Catching Up

After receiving the most urgent treatment, Rosamund had a bath. Despite the injuries, he had felt better than ever. The doctor finished bandaging him up, and servants helped him get dressed into his clothes. Clean, not torn, not worn, and his. He finally felt like himself. His beard needed a bit of a trim after two weeks of neglect. The injury across his face didn't look as horrible as he feared, he decided that if it scarred it would give him a raggedy handsome look. He could work with that. A servant combed his hair back, styling it into a loose ponytail that was popular these days. He allowed himself a bit of a smirk, pleased with the face that was looking back at him in the mirror.

He wore a fine silk shirt, delightfully comfortable on his skin. A black vest with finely embroidered roses and gold threads fit his name, and its abundance in detail was nicely toned down with a coat that was only decorated around the edges and seams. Now away from the capital, he was using the chance to somewhat modernize his wardrobe with proper formal trousers instead of breeches and long socks. He was injured, he had the right to treat himself.

It's not vanity if you really are as good-looking as you think.

His brace for the injured arm and the bandaged hand did ruin the end result, but he believed he had more than enough charisma to make up for the difference. Skin clear, fashion impeccable. He was good to go.

With how much better he felt, he walked on his own. He wasn't quite a total idiot, though, he had a servant with him in case he stumbles. Despite how much slower he walked than usual, it would certainly make a better impression on everyone in the room if he came in on his own. It was all a part of convincing everybody at the table that he was fine, and of sane mind.

He was last to arrive to the dining room, and he graced them all with a smile. The reactions he received from Adanita, Teodolit, and Nivelir let him know that his efforts were not in vain. He was very pleased with himself. He had a seat at the head of the table, and broke the ice by saying how glad he was to be home - not that he had much of a chance to live in this manor considering how long ago he became the Governor.
After it, the reasonably pleasant conversation managed to straggle along, mainly thanks to Teodolit. The charming young man successfully dragged everybody into a vivid story describing the storm that had occurred. He described the waves crashing into the ships, the roaring thunder amidst the explosions of cannon fire, and the howling winds that threatened to snap the masts in half as he was climbing the shrouds. He comfortably skipped out on the part where he was a witch, describing instead the rage of the ocean he saw from above, and the fear that the next cannon ball would hit his mast and plunge him into the depths. He described the towering mass of water that slammed into the Vice Admiral's ships, and the unwavering determination of Adanita Vervain when she saw a man fall overboard. He was quite good at selling her, that was certain. Rosamund shuddered from the memory, comfortable with letting him talk without interruption. Lilac was listening in focused silence, while Nivelir occasionally asked a question or few, his words immediately brightening up Teodolit. Adanita sometimes answered in his place, both proud and awkward from the heaps of praise. Sure, she did everything Teodolit said, but his way with words made it border on a tall tale.
He was worried about Ekliptik, however. They didn't say a word, and they barely touched their food. The oversized hat they wore was hardly suitable for a dinner event, but they seemed to want to use it to hide from... He eyed Nivelir. Did he tell them it's rude to wear a hat indoors? He will need to have a word with him about that, it seemed. Something like that couldn't have come from Lilac, who barely bothered to look proper for this minor event. Or was it perhaps something else that bothered them...? In either case, Rosamund was determined to let them do as they pleased around here. Adanita and Teodolit had to behave due to their positions, but he would certainly cut some slack for a teenager. After all, he was against them coming along.
Adanita then started to describe the duel. Not the one where she overwhelmingly defeated him, she had enough tact to not insult the host. Instead she described his duel with Jason, including her participation as the judge. She certainly embellished it a bit, but he didn't mind the compliments given. Quite the opposite, he enjoyed hearing how high her opinion of him was. Lilac winced every time she described how he got injured, and his face was visibly paler.
If he could've, Rosamund would've took his hand to reassure him. All was well now, and he was safe. But he was struggling enough as it was, holding the fork in his broken hand. The servants graciously cut the food into pieces for him. He managed to not make a fool of himself in front of all these people, but he really needed to heal soon.

After dinner, Rosamund led them to the drawing room. Lilac and Nivelir served drinks for everyone, before they had a seat.

Rosamund started first, explaining how he came to sail with Vice Admiral Khamil, and how the situation in the storm unraveled from his point of view. He talked about how Adanita rescued him from drowning, and how he challenged her to a duel and lost. There was no need to say how many times, so he didn't.
He explained how he got to the point where Adanita shared vital information with him, and he let her take over explaining what the vital information was.

She already told three people. He knew that confessions such as these came easier with time and practice. With some shame sneaking into her voice, she described the events that took place the previous time. Lilac and Nivelir listened in absolute silence as she told her (future) life story, with Rosamund occasionally jumping in to fill in the blanks or her silences.

By the end, he took over completely, explaining her death in her place. The final drop for Nivelir was his announcement of his cooperation with her, as well as what exactly his plans with her and her pirates were. Nivelir buried his face in his hands in utter despair and disbelief. Lilac, pale in the face, stared down the two of them.

"Rose," he said finally, once the tale was told. "There is no magic that can turn back the time. It is utterly impossible to do."

"I find myself difficult to believe that, when evidence sits in front of us," he replied.
"Do you see any magic around her?"
"No."

"Listen." In his distress, he rubbed his eyes, trying to find words. "There is such thing as the natural laws. Divine laws, if you'd like, too. It doesn't matter. A mage can temporarily suspend them in specific ways, but some things just cannot be done. You can't bring back a soul that left its body. You can't turn the time back. The only conclusion is that none of us here died, because we wouldn't be here right now. You did not go back in time."