The Strangers in the Palace (Closed)(Fantasy)

(ooo wait. Muria has control-y powers. Rinlos has control-y powers. Can they control each other? Or would they be immune to each other's control?)

Rin frowned, staring down at that note for a long, long moment. "Why in the hell would she want to see me?" he asked, glancing between the two men, then down at that note again. "I shouldn't mean anything to… oh." he had been the initial suspect in Arquis's poisoning. He was the one that Arquis had run off with. Even if Muria knew nothing of his and Arquis's relationship, he was still a person of interest in some way, and they were going to have to figure out how to navigate this. It was going to be… complicated. There was no way that she would know who he really was, whether that be his identity as the king's nephew, or the far more deeply hidden secret of being the king's bastard. She would only have reason to suspect him as a bard, but it was stilll… worrying.

"She wouldn't hurt you. MOst likely she'll… I don't know, probably try to intimidate you." Ari said, trying to reassure his friend about this, even though he was just as worried as Rin was about this whole thing.

(I imagine it'd probably be a battle of wills type situation? where obviously whoever goes first has the advantage, but after that it depends on how well they're able to concentrate and maintain their power over the other—it'd probably get exhausting pretty fast)

Honey leaned over and bumped his shoulder against Rin's, trying on what he hoped was an encouraging smile. "Hey, maybe she'll slip up and you'll get something that you can share with Arquis. You could use this as a chance to try and get the upper hand. She definitely can't hurt you right now. Not while the High Court's here, and while all of these guards are around, too. That'd be a horrible choice. She's probably just hoping to rattle you. But maybe you can rattle her, instead."

He got up, tidied up their dishes and swept any breadcrumbs into a napkin to toss out, and then closed Rin's fingers around the note. His brown eyes seemed to glow with determination. He patted him on arm, then clasped their shoulder, his smile growing.

"Try and think of ways you could throw her off her game. Think about anything Arquis might've told you that you can use against her. Don't hold back. See what she'll tell you, yeah? Inviting you up there could be a big mistake on her part."

(ooo makes sense makes sense)

Rin looked at Honey, taking in his words and nodding quickly. "You're right. I… Arquis never really talked about her much. I… I think he was scared of her." he looked down at his hands for a moment, and remembered the scars that covered Arquis's. He still didn't know where those scars came from, but it was suspicious how many of them there were. "Really scared. I… i don't know what she did to him, but it wasn't anything good." Arquis had never said anything positive about either of his parents, really, but his father was dead so it didn't matter quite as much. But here, Muria and the things she did were so, so important, so what was Rinlos to do but try and remember what scant details that Arquis had told him about her?

"Well, she can't do anything to you." Ari said. He was loathe to reveal Rin's abilities without their permission. "You… well. You'll be fine." he cocked his head faintly, reaching out to gently touch Rin's shoulder, trying to help soothe him.

Rin frowned faintly, but nodded. "Yeah, there is that." he looked down at his food again, then set it aside. "I'm… not that hungry right now." he admitted. "SO, well… i might head to MUria's now. Get it over with." he gave the other two a faint, rather forced smile. "May as well get it done, yeah? And you guys can… get some rest while I'm gone." he moved over to his bag, pulling out some fresh clothes. "I'm going to wash my face, change, and then go." so he went into the bathroom, closing the door behind himself.

Honey watched Rin go, his determined expression softening into a look of quiet concern. He'd meant what he'd said. There was nothing Muria could do to them to hurt him while so many guests were at the Palace. Not if she wanted the trial to go well, at least. He was pretty sure stabbing or poisoning her son's partner wouldn't go over well with the High Court. But that left the question of what she actually wanted to talk to them about. It was possible he'd been spot on and this was her way of getting in their head, maybe even her attempt to get him to leave Arquis for good. She was very wealthy. Maybe she'd try and bribe them to stay away. Who knew what her real goals were, besides winning the trial. He could sit there and guess at her motives forever, and he still might not get it right. She was a rogue element, bound to cause chaos and leave catastrophe in her wake.

