A Princess, a Knight, and an Assassin Walk Into a Tavern...

Tollie

Tollie crouched behind what was left of an overturned table, her self-designated savior still going at it with a large greasy man who seemed, so far as she could tell, to have nothing to do with the men who had attacked West and herself, but rather, had just stood up and decided to take him on.
Everything had erupted into utter chaos around her; glass breaking from somewhere near, the shards falling on her head.
At the door she could see Duhningham flinging men out onto the street as if they were nothing more than bags of flour.

Small, inconsequential bags of flour, at that.
A distinct shout from the other direction caught her attention, though why it should with so much noise, she didn't know. Perhaps it was because it was female, perhaps it was because she shouted the same words Captain West had said to her last.
"Run!"
Tollie looked over just in time to see Captain West get hit, to see him go down, to see that he didn't get back up.
Without really thinking it through – obviously, because if she HAD she would have realized that A. There was NOTHING she could possibly do for him and B. There was nothing SHE could possibly do for him and C. THERE WAS NOTHING SHE COULD POSSIBLY DO FOR HIM! – she sprang from her hiding place, darting towards his fallen form.
Slam! The wall shook directly behind her and she looked back to where her savoir had just whammed a guy against the wall, one that she assumed had been coming for her. The man slumped to the floor, her savior giving her an exasperated 'What are you doing?!' expression.
Though she gave him a 'Sorry' look in return, she turned back to what she was doing.
The girl with the sword leg who had been fighting beside West was still occupied with her own foes, almost completely surrounded as she was, though surprisingly, it didn't seem to be too many for her...
But the man who had upper-cut West was walking towards his downed body now, a sickening grin on his face, intent to finish the job. This was no tavern boy out for a good time, this had to be one of the hulking guys who had come in the backway. Taking in his bulk she knew she didn't have a chance, she wouldn't even be able to budge the guy, quickly she looked around, thinking.
She felt savior behind her, taking on someone knew. Time was running out.
There were plenty of items for impaling, but she wouldn't have the strength to wedge it deep enough to count, so far as she could see the only thing strong enough to take him out was himself...
Out of the corner of her eye from the other direction, she could see the General with a man over her head, ready to...
Suddenly it all came together in her head, and looking back over at the great man standing over West she whistled shrilly. He looked up and she made a rude gesture at him with her hand, growling he moved towards her.
Just one more step...
Wham!
Savior pulled her back against the wall just as a man went flying past her face, crashing into the remaining crowd; the man she had whistled to now laying with a table leg stabbing up through his stomach.
Her legs got a little quivery and she slid down to her rump, savior crouching down beside her, breathing hard.
"You alright?"
She nodded, smiling weakly.
Her first tavern brawl.
Her first murder.
He looked out at the complete destruction surrounding them. He was very handsome, in a tossled-hair, rugged sort of way. He blew out his breath, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck before looking back at her and asking, "What was that you did with your hand at that guy back there?" He asked, his eyebrows lowered in confusion.
"Umm..." She started, blushing at her unladylikeness, "I merely suggested that his mother was a..."
He snorted and started shaking his head, interrupting her, though his smile was good natured. "No."
"No?" She asked.
"No. I'm pretty sure whatever you did was completely made up." He answered, standing and putting out his strong hand to help pull her to her feet.
Only then did she realize she had learned it from her siblings and it was entirely possible it meant nothing outside of their relationship...
Blushing, she nonetheless looked up to thank him, but he was no longer looking at her, instead smiling over a ways at her other protector, and West's as well as it turned out, the blonde with the sword leg, which...she apparently really could use as a sword!
The woman smiled back at him in return, though she seemed a little less confident than moments before, and her eyes moved on quickly, assessing their current situation. She was attractive in her unique way, foxy even – which might explain her savior's blushing ears...but she also seemed the type of woman you didn't tell that you thought so...not right away anyways.
At the far end she could overhear Duhningham with the barkeep, offering to pay for all the damage, and felt a pang of guilt. This hadn't been Duhningham's fault, this had been her fault.
