The Bed of Actaeon

[Deleted]

Contrary to Rosemary's fears, Magnus was not watching her every hour of every day with his own eyes. He was, however, having her watched, as the captain had suggested. He was a man of means, and he had no trouble hiring out the more tiresome tasks to others. While he wished to know of the woman's interactions, habits, and schedule, he was unwilling to give up his other pursuits of power and control simply to harass her, as amusing as that might be. 

Of course, he made sure to attend any event where he knew she was going to be. She needed to be reminded of her place, where she belonged. She needed to be reminded that she could distance herself from him all she liked, but she could not actually escape. Eventually, she would be forced to admit her error, and she would come back to him, more obedient than ever. Or so he had thought. 

To hear that rather than spending the night in the infirmary, she had spent the night in her room with a filthy commoner, had been a shock. He'd actually flipped the entire breakfast table, causing the servant girl who had reported the news to flee. He had several of them on his payroll, after all. He preferred to leave his 'love notes' himself, which meant he had to have access to her room. It had been simple enough to seduce a few and bribe the others. He laughed at her terror for a moment before kicking what remained of his breakfast tray across the room. It was clear to him that he needed to remind both the little goddess and her lover who they were dealing with. He knew just the thing. 

He'd approached her room as usual, only to find a guard lingering nearby. He would pace away, every so often, but not nearly long enough for what Magnus had hoped. Well, he would have liked to leave his gift in the soiled bed itself, but he had no problems going directly to the bed of "Actaeon" himself. And, while he did indeed prefer to do things himself, if there was already a guard on the room (which, he supposed he should have expected; perhaps the captain of the guard was less dull than he looked) he was going to ensure that he was seen being absolutely innocent. 

He arranged to have the state of Sebastian Arcturis's room taken care of by one of his very own men. The next time the captain returned, he would find the severed head of a doe in his bed along with a healthy amount of blood to thoroughly ruin the bedding. Along with it was a note which read "Beware the curse of Actaeon--some things are not meant for your eyes or hands. You should not trust even your most loyal dogs."

A matching note was left on Rosemary's vanity by one of the maids: "Be careful which dogs you lie with, Artemis; you might get fleas."

While all of this was being taken care of, Magnus himself approached the guard with a charming smile. "Hello! Baird, isn't it? I do hope your Captain is feeling better. I heard that he wasn't well, last evening."

[Orion]

BAIRD||
Baird sincerely hoped his captain had slept well becaise he hadn't. Stupid barracks bunks were not comfortable. Sure his bed at home wasn't much better but it included his wife so it was much better.

Sebastian had cornered him at breakfast and told him to watch Rosemary's room and that wing of the castle and to not be too specific about Rosemary's room but to keep it in sight most of the time or check in the windows on that aide of the hall. Discrete-like, along with a 'look but don't touch' warning. Baird figured stating over night had been penance enough but he should have known better. So he was purposefully meandering in that windo of the castle since dawn. It was both nt boring and boring all at once. Not thay he knew what he was looking for. Rosemary had mentioned a stalker, and Baird had seen the flowers and the snake so he figured something moving in her room or the hall he should keep tabs on.

Baird had decided not to share with the other guards. Of course, word got around about the snake fiasco. And the captain hadn't bothered hiding the injury. He still seemed a little...off, after all.

The guardsman didn't recognize the man that approached him. He knew royals and that was aboit it. Anyone else was just...people who out ranked him or people who didn't. And this guy from his voice alone out ranked him. "My Lord," he greeted with a stiff bow at the waist. It was accompanied by a healthy amount of confusion. One, who talked to guards? Two, how did he know his name, he wasn't anyone. Three...well, okay, maybe the smile wasn't all that bad. It was kind of nice. And the caring sentiment was too. "Uh, yes, it is. The Captain's much better, my lord." He spoke with his usual warmth but he tried to keep it short and to the point so as to not be a bother. He wasn't here to piss off a nice nobleman, after all.

[Deleted]

Magnus's smile widened. This man had no idea who he was, did he? He almost scoffed but restrained himself for the sake of his masquerade. Apparently the captain wasn't as far along as he'd thought if he hadn't even bothered to warn the man who was guarding the room of exactly who he was looking for. All the better--but it also meant he'd need to be very deliberately clear in order to stick in the average guard's memory.

"I'm glad to hear that. I was concerned that things might have taken a turn for the worst." He paused to look down the hall for a moment, then looked back at Baird as if he'd suddenly remembered something. "Oh, and of course I hope your wife and children are also well. It's always good to know that one's loved ones are safe and sound." His eyebrows drifted upwards ever so slightly. "Anyway, I only wanted to check-in. Please let your captain know that Lord Bournemouth will be keeping a close eye on his recovery. It would be such a shame if one of these interesting incidents of his got out of hand."

