[PRP] The Assassin & The Mercenary (Nadezhda & Garrett)

[Chrystali]

x x x x x █║ WHO: Nadezhda (musicaloner7), Garrett & Aravel (Chrystali)
x x x x x █║ WHAT: One sent for a 'job' and the other to back her up, the terrible two meet -- with an extra side of cuteness.
x x x x x █║ WHEN: Late afternoon; the sun will set soon.
x x x x x █║ WHERE: Kingsroad, east of the city.
x x x x x █║ WEATHER: Pretty darn nippy.




"Didn't I tell you not to come?"

The dark-haired man turned his vibrant green eyes to the dappled fawn at his side, fixing his scarred lips in a perplexed frown. Garrett had no idea what to do with a fawn, and it seemed the fawn had less idea what to do with him; he was, for all intents and purposes, its surrogate mother and refused to leave his side. He'd already made the mistake of pointing for the baby to go somewhere safe and promising all sorts of vicious means of making jerky out of the little guy which had only resulted in the fawn hunkering in grass that barely came to the man's ankles, ears laid low against the slope of the fawn's neck while he stared up at Garrett with those soulful, glowing gaze. With his heart thoroughly melted and the guilt still gnawing at the back of his mind with the image burned in his eyes, he'd been much nicer to the fawn ever since, which had earned him having said fawn attached to his hip.

Of course, the fawn - named Aravel, though Garrett would swear the name came to him and it was none he made himself - offered him no answer, simply looking up at him with a cocked head, oblong ears swiveled towards him attentively. The man simply sighed and rested his hand between the silly-looking ears, the action seeming to please the fawn as it nestled into his hand and inadvertently pulled him onward. "Yes, yes, we have a job to do, don't be so enthusiastic. You need to stay out of the way! The only one allowed to turn you into a snack is me, you hear?" he muttered to the fawn, giving one of the ears a gentle, if not affectionate tweak before continuing to make his way down the Kingsroad.

It was getting close to sunset; it was when he was told 'she' would be finished with the job - or was supposed to be. His only job was to make sure that she was, in fact, finishing her portion of what was instructed. He wasn't to ask questions, and it was safe to assume that the fellow that hired him wanted him as back up. If there was no woman, the job was not done. If there was, all was well with the world and he wouldn't have to bloody his blade today. Garret stopped abruptly on the side of the road, glancing upwards to a high-reaching tree that marked the bare road before it curved over a hill and out of his view. Making a soft 'tck tck!' sound with the corner of his mouth to call Aravel back to him, he lightly rubbed the fawn's nose with his index finger while he waited.

He had no doubts she'd see him if he was too absorbed with the fawn. A well-dressed man with a blade at his hip was hard to miss on the empty expanse of Kingsroad. It certainly didn't hurt he had a baby dapple-butt deer at his side, licking his fingers without a care in the world.  

[musicaloner7]

It was a typical run-of-the-mill job. One she'd done plenty of times. A simple 'Lure, and finish' type of deal. Those who would have been in the way of drawing away the proposed target had been... 'taken care of', a heavy dosage of a sleeping mixture poured into their respected drinks. Nadezhda was a little peeved that it was such a harmless intoxication this time around... poison was far more entertaining, and left for quite the show. But this was to be a clean kill, one performed by a recent hire. It wasn't uncommon for her underground group of 'classy assassins' to hire outsiders, but... at the current moment, they needed to keep themselves on the down low, and were dwindling in ruthless finishers. Luckily, this gent had been on the market, in a mere passing by from one of Nade's comrades. He was a skilled fellow, and didn't need to get the entire details of the secret organization. After all, there didn't need to be much said, just as long as there was money in the end.

