A Secret Admirer

[Rosemary McIntyre]

After taking his cup from the bedside table, Rosemary let herself drift to the vanity as if it were nothing, although what she was planning made her a little nervous. As she listened to him speak, she opened the case and plucked out a jar of dried chamomile, and then some valerian tincture. She shook some of the dried flowers into the still-hot tea first, then added the tincture. She stirred it with a spoon from the tray, watching as the chamomile soaked up the water and began to change the color. She was lucky the tincture was mostly colorless. She hardly let it steep, but that wasn't strictly necessary for a tincture. She hoped he wouldn't question it. 

She passed the tea to him without a word, only giving him a similarly expectant look as she waited for him to drink it. Once he took a sip, then she'd start answering.

"I'm not sure which is best. You asked what would make him furious--that would definitely be me participating. If we want him to feel safer, then that's the opposite." She sighed and returned to the vanity, opening one of the top drawers for a hair tie, and began to pull her hair up as she spoke. The longer the captain was in her room, the more commonplace it seemed. She wouldn't have expected it of herself, really, but she didn't mind his company now that she'd managed to tell him most of the worst. In fact, she was beginning to feel safer with him there.

"I'd say if you want the fastest results, then anger. He's never had control of his temper, and he'll react in a flash. He won't have any time to plan. If you want him to get excited about having an opportunity...then perhaps the other." She frowned as she finished her high ponytail and pulled it tight. "I'm afraid I said a number of words but didn't manage to clarify myself at all. I'm sorry, were you able to follow that?"

[Sebastian Arcturis]

He hadn't really been aware enough the first time she made tea. He was, however, aware this was a different color. But considering they were already partners in crime together and that she had been more than accomodating and he had asked her to take charge, he let her take charge. Apparently that meant more tea. Okay then.

The captain took the cup and only spared a glance from it to her and back in silent question before he took a sip. He was a curious person and a suspicious one. But he was focused on something else right now.

"Either is good," he said simply. He wasn't about to tell her what they should do. If she told him to stop now, he would. Not entirely but enough that he would step back to simple surveillance. "What makes you more comfortable?" He watched her move about the room, finally a bit more comfortable.

The more she spoke, the more he got lost in the weight of her words. Bastian wasn't sure he wanted results that fast. He didn't want to overwhelm Rosemary. And even though he didn't act like it, he was entirely aware of the fact he had been bit by a venomous snake and needed to take it easy. He just...didn't want to take it easy here. In her room. And he did feel tired.

Bastian finished the tea and set the cup on the side table and pushed himself to his feet. He set a hand on the side table for a moment. Most of her words had made sense but he didn't understand her last question. Something kept dragging him under and he still had to talk to Baird and the rest of the royal guard. "We can talk more tomorrow..." It wasn't quite an answer. But no. He hadn't.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Well, here went nothing...he was drinking it without asking her anything about what she'd added to it. He must have just assumed she was making more of the same thing. There was still marigold and feverfew in it, of course, but the added chamomile and valerian should ensure deep sleep. She used them herself when she was having nightmares. Perhaps more often than she should, actually, but the nightmares were...hard to avoid. They were why she already had the supplies in her room. She hadn't quite expected him to drink that all so quickly, but it was too late to backtrack now. Perhaps she'd finish off the rest of the pot herself, to make sure she'd actually be able to sleep in the armchair.

Rosemary smiled apologetically at him as he tried to stand and she saw him sway. He'd been in bad shape already, whether he was willing to admit it or not, so it was no surprise that the simple tea had been enough to tip the scales. She approached him with her hands held up in a gesture somewhere between calming and surrender. Once he realized what was happening, she had no doubt he was going to be irritated with her, and while he may have promised not to harm her earlier, she wouldn't blame him for reacting defensively when someone slipped sedatives into his tea.

"Sit down, Captain," she told him, gently setting her hands on his shoulders and pressing down so that he would do so slowly; she was actually a bit worried he was going to just topple over. "You asked me to choose, and I'm afraid I have. Like it or not, we're going with the faster method, because it had an added benefit--I could have you rest." She gestured to the teacup. "You're going to sleep very soundly, and feel better for it."

She stepped back and gave him an encouraging smile. "I promise, the effects will have gone by morning. I'll explain to Baird so that he won't worry. After all, it's all part of the plan, right?" She didn't sound as confident as she would have liked about that last bit. It was definitely a question. She very much hoped he wasn't going to hate her for this.

