She blinked at him. What he said was technically a very feminist statement. She should be impressed hearing it from a man. Yet, at the same time, it felt wrong. In this case at least. In other's she'd fully agree with him. Her stomach reacted to the idea of food. She felt very hungry despite what she'd been through. And she wasn't sure that it made sense for her to be. "Did I ask you how long I've been here?" How fast did his skills work on healing her and changing her? It was something better to think about than being pregnant and him taking her children. She would think on that later. Not now. She looked to him when he began to talk in that voice again. The panic seemed to live away somewhat, but the fear was still there, but bearable.
She took his hand. "Will I have to keep wearing these bandages or can some clothes be ordered for me?" She didn't want to assume that he had clothes for her. Or that he was going to let her leave immediately. It felt like there was another shoe to fall before that could happen. At least there wasn't any real pain when she settled on her feet. She also didn't know how long that would last. There were a million other thoughts in her mind, but she wanted to go back to Gerwulf or have him come back here. He felt safe. Werewolf... er... lycanthrope or not. He'd done nothing but been good to her and sweet. She trusted him. She did not trust Cicero, despite being grateful to him. Not that she'd say that out loud.
As they walked she looked puzzled for a moment. "Lemonade is a very random choice for a drink. I don't think I've had it since I was a child." It was something you got when you ate out. Or you got it at the fair. She'd had more spiked lemonade at bars than she ever had regular lemonade with a meal. As soon as he guided them out the door, she was looking for Gerwulf. Then her mind shifted to trying to figure out how to tell him she was pregnant. If he had knocked her up with one slip up on her pill, and he was with a different person every new town... how many kids did he likely have floating around out there? She didn't want to think about it. Nor did she want to trap him with this. She had to figure out the perfect way to tell him.
Cicero wouldn't have classified it as feminist, just the most correct answer. Perhaps it would have been easier on Aesa if he had worn a different set of organs, more feminine in nature. It wouldn't stop him from being the type of person that others found disturbing. Sure, he could hide how he acted; however, it wouldn't have been him. "Time works differently here, though I guess it would have been around a solar day?" He pondered before providing the answer. Keeping Aesa calm as he led her toward the door, blinking, "You're lucky that Gerwulf requested the bandages, you would have just been in the nude otherwise. As for clothes, nothing that I would spare, I'm afraid." A light tone for such an odd sentence.
He really didn't care about Aesa, nor how she viewed him. She hadn't become a real person to him yet, and so he kept her indignation, along with fears shelved. "It isn't random, Lemons were a creation, genetically so. They remind me that any venture can bear fruit as long as you change it enough." Cicero chuckled as the door opened and it led into a wide corridor, with flagstones and marble walls leading into a grand hall. At both ends of the corridor lay double doors and many others; however, one was open, and a much cleaner Gerwulf stood. The big man smiled and raised a hand as they moved into a larger open area.
It was a grand hall with one leather highback chair facing an ancient-looking fireplace. There were wooden shelves and many trinkets, as well as collections of leatherbound books, lined the walls with artwork and tapestries. "She is a picture of health, as agreed upon, unharmed," Cicero stated as he continued to lead Aesa, not letting go of her even as they began to pass Gerwuilf. "We should get going soon," The wolf man tried to say, but Cicero shook their head. "Hospitality, you know the rules," He murmured as he led them both into another room.
A large dining room, a long wooden table with ornate padded chairs. A runner down the middle of the table itself and placemats for three. Cicero motioned to the two chairs, leading the woman to one before taking the head of the table for himself. Gerwulf sighed and sat across from Aesa, leaning back in the comfortable chairs as Cicero raised a hand and waved. The door was still open as trays and crystal caraffes full of citrus juice began to float in. Settling themselves on the table before caloches removed to reveal roasted meat, bread, and vegetables. Cutlery and other things followed before all the excess floated off. "Don't worry, Gerwulf. It is all... kosher," Cicero stated with a smirk.
Aesa did not understand this man. His mind worked in ways that hers, especially with the drugs in her system. couldn't keep up with. She was suddenly very glad for the bandages that covered her in an almost mummy like fashion. It was a little frustrating to know he didn't even have a t-shirt that she could borrow, but she didn't argue with him. It was his things and he'd saved her life. How could she complain without seeming like a total asshole? "I wasn't complaining about lemonade. I was simply surprised."
When Gerwulf came into view, she grew nervous, but she smiled. How was she going to tell him? She didn't think she could get through what was coming alone, be it whatever Cicero did to her or a pregnancy. She wouldn't force him to stay, but she really didn't want to do this alone. She gave him a small wave back and smiled. "Picture of health for a woman who died and still has some scrapes and bruises. I feel very lucky to be standing here." She expected him to stop at Gerwulf but he kept going with her and she glanced back at the big warrior, looking a little puzzled. Once she was seated she took a deep breath. It smelled so good. Her stomach growled and she licked her lips.