"I've been thinking through things," he said to Ari. "During the carriage ride here, I mean. I can't stop wondering why she called the trial. Why now? Why not before he left? What changed? What evidence does she have that she didn't before? Or, if she doesn't have anything new, why is she suddenly more desperate? I feel like there's so much we don’t know.”

Ari looked over at Honey, listening to his questions. "I don't… i don't know. It's strange, and it's a little bit worrying." he replied, voice quiet so that Rin wouldn't hear it through the door. "I don't know much about the Anvillean legal system, but… for her to call in the high court, she has to be pretty confident in her ability to win, which…" he glanced to the door to ensure it was still shut, then looked over at Honey again. "It doesn't bode well for Arquis. He… I hope he's innocent, and I hope he wins this, but…."

The door opened, and Rin came out, face freshly washed and a fresh set of clothes on. "I'm, uh, going to go talk to Muria, then. I'll be back." he gave them both a faint smile, and then they left the room, footsteps quiet as they headed towards where they were pretty sure that Muria's room was. They had been there once, after all, with Quirisa, so they were pretty sure that he could find the way there again. And if he got lost, well, he would just have to ask a servant to guide him there. But, luckily for him, he did remember the way correctly, and he came to a stop in front of her door and, as the note had said to, knocked just once.

(I'm going to guess that we can maybe skip over Ari and Honey for now just cause I don't imagine they'll be doing much more than waiting for Rin to come back?)

It took a moment, but Muria finally answered the door. She was wearing a sheer black robe over a short black nightgown that fell to right below her knees. The long sleeves and bottom of the robe were decorated with dark feathers that brushed against floor whenever she moved, giving her the illusion that she was drifting rather than walking. The top of the robe was low cut, revealing a large, polished ruby on a thin necklace that stopped right at her chest. She was wearing dark red lipstick to match but only a hint of eye makeup. Her natural face was beautiful yet sharp, resembling her daughter's in a way, though much more reserved. Her hair was also a good deal longer than Quirisa's, and she wore it in loose, dark waves, carefully styled to look effortless.

"Come in." Without waiting to see if they actually did or not, she stepped into her room. She had two chairs set up around a small side table. The table bore three lit candles, two glasses, and a bottle of wine. The candles were the only light source in the room besides what little moonlight came in through the curtains. That wasn't to say the room was dark, exactly, but dim, with shadows dancing around the corners of her vision. "And close that door, if you do not mind. The halls can get rather loud."

She drifted over to one of the chairs and took a seat, elegantly folding one leg over the other. She wasn't wearing shoes, though she did have on gauzy black stockings that stopped at her mid calf.

"Have some wine," she said as she filled the two glasses. The bottle had already been uncorked. The wine inside was as red as her necklace. She picked up one glass when she was done filling it and held it out to him.

(sounds good to me!)

He watched Muria, a little bit unsure what to do with this whole thing, but they closed the door as he came in, clearing his throat slightly. But they didn't yet speak, just waited to see what Muria wanted from him. He took the wine, wondering for a moment if this, too, was poisoned. If she had been willing to poison her own son, would she not be willing to poison him? Ah, but that would be a risky move on her part. She seemed like a smart woman. The likelihood of the wine being poisoned was slim. And, well, he had come here with two different doctors. So it would be fine. "Thank you." he said as he took the wine, and then he took a small sip of it, careful not to make any movements that could be construed as threatening. Perhaps he was overthinking all of this, but, well, it really didn't feel like they were.

Muria watched them, an amused smile playing at her lips. She sipped from her glass and set it down, her smile not wavering. The candlelight shone softly through her glass and illuminated the red lipstick smudge she'd left on the rim.

"You seem tense. I suppose I cannot blame you, given the circumstances." She stroked her hand along her sleeve until she reached the the feathers at the end. A loose feather fell to her lap, and she swept it away. Her smile had finally faded. When she looked back at Rin, her eyes were dark. She took her glass up again but didn't drink. For a moment, she didn't speak, either, letting silence fill the room.

