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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 23, 2011 14:08:27 GMT -5
[I'm going to timeskip to the next morning. Francis can have done whatever you like -- have woken up in the morning and gone investigating, discovered stuff, etc. I'm just going to write whatever~]
The night actually went by a lot more peaceful. While there were moments where Arthur sat there and sniffed and whimpered during the night, by morning he was still relaxed in a peaceful sleep, his sleep not having been disturbed by the majority of the night.
Daylight and the lack of warmth beside him eventually woke him up, and he blearily blinked his eyes open. He still ached. He still couldn't remember a thing -- though now, there was the remembrance of images and odd dreams during the night, such as being on a ship, in a bar, in forests.... but it wasn't connecting.
He opened his eyes, grunted, and tried to pull himself up. He does remember yesterday, however. Things were looking up, he guessed.
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Post by Francis Bonnefoy on Nov 23, 2011 23:53:27 GMT -5
It was daybreak by the time Francis awoke, and he found that the man was clutching him as tightly as ever. But other than that, the man did not seem to be in any more pain or discomfort; in fact, this was the most relaxed Francis had ever seen him.
Francis couldn't help a little smile at the thought. As much as he would love to remain with the man and drift off to sleep again, Francis knew he had work to do. With a small sigh of disappointment, he gently disentangled himself from the man and sleepily pushed himself to stand.
He took one last look at his guest, patting his hair fondly, and left the room. Francis took only a few minutes to duck into his own room to dress himself in the simplest, most inconspicuous disguise he had, then left. With the household still stirring, it was easy for Francis to slip out the front door rather than the back, and he hurried north, where he could easily glean the most sordid and recent gossip in the city.
What snippets of conversations Francis could hear were updates on the usual neighborhood drama and some scandals about celebrities and nobles, some even about Francis himself - all the usual, although he did hear one or two worried whispers about a pirate ship being spotted nearby.
It was mid-morning by the time Francis decided he had listened in enough and decided to head home. He slipped in by the back this time and hurried to his room to change, making sure not even his servants spotted him. Dressed and ready, he ventured into his guest's room to check on him, knocking and entering tentatively.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 24, 2011 17:38:24 GMT -5
Arthur was sat up in bed, knees gently to his chest and still curled up in some way. As the door opened he did look a bit wary at who was walking through, but at seeing it was Francis his expression relaxed. In fact, he let out an involuntary, soft smile.
"Francis." He remarks, in greeting, in remembrance. One of the Maids must've spotted him awake before he has a cup of tea to his chest, hands warming up and sitting at it lightly. There was, after all, nothing quite like a cup of tea to soothe some aches and pains.
He looks curiously at the other. There does seem more colour in his face, more life. ".... You... been out?...." Well, he did wake up alone...
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Post by Francis Bonnefoy on Nov 26, 2011 13:04:59 GMT -5
Francis positively brightened when he found that the man recognized him and even remembered his name. Nodding, Francis reached out to place his hand comfortingly over the man's, squeezing lightly.
"Yes, my dear. I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up. I hope you weren't frightened."
He paused for a moment, eyes roving over the man's face to examine the cuts and bruises. The discolorations were fading, and the cuts seemed to be healing well.
"You look much better," said Francis with a smile. "I believe you won't even have a scar to show for all this. Come, let's have some breakfast and I'll tell you what I've been up to. I went out to town this morning to see if anyone was looking for you, actually."
Francis took the man's hand and tugged at him gently to stand, then led him into the kitchens.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 26, 2011 17:25:25 GMT -5
At that, he blinks, both a little surprised and worried.
".... There'll be people looking for me? .... P-People are looking for me?..."
He hadn't expected that. He wouldn't have thought he'd have been important enough for people to notice he'd been hurt. Were the people looking for him good?
He frowns, worriedly, as they step into the Kitchen. The Maid, the same maid who had bandaged him up yesterday and gave him the tea this morning, smiled politely at him as she finished clearing the table, and Arthur couldn't help but give a shy smile back.
He sits down, and breakfast is put in front of him. He blinks.
