|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 7:06 pm
(She actually hadn't done anything bad in her life at the time the sword was stolen, and at some degree she still has the same mentality of the child she was when it happened)
She watched his reaction, trying to interpret what it was that he was thinking of her accusation. When he boldly admitted that he indeed was a theif, her eyes blinked in half surprise and half malice. The statement he made about her doing whatever she wanted because she was a female urked her.
Valin glared at him and raised her chin, "In my mother's words: Who you are does not matter; it is the strength you find within yourself to become what matters that defines who you are." Obviously her mother hadn't payed any more attention to the boundary between male and female than she had to the importance of Houses in Drow society. That didn't mean she didn't think she was superior to others, but the reason was because she felt she had earned that superiority, not because some goddess had given it to her.
"My excuse," she said, leaning closer to the other's now raised face, her eyes sharpening into a look marked with dangerous clarity of their intent to shatter life as he had accused her of doing, "Is that I am looking for a particular item that a particular thief has stolen from me long long ago and that I want to bury my mother's killer in the deepest pit of despair that I can find or create, the theif and the killer being one and the same." Her eyes remained steady in their gaze until she received a reaction from the other to her intent to gather information no matter what the cost.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 7:30 pm
Mikaril blinked, surprised and to a small degree impressed, whether he chose to admit it or not. "Wise mother," he mumbled without sarcasm. He would have loved for Matron Dilayne to think along those lines, but she was as unchangeable as the stone that made up their constant surroundings.
He did notice that she hadn't said anything about life-shattering, and even if she did deny it, he still wouldn't be convinced. He had learned that to survive one couldn't help but ruin another's life to preserve one's own. He watched the female's face loom close to his, and the corners of his mouth turned up in a sort of semi-sarcastic smirk. "That item wouldn't be a sword, would it? Seems logical, given the fact that you're parading around with an empty scabbard. But if you're thinking I'm your thief, I'm afraid it's highly unlikely. I don't specialize in weapon-stealing; most of it is too bulky to make off with properly, and if the drow cares so much for a weapon, then it isn't the type of drow you'd particularly want to risk stealing from."He didn't know whether or not the female would believe his words, but he knew that she had already given him a short frisking, and it wasn't as though there were many places on his person that would hide a sword.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 8:08 pm
"I'm not going to risk stealing from him," she said matter-of-factly, "I'm going to kill him; that shall be the life I decide to shatter with my hands." The fact that he admitted her mother was wise made her a little reluctant to continue toying with him, yet at the same time it made her suspicious that he might be trying to flatter her in order for her to let him go.
"And I know you aren't the murderous theif; but you might know of them or of the whereabouts of an old sword that might match my empty scabbard. Every theif notices valuables, whether it is their item of choice to steal or not, and normally theives keep a good information network," she said, cocking her head to the side.
Of course, assasins had much better networks, but she was wary of approaching one for the possibility of dying a quick and senseless death.
Her mists tapped at her shoulders and she looked up, sighing, "I suppose..." Looking back down at the other Drow, she narrowed her eyes and stared at him for a moment before opening her mouth to speak. "Would you like to be freed from the ground?" she asked tightly, only offering the option because her mists were becoming restless at being confined to one place, even if it was such a comfy place as the cape was.
"Oh," as an afterthought she added, "My name is Valin Piranor, if you would like to give warning to the theif about who is going to be killing them." She actually would prefer that the murderer know who it was that was going to steal away his very breath and why they were going to do so, thus why she always gave her real name, whether she knew the other's name or not before she retreated from the scene.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 8:33 pm
"I was actually referring to me with that particular analogy; I usually take care not to steal from someone who I know could tear me in half if he or she caught me." He knew that warriors prized their weapons, and many tended to be the bulky kind who could flick your head and knock it from your shoulders if you were foolish enough to cross them.
