Noble deeds

Mordreaux

"It would be my pleasure," Mord grinned as he took both that offered floating horn of ale and Lugh's offered arm as they walked around the sound of commotion.

Mord was quieter than usual as he ran his magic through the crowd, combing for any pearls of information, but he knew how disorienting it was for Lugh to listen to his multitasking mind, and he said, distractedly, "...so the dragon and the unicorn are proving elusive. I wouldn't have assumed his prophecy to be easily attained, especially when it comes to her." He kept his eyes bobbing between members of the crowd, from Order members, and the two of them walked through it all unhurriedly, not intending to catch any attention their way. "But as for that fair-weather friend we saw rush by...." He hummed. "...seems as though an important guest of the king's was found dead. Some foreign entity or other."

Those under Miriam's employ stormed by, and Mord pulled Lugh aside well in time to avoid them, appearing as unimportant as they could. Casual avoidance of the law was nothing new to the two of them, but while they were huddling close, Mord did take a moment to appreciate Lugh's false braid, pretending to run his gloved hand over the tail of it.

"I should have you in a style like this more often, by the by," Mord uttered in a low hush. "It's inspiring on you." He needn't say what kind of inspiration he meant.

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Lugh

If him with long hair was 'inspiring', the red of his cheeks merely completed the image of a noble knight being cornered by his shameless rival. Mord's hooded gaze hid little from Lugh, leaving him no other choice but to whisper back, "You should have me any way you like," and smirk with a narrowing smile.

Seizing his opportunity to turn the teasing right back on his dastard of a husband, he gently took Mord's hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing his gloved palm before sighing quietly, the yearning note in his voice meant to torment just as much as it was to reveal his heart, "Alas, I'm to wait for the safety of our home to ravish my dear rival, isn't that what you said?"

He'd always been weak to Mord's advances, but now, for once, it was hardly the right time nor place.

"I'd dare to claim long hair suits you better than I, but I shan't deny you if this is what it takes to make your blood roar," He said even as he started to lead them again, paying as much attention to his surroundings as he could, while still heeding his husband's observations. The death of an official didn't shake him, hardly lingered in his mind with the most pressing matter continuing to evade their attention.

He hadn't thought this search to be an easy one either - their task akin to searching for a needle in a haystack even with Mordreaux's magic - but it gnawed at him anyway, making him tense up until the hand on his elbow beckoned him to look to his side and meet Mord's golden eyes.

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Mordreaux

Mord was so warm from those returned flirtations, hard-pressed to smother his lascivious grin even amidst an air of hushed turmoil. He turned Lugh to lean down as if to catch a whisper, and merely caught his love in a distracting kiss to combat that underlying tension he'd felt in his arm. While, of course, hiding in plain sight from a shout and some rush of activity that had nothing to do with them.

He sinfully bombarded Lugh during that kiss with thoughts he wouldn't speak aloud, of hardly being able to wait till they arrived home if he kept up that loving dialogue. He also thought to pry for the reasons Lugh'd been led astray before their tourney match, and if that could be the spark for a sinful, teasing scene -

"Excuse us," interrupted a pair of Order mages hurrying after someone they viewed as suspicious. One lingered behind to stare back at the two of them, and said, "You two. Have you seen anyone with the description matching one of the wanted posters? The one with-"

"We have not," Mord leaned back with a derisive curl of his kissed lips. "We were quite focused on each other until you so rudely intervened."

"Yes, well - "

"And we'll be sure not to let you know in case we have," Mord waved his hand dismissively at the knight, making him stand stiffly to attention and turn abruptly around. "Now be on your way."

He made the knight hurry after his fellows with a short-term spell and leaned against Lugh's arm. "Interrupt my flirtations, will they," He scoffed, and drained the rest of his gifted horn of ale. "I think not."

Then he glanced around, and found an entire host of people being interrogated, no matter how skittish or unhelpful they seemed. Hm.

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Lugh

Lugh remained silent, his head full of nothing but fuzzy thoughts and confused gratitude as he desperately tried to gather his bearings after that heated kiss - he would've been of little help there, his thoughts blissfully uncomplicated even now, and utterly inappropriate. There was no clinging to Mord's tempting thoughts, though, the moment shattered with the reality quick to set in and he wordlessly followed Mord's example, taking a good look at what they had exactly wandered into.

