[His priority is - as always - Queen Blanche. So he's quick to grab her and get her out of harm's way, though that does mean he's now sporting a few nice cuts in his uniform. It earns a small tch sound from him, but thankfully he's not injured. So much for his uniform...]

Agreed, we need to—

[Keep moving, apparently, given that there's no going back now. Alaric manages to keep from sighing at that, but this is absolutely their luck. Great.]

The kitchen should be busy at this time of morning, and there aren't many windows there. It'd be a good place for people to hide out.

[Unfortunately, while that thought was good in theory, it's not accurate in practice. The kitchen is deserted. There isn't anyone in there bustling around and preparing the morning meals.

The most baffling part is the fact that clearly some people were in here. There's something baking already in one of the ovens, and food is out in the midst of being prepared. While the few windows in this room have already blown open, there isn't any sign of blood or bodies indicating that people were involved in that.

Alaric frowns at the sight of it all, but he simply shakes his head and gestures for the queen to continue following him.]