He shrugged as much as he could from the pressing mist. "Well, it's like I said, I don't usually specialize in weapons, and it isn't as though any self-respecting thief would go out of their way to proclaim their wares contain stolen items." Being still fairly young and still learning, he couldn't honestly say that he conducted his training through any specific network, though he had sold several things to drow that he knew were fellow thieves or customers who bought items regularly from thieves. He knew there were no shortage of them right there by the Glimmersea, knowing that those who made port were some of the best buyers, as they took the goods far out of reach once they sailed back the way they had come.
He chuckled, and almost replied, "No thank you; I've suddenly found this hard, damp ground quite comfortable," but he wisely checked his tongue and managed something slightly less damning. "It's kinda hard to go about one's business pinned to the ground, so yes, I would appreciate it." He threw in a smile just to show that he was talking in banter and not disrespect. "And my name's Mikaril Torlyl."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:13 pm
"Ah," she tilted her head back and stood up, not wanting Mikaril to think her mother was a weak warrior so explaining the cause of her inability to tear the theif in half, "She could have torn them in half, but then she would have torn me in half as well..."
She didn't like admitting that she had been used as a pawn in her mother's death, but she would rather be a pawn than let her proud mother be thought of as weak. Even though there were some Drow who did think of her as weak simply because she had chosen her child's life over her own. Those Drow had made Valin lose her temper a little; they had spent a few moments choking on the water vapor that filled their lungs as she had walked away holding her head high and kicking dirt in their direction. She hadn't killed them; the water vapor returned to the outside air after she was out of sight of the insulters, but she made sure to let them know not to try and mock her again.
"But you do know other theives and whether or not they've come across an interesting sword," she said, figuring he wasn't going to directly give away his fellow theives without some prodding and possibly another conversation held at ground-level, "And you do know if you have seen anyone with a sword that would probably be worth stealing if you were the kind to specialize in weapons." She arched a brow at him, wondering if he was going to give a forthright answer like he had to be daft (no offense, her thinking not mine sweatdrop ) not to know she wanted or if he was going to stall more.
When she finally received his preference to the question of freedom she gave a little nod back, not quite sure how to take the bantering so dismissing it unless it turned into an insult, "Al right." She lifted her hands again and opened her fingers, letting what mist that wanted to move about be free to do so and keeping what mist that wanted to remain moving about in the fabric in the cloak, mainly as a reminder that if he wanted to try and run again he would know what fate awaited him and the dirt beneath him.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:35 pm
((No fear; I know not to associate a drow's thoughts with the humans' behind it. wink ))
Mikaril merely shrugged at Valin's words, not really figuring them important enough to ask for clarification. He had enough problems with his own mother to enquire about the problems of another. As soon as he had felt the pressure lessening, he once again scrambled to his feet and brushed himself off. He looked rather put out at how wet his cloak and hood had gotten from the mist; he had seldom let it soak in water for so long, and he was unsure what prolonged exposure would do to it. He had always thought from its cheery green that it was a surface elf's cloak, but he had never gotten the chance to confirm it with the giver. Surely it could withstand rain of sorts, but he would be terribly put out if he had to end up discarding it.
"If I were you, I would seek out the general marketplaces; the bustle makes for a good cover, and many aren't as likely to question a merchant's stock for fear of making a scene. I can usually tell at a glance which ones are supported by thieves. If you like, we can start here, at the stands near the docks. You stand a pretty fair chance, since not only do they seel items from the Eastdark, but others arrive and bring their own wares to sell. If not, I know at least one other marketplace you might try. And though I am not sure yet just how the inner workings of the network are, I do know how to send word along if the message is interesting enough and is backed by enough coin."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 8:15 pm
"'We'?" she repeated with an arched brow. She hadn't expected him to want to actually help her, just give her some information and run away cursing her as others had done, "Are you sure you want to go through all that trouble for someone who has humiliated you so?"
The question was backed by curiousity, as she only imagined it to be a slip of the tongue. Except he had offered more than one piece of action for her to take, sounding as if he were going to show her rather than tell her what she should do if the first suggested course of action were to fail. She shook her head, knowing it had to be a slip; he'd tell her the first course and then as soon as she went to it and stopped at the first shop in the market he'd mysteriously dissapear into the crowd.
