Welcome to Aldrect! Here you'll see vast, towering buildings of pure alabaster and marble, and the business of the townsfolk. The religion of the Holy Triumvirate was begun here, and in the center of the city is a grand fountain of the gods. (+2 Defense, +2 Fame)

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[K14] [P14]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 12:31 AM

"Kuzey?" Primrose called out from a little ways ahead, turning to face him. "Since we got this extra money from Caldwell..." she said, pulling out the small satchel, "... what do you think about... about staying at a hotel for the night?"

Kuzey was catching up to her as she spoke, and when he reached her, he blinked. "A hotel?" he echoed, and his questioning made her look away sheepishly.

"Well, yes," she said. "I mean, this last fight was rough, and..." She paused, her hands fiddling with the pouch. "And I thought it'd be nice. For one night," she admitted, her voice growing quieter. They usually found ways to sleep out there in the forests and wherever they were in the wilderness. Staying in one place for long wasn't really something they could afford, being considered fugitives by an aggressive kingdom — but this celebration just might be their ticket for a nice night, for once.

Kuzey looked down at her in silence. He was used to this type of traveling: sleeping in the wild, walking for the majority of the day, fighting off bandits and aggressive wild animals. It was a lifestyle he'd chosen, and a lifestyle that he was used to. That being said, that wasn't the case for someone like Primrose, who had been born and raised in royalty, and as a woman, who hadn't been taught how to survive through those things. The fact she'd sacrificed so many of those conveniences up until this point was truly impressive.
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 12:40 AM

Seeing as he wasn't answering, Primrose felt silly for asking. "Unless— Unless you'd prefer that we keep the money for emergencies, that's—"

"We can go to a hotel," Kuzey interrupted her, raising his hand to quiet her. "We can use the money." If only for her sake, paying this kind of luxury might help Primrose's morale.

She stared at him in shock for a moment. "Are— Are you sure?" she asked, mouth agape.

"Yes," he assured her. He looked around a little, and after a moment of silence, he said, "The town looks and feels peaceful." Caldwell just might've been right: perhaps they really would be safe here for a time.

Primrose clearly did her best to withhold her excitement, but she smiled brightly as Kuzey agreed and confirmed that the town felt safe enough. "Oh, I'm so glad," she admitted, her voice going high-pitched just a bit. "Come, I'm sure it'll do you good too!" she as she grabbed his arm with both hands and dragged him along the golden streets in search of a nice hotel.
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 8:12 PM

Walking through the crowded and festive streets of Aldrect was the hardest part of finding a hotel for the night. Surprisingly, the majority were still marked "Vacant", and so the pair walked into the first one that looked like a decent hotel.

The lobby was busy, but the atmosphere definitely had a certain "chic" to it from its red carpets and golden staircases and furniture — but who knew if the golden decorations were for the celebration, or if they were sporting these normally. The lobby also had couches and a dinning room a little further down in the back, and finally, the reception desk was ready for the customers.

"Yes, hello!" one of the receptionists called out to the two, and both Primrose and Kuzey looked towards him. "May I help you two lovebirds this fine night?" he added with a large smile.

The question had been friendly enough — but that one word. "L... love—"

"Excuse me?" Kuzey said, cutting Primrose's shocked response short.
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[K17] [P17]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 8:19 PM

"Oh, are you two not a couple?" the receptionist asked, looking a little sheepish. "Sincerest apologies! I saw the lovely lady's ring, and I just assumed!" he admitted. "But with this Festival of the Golden Thread, we have a discount for our lovely couples on this fine night of celebrations," he explained, clapping his hands together.

Primrose looked at the receptionist with shock on her face, and she hid her ring hand under her other hand; and while Kuzey didn't look happy at being called her boyfriend, he was internally wishing he could get this receptionist to clam it shut — right now. They hadn't even said anything yet.

"Why, not only can you get a nice room for a nice price," he continued, and as he spoke, he fiddled with something below the counter, "but we also have a multitude of golden trinkets you can borrow and buy!" he said, and he pulled up a spool of golden string. "Just as this beautiful golden string! Whether you're friends or lovers, tying this string around each other's wrists shows the bond you share! Tie yourselves up with all your friends too!"

