn't very interested in dancing with a woman," Axel rolls his eye.

"I don't know why he bothered with it. There's a lot of men here that I'm sure he'd prefer the company of," she hums. "Maybe he thought he saw Captain Undying, except Captain Undying isn't a woman, so he wasn't interested."

"Probably," Axel agrees. "Captain Undying would make a fantastic woman though, I must say. An exceptionally pretty one, too."

Smock feels warm inside. He's still going full force with the husband thing, huh... "And you make for a good husband."

Axel goes to respond, but he's suddenly cut off by the jeer of someone they were about to switch with. "You're as bad as those street rats, demonkin."

Smock immediately feels flighty, clutching Axel's hands tight. She turns to the man, stopping in her tracks. The dance continues around them. "You leave him alone. He's done nothing to you."

Then, she turns to Axel to begin to calm him, but she gets no chance, the man speaking again. "No wonder your family kicked you out."

Smock is taken aback. She stares at the man, lost for words, a pang of hurt in her chest. She knows he meant the family from the story, but with a soreness her mind wanders to Michael. She sees his steel face, speaking to her, but she can't hear the words.

Axel had seemed okay before, but now he fumes, tearing himself away from Smock and throwing himself at the man. The woman that'd been dancing with him shrieks and steps away, staring on as Axel grabs the man by the collar of his shirt. "You shut your fucking mouth before I make you."

"Don't be such a child," the man spits, and Axel, quick to anger, hits him right in the face.

The man recoils and rips himself from Axel's grasp, stepping back and throwing another punch in return. The changeling is too fast, dodging and hitting him again, sending him reeling. Before he can recover, Axel lunges for him, the two falling to the ground. Axel grabs the man's head and slams it into the ground.

Guards have been called to attention, and start to push through the gathered crowd towards them. Smock grabs Axel by the back of his jacket. "We need to go."

Axel listens, getting up and sprinting. He's faster than Smock, who has to hold up her heavy dress to run. "Axel!"

He turns around, seeing her lagging behind and the guards on her tail, and rushes to her aid, but not before an arrow pierces her shoulder, and pain courses through her body. The blood that starts to flow from it looks black, but the light reveals its redness, and she feels the uncomfortable trickle of the wetness on her skin. Axel buys her time to tear out the arrow, knowing that anyone that sees that will know she's running for the wrong reasons, and she manages to evade the next guards, darting out of the ball room and down the stairs. The guards along the way don't know about the commotion yet, and let her pass without issue as she heads for the throne room and then the exit, surely appearing as though she's rushed out due to some high elven scandal or some other drama, but then they see the blood, and come after her.

When she reaches the steps, she knows they won't leave their post to chase her down them, but she still hurries her pace, going down much easier than going up with the extra space it allows her feet. Axel comes racing after her, blood running from his nose and a bruise forming on his pale skin. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Smock answers, pain lacing her voice. The agony is a pulsing thing, coming in heavy waves that wash across her whole body, fade for just a moment, and then do it all over again. "You?"

"Same here," he responds simply, keeping pace with her as they go down the stairs, glancing over their shoulders periodically.

At some point, as anticipated, the guards decide the pursuit down the palace steps is simply not worth it, and with relief Smock is able to slow down, her legs aching and her entire body feeling heavy, especially under the pain of the wound. The arrow must have gotten quite deep, because when she goes to touch it, the blood still feels wet.

Axel is panting, his face a little red with exertion, the blood on his lip now dried. She looks to him, and he looks to her, and all of a sudden he starts laughing hysterically.

"What?" Smock frowns.

"It's just... kind of funny," his teeth seem to glint dangerously in the light.

Smock feels an anger bubble up within her. "Funny? Axel, I could've handled it, I was fine."

"You don't talk shit about peoples' families," Axel shrugs, a dumb grin on his face. "He deserved it. You should've seen the look on his face!"

"I did," Smock scowls. As much as it stung to hear the words the man had spoken, she knows he didn't know about her real family. "Just a fucking slap would've been fine, if you really had to go and get violent. And now I'm fucking hurt."

"He'll remember this, though," Axel just keeps laughing, and Smock can't take it. "Besides, you're alright. We'll go down there and treat it, and-"

"Look at me," she says, and he does so, looking positively mischievous. She punches him in the face, around about where the bruise is, and he recoils, shocked and hurt. The blood starts to flow again from his nose. Immediately Smock feels a little guilty, especially when he has to pause to gather himself, but she doesn't regret it. "There. Now we're even."

"God damn," Axel breathes, his voice strained, but there's still a smile on his face. "Alright. We're even. I'll shut my mouth."

And he does, leaving their descent silent for a while, until he pipes up when the bottom of the mountain draws closer. "I'd say we've got precisely a few hours before every guard within a mile's radius knows about this and comes for our asses."

"We can't go to the ship, not at night," Smock hisses, thinking that Axel's gone mad.

"Out of Sanguis jail and the potential threat of scary creatures, I'll take the scary creatures any day," he protests, "especially considering we have places to be."

Hesitantly, Smock realises he's right. They've got Pirate Island to save, and the sooner they leave, the better. "Fine, but maybe we should stop at a town along the way to rest. I'm sure the news won't spread that far."

"Sounds like a good deal. We'll stop about halfway from here to the ship, alright?" Axel decides, reaching to take Smock's hand. "And look, I am sorry. I didn't want you to get hurt, but I promise I'll take care of it."

"I know," Smock sighs, and then he remembers what Kallisto said, about Axel and abandonment. "I forgive you."

She doesn't. She's not sure when she will. But with tonight already having gone south, she's not sure if she can stand to see Axel upset again, so she plays it safe, and hopes the others will be down soon.