\'Ere we come a wanderin\'

[MissusHow]

Ara whistled cheerfully...a good day today had been. The wind was kicking up dust devils, making her tanned skin blend in to the background and the sound of her whistle carry off for a few seconds only to disappear. Only the fact that she was wearing a bright turquoise scarf seemed to distinguish her from the dust... her black clothes had already been fully covered, and the scarf was over her nose... for a moment, for a brief moment she remembered, but it was gone the second after that, and Ara clutched her dagger for assurance.  Her whistling had stopped.
 
It seemed to Ara incredible that this much dust could exist on one barren path, but on either side was dry dirt that came up loosely when the wind blew, and this was an especially windy evening.  With a quick movement, her knees bent and she crouched low on the ground, looking out into the distance... was that somebody coming? A silhouette danced in the dust, coming ever nearer. Carefully Ara crept to the side of the road, ready to startle the pedestrian and take the valubles... then run, disappear into the dust.

[Malkavian Riddler]

Joely had made himself a small fortune at the markets and now he was returning home to display his profit to his family, who worked hard and struggled to keep their heads above financial water.  They\'d always come through in the end, but Joe\'s success meant that they would have some reprieve.

The pouch upon which his multiple coins jingled were set upon his belt, his right hand straying to it, feeling the furry material beneath his fingers, one of the very items that he\'d sold.  There was enough coinage to last his family a feast for a month.

The young farmer was unaware of what malice lay in the shadows intending to take away his newly-earned prosperity.  He was merely walking through a city he didn\'t know, had taken a wrong turn and was now attempting to get to the main gates before they shut.  The last thing he wanted was to be locked into the Castle, for all he really knew and understood was his farmlife.

[MissusHow]

The tramping that the farmer was making made Ara\'s ears hurt, so used to treading softly she was. A little more listening brought about the sound of coins jingling, which calmed her aching ears down as she concentrated on the sound that seemed like sweet honey to her ears she ignored every other sound. The sounds got nearer, the tramping louder, and soon the boy was next to her, completely oblivious to her presence.

Ara looked briefly at the innocent face, and erased it from her mind, as she prepared to spring with catlike grace upon the victem. Almost like a panther in a black cave, hunting a glowing lantern. Easy prey.
A few second went buy, the shoes were next to her now, and she jumped. Her left hand hooked on his neck, shoving him bruskely to the ground, and she held her silver dagger to his neck with her right hand.

"What have we here?" she crooned into his ear, batting her eyes at him. "A farmer going back to his family? A celebrated hero because of his good winnings today? A happy ending for everybody..." Her tone was mocking, and her voice had a lilt to it that suggested she found this quite humorous, "Well, happy endings don\'t often come true in life, farmer... in fact-" she paused here, lifting up his money pouch which she had been untying with nimble fingers, and waved it in front of his face. "In fact you should know to keep your money in different places when out on dangerous roads where there could be strangers." she added with a sigh. His face was making her guilty...

She sat down a bit farther away from him, giving him space to run, and poured the money on the road, sifting it with her knife. After a brief silence, and when the farmer didn\'t move, she looked up with an annoyed sigh, "Well?"

[Malkavian Riddler]

The attack was sudden in a way Joely could never have believed. He\'d heard the warnings from his family about the cut-throats that lived within the castle walls, but he never would have believed he\'d find a blade against his neck. Stunned into submission he was docile as the pouch was taken away from him and aghast when it was dangled in his face like a bunch of grapes from an unreachable vine.

He scrambled to his feet once she let him go

A woman?  A cut-throat woman?  I thought women were soft and kind-hearted!

but instead of running away as she expected, his indignation refused to act as a life preserve and allowed him the courage to attack without a weapon, without training, everything hung in the balance of surprise. When she turned to look at him he was already mid-leap for her.

That was gold for his family!  That was gold for them to have food!

[MissusHow]

Ara\'s eyes widened for a brief moment, and then she was all business, she rolled onto her back and stuck her foot out just as the man was flying over her, and flipped him over her head and onto his back. Once again she had him in a death grip, with her silver dagger pressing to his neck again. "A brave farmer?" she asked, "No. Not brave if he attacks wihtout call, or anything of the sort." she growled, running the edge of her dagger on his face, as if she were caressing it...she removed it, letting the tip of her dagger knick his skin.