[Sebastian Arcturis]

He could tell something was off from the apologetic look Rosemary gave him. And then the outstretched hands. What was she...oh. The tea. Fuck. He already took things to help him sleep most nights he didn't need more to feel even more tired. Or like he couldn't breath. Besides he had...things to do...tonight. "I...you didn't..." he mumbled. Bastian tried to pull himself back to the surface even as things seemed to get heavier.

The captain had asked her to choose. He hadn't asked her to drug him. Was he really that unreasonable? He would have stayed if she asked. At least that was what he told himself now.

He didn't just pass out. But he couldn't quite convince his body to move how he wanted it too and he obeyed the press of her hands on his shoulders. Only he missed the bed. Bastian caught his fall with his elbows on the mattress but still landed hard on his ass with a thud. Sebastian looked at her with a sleepy betrayal. Nasty. Faster method. Sleep. Not usually fatal. Added benefit. Lair. All part of the plan. Promise.

"Why do I like snakes again?" He mumbled to himself, not realizing it was out loud. Why did he likes snakes? He didn't fuss about it or fight her. Too tired for that.

Baird heard the soft thud and considering it had been longer than he expected the captain would take already, he opened the door uncertainly. Not that he expected something wrong exactly but it had been an evening. Only to find Sebastian on the ground and Rosemary talking about a plan and he stood there frozen with his mouth open for a moment. Had he gotten worse?

[Rosemary McIntyre]

"Oh, hell." Rosemary finally swore in her soft voice as the captain hit the floor. That wasn't good. How was she going to get him into the bed now? She crouched to meet the captain's eye. "I'm sorry I tricked you. But I'm glad you like snakes. Someone needs to." She rose to her feet and turned to go get Baird--only to find him already there, gaping at her, which brought quite a blush to her face.

"Um, before you get upset, it was really for his own good. He wasn't going to rest, otherwise," she blurted out by way of explanation, then cringed. "He wanted to try and set a trap for M--for my stalker--by pretending to be interested in me. I suspect he would have wound up staying the night here at some point, for dramatic effect...but I don't think he intended it to be so soon. I gave him some valerian so he'd sleep." She gave the other guard a nervous smile. "Please forgive me, it seemed a very bright idea, at first. I was just so sure he was going to run off and get himself hurt because he wouldn't even stay on the bed once you left the room."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Bastian was a little hurt. Which was...sort of new of him. Emotional pain wasn't something he had dealt with recently, so while it wasn't that big of a deal, the suddeness had caught him off guard and made quite an impact.

He tried to lever himself onto the bed rather ineffectively, wincing with the use of his injured arm. Almost like he had forgotten. Tricked him. Glad he liked snakes. Had he told her he liked snakes? Maybe. He glanced over at Baird, his awareness sluggish. And sort of just looked at him. Well. This was awkward.

Rosemary handled it like a champ though, blush and all. It was...the most attractive she had sounded all evening. Had she always been that assertive? And cute. Definitely had always been that cute. He had been the one too focused to notice.

Baird held up his hands in a similar gesture to the one Rosemary had made a few moments ago, funnily enough. He stepped into the room at the invitation via conversation and crouched next to his captain. "I'm not upset," he led with for clarity. They didn't know each other after all. "Sounds like his sort of plan and his sort of restin'. How much valerian did you give 'im?" He asked, trying to smother a chuckle. She had drugged him? Well, Baird was glad someone had the balls to put the man on his ass for longer than ten seconds. Only... "Is that...wise after the venom?"

He pressed one hand to the captain's neck to check his pulse and the other he rested on Bastian's chest. He seemed relaxed but not dangerously so. "Your breathin' okay?" This to Bastian.

"Heavy," he murmured. "Doesn't hurt."

"Good, it shouldn't. Just keep breathing. You take anything last night?" Bastian gave him a confused look. Baird grimaced and rephrased. "Did you have nightmares last night?"

"Yeah."

Baird glanced at Rosemary. "He'll keep you up all night unless you give him more or sleep wi-" he shut his mouth as if he was saying something inappropriate. And he was even though he didn't mean it like that. "You want to sleep here?" He asked the captain.

Bastian looked at Rosemary. Did he want to sleep here? Who was the viper again? The rest of the valerian was sinking in and his eyes felt too heavy.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Oh, thank goodness. She didn't know what she would have done if she was in trouble. Rosemary finally relaxed, actually becoming the calmest she'd been all evening. She wasn't sure what it was, maybe the casual way he spoke? But Baird was kind of a reassuring person.