"You must have a very poor opinion of me. I know how it must look, a mother calling a trial to prosecute her own son. And I cannot even begin to imagine what my son might have told you about his life here." She swirled the wine around in her glass, careful not to spill a single drop. "He was such a polite child, so kind and well-mannered. Less adventurous than my Quirisa, she was always the one that would get them into trouble. They were quite the pair, the two of them. But that was a long time ago. They have both changed. Quirisa became like her father, in the sense that she is as headstrong as he was. So determined, so stubborn. And as for my Arquis,” she sighed, genuine sadness coloring her tone, “he is just so very lost. He is not well. He has not been for a rather long time. I am sure you have noticed it.”

Rin watched her carefully, listening as she spoke but not quite trusting any word that left her mouth. "I see." he replied, voice slow and careful. He continued to watch her, turning her words over in his head. "And I will be hoenst, I am not quite sure what you were referring to. Are you referring to the eating disorder that he suffers from?" he didn't want to say anything that could damage Arquis in the trial, but surely talking about the eating disorder would not do that much damage. "I know that it is a hard topic for him. But if you are referring to something else, then I am afraid that you will have to be a little bit more clear." he gave her a coolly polite smile. "I am only a bard, I do not pretend to understand the intricacies of everything here."

He tilted his wine glass about, watching the wine swish around the sides, before his gaze slowly flickered back over to Muria.

Muria hummed softly and tapped her fingernail against her glass. She took another, deeper sip, before tilting her head back and looking up at the ceiling.

"That is part of it, certainly. He has become so frail that I hardly recognize him most of the time. I did try and help him, although I know now that I should have been more direct. I should have confronted him about all of this much, much sooner, I just, ah…" Her lips trembled and she closed her eyes. When she spoke again, it was quiet and mournful, the tone one would take at a funeral. "You are so young, bard. You cannot imagine what it is like to lose your husband and sister in the same day, and then your son, later, when you find out what he has done. His body is not well, but his mind is worse—that is what I meant. He is so fragile. I did not want to break him, but I let it go too far."

She did not speak again for a moment. From downstairs, the sound of chatter floated up, a faint yet constant hum. Muria pushed her hair back from her face and looked at Rin directly, her gaze earnest.

"I was afraid for you. When I finally figured out that he had gone off with you, when my Quirisa confessed the truth of where he was, I feared for your safety. He is not a violent person, but he is ill. He acts out and then cannot remember what he has done. I think that is part of why he has made himself so frail. He is punishing himself out of guilt. I do not want to see him suffer any longer. Do you?"

Arquis was fragile in some ways, Rin had seen that evidence for himself, but he disliked the way that Muria was talking about him. It felt wrong. "Arquis would not have hurt me, though I appreciate your apparent concern." they replied. "And of course i do not wish to see him suffer any longer, though i do not know that the solution is to call a trial where either he dies, or you do." he tipped his head to the side, raising his eyebrows for just a moment. Muria seemed genuine, which was… interesting. Did she truly believe the things she was saying, or was she a good liar?

He hated to consider the other option: that she was right. That the sweet, nervous version of Arquis that Rinlos knew was not the true version. That he had been deceived yet again by a nobleman, manipulated yet again into a false relationship. But… but no, that could not be it. It could not be. His sisters would not have taken his side against muria, if that were true.

Muria pinched the bridge of her nose with her free hand, the other still holding the stem of her glass, and screwed her eyes shut again. The whole subject seemed to pain her. She turned her head away for a moment, and her shoulders rose and fell quickly as she let out a shuddering breath, like she was trying not to cry. In fact, when she looked back, her cheeks and lashes were wet. She dabbed at her face with a handkerchief that she pulled from her gown.

