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 Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 2:47 pm
  This is a private role play between Jianyu [Kuro-Mizuki] and Kiran [Kazu-chan].
Setting:Down on the Artisans Path, Kiran scopes out the place for some rich sucker to scam.
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Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 3:09 pm
He sat on one of the lower branches in a tree and watched the people stroll down the street of Artisans Path. None of them saw him sitting hidden among the leaves and none looked up as they passed directly under him. It was funny what secrets one could learn by catching a few bits of conversation of passersby who thought no one else would overhear them.
But no one today had anything of interest to say. Kiran huffed as he threw himself back against the trunk of the tree. He was bored, bored, bored, and no one was alleviating that boredom. He kept an eye on the people below. Surely one of them would be interesting, or perhaps gullible enough to fall for one of his tricks. He was rather low on money, having had to give most of what he had back to the person he last scammed.
Bunch of cry babies, he thought bitterly, remembering how the boy whined to his mother about losing all his money. His mother was furious when she heard about it. It wasn't his fault the boy believed him when he told him that his feet could get a fungus that would make his toes fall off. Kiran actually thought the boy wouldn't fall for it. And how was he supposed to know that something in that ointment he sold to the boy would cause an allergic reaction?
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Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 10:13 pm
"I do not like the color." Jianyu said.
The elderly woman who was standing behind the crowded, blue-clothed table folded her arms across her chest, raising one white eyebrow.
"Master Qian," she said. "This is the color you ordered from me three days ago. These arrows are made to your specifications."
Jianyu frowned, his eyebrows drawing together as he reached for the bundle. His fingers brushed against the prickly feathers at the end, dyed a brilliant orangey gold.
"Adiba," he said. "I am certain I specified a darker orange. This is too bright."
Adiba smiled, the movement creasing her wrinkled face and making her eyes crinkle pleasantly. She reached out, her small, gnarled hand covering his to close his fingers around the bundle of arrows.
"Jianyu." she said. "They are not too bright. These will do fine."
The old woman was hard to resist. Adiba had been making his arrows since he was old enough to shoot a bow, each one finely and intricately carved by hand. They were quite valuable, quite a lot of money on the Artisan's Path, but Qian Liwei was a wealthy man from his business and provided Jianyu with the alloted amount to purchase his arrows every month. Jianyu let out a soft sigh of resignation, reaching for his coin purse.
"How much?"
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Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 11:37 am
Reflecting on his last scam, Kiran knew the flaws with that kind of idea. Not everyone would fall for some kind of bogus ailment and remedy. He doubted anyone would believe him after hearing about what happened to the last boy. Word about that had surely circulated by now. He sighed, about ready to give up for the day.
Then his ear twitched, picking up on a conversation down below. Carefully, he maneuvered to a lower branch, trying not to jostle them too much and give away his position. He crouched on the branch and stared at the man talking with the elderly woman.
Hm, those are some pretty fancy arrows you're buying, Mr. Fancy Pants. Kiran knew that had to cost more than a pretty penny to buy something so finely crafted. His mouth stretched across his face into a wide grin. The man had to have a good amount of money on him to pay for those arrows.
He stroked a hand over his chin in thought. He would need something new and clever to pull one over on this man. His old tricks had blown up in his face in the past.
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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 10:18 pm
Jianyu pulled a handful of coins from his little brown bag, handing them carefully over to the old woman. Adiba smiled knowingly at him, raising an eyebrow in amusement as she handed him the arrows. Jianyu took them carefully, his fingers sliding along the smooth wood, so carefully carved and so intricately made. They really were quite amazingly done. There was no one else in Lunaria who could make such beautiful and such lethal arrows.
"Thank you, Adiba." Jianyu said, and bowed his head respectfully. The older woman simply smiled, tucking the coins into her apron pocket. Jianyu stuck his own coin purse back under the heavy black armor he was wearing, and strapping the cloth-wrapped bundle of arrows to his belt, started walking down the rest of the street. He paused every few moments to glance at a table, fingering some little object or another, but nothing in particular caught his eye.