"How much? Well, I didn't really measure, but not much more than I usually take myself." She pursed her lips as she watched Baird check the man's pulse and ask if he'd taken anything else. The way he asked about nightmares startled her, and the surprise was clear on her face for a moment, although neither man was likely to be paying her any attention. She hadn't really considered that others might suffer from the same thing. She hoped more than ever that this would give Sebastian a decent night's rest. He clearly deserved it.

"He'll keep you up all night unless you give him more or sleep wi-" Rosemary didn't understand at first, but she realized he must still be talking about the nightmares.

"If he's been handling the venom this well, the valerian and chamomile actually should give his body the time it needs to get rid of the rest of it. Especially if he's been taking things like this already. If he's in any distress, I'll be nearby." She motioned to the armchair where she was planning to spend the night. Once she had, though, she remembered what he'd said a moment ago. She bit her lip and looked at the bed. It was wide enough for both of them, probably. The castle had a tendency to go overboard with the furnishings.

"Do you think...I mean, would it be helpful if I was...?" She blushed. "I could put up pillows between the two of us, even, but if you think it would help, I don't mind." She laughed softly. "I doubt he'll be aware enough for it to be an issue, even if he were the type."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Baird was a bit older than Sebastian, though the captain did a great job of looking five years older than he was. The other man was from a large family, had two toddlers, his father had been a soldier, and he was a dog person, not a snake person. He prided himself on being a normal reasonable human. Because someone had to be, especially with a certain captain around. He had a very easy tone and aura about him.

He had been serious about the nightmare joke the first time around. "I don't know if he takes anythin' for certain," he admitted, looping his arms under Bastian's and hefting him onto the bed with a grunt. He was heavy, especially since Bastian wasn't much help.

The captain wheezed slightly as Baird opened his mouth. "Don't you...dare, you prick. I am...not that heavy."

"Wasn't gonna say nothin', sir," the guard said innocently.

"Second time today this lovely noblewoman has knocked you over. Might be a record," Baird said, flashing Rosemary a smile as he settled his superior officer back onto the bed. He nodded at Rosemary's assurance she would be nearby. "He has breathin'problems from an old injury but long as you didn't give him that much-"

"I breath fine, leave...off."

Baird shrugged and took a step back awkwardly. "Not my call, milady. Ah...do you need anything else?" Hopefully he didn't fall out of bed overnight...

Sebastian caught most of the words, but once Baird got him in the bed, he closed his eyes and drifted a little. Something about distress and pillows... He would certainly be too out of it to make any issue. But even if he had not been, he wouldn't have made an issue. Falling asleep was easy enough with the tea. It was sleeping that usually proved to be a problem.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Rosemary blocked her giggle with a hand, trying to contain herself. These two! She was trying to be serious about all this, and here they were joking like it was nothing. Maybe she was overreacting? No...more likely they were just used to things going haywire.

"Second time today this lovely noblewoman has knocked you over. Might be a record," Baird said, flashing Rosemary a smile as he settled his superior officer back onto the bed.

"To be fair, I didn't do much the first time. But this one was me." She interjected quietly, a faint smirk crossing her face for a moment before they returned to the topic at hand.

Baird shrugged and took a step back awkwardly. "Not my call, milady. Ah...do you need anything else?"

Rosemary sighed. She would have preferred to let someone else do the decision making on that, especially since Baird clearly knew the captain better than she did. But, if she had to be the one to choose, she'd at least like to try giving him his personal space. Somehow she felt like it would be invasive, and she'd already crossed boundaries once tonight. She'd start with the armchair, for now. 

"No, thank you, I think that's everything for now. I'll have someone come for you specifically if there's any trouble, alright?" She gave him the most reassuring smile she could manage, which was decent, but clearly exhausted. It had been a long night. "Thank you, truly," she glanced at the captain, "I don't know what I would have done without you two."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Baird both loved and hated when he got stuck working on something with Captain Arcturis. It was a good bet it wouldn't be boring. Which also meant it wouldn't be boring.

He could tell Rosemary sort of wished it waa more boring. Or maybe that someone else was more in charge. But the guardsman didn't have that authority and while he knew more than he wanted to about Sebastian, he didn't have intimate knowledge of his sleeping habits. The guy had nightmares most of the time. As for their plan of him sleeping here...he didn't understand and he didn't ask. Not his job. And there was no way he was going to tell people to sleep together. Even if it had been his job.

Baird frowned slightly at the notion she would send for him specifically. He had sort of hoped to go home tonight. But he could stay at the castle tonight. "Alright, milady." He wasn't so much worried about the captain. Especially drugged as he was. Bastian could handle himself. He was a little worried about Rosemary, but this had been her choice, so...he wasn't about to say anything. "Had some other guard kill the snake and gone about your evenin', I 'spect. Have a g'night," he said with a knowing grin and would see himself out.