"You have no chance fighting against me farmer...what was your name again? DOn\'t believe I\'ve seen you much." she spoke amiably, as if sitting at a tea party, but still, her arm was holding him down on the ground in a less than tea partyish way.

Trying not to let the pity show in her dark wide eyes, she looked away, letting the farmer up once again, and bent down over the spilt coins. With quick fingers she counted out a little more than half, and tossed them at the farmer without a care. "Don\'t really need them anyway."

((Bleh, sorry for the godmodding, as a thief Ara would know all that back breaking stuff, but if you want me to change it I will definitely do so.))

[Malkavian Riddler]

*** ooc: Joely is just a farmer, your godmoding is acceptable ***

He attacked in anger without planning or ability, not a challenging opponent in the slightest. As Joe fell to the ground with Ara\'s assistance, his breath was knocked out of him and he found he couldn\'t even cry out for help now - even if he wished to. When the blade of her weapon found his face he was too shocked to react beyond a horrified expression, wincing when his skin was sliced.

At the request for his name he floudered, not wanting to reveal it in case she hunted him and his family down for more coinage - wealth that he didn\'t possess. He failed to come up with a very good lie however, so to placate her so that she wouldn\'t cut him again, she managed to get half his real name. "Joe... Flint."

As he was released, he scrambled to his feet, about to turn tail and run for his life. When coins bounced off his boots and some rolled past in the dirt, he paused, looking at the theif with confusion. She was giving him back his money? Watching her warily - so desperate not to lose everything - he crouched down and picked up the first two without his arm\'s reach. She didn\'t come at him with her knife. Hurriedly, he set about picking up everything she\'d tossed his way, not questioning why she\'d shown him this mercy, merely accepting it and getting ready to flee once he was done. It was obvious her very presence intimidated him.

[MissusHow]

Ara snorted, watching the man greedily pick up the coins. "Joe...Flint. Flint? You don\'t sound so sure there, Joey." she crowed cheerfully, bending down to watch him more closely, perhaps wrack his nerves a bit. "And no thanks at all... How rude." she continued, sounding dramatically hurt. "Next time I won\'t be so nice, Joey. I\'d watch yourself if I were you." her voice crooned at him, and her eyes watched his every twitch.

"Run away, sweet. Quickly, before meaner thieves than me come and kill you." she called, hopping up lightly and turning around, whistling again cheerfully, and doing tricks with her silver dagger. The few valuble coins in her pocket had gotten her in a good mood. With a small flick of her rist, she threw the dagger, up it went, and down, spinning, shining. That was maybe the last thing left to be seen in the dust, all but that spinning dagger, because the thief was gone, lost within the sand.

And then the dagger was gone, snatched from the air by an invisible hand, leaving Joely alone.

[Malkavian Riddler]

"Thanks?" Joely scoffed before quieting himself, wanting to insist he should not give thanks for the return of his own money.  He knew better than to provoke this woman however, and wiped the blood away that ran down his cheek, smearing it with the palm of his hand.

As he finished picking up his coins and then turning to find out that he was alone after the woman warned him against theives of a more cut-throat nature, he realised how both lucky and unlucky he was.  The coming darkness meant that he was not locked in the citadel with no place to sleep.  It also meant he could\'ve run into someone who would show no mercy.  Receiving half back was better than none and the loss of his life.

Still hunting for the last few coins hurriedly, he didn\'t realise he wasn\'t alone until he crawled to the feet of another castle dweller.  Looking upward, he hoped he hadn\'t run into yet another thief and with a more unfortunate ending.

[Existentially Odd]

Having just visited her father to receive her weekly dose of abuse and guilt-laden depression, Captain Wilson was morosely wending her way home - not paying a whole lot of attention to the goings-on around her, since she was so preoccupied by her personal concerns - when she came upon Joely. It took a few moments for the man\'s presence at her feet to register. Blinking curiously at the farmer, she peered down through the swirling dust (realising that something may have transpired for there to be so much of it upon the air) to see what he was doing.

