Charles
Lady Anna Barrmount
Grunewald Castle, Vallen

The words spoken in the room fell on deaf ears fo Anna. She was so deep into her thoughts she only only heard background voices all making noise.

That was, until the naked woman arrived. What kind of *Brutes* Would bring a naked person to the middle of a council? She must have been a prisoner, but even so, she deserved some decency!

Was that the woman they were going to judge?

*"Oh gods, if they treat prisoners like this..."* She thought to herself, her stomach churning at the thought.
Lawrence
Bennard Wrencrest
Castle Grunewald Throne Room, Vallen

"I don't think she can hear you, love," Whispered Bennard to his flustered wife, squinting at the deeply contemplative Anna. He gave his wife a quizzical look when she didn't respond and noticed that she was staring in horror at something else. He hadn't seen that look on her face since they'd watched Gareth lose his head at Grand Stead. He followed her gaze and, fittingly enough, she was looking at a pair of nooses hanging from the feeling. Bennard's jaw hung slack. He'd thought this would be a meeting to try and *Counter* The march of death; who could they possibly be executing?

The family turned their pale eyes to King Gregor as he lambasted the room for their poor behaviour. Bennard felt Adelhayd discretely grip his hand and squeeze it tightly as the king described, to both of their shock and disgust, the events had taken place in the castle the previous day. He heard Ivagneth sigh, and whisper that they should never have come to this 'horrible place.'

Bennard's heart skipped a beat at the mention of an assassin and their imminent trial. Why were there *Two* Nooses, then? Was their attempted victim going to hang too for their dishonour? He didn't know what to expect from this madhouse at this point. He saw someone entering the room out of the corner of his eye. Something seemed off about their dress; too pale, too flesh-coloured. He gave her a proper look and saw that she was a dark-haired woman bereft of clothes, with a horrible scar encircling her neck.

He glanced at his wife, who had her hands clasped over her mouth. Bennard nodded. "Mm. Well, T-Taemar is ..." He slurred. His eyes rolled, and Adelhayd yelped as she saw her husband collapse into a heap against the wall.

"Benn!" She hissed, then wheeled around to her daughter and niece. "Both of you go and wait outside! *Now!*"

Feineth watched Adelhayd pick Bennard up by his shoulders, the lord's face slumping over his chin. "Huh. Just like Father." Ivagneth grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to to the doorway. As they were passing by Cecilia, Jade suddenly started glaring and hissing at her, flailing her claws and nearly scrambling out of Ivagneth's grasp. The Wrencrest girl barely managed to keep the cat under her arm as she and her cousin exited the room and waited on the top landing of the stairs.

"Manfred!" Adelhayd barked at their servant as she tried to lift her husband. "Put down those stools and help me!" The servant nodded, laying down the folding chairs and assisting her in getting the Lord of Wrencrest into a seat. Adelhayd picked his chaperon up off the floor and put in behind his neck as he sat lolling back against the head of the chair.

Shaking her head in near-disbelief, she took a seat between her husband and Lady Anna. Manfred unfolded one of the stools and took his place behind the noble couple. Adelhayd brushed her hair back over her shoulders and ran her hands across the writing equipment laid out before her, her movements full of poise. She looked aside at Anna, who seemed to have returned to them from her thoughts. Smiling, she inclined her head and said, "I'm glad to see that you've arrived in good health, my lady Anna."
Kevin
Danico Felrantres
Vallen, Taemar.

The alchemist sat quiet in his chair, leg crossed over the other, arms folded at his front. Lost in thought, Danicos attention was stolen by the booming of the council's host. Listening to his speech, he sighed and glanced around the room at everyone else's reaction. 

The alchemist's attention was once again stolen as two guards walked in a figure he had expected judging by the nooses- though maybe not quite as nude, he watched as the shifter Cecilia was walked into the room. Taking note of the fresh scars across her chest and then on her back, he had thought it looked particularly painful. Right thought the lung. Smart. Whether that was intentional or not didn't matter, he knew what silver scars looked like on a shifter and she was clearly weakened and struggling to breath. Shame. He continued his thought train. She wouldn't get far in her current state. He stared at the shifter in all her sorry state. He never thought he'd see Cecilia looking so helpless. But he knew she'd make it out the other end. She's a habit of not dying.
Charles
Lady Anna Barrmount
Grunewald Castle, Valen

Hearing her name took Anna by surprise. She jumped a bit on her seat and turned to look at the woman that called her. It took her a moment, but when she realized who the familiar face was, Anna's expression lightened up like a bonfire.