Sebastian, meanwhile, was already asleep, his chest rising and falling with heavy uneven breaths.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

It honestly hadn't occurred to Rosemary that she would be keeping Baird from going home--she didn't really know enough to even guess at it. Had she realized, she would likely have tripped all over herself making sure he could go home. She'd actually been trying to reassure him that she wouldn't let anything happen to what she assumed was his friend.

Rosemary grinned back at him and waved as he left. "Goodnight!"

When the door closed behind him, she abruptly realized that there was a sleeping man in her bed and she'd just agreed to that. No, she'd forced that. Oh boy.

She put her hands on her hips as she turned to the bed and considered how to proceed. Well, first things first, there was no way he was going to get any sleep like that. She wiggled one of his feet with her fingertips, then squinted at the captain's face for a moment to see if he'd react. When he didn't, she undid his boots and set them next to him on the floor. Next, she tugged the extra blanket off the foot of the bed and tossed it onto the armchair for herself. The quilt that was actually on the bed she flipped over from the other side of the bed to wrap him in a kind of makeshift sleeping bag, since she couldn't pull it out from under him on that side. She hoped he wouldn't overheat, but he could probably toss off a blanket in his sleep, she thought.

Satisfied that she wasn't leaving him totally uncomfortable, she blew out the candle before removing her outer dress, bundling herself up in the blanket, and curling up in the armchair with her head on the armrest. It wasn't perfect, of course, but it wasn't bad. She'd be fine.

Fine, of course, until ten minutes later when her neck felt like she'd never be able to move it properly again. She switched sides. No use. She shifted in the chair so that she was sitting up, and managed to doze off. She woke up later having slid out of the chair half onto the floor. She climbed back into the chair and fell asleep with her head in her hand.

When she woke again, it must have been the middle of the night--the room was pitch black with no remnant of sunlight coming through the window. Everything hurt, and she couldn't remember why at first. Oh. Right. She groaned quietly and stretched. Perhaps the captain wouldn't mind if she... Well, she'd have to be careful.

She rose as quietly as she could and shoved the rest of the blankets from 'her' side of the bed into a pile between herself and the sleeping captain. Satisfied--or at least desperate enough to convince herself she was satisfied, she climbed into the bed with her blanket-cape still wrapped around her, and curled up as close to the edge of the bed as she could manage. The sigh of relief was almost involuntary. Even with the modifications and a healthy dose of nerves, this was so much better. She drifted into sleep once more, and wouldn't wake before morning unless something drastic happened: she was just too exhausted for even her nightmares to bother her.

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Sebastian was more or less in full armor. Considering his preference for speed, it was more leather than plate but he hadn't been suited up for a full fight even then, hence the simple sleeves. The boots were serious enough and it was more than polite of the lady to remove them. He had enough layers on that the single blanket was more than enough. It was as comfortable as he was going to get and more comfortable than he usual got, considering the drugs.

He slept fitfully even with the valerian and the need to rest. But he did sleep through the early hours of the night with only a little mumbling and shifting from his back to his sides a few times, which was rather tame for him.

Rosemary's antics throughout the night went unfortunately(or perhaps fortunately) unheeded. Which was rather impressive for the captain. In the early hours just before morning, Bastian's nightmares crept back into his dreams. Sedatives or not. He had sort of set himself up.

The woods are dark and full of fears and bewitched by a magical snake.
Or perhaps a viper, it's rather unclear but that didn't rhythm and rhyme.

He was traveled these woods a lot of late. Just like the ones five years ago. He looked up from the path, his eyes following a travel of blood over a field and up the mountain steps. He knew what was up there. No sleep and more pain and a lovely white haired man.

He looked back to the forests. They were empty now. Where once they had held a one armed mystic who nearly ended his life, they looked...almost welcoming. Verdant green with mossy rocks and blooming fields and vines only he wasn't sure when he had told his legs to take him deeper in.

It was always deeper. No matter how much the mountain was safe and surprising welcoming, he couldn't seem to make that choice. Curiosity always got the better of him. Curiosity that ended up tangling him in vines and dragging him by his feet through the woods. Bastian scrambled at the ground, digging his fingers into the dirt only for the vines to rise up and latch onto him, snakes digging their fangs into his arms and neck and face and dragging him down and no matter how much he he jerked and twisted and rolled-

The captain hit the floor and was instantly awake and panting and groaning as he rolled to his back. He kicked the quilt off his legs as the dream released him and he got his bearings. Not his bunk. He didn't remember all of the evening. The snake, the plan...but he hadn't gone to his room? The familiar furnishings of the palace gently nudged him in the right direction. Rosemary's room. Rosemary's bed. He glanced down and the fact he was still largely dressed settled most of his uncertainty. Had he fainted again?