"Are you alright? What happened?" she asked, her natural curiosity taking the place of her normal business-like tone. Since she was in plain clothes - hide boots, loosely-fitted longpants, warm shirt and coat - she doubted he would know who she was, or even that she might be able to help him. In her current mood, however... she wasn\'t sure she was ready to be of assistance just yet.  For this reason, she didn\'t introduce herself outright, but she did hold out a hand to help him up with.

[Malkavian Riddler]

"I..." he hesitated, wondering if this woman was a cut-throat woman too.  What did it matter if she was?  He\'d already had his share of misfortune.  May he put his life in Adora\'s hands and live by the truth and not lose his trust in other people.  "... got robbed," he finished after a brief pause as his thoughts and fears swirled about his head.

The young farmer couldn\'t hide the inquiry in his eyes however, wondering if this woman would take his hand only to slip a knife into his guts or if he would be helped to his feet.  He took her hand in any case, stepping up, not surprised (but still relieved) when she made no threatening gestures towards him and indeed helped him to his feet.

"Thank you," he said, ducking his head and minding his manners.

[Existentially Odd]

"Robbed!" she cried in startlement, automatically swiping at the dust clinging to the gentleman\'s arm with a gloved hand, as her gaze sought his. His shy head dipping made such a thing quite difficult, but she was determined to look him in the eye. She didn\'t really doubt that he\'d been robbed, she simply wanted to gauge the effect such a trial had had on him. He seemed... relatively traumatised.

"Well, you need to go to the guardhouse and report this crime - did you get a good look at the thief that did it? Or was there more than one of them?" Wilson pressed, falling back into the comfort of her work like a foot slid into a boot. It was a good distraction from wallowing in the muddy feelings she had been swamped by just a few moments ago - plus, she couldn\'t abide lawbreaking, especially on honest citizens such as this fellow seemed to be.

[Malkavian Riddler]

"Uh..."
 
Report his crime? He understood that he had a duty, but to be bested by a cut-throat thief - a small sized woman who\'d launched him into the dirt - was not something he wished to freely admit to. He also had the added paranoia that she would somehow know, and find him... and slit his throat. He understood women were just as good as men in all things, better if they were trained, yet there was still a sense of shame in being toseed about in the dirt like a garden salad by someone almost half his size. He was not large, but she\'d been quite small.
 
"The attack was swift," he said without lying. "I didn\'t take a long look at my attacker\'s face." He hadn\'t, but he was fairly sure he\'d recognise her if he saw her again. "I would rather just find a place to stay and sleep it off. I should take comfort in the fact I\'ve still got my life and half of my earnings." He managed a wan smile as his gaze lifted to the captain.
 
The assumption Wilson made was correct - Joely did not recognise her, though had responded automatically to her authority, making a suggestion as to what he should do rather than deliberately contradicting her.
 
"I thank you for your concern, miss... uh..." he realised now that he hadn\'t introduced himself. "My name is Joely Durum, and... I thank you for your assistance," he said hurriedly. The nervous quality of his tone displayed that he was well out of his element - for he hadn\'t the first clue where to find lodgings for the night. He wasn\'t sure whether to request further help, and after some debate he pressed on despite his growing displacement.
 
"Could you point me in the direction of..." the gates, he was going to ask, but now he was aware of the darkness and knew that the gates had already shut.  He\'d been the last to pack up at the markets, had nobody to follow to the gate, they\'d all gone ahead without him - and now it was likely he couldn\'t get home.  "A comfortable inn for lodging? Cheap," he added, not wishing to lose any more of his bounty.
 

[Existentially Odd]

Ignoring both his requests - the subtle one for her name and the blatant one for a place to stay - she narrowed her eyes and pressed for the details she was interested in. "So there was only one attacker? Were they male? Female? Do you know that at least?" Wilson knew of a few thieves who liked to frequent this area and there were rumours of a woman heading them, but she\'d never been able to ascertain any strong evidence. It was not uncommon for victims to wish to simply forget they were ever mugged but she was always hopeful there\'d be someone who could shed some light on the city\'s (organised?) attacks.