He chuckled as he turned and left, not bothering to wait for a response. He honestly couldn't care less what Baird had to say to that, so long as it made an impression. Now all he needed to do was sit and wait to see how his work would come to fruition. It was rather a shame he wouldn't be there to see the look on Captain Arcturis's face. He was sure it would be priceless.

[Orion]

BAIRD||

And why exactly would the good captain have warned Baird to be looking for Lord Bournemouth? Rosemary hadn't told him anything after all. Not publicly. The fact the captain had taken a liking to her and her to him was more...coincidence? He had saved her from a snake after all.

Besides, Baird had been instructed to stay hands off and likelt left out of the details on purpose. Not that that seemed to matter to Magnus, considering the threat.

The guard had to take a moment, as if uncertain he had heard correctly. One didn't casually use the phrase 'take a turn for the worst' and then proceed to ask someome how their wife and kids were unless they were touched one way or the other. He didn't understand even as the man continued but certainly there was something...not okay about the words.

"I... Yes, milord," he fumbled, finally concluding the guy wasn't just threatening his captain but him and his wife and his two children. But what was he going to do about it? Right now? Nothing.

Baird's frown followed Lord Bournemouth down the hall and his stomach slowly settled onto the floor. So...Lady McIntyre didn't just have any stalker...she had a crazy one. Damn it, Arcturis.

Oh, it made an impression.

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Captain Arcturis stood in the doorway to his small bedroom, arms folded over his chest, the note held between two fingers. He had returned with lunch for his new roommate only to find he had had another visitor while he was away.

Well. It confirmed at least one thing. Rosemary's friend had help. He wasn't sure whether to believe the note or whether it had been palace staff but he figured he wouldn't find out without another angle. Hopefully Baird had one.

Dark eyes stared through the gory display for a long moment, thinking.

Baird cleared his throat behind his captain but the man didn't turn around. "Sir?"

"What are you doing here?" He asked without turning.

"I needed to talk to you. I found our...shit, what's that smell?"

Bastian shifted to the side. Baird paled. "Oh. Well. That's not yours is it?"

Bastian looked that the guard and then himself and back, clearly unamused.

"Not anyone we know?" Baird persisted.

"The deer."

Baird nodded as if that made perfect sense. Sebastian handed him the note which was read slowly and half out loud and then handed back.

"I don't get it. Shouldn't it say-"

"'Tongue or cock.'"

The guard shrugged. "Was gonna say cock or hands...but, yeah. Rest of that is too fancy."

"Artemis and Arctaeon is a story about some old gods. The hunter got frisky with the huntress only she's a goddess and got pissed. Turns him into a deer and his hunting dogs kill him." Or something. Bastian was mildly well read. He didn't know much else about the story.

Baird hadn't taken his eyes off the bed except for the note. "I don't get it."

"I do." Magnus was a man that thought he could play god. And he had his hands in enough places as a noble that he thought he could get away with it. But while the captain of the guard was by all reports a commoner, he had connections of his own. His real dogs wouldn't be a problem. Unless Magnus had another thing that made him think he was a god. Magic.

"He threatened my family." Sebastian glanced at Baird but didn't need to speak for the man to continue. "A Lord Bournemouth stopped me in the hall. And I know which maid was in the room before leavin' this." He handed the captain his own note, the one from Rosemary's vanity. Because he had been paying attention.

The captain grunted as he read the note. He smirked. Very forward today. "He spoke to you?"

Baird nodded and shifted slightly. "I..."

"Go home, Baird."

"He also threatened you. I don't-"

"Go home, soldier." Bastian was aware of the threat. If the note and allusion weren't clear enough, the severed animal head made it clear.

The guard frowned and took a step back, still hesitant. "Gwen. The maid's name."

"Baird..." Sebastian growled. "You stay any longer, you're cleaning this up."

The older man saluted. "Sir. I'll see you tomorrow, sir." And then he left.

The captain tucked both notes into his uniform, checked on his now digesting snake, made his way back to the main hall, stopped a maid and ordered her to have his room cleaned, and enjoyed walking the halls until he found his new secret lover alone.

A very poor impression.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Rosemary had passed an unbelievably normal day, although she did notice that there were more whispers trailing around behind her than before. Whenever she looked towards the groups they stopped talking, but it seemed that at least something of last night's events must have made it out to the rest of the castle. Nothing traveled faster than court gossip, in her experience.