Having taken a glance to a clock at the esteemed home of a rather wealthy citizen of Sunderland, Nade began her part of the congregated plan. Their customer had been a competing merchant, who'd been swindled and slandered by the gentlemen she was currently leading away from the subsiding party. The man had cost their client quite a bit of money, and customers by such dirty play... and wanted revenge. Nade was all for it, of course. She always felt good when it came to eliminating those who were far too greedy on society's bounty. Her act went so smoothly. It was almost pathetic, to her. But men like him were all the same; cocky, self-assured, and held a god complex. He'd offered to walk her home, as she expressed a need to retire for the night, due to having had such a long day... an easy excuse... He of course obliged to walk her home, as it wasn't safe for a lady to go alone at such a time of day.
She was clad in a lovely royal blue dress, a material that held a light sheen, and was bordered with delicate baby pearls along the neckline, as well as around her waist. It looked quite beautiful against her tanned skin, honey brown hair lifted into a neat bun, with a curled bang resting over one eye, and a simple ribbon tied around to add to the elegance. The entire night her chest had been eyed by the shameless man whose arm she held to in such a ladylike fashion. Indeed she was rather robust in such an area, but... it took a bit of effort to keep herself from rolling those pale olive green eyes. White laced gloves were the only other accessory she wore.. A shawl was lacking.. she'd simply forgotten to bring one. And it was growing chilly out... Cursing herself internally for such a mistake, while the dead-to-be yammered on about... something or other... roses? a new estate? she was starting to let her mind wander as she causally searched for the man who was to complete this task.

The duo had gotten to the checkpoint required, a semi-distant figure easily picked out. Nade put on her sweet, charming smile, and looked up to the foolish man, arm releasing from his to walk a little ahead, "I do hope you won't be angered with me, dear sir, but.. I believe I can--" before she was able to finish, his arms had wrapped around her waist, and pulled her quite firmly to him in an unwanted embrace. He'd pulled her behind a large crop of untamed brush to the side, an area quite hard to see if one hadn't seen them disappear there. Stiffening, Nade's eyes flickered up to his again, a hint of irritance glinting. He grinned in such a lewd manner, kissing along the back of her neck, hands wandering...

"Come now, sweetheart..." he crooned in a husky tone, fingers brushing along the lined pearls along her navel, "No need to be so formal. My house isn't too far from here.. or perhaps... out here, is just fine.." his hands grew more dangerously close to area's that the woman did not desire.. struggle was pointless.

Remaining completely still, she clenched her teeth firm behind lightly flushed lips. She'd dealt with these types before... and it often meant she had to take care of them, if her backup didn't. But this guy was getting uncomfortably close to.. Taking a slow breath, eyes closing, she forced the lightest of smiles onto her lips, hand lowering to hike up her dress slowly. Of course this excited the perv further, making him hum his pleasure. That wouldn't last long...
Reaching her hip, a small blade was drawn that'd been strapped to it, and skillfully aimed right towards his family jewels, "I suggest you keep your hands to yourself, sir... or you may lose a bit more than just your pride..." she warned in a sickeningly sweet tone, the blade pressing enough to make him feel it's sharp edge. Perhaps that help would come soon enough, and she wouldn't have to deal with getting her hands dirty... as much as she'd like to, her brother warned the dangers of a woman being caught of murder.  

[Chrystali]

He was generally an alert fellow, but the fawn was more so, given the innate sense of survival. Seeing Aravel's ears suddenly flicker upwards and the sleek head turning down the road, Garrett's dilute-lime eyes followed, distinguishing the distant forms within seconds. "That's a good sign," he informed the deer who had resumed nipping at his hand, "I like a lady who knows the value of being on time. Come along, then." Rolling his shoulder in preparation, he pushed himself away from the tree and began his lackadaisical approach, hardly anything special outside of the deer that bounced and wobbled at his side. From a distance, the fawn probably looked little more than a leggy dog, and in truth it was the manner of the beast: all play and little sense of where he did and didn't belong.

And then the plan seemed to change. The two were suddenly off the road and into obscuring shrubbery, putting the mercenary on full alert. "Aravel," he said in a stern tone with his hand out, indicating the deer should stay put, even as the baby gleefully nipped at his fingers again. Unable to spare anymore time lest the woman's life be in danger, he quickly jogged down the length of the lonesome road, dust pluming at his heels with each step taking him closer to his destination. Garrett stopped abruptly just out of sight, making sure it wasn't the woman who had done the pulling - and judging by the crooning tone he could hear, it seemed the woman's life wasn't in danger, but something else was entirely.