Though it certainly hadn't been purposeful, and though she wasn't exactly sure HOW it was her fault, she could connect the dots enough to know that this attack had been about her...or Riek. Still, as she had no money herself, and knew her parents wouldn't pay even though they could, and also knew there was no way on earth she was ever going to ask them...she said nothing.
They had all chosen to protect her when they could have just let Ward get her, could have just kept to their own problems. And from the few snatches of the battle she managed to see between flinches, she couldn't have chosen better people for the job if she'd tried. She felt a stirring of gratitude in her heart and a little of something else that she hadn't felt in a long time. Hope.
When she'd first left the castle she'd been so alone, but now with these guys and Captain West helping her when they didn't have to...
Captain West!
She darted over to where he lay, just beginning to sit up, his eyes looking a little unfocused.
She hovered, unsure exactly how to be helpful, as he groaned, getting up to a seated position and tested out his jaw, trying it out cautiously this way and that.
"Are you sufficiently well?" She asked eventually.
He laughed once, wearily, then said, "Picked a bloody brilliant time to grow a conscience." Then he cursed under his breath as he made to stand, she standing with him, aiding as possible, averting her eyes from the body beside them, the table leg still jutting out harshly.
He held her out from himself looking her over, brushing her hair gently with his hand, sprinkles of glass falling from it. "Sorry lass, I really thought if we kept in public they wouldn't dare attack."
She smiled back, forgetting to what he was even referring for a few heart beats.
"What...what happened?" She asked finally, looking about them again at the no longer recognizable inn. The others still left standing gravitated in towards each other, forming a haphazard circle of sorts, obviously curious as well; all but the barkeep who simply looked back down, obstinately continuing to polish the one unbroken mug left in his entire establishment.
Captain West sighed, limping over to lean back against a half a wall still left standing, before speaking.
"I can tell you some...but even I don't know the half of it dove. Though I can tell you it involves your brother." He looked regretful as he said it, even as he saw her eyes light up.
"Riek?! What..." Then suddenly she realized something. "How'd you know he was my brother?"
"I didn't at first, just thought you were some fool trying to get themselves killed by dabbling in matters that were far deeper than they could swim in...But then you leaned forward into the light and, I couldn't believe it, you looked exactly like him. Which also meant you were one of Estavan's...which meant you were already in more trouble than you could..."
"You think I look like my brother?" She asked, the hurt in her tone making him pause a moment, confused.
Suddenly understanding dawned and he began again, "Well...not exactly like him o'course." He tried, looking around at the others uncomfortably, no one coming to his aid. "I just meant in a very general...familial way..." Then he gave up. "Let's face it dove, your brother's kind of a pretty boy and you're wearing his hair and his clothes. Am I right?"
She sighed. It was true.
"Anyways," He said, looking out to speak to all of them. "Even then I tried to shut the kid down..."
"Woman." Tollie corrected.
He barely paused in acknowledgment before continuing, "...thinking maybe if they saw her give up and go home they'd leave the kid be..."
"Woman." She corrected again. And when he sighed, looking over at her, she added. "Referring to me as a 'child' denotes that we are not equals, an idea I do not agree with."
He smiled, amused by both her wording and her determination. "You do realize you're at least ten years younger than the rest of us?"
"A fact which didn't seem matter when you kissed me." She pressed. She knew it had just been a strategy, but she would like to think he wouldn't have used the same exact strategy on someone he really did consider a child.
She smiled at him triumphantly, he staring at her a moment, aware of everyone's eyes on him, then bowed his head to her, smiling and conceding the point. "Touché."
"...that they'd leave the WOMAN be..." He looked over at her, mockingly checking that she wasn't going to interrupt him before continuing, "...but it soon became apparent that that wasn't going to happen..." He gave her a conspiratorial smile remembering her determination.
"And I just thought..." He looked down, the shame apparent on his face, and a warning twinged in Tollie stomach. "Not again. I couldn't just sit back this time." He looked up to meet her eyes, his own eyes pleading, "I knew it wouldn't make what I did better...but at least I could look meself in the eye again tomorrow."