A second problem suddenly entered her mind, one that she had almost forgotten about since it had been a while since it had been addressed last. She had a large distrust and distaste for market places. It stemmed from some unidentified reason founded in her childhood; she didn't even really know why she disliked them to the point of avoiding them no matter what the cost, but she did.
So far she had only gathered passing information with her power, waiting to ensnare those who crossed through the trading ports on the Glimmersea. Literally acting as a Siren, she would dash her prey upon the rocks to strand them with her so she could interrogate them. The last time she had actually gone into any type of Market Place had to have been about, and she wasn't entirely sure, but about a year and half back from the present time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 8:38 pm
Looking genuinely surprised at Valin's question, Mikaril shrugged again underneath his cloak and foxed the other with a non-hostile gaze. "Well, I guess I figured that since you tried so hard to pin me down and hold me there, you had it in your mind to 'persuade' me to help you. Isn't that the way you females usually operate? Needing someone to 'test the waters', as it were?" He knew he was knocking on trouble's door by making that sort of statement, but if the shoe fit..... Besides, he was beginning to get the feeling that this female not only had use for him; she had need of him. It took a thief to know a thief after all, and what better way to find stolen merchandise than to have a thief sniffing them out? Still, he was shocked that after all the tricks and humiliation, it didn't seem to enter the female's mind to persuade him to help. It seemed as though every time she spoke, he had a hard time believing the words. Right now, he felt as though he would mistrust her if she insisted that spiders had eight legs.
The thought of helping her didn't really trouble him too much; it offered a rather attractive bunch of benefits. He would be able to get a scope on what was being sold at the time (he was always on the lookout for special items), he could purchase or filch a few items as proof to Matron Dilayne that he had been actually contributing to the House instead of off somewhere goofing around, and if this female got unruly, he held the advantage in a crowded marketplace. Like trying to catch a snake in a quarry; every possible hiding place known and opportunity noted.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 9:04 pm
Valin cocked her head to the side, confused by his talk of persuasion. "Isn't that what I was doing?" she asked, generally confused, then she added somewhat dryly, "And if we're talking about certain operations of peoples I could be asking you the same; all men act the same, all women act the same; we get that way by emulating those who raise us. Can you really blame a child if they grow up to become the only thing they were ever told to be?"
The thought made her eyes flicker into an almost sad expression for a moment, knowing that it wasn't fair for some to be marked based on the stereotype of the whole gender or race, but she herself had been the one pressing the blame at one point or another as well.
Then her hard gaze was back and she began to grapple with the idea of going into a market place again. It made her more than a little uneasy and she didn't like the thought of letting Mikaril gain the advantage over her by dragging her into it in such a way, though she would never admit that aloud. She resigned herself to the task, knowing that she would have no other way to find the information and possibly the person she wanted to see.
(Heehee, I'm plotting about a very dramatic situation at the market place concerning the father she thinks is dead and catches a glimpse of
I'm going to have to get him as a custom sometime so I can do a whole rp of them remeeting...
*Laughs maniacally*)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 9:26 pm
"Pretty much," Mikaril said. "You do have a point though; with being taught the same. Still, despite every drow getting the same education, they still turn out different from each other, so the idea of diversity happens somewhere along the line. If it didn't, we'd all be warriors, or mages....." He looked seriously at Valin. "Or thieves."
He made a face at the thought of the Underdark overrun by drow thieves. Nobody would be able to hold onto anything anymore, and every item would only be as valuable as the time you would spend actually owning the thing before someone else stole it from you. The chaos was intriguing, but it would cease to be as.....special to him.
Mikaril noticed the other's sudden hesitation, and he wondered at it. Was she afraid of running into someone there? Was she claustrophobic? Allergic to incense? Yeah right, he thought, if she could afford to mess around with mist, a little smoke probably wouldn't bother her.
Clearing his throat, he said, "Of course, if you'd rather go it alone, I've offered my thoughts on the matter and there's nothing stopping you. Either way, I'd like to know that I can exit without being misted on."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:37 pm
"Or murderers," she added just as seriously, blinking. Too much of any one type of person would be utter chaos.