He was as much a pig as any other man and more on the best of days, but he also had a firm set of morals and lines in the sand that were never meant to be crossed: man-handling a woman was certainly in both of those categories. Garrett saw red, and with a few quick strides, he threw aside the brush with one arm, the other drawing his blade with a silver whisper. Gripping the man's hair, he hurled him backwards, not giving him any amount of time to even catch his breath before the sharp blade rested snug against the hollow of his throat. Even against the shadowed portion of the foliage, he could see the drop of blood that marred his weapon of choice.

"Goodness, but what vile manner of slop do we have here? And don't bother to answer - if you breathe a word - no, if you do so much as intake too deep a breath, I will cut out any word you might have thought to utter." Garrett knew his orders, he knew well what was expected of him - but he had a heart. He wasn't a ruthless killer, just a well paid one. Pressing his foot against the attacker's jewels in another promise of pain should the man do so much as twitch, he kept his eyes forward while he spoke to the woman he had not yet seen. "My lady, would you like to do the honors or would you rather I parted this waste of flesh from the mortal coil?"

He was only dimly aware of Aravel, snug between the shrubs and laying down, awaiting the danger to pass. Though he wasn't sure gore wasn't something to impress upon a fawn's memory, he would have rather spared the little one given a choice.  

[musicaloner7]

She was so used to these types... the one's who liked to try and assert their dominance on those deemed 'weaker' than they. It was a pathetic attempt to boost their lame ego's, and give them false confidence. Of course, it was rare that such a man got away with acting so disgustingly in Nade's presence. She could feel that hot breath and slick tongue grace along her smooth shoulder, traveling along her neck. A cringe was withheld, but also converted into a hidden rage. The man paused in his enjoyment as that blade was pressed to him, glancing down to see the twinkling silver wink at him. He smirked at first, and tightened his grip, to croon heavily against her ear, his hips pressing forward to tease the blade and woman,

'Oh yeah..? you know how to use that, missy..?' he hissed, words like mud dripping off a ledge.

But a response wasn't needed from her, as a sudden intrusion changed the entire situation. Thank goodness. The mercenary's arrival couldn't have been anymore perfect, Nade moving swiftly out the way as the perverse mane was handled, smoothing down her dress some, and lifting her sleeve that'd been pushed down by the creep. She maintained a calm and collected demeanor, their target clearly stunned by the sudden arrival of the armed man. He sputtered and spat in anger, arms lifting to try and pry away the grip that held him so firmly, but ceased as that threat pressed to his throat. That ugly face of his scrunched up in a hideous snarl, lips twitching from aggravation, and nervousness.
He spat a few inappropriate curses and insults to Nade, which didn't phase the women at all. It was a childish attempt at gaining the upper hand. Trying to bring her down by empty words. Hah! What a laugh... She turned, and approached the man whose life was soon to end, a slight wry grin curving on her flushed lips. This was her favorite part... her favorite look... when the prey knew it wouldn't be lasting very long.. when distress settled in, and desperation kicked up. What a opportune moment....

Garrett's words made her line of thought pause, however, her own pale olive green eyes slipping over to look to him curiously. Was he really offering her to end this man's life? It was ever so tempting... her brother wouldn't be happy about it... Staring at Garrett for a moment, she smiled faintly, and stepped close enough to be just beside him, "I believe we can both have a little retribution on this swine, don't you think?" she replied. Who knew when she'd be able to have this chance to finish off her kill personally...
With a little bit of internal encouragement, she took the plunge. Her dagger was sent straight forward into the man's gut, piercing without a problem through layers of clothing, and into that tender flesh, peeling it apart to puncture the vulnerable innards. The man grunted, and gagged roughly, but Nade twisted her blade to seep in further, moving the hilt to make the metal slice a little more. Quickly, she retracted her weapon, and took some of the end slack of the target's shirt to wipe the blood off, "That is all I can afford to do, mercenary. Thank you." she casually spoke, stepping back to allow the finale step be taken, enjoying the groveling man's suffering. If only she had been born a man.... then this could be a regular ritual... Unfortunately, she couldn't watch the execution be committed, as she had to stand watch for the 'clean up' crew to show up, keeping hidden behind the rather conveniently placed shrubbery, eyes alert to the road. Her dress was hiked up again so the blade could return to it's rightful place, any evidence of her joining in the kill concealed  

[Chrystali]