".... Y-You have?. Why?..."
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Post by Francis Bonnefoy on Nov 26, 2011 17:58:09 GMT -5
Francis did not miss the way the man caught the maid's eye, and he felt an unpleasant little spike in his gut. He cleared his throat and helped the man into a seat, dismissing the maid with an abrupt thanks. But Francis caught himself, and tried to busy himself to hide his slight embarrassment.
"Of course there will be people looking for you," he said softly. "I'm sure there are many people who love you and are worried about you right now." He shot the man a smile over his shoulder. "And yes, I went out. I want to help you, you know."
Francis set a breakfast tray before his guest, brushing his hair from his face before retrieving a teapot and a teacup.
"I noticed you like tea. How do you like it?" he asked, pouring it out for his guest. "Anyway, I want to help you find out who you are. So that your memories can return and you can be happy again."
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 26, 2011 18:09:18 GMT -5
As the tea was set before him, and when he noticed properly that he'd been given scones of all things he couldn't help but let his cheeks colour from happiness. God, he loved tea. He loved it so much.
Gently taking it and taking a sip, he paused, looking up sadly at the other. "... What if my memories aren't happy..."
His dreams at night certainly didn't give off a joyful vibe to them.
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Post by Francis Bonnefoy on Nov 26, 2011 19:06:22 GMT -5
Settling into a seat beside his guest, Francis patted the man's hand comfortingly. For some reason, Francis felt that he couldn't bear to see the man unhappy. To see the man in pain and fear once more...
Francis felt something twist in his gut.
"Well," murmured Francis, "it's never too late to start being happy, isn't it? And if you need help with that, or anything else, really, you have me now."
Francis let out a little chuckle, but he couldn't help being a little worried that his words wouldn't be taken well. He hurried on before the man could reply.
"Anyway, I'm sorry to say I haven't found out too many good hints this morning, so I intend to ask around later. All I found out was the usual gossip."
Francis shrugged. "Most of the rumors are just scandals. You should hear just how ridiculous they are! I apparently fathered no less than eight children, the baker's wife is a long-lost daughter of a Draconian, the tailor's sister and the solicitor's wife are feuding over a handsome huntsman, and so on..." He sighed. "The only rumor that's not caused insanity is a ship spotted in the outskirts of the city, but even that's caused some anxiety."
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Nov 26, 2011 19:19:09 GMT -5
And that was it. As soon as Francis had said the word 'ship', Arthur's froze to the spot.
It had been nagging him since he came out with it last night. He'd dreamed about it. It wasn't until Arthur had heard the word repeated by the Frenchman, to be noted of some truth to the word, did it all come rushing back.
His eyes widened, and his tea clattered back onto the table, sloshing a little. His head hung. Damnit, damnit.... His crew would be looking for him. They would be wondering where he'd gotten to.
As he speaks, there's a sudden familiarity to the tone of his voice.
"I-I need to go."
He looks up, and all the innocence in his eyes has gone; hidden behind a fiercely guarded expression on his eyes. Cold, almost. Hiding away years of pain and bitterness.
But as he looks at Francis, something else causes recognition, and his eyes widen once again.
".... Shit...."
He knew where he'd known Francis from before. He could remember.
He struggles to get out of his seat, suddenly wanting to run away. The shame of being in this sort of position was hitting him like a brick.
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Post by Francis Bonnefoy on Nov 26, 2011 19:33:52 GMT -5
The man's eerie stillness and shocked expression alarmed Francis greatly. Was it something he said? He couldn't see how the rumors could upset the man so.
"Are you - ?"
Francis was cut off by the teacup dropping onto the table. The stranger's transformation had Francis fixated and perplexed at the same time; it was so abrupt and the man just suddenly became...someone else. The man's eyes were no longer wide and trusting, and his posture was suddenly stiff. He flinched slightly at the man's brusque tone.
"Wait - " He made an aborted move to touch the man's arm. His hand dropped limply back to the table instead. "Please tell me if I offended you. You don't have to go yet."
Francis peered at the man concernedly. "What is wrong?"
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