"I am sorry, I did not mean to get so emotional. This was just meant to be a brief talk. It is only that I have asked wondered about that myself so many times over the past days. But every time I consider calling the trial off and dying in his stead, I remember the look he wore when he confessed to me what he had done, how tortured he had seemed, yet relieved. I knew that he and my husband had their issues, but to commit such an atrocity—I would not have thought him capable of it. He really had been so kind as a child. And I believe that kindness still exists in him, which is why the trial is necessary. If he were only a danger to himself, then I would choose another option, but, well, ah…"

She suddenly looked a bit worried, as if she'd said too much. In a murmur, she continued, "Has he shown you his hands? He hardly removes his gloves, but I imagine if you two were at all close, as I suspect you were based on your confidence in him, then you might have seen his hands. They are scarred. Terribly, terribly scarred. When I saw those scars, I wondered who would do such a thing to him. I was shocked to learn that he had done it himself. He told me that they were his way of satiating his urges. Whenever he would think of harming another, he would- he would-" Her hands trembled, so much so that her wine was at risk of spilling. She put the glass aside and cupped her hands in her lap. "It is simply awful to think about. My poor boy, tearing himself apart. But it is even worse to think that he still has such urges, and that he may act on them once again.”

(i legitimately cannot remember if Rin knows Arquis's ability or not. I feel like he does?? But i'm not sure)

Rin could see Arquis's hands in his mind's eye, and his first reaction was to doubt her words. Of course Arquis wouldn't do that to himself. He had never harmed anyone or even really threatened anyone the whole time Rin had been near him. And no new scars had occurred once Arquis was away from the palace. Arquis had never told him where they were from, though. And the nobleman had always hinted that there was something in his past, something terrible. They remembered the meltdown, on the bathroom floor, where Arquis had barely been able to breathe from a panic attack about whatever this dark past was.

"I'm sorry, I'm not quite understanding. Are you saying that you believe Arquis killed his father?" he asked, brows pulling together just a little bit. He was… loathe to believe that. He really was. But, well, it would explain the way that Arquis had always felt so weird about talking about Aurisi, talking about his family, and his past. But he also felt like there had to be something else. Even if Arquis had killed Aurisi, there had to be a reason.

(yeah, so for a brief recap Rin knows what Arquis's power is, and he knows vaguely that he's used it before for something that upset him, but Arquis never explained what that thing was, how he used it, etc.—Rin also doesn't know Marsiquia or Muria's powers, though they do know Quirisa's)

Muria looked down when they said it out loud, seemingly ashamed. She'd been dancing around it with pretty words and implications, but Rin had gone ahead and put it out in the open. She nodded and dabbed at her eyes again.

"That is the charge I am bringing against him, yes. I know it might sound absurd. He is so fragile that accusing him of taking the life of his father, who was so strong, seems almost laughable. But when he confessed to me what he had done, I—and I hesitate to even say it, I do—but I swear that he looked as if he was glad to have done it."

The accusation hung heavily in the air. She shivered, seemingly replaying the confession in her mind. When it was done, she directed her focus back to Rin.

"He did not love his father, bard. I understand it. I do. Aurisi could be difficult." For a brief moment, she smiled fondly, but it faded. "He was stern with Arquis, but he was just trying to set a good example. Deep down, I would like to think that my son knows this, and that he truly did not mean to hurt anyone. As I said, I believe he went into a state, where he was not quite of sound mind. I also believe that it is the same state he goes into when he…” She paused, taking a deep breath. “When he wounds himself. His hands, his body—I believe a part of him is drawn to pain.”

(cool thanks! I knew he didn't know Muria's and Marsi's, but ngl i forgot that he knew Quirisa's)

Rin was quiet, listening to Muria speak, and then he shrugged a shoulder. "Well, either way, I'm sure the truth will come out in the trial." he responded evenly. "Is that not what trials are for?" he tipped his head faintly, swishing his wine around the glass again and then looking back at Muria again, giving her a faint, tight lipped smile. "Or at least, I have been raised to believe that that is what they are intended for." he knew that trials were so often a farce, a facade of justice. a pretense, full of far too many lies.

He didn't know what to hope for, in this trial, beyond Arquis's life. That was all he wanted, even if he was still so angry with Arquis for lying to him, for covering things up. God, what could he even say to Muria? Nothing about that anger, surely.