"If you don't watch your tongue, sir, I'd be more than happy to remove it for you." The mercenary was in no mood to be playful just then, finding the man's treatment of the woman - even if she was an assassin - to be most grotesque. Garrett didn't book any piss-poor treatment to the fairer sex, even if said woman could likely castrate the both of them with a glance. It was the principle of the thing. He tilted his head as he sensed the woman step nearer, offering her a smile that was entirely charming and without the malice his expression had held mere seconds before. "Ladies first," he offered, releasing the man from his hold as the dagger nested itself within the mark's gut. "That's got to sting." A faint smirk curved his scarred lips as he allowed a brief glance to the woman's back - and backside - appreciative both of her vindictive move and the way the dress seemed to hug her curves in the most distracting manner possible.

As the dagger withdrew, he closed his eyes only briefly, his blade still pointed with deadly precision to the bleeding man's neck. "I saw nothing, my lady." Smiling to himself until he could hear her footsteps behind him, he then opened his humorless green eyes, the expression slowly twisting into a darker, unpleasant one. Moving behind the man with careful steps to avoid stepping in the blood, he pushed the culprit onto his stomach, gripping his hair so his neck was exposed, the blade pressed beneath the jugular to ensure the head was tilted upwards to look at the assassin's retreating figure. Garrett appreciated irony, and that she was to be the last thing he saw was only fitting. "I don't generally enjoy killing," he murmured, "but I always make an exception for swine like you." Calling to the assassin before she was out of earshot, he added breezily, "Don't mind the deer, he's with me." And with that, Garrett pulled his blade to finish his end of the deal.


As if on cue, the fawn lifted his head from between the shrubbery, poking over the leafy greens to stare wide-eyed at the woman on her approach. His own lightly glowing eyes made the rest of the greenery dull by comparison, his soft pelt decorated with stray leaves and a twig or two. Large velveteen ears flickered upwards and then to the side, dimly aware of a strange noise behind her but not so interested in it as he was in the sweet smelling human in front of him. Aravel flicked his small bob of a tail and carefully, awkwardly backed out of the bushes, all legs at skewed and crossed angles that promptly made him fall on his dappled backside. With his back legs sprawled in front of him, the front crossed over and sitting on his hind end, he looked very much baffled.

Blinking the glowing green orbs at the woman, one ear stood straight at attention and the other wavered to the side uncertainly. His human seemed to have no problem with her but he was not certain what to think with the hostility in the air so thick he could taste it with his long tongue. Licking his nose as if to sample the danger, he untangled his legs and began the arduous task of getting back to his hooves, offering a soft bleat to Nade.  

[musicaloner7]

A small bubbling of adrenaline couldn't help but rush through Nade's veins. It was so invigorating... being apart of the kill... She was thankful of the mercenary's truce, as her brother or any of the other men finding out about her involvement would surely give her a stern lecturing and punishment. All she could hear now was the gurgling and weak groaning of the dead man to be, as well as the swordsman's smooth words slipping with such ease. He knew what he was doing, that much was clear. But oh how she envied him..

Her attention was firmly directed on the path, but quickly deterred by some rustling. The man's words... a deer? Suddenly, just below her, there were a pair of brilliant eyes gazing upwards. A moment of surprise took to her, but didn't show asides from the slight lift of manicured eyebrows. A little fawn... Slowly, she lowered down, hiking her dress up some to remove some of the resistance, and got to the level of the baby. How odd.. She had one of these too. It arrived, soon after she'd found that strange totem. Of course the stories about the guardian's were well known along her group of assassin's, and the majority of them believed in it; including her. So this swordsman was a chosen one too? Watching the fawn fumble about, Nade had to press her lips to keep from smiling too much, or giggling at it's adorable antic's. After all, there was a job being taken care of! Speaking of which, her gaze flickered up as she heard footsteps. As she looked upon the beaten path, she could see a few passerby's that were not those of her underground society. But she remained calm, and thankful for the shrubbery cover that the merc and the dead man now had. Instead, she played the part of a curious woman finding a fawn, arm outstretching to offer a hand to the youngster, cooing softly to it as well in an encouraging tone. The civilians passing by gave a small glance to her, one woman smiling, but didn't stop as they left from their own event to return home.