[Malkavian Riddler]

Joely was not a liar for he\'d not been brought up that way. His inability to answer dishonestly worked against his desires now, for the captain had correctly presumed that he was the type to want to forget about being robbed.
 
When she shot more questions into his face he found himself flustered, wondering why this woman was so intent on knowing all the details. He wished now that he\'d been brought up in a way that allowed him to be rude - for she was most certainly being rude, not telling him her name and demanding all sorts of answers from him without supplying the single one he\'d asked of her.
 
"Miss, please, I don\'t wish to be interrogated," he said so politely that it could\'ve been a plea. He tried to find a common ground for them so that she would agree to leave him alone. "You can point me in the direction of the guardhouse."
 
He would not promise he would end up there, however.

[Existentially Odd]

At his declaration that he didn\'t want to be interrogated, she sighed and ran a hand across the crown of her head; her red hair was pulled into a modest braid that ran down her back a short way. She really did need to relax and not be so... so... authoritative. Especially since the poor man had obviously just experienced quite a harrowing ordeal. He didn\'t deserve to be the golden answer to so many of her thief-induced questions and he certainly wasn\'t the foil to alleviate the inner turmoil provoked by her drunken father. He was a simple man that was owed her sympathy and concern.

"I\'m sorry; I didn\'t mean to pressure you unduly," she told him honestly, placing a friendly hand upon his upper arm. "It\'s simply that... well, a lot of thefts go unreported in these areas and I\'d really like some more information that could lead to us having someone to question at greater length. I\'m Wilson, by the way; Captain of the Guard. I\'m off duty - as I\'m sure you can tell," she laughed breathily, removing her hand to gesture at her casual attire before she held it out to be shaken, "but I\'d really appreciate it if you did come to the guardhouse and told me as much as you could. It would help a lot."  Her smile was genuine and hopeful, despite the darkness.

[Malkavian Riddler]

Joely was both horrified and relieved to be told it was the Captain of the Guard standing before him.  Of course!  He should\'ve known!  Why else would she be so particular about the details of his robbery?  He mentally berated himself for his slow-mindedness.

"No apology needed, Miss Wilson... uh, Captain," Joe declared hurriedly, extremely humbled to be in her presence.

If he walked with her to the guardhouse, he\'d certainly be well-protected from other robbers, but finding himself a place to stay would be difficult as he didn\'t really know the way inside the castle walls - which was why he\'d lost himself from the gates in the first place and judging by the darkened sky, had lost the chance to leave out the front gates already.

"I\'ll answer questions," he promised now, in the presence of her seniority.  His attitude to get away had clearly changed since learning his status - he was immediately obedient and helpful.

He would attack the problem of finding lodgings after he\'d helped her.  He was hoping she would walk him somewhere once her questions were answered.

[Existentially Odd]

She relaxed further as the man shook her hand, then released it respectfully, looking at last like he was willing to trust her. To her shame, she realised that she really should have introduced herself earlier, to put him at ease. Her arrogance that he should naturally comply with her wishes - even though he had no clue who she was or how she might be able to help him - was probably her biggest downfall. That, and her weakness for men that were all wrong for her, of course.

"Thank you, Joely.  I greatly appreciate your time and I will see to it that you have lodgings after I take your statement, don\'t worry. For now, the guardhouse is this way," she directed him kindly, gesturing in the appropriate direction and beginning to move away at a very sedate pace, waiting for him to follow. He was almost as tall as she was, so she didn\'t have any great concerns that he wouldn\'t be able to match her stride, she just wasn\'t sure that he was completely gathered enough - physically, as well as mentally - to walk yet. She had come upon him crawling about in the dirt, after all. She eyed him thoughtfully from head to toe, her body swivelling to allow her to watch his movements in the manner of one assessing a lame horse. "You\'re not hurt, are you?"

[Malkavian Riddler]

"Just uh... catching my breath.  Half my wage was not the only thing she stole," he said with chagrin and trying to make a lighthearted comment about the fact his lungs had taken a pounding when he\'d landed so heavily on his back after being thrown.

