Alice was staying in a Bed & Breakfast with Konstantin. The B & B was a bit outside Magnolia but the path going there was clear and used a lot. She wasn't a Rune Knight for long and as they had arrived yesterday and were one of not many to stay at the B & B. "Alright, I think we got everything." Yesterday she heard that other knights were here and she had wondered if she should simply invite them to meet them. She wasn't really in the best of moods yesterday, she did her best to hide it. "Please Clara, tell me it's not a problem?" She said as she followed behind the wife of the owner of this B & B, "Please Alice I have said it many times before." That was right, before she had come up with this decision to invite the Rune Knights that were here, she had heard it was Ace. One of Clara her sons went to look around to find him, she could give a clear description of Ace as she had met him before and if he would find another Rune Knight, he could give one of her spare invitations. Okay this had been the most stupid plan she had thought about and she couldn't find Konstantin and she had to look after Ophelia and damn nervous.

She had simply invited them to meet her because that's what she wanted. She had became a Rune Knight last week, got one job before she simply left to follow Konstatin to Magnolia. She didn't even have to do anything, since Clara did the cooking and well it was a Bed & Breakfast, she simply paid for that. She went to the room to check her hair, the curls were annoying today but fine, it wasn't that bad, she was freaking out and it wasn't even necessary, she wasn't alone, there was Konstantin.. somewhere around the parameter or so. Fine she had time, if the Rune Knights would come, or only Ace if he really was here, it would be in about ten minutes or so. She threw off the shirt she was wearing and quickly grabbed another one, a dress was not a good idea was what she thought five minutes after she put the tight black dress on, however she held on her ankle boots that didn't have such high heels. Right, okay, done. She was going to sit downstairs and not freak out anymore. She lifted off Ophelia of the bed and went downstairs, trying to calm down every second. Stupid ideas, why did no one ever stop her before she made work of stupid ideas.

Aleksandr was staying at the same B & B as Konstantin and Alice. Heck, he was staying in the room opposite to theirs. Unbeknownst to him, Alice had invited other Rune Knights to meet her. He was still sleeping, and Tarkus was running around his room. Tarkus then jumped on the bed and nudged Aleks. He woke up and looked at Tarkus, he kissed the little creature's forehead and yawned as he got out of bed. He entered the bathroom and brushed his teeth. He also took a shower and other regular work. He exited the bathroom wrapped in a towel and looked at himself in the mirror. He had recently got a haircut. His hair was shorter now and not long as fuck like they were in Orchidia.  

Aleks changed into a white t-shirt and pants, he put on sandals and exited the room. He wasn't really paying attention to his surroundings and was looking down. He bumped into Alice and when he looked up to see who it was, uttered only one word "Lacie..?" and sighed. He apologized "Sorry, I wasn't really paying attention."  and walked away from her, eventually sitting on a couch. Tarkus jumped up on his lap and he said: "I wonder what would Konstantin be doing right now." He cared for his brother, and always wondered what he would be doing. He had no idea that Konstantin would be here and he couldn't even imagine it.

Konstantin had left the bed and breakfast a few hours ago to get some more goods for the dinner for all the rune knights that had been invited to their place. He had chosen to ride his Zebstrika completely adorned with his new saddle and various things such as the crimson Caparisons that were slung over the front of the beast and its rear. Meanwhile to show off his status he had taken upon himself to start wearing his armour not only for protection up also as a fashion statement. This proved to result in a rather odd experience similar to what he had felt back when he was a member of a noble family. The people of Magnolia town gave him a mixed but mostly positive response, with the children laughing and smiling as he rode through, eventually, he came to a market where he dismounted and allowed his stead to follow him passively. With the numbers unknown to him but recognising there would be a large number coming and at a minimum just the two of them, he realised that he would need to purchase a large amount of food, probably too much for Sparky to be able to carry along with him. Because of this he would be walking alongside his companion on the walk back which wouldn't be too much of an issue perhaps he'd be a bit late and his cape might be a bit dirty but he ignored it.