Once the coast became clear, Nade let her eyes focus more on the fawn again, gently petting his soft nose, "You remind me of my little fawn.." she murmured, other hand lifting to brush her bangs back from blocking her vision of the buck. It made her a bit curious of the help they'd hired, making her peek back at him, as well as the bleeding body. Did that mean this guy was 'special' too? She didn't look at him for too long before she looked to the path again, seeing just who she'd been waiting for. Giving the fawn a soft stroke along the smooth bridge of his nose, to his head where either ear was gently scritched, she stood up fluidly. Hands pressed along her dress to flatten it out, bangs falling back along the side of her face. There were three figures, all dressed as farmers after a long day's work. They approached her, giving a nod of their heads, and tip of their hat. Returning the gesture, she watched as they walked around her, to join Garrett. One gave his hand to the man in thanks for his work, while pulling a coinpurse from his belt. The other two got to work wrapping up the carcass in a thick, large burlap slab of cloth. It could easily be mistaken for venison this way. The mercenary was thanked for his work, the blood on the grass stomped and rubbed out, and the trio went on their way. One did pause by Nadezhda to give a whisper into her ear, which she responded to with a nod, and the men were off.

She stayed behind however, pale green eyes lowering to those that glew so lovely in the brush, "How long have you had this little one?" she asked in a somewhat soft tone; effected by the baby deer's presence.  

[Chrystali]

And the fawn's attention was wholly for the lady Assassin, his light green eyes watching her with keen interest. His stance was a little uncertain and more than trembling at best, but he was young and not used to staying put. The gentle coo and the soft scent of her fine clothing piqued the fawn's interest and, though his Chosen had told him to stay put, the Guardian pressed his nose into the curved crook of her palm. She smelled nice enough and though the danger was still palpable, he felt no sense of needing to flee from her or the situation; his Chosen and the lady had it under control and that was good enough for him.


Garrett noted that Aravel was rather taken with Nade and truly, he did not blame his small charge, as though he had not seen her face clearly yet, there was plenty else to keep a man's eyes busy. Professionally squashing the smile that came with the thought, he helped the three 'farmers' the best he could - mostly by keeping out of their way, he knew better - and accepting the hand and coin with a bow of his head and a quick, quiet explanation of what happened so they'd know the job was done and done well. The mercenary gave the departing three a polite bow, watching them go before the woman's voice drew him back to reality. The body was gone, the job finished, but if the lady wanted to speak further to him, who was he to decline? Sheathing his blade, he took slow steps across the grass so as to not disturb it en route to her side, his own light green eyes lowering to meet his Guardian's glowing ones.

"Three days," he answered her question, "though it feels like a few lifetimes. He's a bit slow in learning how to walk properly but you'll never see a better bounder and frolicker in all your days." The young fawn seemed content to lean against the woman's side, allowing Garrett to finally look at the woman he'd been hired to help. "You' seem unsurrrp--" The word remained unfinished in his mouth for a moment, one part of his scarred lips pulled downwards to start the next syllable though seeming to not be able to function well enough to do so. The mercenary had had no idea the Assassin would be so...beautiful and it took him several more heartbeats of dumbfounded staring before the smooth-talker could pull his tongue off the floor to speak again. "Ahem. Unsurprised. You seem very unsurprised that there's a deer following me around." Politely clearing his throat, he offered another dazzling smile, complete with the megawatts of flirtation now fully behind it. Just because he had his eye on another didn't mean he couldn't appreciate the woman's lovely assets, now did it? "Forgive my blunder, I hadn't gotten a good look at you until now, my lady. I suppose that's fortunate as I likely would have taken my time gutting the pig who offended you so and ruined the whole job. Such a power you have, hm?" And he grinned, lightly teasing. The last thing he wanted to do was fall into the same category of slavering men who disrespected the Assassin simply because her looks were killer enough without any blade or poison.

It was only then that it occurred to him that he had no idea who he was addressing. He might have been a blade for hire and a shameless flirt, but he did have manners -- or so he liked to think. "Apologies! Here I am, gilding your beauty with mere words and I've not a thought enough in my head to introduce us! My name is Garrett Wiese, and this lovely fellow is Aravel. Say hello, Ara."


The deer - who had not left the Assassin's side - tilted his head back and pressed his nose to her hip, ears turned upwards with interest. Her presence was so much more different than his Chosen's that he was intrigued, and as any child does when fascinated, his attention was entirely held with the rest of the world ignored - Garrett included.