It was after he admitted the thief was a woman that he realised his lapse - and under the cover of darkness (only now taken away by a young man running around with a tall pole and beyond them was a newly lit streetlamp) he blushed furiously.

He decided not to elaborate or justify, for he was only going to repeat himself at the guardhouse, after all.

[Existentially Odd]

Wilson laughed, genuinely appreciating the man\'s quick witted response as she continued to look him over. He appeared to be moving a little tentatively - in a manner that suggested more than just winding - but she supposed she would get those details once they were safely ensconced in the guardhouse... all details, in fact. Still, it didn\'t hurt to offer a little more support than was necessary, so she stepped close and wound her arm - almost companionably - through his, her giggle dying down to a sympathetic smile as she made to subtly help him along.

"Well, at least you\'re not bleeding and nothing\'s hanging off. I\'ve seen a few ears that\'ve never grown back, let me tell you!" Feeling that such disclosures were probably in poor taste - especially in light of Joely\'s recent attack - she cleared her throat and hastily prodded a more neutral topic for discussion from her weary mind. "So... you\'re from the farmlands, I take it? What sort of farm do you run?"

[Malkavian Riddler]

As the Captain took his arm, he felt both grateful and humbled.  She was an important person, he felt perhaps too important to bother with petty crimes.  He had the impression that she took on fabulous missions, and solved crimes against the king himself.  Perhaps she would take him to the guardhouse and offload his grievance to one of her guards.  He wouldn\'t be surprised if she did, nor offended.

He licked his lips and wrung the hem of his tunic that he\'d gathered his coins in (for his coin-pouch had been taken and he had no other way to carry them) as the Captain declared how lucky he was that he wasn\'t missing an ear.

He was lucky, after all, that he\'d come out of his ordeal intact, and with half his earnings.  Why hadn\'t the thief taken all of it?  Why had she offered him half in return?  So easily she could\'ve slipped away into the night with everything.  Had she taken pity on him?  Had she shown him mercy?

He was repaying that mercy by walking side by side (even helped along) by the Captain of the Guard, to report her.  Guilt began to gnaw at him, contradicting his righteous anger which insisted that if it hadn\'t been for her, he would still have all his wages.

It was a very confusing turn of events for Joely.

[Existentially Odd]

Wilson could understand the farmer needing a bit more time to fully gather his wits before he answered her - despite her supposition that it was such a quick and easy question that he ought to have an answer on the tip of his tongue, ready to roll off. No, she left him alone with his thoughts for a bit, watching him walk and - when she was satistfied that he wasn\'t about to go end over - even relaxing her grip on him somewhat. It was a vaguely awkward position, given that it looked as if the pair were courters merely out for a stroll, but she owed no-one in the keep\'s limits a word of explanation should, she be seen - in fact, it was she who remained in that dubious position, despite her having found the explanation out for herself... by accident. Once the man was moving with a little more vigour, he would probably appreciate her unwinding herself from his person, but until she was assured of his competence, she would hold his arm with both her hands.

She looked around instead of filling the silence with more words he wasn\'t ready to hear, watching the scenery pass them slowly by. She wondered resentfully how many pairs of eyes might be observing them from the shadows at this very moment; eyes with malicious intent swirling behind them... thieves and scoundrels with nothing better to do with their lives than make a dishonest living from ruining honest folks\' evenings. It disgusted her that life in the castle had come to this; times where a stroll down any street assured nought but a satisfied smile from a bit of exercise had, were gone. Now, people had to be sure they protected themselves and their belongings, moved quickly, possibly took a companion to present a more challenging target to the lowlives waiting to swoop and take advantage. Truly, it filled her with despair and made her wonder if she was actually in the right profession, when she was unable to be everywhere at once, to effect positive change and keep the paths - all paths - safe.  What good was her job when people walked in fear, or barricaded themselves inside of a night, for fear of being robbed?

[Malkavian Riddler]

"My family are wheat farmers - generations old," he said finally, once the question registered and he\'d completed his thoughts. He was aware there\'d been a long pause but was oblivious to how long it had been. They\'d passed many buildings before he woke from his thoughts and pulled into the present. "You don\'t suppose that we\'re being followed, do you?" he asked, voicing the same concerns the Captain had, only going one step further into the edge of paranoia. "I mean, how ruthless are the criminals behind the city walls? I only know of those thieves that steal another hunter\'s kill," he said with a hint of embarrassment, feeling every part the ignorant country folk now that he was walking beside a career-oriented woman.

