Another Town, Another Performance

[Relairah]

Joseph was aware of Nikita as she followed behind him on the roofs, however, with his rush of adrenaline and avoiding guards and arrows, he didn't really focus much on whether or not she was okay. Self is always first priority. Still, that didn't mean he was completely oblivious and he did catch the changes as she was farther behind him and then nearer in footfalls, even giving a slight whimper. He didn't stop... they didn't have time for that, but once they cleared the city and had both stopped, he waited till after the guards had dispersed and all.

He noticed Nikita had continued to run a bit farther than himself and after he caught his breath a bit, he turned toward her, noting that her hair now flowed freely and that she was turned slightly away from him, as if hiding something or guarding herself more carefully. Once he calmed down, he meant to say something but it was then that Jalen had approached and the attention was shifted not so welcomingly toward him.

Jalen took the moment to actually speak. "So, now that you've spent quite a bit of energy, I suppose you'll be wanting to wait until tomorrow to get a move on, eh?" He gave a brief glance to the horizon where the day was getting away, the sun sinking lower and lower. Soon, it would be nightfall.

Joseph glanced at Nikita, and then back at Jalen, unsure of what exactly Nikita would say. Up till then, he had been mostly staying back, letting Nikita make decisions and handle herself. But he was feeling a gut feeling like resting, at least for a bit would be the best idea. Besides, he wanted to say something to her that he would have to wait until Jalen was either asleep, or not paying attention. If Nikita didn't respond to Jalen herself, he would speak up in reply. Or if she did, he would speak in agreement with her.

"Yes, Jalen, I feel that would be best. If you would rather travel under the cover of night, we could still get a move on in the earlier hours of the morning. But at least for the time being, it's best to wait. Aside from the fact we should take some time to wait as it is being as the sun is not yet set."

[Moon_Song]

As the men before her decided on their next plan, Nikita remained silent. She wasn't totally fine with the idea of camping nearby the city, or camping within a mile of Jalen. Then again, she couldn't do much with her arm as it was. It was still bleeding, and the blood that was seeping through the cloth stained it a sickly brown color.

"Where ever we go, it should be by a river or a small lake." She offered no reason why, for she feared that if she tried to say more, her voice may give something away. She was not in an unbearable amount of pain, but it was getting there. What was on those arrows?

She really hoped they agreed with her. Although, if they didn't, she would just sneak off and find a place on her own. "Are their any springs nearby?"

With a quick glance to the western horizon, she noted the position of the sun and the lengthening shadows. They had only a few hours at most before it would be too dark to transverse the terrain. She didn't know about the other two, but she didn't know the area too well except for just around Arilnor. She glanced between Joseph and Jalen. If she could get to a water source, she could clean her wound and herself.

[Relairah]

Joseph glanced at Nikita when she spoke, and again the words he wanted to ask her came to his mind. She was helping to confirm his suspicions, that was for sure, but he left the subject alone for now. He had a feeling that if he were correct, she definitely wouldn't want Jalen to know. But there would be time for that soon enough, he hoped.

He glanced at Jalen, then, for he himself didn't really know the surrounding area that well. He actually had a distaste for water, and preferred to avoid it unless absolutely necessary, but he wasn't the one calling all the shots here. Jalen gave a brief sigh, though hid most of his annoyance at this whole situation. For one, they could've had a good head start if these two hadn't wanted to play around and for another, resting wasn't going to save them any more time. Still, it seemed at least for the moment, there was no choice for him, so he obliged.

"Yea, there's a water source a bit through the forest near where I was camped. Come with me." With that, he would take off walking at a rather brisk pace, soon coming to the cover of trees and working his way through it, moving with definite ease. He certainly did know the surrounding area, at least better than either of his companions.

It wouldn't take long before they came upon the water he had spoken of, it being a rather large creek. The cool water flowed steadily over the pebbly bottom and the way it flowed made gurgling sounds. Joseph stood back a bit, feeling no need to get near or in the water. Jalen gestured to the water while looking at Nikita as if to say, "Satisfied?" With that he started to walk off.

"Where do you think you're going?" Joseph had grown suddenly alert and on guard at Jalen's movement to depart.

"If we're going to be camping, we're going to need a few things. I'm going to recover whatever I can from what you destroyed earlier." Jalen continued walking.