The more this receptionist spoke, the more Kuzey wanted to shank him. Meanwhile, Primrose looked on with mixed feelings of curiosity and embarrassment.
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[K18] [P18]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 9:24 PM

"Of course, you two look like you're not from here! Travelers, I take it?" the receptionist noticed, and that was when Primrose saw this as her chance to stop this man in his monologue.

"Yes— Yes, we're travelers," she confirmed, and she quickly grabbed Kuzey by the arm. "We are travelers, my... my fiancée and I," she added, and she felt Kuzey glare at her.

The receptionist's smile grew even wider. "Oh, so you are a couple! Lovely, just lovely!" he said as he clapped his hands again. "Let me just see here what we have left for a room for you two," he said, turning his attention to his computer screen.

While he was busy doing that, Kuzey gritted his teeth and looked down at Primrose. "What are you doing?" he hissed under his breath, resisting the urge to yank his arm away.

"I'm getting us a cheap hotel room," she whispered back, and surprisingly sternly. "This guy doesn't know us, so what does it matter? This way we'll have even more money leftover."

Hearing it from anyone else, maybe he could've let it slide — but hearing it from a married, royal woman was absolutely surreal. "That street rat's attitude is rubbing off on you."
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[K19] [P19]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 10:43 PM

At those words, Primrose looked up at him and glared. "Don't call him that," she said sternly.

"All right, here we go!" the receptionist said, and that got both of them to look back to him; Primrose with a sheepish smile, and Kuzey with a stern expression. "I've got a beautiful bedroom with one of the most fantastic views of the city, if I say so myself, and with a whooping 50% discount! Being one half of one another, it only makes sense, don't you think?"

Ignoring the extravagant comments, Kuzey asked, "How many beds?"

There was a short moment of hesitation from the receptionist. "Just the one, of course," he replied matter-of-factly, wondering why he would want to confirm this.

Kuzey was about to argue and ask for a two-bed bedroom, but Primrose tugged on his arm and immediately said, "That would be lovely; thank you sir."

"Wonderful! Let me just put your down for the room," he said as he started typing things down, and he momentarily stopped to look back at the two. "I'll put the room down under the name of...?"
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[K20] [P20]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 10:57 PM

Primrose looked up at Kuzey when the topic came up, and she could see he was upset; visibly so. She could tell he was going to give her a hard time for all this, but for the time being, he played along. "Kuzey," he replied to the receptionist. "Put it under Kuzey."

"Not a problem," the receptionist said, and he went back to finalizing the room reservation. "And here you are!" he announced, turning around to pick up two card keys for the room, one for each of them. "And here are your keys for the room!" he said as he slid the two of them across the counter.

Kuzey took the both of them, and although he was expecting this ordeal to be over, the receptionist wasn't quite ready to let them go yet. "Oh, by the way; I noticed you two aren't wearing any gold," he pointed out.

Kuzey and Primrose looked at each other and then back at the receptionist. Before either of them could answer, he added, "Which I'm not surprised to see, since you're travelers! But what if I told you two that we have some beautifully golden clothes you can borrow from the hotel for the festival?"

Kuzey opened his mouth to politely refuse the offer, but the receptionist continued. "Your clothes are so tattered; would you be interested in a pair of clothes for tonight, perhaps?" he offered. "Meanwhile, we'll offer a fix up for yours for a minimal fee added onto your bill!"
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[K21] [P21]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 11:07 PM

Primrose looked up at Kuzey again, but he didn't look back at her. "Thank you, but that's not necessary," he told the receptionist, and the man looked disappointed to hear it.

"Oh, but wait, uh... dear," Primrose said, and Kuzey looked down this time, with eyes that were shooting daggers right at her. "If we take them up on that offer, we could really... blend in tonight," she pointed out, trying to make Kuzey realize that this was actually a great offer for them, if their purpose here was to blend in. If they had golden clothes from the hotel, they wouldn't look like travelers, and so the odds of others recognizing them would be slim.