Moving through the marketplace he purchased a huge bundle of potatoes in a sack before tying it onto one side of the Zebstrika along with some various other vegetables before getting some apples and fruit to add to the other side. The two made their way to a bakery where he had Sparky wait outside only to return a few moments later with two huge bundles of bread. All that remained to be purchased was the meat of the dinner and the alcohol, wanting to cater to anyone's preferences he would get both fish and red meat, lamb roast or fish pie would be tonight's options. Desert had already been prepared the night before, a nice Banana cake with cream cheese icing.

Once obtaining a few bottles of wine, two white and a red along with a nice bottle of vodka from the general goods store just as he left the town, he made his way back to the bed and breakfast. Unfortunately, with the weight of the armour and the food, he had difficulty compensating though a few nice ladies went to his aid whom he tipped generously though was refused with them merely thanking him for his work. This confused him slightly until he looked in-between a section of his armour revealing his identification, Annoyed with the carelessness of his behaviour, he kicked himself as he entered the building. Once inside he placed all the food he was carrying hastily onto a nearby table.

Noticing Alice's presences, he briefly greeted her. "Hi Alice, Sorry got to unload some food." before bolting out the door and removed the remainder of the food from his Zebstrika, placing it on the same pile as the rest of the food. As this was happening Alice was talking to the caretaker of the bed and breakfast, Clara about what though he didn't know nor care to know at this point. The reason for this was because he needed to start getting to work on the large dinner. Eventually, the old woman left as he moved all the food into the kitchen. Big was an understatement, it had two big ovens which would fit anything someone wanted to cook. Knowing that his current attire was completely inappropriate, he quickly rushed to their shared bedroom casually getting a glance at Alice as he did so and quickly pull off his armour undoing his bindings. "God damn, this is where I envy you and my brother." He muttered to Alice hoping she wouldn't notice his presence.

Now dressed in his general attire without even his robes or vest, he went to work in the kitchen. Cutting up vegetables, lining the dish pans all that in a mad rush. Ovens both ready to roast everything he added the starchy vegetables in first and went to work on the fish and roast, doing the pie first throwing it into the separate oven and then the roast, before putting the rest of the food into the oven. Just as he did so he recognised his brother's voice questioning his whereabouts. Wanting to surprise the long since absent brother, he slid from the kitchen lent onto the side of the arch which separates the room Alice and Alek were in from the kitchen and called out to Alice. “Hey babe, sorry for being rude earlier there is a lot of food I had to prepare.” Before turning his attention to Alek. “Hallo Alek, where have you been?”

There was a word going around headquarters that a requip mage has joined the bandwagon. Funny, he was just doing a job with the first requip mage he's met in Era the other day. Her smile briefly flashed before his eyes. Alice, was her name. He didn't quite catch her last name though. Could it have been her?

Ace walked with his head high around Magnolia. It was unlike his first trip to the fairies' land. This time around he was accompanied by the tribal king, Anax, whom he'd met around the gate of Era. His companion was just a young growlithe but with the bravery and might of a king. The light tapping of his paws can be heard on the pavement as he strolled to the kid's right. Solemnly, with long strides, his afro all puffed up, the gas mage made his way through town on this early morning in search of a big feed. Minding his clean black shoes with every large step he took. It was one of those days for the has mage. Fashionable as always, he wore his tight black jeans with a matching tee, accompanied by white earrings which burst in contrast to his dark chocolatey skin. A black and grey watch on one arm while the other sported a beaded black bracelet.

He was really starting to get the feel of the spring vibes now with this fresh warm air breezing past his warm skin. Baking under the sharp rays of the sun, a couple brilliant white clouds floated off the horizon like a turning page reflecting the bright light. It seemed like he wasn't the only one enjoying the sun's company. The people of Magnolia roamed around the streets continuously as if no one had a care in the world. The playful cheering of the kids mixed with their parent's bargaining on the stalls.

"Ace! Hey Ace!"

