"Holy shit, is that girl for real? She's nineteen!" The others in Rose's group of five grinned over her outburst; Dezel, the number six only she could see, huffed with barely audible amusement. She flipped them off in an attempt to air her befuddlement and amazement alike. "Fuck you, I'm right!"

They had made it far enough from the royal villa to converse openly again, certain that none pursued them anymore. An attempt to deliver Chancellor Bartlow to the knife, foiled not by inability or new information, but a princess too kind for her own good. Or perhaps there was more to it; the point she made still rang in Rose's ears: "This man is too important for the prosperity of Ladylake." Perhaps it was not just kindness, but also calculus; Rose could not deny that Bartlow was highly intelligent, to have risen this high from the peasantry.

No one had responded to her earlier assertion and Eguile returned to the original subject after a few more backstreets they walked in silence: "She's certainly something if she speaks out in favour of the guy that negotiated a hit on her."

"Yeah."

"True that."

"Agreed."

Rose felt similarly, but kept quiet for now as they all stripped down to shed their dark assassins' garb. Dezel stood watch while Eguile passed around the bags with their everyday clothes, prepared at this spot in advance; a dark corner that no one really went to, especially at night. Well, any would-be robbers were probably long gone after seeing the smallest trace of their bone masks. Rose could not help but smirk over that; she was the most dangerous thing in the area.

Then however, her grin faded as the heavier thoughts returned. The intel they got from the Bloodwings was right; Alisha Diphda cared a great deal about her country and her people, to the point she would plead for a corrupt man's life due to his importance said wellbeing. Rose was not sure what to think now; her first instinct about someone who appeared like a saint was always to suspect skeletons in their closet, but there were apparently none to be found. Nothing beyond minor vices, such as favouring expensive sweets.

They finished changing and wandered out onto the mostly empty streets, with Juliette being slung over Eguile's shoulder. As the only other woman in her current group, it was either her or Rose; the idea being that if any passing guard asked, they would tell the woman being carried drank too much. To appear as if they visited the tavern, which was technically even true, seeing that other Sparrow Feathers were there until they got the signal; all for the sake of a good cover. And despite the fact the knights had more than their fair share of women, they believed the drunk excuse far more easily this way than if one of the men were carried while the girls still walked on their feet. Assumptions and all.

The group as a whole stayed quiet until they were back with their carts and inside; the wind shifted while Dezel sealed off the travel of sound, making it impossible for anyone outside to hear them. Juliette, once set down, threw a casual salute into the room that missed him by a mile. "Thanks for the help, man!"

Eguile nodded in agreement. "The assistance of a seraph sure is convenient."

There was some agreement from the rest, though Simon shuddered and ran a hand through his curly black hair. "It's kind of scary that the Bloodwings are mostly seraphim," he told them. "I was thinking, we'd never even know without Rose."

There was a conversation to be had there, but she did not feel like thinking a lot tonight. That could be saved for tomorrow, or someone else. She just threw a grin at Simon. "Damn right, on both counts. Now who's up for drinking the night away? Today sucked!" This earned her some laughter and agreement.

Juliette poked her with an elbow and a wry grin. "I have the feeling the day is not the only one who will suck a lot before dawn." Her note brought more laughter, even from Rose. If Dezel's eyes were visible, she just knew, he would be rolling them.

Keeping up, Rose raised an eyebrow at her fellow woman in mock anger. "Did I stutter? Fill me up and then fill me up again, easy as that. Now bring out the beer!"

There were some calls of "Sure thing, boss" and continued laughter. Much better. Rose sighed and noted by herself how Dezel left the place; he was shy like that, despite the fact this was nothing unusual. Then someone pushed a wooden mug into her hand and she decided to put this weird night aside; it was time to unwind.

Elsewhere in the city, Alisha and Sorey sat together with Lailah and Mikleo; she had invited the shepherd and the two seraphim to her own home, uncertain about what happened earlier in the night and unwilling to just send them back to the inn Sorey stayed at. Now that she was made Sorey's squire and granted the ability to interact with the seraphim, she could even tell them that directly.

Lailah had her arms crossed, brow scrunched in thought. "I heard whispers about the Scattered Bones, but to see them work is something else." There was silent agreement, even from Alisha; she never encountered them before, only heard of their work; men or women ending up dead with a ceremonial dagger implanted in their heart, its hilt engraved with the guild's famous phrase: 'May these weary bones find peace'.

"So who are they exactly?"

Her eyes went to Mikleo, who had asked the question that probably bothered Sorey as well; with both of them having lived up high on a mountain, Alisha figured it made sense they were unaware and spoke up to rectify that. "The Scattered Bones assassin guild has been active for a few years now, their highest value being honour. As... odd as that may sound." She had seen the confused looks the men gave her, but did not comment further. "Word of mouth is that they only take a select few contracts and never move for personal gain, but rather for the greater good. There seems to be some truth to it as well," she mused, "considering that I was apparently their original target."