(yeah hers was only shown at like the beginning of this whole thing kind of so it's been a while)

Muria studied them, her expression hardening. The shift was subtle but evident in the slight crease of her brow and the way she pursed her lips. She took up her glass again and drank the remainder of the wine within.

"You are correct, of course. The truth will come out, just as I have told you. My only purpose in bringing you here was to prepare you for hearing it. The trial will be tremendously difficult. I thought I might do you a favor and ready you for the turmoil it will bring." She stroked a finger down her necklace until she got to the ruby at the end. It took up half of her palm when she held it in her hand. "To thank you for coming and listening to me talk about what happened, I will do you another favor. I heard from a guard that no one is allowed to see Arquis until tomorrow night. In the morning, I will ask the High Court if it is possible that he might receive visitors starting in the afternoon instead. I do not wish for them to deprive you of spending time with him, and I imagine that Quirisa wants to see him as well. She deserves to know the truth. Perhaps you can help explain it to her, if he does not.”

(yeah makes sense!)

Rin did catch that faint hardening of her expression, but he did not remark on it. He had a feeling tht it, perhaps, would not be wise to draw too much attention to it, as Muria might not take it very well. "Yes, ah, thank you for that. I would like to see him." though he had a feeling that, perhaps, every conversation that they had with Arquis, someone would be listening in on it. He didn't know if he could actually discuss any of this with Arquis, not truthfully, not really. Which was aggravating. He ran a hand through his hair, keeping an eye on Muria. "And I'm sure I can speak with Quirisa, get everything, uh, discussed."

With nothing more left to be said, Muria gave them a nod and a polite smile. She reached out for the wine bottle, but rather than pour herself another glass, she held it out to them. There was still plenty of wine left. They'd really only had a bit.

"I am sure you must be exhausted from your journey. My apologies if I have prevented you from resting. You will need every bit of your strength with you tomorrow. It will undoubtedly be an emotional day." Her tone grew sad, and she looked suddenly wistful. "I am sorry that it will be one of your last days with him. I cannot pretend to know the full extent of your friendship with my son, but I know that you care about him, or else you would not have returned. But then, perhaps it is a blessing to know how little time you have left. I wish I had known that my final day with Aurisi would be our last together. I would have done so much differently. Do not waste your chance, bard. Do all that you wish to do and prepare to say goodbye.”

Rin took a final swallow of his wine, then stood. "Yes, well. It's not exactly what I want to happen, but." he left that sentence at that, setting his wine glass back down on the table. He was quiet for another long moment, considering. "Unless you have anything else to add to the things that have already been said, then I shall be taking my leave. Thank you for the wine, and for the… conversation." the conversation had been interesting, that was certain. How much of it was true, he wasn't sure.

Muria stood, walked to the door, opened it for them, and turned to press the wine bottle into his hand. She moved swiftly, without warning, and touched their shoulder all of the sudden, though her grip was light. She stared into the bard's eyes for a long moment. Her own flickered back and forth, as if she was reading him like a book. When she was done, she looked away, but she kept her hand on his shoulder and didn't step back.

"Bard. Arquis will be gone very soon. I mean it when I say that you should treasure your time with him." Even if everything else she'd said that night had been a lie, which would be a hard assumption to make given how genuine her tears had seemed, there was no doubting that she was telling the truth now. "If I do not see you tomorrow, then I wish you good luck at the trial. And I hope that you do not wait around to watch what will come after. You do not need to see that.”

Rin stiffened under her touch, but didn't pull away. He just listened, waited for her to finish. "I understand." he replied. "And thank you for your concerns. But I… well." he broke off, shaking his head just a little bit. "It doesn't matter. Thank you, for the concern, it is well-meant." or at least, it seemed to be, and no matter what the story here was, it felt like Muria's concerns were at least meant. They waited another moment. "I will spend what time with him that I can." he cleared his throat, and opened the door, the wine bottle in his hand. "Thank you for the wine." and then he left, exhaling as he walked away from her door. That conversation had been… well, it had been tough.

