eswareinmal | Loki'd >:(

"No. You have already done enough."

She means to take what information she has already and run off to find Sansa. Cho's servants will see to her. She places a hand on Cho's shoulder, grateful, before stepping away.

But as she looks to the door cautions stop her. The sorceress has touched the magic keeping Sansa trapped. Would it not be better to go into battle prepared? Would that not give the Lady her best chance at escape?

"I will...see about that steak."

Logic keeps her, but the words still feel something like treason.

"She's not injured," Cho says, still staring at the ceiling that's hers but not and speaking around a mouthful of cake. She doesn't want to go into the details of how she knows that, as they go to the nature of the spell that allowed her to locate the girl. Sansa is uninjured and Loki's magic seems even and steady, so whatever else is happening with them, she believes they are in no immediate danger. Which is perhaps why she can be so calm.

Sif looks back at the girl. She wants to ask how Cho can know such a thing, wants an explanation. But the spell has preformed its task admirably, and the memory of exhaustion holds her. She simply nods, and goes off to the kitchens.

When she returns shortly after, plate in hand, she is surprised to find the sorceress still awake. And surrounded by empty plates. Volstagg himself would have find the scene unusual.

"I expected you asleep."

"If I sleep now I'll stay asleep until my body has fully recovered. That could be a while. If I must, I'd prefer it in my own bed." But she's got some of the colour back in her cheeks, her hands have stopped shaking, and she's carefully propped up on pillows. Someone (obviously not her) has even brushed and braided her hair, and her staff all looks positively ecstatic to finally be of use. "Is that for me?" She asks only to be polite, she knows it is.

"No. I thought it would be funny to order you a steak and then eat it in front of you," Sif says, while handing the meal over.

She has to raise an eyebrow at the entirety of Cho's...state. But the mission before them is first in her mind, so it goes without comment.

"Will you not sleep before we embark, then?"

She had assumed otherwise, and cannot help the note of optimism that creeps into her voice. That she would prefer to leave as soon as possible is a given. But the walk to the kitchens has given Sif time to gather her thoughts, though not time enough to assuage her guilt at them. The fact is, to leave with her ally too exhausted to help would likely prove itself foolish.

"You want me to go with you?" Cho is once again speaking with her mouth full, around an enormous bite of steak that is infuriatingly delicious. Sif strikes her as more of the lone warrior type. The kind of person who kicks ass first and asks questions later.

So the question is surprising, but she finds that she can't exactly say no when someone is in need. It's just who she is. "I'd be more use on a full night's sleep. I expended a lot of energy. I can only get so much back with food." Which doesn't answer the question fully one way or the other. She cuts another large bite of steak and begins chewing. She'll go with Sif, if Sif asks, and they will leave whenever Sif wants to.

"The magic that holds Alayne will likely be present where I travel, and I readily admit to having no skill in that matter. It would be sensible to have you along."

Sif is every bit as enthusiastic as the bulk of her brethren, for battle. And her ego can sometimes be blinding -- thinking that her glaive alone would be enough to defeat the Destroyer comes to mind. But she is generally more precise in battle than not, and this is a matter that may call for that.

"I could ask Loki to accompany me, if you prefer."

She has not spoken to him since the marriage incident, but would set aside that annoyance for Sansa's welfare. Perhaps that is why he has not already responded to her call for help -- wanting to leverage his abilities for some assurance that Sif will not hold anger towards him.

Cho sighs, stuffs another bite of steak into her mouth. "I don't necessarily mean magic that restrains her." She picks up her orb and cradles it in her hand. "I mean magic that holds her. Surrounds her. Magic that I had to pass through to reach her. It may be restraining her, it may be protecting her, it may simply be the lingering traces of an incredibly powerful spell." Though she doubts the last one, given that Loki had to borrow Cho's power to do anything of real scope.

Worst case scenario, Sif rushes off on her own, sword drawn and battle cry on her lips. That's... a bad worst case scenario. Of course, if she's heading off to find Loki in town, there is no guarantee that she will find him. "The magic is Loki's. He will most likely be with her, wherever she is." If Sif is going there, she'll find out eventually. "You may be going to rescue two, not one." Or they may be meeting in secret, a lover's tryst. Well, if that's the case, it's not her job to shelter their affair.

