<em>A ridiculously chaotic scene if there ever was one...</em><br/><br/>Tolan was able to handle himself in the presence of a lady - apparently of any sort. His luck did not end there, for his appealing figure of blue eyes, golden hair and the overall resplendent air he had rendered the poor girl in his at his side helpless in his wake.<br/><br/>"...And so I ended up a knight of the king's military under Kaeden's command." He concluded, his irresistible soft smiled directed toward his present company, "Do forgive me, my lady. It seems as though I've gone and rambled on about myself."<br/><br/>"N-no. Please don't apologize, Master Tolan. I don't mind at all." Sighed the young Lady Randolph, her cheeks tinted pink, as she was lost in a dreamy state.<br/><br/>"Ah, my dear lady, you are very kind..." Tolan stood at the arrival of Lhurriel, accepting the proffered cups of tea, "Thank you Lady Lhurriel."<br/><br/>Ghestin said very little in ways of conversation. Widow Chirtoff was busy stirring her heated cup, tinkering the spoon against the porcelain walls. Every once and a while she would speak up, voicing an opinion on some obscure issue whilst still giving sidelong glances towards Ghestin's massive and well-chiseled body. At every other remark from the woman she would gain a nod or grunt, perhaps the statement would be worthy enough for a worded response such as "indeed" or "Is that so?" But he gave her very little, though she seemed to like his taciturn nature just as well. Widow Chirtoff content enough to carry out her own conversation.<br/><br/>William tried desperately to concentrate on the gift of tea Lhurriel had presented him so that he would not hear the dreadful things spilling from young miss Randolph's lips. She had nonchalantly set her tea aside on a nearby table to continue her cuddling against the young solider, intentionally burying his arm in the valley between her breasts as she leaned against him.<br/><br/>"I'm so very jealous of my mother and sister..." she cooed in a coy little sigh, "I feel so...<em>small</em>compared to them." William choked on the tea his sipped, knowing ful-.. Knowing well what it was she spoke of, "Tell me Sir William, do you think that they're too small?" the seductive girl latched onto the poor boy's arm as she literally rubbed against him.<br/><br/>The cup in his hand clinked with the plate as it faltered, tea spilling out onto the saucer. He felt himself growing warmer beneath his tunic, the fabric sticking to his skin where he perspired. Gods was this woman pushy! He began to fall into a nervous shake and his words stuttered as he answered as gentlemanly as he could, Tolan help him...<br/><br/>"M-m'lady." He cleared his throat hoping it would settle his nerves slightly, "I do not think that... Ph-physical characteristics is what should be the core of any re<em>-gulp-</em>lationship. I, personally, believe that the breast - !! - BEST aspect of a woman is h-her mind."<br/><br/>...She was eating him alive..<br/><br/>Rohwik's story was more of the same, though slightly different. The chatter of the young Randolph of seventeen summers was endless. There was a void in her that spilled infinite amounts of uninteresting conversation, dull issues that Rohwik, quite frankly, did not care to listen to.<br/><br/>"I had gone to a cobbler the other day to have the strap mended, but the foolish man told me that he wouldn't repair the shoe after doing it the ninth time." She rambled, "He said that I was careless with such<em>works of art</em>. I swear people of such low class really don't understand the needs of their betters."<br/><br/>"You<em>don't</em>say..." Rohwik's words dripped profusely with his sardonic tone as he sunk against the back of the cushioned seat.<br/><br/>"It's true!" obviously the blatant cue of his disinterest was immediately picked up...and discarded. He winced when she continued, "Which reminds me. The other day I had spoken to Elaine - she is the daughter of a well-known horse breeder, he owns the local heard and has countless workers. Lives quite well - but we had spoken about how Belize had chopped off all her hair. She looked terrible!"<br/><br/><em>How in God's holy name does a cobbler remind you of someones hair?!</em>Rohwik's brows knitted in utter confusion as he gawked at the girl who motored onward. That was it, he had reached the end of his tolerance.<br/><br/>"Forgive me. It seems the tea Lhurriel had given us has gone straight through me." He lied as he had yet to even taste the brew, "I do hope you'll pardon my short leave."<br/><br/>He stood with a light bow to his sitting room counterpart.<em>Short like the winter months!</em>He hurriedly walked across the room toward the door.<br/><br/>"Camden!" He called, "Would you be so kind as to show me - he rounded the corner -<em>a place where I can hide from this chattering chit?!</em>"<br/><br/>"What is it, exactly, you are duty-bound to do, Sir Kaeden?" asked the lady Sandoval, still prying into matters that hardly concerned her and Kae duly noted her intentions.<br/><br/>"Well, m'lady..." before he had to fabricate some excuse to veer her off that line of thought, Lhurriel had wandered her way by, "Lhurriel, you've joined us!" Taking the tray from the lady mage's hands he set the final cups with it onto the small table between the chairs Lady Sandoval and he sat in. "I was beginning to wonder if you had retired for the evening, but I'm very glad that is not so." In great relief of her saving him he gladly took her hand and left a light kiss on her fingers in his own personal thanks.