"Well..." she began, not wanting to foolishly send him away by snubbing him with her pride but not wanting to seem like she was desperate for help in going to the market place, "You don't have to, you are free to go whenever you wish so long as the information you have given me is correct. Of course, I would like you there when I verify said information in case you have tried to cheat me, as is Drow custom whether you be male or female."
She arched another brow at him and waited to see his reaction, trying to hide the dread that rose in her throat at the thought of having to navigate the market place alone.
(Sorry, it's short XP
If they get to the market place quickly I have a nice little longer posty already written out for her little encounter >D)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:55 pm
((I dun mind short.
And how can I pass an offer like that up? ^^))
Mikaril gave another shrug and tried to pretend that he couldn't really care less, but his infuriating curiousity began to gnaw at him, and he never was very good at ignoring it. He settled for a hint of bluster. "Pfeh; you'd probably have me flat on the stone even if I were a hundred miles away if you thought for an instant that I played you false. I'd better make sure my word stays good."
Glad to be able to move freely (being pinned so often tended to make the muscles feel as though they have never enjoyed proper freedom of movement), Mikaril turned and walked away from the shoreline and toward the marketplace, not bothering to check behind him to make sure Valin was following; he was walking plenty slow, and if she was the type to get distracted, that was her lookout.
In a matter of minutes, Mikaril was taking in the bustle and hustle of a typical Underdark marketplace. Merchants were bawling their wares in either loud, hoarse voices or sharp, high voices, glittering items caught and held the light of torches, candles, and faerie fire, and from every shadow peered out at least one pair of unfriendly eyes, waiting to pounce on the first unwary traveler bearing what was deemed a 'heavy burden' in gold or valuables. The air reeked of salty air, cooked meat, unwashed bodies and incense. Mikaril took it all in with a smile and open senses. When he wasn't craving solitude on the GLimmersea, this was easily one of his most favorite atmospheres.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:12 pm
Valin nodded at his answer and didn't dare admonish it with a reply of her own. Instead she followed behind him at an even pace, slowing a little to drop further behind as they neared the noisy streets. She immediately stiffened, staring with haughty eyes at all of the people and noise and reek around her, reminded again just how much she was disgusted by the city.
Crinkling her nose she couldn't help but ask, "Is there a shop you have already figured?" Her eyes were somewhat taking stock of the shops around them, somewhat glued to the other Drow's easily recognizable hood. They were passing by a particularly loud shopkeep shoving various stenches of incense in their faces when she glimpsed something she thought she recognized.
This was the same market place she had come to with her mother, why wouldn't she recognize it? But that was so long ago, no this had to be something she passed by every single time, it had to be the entrance to that shop. They were still on the outskirts of the market, so she knew it could be nearby. The thought snagged at her, captivating her with its tantalizingly nostalgic feel.
"I... know this place," she said, her head tilting to the side as she turned away from Mikaril to walk down the familiar side alley, recognizing the peculiar color of the stone used to make one side of a shop marking the alley. Her steps were slow and hesitant at first, but then she found herself gaining speed, until she was almost running towards the shop at the other side.
Skidding to a stop, she stared up at the faded and now illegible wooden sign hanging rackishly from one rusted bolt. She reached up a hand to touch it, expecting it to crumble between her fingers, instead the freyed wood sending a sliver into her fingertip. The splinter of wood remained attached to the rest of the sign as she pulled her fingertip back to place in her mouth. Her eyes were wide yet soft as she stared into the broken window, the green cloth curtains that had once been the same color as her hair now faded and tattered with holes.
She peered cautiously through a slit in the curtain, almost expecting to see her Mother and Tarien conversing at the counter as usual. But that was impossible she knew; they were both dead, the speckles of dust that drifted and settled over the abandonned counter showing no trace of disturbment except for the occassional trail from a bug or some small rodent. Shaking her head, she turned to look back and see if Mikaril had followed her or chosen the moment to escape.