"What'd you do?" She whispered, dread heavy in her stomach.
"It wasn't so much what I did as what I didn't do dove...That day I boarded your brother's ship I was searching for aid, But Estavan won't meet with the likes o' me, so I thought I'd get the ear of one of his men, one I'd fought with before, one who kind of owed me, you know?"
Tollie nodded, though she more felt offended that her father would refuse to meet with someone he expressly employed, one who had just risked his life for his daughter's, though I guess her father didn't know that part...
"During which meeting I learned a few things. One of which was that there's a movement to overthrow Estavan, one which frankly, I wasn't opposed to." He looked over at the general and shrugged in a 'what do you want from' me expression; though Duhningham didn't look at all surprised by his reveal.
"A movement I could play a part in, for which part I would get the help I was seeking. Win/win so far as I could tell at the time...All me crew and I had to do was deliver the boy...your brother...to some people who would hold him, keep him hidden, allow rumors to spread that he was turning on his father. They swore the boy would come to no harm." He said, looking at Tollie, but she wasn't looking at him, she was looking down again, eyes teary.
"Only when we took him to where they said..." He shook his head, "The blokes who were there to get him, they weren't good people if you know what I mean, and that's sayin' a lot when it comes from a pirate. But I didn't do anything...I just let them take him anyway. You should o' seen the look he gave me...And since then, the more I learn about who's behind this movement, the more I regret my actions. Estavan needs to be brought down, but not by a worse power, and not the way they're planning it. Sorry dove."
"What're they planning?"
"Well, we all know your father had so many of ya because he wanted to make sure it was nigh impossible for anyone outside of his family to get to the throne. You'd have to kill what, like 30 people just to even get near it, half of 'em still children, probably losing you your support in the process. Only now...the threat was from within. So he had to do his best to keep you all locked up, wouldn't want you winning friends and influencing people...getting ideas."
This was all news to Tollie, though in all fairness she knew almost nothing about him.
"Do you know Duke Cartwell?"
She thought hard, then shook her head. "Sorry, I wasn't allowed to court often, I wasn't thought worthy enough."
"No see, that's where you're wrong. If he's not letting you in court, it's because he thinks you're too worthy. He thinks you're smart or endearing or in some other way able to gain followers."
Flipping her whole idea of who she was and how she was completely upside down in just that one statement.
"Anyways, I think he's behind it somehow...and so are the recent...shall we call them immigrants?" He said, looking again over at the General. "From what I gather, the idea is to get him focused on a threat from within, than attack from without...yet keeping the blood off one's own hands as well as proving Estavan's incompetence." He shrugged after it all. "But that's only what I've gathered so far. As you can see, they've been watching me pretty closely...I probably nulling their side of our bargain with my actions tonight." His voice sounded heavy at the last, he putting his hand to the bridge of his nose as if he had a headache.
"What was it?" Tollie asked after a moment of silence. When he looked back up at her questioningly she asked again, "What was it that you wanted help with?"
He looked at her a long time before sighing, "I used to be just a little street rat, little tike livin' off stolen bread and abuse...until the day I stole from the right cart. Catching me in the act, the woman didn't beat me or turn me in...she took me in, she fed me and made me part of the family. Gypsies others call 'em, I call 'em home. We traveled all over the place, trading in back wood mountainous areas that no one else's has even heard of. Then when I got older I..."
"Fell in love?" Tollie asked, bracing herself.
"No...I went searching for adventure, eventually landing me on me own ship. Then one day I..."
"Fell in love?" Tollie asked again.
He sighed, taking both her hands in his and saying patiently, "Dove. If I promise that at no point in this story will I fall in love with someone, will you let me tell it uninterrupted?"
She nodded, relieved.
"...I got a message from my 'mother', crinkled and stained with blood, said the mountains were under attack, only no one knows...there's news of it nowhere. I've been trying to get someone to join me, to check it out, but so far the crown has been deaf to my pleas. So I went elsewhere. Also to no avail now it seems."