Joseph hesitated, watching him warily, but had a guess that however despicable he was, Jalen would return seeing as he had gone through all the trouble in the first place to get Nikita to agree to helping him out. So instead of following Jalen, he glanced at Nikita, silent for a bit.

Again, the words filtered through his mind and he leaned back against a tree, his previous demeanor coming to his face though his eyes still alight. "Are you okay?" He paused, not making any movements toward her, especially with how she had reacted to the last time he had attempted such a thing. He should've known better, with what Jalen had recently done, but still. He wasn't going to directly say, "You got shot, didn't you?" or anything similar, he figured if she wanted to divulge such information, she could herself. But that didn't mean he wouldn't be direct where it was his responsibility to do so. "About earlier," another pause, "Please forgive me. I guess I didn't think in the moment and got a bit carried away."

After those words he was silent, allowing her to respond if she so wished. At least for then, he had said what he felt he had both wanted and needed to say. He was genuinely concerned about her, but wouldn't get closer than she allowed.

[Moon_Song]

She did not look into either mans face as she waited for them to decide. She kept her arms crossed, holding the cloth of her headscarf over the wound. Jalen did agree, though not so happily, to bring them to water. She let a small sigh of relief escape her lips before gearing herself up for the walk.

She stayed back a few paces behind the two. As they went, a sharp pain shot through her arm, and she grunted softly, too softly for them to hear, and gripped her arm tighter. The adrenaline from the run had warn off and the full force of the wound reached her now. She clenched her jaw and concentrated on walking and keeping her breathing even.

As she walked, she counted help but wonder if Arilnor soldiers had a tendency to poison their arrows. She would have to find out. Maybe she was just being over dramatic. She had been hurt before, many time when she was young, but he was always careful to not leave apparent marks...or scars. Any scars she now bared were from her travels, and even those were few. She was no weakling to pain, but this was not normal...

The trek was mercifully short. When the creek came into view she bypassed the men and walked right over to it, standing at its bank. She completely ignored Jalens annoyed looks and gesture. If he wanted her help that badly, he would have to deal with it.

She was actually glad when he started to walk off, and she hoped Joseph would do the same, but he instead he stayed and watched her. She did not move in the silence, except to tighten her grip on her arm.
'Are you alright?'
The question whirled around her mind and she couldn't answer right off. When was the last time anyone asked about her well being that sincerely? And a male no less?
What was his deal?

"Its nothing." Was her almost terse response. Another length of silence and the two of them just standing by the creek. When it began to grow uncomfortable, he spoke again, asking forgiveness for his actions earlier. She was dumbfounded by this man. He acted as no man she had ever met. Again she did not answer right away. She was having trouble choosing her words.

"Joseph, I hold no grudge against you." was he best she could come up with. She didn't like the way he acted, but could she really hold it against him? It was the heat of the moment, and perhaps he...no just leave it at that. She turned her head to look at him, to gauge his reaction. When she saw what ever he decided to show, she would glance at the creek as if to signify something.

"Joseph...why don't you go make sure Jalen doesn't do anything suspicious" She hoped he understood the inflection in her words. She needed to clean up and check her wound, as well as wash her clothes...and she needed to be alone so she could do that.

[Relairah]

Joseph was hardly surprised by her terse response. She had already shown herself as one who 'could take care of herself' so to speak and wouldn't show weaknesses, at least not unless she felt entirely comfortable around someone. At least, that's just what he had gathered so far. So he let it slide, only giving a brief nod and not worrying about it further. After all, if she wanted it to, she would've answered differently.

So then came her next response, saying she held no grudge against him. Well that was good. If she did, it would make things suddenly much more difficult. He watched her a moment, and finally she mentioned following Jalen. In truth, Joseph didn't think the other man would do much now that he had gotten what he wanted. To a point. But still, he got the hint. He gave a brief nod and said, "Alright." There was no need for him to say anything further, at least right then. So he left, leaving Nikita to her business.

After some walking in the direction Jalen had gone, he came upon the other man's previous campsite. Jalen was bent, digging through some materials and finally pulling up a few various items. Joseph already knew most of Jalen's stuff would be in tact, perhaps with a few black marks, since the fire had been designed only to burn the tent and get Jalen where they had wanted him - which it had worked.