A part of her was terrified, but she felt mostly just confused by the whole night. That Bartlow wanted her gone was no surprise, she had put a lot of effort into thwarting his more dangerous ideas while also channeling his capabilities in more useful manners. For the assassins to not come for her at some point, that was unexpected.

"I heard word that they never hunt for the innocent."

Alisha gave a nod to Lailah, agreeing with her statement but still caught in her own thoughts. She was guilty of many things, or at least she felt so. She could have been better, always better. Could have done more. But in the end, Alisha knew not to trust these thoughts of hers. They always came unbidden, and thus she gave them the only treatment they deserved: to be ignored. One could only do as much as one was able to, doing more would destroy a person. And if she was destroyed, she could not help anyone anymore. At least she liked to think she was helping, but-

Sorey snapped her out of that beginning spiral, his tone distasteful. "I don't like it." All attention went to him and Alisha quickly willed her conflicted feelings down, into the depths where they belonged. Sorey seemed to be free of such, he simply frowned. "No one should have to die, there have to be better ways to punish someone."

Then again, even to her such a stance was naive. Many deaths could be prevented, yes, but all of them? She wondered just what held such conviction, if it was foolish or brilliant; yet she also wanted to believe that it was possible, that he was possible. She felt a little better recently, even; ever since becoming the squire. Ever since she was given eyes to truly see the world around herself. Alisha sat quietly still in the silence left by Sorey's declaration. She wondered, tried to remember if, perhaps, she held the same view as him when she was younger. Her memory was not the best at times, but she felt like it fit. To have truly believed that all life was sacred. Reality crushed that belief and reformed it into a more pragmatic one, but there might be something she could not see that he did.

What Alisha clearly remembered were the words the Celestial Record gave her, when she was seeking guidance and purpose still. "It is our duty to transcend the possible, and achieve the ideal," they read. A famous quote sadly forgotten by most, words that moved her to tears the first time she read them; these words had inspired her to become a knight instead of a courtier, alongside the shining glory of Hyaci Maltran. Even now, she found herself reciting the words under her breath.

Much to her surprise however, Sorey heard them. His attention turned to her and he grinned. "Claudin, the Hero King, right?"

Having been caught doing something childish embarassed her a little, but Alisha did not let it show and nodded softly. Lailah and Mikleo turned their attention to her then and she felt like she should speak. "I always looked up to them, you see? The heroes of the past who turned our world for the better. Claudin, Artorius, Eleanor, they all inspired me to give every day my all and push as far as I could go." Even if that meant having to fight her own weak will and traitorous mind. "I am just, well, not really getting anywhere at an acceptable pace. Change takes a great time to be implemented properly, but I will never stop believing in it. In time, mankind will certainly be elevated."

Much like before, she knew she meant those words. Despite the fact parts of her wondered if she would ever see it, if she really likened herself to heroes of ages past, if there would really be another like them. She just told herself there would be, as long as there were those who desired to bring forth change. No matter how futile it felt, Alisha would carry on the torch until someone better suited arrived to receive it from her. Someone like, maybe, the man in front of her, who appeared a little surprised by the conviction even her measured words conveyed.

Lailah clapped her hands in delight and dispersed the moment's oddity. "That is a wonderful stance to have, Alisha!" she cheered, smiling brightly at the other woman. "It is such a shame you were born without resonance; you would have made a wonderful shepherd of your own."

Sorey snapped his fingers at that. "Actually, that reminds me. Can there be more than one shepherd? Or, well, can there be more than one seraph with the flames of purification?"

Due to the attention shifting back to Sorey, no one noticed the momentary grimace on Alisha's face; she quickly schooled her expression so even Mikleo's idle glance her way failed to uncover how deep the innocent comment had hit. She knew Lailah meant no insult and that there was nothing she could do about how she was born, but it still bothered her to keep being confronted with this harsh reality. Just because she had no resonance of her own, a path to change, to transcend, was barred to her forever. The only reason Alisha still walked a few steps on it was Sorey's kindness. The small part that whispered he merely needed her prowess or connections and she would be dropped at the first opportunity, she ignored with an ease born of many years dealing with the same.

Only if one listened to a voice did it gain power over oneself. Even if it was one's own voice that spoke.

She listened with half a mind to Lailah's explanation of multiple seraphim being able to take the same Oath she did and receive the silver flame, whatever that meant. She felt it was not her place to ask, or that she would even remember it if she did. In her own head, she dwelled on the matter of resonance and the shepherd. Of hellions and Malevolence.

She would not falter, not for herself but for her people. No matter the odds, no matter the task, Alisha would give everything she had so that they would not suffer. That no one had to suffer, as best as she could make it so. Now she had a more direct way to go about that, even.

Things were looking up, or so she thought.

But somehow, she could not shake the feeling that it would not last.