She had followed Cera almost as if she were sleepwalking for much of the day, although her energy was far from dreamy--the anxiety came off her in waves that caused more than one person to ask if she was alright. She kept expecting something terrible to appear, whether it was another wild animal or something worse. And yet, by teatime, nothing had happened at all--and better yet, Magnus was entirely absent from the room! She felt herself relax and enjoy the time with her friends for the first time in weeks. She still nervously double-checked the identity of men going in and out of the room, but he never appeared.

She took some time in the gardens that afternoon, gathering moss and fallen wood for a project she'd decided to undertake. She'd had a terrarium brought in from home (the servant she'd sent out for it had been none to pleased, at first, but she promised him more money than she probably should have, along with some of her homemade lavender chamomile tea). She decorated the large glass box with the moss, potting soil and compost, a few chunks of fallen branches, and some dried flowers she thought might look nice among the rest. She hoped that her faux 'beau' might accept this by way of apology, although she somewhat doubted it. At the very least, she might be able to convince him that it would be nice for the snake. She might not want the creature anywhere near her, but she didn't wish it harm, either. She wondered idly if the creature had a name, yet.

When the knock came on her door, she jumped and her hand flew to her heart. She'd been so focused on the task she'd almost forgotten that she was supposed to be on alert. Thankfully she'd already wiped her hands, or she would have left a lovely dirt handprint on her dress. As it was, the soil only lingered under her fingernails. She approached the door slowly and opened it just enough to peer out and see who it was. Oh! That was right, he'd said he'd come to see her this evening.

She opened the door with a somewhat nervous smile. "Welcome back! I may have overestimated my own importance if your day was as quiet as mine."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Sebastian had been attempting to find Rosemary around the castle, but after a casual sweep, he asked after her and found she had retired early to her room. He was...sort of afraid of that. Yes, her room had been modified already and not as heavily as his own, but he didn't enjoy the thought. And he didn't want to be seen spending another night there.

Still, he knocked on the door and waited. The captain pressed a hand to the doorway when she opened it. From the glimpse he got of the room, there wasn't anything so glaringly out of place like there had been in his. And since the lady was there...and it didn't smell like dead flowers...seems she just got off with a note. Good. He wasn't sure he entirely agreed with Baird taking the note, but at her words...it seemed she had had a nice, quiet day for once. Maybe that had been the other guard's intent.

Bastian forced a reassuring smile. "I've decided you're quite important, Rosemary. Walk with me?" Maybe after he might double down on staying the night, but for now...being seen would be nice.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Rosemary's eyebrows rose at being called 'quite important,' but she nodded. "Yes of course. Just a moment..."

She kept her hand on the edge of the door for balance as she slipped her feet into some flats; she preferred to go barefoot whenever she was able, but the halls of the castle were chilly, and the looks of judgment from others would be even colder. She left the room, then, although she looked rather wistfully back at the terrarium on the way out. It would have to wait till later. She locked the door behind her and slid the ribbon which held her room key around her neck before smiling up at Sebastian.

She knew they were supposed to be pretending to be in a relationship, but honestly, she wasn't sure what that entailed. Perhaps the only goal of their walk was to be seen chatting pleasantly by the others. If that was all, it might explain why he was smiling at her like that--but something about it seemed like he might be uncomfortable. She rather wished she knew how she should be acting, but she supposed she should just follow his lead for now.

"Sebastian..." She trailed it out almost experimentally. The question, though, was quiet but firm. "Why is it that being 'quite important' sounds like bad news, not good news?"

[Sebastian Arcturis]

The captain led their way down the hallway toward the grounds, avoiding the main hallways but not avoiding people. The scenic route sort of deal. He actually hadn't thought about the locks. Not that there was a lock on his own door. And not that there was much they could do about the existing locks and who had the keys... People though...that he could look into more readily.

Their relationship wasn't strictly encouraged and was quite frowned upon. A noblewoman fraternizing and flirting and supposedly sleeping with a guardsman? And more importantly, a commoner? But as long as nothing explicitly happened, there was nothing for it. Sebastian needed to talk to her without giving anyone anymore ammunition against Rosemary. One night in her room was enough. Innocent conversation to suggest some form of close relationship without actually specifying...that was enough. No physical contact and no flirting necessary. Just chatting was more than enough.

It was a little strange hearing his name. Arguably the only thing he actually owned and very few people used it. His surname was more common, but that was hardly real and hardly his. As it was, Sebastian didn't look at her right away at his name and then did a split second late. As if he forgot that was his name.