The man sighed and gave his Guardian a look, complete with slightly lofted brow and a purse of his lips. "Your turn to woo the lady, hm? Touche, I've taught you too well."  

[musicaloner7]

Thoroughly taken by the sweet little fawn, Nade didn't give all that much attention to Garrett when he lowered down to their level. The compliments went on deaf ears, as she was now numb to such pleasant words due to her trade. Men always spoke such lies, in her eyes, to her. It was normal, anyway. Buttering up women seemed to be the way for a male to get bedded anyway. But her pale olive green eyes were soft and warm towards Aravel, nimble fingers stroking the smooth head of the baby, gently curling around an oversized ear to give a tender scratching to. "What a sweet boy you are~" she whispered to him, as if to keep such affectionate words from Garrett's earshot. After all, she couldn't allow him to see her being too mushy around the youngster.

Once the mercenary was done with his rambling, her hand drifted down the fawns neck to follow along his back, admiring the markings he possessed. Much more natural coloured than her own guardian. Giving a light pat to the back of Aravel's neck, she finally let her gaze shift to Garrett, free gloved hand lifting to push back her persistent locks once more. Ignoring the majority of his babbling, she went onto the important area of the conversation, and replied appropriately, "Thank you for your work, Mr. Wiese. The job was successfully fulfilled without trouble. I hope the pay is enough to satisfy you." her tone was a bit... detached, as if only speaking out of duty, not necessity. But her hand on the fawn continued to give affection, finger tips petting the delicate fur, and almost embracing the small deer to her side. "I am Nadezhda Derevenko." her hidden accent began swiftly apparent as she introduced herself, to which she just as quickly, but smoothly, continued on in her forced cover up, "I have a fawn like this of my own." she tacked in. Eyes that had drifted off from the mercenary now lifted to look past the brush towards where her three comrades had come from. "He's hidden right now, over there." her head gave a slight tip in said direction.

As if on cue, a tiny bleat could be heard. It was weak, and shaky, thus only able to reach the assassin's ears due to familiarity. Almost like a deer, she perked up a little. He was growing anxious.... Glancing to Aravel again, she gave the baby a stroke down his head to his back again, before slowly lifting to her feet once more. Smoothing out her dress, she stared intently towards the direction of her awaiting guardian, "He doesn't do well alone.." she commented quietly. Without much else of a warning, she gracefully stepped around the crouched man to head towards the thin street just beside them. Glancing down either side, she calmly made her way to the back of the building that was stationed just across. Behind it was a thick amount of brush, to where she paused beside. With some soft encouragement, a tiny fawn clumsily stumbled out, instantly pressing itself to Nade. The tiny body was trembling terribly, tail flickering about fervently, head burrowing as much as it could to the soft dress. Muffled, pathetic bleats would sound before the woman knelt to calm her precious companion, giving the same attention to him as she had to Aravel. Soon enough, Serkan became more stable, and his shaking lessened. Once she felt the fawn was more comfortable, she slowly rose again, and headed back for Garrett and Aravel. Serkan was hot on her heels, keeping firmly pressed to her side, as he stumbled along, giving a soft nervous bleat as he spied two unknown figures. His gait slowed a little, before he quickly caught back up to Nade's side, peering at the man first, then the fellow deer with fully alert ears.

Once she was close enough, Nade introduced the baby, "This is Serkan. He's a bit shy.." she explained, murmuring a few encouraging words to the fawn. Serkan hid a little behind her, but was quite intent on staring at Aravel, giving a meek little bleat to him out of curiosity.  

[Chrystali]

Garrett knew that frozen reception well enough - most women who were pretty already knew it or heard it more often than they cared to with malicious intent behind it; the man they had offed was no different. However, the mercenary had meant nothing more than to confirm what she already knew, and when she rejected his words, he hardly took it personal. Quite the opposite, in fact, as his silence followed her gentle treatment of his Guardian and how her body language didn't quite match her tone. She was a fascinating woman - this Nadezhda Derevenko - and he would have done himself a great disservice to have not at least spoken of her beauty with honesty. With that done and her chilled reception being the pace that their conversation would proceed at, he was content to learn with no less a playful look. "My pleasure to make your acquaintance then, my Lady Derevenko."