It was interrupted upon hearing his name being called. He stopped in his tracks and so did his pet canine. The afroed boy turned his head partially to the side to see whether the calling was intended for him or not. "I've got a letter for you!" a kid called as he chased after Ace. The gas mage faced the younger boy with a usual grumpy serious face. "Hmm? Me?" He asked. "Yeah. I have a letter from... Alice Baskerville. She's staying at my mum's bed and breakfast and is inviting you over for food" the kid said as he stuttered for a second to read the name. Once again the girl's face flashed across his memory. He had more than one question at once but refrained from asking any of them. He extended his arm out to take the letter.

"How about that, King? We got ourselves a free breakfast"

He said with a puzzled look as he darted his eyes to his orange furred growlithe for a second. The canine howled back in reply. They changed their direction and followed the boy to where Alice was staying.

A few minutes into weaving through the alleyways of Magnolia and they were already there. The boy walked into his home and held the door for Ace and his companion. He wiped his shoes gently on the doormat as he walked in to the cluster of cooking fumes. This definitely came in time. Just as Ace was about to ask if Alice was cooking, he spotted the orange haired mage. He nodded at the girl from afar and walked towards her.

"Thanks for the invite" he courteously stated as he fluffed his huge dark afro by running his fingers through it. He saw a couple new faces around but it was a bed and breakfast anyway, so he expected to run into strangers. Either way, he maintained eye contact with Alice and didn't really give himself a chance to see who else was there. Maybe they would recognize him since his age and appearance made him stand out a bit, specially after he's gained a bit of fame after around Era.

His eyebrows still pointed down on his face looking serious as ever although he was genuinely happy on the inside. He was a tough book to read. That was just Ace.

Alice mixed up who was cooking and she had apologized to Clara many times but the old woman kept it a secret that Konstantin was making supper. She only figured that out a few minutes after she put on a dress. The Bed & Breakfast wasn't that big and really homey so out of the city, more at the edge what made her feel as if it wasn't a big town as Magnolia where she stayed. She had ran upstairs to fix a new outfit although she had no idea what to wear and that's when she heard Konstantin mutter something and shook her head, "I prefer dressing up in the normal way and that doesn't mean I know what to wear." Not that she didn't have a spare outfit in her dimensional pocket, imagine something bad would happen, spill a whole bottle of wine over herself, dry clothes were a must. As she reached downstairs she already lost sight of Konstantin again as she was looking for him, someone bumped into her back and she put Ophelia down to turn around to apologize when someone said the name of her hateful sister. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes while turning around to not show any anger. She couldn't help that they were twins, however before she could say anything, the guy had already walked away and sat down somewhere and before she could say something else Konstantin showed up out of the kitchen. That was also the time someone else came towards her and Ace came in. Right she had invited them along to meet up, to bond which she thought was important, what she had missed with Phantom Lord. To see everyone, even the people she didn't know was nice but she missed Selena and she would probably be more comfortable to see LeeAnn but she bet that she and Hans were still in Era.

Before she could answer Konstantin, she stared with open mouth (for like 3 seconds) at Aleksandr, that was his brother? "Hi, I'm Alice." she said turning to Harlie, secretly hoping Aleksandr had heard her too since she didn't want to be mistaken for that lying piece of.. bitch as Lacie. The traitor. She had to be a hostess but she didn't know much about the woman, but she gave her time to speak before turning to Konstantin and Aleksandr, "So you are his brother, I heard a lot about you. Kon do you need help?" Depending if he would say yes or no, she would shortly turn to Ace in a case of yes to greet him, "I had not expected to see you again so soon, nor in the situation that I became a knight as well. I'm glad you came." If Konstantin said no, she would say the same but stay around the three.

Ophelia was torn between the little fire pets, she wanted to meet them but was a bit afraid of them. Poor little Cleffa.

Aleksandr had started to observe the environment in which he was sitting. All of a sudden, he was greeted by his older brother, Konstantin from behind his back. Startled by the sudden voice from behind, he jumped up and looked at Konstantin. He slowly understood what happened here. He smiled at Konstantin, and said, "I've been good, how about you, brother?" he walked forward and gave him a quick hug, then let go and said, "What have you been up to?" He had heard Konstantin say 'babe' but, he wasn't sure who his brother had called babe. He gave the room a quick look and saw that there were two women here.