He pulled the notes out of his pocket and handed her the one from her room. "Baird thought you deserved a worry-free day." He offered her his once she finished. "Looks like your secret admirer isn't so exclusive after all."

[Rosemary McIntyre]

"That was kind of him," Rosemary murmured, despite the way her stomach dropped. She should have known her moment of peace was too good to be true. Magnus was never one to back down from a challenge. She'd predicted him well, apparently.

She accepted the note gingerly from his hand as if she were afraid it might bite like Magnus's last 'gift.' She took a sharp breath through her nose as she caught the name 'Artemis,' but said nothing as she was passed the next note. That one elicited a small gagging noise, although she quickly caught herself and stood a little straighter as she passed him back the pages. She hardly needed to ask--she knew the story well enough. She knew nearly any story involving Artemis far more intimately than she would have liked. Magnus would have killed a real stag for this, she knew it. She could practically smell the blood.

"It was dead, wasn't it? Mutilated?" She guessed, her voice as stiff as her spine. "I can guarantee there were no actual dogs involved, he'll have done it himself. With his favorite knife, too." Her voice cracked, and she turned her face away. She knew the blade even better than she knew the stories.

She wanted to be calm, strong, especially since they were out in public, but part of her just wanted to break down and sob. She should never have gotten anyone else involved in this. She could almost hear Sebastian telling her that it had to get worse before it could get better, that the whole goal was to lure Magnus into the open, but that was cold comfort.

She passed the notes back, assuming he'd want them as 'evidence' if it ever came down to it, but kept her gaze on the ground as she walked.

"Gods, I hate him," she whispered.

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Overly protective, more like. Baird had kids. He tended to be a little overbearing and Sebastian honestly didn't understand it. If he had, the word fatherly might have made an appearance and made more sense.

For a moment, Sebastian considered claiming innocence. What was dead? Nothing. The captain didn't entirely trust her guarantee. Magnus had had a lot of help that she also had assumed didn't exist. Her assumptions didn't hold water. Not without proof. There was also one little problem. And that was the reason he didn't feign ignorance. "He didn't kill a stag." He decided to spare her the rest of the details since she was close enough.

To be fair, that could mean a few things. The first was that he didn't consider Bastian man enough to be worth hunting a stag. The second was that maybe Artemis wasn't the hunter. This largely didn't matter to the captain.

Her note about the knife though...that he could almost hear in her voice. An uncomfortable intimacy. Just like everything else about Rosemary's association with the good nobleman.

He tucked the notes back into his uniform, largely because he didn't need them ending up elsewhere. He supposed a handwriting sample could be possible, but he wasn't that worried about it. The ultimate power in this country was the King. And while Sebastian doubted his father cared about his petty squabbles, he was more attached to his royal guard captain than he was to one nobleman.

"He owes me a new bed," the captain noted, as if that could possible equate to her level of hatred. But the disparity was in fact the point. "I know a maid who works for him. I wondered if you wanted to talk to her. Or I can." Meanwhile, he had another idea. One Rosemary couldn't know about.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

Not a stag? Rosemary glanced surreptitiously up at him through the curtain of her hair. She almost wanted to know what it had been, if not a stag, but she wasn't sure she particularly wanted the mental image. But whatever it was, it must have some kind of meaning for him to have gone against the story... The additional note about needing a new bed answered her other question--it had been a mess, and in his own bed, apparently. She wondered why it wasn't hers, but chose to let that go. She almost laughed at the sheer nonchalance in his tone as he mentioned it. She swallowed the strange giggle and shook her head instead.

"You should stay with me, then, if you need somewhere for the night," she chimed in, wanting to make sure that was said aloud before she got distracted by the maid issue. She didn't particularly consider whether it was scandalous or not--after all, he'd already done so once, and it was her fault that he didn't have a bed now.

Although she had put it off for a moment, the maid in Magnus's employ was particularly concerning--she'd simply taken it for granted that she could trust the other women in the castle. Somehow she'd thought there was a certain kind of solidarity among them simply by being women, and she'd always treated the servants with more respect than others. Apparently the goodwill she might have earned was outdone by Magnus's questionable generosity.

"As for the maid...I honestly wouldn't know what to ask. I doubt he was honest with her about why he was leaving things for me. She may have even thought she was being helpful by allowing my 'admirer' to give gifts and things." Perhaps it was naive of her to look for the best possible answer, but she didn't like to think that all people were as selfish and twisted as her former fiance. She looked up at Sebastian, hoping he'd have a bit more direction than she did. "Do you think it would be helpful for me to be involved? I'm willing if you need me."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Sebastian chuckled at the offer to stay with her again. Not only was it forward, but he imagined it was exactly the opposite effect that her ex-fiance was trying to engender. Bastian wasn't the type to do something just to piss someone else off. That was petty. But he was tempted to do so now because they were trying to make the man mad. To think his retaliation might be the cause of even further forbidden eyes and hands... "Well, considering one night ruined a bed..." he was curious what a second one might see the man rise to. "I can stay in the barracks," he said with a shrug. He didn't do charity.