Joseph stood there a moment, not really wanting to help this man at all. He was precisely the kind of guy he preferred dead, or perhaps in prison. But for the time being, they were all in a group and until the opportune time, he'd have to at least work with him. So he approached and began lifting some things himself. "I assume you won't be able to carry everything by yourself."

Jalen glanced at Joseph. If he had been startled by his presence, he certainly didn't show it. Instead he gave a brief smirk. "Well it will slow us down to bring too much along. We only need the essentials." He paused, and then began telling Joseph what specifically they needed. He pointed to different spots where they could be found and finally said they could carry them in a couple of leather bags which he kept on him at all times. They were large enough to carry the things they needed, but small enough to be carried around easily enough.

Joseph made sure to take his time, figuring Nikita would want her time alone as long as it lasted. Finally, the men stood, leaving the rest for whatever might find it sometime in the future. After a last glance around, Jalen turned and began walking back into the cover of the trees, heading toward the creek where they had left Nikita. Joseph followed silently, his eyes alight and watching.

[Moon_Song]

Nikita said nothing, and only watched as Joseph walked in the same direction Jalen had. After the sound of his foot steps died away, she turned back to the body of water before her. She did not move as the gently rushing water went along it path. She was searching, with all of her senses, to be sure that none were nearby, that none could sneak up on her and catch her at a vulnerable moment.

When she was finally satisfied that no humans or the like were near, she let out a breath-how long had she been holding it?-and with care began to remove all of the trinkets that adorned her body. First the bracelets and bangles and armbands, being especially careful of the rings on her injured arm, but she did bump the wound and she winced. She removed the headband next, as well as her precious sword that was tied to her waist. It was set against the closest tree to the creek so that it wouldn't leave her sight.

After all of her attire was removed, the stained pieces sat at the bank while the others hung from bushes and low branches, she waded into the cold water. It wasn't so chilled that she caught her breath, but it send a small jolt up her spine. The water was just deep enough in the middle for her to swim, so she lowered herself so that the water's surface just touched her underarms.

First and foremost, she needed to clean her wound. She wasted not a moment more, and lowered that arm into the rushing water. As the water flowed past her, it was colored a shade of red-ish pink. Once enough of the blood was washed away, the wound was more visible, and the severity of it was obvious. It was not a wound to be taken lightly, but it was not so bad as to need stitches. A good bandaging and enough time should suffice. She moved her hand over the raw and red flesh to brush away some dirt-or was it dried blood-and her finger hit something hard. She gasped at the sudden pain.

Once she had ahold of herself again, she tugged, always gently, at the skin of her arm to bring more of the wound into her sight. There was something there. A black something was sitting snugly inside her arm. It was not small, and if she moved the skin of her arm more, she could feel it cutting farther into her already tattered flesh. She would have to pull it out, and quick. She dreaded the thought, but knew it must be done or the wound wouldn't heal properly, or worse, get infected.

She knew she would have to relax, or it would hurt all the more. She took a few deep breaths, and forced her muscles to soften. Now or never. She reached over with the opposite hand and fished around, witch was less than pleasant, until her slender fingers gripped something smooth and sharp, cutting her fingers slightly. She winced, gritted her teeth, and tugged. The motion wasn't strong enough, and all it did was cause pain to shoot through her upper arm. She cried out, but was quick to shut her mouth and grunt through it.

It was not out, and it needed to be. She physiqued herself up once again, and gripped the smoothness. She took one long, drawn out breath, and pulled. It came out, and so did her voice. She did not scream, but it was a loud moan of pain. She prayed the men didn't hear her.

She breathed heavier than before as a new serge of adrenaline coursed through her body. A part of the wound had been opened and was bleeding anew. She didn't look, for she could feel it as it pulsated in time with the beating she could faintly hear in her ears. Instead, she looked down at her now bloody hand, which was clenched over the sharp object.

She opened the sore hand to reveal an obsidian shard...the side of an arrow. Apparently, when the arrow that hit her flew passed, some flaw in its creation caused a part of it to break and lodge itself within her arm. She closed her fingers over the broken arrow head and raised her arm to throw it. She hesitated. In the end, she chose not to-or couldn't-throw it off into nowhere. She lowered her hand to her face and re-examined the shard. It looked to be of good quality obsidian, though still covered in her blood.