In attempts to figure out who his brother had called babe, his brain started working faster, not really but at least he thought so. He gave the room another quick glance. If his brother had called someone babe, it meant that he had scored, or maybe not. Maybe they were in a relationship but hadn't taken the big step. He was just overthinking this whole matter. Maybe one of the women in the room was just casually flirting with his brother, and his brother was doing the same. He decided to ask his brother later.

Oh, wait, the orange-haired girl in the room who he had bumped into wasn't Lacie. He heard her introducing herself as 'Alice' which made it quite clear that she wasn't Lacie. She then went ahead and said something to Alek that he only half-heard, the reason being that he paid attention to Tarkus who was rubbing against his legs. She said something like 'Oh you're the brother, I've heard a lot.' While that might not exactly be what she had said, but that was what he had heard. He knew that he had probably heard it wrong. But he did his best to respond to what she had said or rather, what he heard her say. He spoke with a smile "Yes, I'm Aleksandr, the younger blonde." and chuckled. He then turned his attention towards Harlie "Hello!" and then at Ace "Hey there!"

He was finished greeting them for now, he looked at his brother and said: "Need any help? I can help if you want." Tarkus climbed up his body and sat on his shoulders. Tarkus was a creature that liked to keep up close with Alek. Alek petted Tarkus and smiled, he was waiting for a reply from Konstantin. If his brother would not reply, he would just start walking around.

It was fortunate that the blonde haired mage had purchased so much as the members of guests just seemed to increase. Two newcomers whom he hadn't met before along with his brother which was far more than he could hope for in the grand scheme of things considering his goal was to establish another team that would not just rival is former team but also dominate it, he did have some hesitations however as his brother was in the team still at least to his knowledge and would for now be unable to join the prospective team. Ignore the issue at the moment he listened as his brother and Alice introduced themselves, it surprised him slightly though that the others hadn't but it didn't matter just yet. Occasionally the conversation turned to himself with him being asked the usual catching up remarks with little to share he replied. "I'm pretty good actually Alek, to be honest, though I haven't been up to a lot anyway save for spending some quality time with Alice over there." afterwards was asked whether he needed help responding with a simple shake of the head and replying. "No need everything is taken care of, the vegetables are all in along with the rest of the food."

With those matters taken care of and the food going to take about twenty minutes to cook properly, as he slouched on the arch his focus drew upon both of two individuals whom he was unfamiliar with before leaving it and moving with intent towards them. Giving them a long and hard stare to see whether they'd break, he spoke to them both as equals not as separate people in a deathly serious tone. "So you two are members of the Rune Knights as well hmm... I don't think I've seen either of you before and I normally have pretty good memory." Scratching the coarse, unshaven scruff underneath his lips he thought briefly as he examined the two focusing on the age of one of them. "The Rune Knights are recruiting children now?, I know times are rough for us but what is this organisation thinking." Before continuing with a slightly more casual tone. "I guess time will tell if you have what it takes." Dismissing his attention from the two briefly he gathered one of the wine bottles that was resting on a nearby table along with a few glasses, four as he assumed the youngest member wasn't going to be drinking. Opening the champagne with a swift flick of the wrist he began to pour into the glasses before taking one for himself.

It was only then his attention returned to the two. "I'm Konstantin, Konstantin Sokolov, I'll be overseeing things here for a while along with Alice over there, as for my brother I don't know what he's doing here admittedly." Taking a drink of the wine, he continued. "If you wish we can form a unit or team if you will I may be harsh but it will help you survive out there."

He glanced over at Anax, his pet growlithe, with lidded eyes. The young canine was playfully circling the cleffa that stood there in the open. She didn't seem as enthusiastic to meet the young fire breather, but then again she looked fairly shy rather than scared. After all, they were just kids. How ironic for Ace to think of that. He looked back at Alice as she greeted him. "Oh congratulations on joining the knights..." he said with one hand hanging face up in front of him. "Thanks for the invite" he commented with a plain face showing absolutely no sign of gratitude. His straight face might intimidate the other guests, but he definitely meant no harm to any of them. He once again redirected his vision for a brief second at both the blonde mages that greeted him, one being way more polite than the other.