<br/><br/>"What say the cook of Tolan's constant compliments?" he asked hoping to drag out his chat with the lady who currently held his favor over his previous companion, "Do forgive, Tolan for using you as a poor messenger of his endless gratitude. I know by experience just how taxing his relays can be."<br/><br/>It was then that Lady Randolph spoke out, directing her question toward the woman to whom Kae spoke. He turned his attention to the accusing woman, curious as to what it was she was trying to get at. When Lady Sandoval pitched in, slipping around his arm he knew things were about to slip the line and steps that shouldn't be taken were about to fall on restricted ground. His eyes narrowed as he felt the woman urge him away.<br/><br/>Rohwik had felt it was time for his return as he had slipped away for some time now and was lucky enough to walk in just as the outbreak began. All eyes of the men in the room drifted toward the spat that was unfolding between the three women, Kaeden standing in the midst of it all.<br/><br/>At the sound of insinuating such lewd acts in regards to Lhurriel Keladar, Kaeden stiffened and a spark of annoyance toward the woman ignited. Certainly he had only known Lady Keladar for little more than a day, but he was damn certain she was more of a lady than these harlots could ever dream to be. Even so, this was not his fight. He had no ground to stand if he were to step in, knowing very little about the relationship between the mage and the lord of the house.<br/><br/>The men jumped at Lhurriel's sudden outburst and Tolan and William cringed at the niche she was accused of filling. Will blushed at the blunt wording Lhurriel had used to illustrate - though, quite accurately - the women's behavior within the house of Lord Atadel. But he knew that she was justified in her surge of rage, they all knew.<br/><br/>When she addressed him, Kaeden looked straight into Lhurriel's eyes, his gaze filled with a high respect for her choice of actions and admiration for her dignified execution. Before he could answer Corsair had spoken, letting everyone know of his return, the mage in his company earning curious gazes. As Lhurriel bid Kae her farewell he returned her smile with a more regrettable one of his own.<br/><br/>"Rest well, Lady." He answered her.<br/><br/>As they took their leave, the soldiers all spoke their adieus accompanied by condoling glances from Will and Tolan. Kaeden would have no more of this inexpiable behavior. They had bared such blatantly licentious behavior as men of the court with respect for these women, (though they had not entirely earned it,), but to attack someone outright was something Kae would absolutely not stand for.<br/><br/>"It is regrettable to have such an exchange happen amongst people of a decent regard." He spoke up, his eyes still falling toward the door Lhurriel and her company had exited, "But I suppose that such impudence comes natural to those who are used to being unbridled by conscience."<br/><br/>He gazed back toward the woman hanging on his arm, her shocked gaze met by his filled with provocation.<br/><br/>"Such accusations are not necessary within another man's house, Madam Randolph. I would caution you to be more selective with the thoughts you voice. Envy is never a becoming jewel for a woman to wear."<br/><br/>At his sudden vocal hardening, the others took their cue and stood from their places readying to, gladly, escort the woman out of the home they had invaded.<br/><br/>"I do believe that the gathering has come to a close." Kaeden concluded with rock hard severity.<br/>"Sir Kaeden!" Lissa had snapped, broken by the call of her actions, "You have absolutely no right to force us out of this home. You are not it's master, nor are you ours-"<br/>"Dear lady, I can escort you, as a gentleman, to the door of this manor..." he interjected in a frozen tone, "Or, as the captain of the guard to the boundaries of the estate."<br/><br/>It was obvious the lady was taken aback by his benign threat and sought not to "dignify" such audacity with a reply.<br/><br/>"It seems we are no longer welcome with in this house, ladies." She hissed through clenched teeth, her dagger-like stare fixated on Kaeden's empty expression.<br/><br/>The girls gathered their skirts and walked toward the door, slipping down the obviously familiar halls toward the entrance and their exit. None thought to give a second glance at the boys, save for the lovestruck young lady Randolph who was reluctant to leave Tolan's side regardless of what had just taken place. He expressed his disappointment at how the evening had turned out and urged her on her way.<br/><br/>"What a terrible thing to say..." Tolan mused aloud.<br/>"I can't believe they would accuse Lady Lhurriel of such a thing," William joined in, "There's no possible way she could be of such a manner."<br/>"And they call themselves Ladies." Hawk spat.<br/>"Rohwik is more of a courtly lady than any of them." Mumbled Ghestin loudly with a shake of his head.<br/><br/>All glanced towards the larger man, a smirk pulling at the corner of Kaeden's lips, a growl from within Hawk's chest, and a chuckle sounding from Tolan.<br/><br/>"But.. He's a lecherous hack..." William wondered curiously and was promptly silenced by a fist to the back of his head.<br/><br/>They decided it was time to turn in for the night, knowing well that they would continue onward to seek the stolen treasure. Kaeden opted to remain and actually try and finish one cup of tea before the night was out. He sat down in a velvet armchair turned toward a window and sighed, sipping at the warm tea Lhurriel had intended for him to drink.