Why waste it? She rinsed the gem and set it with her still clean clothes. She settled back into the creek and pulled in her outer skirt and scarf. She needed to clean the fabrics before the blood dried too much and permanently stained.

***********

With her clothes clean, as well as her body and hair, she exited the creek, dripping water wherever she walked. She had laid out the wet clothing in what light was left, and with the addition of warmer weather, they were dry enough to wear. She used the mostly dry headscarf to dry her body. When that was done she adorned all of her jewelry and trinkets, leaving the headband off so that her hair would dry properly. It fell in damp waves of silver while it stuck to her back and forehead. It was a strangely flattering look.

From her scarf, she tore a strip of cloth about three inches thick and long enough to wrap around her arm. She carefully placed the cloth over the now cleaned cut, and wrapped it around a few times before tying it off with her opposite hand and her teeth. It was tight enough to not slip were she to sleep with it on, which was good, because she intended to do so.

When she was fully dressed, save her head adornments, she heard the approach of the two men. The first to come through the trees was Jalen. Just behind him was Joseph, eyeing Jalen as closely as she would have had she been in the same place. She nodded a Joseph, but made no motion to the other man.

[Relairah]

Both men took in the sight of Nikita with her long, damp silvery hair. It was obvious what she had done in their absence, as well as the cloth bound about her arm. However, their reactions were quite different. Where Jalen's black eyes glimmered slightly, as if dirty thoughts crept through his mind, which in fact, they did, Joseph resisted the urge to look at her in any sort of animalistic way. Yes, she was attractive, any man would be fool to think otherwise. But it proved differences in the type of man in how they handled it and at least in this situation, Joseph knew better. This was afterall a somewhat strenuous situation.

Both men dropped the bags at the base of a tree. Jalen went to the water and splashed some of it on his face before falling back against a different tree. "We'll take a few hours," he said, leaning his head back. "Then, we should get moving."

Joseph said nothing, again resigning himself to the third wheel. For now, that was all that was necessary from him. At least until anyone else specified otherwise. He gave Jalen a brief nod, only to acknowledge he had heard him and sat back himself.

---

The sun had long sank behind the horizon, leaving them in the darkness of the forest around them. The moon was in its waning period though the sky was full of stars so some light did filter in though the trees and reflected off the water. Jalen had drifted off, feeling he might as well not waste the time. It was the very early hours of the morning, perhaps three hours past midnight or close to it.

Joseph had slept some, though lightly. He hardly needed as much sleep as normal humans for various reasons, though that was not the reason. It wasn't the first time he had awoken just to check things throughout the hours they had been here and at last, he felt it had been long enough. He stood, stretching out his limbs and muscles and moved carefully toward the water, though didn't touch it. For now, it served him no purpose. At first, he glanced at Jalen, seeing the other still slept. He then knelt and rested on the balls of his feet, arms hanging over his thighs and gazed into the distance for a moment.

This demeanor was somewhat different from his normal self, but he felt he had to remain this way for the time being. If nothing else then until this whole matter was over. He didn't trust Jalen, and was wary of Nikita. For now, they worked together, and she was tolerant of him. At least from what he could see. But she seemed edgy, to him anyway, and he knew she had good reason around Jalen. He was curious about her, but something told him it was better to keep his distance. He would respect her, yet he couldn't help himself. She was attractive and intriguing. It was simply a fact. Not that he would ever act on it, especially since he hardly thought she had any interest in that road.

However, Jalen seemed quite different. Not only would he have to make sure the bastard didn't do anything unnecessary like killing people and such on his little quest, but he had a gut feeling he needed to watch out for Nikita too. Not that she couldn't care for herself... but strength-wise... well, he knew she could be over-powered. At least as far as for mere strength without other aid...

His thoughts were all jumbled and he rubbed his face with his hand, attempting to at least sort them. They were interrupted by movement behind him.

Jalen stirred, waking from his slumber and looked around. At first, he didn't see Joseph, but wasn't fool enough to think the guy had left that easily. It wasn't long till his eyes came upon the other man's figure bent in thought. He then looked for Nikita, and after spotting her, he would hesitate before rising to his feet. If she were awake, he would move to gather the bags he and Joseph had brought before and say simply, "We should get moving before any time gets away." If she were asleep, he would say the same, knowing Joseph would hear him, and trust the other guy to wake her up.

