Xavier looked up, seemingly less startled. He followed them, a glint in his eye as he grinned. "Hey, we stole your house. What are you doing here?"
"You stole my house and my heart and I'll be damned if you're going to corrupt this lil' princess here while we're working together. What you do after hours is your business, Ms. Ellie, but I'm not going to sit around right now while you make out with some one-eyed, angsty teen raccoon-eater."
Xavier looked confused. "What does that even mean?" Scarlet glowered. "You know that's my brother, right?"
"Well, Ms. Scarlet, forgive me, but the man threatened me with a knife and stole my heart. I'm not in the mood for niceties," he said flatly, still pulling Ellie towards the door. Ellie, for her part, seemed a little flushed, looking very confused at the conversation. "And y'all have some nerve!" Burke continued, glancing over at Scarlet. "Especially you, ma'am! I don't owe you anything! The only reason why the two of you aren't in prison right now is that we're ol' softies and we're bad at confrontation!"
Her brows furrowed as she silenced, saying nothing more and slowing away from the group. Xavier however, kept up. "Oh, hush. Your heart was returned and we left your house. You probably should have turned us in."
"I probably should," he replied sharply. "Now I gotta figure out how to lie to the king about his daughter's cuddle habits!" "It isn't like that!" Ellie interjected, clearly embarrassed. "We just kissed!"
She jerked her head over to him, that small smile that seemed reserved only for him on her mouth. "It was nice, wasn't it?" she asked quietly, almost as if looking for confirmation.
She flushed, still grinning at him. Burke looked between the two of them incredulously. "Oh. My. God. Princess, get to steppin' before I tell your daddy who you've been kissin'."
"Bye, Egg," she said quietly as Burke shoved her out. Burke glared at Xavier before glancing at Scarlet. "Ms. Scarlet, I meant what I said about the heart," he called out. "I'm no liar. Have a good one."
He waved as they left. Scarlet still looked upset, crossing her arms defensively when he spoke to her. (Zoop!) Xavier was at home in the kitchen, making stew. *** There was a knock on Burke's door. It was quiet and timid.
There came a small knock on Xavier's door, three small raps. * * * Burke frowned, coming over and opening the door.
He put down the spoon and went to open it curiously. *** It was Scarlet, she looked nervous, but that wasn't uncommon. She was holding lemongrass in her hand, but she hardly seemed to notice. "Hi, Burke. I just wanted to stop by and apologize."
She was looking over her shoulder nervously when he opened the door, but she turned her head back to look at him. There was a sort of hesitance to her face, an uncertainty. “Hi.” *** He frowned, looking down at the lemon grass before looking back up at her. “I have so many questions.”
He brightened when he saw her, stepping aside. "Ellie! Come in." *** She stared at him for a moment before holding up a hand. "Let me explain myself first," she said, flinging the lemongrass in her hand. "I know that ever since you met me my brother and I have made things difficult," she said, pacing slightly. "I don't really mean for it to be that hard for you. I never have. I feel terribly about that. And then I stole your heart and gave it back, and then he stole your heart and I gave it back again.. We shouldn't have stolen your house either, nor should have threatened you. I don't think he has a big brain." She was making large hand gestures. "I just.. I was surprised when you were so kind to me. Nobody is really like that, especially after they see my heart since there's obviously something wrong with." She started talking again, but quickly trailed off, looking at her hands before holding out the lemongrass. "Also this is for you."
She entered the house, still looking a little reserved from earlier, her cloak drawn around herself. "Why are you still here?" she asked, looking up at him curiously. "I thought you were leaving this place." * * * He watched her, his head slightly tilted. He reached out and took the lemongrass before speaking again. "I don't know, Ms. Scarlet. I think your heart is something special. Unique."
He shrugged slightly. "I figured that because you looked here and supposed found 'nothing' they wouldn't bother to look here again." *** She hesitated, her gaze averting down. "No one has said that to me before. Thank you."
She nodded, seeming a little relieved as she came up next to him. "Good. What are you making?" * * * "A little dusty, though," he teased.