Kuzey couldn't help but to grit his teeth. "No," he hissed, "I'm not wearing anything other than my current clothes; especially not something so gaudy." Having to pretend they were a couple and having Primrose call him sweet names was already way beyond his comfort zone — but now having to dress in some kind of flashy golden suit?

But Primrose was insistent, going so far as to jab him with her elbow. "Don't be like that," she told him. "They're very hospitable to offer these," she pointed out. "Besides, they're offering to fix your clothes, aren't they?" She gave him a look, and she knew that even he would realize this was worth it for the fix-ups alone.

The two stared at each other for a moment. After a while, Primrose narrowed her eyes slightly, and Kuzey gritted his teeth. "Fine," he groaned between gritted teeth, "we'll take the stupid clothes."
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[K22] [P22]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 11:17 PM

After that ordeal, Kuzey was expecting yet even more embarrassing offers and questions, but fortunately, the receptionist was done. They gave him their respective sizes for the clothes, and the receptionist mentioned that Kuzey could drop off his clothes at any time for the hotel to fix up. Once that was all done and taken care of, they took off for the elevators to reach their room, the whole trek in silence. At the very least, Primrose had the decency not to hold his arm — or even touch him, for that matter — as they made their way to their room.

It was rather high up in the hotel, but the higher floor seemed to indicate that it was one of the priciest rooms they had available. They were also close to the elevator, which was a plus. Once they'd found their room, Kuzey slipped the card key in to unlock it, and he walked in, Primrose following right behind him.

She closed the door behind them, and as soon as the "click" resounded, he turned to face her. "What did you do?" he snapped at her. "Fiancée? For God's sake! Are you out of your mind?"

She wasn't quite ready to argued about this, but she wasn't surprised. Admittedly, he had a very good point. "What was I supposed to say?" she asked, biting her lip and looking away. "It didn't seem like that much of a big deal if it meant getting the room at a discount."
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[K23] [P23]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 11:33 PM

"It didn't seem like that much of a big deal?" he repeated. "Primrose, I have your tyrannic husband after me for taking you away from him; and you're saying this isn't a big deal?" He shook his hair with a hand. "What if this gets out and he hears of it?"

Primrose's eyes widened, and she looked away. "Matteo isn't... He's not... a tyrant," she said hesitantly, shaking her head. "Regardless, you don't have to worry about any of this," she assured him. "It was just a lie to get the room cheaper."

"That's not the point," Kuzey argued. "Whether you want to admit it or not, Quacey is a tyrant; he's been invading everything he can get his hands on," he reminded her. "He's hot on our trail as it is; the last thing I need is for him to hear a rumor about me taking his wife!"

She looked back at him, and her face showed just how much pain she felt at the whole situation. "This might be who he is to you," she said quietly, "but this isn't the man I married. He's not the man I love." She stopped to cover her mouth and wipe her eyes. She took a deep breath and sighed. "But I'm still loyal to him. I'm still his wife, and that's regardless of whatever rumors people want to spread."
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 11:45 PM

The conversation stopped for a moment. It was beyond Kuzey's understanding how Primrose could still consider that tyrant to be her husband. Every chance she got, she insisted that this wasn't him: that something, or someone, was behind his drastic shift in personality. There was something in her that convinced her that "he" was still there; that the man she'd grown to know and love was still in there somewhere. He couldn't understand it at all, but the point of his being here wasn't to understand her situation: his goal was to escort her back to her own kingdom in order to try and keep her safe from him.

"Regardless," he said, starting the conversation again, "what are we going to do about this?" he asked, motioning to the one bed. "We can't sleep in the same bed."

She turned back to him and looked at the bed — which was draped all in gold, much like almost everything else in the room. "I suppose not," she said, and he frowned. He was expecting her to be more appalled at the idea than this.

He sighed as he turned around and took off his cloak. "I'll sleep on the couch," he said, "or the floor. Whichever."

As much sense as it made, she felt bad. If anything, Kuzey was the one who needed the bed the most between the two of them; but because she was a Princess, he would argue it didn't make any sense for her to sleep on the couch.
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[K25] [P25]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/04/2017 11:53 PM

As Kuzey started undressing a bit, Primrose fiddled with her hands. "I mean," she started, "you don't have to sleep on the couch."