When she indicated a fawn of her own, Garrett stood again and looked towards the indicated spot, though he made no motion to investigate on his own. Aravel also seemed to understand, though he was far more content to remain beneath the woman's affection, his glowing eyes lidding into soft plumes of green. The mercenary could almost hear his Guardian's unspoken cry of sadness when Nadezhda ceased to stroke his fur and instead crossed the road, the mildly jealous deer ambling over to his Chosen and leaning against Garrett's leg in a sullen manner. Both males watched the Assassin in silence as she was joined by a zealous deer with a pale coat and burgundy socks, a rather fetching fellow that the man could admire. Aravel was also alert and interested, not entirely able to see the deer from his shorter vantage, but aware that something was happening.

When the two returned, the fawn's entire frame stiffened as if he'd not be seen, even as his eyes widened and his ears quivered with excitement. He'd never seen one of his own - he was three days old, after all - but this was thrilling! Without preamble or even waiting for permission, Aravel approached the lighter fawn and abruptly pressed his pale nose to Serkan's own, his bob tail flicking and waving around as though it contained all the happiness he was trying not to display. His bid for containment failed, and with a gleeful toss of his head, the dappled fawn bounded straight up in the air, stumbling to the side as he landed but immediately bouncing again. True to Garrett's warning previously, he hit his stride with each leap, slender legs tucking against his body each time he was airborne and landing with a neat press of hooves in the soil and grass before taking off again. He came to a stop a short ways away, legs sprawled as though he could barely keep himself upright, ears held up and his gaze entirely held to Serkan. He wanted to play!

Garrett watched all three in silence, his expression one of quiet musing. It was nice to see Aravel so eager to meet one of his own, but he wasn't sure that Serkan's withdrawn demeanor would take well to his Guardian's adventurous ways. Because the other fawn was watching his own, the mercenary made no move to offer his own hand for a sniffed greeting, thinking he might spook the boy more than be welcome. "He's beautiful," the man finally commented after his extended silence, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "A very appeasing champagne-to-wine coloring, I'd no idea they'd come so varied." It was odd - he'd never talked about that day in the forest - and now that the option was available to him, it was as though the words were no longer available to him. "I noticed the other totems were of so many colors and hues and whorls, but I didn't think they'd be so stunning."

He could almost feel Aravel's sudden stare, though he knew the fawn couldn't understand him. ...or rather, he thought he couldn't understand him. To save face and a possible set of hoof-prints in his arse later, Garrett glanced over to his dappled Guardian and grinned lop-sidedly. "Not that you're not beautiful, mon ami, but those who possess such beauty deserve to hear it, yes?" His own vibrant green eyes flicked only briefly to the Assassin before settling on the deer again. She seemed to be more comfortable talking about them - or at least, addressing them and their presence - and he'd do well to make the lady happy. Assassin or not, she was a woman and he'd give her the consideration of anyone who had just been through what she had.  

[musicaloner7]

Serkan's gaze was locked onto Aravel, eyes unblinking, tiny body ceasing to tremble. His ears wavered almost in the same notion as the other bucks, pricking firmly when their noses connected. He flinched at first, giving a surprised bleat, but didn't recoil from the touch, instead giving a soft snort from the tickle that Aravel's nose gave his own. As the more boisterous fawn showed the clear display of childish behavior, it rubbed off onto the timid Serkan, making him give a merry, but soft, bleat in response to the show the dark stag gave. Still not the best at getting his hooves in order, he stumbled after Aravel, leaping over to join in the joyful play. There were plenty of times he would slip though, only to frantically collect himself, and push on to meet his equals stance... leaning forward to give a shy little nosing. Perhaps he was being a bit more affectionate than playful, but he was going off of what he knew.

As Nade watched, she was finding it extremely difficult to keep up her front. Inside she was tickled with amusement, a smile lifting more than she'd like onto ripened lips. Her hands clasped before her in a natural lady-like fashion, resting just above her waist, fingers fiddling idly with the lace texture on an opposing palm. She'd never seen Serkan so lively before...! It was, in a sense, relieving. She'd always worried that the youngling would be fragile, and scared his entire life, but seeing this was assuring to the young Assassin. Perhaps he'd outgrow it.. or at least grow a bit more resilient. With the compliments aimed towards her fawn, she had no problem in accepting them, "Thank you. Aravel is very striking as well. His markings remind me of what one would see on a horse. But he wears them well." she stated with a very small sliver of awe in her tone. Watching the two fawns play was very enjoyable and was clearly putting her in a semi-lax mood.