While certainly women were not entirely equal to men, the captain hardly paid attention beyond a natural inclination to his own gender. So he would have understood. But trusting someone just because of who or how they were born was just as naive as distrusting them for the same uncontrollable reasons.

"Most staff can't read," he added. His tone and a nod suggested he agreed with her. But that didn't mean talking to her would not be useful. "I would hope after the screaming however, and after the deer, that the game is up." Certainly Magnus wasn't directly tired to the events, but people were aware now that the lady in waiting and the guard captain were victim not to blessings but to curses. Being asked to visit there rooms should be telling. And yet...it still happened. Which implied external influence. Fear, compensation, blackmail...something outside the normal conduct. Something that might make the maid and others like her stressed.

So yes, Bastian also agreed it was naive and stupid of Rosemary to assume such things. "Continued leaving of notes in your rooms makes her an accomplice. Under duress or not. Always helpful to have two people for..." he was going to use a word that was likely extreme and not really want he intended. "...to ask questions. And it would be easier to get her alone at your request. To help you dress or something?" They could do that now. And instead of him theorizing, they could find out for sure.

[Rosemary McIntyre]

"Well, considering one night ruined a bed...I can stay in the barracks" he said with a shrug.

That actually made her laugh, although she wasn't sure why. Perhaps he was simply being practical, seeing as he wasn't wrong and they were playing a game of revenge but somehow it struck her as humorous just how strange things had become in the last twenty-four hours. "I can't argue with that logic."

As for what he had to say about the girl...well, she couldn't help but agree. And the use of the word duress reminded her of exactly why she had felt safer trusting female servants--she had seen them go through the same kind of invasive treatment from other noblemen (although significantly less violent) that she received from Magnus. Being treated as if they were objects there to create pleasure for others, rather than humans of their own...she'd have thought that some kind of solidarity was born from that. But then, she should have known better. After all, she had done anything Magnus asked of her during their engagement; could she really expect anyone else to do otherwise? And if they did, how could she blame them?

She sighed. "You mean for interrogation, don't you?" She looked up at him, not quite with accusation, but more than a question. She was skeptical. She could guess that was what he'd been thinking; he was the captain of the guard, after all, so he was probably used to much more dangerous people than a young servant woman. "But yes, I can do that. I've been having one help me change the bedding on weekends anyway, so I can just say I want to change it early beca--" she stopped and turned bright red. "N-nevermind. Dressing works. I...I'll say I need help with my corset."

[Sebastian Arcturis]

Sebastian wasn't sure why Rosemary laughed either. He supposed it was amusing, but he wasn't sure laughing was appropriate. Well...maybe it was if he said he had always hated the sheets in his bed and the comforter too. For the moment, he tabled the topic of sleeping together again. Or actually sleeping together. Bastian realize suddenly this was the second time she had invited him to her room and bed. And also the second time he had implied he was unwilling. He realized he was sending her the wrong message.

Bastian had suffer plenty of duress under the hands of others. Admittedly also mostly men('noble' was a questionable adjective). Not that he would claim any solidarity with anyone over it.

"It's a bit of an excessive word, but yes," he said without hesitation or shame at her question. Interrogation was still fitting regardless. Asking serious questions and compelling serious answers had nothing to fo with danger and everything to do with need. But while the maid may or may not be dangerous(bad habit to assune so he didn't), Sebastian knew the danger to Rosemary overall was real. Teal enough to make a threat on his own life concerning.

A stray thought arrested his process and his steps. Baird said a maid entered the room and after her, the note had been there. Baird had also said that he talked to Magnus in person. Why wouldn't he leave the note himself? To keep himself visibly clean of entering the room? As a poor distraction? The distinction meant little to the guard. But he realized it meant a lot to Magnus. The man seemed vain enough. Still, something about that bothered him.

The captain missed her words at first, lost in his own thoughts, but at the blush on Rosemary's cheeks, he reviewed their conversation. Ah yes, changing the bedding after their evening of pleasure. A soft snort of amusement escaped him. Both for her words and how red she turned. Adorable. "However you like it. Perhaps we can retire there now?" he suggested. "Try out a new dress for the next party?" There were always more of those.