"Lady Adelhayd!" Anna threw her arms around Adelhayd, hugging her. 

A familiar face from the Iron Plaines, safe and sound, sitting right next to her? She felt a relief like she had never felt before.

"You're here! Your family is here, oh gods. You scaped Lord Nathaniel? How did the town make it?" The words blurted out of her lips like an incesant waterfall, barely stopping to breath between questions.
Lawrence
Lady Adelhayd Wrencrest
Castle Grunewald Throne Room, Vallen

Adelhayd beamed in Anna's embrace. "Anna," She said with a warm, soft chuckle. When Anna asked about how they'd gotten away from Nathaniel, however, Adelhayd's face scrunched up with confusion. She withdrew from the hug and looked at Anna with a furrowed brow. "What do you mean? Nathaniel was ... He was still in Reaper's Skull when we left." She frowned, and her voice turned husky with worry. "Oh gods, Anna, what happened? Where's Sibyl?"
Charles
Lady Anna Barrmount
Grunewald Castle, Vallen

Anna's lips pursed as some tears dwelled her eyes.

"He killed the sick, burned..." It was hard to recall the events "Burned the towns, and came with his troops right to our door. In the middle of the funeral" Her voice got a bit higher "Sibyl sent me here for help"
Lawrence
Lady Adelhayd Wrencrest
Grunewald Castle, Vallen

Adelhayd recoiled at the horrifying news. She thought of the poor young son she'd left at home, once again caught up in the pointless warring of callous older men. Hulward was more than a tool; she was her *Son*—er scarred, wronged son—and by all the gods of the north, she would march back home and stain the snow red with Vivayn blood by her own damned hand if she had to; there wasn't a chance in the world that he was going to bend that boy back into the fold of war, even against that bloodthirsty whoreson Marshall.

"All his talk of being the gods' own chosen one, and he can't respect basic tradition," She growled, glaring out a window. "If he presses on northward, I hope he dies in a blizzard like the dog he is." Adelhayd sighed, digging her fingers into her scalp as she frowned at her feet. Her eyes darted up to meet Anna's. "Is he trying to recruit Sibyl and your bannermen?"
Joann
**Siona O'Callaigh
Road from Vallen, Taemar**

Siona shrugged, placing the vials back into her bag and looking back up the road. "I suppose it is a little odd," She conceded to Marsila, "But all the most useful magics require blood, even for a sorceress. And I would prefer to not have to cut myself or take blood from others in order to use magic."

She rode on in silence for a minute along with Marsila, a quiet stretch between their conversation. Siona could tell Marsila was uncomfortable with it, but Siona wasn't too bothered. There wasn't much more for her to say on the matter anyways, unless there were specific questions. 

Finally, Marsila spoke up again, picking up the conversation again at a new topic, asking Siona if she was concerned about entering a kingdom where the plague was running rampant. Siona thought about it a moment, unsure of exactly how she felt about it. Finally, she said, "I'm not sure. But I suppose so long as all of us are careful, and avoid populated areas, we should hopefully be OK."
Heather
Marsila Vema 
Road from Vallen, Taemar

Marsila didn't fear the plague for herself as she had the ability to never fall ill, however she did worry for her companions. As she took her gaze from Siona and eyed the narrow trail ahead, the shifter spotted the wooden caravan they had been searching for, relieved it hadn't moved since she last visited. "We're here."

Digging her heel into the flank, she nudged the horse into a trot with Romia following close behind until they were close enough to dismount from the horses. Going straight to the knot against her stomach, she loosened the material while balancing Arin against her back so he wouldn't fall and give himself a concussion. "Emilia!" She called out, hoping the healer was home as she thought of a way to dismount safely. "I need your help!"