What now, what now..? Jianyu thought. Back to the tattoo house, I imagine.
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Posted: Sun May 23, 2010 10:18 am
Kiran waited until after the man paid and walked away before he climbed down from the tree. He landed in a crouch on the ground then straightened up. He folded his arms behind his head and walked along, seeming as nonchalant as possible. He glanced briefly at the different shops, but with the little money he still had, he wouldn't be able to afford anything here.
He followed the man, the gears still turning in his head. He wouldn't get anywhere by simply trailing after the man. It helped to know the person a little before trying to trick them into giving him money. He needed to know what kind of lure would draw the person in.
Kiran picked up his pace until he caught up with the man. He tripped over his feet, stumbled, and collided into the man. "Oh, I am so sorry!"
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Posted: Sun May 23, 2010 12:17 pm
Jianyu walked carefully, slowly browsing the little miscellaneous stands. His hands gently touched select items, such as a basket of feathers he could use for his arrows, or a new knife to practice whittling his own with. Normally he found at least one small thing or another, but today Jianyu had come merely for the arrows, and anything else was simply extra.
The crowds around him were thick, people jostling back and forth as they examined the artistry on sale, haggled the prices of pottery or metalwork, laughing as they traded food for other supplies. Jianyu was a slow walker and took his time, but as he stepped towards a table covered in brightly colored cloths, someone knocked into him, causing Jianyu to stumble sideways abruptly. A young voice quickly apologized, and Jianyu turned around to see a young man who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, perhaps.
"It is all right. I am fine." Jianyu said, straightening his clothes as he glanced at the teal haired youth. "Are you all right?"
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Posted: Sun May 23, 2010 6:43 pm
Kiran took a step back and gave the man an apologetic look. "Me? I'm fine," he replied, an easy smile gracing his face. "No injuries here." He looked down like he was checking his body to make certain there wasn't some little injury he missed. "I guess I should have paid a little more attention to where I was going. I think I tripped," he glanced around at the ground but there was nothing in the vicinity that might have caused his stumble, "over something." He ended the statement lamely.
Kiran shifted his weight as his smile fell somewhat from his face. This was feeling a little more awkward than he pictured in his head. He needed a better way of opening the lines of communication with this man. He leaned forward and a little to the side, letting his gaze focus on the cloth bundle strapped to the man's belt.
"What are those you got there? Arrows?" Kiran asked, lifting his gaze up to the man's face. From his perch on the tree branch, he could tell they were good arrows, finely crafted. But he didn't care much about arrows. He doubted he would ever need to learn how to shoot a bow.
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Posted: Sun May 23, 2010 6:50 pm
It seemed as if the teal haired youth was all right. Once Jianyu had scrutinized the thin figure, he concluded that there were, in fact, no injuries to speak of, externally or otherwise. Which was a good thing, as Jianyu was not quite in the mood to have to pay for one's medical expenses.
So he gave a short nod to the younger boy and was about to turn away when he heard the question. Glancing down at the cloth bundle tied to his waist, Jianyu said "Er, yes. They are arrows. Handcrafted to my own specifications for the purpose of my training."
He raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Any particular reason as to why you are inquiring?"
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Posted: Mon May 24, 2010 9:55 am
He really should have expected a question like that. He knew he should, for it seemed like the most logical question to ask. Blinking, he felt somewhat blindsided by the question. He hadn't given much thought to what kind of answer to give before asking about the arrows.
Kiran stood up straight again as the gears swiftly twisted in his head. If he delayed his answer too long, the man would get suspicious of their encounter, if he wasn't already.
After releasing a low whistle, Kiran said, "Wow. Crafted to your own specifications? You must be a really good shot with a bow." A look of amazement graced his face, which wasn't too difficult to pull off. He imagined the man had to be good if he was paying for such expensive, handcrafted arrows.
He smiled awkwardly as he reached back a hand to rub his neck. "Gee, I don't know. I've never had the chance to try out a long range weapon before. I guess it just caught my curiosity, is all."