It seemed like everyone had a general idea of who the others were at this stage, except for Ace and the other girl that stood there quietly. She hadn't replied to anyone. Probably because she was busy checking the place out.

"The rune knights are recruiting children now? I know times are ro..."

The words rung in Ace's ears. He slowly ruled out the man's voice and all he could see were his lips moving. A very familiar sentence he'd been hearing from every other ignorant mage in Fiore. He was used to it and honestly, it didn't bother him anymore. The same old comment. He slowly turned his head around inspecting the place as the man finished what he had to say. A short break of silence brought his attention back to the blonde. He rolled his lidded eyes towards the mage.

"Oh... In case it wasn't clear already, I've outranked a hoard of Knights. So I'm past the stage of seeking an individual's approval. In fact I never was at that level of neediness"

He casually looked over at the other three with his eyebrows still pointed showing annoyance, "I'm Ace Brookes by the way, I don't believe I've properly met any of you" he said as he darted his eyes back at the orange haired requip mage, "except for yourself". Ace strolled around the place casually. He could hear his growlithe's howling echoing louder in the room, "Having fun there, King?" he asked as he inspected one of the random paintings on the wall.

Once again the blonde haired mage who rudely addressed him started talking again. This time proposing the formation of a team between the four of them, ruling out his brother. The girl with the purple flowing hair remained quiet as Ace looked around him at the rest of the guests. He didn't expect the proposition to be coming his way until the man referred to himself as being 'harsh' over his team members only for the sake of making them stronger. Ace continued playing the role of the clueless boy as he walked over to Anax. He crouched down and rubbed the canine's head as he listened to what the group behind him said. He didn't make it look like he understood the man's proposition, neither did he know if he actually wanted to be in a team with this man.

He would patiently wait for them to say something and then ask Alice about the food, "What're you making for us tonight?"

Alice looked at Ophelia for a second and gave her a soft push towards the Growlithe, although she wasn't sure what the other creature would do, the Cleffa should at least try. She wasn't a shy baby normally, she was used to see Alice fighting, so she shouldn't stay like this. She had asked Konstantin if he needed help, he had denied also explained why, that's when she turned her attention to Ophelia. She frowned only as she listened to Konstantin, now she wasn't a Rune Knight for long but the tone was something that she was slightly surprised by. She started to know Konstantin and thus she wasn't surprised in general but she didn't understand why she would say it like this to the other knights. She had met Ace before, the fact that he was a child didn't bother her in the slightest, since she wasn't one of the top members of the Rune Knights, she didn't know the reason why they hired him, but he must have proven his worth.

So she looked up from Ophelia to see if she would meet Konstantin his eyes, she was just wondering. Was he showing rough and tough simply to pin point if they were worth it? She also frowned a little extra because of the champagne, didn't they agree yesterday to not drink any time soon? She couldn't help but chuckle and turn back to look at the others around her. She looked away when the matter of them came up and he mentioned a team, he might be tough but it helped them survive, she rolled her eyes but made sure no one saw that, she gave another push to Ophelia who slowly walked to the Growlithe. No one said anything and thus she decided to answer, "I don't mind forming a team. Gives me the opportunity to work and learn at the same time in a way that I like." She looked at Ace for a second before turning to the others one by one.

It remained quite until the moment Ace asked her what she was making for food, "I left it all to Konstatin and he made me quite curious to what supper will be." It was some sort of question without making it a question, she tried to keep the conversation lightly but she wasn't sure how this all would work.

Okay so the whole idea of having a supper was her idea but she wasn’t entirely sure if it was well alright. She didn’t get to know the people better as she had hoped. Which was also something that would be easier in a smaller group, you know one on one for example but still, there wasn’t much talk or well no one spoke a lot. She was curious after Ace and well she had only met him once that maybe sparked her interest, mostly because they were now in the same faction. The surprise that Aleksandr was here, Konstantin’s brother, also sparked her interest. And the silence girl, she wondered if it was her invitation that got her here or if it was again fate just like Aleksandr? Hm small world, is what she thought. She did enjoy the conversations that were very light and not about much about the people that were here but that didn’t matter. The food was good too!?