After all, it was clear to him Nikita would probably raise hell if he even touched her... despite what the intention was. Either way, he was ready to get a move on.

[Moon_Song]

Joseph seemed to be holding something back, and the way Jalen stared at her sent an icy jolt up her spine and through her limbs. It was not the first time she had received such a regard of primeval hunger, but it was certainly the most unwelcome. She dreaded the coming night even more now, for darkness of the sky brought the darkest of thoughts...and actions.

The two men dropped the bags they were carrying and Nikita wondered briefly where they had come from. Jalen, now lightened of his burden, made his way to the creek to cool himself. With his approach, she moved away, hardly bothering to hide her distaste for the man. Throughly cooled, he rose and leaned on a near tree--she pitied the tree--and announce they would leave this place in a few hours. The implication being that that they would sleep here for the night. Good. The water would help calm her some and help her keep a cool head.

Since the men had come back, Joseph hadn't said a word. The only motion he made was to nod in acknowledgment. "Well then," Nikita spoke up after the moment grew tensely still, "I'll go and make myself a bed." She made her way to the creek's bank, lifted her skirt up to her knees and waded across the creek. This way, she figured, if that despicable Jalen decided he wanted to risk his life, she would hear him coming.

******

The darkness was alive with night sounds and the gentle, comforting glow of a waning Lady Moon. Her light, along with her children, the stars, bestowed their silver shine on the surface of the ever flowing creek. All of these observations Nikita noted because she had, once again, awoken. She had slept little, and what sleep she got was fitful. She could operate on little sleep, any traveler worth their salt could, but it wouldn't be pleasant. She was likely to be cranky.

Throughout the night, she had heard movement over in the general direction of Joseph. Was his sleep as restless as hers? With her...nature...she didn't have much difficulty seeing through the murky darkness of night hours, though this night was fairly well lit, but she chose to remain as she was and not look to see who was moving about. She contented herself with gazing up through the foliage at the passing Lady Moon.

She heard more movement now, someone had roused completely from sleeps clouded grip and was nearing the creeks bank. She tensed, but did not move. She listened and waited for the sloshing of water...but there was none. The approach stopped just at the bank.

She chanced a glance over, and she saw a man's form--Joseph it seemed--just sitting there across the water. He made no movement. He reminded her of one of the gargoyles that guarded the peaks of the Arilnor cathedrals. She watched him for a long time, keeping her breathing even so as to not alert him that she was awake. Night thoughts found their way into her mind--the Lady's doing--and she was appalled. How could she think of such things in this situation, for a man she neither knew nor....nor what? He was a man, and by default, a detestable creature. And yet...

Had he not been within hearing distance, she would have smacked herself. She instead pinched the skin of her good arm. It served as a good way to clear her mind.

She thought she heard Jalen shift in his sleep, and instantly a bad taste rose in the back of her throat. By the way he had looked at her earlier, she knew his intentions were of the worst kind. Would she be strong enough to fight him off next time? No, there would be no next time, for if he ever tried anything again, she would not spare him her abilities.

Joseph finally moved. Why did that make her feel relieved? At the same time, Jalen began to stir in earnest. She did not move, but tensed even more than she had before. she couldn't see him from where she was, but she was fairly sure he could see her. He spoke aloud saying that they should be on their way. She did not rise, but instead stilled further. She had to fight her own body to force it to keep an even breath.

She waited a moment to see what exactly they would do, but she decided against it and rose, ever graceful, from her impromptu bed of leaves and brushed some dust from her skirts and body. She looked at neither man as she lifted her skirt and waded back to the other side of the river, though she did nod a "good morning" to Joseph. Once across, she would make her way over to where the bags were and reach out to grab a few.

[Relairah]

It seemed Nikita was awake on her own, and thus there was no need to wake her up. Joseph returned the nod when she gave him when she waded across the river and he picked up the remaining bag, one of the larger ones. Afterward, he glanced at Jalen who in turn, seeing there was no other need to stay, began moving, making his way easily through the trees. He obviously knew where he was going and either Nikita or Joseph, or both might notice the parchment he carried in one hand. It was his map.