Bastian picked himself up off the floor and sat on the bed, one hand to his left ribs that he had landed on. And he then looked over and saw his company and jumped back off of it. Right. All according to plan. He glanced at the window. The sky was only just fading into color. Early.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Rosemary didn't have the usual nightmares, thankfully. No blood, no silver eyes, no knives cutting into her thighs. But she did dream that she was on a rocking ship, tossing her from side to side. She kept trying to find some place that would hold still, but the whole ship was caught in a storm. She was beginning to get frustrated when a thud knocked her from the dream.

"Hmm? She stretched out on her stomach as she woke, then pushed herself up on her hands to turn towards the sound. Her hair-tie had fallen out sometime during her midnight misadventures, and her shoulder-length hair was loose and mussed around her face. The blanket fell away from her shoulders, but she wasn't really aware enough to pull it back up yet. She was still wearing her linen shift, so she wasn't uncovered, only technically undressed. She yawned and opened her verdant eyes, then frowned and rubbed them as if she wasn't really sure she was seeing what she was seeing. Since when were there ever people in her--oh. She'd done that on purpose. She forgot.

"Sorry, I tried to sleep in the armchair but it was absolutely miserable." Her voice was hardly a mumble as she sat up fully, crossed her legs, and pulled the blanket back up around her shoulders against the morning chill. Her mind was still catching up to the rest of the night, replaying through it quickly. She'd given him valerian, and he'd collapsed on the floor before Baird had helped her. She looked at him with concern, definitely more alert now.

"Did you sleep well? I had hoped you might get some decent rest out of the deal, seeing as it wasn't exactly what you'd wanted..." She at least had the grace to blush a little as she sidestepped the fact that she'd forced him to rest. He'd seemed upset about it last night, in a kind of sleepy way. Now that he was awake, would he be angry with her? Well, she probably deserved that. "Oh, and how is your arm?"

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Rosemary mumbled herself awake and Sebastian was stuck for a moment. She pushed her small curved form up and then coiled on the bed, dark hair a messy frame aroind her face, the shift calling all the right attention to all the right places. For a moment he worried she would scream just like she had with the snake in the hallway. Then she apologized to him and Bastian looked away. He settled back onto the bed with his back to her and this time didn't look around. He wasn't tired, but he didn't feel awake yet and everything was slow.

"Morning," he breathed. He rubbed his fingers against his temples and the mild headache that was threatening to rear up. "I slept fine. Which means you drugged me." His words were sluggish, each one weighted with a hint of slow understanding. Even though he had had a sudden wake up call, he still considered that 'fine.' "Did you? After the armchair?"

His arm. He considered his left forearm for a moment. It wasn't so swollen. It still hurt mildly. "Better," he allowed. Bastian rotated his wrist and closed and opened a fist a few times. That reminded him...he had a snake waiting for him in his room. Hopefully the box wasn't airtight.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Rosemary winced at the phrase "drugged me" and was opening her mouth to justify her actions when he asked if she'd slept well. She blinked and furrowed her brow. He wasn't shouting at her? Losing his temper? Telling her she was rash and stupid and how dare she drug the captain of the guard? She didn't know how to handle the casual question. She'd just gotten used to making her own decisions resulting in some kind of punishment.

"Yes?" it sounded like a question. She tried again. "I mean, yes, I did, but..." She hesitated, trying to decide if she should just let it go, or ask him about it. She decided she'd rather know. At least if she knew he was upset with her she could apologize and try to make amends. "Aren't you angry with me?"

She stared at the back of his head for a moment and wished she could read his mind. Actually, scratch that, it was probably safer not to know what everyone thought of her. She grimaced and turned to put her feet on the floor on her side of the bed. Seeing the dress on the floor from the night before was what reminded her she was just in her shift. Cringing, she looked over her shoulder at the wardrobe, on the captain's side of the bed. She pulled the blanket a little tighter around herself and padded over to it, with a little train of blanket trailing behind her. She held the blanket-cape closed with one hand and opened the wardrobe with the other, pulling out a simple blue dress. She had to push the doors closed with her shoulder to avoid dropping things, but she managed alright.