She was a bit worried about Ophelia whom seemed to be a bit distressed with the two other companions around but Alice wasn’t sure if she made friends or if her companion was too shy for that. Which was weird considering she hang around with Sparky. It was also difficult to keep an eye on her if Alice was helping or talking to others. She doubted that team would come but she didn’t mind working with others, she would see what happened, it didn’t matter much anymore.

Exit.

Placing down his glass along with the bottle that occupied his hands, his attention due to a sudden pain. Clutching the temples of his head with his empty hand using his thumb and index finger, Kon tried to rub away the pain of a sudden and sharp headache. So powerful in fact that he could barely make out the words of the youngest of the party. Who proclaimed himself as higher in status than numerous other rune knight and thus no longer craved desires of wanting attention. While his words weren't lost on him, Kon's focus was now centred on the jarring sensation that was twisting his thoughts and emotions. Though he might feel that way his cockiness seemed to reveal a portion of vulnerability as if it were merely a facade. Wanting to understand where this boy was coming from, his focus turned to him once more. "Right, okay so evidently you and I don't see eye to eye on these matters nor do I feel that you would gain much in the formation of a team, while you say you don't desire approval, however my approval and acceptance of you as a rune knight is something that will grind on your nerves whenever we're around each other." Pausing for a moment to take a sip of his drink before continuing. "I'll have no issues retracting my statements towards you and giving you just as much respect as any other rune knight member if you do just one thing for me accept my request for a fight, we can do it here in Magnolia town or somewhere else later if you don't feel up to it yet."

Kon's words would have likely dampened the mood of the night swiftly however with a quick response from Alice to Ace's comments it had a chance to return to its original state. By focusing on what brought them together in the first place and redirecting it to Kon, he could elaborate upon it in an attempt to lighten up his personality towards the newcomers. "Ah yes, I've cooked a variety of things for us to eat tonight including a roast, a fish pie with vegetables on the side which will be followed up with a light banana cake for dessert."

Revealing the meals for the night, kon continued to converse with his fellow rune knights before serving the dinner out to everyone. Once they had all finished both with their food and each others company the guests began to trickle out, giving Kon some much-needed rest. Seeking the warmth of the shower kon retired to the bathroom and had a shower.

[Exit]

Ace didn't really involve himself much with the blonde. Why would he when they clearly got off on the wrong foot. Maybe the next time they meet theur conversation will have a lighter mood and fewer people around to comment on what they had to say. One thing the man said caught Ace's attention. A request for a fight to get his respect? He must have been so full of himself that he didn't even hear Ace's previous statement. The young afroed boy couldn't care less about getting respect from other people as long as it didn't stand in the way of his goal; this man was nowhere near the gas mage's blueprint. Ace couldn't help but stare at the man as thoughts flooded his head. He wasn't the type to spit out anything that came to his head. "I'll accept your offer. However you can keep the respect to yourself, I'm not in need of such approval." Ace left the man to his own opinions as to why he accepted to fight him. It was mostly clear though, and it might set things straight between the two of them and might even make friends out of enemies. Although Ace couldn't see it happening at the moment.

Ace sat down to eat with the rest of the knights, chatted a bit for the rest of the night, then left to get some sleep after this long day.

~EXIT~

Aleksandr just looked how most people in the party, or invited to, quickly exited. He sighed, this was another failed party or at least that was, what he thought. A party ending in two people wanting to fight each other, looking at Kon and Ace, supposedly for Ace to prove his mettle wasn't really a good party. One in Crocus, and now in Magnolia. He didn't know why all the Rune Knight meetings and parties ended in disaster. Maybe it was because of their elephant sized egos that these ideas always failed, or maybe it was poor execution, at least in the case of Crocus where half the people also got drunk. Maybe now it was time for him to get going and maybe eat something out, he wasn't in Magnolia so he could waste time, which was what he was currently doing. So, with that, he turned towards the main door, walked to it, and exited the Bed & Breakfast. He was going to be seeing Magnolia at night now.

[Exit]