Almost immediately she regretted doing so. Her eyes opened the widest they could possibly get and what color could drained from her face and sent a shiver down her spine. "What necromancy-?" she whispered, backing away from the sight of familiar seagreen bangs hanging low over sad doe-eyes that filled her vision.
The man who had watched her approach the shop and hidden further into his ragged cowl could not conceal his face, so instead turned to look in the other direction, his bare feet scraping against the dirt as he scurried out into the open market and was lost to the crowd.
Valin was still staring after him, stricken, and backing away when she found she could go no further against the old shop's front wall. The wall shifted with her weight and she tried to pull herself away from it, almost panickly realizing she had no energy to do so. Her arm reaching for something to grasp and catch her balance with, she fell backwards through the window in a shower of newly shattered wood and dusty curtain.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:28 pm
Breaking out of his state of enjoyment, Mikaril turned to look at Valin, noting that the other seemed rather nervous about being in the marketplace. Several different possibilities sprung up at once: she really was claustrophobic, she was afraid of running into someone she was hiding from, something bad had once happened to her in a marketplace, or it could be something else entirely. It gave him even more hope of gaining the advantage should the need arise for him to make a hasty exit.
He was about to reply that he didn't know of a shop right off the top of his head and that they would probably be better off browsing, when he heard her speak of knowing a place, and he whirled around in time to see Valin walking down an alley, seemingly oblivious to everything else. "Hey!" he called out, giving chase, trying to keep up as he saw Valin increase her pace.
When he saw her skid to a halt in front of a shabby-looking shop, he stopped with her and stayed a respectable distance behind her, not sure what to make of this new turn of events. Had she suddenly remembered a shop where her precious sword might be? He saw Valin's head turn and he sighed with a small measure of relief; a part of him he confessed had been worried that she had been enchanted by something that meant to caue them mischief. "Hey, what was that all ab-?" Seeing her eyes suddenly widen in fear, he whipped out his dagger and looked in the direction she was facing. Seeing nothing unusual, he turned to look back at Valin with a puzzled expression and a fersh question. He was just in time to witness her falling through the shop's rotting window. His dagger still clasped in his hand, he ran over to the gaping hole in the shop, looking to see if Valin was hurt. "Are you okay? What in the Nine Hells is going on here?!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 10:02 pm
"He's supposed to be dead!" was the first thing that blurted out of her mouth as Valin sat up and ripped the curtain from where it draped over her face. Her eyes were somewhat wildly looking about the shop, feeling that it was not a place she was supposed to be, she did not belong there any longer.
Scrambling to stand, she roughly tore the hem of her dress to get away from the windowsill. The rest of the curtain was still wrapped around her waist but she could untangle herself from that later.
"Out," she said, dashing past an overturned chair to rattle at the door knob. When it didn't unlock she backed up and charged the door with her shoulder, closing her eyes against the second large cloud of splinters and dust fell from the door as the hinges gave way to let it clatter on the ground.
She stood panting for a moment before straightening and calmly removing the curtain from its place at her waist and brushing the dust from it. Tucking it softly into her sword belt, she looked over at Mikaril to belatedly answer his question, "I'm fine, thank you, I just wanted to get a small momento."
The fear in her eyes was masked, but it still lay there, the sight of the man who could pass as Tarein yet churning inside her mind. She still denied it could be him; he was killed with her mother, he was dead. It was possible that some necromancer could have brought him back, but why would he still be here, then? Unless the necromancer was nearby... But would he remember the store? Or her? She had little to no clue about the extent to which Necromancers could do their work, only that Tarein hadn't been disposed of as her mother had.
"Um, what were we doing?" the confusion and embarassment was evident on her face at letting her mind get so scrambled that she couldn't even remember why she was in the shop's alley, or even simply in the dreaded Marketplace, "We were looking for some theives' shops." The embarassment faded a little more gradually but the confusion was gone in an instant. She waited for Mikaril to take the first steps towards exiting the alley, not entirely sure where they were going or of how Mikaril was going to react to leaving the situation behind.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