Back in Arquis's room, Honey was starfished out on the nobleman's large bed, his face buried in one of his pillows. He couldn't quit noticing how wonderful everything smelled, as silly as that sounded. The sheets had been laundered recently, the bookshelves had been cleaned with something that smelled of citrus, and there was an underlying, earthy scent that he didn't know. He guessed that it was some kind of harp polish, since he'd never really been close to many harps before. The one that Arquis owned was, like the rest of the Palace, gorgeous. He wondered if he could get Arquis to play it for them, then frowned, remembering the situation they were in.

"Must be nice to live in a place like this," he remarked to Ari, yawning. The carriage ride had tired him out. "I mean, besides all the, y'know. The bad stuff."

Someone knocked at the door. Honey groaned loudly and rolled out of bed, expecting it to be Rin, but was surprised to see Ophia standing there. She looked like she was about to collapse from exhaustion—she and Doctor Lavin had taken shifts driving the carriage, but it was still a lot of work—though otherwise alright.

"Just checking in on you guys. Sorry that Ambrose and I basically ran off earlier, we just wanted to get everything up to the room." She peered into the room, then down the hall. "Hey, where’s your friend, sweetie? Where's Rin?"

Ari hummed in agreement with Honey's statement, then looked up as the door opened. "Ah– Muria summoned Rinlos to come and speak with her." he replied. "They should be back soon, I… think." he glanced at the door, a touch worried about Rinlos, but figuring that the bard would be fine. There was no reason he wouldn't be, right?

Rin was walking slowly, the wine bottle in his hand. Why had Muria given it to him? They didn't really want to drink the whole bottle, and it would probably be bad if he brought it back to Honey. The man had been trying to steer clear of alcohol. But… it would be rude to just toss it. So… maybe he would just bring it back to the room? Nobody had to drink it, and they could always dump it down the sink if need be.

Ophia blinked, her eyes wide behind her glasses. "Muria? As in, Arquis's mom, Muria? The Muria who called the trial? That Muria?"

Honey grimaced. "Yeah, that Muria."

"Oh, goodness gracious. What an ordeal this whole thing has been. I hope they're all right. I can't imagine that's a comfortable situation for him to be in, especially without Arquis there, but I'm sure he'll be just fine."

"Probably. And like Ari said, he'll probably be back any second." Honey peered around her, hoping that Rin would come walking up. When they didn't, he shrugged and looked back at Ophia. "You guys all good? Your rooms okay?"

"Hm? Yes, the room they gave us is great, I have no complaints."

"Room? One singular room?" Honey grinned over his shoulder at Ari, then playfully nudged Ophia on the arm. "Is there only one bed, too?"

"We're adults, not hormonal teenagers, Honey. We can share a bed without it being a big deal. It's fine. If I need to, I can sleep on the floor." Despite her words, she had gone bright red. "It's really fine."

Ari returned Honey's grin, coming over and wrapping an arm around the blond, leaning his head on Honey's shoulder. "Aw, Ophia, don't sleep on the floor, that won't be comfortable. Like you said, you're both adults. You can share a bed." but the corner of his mouth was still quirked in a faint, mischevious smile.

Rin used the time he had while walking to collect himself a bit more, collect his thoughts. And then he was at Arquis's room, and Ophia was there. "Hey." he greeted, leaning against the doorframe for a moment. Now that he was away from Muria, he felt even more tired. Gods. This whole thing was just exhausting, and he didn't know what to do about it, what to say. It was awful. "Hey, Ophia."

Ophia went from blushing to beaming when Ari cozied up to Honey. When Rin came in, however, her cheeriness fizzled out. They looked miserable. She hadn't known him for long, no more than a couple days, and yet she already had such a soft spot for them. He was friends with Honey, and by association, that made him part of her flock. She felt like she had a duty to protect all of them, even if they weren't her kids. Or, for that matter, kids at all. She still kind of considered Honey her child, which meant that even though she logically knew that he was an adult who could make his own choices, she still wanted to care for him.

