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Post by Rebecca on Aug 23, 2008 18:41:30 GMT -5
"Rudolf..." *she said softly, her voice trembling.*
"...I'm foreign. I--I'm some kind of warped adultress. I just broke a man's nose."
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 23, 2008 18:45:56 GMT -5
"And? Marie Antoinette, the great French Queen, is actually a distant relative of mine. Royalty marrying foreign is nothing new, Becca--you can see it all through history. Adulteress you are most certainly not, and they can't possibly say anything about you punching a guard, considering that I just did that, as well."
*He held both her hands, his expression earnest*
"Please. Don't let those fools block you. Don't let them pull the rug out from under you. They don't have anything near the influence they think they do."
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 23, 2008 18:54:48 GMT -5
"...Marie Antoinette?" *she wrinkled her nose slightly, not certain she could look forward to eventually going to the embrace of Madame la Guillotine. She met Rudolf's gaze at last, feeling cold and warm all at once.*
"...Rudolf, I'm afraid. For all of us."
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 23, 2008 18:57:50 GMT -5
*Impulsively, he pulled her into his arms*
"Please don't be. I know...I know it'll be all right. You're one of the strongest people I've ever known. You will--not can, will--win."
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 23, 2008 19:09:15 GMT -5
*Becca slowly returned the embrace, her arms hesitant as they surrounded him, holding on to him as he encouraged her.*
"Thank you," *she whispered.* "Thank you for finding me when you did. I do not know...I mean, I think I was going to make a horrible mistake whether I wanted to or not..."
*She stretched up to kiss him lightly, sweetly.*
"I'm sorry, Rudolf. I'm so sorry..."
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 23, 2008 19:20:20 GMT -5
*He brushed her cheek lightly, the touch almost infinistesimal*
"Don't be. I can understand not wanting what waits there...even I have trouble with it, at times."
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 24, 2008 4:40:41 GMT -5
"The idea...it all just seems so impossible," *she mused.
She turned back to the carriage and began to climb inside, turning to the coachman for a moment.*
"Return us to Vienna, please," *she said softly, smiling. The long-suffering coachman nodded.*
"As you wish."
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 24, 2008 10:08:44 GMT -5
"One never knows where the road may take them in life."
*He signalled to one of the guardsman, who brought his horse over*
"I'll follow you."
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 24, 2008 10:36:00 GMT -5
*Becca nodded, smiling hesitantly as the carriage began to move. Exhaustion soon set in, and she fell asleep with her children in her arms as the carriage sped back towards Vienna.
Still, they were forced to break for the night to rest the horses and themselves at the same inn they had passed on the way before.
Becca settled the children to sleep upstairs once more, then went back down to the big room below to sit by the fire.*
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 24, 2008 11:34:14 GMT -5
*Rudolf was there, staring into the fire, his eyes distant. After the innkeepers had gotten over the initial flutteriness of having the Emperor in their inn, they'd been very helpful (but not in an overwhelming manner) and rather friendly. Which was, really, the way Rudolf wanted to be. He didn't want everyone always cringing or bowing their heads around him. It made him uncomfortable*
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 24, 2008 12:30:05 GMT -5
*Rebecca curled up in an armchair opposite Rudolf, looping one arm about her knees. She watched him pensively for some time in silence, chewing on her fingernails.*
"What's wrong?" *she finally asked.* "--aside from having your fiancee spook like a horse and bolt?" *She tried to smile and make it a joke, but her expression faltered, and she fell silent, reddening with guilt.*
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 24, 2008 16:30:09 GMT -5
*His gaze turned to Becca, a soft smile appearing on his face*
"Musing on a lot of things. You, the children, what friends and family remain to me..."
*He knitted his brow*
"I have...a half-sister, of sorts, and yet I haven't seen her in a long time. God, she must be a young woman by now. I wonder how she and her parents are..."
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 24, 2008 18:29:24 GMT -5
"Will she come to the wedding?" *asked Becca.*
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Post by Rudolf on Aug 24, 2008 18:33:51 GMT -5
*He smiled*
"I'm fairly certain she would, I just need to send her word about it. All of them, really."
*He wondered, briefly, if that meant he'd have to face der Tod again...and quickly pushed that thought back. He'd cross that bridge when he came to it*
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Post by Rebecca on Aug 24, 2008 18:41:12 GMT -5
"It all just seems so...unreal, sometimes," *she muttered.*
"--what's your sister's name?"
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