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Ember blinked in mild confusion at his second attempted question, glancing over his own stretching, and thought back to just before. She didn't remember saying anything that would show as if she were not okay. The stretching might be a sign of aching but he did it as well, so it didn't make too much sense to ask her about the same thing he was doing. Regardless, she answered the best she could understand.

"I am okay. Tired and-", Ember cut herself off before she could say 'conflict' and tried to pull it off with a forced yawn, covering it with a hand. Then continued, "-and tired.", the red-head filled in quickly but clumsily.

Lief glossed over her fumbling over her words, though he noticed it. The thief felt a pang of guilt ring through hm, for he was the one who had bothered her while she attempted to rest. With a click of his tongue, he told himself not to apologize, since he already had a million times, though it didn't make the guilt fade. He rolled his eyes with a guileful smirk, knowing the yawn was slightly forced, but the male didn't mention anything of it. He focused on her for a moment, seeming as if he was studying something. Clearing his throat, he quickly moved his gaze and peered at the ceiling.

He had nothing to say at the moment, though he had many questions. Hadn't he always had one question or two? No matter the conversation, he always seemed to find something to ask. However, he fell silent.

Aleron glanced over his shoulder every once in awhile after seeing Lief's reaction. He chuckled to himself softly, wondering if the male knew he would be fine as long as he chose the correct words. He rose from the table with a smile, excusing himself as he made his way to the bar once again. Swiping a bottle of beer, he sipped it and waved to the thief. He wouldn't approach the two now, seeing as they were in conversation, but he waited for a chance to speak with his old friend. Perhaps he could figure out the reason he was here, of all places. It wasn't the brightest place to run to, especially with three guards approaching the area. And what was he doing at the moment? Making friends? Aleron pondered, slightly bewildered. What was he planning to do? He didn't act as if anything were wrong, though he should know otherwise. The knight scoffed, taking another drink of his beverage.

Ember shifted in her seat, not sure on how to react to the man's quietness and look towards her, and shifting her own eyes elsewhere to avoid it a bit more. It made her stomach tighten with worry but she pushed it away with a quick breath in and out. She was caught not telling the truth. Perhaps he was angry at her for it. House Above, she couldn't remember the last time she had tried to alter the truth in any way before. Was it cowardice? Was this what it was like to be a coward?

The thought shook her core and the woman almost turned around to belt it out to him, but caught her sense last second- only flinching towards Liefthous. Ember was not a coward; she's proved it more times than people who lived in all the Houses combined in the past. Yet...

The red-head placed her arms on the table in front of her, clasping her hands together gently, and just stared at them. Doubt, confidence, doubt, confidence...she should not be this conflicted over it. This wasn't her House. This wasn't her House. The people here shouldn't care for what she can or cannot do. Liefthous shouldn't care for it either. If he didn't care for it then...what? She narrowed her eyes and let out a light kiss of her teeth.

If he didn't care then she had nothing to worry about. There was no way to prove he didn't care though, which was a tiny problem. No way to tell if he did either besides what he said previous about wanting multiple lives.

Dullness placed themselves over her orbs. Thinking is hard.

Mind-tricks.

The word brought a smile to his face, though he covered it with a blank expression rather quickly. He thought he owned the skill of manipulating, but he hadn't expected it to have an outcome. Even if it wasn't the outcome he was expecting, he could tell she was internally debating a thought. Instead of just asking straightforwardly, he kept the silence for longer than he wanted to. Biting his bottom lip, his brows furrowed as he placed a hand over his mouth.

A swift movement caught his attention, and he turned to see Aleron.. waving? He awkwardly returned the wave, thinking he must've been planning something foolish. He snarled underneath his breath, sending a glare at the man. With a small, irritated huff, he turned back while sending a glimpse at Ember. He couldn't help but laugh quietly before returning his focus to the ceiling. The Hellion was question why the knight had greeted him with a wave. They very clearly saw each one another moments before, so why greet one another in front of others?

He sighed silently, managing to keep a slight grin.

Ember didn't even register the movement next to her and kept herself forward, tapping her fingers occasionally on the table, shifting to straighten her slightly slouched back. Just to give her some momentum she used the back of her hand to rub her forehead quickly, beginning to become a little anxious with the situation she threw herself in. It wasn't that hard to tell him. If all else fails, she'd just leave. An act of mercy if he chose a violent path to her statement. Not cowardice, but mercy.