"Hi, Rin. You look tired. Why don't you go sit down on the bed for a minute, hm?"

"Uh oh, Rin. That's her doctor voice. That means you gotta do what she says," Honey teased. He could tell Rin was worn out, but he hoped he could lighten his mood, if just for a bit. He raised a brow when he saw the bottle of wine. "Huh. Planning on getting yourself nice and wasted? Not sure you'll want a hangover tomorrow."

Rin sighed faintly, then glanced down at the bottle. "Oh, no, Muria gave this to me. I… thought it would be rude to refuse, but I wasn't planning on drinking the rest of it." he replied, holding it up with a frown. "I don't want to be wasted tomorrow." his mouth pinched, and he stared at it for a moment, tipping it from side to side and watching as the wine sloshed around from side to side. "Maybe I'll save it. If Arquis loses, I think I'll need it."

Ari's shoulders fell slightly, and he let go of Honey to reach out and take the bottle from Rin, setting it on a side table and then taking his friend's hands. "Rinlos, don't talk like that. Things are going to work out fine. How about you change into something more comfortable, and you get some sleep?"

Honey picked up the bottle after Ari put it aside, considered it, and then, without saying a word, went into the bathroom and began to pour it down the drain. He knew that it was probably worth more than anything he owned, but he didn't care. He just watched it drain before tossing the empty bottle into the bathroom trash can. It shattered on impact. Luckily, the broken pieces tumbled into the trash with the rest of the bottle.

He re-entered the room with a grim smile. Ophia gestured for him to explain, and he said, "Ari's right, Rin. You didn't need to keep that around 'cause you're not going to need it. Okay? No more thinking like that. From here on out, when we think about the trial, we think about ways to help Arquis win. He's going to win. We're going to do whatever we can to make sure that he does."

"I could ask Ambrose to testify," Ophia piped up. "I mean, only if he needs to. I’m not sure when it would be relevant. But if there's a circumstance where, I don't know, the High Court asks about Arquis's health or needs a credible source for medical information, then I'm sure Ambrose would be happy to step in. He is technically still Arquis's doctor, after all."

"Muria…" he trailed off, glancing down the open hallway, and then stepped inside so that he could close the door. "Muria thinks Arquis is violent. And… and that he killed his father and his aunt. And that he'd kill someone again. And I don't… I can't…" he couldn't see Arquis killing someone without a reason, couldn't see him being the gleeful, remorseless murderer that Muria had painted an image of as she spoke. But still. He looked over at Ophia. "And I don't know if Dr Lavin testifying would help, I…"

Ari took a deep breath, pulling Rin into a hug. "Come here." he said softly, rubbing Rin's back to try and help soothe him. "Things are going to be fine, Rinlos. You are tired, and worn out, and stressed. You don't need to think about all of this right now."

(Arquis not being here is weird, I've gotten so used to writing him)

Honey stepped closer, then hesitated, unsure of how he fit into the picture. Ari was Rin's best friend, he knew how to comfort them better than probably anyone else. It made him a little sad and, though he wouldn't admit it, jealous. He'd never had a best friend before, just Lovey. The two of them were close, but he knew it wasn't the same. There were a lot of things he didn't tell her, and besides, she had other friends. He supposed he also had Ophia, but before recently, they really hadn't seen each other that often—just whenever Honey was hurt to the point he couldn't manage it on his own. And she was closer to his mom than his friend, anyways.

He shook that train of thought from his mind and tried to focus on what was important: helping Rin. They'd had such a long few days, and the days to come would likely be even harder.

"Look, all that stuff she said—don't pay attention to any of that. Remember how I told you that she was just trying to rattle you? That's all that was. She was trying to get in your head.” He wasn’t sure he believed that, but it wouldn’t help Rin to say that, so he kept going. “So don't think about it anymore, and let's get you in bed like Ari said so that you'll be ready to talk to Arquis tomorrow, yeah?"