But now she does feel a certain responsibility to accompany Sif and make sure she doesn't do anything stupid. "If you need a sorcerer, you will have to settle for me. And if you want me at my best, I suggest we leave tomorrow."

"What?"

That is truly a surprise. Her mind does not go towards a tryst -- whatever myths the mortals may have, Loki would not approach a child in that manner. But it does go towards two distinct scenarios. Firstly, as Cho says, he has been taken.

The second goes down a path that Sif has been trying to close in her mind, though Loki has never asked her to. They both know him fully capable of mischief that delves into malice.

Sif does not offer her thoughts freely, nor does she hide the fact that she is having them. She looks down at her lap, reviewing different possibilities. Her fingers drum lightly on her knees. An old habit, before battle.

"If Loki is with Alayne, he will see her protected. He knows she is dear to me."

This is true, she believes, in either case. She nods, more to herself than Cho, before looking the woman in the eye.

"We leave tomorrow, then."

Cho's not sure that Loki can keep the girl safe against a powerful enough foe, but she keeps that to herself. Sif is fairly levelheaded at the moment, that's a good thing. "Tomorrow." If Loki is in trouble, well, she still owes him. And if he's tricked this young woman, then she needs to get her out of there. Or make sure Sif doesn't kill anyone to get her free.

She cuts another massive bit of steak. More than half of it is gone now, and Cho feels a little bit better. "I should get home to prepare."

"These are not your rooms?"

That explains a great deal. Sif herself has stayed in the palace because it is relatively closer to the life she is used to than the dwellings that can be purchased in town. But even she must admit that it would be hard to stay, were the staff trying to force her into a role she did not fit, like Cho.

"Do you need accompanied, then? Fainting on your way to sleep would be a poor start to the mission indeed."

It's not so much that Cho doesn't fit the role. It's more that she knows exactly why whatever magic brought her here might put her into the role of Princess instead of Warrior, and she doesn't feel connected to that life any more. Out of necessity. To keep herself safe. Because if she lets herself dwell on the life she's fighting so hard to get back to, the life that's being kept from her, she's not sure she'll be able to keep it together.

"They are," she says, with a dismissive shrug. "I just don't live in them. These are the rooms that were given to me when I arrived, but the castle is too difficult to defend, it's impossible to reliably lock any doors, the staff has no concept of privacy... I prefer surroundings I can control, and that's impossible here." Her assigned staff seems to deflate a little, but they don't say anything.

Cho finishes the steak as quickly as she can, standing on slightly wobbly legs and getting herself a glass of water. "I prefer where I am. The stables are private, the wall is alarmed, and the layout is easily defensible. I feel secure there." As secure as she can feel in this place. "You don't need to concern yourself. Charlie knows the way." Though she's not about to argue with Sif if she wants to come along. It would be a waste of energy. Instead, she's focusing all she has into getting her boots back on her feet, waving off the help being offered. She's a grown woman, a sorceress with two masters degrees and most of a doctorate - she can put on her own damn shoes.

"If you wish."

Sif is not generally one to coddle. If Cho says she is not in need of assistance, Sif will take her at her word.

...plus, the castle staff is exceedingly nosy and will most assuredly see to the woman in the event of a collapse.

"Shall I meet you at the stables at dawn, then?"

"I have no wishes. Not about this. But you seem agitated and I'm sure there are things you'd rather be doing right now than seeing me home." Cho's pretty sure she can get there without incident. She's good at knowing her limits. That doesn't mean she always stops before she reaches them, but she recognizes them as they go sailing past.

"Stables at dawn," she agrees, getting both boots on her feet, forgoing the laces that tighten them around her upper calf. She'll just be taking them off again as soon as she's back in her room.

She stands up, takes a deep breath, and throws back her shoulders. One hand on the hilt of her sword, as though it gives her balance. Which is just silly, as it's attached to her.

Loki'd >:(

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