.How Kilah Met Lilly. Part One
Akilah had a lot of bad habbits. Drinking wasn't one of them. Which, if one were to follow her daily routine, would find absolutely amazing. Without a doubt, every day, the teenager ended up in the same bar. It had been a daily occurence for months now. She couldn't really remember what had made her enter the place to begin with. --Oh, right she was looking for someone. Lyrus, wasn't it? He had some fondness for alcohol she didn't share, so it would be logical to check a place that's main focus was to distribute it. Sango hadn't been very happy about letting her enter 'a place like this'.
She also wasn't happy when Akilah began going their daily, following the footsteps of the Cait she was quickly becoming as dependant on as she had been with Gizmo when she was younger, without even realizing it. After a few weeks when Akilah returned, completely sober, Sango had let the matter drop, silently giving her younger sister permission to venture into the smokey building whenever she wanted without risk of pestering.
The bartender was a woman named Yufa. A straight one. For that, Kilah was thankful (even if she wouldn't admit it out loud). She knew without Yufa telling her (which she did) that any slightly buzzed male who stumbled around the place, at some point, set to staring at her. Or parts of her, anyway. There had been times she'd thought about just beating Chaco senseless (since it was easy to agree with that little voice in her head that told her large--ahem--chest area, was his fault) as punishment for them. Nothing but trouble, them.
Aside from the annoying stares that seemed to bother Yufa more than Kilah herself and the occasional slurred comment, it wasn't much of an issue within the four walls of the structure Kilah had developed some odd affinity for, mostly during those two weeks Sango had defied her presence in the place. It made her inner-self grin wider to anger Sango more than even Twila, and Kilah herself wasn't sure why that was.
It was what she had been musing over when a man--a particularly drunk man--had stepped over the ignorable boundry of comments and stares. The a*****e had touched her. Just a hand on the shoulder, but it was enough. Kilah had her personal space, and even very few of her closest friends were tolerated when crossing it. A stranger in some bar was not a person she'd even think once about striking.
Where it hurt.
The intoxicated man stumbled and fell back, hands clutching his groin as he rolled in pain on the floor. Meanwhile, behind the counter, Yufa roared with laughter, and the Sin'aeis found herself almost wishing she found the situation as funny. It had just pissed her off. Made her angry on a day that actually was going alright. Below her feet she heard Cricket hiss threateningly.
It wouldn't have been a surprise to Kilah, or to anyone in the bar who had been staring at the both of them at that point, if the man had got up and either tried to strike her back, or even continue his attempt at flirting. It was a relief to everyone when, after finally finding his footing, he just stumbled out the door, grumbling under his breath. "I'm not suppose to allow fights in here, you know," Yufa said, half-joking. Kilah, on the other, was completely serious.
"Are you throwing me out, then?"
"Hey, hey!" the woman said, holding her hands out as if she was going to be hit, too. "I didn't say that. Chill, will ya?" The only response she got was a grunt. Kilah breathed in relief. It would have been annoying to have to go find another place like this. She wasn't fond of drunk people, but she was even less fond of her family, and any opportunity to get away from them for hours was a welcomed one. Now, what had she been thinking about?
Right. Sango. The goodie-goodie justice girl. She wasn't so great, Kilah reasoned, even if she couldn't think of any reasons as to why that was true. Beside her, someone sat down, and Kilah ignored them until the individual spoke up. "You handle yourself quite well for someone--"
"Who's blind," Kilah finished grudgingly. Lacking sight she had mostly gotten over. As much as anyone could. It was the pity, or the amazement people had when they learned how much she did, that was annoying. "Yes, I do plenty. I'd have sliced that guys head off if he came back over here. Is that all you wanted or do you have some pick-up line to go along with it?"
"Well, well, you're very...fiery." The voice was amused. If Kilah could see, as Yufa could, she would have also observed the man. His hair was a mix of black and grey, short and well-groomed. Obviously a senior, his muscular build was impressive. That michevious glitter in his eyes made Yufa wary of him, however, as did the suit he wore. It usually happened that the ones dressed fancy in a place like this had some trouble to start. He could have very well been doing just that, and even as she cleaned the glass, Yufa would lift her gaze to observe the two, staying close enough to listen to the two over the various conversations that had flared back up behind them, now with the added vigor of, 'Did you see how she took that guy out?!'
The Sin'aeis leaned her head on the palm of her hand, elbow planted on the counter. What had become her favorite 'phrase' got plenty of use during her visits. "Piss off."
"Hm. Perhaps not fiery. Maybe you're just rude." The nameless man noticed the attention Yufa was paying to him. He ordered a drink, an oddly named one Kilah didn't recognize (though her knowledge pretty much stretched from 'beer' to 'wine'), and then she felt him shift in his seat. Back to facing her. "I'm hiring some people for a job of mine."
The reply was swift and sounded automatic, as if she'd hardly been listening. "Not interested."
"I figured you'd say that, but I'm not sure you understand just how much this job is worth." Now, she was listening. Her head tilted to the left, ever so slightly. As he had noticed Yufa, the strange took notice of the motion, and continued, "It's an assassination job. You seem to be somebody who wouldn't mind getting their hands dirty, if that sword you've been clutching since I began talking to you says anything."
There was a pregnant pause, and then, "What's the name?"
"Lilly Ghardian. I have reason to believe she's here, in this place called Gaia, somewhere," the man answered.
"And who the hell are you?" Kilah distantly asked. Violent though she may be, she was not mindlessly so. Not enough to go off and stab some enemy of a stranger.
"My name is Dilanda." Another pause. "It's 2 million gold." If she'd been capable of it, Kilah would've blinked. Both hands fell toward the counter and she faced him.
"What?"
"2 million gold. That's what I'll pay to whoever takes this woman out. She's good, I warn you. To be honest, you are not the first nor will you be the last person I will approach on this subject." Kilah leaned back in her chair, that look of thoughtfulness that got oh-so-little use on her face.
"How do I know you won't cheat me once this lady is dead?"
"Again, being honest, I don't think you can kill her. You may have taken some drunk out, and swords are very pretty, but you're still blind, and young along with it. None the less, it'll be a good idea to throw as many people as possible at her to wear her out. Do you understand?" Dilanda spoke smoothly, his tone never going down or up, even if the surrounding area became louder. It was a good thing Kilah had such good hearing.
"I understand you're a moronic jackass, Dilanda." Kilah stood up, finally releasing the grasp she'd had on the handle of her most prized weapon. "I'll take this lady out, whoever she is. If you don't pay me for doing it, I'll take you out, too. What's your problem with this chick, anyway?"
"Ah, that's my business," Dilanda scolded. The teenager didn't seem to care, and shrugged to prove it. "And what is your name, blind stranger?"
"Akilah." The reply was a curt one. A small, furry, cat-like creature scurried out from under her and led the way out of the building. Yufa gave Dilanda a look of dissaproval as he chuckled.
The prideful ones were always the easiest...