Joseph was content to hang back so as to keep a better eye on Jalen. There were several smaller towns and villages scattered through the area though unless they were large or trading centers, they weren't often visited or known of by others, especially travelers. By sunrise, they would have already seen a couple here and there in the distance and passed them. There was no need to disturb them unless Nikita expressed any interests or desires to do so.

What Nikita and Joseph didn't know was that this would be a several day journey, at the least, and they would stop only for needs such as eating or sleep. Well, except for a few various towns Jalen had already planned to make a trip through.

In the distance, the travelers would see the bright colors of sunrise begin to dance across the horizon. Joseph couldn't help but watch it with a bit of a warm feeling coming over him. He always loved both sunrise and sunset for the appearance it gave the sky. He couldn't help a glance at Nikita, wondering what sorts of thoughts she was having or if she enjoyed watching such phenomena herself. He didn't realize he had been watching her off and on throughout the time they had been walking. He was unsure of what to say, so hadn't said much. Something he did notice, however, was when Jalen all of a sudden was walking straight toward one of the various villages.

He became more alert, though saw no signs from Jalen to be suspicious of. For now.

It wasn't long before they would be in the village, seeing the beginnings of various people there preparing for the day with setting out things or perhaps going to their various duties. Jalen ignored most of these people, though glanced around now and then. He was looking for someone in particular and at last he came upon the place. His dark eyes gained that look of recognition and he entered the place without hesitation. It was a small hut-like building, with shelves lining the walls of the first room. There were doorways, showing there were a few other rooms: obviously a living area. Though it was clear the main room was used as a shop of sorts. There were books and items along with various viles and other things lining the shevles and on the far wall was a large desk, behind which sat an older-looking man, his head bent as if in study.

The man looked up at the sound of footsteps and sat motionless for a moment when he saw Jalen. However, on seeing that there were two others, both whose eyes drew his attention for their abnormal coloring, he rose, moving around the desk.

"Ah! Good to see you again," Jalen said with a brief smirk. "I was hoping you might be able to give me some more... information. Perhaps some assistance. I need some things for a recent adventure I'm on."

The man frowned and folded his arms, glancing back and forth between Jalen and the others. "Exactly what are you looking for?" It was clear he was going to be rather stubborn about this whole ordeal.

Jalen shrugged, his face gleaming arrogance. "Does it matter? Whatever I want, you're going to give it to me."

"Or else, what?" the man challenged back, glancing once more at the other two warily.

At this point, Joseph caught on to something. Jalen glanced at himself and Nikita with this look, this look that said he wanted them to assist him with this. He wasn't sure exactly what Jalen was up to, but he got the feeling it was one of those situations where one person comes in and bullies or threatens or manipulates the shop owner to get something - usually because the person doing the bullying has no money. Which, Jalen didn't. Not that he knew of. And he wasn't sure he wanted to spend what he had on this crazy guy's requests, whatever they may be. But Joseph suddenly realized why Jalen had saught after Nikita. Or at least, he had a hunch because he didn't really know many details. Jalen had wanted Nikita to tag along not just because she could fluidly get into spots that would be difficult to access, perhaps like sneaking into a large castle or something, but because he wanted her to help him in getting whatever it was he wanted from people.

Well, wasn't this exactly what he and Nikita had decided to tag along for? To make sure this crap didn't happen? He glanced at Nikita, wondering if she had the same realization. Or if she'd known all along. He'd had a gut feeling Jalen would try to pull something like this... he himself had mentioned tagging along to protect people, but he didn't think it would be so soon it would come into effect. He had a feeling over however long they travelled, they would have to deal with several similar circumstances. A slight frown crossed his face as Jalen looked back at the shop owner, whoever it was. It was clear Jalen and the shop owner had encountered each other in the past, and that Jalen had through whatever tactics gained things from him.

That wouldn't happen today, not while Joseph was here, he thought to himself. If they needed something, they would do it right. Jalen caught the warning look from Joseph... and so did the shop owner.

The older man seemed to catch on that these other people who at first had made him fearful, might not be such a bad thing. Maybe. Unless it was just part of some act. "Just tell me what it is you need," he said to Jalen.

"Well," Jalen started, "I'll need to stock up on a couple of books about Lord Melik's castle... ah, and also a few viles such as gases." He paused, his dark eyes glimmering. "You know what I mean, Killip."