When Cicero mentioned the food being Kosher, she looked at Gerwulf oddly. "Oh, are you jewish? For some reason, I thought you were pagan." She looked between the men, waiting on someone to reach for food first. "It looks delicious. I am starving." Once she felt it was safe or one of them had reached for food, she began to put it on her plate. Filling her glass with lemonade she took a sip of it. "Well, I can't say it's not good lemonade. Even if it's a surprising choice to me." She looked back to Gerwulf. "He doesn't have any clothes for me, so I'll need to go home and get some.... I can go home, right?"
"I understood, it is fine..." Cicero responded calmly; it wasn't that he thought it was rude or anything. It was just his way of talking, how he took things a little too literally or seemed to twist and bend meanings. If anything, it was just the almost alien way his mind worked. When reaching Gerwulf, he did show relief, sitting by Cicero as the other man spoke of the food being kosher. His eyes flitted over to Aesa, lips pulled thin. "I'm not, I follow the old gods... he's just using phrases that make more sense when you understand him better", Gerwulf stated calmly in that gravelly voice his his as he reached out for bread and slices of meat, with a scoop of vegetables, before he sniffed at it all and began eating. Making sure it was all good, as Cicero had said.
"Of course it is good, I made it myself," Cicero said as he waited for Aesa to grab food for her plate. Gerwulf did give a stare, but shook his head as he smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Cicero moved then to pour Gerwulf a glass of lemonade after Aesa filled hers, then did so for himself before filling his own plate. Using a fork and knife that were a little too sharp to cut his food into small pieces as he ate in an almost gentlemanly fashion. "I do like surprising others, I grew the lemons myself," Cicero said as he sipped on his own glass. Gerwulf sniffed at it suspiciously before taking a sip, a sigh of relaxation escaping his lips before he could stop it. "It is good, it is appreciated, Cicero."
When asked then about clothes, Gerwulf tilted his head and spoke, "Yes," - "No," Cicero said at the exact same time. The wolf man gripped his knife and fork a little more tightly before looking over the thin man. "Don't look at me like that, it's been a while since you've been around, Mercenary," Cicero whispered in that sing-song manner, before the knife in his hand was placed back on the table. The stranger moved his hand and placed it on Gerwulf's wrist in an almost soft manner. "You both stay a night, then you can go when the woman feels better" - "Aesa, she's known as Aesa," Gerwulf stated in correction as he glanced over at Aesa, wondering what he could say in this situation.
Under the rules of hospitality, or at least the bastardized version that Cicero was likely working off. Gerwulf and Aeas were safe as long as they didn't actually mean Cicero harm, or he didn't revoke that. Food and safety, if only Cicero weren't a cannibalistic monster whose mind was too old to be quite sane. None of this was spoken, and Gerwulf hadn't had time with Aesa alone to tell her details or what not to say. "Very well, Aesa? If I got you one of my dresses, will you stay for the night at the very least..." Cicero said, his thumb slowly tracing circles on Gerwulf's wrist as his hands gripped his cutlery with less intensity. Gerwulf, on the other hand, glanced between the two and then wished he could say something. "I'll stay, but Aesa should go home" were the words that left his lips that quirked into a smile, like he had given up trying to warn her.
Aesa looked between the two men. There was a definite tension between them. Had Cicero been their only option? Because Gerwulf didn't seem to care for the man at all. Or was this a testosterone thing? Male egos butting heads and nothing more? The comment on him making the food himself made her lift her brow and look back at it. "You are a man of many talents. I do admit to being impressed." She was trying hard to be nice and appreciative for the terrifying creepy man saving her life. She could think creepy to herself, he couldn't stop her. And it was the right word in her opinion. Her eyes flicked to the way he was cutting up his food. "You grew them? Do you have a large garden then?"
When they gave conflicting answers on her going home, she laid her own knife and fork down and put her head in her hands, muttering to Freya about strength or patience or something. She stayed like that until Cicero addressed her directly, then she lifted her face to look between the men. "There is some kind of tension between the two of you and I will say, it's starting to get frustrating." She took a deep breath, not missing the 'my' when h offered her clothes, but didn't comment. To each their own. "Why do you care if we stay the night? From what you told me on your views of humans while Gerwulf was cleaning up, you're not fans of us. Even if you call yourself one."
No one had told her that they were working under Fae rules or asked her if she knew what they were, but she knew she didn't intend the man any harm. He had saved her life. Even if he'd turned her into something... which was yet to be determined, she was alive and grateful. Her eyes went to Gerwulf. "I do not relish the idea of going back to my place alone, Gerwulf. I'm sure they think I'm dead, but what if they came back to rob the place and are still there? I don't have my gun. And while I can fight, I was very out numbered when they showed up. So, I'd prefer when we leave, we leave together, please." After saying her piece, she picked up her knife and fork and began to eat. The moment the first bite of meat hit her lips, she began to eat faster. She must have been hungrier than she thought. Aesa glanced between them. "And if someone wants to tell me what all the glances, tongue biting, and tension is about, I'd curious to know the story.