At the mention of the totems her eyes flickered to Garrett with a curious expression, before returning to the frolicking babies, "So you saw them too.." she murmured. He was the first, beside herself, that she'd met who also had a fawn, and had encountered the totems. That must mean he was in the forest at one point too... It just made her wonder all the more how many others had obtained the same experience as well... and what kind of people. Was there a pattern? Were those chosen special in some way? She'd never considered herself anything out of the ordinary... besides being a trained assassin... but there were tales of pirates who were probably as ruthless, and much more brazen than her organization. And this Garrett fellow, well... he just seemed like any other run of the mill gent. They had nothing in common... thus the choosing surely must be at random.

Bounding about ungracefully, Serkan would happily press his nose to Aravel in a nuzzle, tiny tail flickering about blissfully, already taken by the other youngsters outgoing personality. In watching them for so long, Nade had to lift a hand to place the tips of her slender finger tips to cover her lips in a gesture to hold back the giggles that wanted to surface. She bit the edge of the inside of her bottom lip to refrain from doing so, especially as the beginnings of a chuckle had tried to peep up. But while Serkan was doing his best to keep up with his new pal, he tripped up on his own long legs, and tumbled forward, landing on his chest, with his rump in the air. He gave a shocked bleat, and laid there defeatedly, hind quarters trying to tap around the ground, but soon giving up... and just accepting his embarrassment.  

[Chrystali]

The fawn's sheer joy at his new playmate was almost palpable in the air, and surely, the mercenary was being wildly assaulted with colors and images that Aravel tried to convey in his glee. With Serkan responding positively to him, he could scarcely press a return to the gentle nosing before he was bounding again, excitement choosing that he do his best with his body language to show his new friend how happy he was to meet him. The darker male was only somewhat used to affection from Garrett, but the idea of others extending such a warmth was new and thrilling to him -- especially one of his own kind!

The mercenary allowed a smile to form where the assassin would not, both because of the fawn's antics and because he could see Nade trying to keep her mirth at bay. Garrett understood her a little better then, the type of woman who would want to keep such warmth hidden, though he was as unlike her as could possibly be. To the compliment shared of his own Guardian, the Chosen chuckled a bit more openly than the lady. "That he does! It was odd, to find that the being that called to me so loudly was so muted as a relic, especially to see how vibrant he is now. I thought I had a lot of energy but this boy...he tests me." The dark-haired man laughed a little as the two continued their merry jaunt, mere feet from where he had bled a man to death. It was hard to recall even then that there'd been a scene of viciousness, but the knowledge of what he was was never very far from his mind.

"Indeed, I saw very many, though I saw only one, if that makes sense." Lifting a hand to rub at his jaw, he took a few languid steps around Nade - a fair distance behind her - and coming to a pause within arm's reach at her side. Garrett's attention remained on the deer, then, his flirty nature momentarily quelled in favor of the woman's preferences. "I'm not sure I'd ever been so disjointed in my life. Did it pull you?" His green eyes wavered as though they'd move to the assassin, but Serkan's sudden splaying fall kept his gaze away. He smiled a little at the deer's stumble, but having seen Aravel in a similar position for the entire first day of his birth, he didn't feel the need to laugh at the other's misfortune. "It was like a vice," he continued thoughtfully, simply wanting to air out what he remembered and dispel the feeling for good, "a one true demand. Had I been a religious man..." The mercenary shrugged, leaving the statement unfinished. Nade was a smart woman; some things simply went without saying.

Aravel, for his part, found the spill intensely amusing for the same reasons his Chosen did. Undaunted by the splayed limbs of Serkan, the dappled youth wobbled over to the lighter male and promptly tucked his legs beneath his body, laying down at his side. Pleased that he'd gotten the seemingly hesitant fawn to play with him at all, he arched his neck over and gave him a grooming pass of affection, thanking him for their game.