The man once again glanced at Nikita and Joseph before moving about the shop, gathering the items Jalen had asked for, pulling them together and laying them out across the desk on the far side. He glanced at Jalen, knowing this wasn't absolutely everything. He hoped the travelers had brought some means of pay.

[Moon_Song]

The bag was not light, but she had carried heavier things before. Just as she was about settle the bag on her shoulder, she remembered her head adornments. With nimble fingers she donned the golden headband and quickly wrapped her now dry hair into her headscarf. Finally ready, she turned toward Jalen, waiting for him to lead the way. She didn't have to wait long.

She kept behind Jalen, a few feet to the right of Joseph. From where she stood, she could hear a sort of crackle. She looked intently at Jalen, moving sideways a bit. In his hand was some sort of paper. She had an idea of what was there. A map. The idea both troubled and reassured her.

As they went, they passed small settlement, though they were of little interest. They seemed to watch the passers-by with a cautious curiosity. It may may just have been a trick of the dim light, but she thought that a few eyed Jalen with more malice than curiosity.

It didn't take long for the sun to present itself over the horizon with its plumage of oranges, yellows, pinks, and blues. The light and warmth of the new sun made her feel lighter. The pleasure was but a momentary thing. She had felt eyes on her, coming from the side. She chanced a peak sideways and caught Joseph's eyes on her. She quickly looked forward, a little embarrassed. That feeling, too, was short lived. Jalen had changed pace and was headed for a village.

The atmosphere itself seemed to tense as they drew closer. By this time, the colors of sunrise had dimmed, though not faded completely. People within the village were going about their morning chores. It almost felt wrong to disturb these people, frozen in their own little world.

The whole time she kept one eye on Jalen. He seemed to be searching. He walked straight into a little hut, with no introduction or knock. This was very strange, and rude in her eyes. Then again, she expected nothing better from the vermin.

Nikita entered last, giving herself time to school her expression to one a little more pleasant for meeting strangers. The little hut was obviously a shop of various goods and wares. She resisted the urge to look around, and instead looked straight at the little man--of course--behind the counter. He didn't look to be in the mood for disturbances, and Jalens voice and face caused him to freeze.

Such body language usually meant bad memories, for she knew that look well. Any preconceived notions of this man being in league with Jalen were dashed right then. The little man eyes her and Joseph. This she let pass. It was something she had long grown used to.

Nikita adjusted the bag and Jalen went on with his tainted familiarity and false kindness. The elder man didn't buy the act, and shifted a suspicious gaze between the three. His reply was far from willing. It made Nikita grin for a moment, but what Jalen had said after that froze the smile and turned it into a cold thing. There was an easily detectable threat in those words. She glanced at Joseph. The elder man was not put off, and replied with just as much stubbornness as before.

Jalen gave her and Joseph an expectant look. She pretended not to see it, but she had a good idea of what he was expecting. He was such a despicable creature. She would not stand for this, nor would she assist in such behavior. She glanced at Joseph just as he glanced to her. She, too, caught the look he gave Jalen.

She tensed in anticipation. She wasn't sure what would happen to the shopkeeper if he didn't comply. To her slight disappointment, though, he did and set about unhappily around the store gathering Jalen's requests. She took care to listen to each of the things he asked for, and when he said "gasses" she had to stay her hand as it reached for the hilt of her blade. Instead, she shot icy spears into his back with her eyes. If only she could hurt him physically right now. Her sword hand ached for the blade.

Nikita wondered about Killip, at least that was what Jalen had called him, and what had happened in the past. He passed by her to get at a few items on the shelf, and when she moved away she bumped the door frame with her bad arm. She immediately dropped the bag and reached for the arm, wincing. She didn't mean to give it such a show. She forced her arm down and bent over and picked the bag up again, trying her best to maintain what dignity she had left. The idea of showing weakness in front of Jalen left a bad taste in her mouth.

[Moon_Song]

Rel please come back!! Nikita is getting lonesome

[Aveilthé]

OOC: Rel just had her baby on Christmas night, that was yesterday... she's really busy with that... and her internet is down... >< Just thought I'd let ya know!

[Moon_Song]

0.0 I didn't even know she was having a baby! Well congratulations Rel!!!!