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Posted: Mon May 24, 2010 3:21 pm
Jianyu fingered the arrows in his hand absentmindedly, his gaze drawn to the young man standing in front of him. There was something else in his words besides admiration, but Jianyu could not quite discern what it was.
But perhaps he was overthinking things. After all, he was not exactly the best judge of character when it came to scrutinizing people in general.
"I am." Jianyu replied, his fingers sliding across the smooth wood. "A very good shot."
His eyebrows raised in slight surprise at the boy's next comment. Though it was a crowded street, with dozens upon dozens of people surrounding them, the boy was looking at the arrows with an expression of awkward excitement, as if he wanted to test them. Jianyu knew that feeling well; he had, for many years before he became an archer, wished to try shooting a bow and arrow, just once.
Although this was different, seeing as the street was quite too crowded. Jianyu said "I see. An interest in weapons is useful these days. May I inquire as to your name?"
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Posted: Mon May 24, 2010 8:12 pm
Kiran watched the man, wondering if he bought his story or not. He had trouble reading the other man's face to get a feel for what he might be thinking. In his past scams, he dealt mostly with younger boys who practically wore their thoughts on their sleeves. They were easy to read and see if the scam was being bought or not.
He bobbed his head in a quick nodded. The man had no reason to deny or hide his ability with the bow. That was definitely the lure that he needed to make this work in his favor. A contest between them perhaps. Kiran had no skills with this kind of weapon, but that wouldn't matter if he could somehow ensure that the man would miss whatever target they chose for a contest. First, though, he would need to interest the man in having a contest. Any plans he made would be useless if the man declined any suggestion of a contest.
Kiran nodded. With the war, it was good to know how to fight. "Yeah. I've only learned to fight hand-to-hand or with a blunted weapon. But a long ranged weapon might come in handy some day. It's always good to know how to at least use other types of weapons." When he thought about it, he admitted that he did like the idea of knowing how to use the bow, at least. "Kiran," he said, thrust a hand forward at the man. "And your name?"
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 1:45 pm
Jianyu arched one dark eyebrow, extending his hand to take the younger boy's. Kiran's.
"I am Qian Jianyu, son of Qian Liwei." he said. "It is good to meet you, Kiran."
The boy's knowledge and curiosity towards his bow and arrows was intriguing. Jianyu had not met many besides the young Miaoyin who had expressed any sort of interest in his archery, and he was rather pleased at this unexpected turn of events. Perhaps something might come of it, though assuming anything would be foolish. Jianyu smiled down at Kiran.
"I see. I would be interested in seeing your hand-to-hand combat, as I am not particularly good at it myself. Perhaps we could have an exchange of sorts? I provide you with an example of my archery, and you an example of your type of fighting style?"
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 7:03 pm
"Same to you, Jianyu," Kiran said as he gave a firm shake to the man's hand.
He grinned cheekily as he stared up at Jianyu. He hoped Jianyu would make an offer to show off his archery skills. It made his job much easier and also made him look less suspicious. He was surprised that Jianyu would want to learn some of his fighting style. He hadn't planned on an exchange of that nature. But he saw no reason to refuse the suggestion.
"Hey, that sounds like a great idea," he said like it hadn't occurred to him. "I'd love to try out a bow sometime."
Kiran had only ever practiced his fighting style with Uncle. But it couldn't be that hard to demonstrate a few moves to someone else. At least, he hoped so. He didn't really want to make a bad impression by looking stupid when he showed an example of his fighting.
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Posted: Fri May 28, 2010 2:11 pm
The young boy's handshake was firm, his confidence showing in that grin that spread across his face. Jianyu raised one dark eyebrow.
"I am glad that you are interested." he said, and gestured towards the end of the street. "Shall we head over that way, so as not to disturb anyone within the streets?"
Leading the way, Jianyu started to walk down the crowded Main Street, towards the more secluded side streets. Once they had reached the end, he turned sideways, and found himself in a small, quiet, empty street. He turned back to Kiran.
"Is here all right?"
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