[Existentially Odd]

She pressed her lips together, indicating her acrimonious thoughts towards the criminals and her reluctance to tell him any more information that would unsettle him. Frankly, she thought he\'d been rattled enough and it unwise of her to elaborate; but she didn\'t wish to insult his intelligence or imply he didn\'t have the wit to comprehend the magnitude of the evil she\'d witnessed borne upon those within the castle\'s walls. She didn\'t have to be graphic about it, though.

"Quite ruthless," she allowed at last. "Lives have been lost. Over less than a prized kill or a hot meal, too. It\'s... not an encouraging state of affairs, I have to say," she sighed, sharing some of her pessimism, despite her vow to protect his sensibilities. She tried to brighten the situation with a smile and an encouraging squeeze of his arm. "I doubt we\'re being followed, though; I tend to be oil to the criminal water, if you know what I mean. Hopefully you can offer another piece of the puzzle and help bring us together - anything that you recall, no matter how slight, may lead to an arrest. I daresay, I have a dungeon specially marked for the one I eventually identify as the head of the snake," she imparted with a growl of relish. It was obvious by her tone that she found such a punishment a just and worthy result - after the torments she\'d seen unleashed upon the hapless citizens she\'d sworn to guard.

[Malkavian Riddler]

"Would the head of the snake show mercy?" he asked suddenly after lapsing into a long silence that had taken them most of the way to the Guardhouse.

A hot meal.  People had killed for a hot meal.  Did that mean that food was so scarce within the castle walls?  Joely had the impression before he\'d come to the markets to earn money (and was subsequently robbed) that the castle residents led a charmed life and that he was having it tough on the farm looking for ways to help his family survive.

There was very little crime in the farmlands, most crimes taken care of by the farmers themselves who would rally their neighbors into eradicating any real threats.  Most of the King\'s Guard patrolled inside the walls, not out of them - so did that mean that they were always busy?

Perhaps the woman who\'d robbed him had been starving (though her strength had indicated likely not).  Perhaps she had a sick family... or perhaps she was greedy.  But why show mercy?  Once again he was in conflict as to whether to give her up.

The right thing to do was the legal thing, to tell the guards everything.  That was how he was raised - but still, his compassion might be his undoing.

[Eclipsed]

A new form found its way onto the dusty paths. Sharp, hollow eyes stared up and down the bare path with a weird amusement. Like the usual travelers, an ornament was used to filter out the dust floating up from the ground below. For this fellow, it happened to be a bandanna, a slate gray cloth cut into a triangle really. Well, it worked didn’t it?

A sigh released itself from the lips of the male figure. He seemed nervous about something, but what? “I can feel it coming.” The barely audible tone worked it’s way from the male’s throat tensely. “Just... what?” But it was odd to be nervous. It was such a nice night, beautiful in fact. Still, there were always reasons for a thief to be nervous.

Brushing slender fingers through his straight, short black locks, Damian couldn’t help but allow another sigh. “I need to stop worrying myself,” he muttered in a quiet voice. Shrugging to relax, Damian decided he would search someone out. Directing his black-clad self forward on the path he headed out. A slim, bright dirk was grasped in his hand.

[Existentially Odd]

She snorted indelicately at his simplistic question.

"Mercy?  Hardly!  If it is as I suspect - that there is, indeed, one central figure in charge of a network operating within the castle\'s walls - then they would have to have their hands in so many pies they wouldn\'t have time for mercy. Of course, that is allowing that they have some sort of goal in mind; some grand scheme to it all. If not - if it\'s all quite random - then I suppose mercy might be an option. It would certainly be leverage, if they felt deserving of compassion in some way - or as if they were about to be caught and campaigning for it, for some reason. Either way, mercy is surely a subjective label, for what a thief might dictate as mercy I might still see as brutal treatment," she shrugged, having spent so long considering his question that they\'d arrived at the guardhouse.