He'd taken off his cloak and part of his leather add-ons when he abruptly stopped. He turned to her and looked on with a frown. "What are you insinuating?"

"Well, I'm just saying the bed is very wide," she pointed out. "We probably wouldn't even—"

"No," Kuzey said, stopping her right in her tracks. "No. Whatever you're going to say next doesn't matter." He had to draw the line somewhere, and this was definitely it.

"But then what are we supposed to do?" she asked him. "You're the one who needs to rest most between us, but you wouldn't let me sleep on the couch."

"Of course not," he agreed. "But how can you even suggest something like us sleeping in the same bed? It's..."

She looked at him with a straight face, and with an equally deadpan voice, she said, "Let me reassure you that sex is the last thing on my mind right now."
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[K26] [P26]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/05/2017 12:15 AM

The more the conversation went on, the deeper the hole got. "What are you even talking about?" he asked, his voice getting louder.

"What else is making you uncomfortable about the idea?" she asked, her own voice staying calm despite the subject matter. "We've slept close together before." Not out of choice, of course, but sleeping in the woods means you don't have the luxury of a bed, and the wild animals means you usually stay close to one another.

He ran both hands through his hair and let his hands fall down. "That's not the same situation at all."

"How?" she asked, trying to press him into explaining his train of thought. "If anything, we can put pillows or cushions in the middle to make sure we don't touch each other."

"That's not..." There was no winning in this situation, and regardless, there was no time to start arguing about this. "Can we talk about this later?" She wanted to enjoy the festival, didn't she? At this point, anything would be better than talking through this awkward and cringeworthy conversation.

"All right," she said, and Kuzey was about to sigh with relief when she added, "they should be bringing us the clothes any moment now, anyway."

He'd completely forgotten about the clothes.
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/05/2017 12:27 AM

"You're not considering putting those on," he said, crossing his arms.

She looked at him and tilted her head slightly. "Of course I am," she told him. "They're a blessing for us tonight: no one will be able to tell we're not from here, or who we are at all." It was the best thing for them to look inconspicuous while in Aldrect. Even if someone had a feeling, it would be hard for them to recognize the two of them.

Regardless, she could tell Kuzey wasn't at all comfortable at the thought of wearing those clothes. "Why are you so uncomfortable about wearing them?" He wasn't the type to change clothes much at all, but she didn't take him to be so particular. "Besides," she started, and she approached him, "I'm sure they'll look good on you," she added, and she was reaching for his hat when he grabbed her wrist.

"Don't," he said simply, dropping her wrist back down before letting her go. He adjusted his hat as he replied, "Clothes like that don't look good on me." He was a serious guy, and anything flashy made him look ridiculous, and they made him feel ridiculous as well.

"You're always wearing dark clothes," she pointed out. "I'm sure lighter clothes look just as good on you as these do. Regardless, if you're going to wear their clothes, you'll need to forego your hat."

He narrowed his eyes. "I'm keeping the hat."

She raised an eyebrow. "You really will look ridiculous if you do, then."
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[K28] [P28]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/05/2017 12:49 AM

Just as they were talking about the clothes, a knock sounded against the door. "Room service," the voice said from outside. "Did you request a pair of male and female clothes for the festival?"

Kuzey frowned and groaned, but Primrose answered right away. "Yes!" she said as she went for the door, opening it once she got to it. A young hotel employee was on the other side, carrying a pair of clothes in her arms. "Thank you so much," Primrose said as she took the clothes from the lady.

"No problem!" the girl said with a smile. "You can leave the clothes at reception once you're done with them," she said, and she waved before leaving Primrose and Kuzey to themselves.

Primrose closed the door and brought the clothes over to the bed, laying the two sets on it. The two were wrapped in dry-cleaning bags; the moment she pulled the zippers down, the bright golden clothes shone under the room light. Despite the excessive amount of gold, the clothes really were beautiful, carrying white accents to even out the different shades of gold. Of the pair, there was a small dress for Primrose, and a nice suit for Kuzey.

"This is so pretty," Primrose said, picking up the dress and laying it over herself. "I can't wait to wear it!"
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