A kind soul she was.

After another moment and a sip of a cup of drink later, the woman turned to face the man. Hesitance was pulling her back, but Ember managed to get the first word out. "Liefthous.", a sigh out. "Liefthous is in need of knowledge.", the red-head got out with tight weariness on her.

It worked.

It worked?

Lief drew his full attention back to her, raising an eyebrow. He understood she was hiding something, but he wasn't expecting her to tell him. "Knowledge?" He joked with a tilt of his head. "I clearly know I'm not the smartest, but must you point it out?" His brows furrowed and his eyes flickered with concern, but the least he could do was attempt to lighten the shifting mood. He swallowed and ran his fingers through his tousled hair. "You're being serious- Apologies. I'll shut up."

He nodded once, biting his lip. He turned to face her, guessing that it would become awkward if he were to only turn his head to speak. The Hellion had a million questions racing through his mind, but he had just promised to keep his trap from running. He felt guilty for using the mind trickery, but she was hiding something, and it was obvious. But why would she hide something from him? He paused. Why did he suddenly care? They had only met today, and why should he know everything? Hadn't he kept something from her as well? And he couldn't say he still wasn't. With a exhale, he tried thinking clearly for a moment, slowing down to think over each question he wished to ask, but didn't.

Ember wanted to roll her eyes but refrained from doing so. Another apology, though she didn't acknowledge it this time. The woman took a couple of seconds to think through how to say it before trying. Simple and quick always seemed to work. "I am one of which has many lives. By spare lives, that is what I meant previous.", the red-head stated evenly, a single glance cast aside for a short while before returning to him.

She was not a coward. It took no effort- physical effort- to tell Liefthous about it. It was going to be...interesting on how he reacts though. Ember was hoping he wouldn't be mad in any way and thought of his leg wound, purposing trying to keep her eyes off the area. The man wouldn't put- no, if he wanted to attack, he would. He said not long ago about how he didn't care for life.

Regardless, she wouldn't hurt him. He was keen, but acted not so, and he wouldn't be put off by the information. Let alone try to harm her. Play a joke and laugh it off. A question or two. She felt herself twitch. It's fine.

His eye widened slightly, yet he wasn't as surprised as he seemed. "You.." He raised his eyebrow once again, a smile plastering across his face with each word. "You acted as if it were.. What's the word..?" He clicked his tongue, which seemed like a often habit of his. "As if you were apprehensive. I s'ppose that's a good term to use? Nevertheless, may I question what made you so anxious to tell me?"

He looked over her. If he were to be honest, he would've never guessed she had the ability. Of course, he had the habit of making judgements of people without speaking with them, and, most of the time, he was wrong. But this he would've never even thought of. The information of a person having multiple lives was newfangled to him, but he guessed it wasn't so different from a mouser. He drew a breath, whispering the word, "Mouser.". If Ember had multiple lives.. and a mouser did as well.. did that mean..?

Panic trickled along his spine as he recalled the tale of mouser's shifting into humans at will. As long as he brought no harm to her, maybe she wouldn't attack. He hoped he was right, and the stories he had heard weren't as troublesome as they seemed.

Ember immediately felt relief and flopped half herself onto the table, sighing with the same emotion. Then remembering what he said before about being on them, she sat up quickly, brushing her arms off. Taking some time to collect thoughts, she answered him. "I was in worry of Liefthous being in anger at shared knowledge. Many in House Strength kill to be in positions of such.", the red-head explained as best she could without wanting to offend him by calling him a potential murderer.

The woman felt a lot calmer now, and felt lax again after some time of tension between them. Ember slowly realized that she hadn't made her House sound very pleasant, but she didn't mind too much. It wasn't the best yet it was all she knew and it turned her to who she was now, and she was glad to be that.

The Hellion didn't seem to notice the accidental offending of her words, let alone anything she said at the moment. Swallowing, he nodded slowly as if he were paying attention. "Question.." He seemed to mumble in attempt not to allow his voice to crack. "Mouser..?" He was only able to get the one word to roll off his lips, seeming to lose his focus for a moment. His ears were perked, and though he didn't have anything to defend himself with if she were to attack, he would like to believe he did. The silver lining around his pupil seemed to lighten as the alarm glistened in his eye. He wasn't afraid of a mouser itself, just of what it could potentially do. The Stars had warned him about such curses placed by a mouser, and none of them ended well for anyone.