The death of a Siregalese trade attaché - that much detail the two could gleam from the questions being shot back and forth around them - seemed to have ruffled more feathers than just of those serving under Archon Miriam. Members of the King's Guard had expectedly joined the growing search party, seeking to find the culprits responsible for such a heinous act and bring them to swift justice before the situation could spiral any further.

They held Lugh's interest momentarily while the blush on his cheeks mercifully faded, but it was neither them nor the mages and witchfinders that made him abruptly tap Mord's arm. "Look," He urged under his breath, discreetly nodding towards a small figure, just barely visible through the crowd.

From underneath their fair locks of hair, the engraved eye of an unicorn stared at the two knights.

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Mordreaux

Mord looked at Lugh's command, and instantly dropped all else he was switching between in his mind. He focused in on the woman standing across the way, with two ropes and a gap between a row of tents in the way, as their key component from their prophecy was held in one of those many moments of interrogation.

She had to be it, the unicorn they'd been looking for. Mord could tell that she was already beyond mortal years, like them, and he both leaned into that, and recoiled like touching hot plate metal, saying, "No wonder we hadn't found her before now. Another one of the Order's hunting hounds, collared and bound."

It was tragic, in his perspective. No unicorn should be shackled like a common animal, especially not one with a capacity for violence as she.

Was she as bound as her collar suggested? Mord gave a devilish smirk, wordlessly telling Lugh to be ready for one of his own tricks.

He played two images of their appearance at the same time: one was overlaid atop them to the general public of two dashing strangers, and only to the unicorn's eyes did he imply their true nature as he moved them both right in her line of sight.

Whether she acted on his blatant lure away from that interrogation was up to her. He was more than content to stay and listen in on who she was.

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Yrael

“M’lady, if you’ve seen anything suspicious..?” Yrael had not seen anything, no, and she told the man as much. She cared little for affairs of state, and less for being pestered by guards of far lesser rank than herself. What did a trade attaché matter in the long run? At least a murder provided some novelty amidst the tournament. She did her best to be patient with the guards’ questions anyhow—if there was one thing she was good at, it was waiting. 

Through a gap between rows of tents, she glimpsed two almost-strangers slipping past; almost, because she’d seen those faces on numerous posters within the last few weeks. How curious. Yrael paused, but her indifferent gaze returned to the guardsman after a few moments. 

“…I shall remain vigilant. I suggest you do the same; I do believe I saw a few mages trying to avoid the Guard near those tents,” She gestured back towards the small crowd of guards and passersby. The opposite direction from the two wanted mages. “Run along now.” She smiled pleasantly—it didn’t reach her eyes. The guardsman stammered something, gave a short bow, and hurried off to corral his men and correct their search. Yrael set out the other way, on the lookout for the pair that had so obviously strolled past. 

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Lugh

He didn't need to look behind them to know the lure had worked. Her intentions could be felt, heard, all of it relayed to him via Mordreaux's thoughts as the fey knight dug deeper into the unicorn's mind.

Mordreaux

When Mord came back into focus at the end of their unhurried lure, he was content to know that Lugh had brought them exactly where they needed to be, wordlessly working together to achieve the same goal. He could drop both of his layered illusions all at once behind those carts and turn back towards the lady unicorn, pride burning warmly underneath his devilish smile.

"Good tidings to the fair Lady Yrael," He waved a hand open, greeting her as if he'd known of her for far longer than the span of their walk. "Protector of the land, member of the illustrious Order, ancient hunter of beasts. We've have been searching for you for quite some time. It is, perhaps, ill timing to hold your audience in such a public place and on seemingly opposing sides, but..." He looked at her and settled his knowing smile on her. "...the small-minded politics of others becomes so tedious after a century or two, wouldn't you agree."

"If we could speak earnestly, as fellow mages, my husband and I would be most obliged." He smiled. "No need for more violence on the king's birthday, not when we come bearing an offer for you to consider."

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