Despite telling himself she wasn't a mouser of any sorts, he couldn't bring himself to believe it. He was internally debating what to do in his mind, and he obviously couldn't turn to ask the Stars for advice, so his mind went blank of ideas. The male didn't understand what he feared exactly. If she were to attack, wouldn't she have done it by now? Or as he was at his weakest? The thief struggled to understand himself, let alone the idea of a potential mouser speaking to him.

Ember hummed at his first word and tilted her head in confusion at his second. At the slightly familiar word she looked behind her to one side and then to the other, not seeing what he was seemingly referring to. When she turned back to inquire about it, realization hit her straight in the gut. Liefthous was asking if she was a meowser. A cerse, something to be feared. The woman felt her stomach sink into itself as she looked at him with that thought in mind. It was a mistake to tell him after all.

"I am not a meowser, Liefthous.", Ember told him quietly. She didn't move from her spot though, hoping that it might help calm him down. Only putting her hands in her lap and looking him in the eyes. The woman wasn't the best at lying so she hoped he would sense her truth in words and expression. Speaking of which, it was a task to keep her mild hurt from spreading across her face. It was understandable for him to accuse her of such, yet it pained her to a certain extent.

Lief drew a breath, seeming to hesitate to do or say anything. The feeling of being imprudent and idiotic washed over him, threatening to drown his thoughts. He hadn't meant to offend or hurt her in anyway, but he was being cautious. He shook that thought from his mind. Curiosity killed the cat, and he seemed to have put himself into a situation he would have to fix. Finally, he gained enough confidence to speak again, but it was only a mumble. "Apologies, Ember. I didn't mean to.." His voice trailed off, as if he were distracted. "..Light?" He coughed after a second of silence, realizing he had said the word aloud. "Hm? Nevermind that-" The thief wanted to cover his slight embarrassment, though he couldn't find a way how to. He was trying to find a reason the word had suddenly joined the sentence, but he couldn't without sounding insane. So, attempting to brush it off, he continued.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to upset you in any sorts. The query had just come to mind, and I didn't realize I had even asked." The male exhaled, tucking his hair into a loose ponytail that lazily hung over his shoulder. "I'm hoping I didn't anger you..? Nor distress or trouble you?"

Ember nodded reluctantly at his questions, trying to pay attention to his words more rather than the blood rushing in her ears. She didn't want to be hurt the way she was, it wasn't very characteristic of the Leader to be feeling so negative about an accusation. Maybe it reminded her of the rumors about her when she was young; being part of killing ritualists who took the lives of House Archery's Leader. Then again, she got past those eventually, and she was hard as rock when it came to things like that.

She shouldn't be hurt even in the slightest.

Ember didn't want to lie again but she had a reputation to keep. "I am not that in disdress.", she finally responded verbally, trying to copy his smirk again to keep the lie up.

He snickered, tilting his head to the right. "I s’ppose the truth will be told eventually, hm?" He flashed a smile, propping his elbow on the table. He placed his chin in his hand, raising an eyebrow. "Do you mind if I ask if it is a natural ability? Or did you have to learn the skill?"

Though he had guessed the answer, he thought it was still a swell question to ask. Perhaps he was wrong, and the woman had learned to gain the ability much like he had? Maybe she hadn’t met the same requirements to gain the ability, but perhaps she didn’t have it naturally.

Ember felt lightly embarrassed at her lack of skill in lying and that she was extremely easy to read in that sense. Though, a brief light of hope shined in her head, she might be good at it, but Liefthous was extraordinary in reading others. So she couldn't lie to him, but to others.

Being put assured, Ember thought about his question. The answer was neither to be honest. People in Houses weren't born with it and no one can learn the ability; though, she had to learn how to use it on her own, but that was different.

"I was forced with the ability.", the red-head answered truthfully, memories flashing in her vision.

Lief coughed, surprised by the answer. "Forced?" His ears perked and concern crossed over his expression, the word trenched in slight worry. He drew a sharp breath, painful memories striking his thoughts. His eye went wide, the color designing from his face for a moment.

In his village, magicks could be forced, either one would like to have the ability or not. If the ability wasn’t used properly, it was stripped from them like drawing layers back from one’s skin. It wasn’t a decision one would make, for the Stars would decide if you deserve the magicks or not. Lief has knocked people from Life to earn his ability, which was violating the Laws and Codes

He exhaled. Hopefully, he prayed silently, Ember’s home was nothing like his own.